Pink Meat Seedless Navel Oranges

[Voices30]

Greetings and Salutations,
I did a bit of picking today, and I realized that I hadn't really posted any pictures for the forum, so I decided to give a shot, and whip out the trusty camera and give it a shot (literally!)

These are grown here on my grove in Putnam County, FL. This is interesting because we don't have this variety in Florida (at least not commercially). These are Seedless Pink Meat Navel Oranges. They are common in California, where they are grown commercially and are called "Cara Cara" These are the fruit that make me locally famous here in Florida because no one can figure out where they came from! I usually sell them wholesale to a local vendor who sells them on the side of the road.

We had a small harvest this year (which is OK because it's way less work) They cycle and sometimes you get an "off" year every now and again. This happens from time to time, and we only produced about 25% of what we typically do in a year. I am not a commercial grower, and I wind up juicing a lot of it (especially the giant thick skinned yellow grapefruit I have that I can't give away!)


Trees are in good health, and doing well.


Normally the tree would be COVERED in fruit, but I am not greedy. Not every year can be a record setter!


I got a few carts full, which was a blessing, because my back is killing me right now, and I would have wound up in the hospital if it had been a full harvest.


Did I make your mouth water? They are DELICIOUS and I love this fruit!

[applestar]

I can't get over that those are Naval Oranges!
I wish I could just pluck one off your cart

(Thanks for posting the photos! )

[tomc]

AKA blood orange.

[LIcenter]

A friend sends a box of these up every year from Florida, which we received last week. They are some good!

[Voices30]

AKA blood orange.

It's not a blood orange. It's major differences are that it's much lighter in color that a blood orange inside, and that the Cara Cara is a navel orange.

Wikipedia:
The blood orange is a natural mutation of the orange, which is itself a hybrid, probably between the pomelo and the
tangerine,

The Cara cara navel, or red-fleshed navel orange is an early-to-midseason navel orange believed to have developed as a cross between the Washington navel and the Brazilian Bahia navel

[Voices30]

A friend sends a box of these up every year from Florida, which we received last week. They are some good!

Where in Florida does your friend live, it makes me curious if he's close by. I didn't know what they were for years, other than "pink navel oranges" because we don't have them in the store or anything like that here, but finally someone from the west coast saw one and told us that they grow them over there. According to wikiepdia, it's believed that they originally came from Venezuela.

[LIcenter]

Don't know exactly where. I'll let you know later in the week.

[LIcenter]

She lives just south of Kissimmee, and the oranges come from a town just south of there called Dundee. The grower is Dundee Groves between rt. 17, and rt 27.

[Voices30]

That's really cool, thanks for sharing. I knew someone else had to have these in Florida, but because they are hybrid seedless, they must be grafted or air layered. The thing about that is, unless you have a citrus license, it's illegal to propagate citrus in Florida. You also can't sell anything that is going to leave the state, or buy anything that is coming into the state. Like I said, I really don't know how these trees got here, as they came with the property, but I do know I love them and they are delicious!