Mother orange tree

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The mother orange tree in Oroville

The Mother Orange Tree in Oroville ( California ) on the grounds of Lake Oroville State Recreational Area is the oldest of all California orange trees . It is a cultivar of the Mediterranean sweet orange and the first rhizome that was brought by ship from Mazatlán , Mexico around Cape Cape Horn to the Pacific coast of California. The orange tree, then about two years old, was bought by Judge Joseph Lewis of Sacramento and planted in Bidwell's Bar on the west driveway of the Bidwell Bar Bridge in 1856 .

As the years went by, the tree bloomed and grew to a height of 60 feet (18 m) and was a popular attraction for miners who sampled its fruit and took seeds to plant in the front gardens of their cottages. The average annual yield was around 600 pounds (273 kg) of oranges between February and May. The tree's survival proved that the citrus industry could thrive in California's colder climates, encouraging many people to grow oranges in the Oroville area. The first citrus plantations emerged from offshoots of the mother tree, but from 1880 the navel oranges gained in weight and dominated the cultivation area from around 1900.

The tree was transplanted twice. Once in 1862 to prevent flooding by the Feather River and again in 1964 during the construction of the Oroville Dam in its current location at the Visitor Center of the Lake Oroville State Recreational Area in Oroville.

In 1998 a severe frost fell and the tree stopped bearing fruit for several years. As a result of the frost, a lazy swam and hollowed the trunk. To ensure the preservation of the tree, propagation experts from the University of California, Riverside successfully cloned the tree in 2003 and three clones were brought to Oroville to be planted. The tree has been bearing fruit since then. The tree has been designated a California Historical Landmark since 1926 .

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Richard Ek: Old Mother Orange: Cloning will save genetic heritage of Northern California's most famous orange tree. News Review (US website), January 5, 2003, accessed February 10, 2011 .
  2. ^ California State Parks - Office of Historic Preservation: California Historical Landmarks in Butte County

Coordinates: 39 ° 30 ′ 40 "  N , 121 ° 30 ′ 15.4"  W.