Tangerine

Some 16 species of small, evergreen trees and shrubs comprise this genus, native to SE Asia and E Pacific islands. Most citruses have been cultivated for so long that their origins are obscure. The species are very closely related, with numerous hybrids and cultivars. Citruses were unknown in Europe in Classical times, through C. aurantium and C. bergamia were first mentioned in Chinese medicine in the first century CE. The first citrus to arrive in Europe was the bitter orange, C. aurantium, probably brought by the Portuguese from the East Indies. It was followed by C. limon, probably from China, somewhere between tthe 11th and 13th centuries. Medicinal uses of citruses are complex. Various parts of the tree are used, and also various parts of the fruit at different stages of ripeness. Commonly, the leaves, fruits, juice and bark are used, while in China several quite different drugs are prepared from the fruits alone - one of the most valuable being the peel of C. reticulata, which becomes more potent with age. The related Poncirus trifoliata (hardy orange, Japanese bitter orange) is used in identical ways to C. aurantium. Citruses are high in vitamin C, flavonoids, acids, and volatile oils. They also contain coumarins, such as bergapten, which sensitize the skin to sunlight. Bergapten is sometimes added to tanning preparations and may cause dermatitis or allergic responses. The most recent uses of citruses are anti-oxidants and chemical exfoliants in cosmetics.

Large shrub or small, spreading, often spiny tree with ovate to lanceolate leaves, 3-4cm (1¼-1½in) long. Fragrant white flowers, less than 2.5cm (1in) across, appear in spring and summer, followed by yellow- to red-orange fruits, to 8cm (3in) in diameter, with thin, easily removed peel, and sweet pulp.


Common Name:
Tangerine
Other Names:
Mandarin Orange
Botanical Name:
Citrus reticulata
Genus:
Citrus
Family:
Rutacea
Native Location:
SE Asia
Cultivation:
Well-drained, neutral to slightly acid soil in sun, with ample moisture during the growing season. Scale insects, mealybugs, and tortrix moth caterpillars may affect plants under cover. Citruses do not transplant well.
Propagation:
By seed sown when ripe or in spring at 16° C (61°F); by semi-ripe cuttings in summer. Cultivars do not come true from seed.
Harvest:
Flowers (C. aurantium, C. bergamia) are picked when first open and distilled for oil. Leaves (C. aurantiifolia, C. hystrix) are picked as required for flavoring and infusions. Oil is distilled from foliage, unripe fruits (C. aurantium) and ripe fruits (C. bergamia). Fruits are picked when unripe or ripe for culinary use, candying, or oil distillation, and either unripe or ripe (C. aurantium, C. reticulata) for use in Chinese medicine.
Variations:
Clementine
Is a N American cultivar of the Mandarin Group, with an upright, bushy habit, and early, sweet, orange-red fruit.
Height:
2-8m (6-25ft)
Width:
1.5-3m (5-10ft)
Hardiness:
Min.3-5°C (37-41°F). Sometimes withstands short periods of 0°C (32°F)
History:
Almost everyone knows that citrus fruits are rich in vitamin C and provide delicious, thirst-quenching drinks. Many others are familiar with the fragrant citrus oils used in aromatherapy and bathwaters. Few people, however, realize that several of the citrus species have been used medicinally for centuries in Asian medicine, and are used increasingly in the West as well (where they were not introduced until the twelfth century). Tangerine is one of the best examples of medicinally used citrus fruits.
Parts Used:
Fruits, dried ripe peel (chen pi), unripe peel (qing pi), seeds (ju he).
Properties:
A bitter, spicy, warming herb that stimulates the digestion, lungs, and speen (chen pi); acts mainly on the liver, gall bladder, and breasts (qing pi); and energy stimulant, it affects the liver and kidneys, and relieves pain (ju he).
Medicinal Uses:
Internally for indigestion, vomiting, and wet coughs (chen pi); liver or gall bladder disorders, bronchial congestion, mastitis, breast cancer, and pain in liver, chest, and breasts (qing pi); lumbago, orchitis, mastitis (ju he).
Tangerine peel has astringent, digestive, expectorant, pain-relieving, warming, stimulant, and tonic properties. It is taken internally for digestive disorders, including abdominal bloating, diarrhea, flatulence, indigestion, nausea, and vomiting. In Chinese herbal medicine, tangerine peel is additionally prescribed as a liver tonic and to treat bronchitis, congestion, gallbladder and kidney ailments, and productive (phlegmy) coughs.
Culinary Uses:
Fruits are eaten fresh, preserved whole in syrup, canned, or juiced. Peel is dried as condiment (kuo pei) in China for a sweet, spicy flavor and to reduce odors.
Economic Uses:
Essential oil is used for flavoring in the food industry.
Bibliography:
Encyclopedia of Herbs by Deni Brown Copyright © 1995, 2001 Dorling Kindersley Limited Pp 171-173
The Modern Herbal Primer by Nancy Burke Copyright©2000 Yankee Publishing, Inc. pp 137-138