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An orange is a fruit of various citrus species in the family Rutaceae (see list of plants known as orange); it primarily refers to Citrus × sinensis,[1] which is also called sweet orange, to distinguish it from the related Citrus × aurantium, referred to as bitter orange. The sweet orange reproduces asexually (apomixis through nucellar embryony); varieties of the sweet orange arise through mutations.

The orange is a hybrid between pomelo (Citrus maxima) and mandarin (Citrus reticulata). The chloroplast genome, and therefore the maternal line, is that of pomelo. The sweet orange has had its full genome sequenced.

The orange originated in a region encompassing Southern China, Northeast India, and Myanmar, and the earliest mention of the sweet orange was in Chinese literature in 314 BC. As of 1987, orange trees were found to be the most cultivated fruit tree in the world. Orange trees are widely grown in tropical and subtropical climates for their sweet fruit. The fruit of the orange tree can be eaten fresh, or processed for its juice or fragrant peel. As of 2012, sweet oranges accounted for approximately 70% of citrus production.

In 2019, 79 million tonnes of oranges were grown worldwide, with Brazil producing 22% of the total, followed by China and India.

History

The sweet orange is not a wild fruit, having arisen in domestication from a cross between a non-pure mandarin orange and a hybrid pomelo that had a substantial mandarin component. Since its chloroplast DNA is that of pomelo, it was likely the hybrid pomelo, perhaps a BC1 pomelo backcross, that was the maternal parent of the first orange. Based on genomic analysis, the relative proportions of the ancestral species in the sweet orange are approximately 42% pomelo and 58% mandarin. All varieties of the sweet orange descend from this prototype cross, differing only by mutations selected for during agricultural propagation. Sweet oranges have a distinct origin from the bitter orange, which arose independently, perhaps in the wild, from a cross between pure mandarin and pomelo parents. The earliest mention of the sweet orange in Chinese literature dates from 314 BC.

In Europe, the Moors introduced the orange to the Iberian Peninsula, which was known as Al-Andalus, with large-scale cultivation starting in the 10th century, as evidenced by complex irrigation techniques specifically adapted to support orange orchards. Citrus fruits—among them the bitter orange—were introduced to Sicily in the 9th century during the period of the Emirate of Sicily, but the sweet orange was unknown until the late 15th century or the beginnings of the 16th century, when Italian and Portuguese merchants brought orange trees into the Mediterranean area. Shortly afterward, the sweet orange quickly was adopted as an edible fruit. It was considered a luxury food grown by wealthy people in private conservatories, called orangeries. By 1646, the sweet orange was well known throughout Europe. Louis XIV of France had a great love of orange trees and built the grandest of all royal Orangeries at the Palace of Versailles. At Versailles, potted orange trees in solid silver tubs were placed throughout the rooms of the palace, while the Orangerie allowed year-round cultivation of the fruit to supply the court. When Louis condemned his finance minister, Nicolas Fouquet, in 1664, part of the treasures that he confiscated were over 1,000 orange trees from Fouquet's estate at Vaux-le-Vicomte.

Spanish travelers introduced the sweet orange to the American continent. On his second voyage in 1493, Christopher Columbus may have planted the fruit on Hispaniola. Subsequent expeditions in the mid-1500s brought sweet oranges to South America and Mexico, and to Florida in 1565, when Pedro Menéndez de Avilés founded St Augustine. Spanish missionaries brought orange trees to Arizona between 1707 and 1710, while the Franciscans did the same in San Diego, California, in 1769. An orchard was planted at the San Gabriel Mission around 1804, and a commercial orchard was established in 1841 near present-day Los Angeles. In Louisiana, oranges were probably introduced by French explorers.

Archibald Menzies, the botanist and naturalist on the Vancouver Expedition, collected orange seeds in South Africa, raised the seedlings onboard, and gave them to several Hawaiian chiefs in 1792. Eventually, the sweet orange was grown in wide areas of the Hawaiian Islands, but its cultivation stopped after the arrival of the Mediterranean fruit fly in the early 1900s.

As oranges are rich in vitamin C and do not spoil easily, during the Age of Discovery, Portuguese, Spanish, and Dutch sailors planted citrus trees along trade routes to prevent scurvy.

Florida farmers obtained seeds from New Orleans around 1872, after which orange groves were established by grafting the sweet orange on to sour orange rootstocks.

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[-] coeliacmccarthy@hexbear.net 3 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

global flying insect biomass has reduced by more than 75% in the last 30 years

[-] DoiDoi@hexbear.net 2 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Extremely American anecdote, but every time I hear these flying bug stats all I can think about is how completely smothered in bug goo cars used to be.

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[-] Ho_Chi_Chungus@hexbear.net 3 points 1 year ago

goes to "authentic" mexican restaurant

the walls don't have any dragon ball z characters on them

fucking hate these fake "authentic" restaurants

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[-] autismdragon@hexbear.net 3 points 1 year ago

Ok so you know how I took an extra vynase earlier?

