Koji orange

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Koji orange
Koji orange fruits
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Sapindales
Family: Rutaceae
Genus: Citrus
Species:
C. leiocarpa
Binomial name
Citrus leiocarpa
hort. ex Tanaka (1927)
Forms
  • Citrus leiocarpa f. monoembryota Tanaka
Synonyms

Koji orange (Citrus leiocarpa), also called smooth-fruited orange in English, bingyul in Korean, 光橘 (guang ju), 柑 子 (gan zi), and 日本土柑 (ri ben tu gan) in Chinese, and コウジ (kōji) in Japanese, is a Citrus species native to Japan.[1] The specific epithet (leiocarpa) comes from Greek leios (= smooth) and karpon (= fruit). It is a taxonomical synonym of Citrus aurantium.[2]

Distribution[edit]

Besides Japan, it is grown in the United States, and other parts of East Asia including South Korea and China.[2]

Description[edit]

The fruit is oblate in shape, slightly ribbed, bright orange in color, very small, and very seedy, and for the latter two reasons it is not grown for commercial use. It ripens from October through November and has been cultivated since at least 1900. It may be monoembryonic. The tree is densely branched and has a broad crown and a short, straight trunk. The leaves are dark green and elliptical in shape.[1]

Genetics[edit]

Citrus leiocarpa is inferred to be a hybrid between a koji-type species (seed parent) and the tachibana orange (pollen parent, Citrus tachibana). Its genotype matches with that of the komikan and toukan varieties.[3]

Varieties[edit]

Citrus leiocarpa f. monoembryota, a form of Citrus leiocarpa, was described by Chozaburo Tanaka. Once believed to be a mutation of the koji orange, it has been revealed that it is a hybrid between koji (pollen parent) and kishu (seed parent).[3] In Chinese, it is called 駿河柑子 (jun he gan zi) and is called スルガユコウ (suruga yukō) and 駿河柚柑 (suruga yuzukan) in Japanese.[4]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b "CRC3147". citrusvariety.ucr.edu. Retrieved 18 January 2021.
  2. ^ a b "Citrus leiocarpa hort. ex Tanaka". www.gbif.org. Retrieved 18 January 2021.
  3. ^ a b Shimizu, Tokurou; Kitajima, Akira; Nonaka, Keisuke; Yoshioka, Terutaka; Ohta, Satoshi; Goto, Shingo; Toyoda, Atsushi; Fujiyama, Asao; Mochizuki, Takako; Nagasaki, Hideki; Kaminuma, Eli; Nakamura, Yasukazu (30 November 2016). "Hybrid Origins of Citrus Varieties Inferred from DNA Marker Analysis of Nuclear and Organelle Genomes". PLOS ONE. 11 (11): e0166969. Bibcode:2016PLoSO..1166969S. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0166969. PMC 5130255. PMID 27902727.
  4. ^ "M.M.P.N.D. - Sorting Citrus names part1". www.plantnames.unimelb.edu.au. Retrieved 12 February 2021.