History Of The Loquat

Loquats, 'Eriobotrya japonica,' are documented to have been grown in Japan around 1100 AD. Some botanists have suggested that the first plantings of the loquat trees may have come from China originally and later were introduced into Japan.

The loquat tree was widely distributed in Europe after 1712, but early records show that it came to the United States in the mid-1800's.

This prolific plant is now established firmly as a seed-borne naturalized fruit tree in hundreds of countries, even in the Southern United States, where it readily grows after the seed sprout from bird-planted visitations after eating the loquat fruit directly from the trees.

Loquat fruit in the South is most commonly known as the "Japanese Plum," but in Texas, its less common name is the "Chinese Plum."

The loquat tree when mature can grow 35 feet tall; however, the softwood in the limbs and trunk will self-prune the tree to lower heights after experiencing the heavyweight of huge fruit crops.

Most plant parts of the loquat tree are covered with fuzzy little hairs except on the trunk of the tree, where they are replaced by smooth bark. The loquat fruit itself is covered with these fuzzy little hairs much like the fuzz on the skin of a peach.

The fruit of the loquat is bright yellow on the skin and the pulp on the inside. Some rare cultivars originating from Japan may develop an orange skin and a white pulp.

Inside the pulp is a 2-3 cluster of large brown seeds that are easily removed from the edible, interior, tasty layers of the loquat.

The fruit size of loquats is 2 inches or less and the shape and taste are similar to that of a kumquat fruit, perhaps a little less acidic and sweeter than a mature kumquat.

The delicious, juicy taste of the loquat fruit rivals any common fruit, and preserved jams is a treat to be remembered when eaten on hot buttered toast.

Because of the fuzzy skin surrounding the loquat fruit, many gardeners prefer to peel off the fuzz before eating fresh or before preserving to use in pies or gourmet dishes.

The leaves of a mature loquat tree vary considerably in size, usually ranging from six to twelve inches in length and the dark-green waxy leaves are prominently bisected with recessed leaf veins.

In the fall around Thanksgiving holidays, the loquat tree loads itself with clusters of one-inch white flowers, which are extremely fragrant and especially pleasing when trees are planted near patio entertainment centers.

The loquat fruit can begin to ripen in South Georgia as early as February and March and in an extended ripening period, depending on the weather, the loquat may continue to ripen into June.

The loquat has been designated on some websites as only capable of producing fruit in areas south of Jacksonville, Florida, but this is incorrect.

Loquats produce fruit reliably every year throughout Southern Georgia and coastal areas up to North Carolina. The loquat trees have survived low temperatures of zero degrees Fahrenheit in Georgia, and have returned to fruit later.

The roots of a loquat tree are shallow and the soft tissue grows rapidly to establish a vigorous system.

Although the ripening time of loquat fruit is not always predictable, the fruit is grown all over Europe, because of low production costs, the delicious flavor and the early time of ripening that causes the loquat to sell at premium prices-being available for markets before most other fruits.

In Europe, the loquats are sold at roadside markets and popularly sold in paper cones on the Isle of Capri, just off the coast of Italy.

In the United States, very little marketing activities are directed towards selling loquats to compete with other fruits, but some hybridizers are trying to develop cultivars with fruit having a large size, few seeds, more pulp, sweet balance of flavor, and improved cold resistance.

The fruits of loquat trees are loved not only by humans, but by wildlife, and dogs also love the fruit after it falls to the ground.

Extensive tests have not been done on nutritional benefits of loquat fruit, but scanty chemical analysis has shown that the loquat contains substantial amounts of Vitamin A, Vitamin C, and minerals such as Calcium, Potassium, Phosphorus, and Iron.

The fresh fruit medicates like a sedative and will stop uncontrollable vomiting or a manic thirst.

For a tropical look, the loquat works well in the landscape and form. The dense foliage provides an excellent block to street traffic or undesirable neighbors.

The loquat tree can grow thirty-five feet tall, but usually, a heavy load of fruit forces the tree to be self-pruned at around ten feet. The plant also makes a desirable, large tub specimen.

