FAQ

What is navel:

There are two aspects that define a navel orange.

  1. The little non-stem end looks like a belly button, or a navel.
  2. A navel is seedless, as it has been bread to be a sterile orange.

 

How is a mandarin different than an orange?

The two main ways, aside from flavor, that a mandarin is different than the orange are:

  1. The shape of the fruit. The orange is larger and more round. A mandarine is smaller and squatter in shape.
  2. The way it peels. A mandarin has thinner peeling that pulls away from the orange sections more easily.

 

What is a Cutie?

A Cutie is a fun name for any kind of mandarin.

 

What makes an orange dry?

There are basically two causes of a dry orange.

  1. It was hanging on the tree too long. Either it got picked too late in the season or it was a left-over from last year’s crop.
  2. The crop got frozen. An orange freezes on the tree when the temperature drops below 28˚.

 

What does it take to upkeep an orange orchard?

See our page on How to Grow an Orange. Here is a summary of main expenses for an orchard include:

  • Raw materials
  • Labor for upkeep
  • Fertilizer
  • Electricity
  • Pesticide
  • Crop insurance

 

 

My main ambition as a gardener is to water my orange trees with gin, then all I have to do is squeeze the juice into a glass.

–W. C. Fields