Magnet, Royal (sec. Cottin 2002)
Citrus x aurantium L., pro sp. [Tangor Group] [=Citrus reticulata Blanco X Citrus x aurantium L., pro sp. [Sweet Orange Group]] (sensu Mabberley 1997, 2004); Citrus reticulata Blanco x Citrus sinensis (L.) Osbeck (sensu Swingle and Reece 1967); Citrus temple hort. ex Yu. Tanaka (sensu Hodgson 1967; sensu Tanaka sec. Cottin 2002)
Hodgson (1967) noted that the so-called Temple orange is referred to as a natural tangor.
Hodgson (1967) additionally noted that:
"The origin and history of this variety are somewhat obscure. According to Ziegler and Wolfe (1961) and Harding (1959), it originated in Jamaica and came to the attention of a Florida fruit buyer about 1896, who ran across a seedling tree of outstanding quality. The buyer sent budwood to several friends at Oviedo, Florida, who budded a few trees of this "Jamaica" orange. About 1900, Allan Mosely, an orchard caretaker in the Winter Park area, is said to have obtained budwood from one of the friends, J. H. King. Mosely budded a tree in a young orchard under his care which in 1914 came into the ownership of L. A. Hakes. The following year Hakes called the tree to the attention of a neighbor, W. C. Temple, former manager of the Florida Citrus Exchange, who in turn reported its unusual qualities to his friend and former associate, M. E. Gillett, president of Buckeye Nurseries, a leading citrus nursery. Exclusive propagation rights were obtained in 1916. The variety was named and introduced in 1919 and was promoted on a large scale.
Once its limitations and adaptations became evident, Temple continued to increase in popularity to the point where both acreage and production now exceed that of the Dancy tangerine."
The Chiefland Budwood Facility (2010) provided the following notes on the cultivar (clone 33-15): "A Polk County selection from near Lake Daisy in Dundee, entered into the budwood program in 1956 by Southern Groves Association....Origin: Jamaica, probably hybrid of tangerine and sweet o., tangor, named after William Chase Temple"
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 short or medium; wings absent, if present, narrow, adjoining the blade. Leaflets one, margin entire (by misinterpretation) or bluntly toothed, shade leaflet blades flat or weakly conduplicate, sun leaflet blades weakly conduplicate. Scent of crushed leaflets mandarin-like. Fruit as broad as long or longer than broad; rind yellow-orange (11), orange (12), or red-orange (13); rind texture slightly rough (4-5) or medium rough (6-7); firmness leathery; navel absent; flesh orange; taste acidic-sweet.
Hodgson (1967) provided the following additional notes on the cultivar:
"Fruit medium-large, very broadly obovate to slightly subglobose; sometimes with short, wrinkled, or furrowed neck; frequently with small, sometimes protruding navel; seedy. Rind color deep reddish-orange; medium-thick; surface somewhat pebbled or rough, and moderately adherent, but readily peelable. Segments 10 to 12 and axis mainly solid. Flesh orange-colored; tender, moderately juicy; flavor rich and spicy. Seed monoembryonic. Medium-late in maturity.
Tree of medium vigor, spreading and bushy, somewhat thorny; leaves medium-sized and mandarin-like; productive. More cold-sensitive than any of the mandarins or oranges."
The Chiefland Budwood Facility (2010) provided the following additional notes on the cultivar (clone 33-15): "This shoot-tip grafted selection is a good yielder with characteristic traits of color and size for Temples....Description: Tight rind, reddish orange, pebbled or rough, cold sensitive, pointed leaves, 15-20 seeds, susceptible to scab. Season: Mid-late, January-March"
Hodgson (1967) additionally noted that:
Hodgson (1967) provided the following additional notes on the cultivar:
"Of the so-called natural tangors, Temple is much the most important variety. While it is obviously a mandarin hybrid, in the opinion of the writer such characteristics as seed monoembryony and pronounced cold-sensitivity of the tree suggest that it may be a natural tangelo of which pummelo rather than grapefruit is one of the parents. Since the consensus is that it is a tangor, however, it is included here. [...]
Because of its high heat requirement and sensitivity to cold and both rootstock and soil influences, Temple is decidedly limited in its range of commercial adaptation. In this respect, it is somewhat similar to the King mandarin. Within its range of adaptation, the fruit is of outstanding attractiveness and quality, but elsewhere it is highly disappointing and commercially worthless. Temple is at its best in Florida when propagated on sour orange or Cleopatra mandarin rootstocks and grown on the heavier-textured soils. Satisfactory quality in California is attained only in the hottest of the interior districts. Elsewhere, Temple is poorly colored and much too tart for most palates."
Chiefland Budwood Facility. 2010. 2010 Annual report July 1, 2009 - June 30, 2010. Bureau of Citrus Budwood Registration, Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services, Winter Haven.
Cottin, R. 2002. Citrus of the World: A citrus directory. Version 2.0. France: SRA INRA-CIRAD.
Harding, P.L. 1959. The importance and early history of the Temple orange. Proceedings of the Florida State Horticultural Society 72: 93–96.
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. 1997. A classification for edible Citrus (Rutaceae). Telopea 7: 167–172.
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.
Ziegler, L.W. and H.S. Wolfe. 1961. Citrus growing in Florida. University of Florida Press, Gainesville. 248 pp.
Search for this cultivar in NCBI Entrez, NCBI Nucleotide, or NCBI Expressed Sequence Tags
Additional information on this cultivar at University of California: Riverside Citrus Variety Collection
Citrus ID Edition 2
October, 2011
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