Sweet pursuit of citrus captivates small growers

Adrian G. Uribarri | Sentinel Staff Writer
December 9, 2007


TAVARES - Citrus enthusiast Marty Konantz recalls when she could drive practically anywhere in Lake County and find orange groves, begging to be picked.

"You can't do that anymore," she said. Lake's citrus industry, once a mammoth economic engine for the county, is no longer what it was.

So about four years ago, Konantz started growing her own citrus trees. She said she now has at least seven varieties of oranges, limes and lemons at her home, on a 10-acre plot in Leesburg.

She's not alone. Saturday morning, about two dozen other homeowners who grow their own tangy fruits joined her at the Citrus Festival, an educational program that featured speakers and a taste of about a dozen citrus varieties.

"This here is Gloria Vanderbilt's favorite fruit," said John Jackson, pointing toward a mound of sliced Minneolas. Orange juice had pooled under the pieces, wetting fingers as people grabbed for lumps of pulp.

Jackson, director of the Florida Citrus Industry Research Coordinating Council, spoke for more than two hours about the fruits. The talk included the history of citrus in Florida, beginning with the Spaniards who brought the fruit to the New World.

"Citrus is not native," Jackson said. "It's a tourist that has enjoyed itself and done well."

American Indians helped spread citrus throughout the continent, he said, and by the late 1800s, commercial growers had learned to juice the fruit and ship it fresh.

Jackson said that by the late 1960s, there were more than 145,000 acres of citrus groves in Lake. But by the early 1980s, he said, the fortune of citrus had turned in the county: Only about 117,000 acres grew in Lake, and a frosty night in 1983 killed all but 13,000 acres.

"That was the main altering factor in Lake County," Jackson said. Lake's citrus crop never regained its former strength.

Still, the threat of cold, disease and pests hasn't deterred some Lake residents from taking up citrus growing.

Mark Fox, a master gardener and president of the Friends of the Lake County Horticultural Learning Center, said that despite some of its challenges, citrus growing is a rewarding pursuit for many homeowners.

"It can be fun," he said. "Once the trees reach maturity, they pretty much survive on their own."

Fox added that unlike other fruits, which must be harvested immediately, citrus stays fresh if it's not picked right away.

"The longer it stays on the tree," he said, "the sweeter it becomes."


Adrian G. Uribarri can be reached at auribarri@orlandosentinel.com or 352-742-5926.

And speaking of Tavares, is this the origin of Tavares Limequat? Or was just named after the town or the place of hybridization or discorvery?

Yes- the Tavares Limequat is named for the Florida city as is the Lakeland, and Eustis Limequats

Quote:

Eustis, Lakeland, and Tavares limequats, hybrids of kumquats and the West Indian or key lime, all resemble the key lime in size, form and composition and are commonly substituted for key lime. Eustis and Lakeland kumquats are similar in color to the key lime where as the Tavares limequat has more orange color. Eustis and Lakeland are sister hybrids of the West Indian or key lime and the round or Meiwa kumquat. Tavares is a hybrid of key lime with the oval or Nagami kumquat. All limequat are more cold resistant than key limes but less cold resistant than kumquats.

Quote:

Eustis and Lakeland are sister hybrids of the West Indian lime and the round kumquat (Fortunella japonica), and Tavares is a similar hybrid with the oval kumquat (Fortunella margarita). They were made by W. T. Swingle of the U.S. Department of Agriculture in Florida in 1909 and were named and described in 1913.