The leaves are dark waxy-green with a woolly texture underneath. The large stiff leaves are about twelve inches long and three inches wide, much like magnolia leaves in appearance.

The tree is popular as a motel landscape or office building tree, because of its beautiful form and evergreen nature with the additional benefit of a juicy, tasty delicious fruit that is available over a long season.

Staking a Young Tree

When a tree is in the young stages, one of the most vital things you need to provide for it in addition to water and nutrients is support. If you don't hold up the tree somehow, it might end up bending in a certain direction and growing extremely crooked for the rest of its life. So no matter what, you should always have some kind of support.

The most popular method of keeping young trees upright is to put long stakes into the ground on either side, and tie loops around the tree. Each loop should be fairly loose to allow for further expanding of the trunk. Lots of people just have a stake on one side of the tree, but this is not a good practice because it generally doesn't allow for further growth of the tree.

You should only be staking your tree if you think that wind and other forces might be literally moving the ball of roots within the ground. Your staking should prevent all of this movement, because this is the most harmful thing that can happen to a young tree. It causes the roots to be in motion too much and not be able to properly get a hold on the soil so that the tree can develop normally.

Before you stake a tree, you should be completely sure that it needs it. If you constrict the movement and growth of a tree that doesn't need to be tethered down, you could harm it beyond repair. For example, the staking mechanism you use could cause abrasion or "rashes" on the trunk. This will happen anyways, but why have it happen needlessly? Also, staking gives your yard an unnatural look and can present a hazard for people walking or running across the yard.

The staking process is actually rather simple. Just take 3 stakes and tie each one separately near the base of the trunk. If you use some sort of tether to prevent rope burn on your tree, that would be an even better solution. These can be purchased at any gardening shop, and are designed to be friendly to the bark of the tree. It is much better to stick with these instead of bare rope, to minimize the amount of friction the tree endures.

When you think your tree has been staked long enough to stand on its own, you should remove the stakes from the ground as soon as humanly possible. Every moment the tree is constricted it is losing some of its vitality. As soon as it seems like the wind is dying down around your area, look on the weather reports and see how much wind is forecasted. If the skies will be pretty clear for a while, you should at least temporarily take off the stakes.

To wrap it all up, you should never deny your tree a good staking. It is a completely necessary thing to do in certain situations. It is very crucial to understand when those occasions are, though. Staking a tree that doesn't need it can be as damaging as not staking a tree that does need it. It might be beneficial for you to consult an expert, and get their opinion as to whether your tree should be staked, and for how long.

Planting and Caring for a New Tree

Planting and Caring for New Fruit Trees...

When you have decided on which kind of fruit tree you would like, and

where you would like it, you can finally start to plant it. If you want to buy a

tree from a nursery, be especially careful when you are taking it from the 

nursery to your house. I once had a friend who put the tree in the back of his

 truck, but clipped a sign on the way home. The entire tree snapped in half, 

and my friend was left a very sad man.

When you have gotten your tree safely back to your yard, look at the

bottom of it and see how big the clump of roots is. It may seem like a lot

of work now, but you want to dig a hole that is twice as wide as the

clump, and just a little less deep. Making the hole slightly bigger than

the clump of roots allows there to be room for the soil that you dug out

Ready to be put back in place. 

Otherwise, you would be stuck with a giant heap of unwanted dirt, and 

nowhere to put it. After you have dug the hole, line the hole with some 

compost or fertilizer so that the tree will grow better. After you have done 

this you should set your fruit  into the tree hole, and spread the roots out 

evenly so that the tree will be strong and stable. 

When all of this business is done, take the soil that you dug up and fill

in the hole completely. Unless you want big piles of dirt everywhere, you

should be sure you use all of the dirt, even is it is a couple inches

higher than the rest of your yard. 

This is because it will compress when watered. Before you firm up the 

soil, make sure that the tree is completely vertical and will not fall over. 

After you have checked that the tree is perfectly vertical you can gently 

firm up the soil. 

