| DESCRIPTION: It is a small, spreading, evergreen tree. The fruit is a hesperidium. The endocarp (edible portion) is divided into 10-14 sections, separated by thin septa and contains no seed. GROWING PERIOD: Perennial. USE: The fruit is edible, it has a sweet-sour taste, it lacks seed, and is easy-to-peel. Its significance on the fresh fruit market has therefore increased. A particular advantage for marketing lies in its early ripening, which allows producers to bring their fruit about two months before oranges and clementines onto the market. Disadvantageous is that, when the fruit is internally ripe and most suitable for consumption, it still lacks "external" quality. The irregular coloration of the fruit and sometimes an unusually rough peel tend to make it unattractive to the consumer. Moreover, the yields are not sufficiently reliable to satisfy the producer. COMMON NAMES: Satsuma mandarine. FURTHER INF: Killing temperature -5 C. (See also under Citrus ssp.) |
