Aber's

Synonyms

Abers, Granito Willowleaf, Willowleaf Sour (sec. Cottin 2002)

Cultivar or taxon

Citrus x aurantium L., pro sp. [Sour Orange Group] (sensu Mabberley 2004, Bayer et al. 2009); Citrus aurantium L. (sensu Hodgson 1967; sensu Tanaka sec. Cottin 2002)

Origin

Hodgson (1967) noted that: "The presumption is that Abers Narrow Leaf originated in Florida, where it received its name, though it may have been introduced there."

Description

Crown compact or dense, not weeping. First-year twig surface glabrous; second- or third- year twig surface striate; thorns absent or not persistent; prickles absent or not persistent. Petiole glabrous, length very long, wings narrow or medium, adjoining the blade. Leaflets one, margins bluntly toothed, shade leaflet blades weakly conduplicate, sun leaflet blades weakly conduplicate. Leaflets spicy or peppery when crushed. Fruit broader than long; rind yellow (7-10), yellow-orange (11), or orange (12); rind texture slightly rough (4-5); firmness leathery; navel absent; flesh orange or yellow; taste sour.

Hodgson (1967) provided the following additional notes on Aber's: "This is an extremely narrow-leafed form, the tree of which is small and drooping in habit and the fruit of which is typical for bitter orange with the exception that the calyx is fleshy."

Notes

Hodgson (1967) included that "From the literature, it appears to be very similar to, if not identical with, the Granito variety (salicifolia) of Trabut as described in Algeria."

References

Bayer, R.J., D.J. Mabberley, C. Morton, C.H. Miller, I.K. Sharma, B.E. Pfeil, S. Rich, R. Hitchcock, and S. Sykes. 2009. A molecular phylogeny of the orange subfamily (Rutaceae: Aurantioideae) using nine cpDNA sequences. American Journal of Botany 96: 668–685.

Cottin, R. 2002. Citrus of the World: A citrus directory. Version 2.0. France: SRA INRA-CIRAD.

Hodgson, R.W. 1967. Horticultural varieties of Citrus. In: Reuther, W., H.J. Webber, and L.D. Batchelor (eds.). The Citrus industry, rev. University of California Press. http://lib.ucr.edu/agnic/webber/Vol1/Chapter4.html.

Mabberley, D.J. 2004. Citrus (Rutaceae): A review of recent advances in etymology, systematics, and medical applications. Blumea 49: 481–498.

Swingle, W.T. and P.C. Reece. 1967. The botany of Citrus and its wild relatives. In: Reuther, W., H.J. Webber, and L.D. Batchelor (eds.). The Citrus industry. Ed. 2. Vol. I. University of California, Riverside. http://lib.ucr.edu/agnic/webber/Vol1/Chapter3.html.

Resources

Search for this cultivar in NCBI Entrez