If the tree's trunk is not yet completely sturdy and can be bent, you need

to tie the tree to a stake with a bit of rope. Be sure not to tie the rope

tightly to the tree, as you need to allow room for the trunk to grow. Once

the tree is sturdy enough to withstand all types of weather, you can take

the stakes off of it. 

When all of this is done, you should mulch around the base of the tree.

 If you live in an area where wildlife can access your yard, then you 

should put a fence around your tree, because some animals will eat the 

bark off of young trees.

Once you have successfully planted your fruit tree it will start to bear

fruit after it is three to five years old. Once your tree starts to carry

a lot of fruit you should periodically pick some of the fruit so that the

branches aren't weighed down too much. 

If the fruit gets too thick, the branches can break off. On some years 

your tree might not bear as much fruit as others, but this should not 

worry you. Healthy trees often take years on "vacation" where they 

produce little or no fruit.

After you've planted your tree you might start to have some problems with

pests. To help keep these pests away, always rake away old leaves, brush,

or any other decaying matter that could be holding bugs that could be

harmful to your tree.

To make sure that your tree always stays healthy in the long run, you

should prune it during winter or spring. Water your tree every two weeks

during dry times, and be sure not to hit your tree with a lawn mower or a

weed eater because it could severely damage the growth process. 

Also, just make sure that your tree gets plenty of water and plenty of sun,

and your growing experience should be just great.

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History Of Pomegranates, 'Punica Granatum'

Regarded in ancient times as a symbol of fertility...

 

Because of the many seeds found in pomegranate fruits, they were regarded as a symbol of fertility by the ancient cultures of Egypt, Greece, and Rome. The Greek writer, Homer, wrote about pomegranates growing in Syracuse, on the island of Sicily. The Bible of the Hebrews records many references to the pomegranate, and the image of the fruit was used extensively in the molding and stone sculptures found in Solomon's temple at Jerusalem, Israel.

Pomegranates, 'Punica granatum,' are native shrubs and trees found growing throughout much of the Middle East, and much of Europe. The pomegranates appear to be the dominant landscape trees growing along roadsides of Albania, Montenegro, Bulgaria, and many parts of Turkey. The pomegranate trees appeared in Spain around 800AD by the Moors. Granada, Spain, on the coast of the Mediterranean, got its name from the Latin name of the pomegranate, 'Punica granatum.' The French named the new explosive weapon, hand grenade, after the Latinized 'Punica granatum,' pomegranate, because the impact of the explosion of the weapon scattered the numerous small pieces of metal like the many seeds of the pomegranate fruit.

Cultivated extensively in Spain, pomegranates moved with the missionaries into Mexico, California, and Arizona in the 16th century. In America pomegranate trees were introduced into California by Spanish missionaries in the mid 1700's. Pomegranate fruits are ruby-red fruits about 2 to 5 inches in diameter. They resemble small apples, and derive their name from the French word, 'Pome,' meaning apple. Fruits have numerous seeds are each surrounded by a pink to purplish-red, juicy pulp which is the edible portion. The pulp is somewhat pokey to the taste.

Pomegranates, 'Punica granatum,' are dense, bushy shrubs 6 to 12 feet tall with thorny, slender branches that may be trained into small trees. Orange-red flowers appear on new growth in the spring and summer and are bell-shaped and vase-shaped. The vase-shaped flowers are normally sterile, so they will not develop into fruit. The fruit contains numerous seeds surrounded by sweet, pink, juicy, tasty pulp covered with leather-brown to red, bitter skin, which is easily peeled. Pomegranate juice stains can be difficult to remove from clothing. This juice was used by the ancients as an ink or dye, because of its persistence in staining permanently. The thick skin surrounding the pomegranate is high in tannins, and the ancients dried the skins and made leather-like products; the thick skin gives the fruit a longer shelf life, lasting up to two months when cooled.

When trained as a tree, pomegranates grow toward a bushy habit with many suckers arising from the root and crown area. Tree-type plants can be produced by allowing only one trunk to develop. Additionally suckers can be removed frequently around the main trunk.

