Morton

Synonyms

None

Cultivar or taxon

Citrus x aurantium L., pro sp. [Sweet Orange Group] X Citrus trifoliata L. (sensu Mabberley 2004, Bayer et al. 2009); Citrus sinensis (L.) Osbeck x Poncirus trifoliata (L.) Raf. (sensu Swingle and Reece 1967; sensu Tanaka sec. Cottin 2002; sec. NPGS/GRIN 2010)

Description

Crown compact or dense, not weeping. First-year twig surface glabrous; second- or third-year twig surface striate; thorns absent or not persistent or straight; prickles absent or not persistent. Petiole glabrous, length medium or long; wings narrow or medium, wing adjoining blade. Leaflets one or three, margin bluntly toothed, rachis wings absent, shade leaflet blades weakly conduplicate, sun leaflet blades weakly conduplicate. Scent of crushed leaflets sweetly orange-like. Fruit as broad as long or longer than broad; rind yellow (7-10), yellow-orange (11), or orange (12); rind texture slightly rough (4-5); medium rough (6-7) or rough; firmness leathery; navel absent; rarely present; flesh orange; taste sour.

Notes

Hodgson (1967) noted that Webber (1943) suggested Morton would be suitable as an ornamental, as well as a substitute for doorside juice fruits in places too cold for mandarins or sweet oranges.

Swingle and Reece (1967) additionally noted that: "In Webber's opinion, the citrange varieties that most closely approach the sweet orange in size, appearance, and edibility in the fresh state, and hence may be useful as juice fruits for dooryard planting in regions too cold for oranges and mandarins, are Morton, Coleman, and Savage. He also recommends them as ornamentals."

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.

Webber, H.J. 1943. Cultivated varieties of citrus. In: Webber, H.J. and L.D. Batchelor (eds.). The Citrus industry. I: 475-668. University of California Press, Berkeley and Los Angeles.

Resources

Search for this cultivar in NCBI Entrez or NCBI Nucleotide