
New Pineapple Orange Coming for
Florida Growers By Doris
Stanley April 3, 1997Citrus is sometimes in short supply in
stores in January and February. But a new pineapple orange--so new it
hasnt been named--could change that. Scientists with USDAs
Agricultural Research Service say they
expect to release the new citrus variety to nurseries in about three years. The
new orange will be the eighth variety to emerge from the citrus breeding
program carried out over the past 20 years at the agencys
U.S.
Horticultural Research Laboratory at Orlando, Fla. The scientists say the new pineapple orange ripens in time to fill the
market void that now occurs in January and February. Its suitable for the
fresh market or processing. Of special interest to growers: The new variety is seedless and stays on the
tree until picked. Growers have been reluctant to plant pineapple orange
varieties in the past because the fruit has too many seeds and tends to fall
off the trees before it is mature. Other citrus varieties from the Orlando breeding program have included
Ambersweet, Sunstar, Midsweet and Gardner oranges, Sunburst and Fallglo
tangerines and Flame grapefruit. Florida growers have planted about 15 million
trees of these varieties, which have superior traits for both the fresh and
processing markets. In nursery sales alone, this totals about $60 million.
Fruit production and value-added processing from these citrus varieties
represent an annual retail value of about $334 million to the U.S. economy. Scientific contact: Richard Mayer, USDA-ARS Horticultural Research
Laboratory, Orlando, Fla.; phone (407) 897-7300, fax (407) 897-7309,
[email protected]. Story contacts Richard T Mayer U.S. Department of Agriculture | |