Pomegranate trees pollinate themselves. Severe fruit drop during the plant's juvenile period (2-3 years) is not uncommon. Fruit drop is increased by practices favoring leafy growth, such as over-fertilization and over watering. Avoid putting young plants under stressful conditions. Mature trees set and hold fruit better than younger trees.

Mature pomegranate trees develop a thick bark, which is cold hardy to temperatures tested in Georgia and have withstood the zero degrees Fahrenheit experienced in January of 1984. Younger shrubs and trees of pomegranate have thin bark that does not show a high survival rate in lower temperatures, but the plant may be regenerated from the roots in the spring. Light annual pruning of established trees encourages the development of good quality fruit. Excessive or late applications of fertilizer tend to delay fruit maturity and will reduce color and quality.

The commercial orchard production of pomegranates is mostly concentrated in California, and the fruit begins to appear in Eastern markets in mid-October, just in time for the Thanksgiving and Christmas seasons.

Like picking wild scuppernongs from a childhood vineyard, this is an experience that children always remember--the fun and the fulfillment of the happy days during childhood preserved in the memories of growing up. A century ago every farmer had a pomegranate plant in his yard that he had grown from a seed. Some of these plants developed into bushes and some grew into trees.

The fruit is strange looking in appearance and when opened with a knife appears even stranger inside looking like hundreds of juicy red, individual pulpy fruits, each with a removable seed Pomegranate juice is one of nature's most powerful antioxidants. Pom Wonderful Pomegranate juice has more naturally occurring antioxidant power than any other drink, more than red wine, green tea, blueberry juice and cranberry juice. Antioxidants help your body guard against free radicals; molecules that can cause premature aging, heart disease Alzheimer's, even cancer. Drink a glass today! Researchers have shown that people who drink 2 Oz, of pomegranate juice each day for one week increased their body antioxidant activity by 9% in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

Another study (Nov. 2003) showed that pomegranate extract will fight skin cancer at an American Association for Cancer Research conference.

The pomegranate harvest in 2006 is expected to be the largest ever, because of the hype and excitement generated by the news of the spectacular health improvement, that can be expected by drinking only 2 Oz. Of pomegranate juice each day, according to the Pomegranate Council, based in San Francisco, California.

Additional health benefits offered by the pomegranate fruit results from the minerals: Calcium, Iron, Potassium, Phosphorus, and the Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Vitamin B1, Vitamin B2, and niacin.

 

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Grow Citrus

 

Growing Citrus from Start To Finish!

 

 

The pleasing appearance of citrus trees and the fruit was mentioned by many ancient travelers, even though the fruit of citrus trees had not evolved to the point as an important food staple, the fragrance of all parts of the citrus trees, including the flowers and fruit, were desirable perfumers of rooms and were thought to repel insects.

The occurrence of citrus in Europe and Mideast were thought to have been naturally occurring native trees and shrubs, but historians today believe that the ancestor of the citrus trees, Citrus medica L., was introduced by Alexander the Great from India into Greece, Turkey, and North Africa in the late 4th century BC. The most ancient citrus was called 'citron.'

There are ancient clues from wall paintings in the Egyptian temple at Karnak that citrus trees had been growing there. There were other suggestions that citrus trees may have been familiar to the Jews during their exile and slavery by the Babylonians in the 6th century BC. Even though speculations suggest that citrus trees were known and grown by the Hebrews, there is no direct mention in the Bible of citrus.

The first recording of citrus, Citrus medica L., in European history was done by Theophrastus, in 350 BC, following the introduction of the fruit by Alexander the Great.

In early European history, writers wrote about Persian citrus, that it had a wonderful fragrance and was thought to be a remedy for poisoning, a breath sweetener, and a repellant to moths.

Citrus was well known by the ancient cultures of the Greeks and later the Romans. A beautiful ceramic tile was found in the ruins of Pompeii after the city was destroyed by a volcanic eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79. Another mosaic tile in the ruins of a Roman villa in Carthage, North Africa, in about the 2nd century AD, clearly showed the fruit of a citron and a lemon fruit growing on a tree branch.

