Cara Cara navel orange

Citrus sinensis (L.) Osbeck

CRC 3994

PI 539580

VI 471

Photos by Toni Siebert, CVC. Photo rights.

Source: Received as budwood from Florida (originally came to Fla. from Venezuela From: Budwood Registration Prog., Winter-haven), 1988.

Parentage/origins: Cara Cara navel orange, a mutation that occurred on a Washington navel orange tree, was discovered in 1976 at Hacienda Cara Cara in Venezuela. From Venezuela, it was brought to Florida and then introduced into California, where it is well-adapted.

Rootstocks of accession: Carrizo citrange

Season of ripeness at Riverside: November to January

Notes and observations:

EMN, 4/1988: Needs Swingle test for canker. Tentative plan is to process for variety collection, full foundation set at Lind., early industry release, and fruit in screenhouse. Jack Hearn says this is a chimera and could revert to non-pink fruit through inadvertant selection of mutant bud. We probably should not release from any trees which have not fruited.

EMN, 12/1989: Info brought back from Florida by Dr. Gumpf (hand writ) says: This is a red fleshed navel originally from Venezuela. It grows well on sour orange, citrange, citrumelo, or trifoliata. It has a small navel; the fruit are slightly oblong. No blush to the skin which is of average thickness. Yields well. The flesh color in Florida is like that of Star Ruby grapefruit.

Most tree and fruit characteristics reflect its Washington navel orange ancestry, but the flesh is deep pink, similar to the darkest of the red grapefruit varieties. This rich color is due to the presence of lycopene, a carotenoid in the same family as beta carotene. Rarely, the normally green-leafed trees will produce variegated-leafed twigs. These twigs, when left to grow and fruit, may produce fruits with striped rind.

Availability: Commercially available in California through the Citrus Clonal Protection Program.

USDA Germplasm Resources Information Network page for Cara Cara navel orange

CVC Fruit Quality Data For Cara Cara navel orange