It is estimated - exact figures are not known - that there are around 400 different types of citrus in the world, of which only a few are known in this country. However, the vast majority of these citrus plants are the result of crossings, so that the species are more or less closely related to one another. All types of citrus go back to the three ancestors grapefruit, tangerine and candied lemon.
The emergence of the grapefruit
The grapefruit, Latin Citrus paradisi, is a young citrus family that probably originated in the 18th century on the Caribbean island of Barbados as a hybrid of the pomelo (Citrus maxima) and the orange (Citrus sinensis). The orange is in turn a cross product of tangerine (Citrus reticulata) and bitter orange (bitter orange, Citrus aurantium), the latter once arose from grapefruit and tangerine… The family history of the citrus species is complicated and difficult to understand, so it's no wonder that it keeps coming back confusion arises. Incidentally, in German usage, the pampelmuse is equated with the grapefruit, although they are different species.
grapefruit varieties
There are grapefruits with light and reddish to deep red flesh. The intensity of the color provides information about the sweetness of the fruit - the darker the flesh, the sweeter it is. Among light grapefruits, “Duncan” is both the largest and the best in taste - juicy and very fragrant, sufficiently sweet and with a lot of seeds. Therefore, it is slowly being replaced by the almost seedless Marsh grapefruit as a fresh fruit and mainly cultivated for juice extraction. The red-fleshed Star Ruby grapefruit is a very attractive container plant, although the New Zealand grapefruit is much better suited to growing in our latitudes. This mildly aromatic variety needs less heat than other grapefruits.
The pomelo
The term "pomelo" is usually understood to mean two different varieties of grapefruit. On the one hand, "pomelo" is the English name for the real grapefruit, which is originally native to Southeast Asia. It is mainly cultivated in Thailand, Malaysia, southern China (here under the name Honey Pomelo) and Indonesia. The other species is assigned to the pomelo, but is a hybrid product of pomelo and grapefruit. This pomelo is sweeter than a grapefruit.
The Hirado Buntan Pomelo
This type of Pomelo is not a hybrid, but a real grapefruit and is one of the most popular types. It is a very vigorous grapefruit with extremely large, dark green leaves. Its flowers appear in large spikes with up to 20 individual flowers. The variety is more cold hardy than most other grapefruits. The sweet, aromatic fruit ripens very early, as early as December. In addition, the plant is very vigorous, forms a wide bush and is therefore an impressive container plant.
tips and tricks
Numerous varieties have emerged from the cross between tangerine and grapefruit or tangerine and pomelo. All of them have very aromatic fruits, which are classified in between the parents in terms of taste.