Early Christian tile mosaics dating back to 300 AD of both oranges and lemon were shown in lemon-yellow and orange colors surrounded by bright green leaves and freshly cut tree branches; the relics can still be seen in Istanbul, Turkey at mosques that once was churches of Emperor Constantine.

It is not known how, where, or when the exceptional present day varieties of citrus trees developed, such as the sweet orange, lemon, kumquat, lime, grapefruit, or pomelo, but there appears to be a general consensus of opinions that all these citrus developments and improvements were obtained by natural and artificial selection and natural evolution. It is well known, that the Romans were familiar with the sour orange, Citrus aurantium L. And the lemon tree, Citrus Limon. After the fall of Rome to the barbarian invasions and the Muslims, the Arab states rapidly spread the naturally improving cultivars of citrus fruits and trees throughout much of North Africa, Spain, and Syria. The spread of sour orange, Citrus aurantium L., and the lemon, Citrus Limon, extended the growing and planting of these trees on a worldwide scale by planting the seed, which produced citrus trees very similar to the parent trees. The Crusades conquest of the Arabs later spread citrus planting and growing throughout Europe.

The sweet orange, Citrus sinensis, appeared late in the 1400's, near the time of Christopher Columbus, who discovered America. After trade routes were closed when the Turks defeated the Eastern Roman Empire in 1453, centered in Constantinople (Istanbul), many European kings began to seek alternate, trade, sea routes to open trade by ships with China and India. The sweet orange tree introduction into Europe changed the dynamics of citrus fruit importance in the world. The voyage of the Portuguese explorer, Vasco de Gamma, recorded that in 1498, there were multitudes of orange trees in India, and all the fruits had a sweet taste. The new sweet orange variety, known as the "Portugal orange" caused a dramatic surge in citrus planting, much like the much later appearance of the "Washington navel orange" tree introduced into California.

The lime, Citrus latifolia, was first mentioned in European history by Sir Thomas Herbert in his book, Travels, who recorded that he found growing "oranges, lemons, and limes" off the island of Mozambique in the mid 1600's. Lime trees today are available in many cultivars.

In 1707, Spanish missions were growing oranges, fig trees, quinces, pomegranates, peaches, apricots, apples, pear trees, mulberries, pecans, and other trees according to horticultural documents.

The Mandarin orange, Citrus reticulate, was described in Chinese history in the late 1100's, but was unknown in Europe, until it was brought from a Mandarin province in China to England in 1805, where it spread rapidly throughout Europe.

The pomelo, Citrus grandis, also called the shaddock and the 'Adam's Apple' was growing in Palestine in the early 1200's and was planted and grown by the Arabs. The pomelo is believed to have an Asian origin and was planted as seed in the New World.

The grapefruit, Citrus paradisi, is believed to have arisen as a mutation from the pummelo tree. Grapefruit were so named because they grew in clusters like grapes, but most gardeners considered them to be inedible until A.L. Duncan found an outstanding seedling grapefruit that was named Duncan grapefruit in 1892; the original tree is still alive and growing in Florida.

Christopher Columbus introduced citrus on the island of Haiti in 1493. It is believed that he brought citrus seed to be planted and grown of the sour orange, the sweet orange, citron, lemon, lime, and pomelo fruits. Records show that these citrus trees were well established in the American colonies in about 1565 at Saint Augustine, Florida, and in coastal South Carolina.

William Bartram reported in his celebrated botanical book, Travels, in 1773 that Henry Laurens from Charleston, South Carolina, who served as a President of the Continental Congress, introduced "olives, limes, ginger, everbearing strawberry, red raspberry, and blue grapes" into the United States colonies after the year 1755.

William Bartram in his book, Travels, reported that near Savannah, Georgia, "it is interesting to note that as late as 1790, oranges were cultivated in some quantity along the coast, and in that year some 3000 gallons of orange juice were exported."