My day has been going so much smoother lol. I feel focused without feeling tired, and my leg isnt shaking.

Um... how do I ask my new psych nurse in our first in person meeting for an increase without being written off as a drug seeker?

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On any given day there’s like a 20% chance I’ll wake up with an intense feeling of dread and terror that prevents me from getting out of bed at the time I planned and unable to get to work at a normal time

I’m so lucky that my job is really flexible and supportive and it doesn’t matter if I come in a couple hours later and zoom into the meeting as long as I get my actual work done, and that’s not till 1.

[-] DoghouseCharlie@hexbear.net 3 points 1 year ago

Sorry, but vegans will never know the joy of ordering the four piece mcnuggy but gettting six smuglord

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[-] thelastaxolotl@hexbear.net 3 points 1 year ago
[-] Parsani@hexbear.net 3 points 1 year ago

Me making dinner tonight:

corn-man-khrush

[-] forcequit@hexbear.net 3 points 1 year ago

Ms Deeming threatened to sue Mr Pesutto for defamation after he linked her to Nazi sympathisers during a move to expel her from the parliamentary Liberal team.

She was dumped from the parliamentary party after attending an anti-trans rights rally on the steps of Parliament House in March.

The event was gatecrashed by neo-Nazis. Ms Deeming later alleged Mr Pesutto had spread "false allegations" around the rally's association with the far right.

fash-infighting

[-] Freeanotherday@hexbear.net 2 points 1 year ago

Zuckerberg is absolutely shredded and training with literally 2 of the best mixed martial artists on the planet. (Volkanovski and Adesanya)

Elon is in a t-shirt training with a pod caster. (Lex Fridman)

michael-laugh

I actually really want to see them fight now. Lol

[-] UnicodeHamSic@hexbear.net 2 points 1 year ago

Can you imagine how good the steroids are that they are feeding zuc?

[-] Commiejones@hexbear.net 2 points 1 year ago

Androids don't do drugs they overclock.

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[-] LocalMaxima@hexbear.net 2 points 1 year ago

My work sent out an email for Labor Day saying we don’t have freedom unless workers have economic freedom.

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[-] john_browns_beard@hexbear.net 2 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Grandma is still pre-actively dying and within the next 2.5 weeks are 1) my birthday, 2) me playing a solo in front of several thousand people, and 3) my wedding. There's almost no chance that she makes it to October, but then again I thought she would be gone a week and a half ago based on her condition at the time. The woman has debilitating OCD and obsessed over her calendar for the last 20 years of her life, I am 100% positive that she shuffles off this mortal coil on one of those days in a final act of cosmic humor.

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[-] Rojo27@hexbear.net 2 points 1 year ago

I'm so wet, ~~from a long bike ride in the suddenly summer again weather~~ panting

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[-] EndMilkInCrisps@hexbear.net 2 points 1 year ago
[-] bigboopballs@hexbear.net 3 points 1 year ago

been a long time since I've listened to Boards of Canada but I love them.

I hope they'll release another album some day.

[-] RION@hexbear.net 2 points 1 year ago

My mom: why won't you tell me what about femininity resonates with you?

Also my mom: refers to a trans girl she knew in high school exclusively with he/him pronouns

Also, is it wrong that I don't have much of an answer to her question besides "feels good"?

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[-] commiespammer@hexbear.net 2 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

"The truth is that I’m a centrist of sorts

I’m a communo-normie, in internet words.

Just an overton window shifted much to the left"

From my WIP song/poem, "Communo-Normie🎵"

I hate it when my uncle talks politics with my mom and one of them calls me to be the tiebreaker, because both their takes are always bad.

[-] axont@hexbear.net 2 points 1 year ago

One time my coworkers called me in to be a tie-breaker over if Texas should secede from the US or not. I told them the US should be annexed by China.

Now that's just stupid. Florida goes to Cuba

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[-] EndMilkInCrisps@hexbear.net 2 points 1 year ago

Wait American labour day is not the 1st of may?

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[-] Stoatmilk@hexbear.net 2 points 1 year ago

I did a quest in Baldur's Gate 3 where you get your portrait painted at the end. The painter tells me I am dressed weirdly and covered in blood, which is a fair complaint. So I put on nicer clothes and take a shower (throw a bottle of water at myself). He paints me, and one of my party members says "wow that really looks like you." So I throw the painting on the floor to look at it, and it's just the default picture of Karlach.

[-] Quimby@hexbear.net 2 points 1 year ago

Reposting this because it's still my favorite article this year. If people could just realize this (obviously comrades already know), I feel like we'd immediately be 20% closer to communism.

CEO’s Skill Set Transferable To Any Job That Requires Dumbass To Receive Big Salary

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[-] President_Obama@hexbear.net 2 points 1 year ago
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[-] WhyEssEff@hexbear.net 2 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

today I’m gonna eat a whole bag of Jewel Signature Select Chocolate Chip Cookies emilie->=3

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this post was submitted on 05 Sep 2023
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