Papuan citron

Citrus medica L.

CRC 3532

PI 539430

Photos by David Karp, CVC,  12/5/2006. Photo rights.

Source: Received as seed from John Carpenter, USDA Date & Citrus Station, Indio, Ca, 1966. Open pollinated seedling.

Parentage/origins: Parents unknown.

Rootstocks of accession: Yuma Ponderosa lemon

Season of ripeness at Riverside: November to January

Notes and observations:

1/20/1989, EMN: A small round citron with a prominant nipple. Rind medium yellow, often ridged from base to apex. Rind relatively thin for a citron. Pulp light yellow, moderately juicy, extremely sour. Very seedy.

11/7/2006, DK & OJB: Papuan appears from its fleshy flowers to be a hybrid, but molecular marker studies show that it’s a pure citron. The tree is small, with small, rolly-poly fruit, strongly pointed, and very juicy, with a rather thin rind. It has fine-textured flesh, very acid, acrid. The leaves look right for a citron. Note the seedlings growing underneath the tree.

Availability: Not commercially available in California.

USDA Germplasm Resources Information Network page for Papuan citron