Many of these wild orange groves were seen by the early American explorer, William Bartram, according to his book, Travels, in 1773, while traveling down the Saint John's River in Florida. Bartram mistakenly thought these orange trees were native to Florida; however, they were established centuries earlier by the Spanish explorers.

The citrus industry began rapidly developing in 1821 when the Spanish gave up their territories and its many orange groves to the United States. Wild orange tree groves were top-worked with improved cultivars and residents traveling to Florida realized how refreshing orange juice tasted; thus began the shipments of oranges, grapefruit, limes, and lemons that were sent to Philadelphia and New York by railway and ships in the 1880's.

Citrus plantings were extensively done in California by the Spanish missionaries; however, the commercial industry began to grow with the 1849 Gold Rush boom, and efforts to supply the miners from San Francisco with citrus fruit were successful. The completion of the Transcontinental Railway further stimulated the citrus industry, since citrus could be rapidly sent to eastern markets. Later improvements of refrigeration helped to increase citrus growing and planting, mainly oranges, lemons, and limes throughout the world in 1889.

Florida at first dominated citrus production in the United States, but because of some devastating freezes in 1894 and 1899, Satsuma orange trees were virtually wiped out in the Gulf States. Thousands of acres of Satsuma orange trees were wiped out in Alabama, Texas, and Louisiana in the hard freeze of 1916; thus the citrus production of the United States began to shift from Florida to California.

Citrus is marketed throughout the world as a beneficial health fruit that contains Vitamin C and numerous other vitamins and minerals in orange and citrus products lime marmalade, fresh fruit, and frozen and hot-pack citrus juice concentrates.

 

 

Discover Over 90 Pages Of Insider Secrets To Growing Great Citrus Trees.



Caring Properly for your Fruit Tree

 

Pruning fruit trees depend on the time of year and type of tree, as each one should be pruned differently at various times of the year. Whether pruning a peach tree or cherry tree, pruning fruit trees should be easier after getting advice from a gardening specialist in this free video on trees.

 

If you have just recently planted a new fruit tree, I think it is safe to assume you are not yet an expert on the subject. More fruit trees die in their beginning years due to poor care habits than any disease or pestilence. Therefore, it is vital that you understand how to care for trees in a way that will ensure their life expectancies as well as ongoing good health.

During the first stages of the tree's life, the roots, trunk, and branches have not yet fully developed a self supporting tree. Therefore, if your tree is growing fruits, occasionally the combined weight is enough to snap off an entire branch. If this is the case, you should provide external support for your branches - prop them up with boards, or tie them to something at a higher spot. As long as you can provide your tree the support it needs in the early years, it should grow to be independent in no time at all.

Proper nutrition is not only necessary for the production of healthy fruits, but is also necessary for the tree to survive longer than one season. The exact specifications vary with the area, climate, and type of tree, but I've found that there is no better source than a nursery employee. Maybe they're just eager to sell you the right type of fertilizer, but in my experience they are almost never wrong. Just inform them about the conditions your tree is living in and how healthy it is looking, and they should be able to help you find something to improve the life of your tree.

Lots of people think that the only way to ensure a tree's longevity is to provide it insane amounts of water. This is not the case at all. As a matter of fact, giving too much water to a tree can be more harmful than making it go thirsty. At best, it will have a negative effect on the taste of the fruit. But at worst, your entire tree could die and prevent you from ever growing fruit in the future. So do not ever try to solve your problems by giving it lots of water! Solve your tree's health problems at the root, so to speak. Go to where the problem originates from, and fix that.

If it is too late and you're already starting to see unhealthy branches that look either diseased or damaged, you should always remove them. If the tree is wasting nutrients by sending them out to the branch that cannot be saved, it is practically throwing away all the nutrients that it could use on the other, healthier branches. As soon as you start to see a branch that is deteriorating or becoming unhealthy, chop it off right away. At the very least, trim down the unhealthy ones, but leave all the parts of the tree that still look like they could continue growing.

