Calamondin Orange
Citrofortunella Microcarpa
I chose to study this plant because it was one that caught my eye while I visited the Franklin Park Conservatory in Columbus, OH. It was a small, intriguing tree with beautiful, small orange fruits, and led me to be further intrigued to find out more.
Basic Facts
The Calamondin Orange is a small, rare fruit tree that grows to about 5 m. tall It is also called Kalamansi and is native to the Philippines and Southeast Asia-favoring warmer, tropical climates. However, it has been brought over to the United States, grown and cultivated in the states Florida, Texas and Hawaii.
Its biome or habitat it resides in is the Tropical and Subtropical Moist Broadleaf Forest
The small, highly acidic fruit is said to be a hybrid cross between a Tangerine or Mandarin orange and a Kumquat.
It is not an invasive plant, and its flowers are self-fertile requiring no cross-pollination.
Life History
The Calamondin Orange tree reaches full height and bears fruit around the time of two years, making it a biennial plant.
Location
In the Philippines, the city of Tarlac is where most of the agriculture takes place and where most of the Kalamansi Trees are grown
Human Uses and other facts
The Calamondin is not known to have any specific mutualisms with other organisms, but humans do use the trees on a regular basis
It is grown mainly in North America as an ornamental plant in houses and can be grown sufficiently in pots.
Cooking is something it is used for often. It’s sweet, acidic taste is effective for marmalades, desserts, drinks and other marinades
The Calamondin is also used for cleaning purposes such as body deodorant and to bleach ink stains (Started in its native habitat, the Philippines)
At first, it blooms many small white flowers that are later replaced by small spherical oranges
It is a prime host to fruit flies and other pests, so it has been planted much less in Florida
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