Once your tree has started to enter the picking stage, never leave any of the fruit on the ground which are bound to fall. Also, be careful to get every piece off of the tree. Even if it is an ugly looking fruit that you don't want to keep, you should still pick it and throw it away. Once these fruits begin to rot, they provide a perfect home for unwanted insects or diseases that can transfer to the tree itself. So always remember to rake up these fallen fruits, to prevent yourself lots of future grief.

Getting a fruit tree and caring for it throughout its life can be a daunting task. It may even seem impossible sometimes to keep track of all the factors that make a tree healthy. But if you just pay attention to the nutrients that your tree needs, you should be on a good path. In addition to nutrients, figure out the precise amount of watering that you should be issuing to keep your tree's thirst quenched without drowning it. Just do all these things, and you will have a great tree that produces delicious fruits!

 

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History Of Citrus

Growing and Maintaining Organic Fruit Trees

The pleasing appearance of citrus trees and the fruit was mentioned by many ancient travelers, even though the fruit of citrus trees had not evolved to the point as an important food staple, the fragrance of all parts of the citrus trees, including the flowers and fruit, were desirable perfumers of rooms and were thought to repel insects. The occurrence of citrus in Europe and Mideast were thought to have been natural occurring native trees and shrubs, but historians today believe that the ancestor of the citrus trees, Citrus medica L., was introduced by Alexander the Great from India into Greece, Turkey, and North Africa in the late 4th century BC. The most ancient citrus was called 'citron.' There are ancient clues from wall paintings in the Egyptian temple at Karnak that citrus trees had been growing there. There were other suggestions that citrus trees may have been familiar to the Jews during their exile and slavery by the Babylonians in the 6th century BC. Even though speculations suggest that citrus trees were known and grown by the Hebrews, there is no direct mention in the Bible of citrus. The first recording of citrus, Citrus medica L., in European history was done by Theophrastus, in 350 BC, following the introduction of the fruit by Alexander the Great. In early European history, writers wrote about Persian citrus, that it had a wonderful fragrance and was thought to be a remedy for poisoning, a breath sweetener, and a repellant to moths. Citrus was well known by the ancient cultures of the Greeks and later the Romans. A beautiful ceramic tile was found in the ruins of Pompeii after the city was destroyed by a volcanic eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79. Another mosaic tile in the ruins of a Roman villa in Carthage, North Africa, in about the 2nd century AD, clearly showed the fruit of a citron and a lemon fruit growing on a tree branch. Early Christian tile mosaics dating back to 300 AD of both oranges and lemon were shown in lemon-yellow and orange colors surrounded by bright green leaves and freshly cut tree branches; the relics can still be seen in Istanbul, Turkey at mosques that once were churches of Emperor Constantine. It is not known how, where, or when the exceptional present day varieties of citrus trees developed, such as the sweet orange, lemon, kumquat, lime, grapefruit, or pummelo, but there appears to be a general consensus of opinions that all these citrus developments and improvements were obtained by natural and artificial selection and natural evolution. It is well known, that the Romans were familiar with the sour orange, Citrus aurantium L. and the lemon tree, Citrus limon. After the fall of Rome to the barbarian invasions and the Muslims, the Arab states rapidly spread the naturally improving cultivars of citrus fruits and trees throughout much of North Africa, Spain, and Syria. The spread of sour orange, Citrus aurantium L., and the lemon, Citrus limon, extended the growing and planting of these trees on a worldwide scale by planting the seed, which produced citrus trees very similar to the parent trees. The Crusades conquest of the Arabs later spread citrus planting and growing throughout Europe. The sweet orange, Citrus sinensis, appeared late in the 1400's, near the time of Christopher Columbus, who discovered America. After trade routes were closed when the Turks defeated the Eastern Roman Empire in 1453, centered in Constantinople (Istanbul), many European kings began to seek alternate, trade, sea routes to open trade by ships with China and India. The sweet orange tree introduction into Europe changed the dynamics of citrus fruit importance in the world. The voyage of Portuguese explorer, Vasco de Gamma, recorded that in 1498, there were multitudes of orange trees in India, and all the fruits had a sweet taste. The new sweet orange variety, known as the "Portugal orange" caused a dramatic surge in citrus planting, much like the much later appearance of the "Washington navel orange" tree introduction into California. The lime, Citrus latifolia, was first mentioned in European history by Sir Thomas Herbert in his book, Travels, who recorded that he found growing "oranges, lemons, and limes" off the island of Mozambique in the mid 1600's. Lime trees today are available in many cultivars. In 1707, Spanish missions were growing oranges, fig trees, quinces, pomegranates, peaches, apricots, apples, pear trees, mulberries, pecans, and other trees according to horticultural documents. The Mandarin orange, Citrus reticulata, was described in Chinese history in the late 1100's, but was unknown in Europe, until it was brought from a Mandarin province in China to England in 1805, where it spread rapidly throughout Europe. The pummelo, Citrus grandees, also called the shaddock and the 'Adam's Apple' was growing in Palestine in the early 1200's and was planted and grown by the Arabs. The pummelo is believed to have an Asian origin and was planted as seed in the New World. The grapefruit, Citrus paradisi, is believed to have arisen as a mutation from the pummelo tree. Grapefruit were so named because they grew in clusters like grapes, but most gardeners considered them to be inedible until A.L. Duncan found an outstanding seedling grapefruit that was named Duncan grapefruit in 1892; the original tree is still alive and growing in Florida. Christopher Columbus introduced citrus on the island of Haiti in 1493. It is believed that he brought citrus seed to be planted and grown of the sour orange, the sweet orange, citron, lemon, lime, and pummelo fruits. Records show that these citrus trees were well established in the American colonies in about 1565 at Saint Augustine, Florida, and in coastal South Carolina. William Bartram reported in his celebrated botanical book, Travels, in 1773 that Henry Laurens from Charleston, South Carolina, who served as a President of the Continental Congrees, introduced "olives, limes, ginger, ever-bearing strawberry, red raspberry, and blue grapes" into the United States colonies after the year 1755. William Bartram in his book, Travels, reported that near Savannah, Georgia, "it is interesting to note that as late as 1790, oranges were cultivated in some quantity along the coast, and in that year some 3000 gallons of orange juice were exported." Many of these wild orange groves were seen by the early American explorer, William Bartram, according to his book, Travels, in 1773, while traveling down the Saint John's River in Florida. Bartram mistakenly thought these orange trees were native to Florida; however, they were established centuries earlier by the Spanish explorers. The citrus industry began rapidly developing in 1821 when the Spanish gave up their territories and its many orange groves to the United States. Wild orange tree groves were top-worked with improved cultivars and residents traveling to Florida realized how refreshing orange juice tasted; thus began the shipments of oranges, grapefruit, limes, and lemons that were sent to Philadelphia and New York by railway and ships in the 1880's. Citrus plantings were extensively done in California by the Spanish missionaries; however, the commercial industry began to grow with the 1849 Gold Rush boom, and efforts to supply the miners from San Francisco with citrus fruit were successful. The completion of the Transcontinental Railway further stimulated the citrus industry, since citrus could be rapidly sent to eastern markets. Later improvements of refrigeration helped to increase citrus growing and planting, mainly oranges, lemons, and limes throughout the world in 1889. Florida at first dominated citrus production in the United States, but because of some devastating freezes in 1894 and 1899, Satsuma orange trees were virtually wiped out in the Gulf States. Thousands of acres of Satsuma orange trees were wiped out in Alabama, Texas, and Louisiana in the hard freeze of 1916; thus the citrus production of the United States began to shift from Florida to California. Citrus is marketed throughout the world as a beneficial health fruit that contains Vitamin C and numerous other vitamins and minerals in orange and citrus products lime marmalade, fresh fruit, and frozen and hot-pack citrus juice concentrates. Discover Over 90 Pages Of Insider Secrets To Growing Great Citrus Trees.