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Mandarins have been grown in southern China and Laos for thousands of years but it was not until the start of the 19th century that they reached Europe where they were mainly grown in Spain and Italy. Mandarins are the smallest and easiest citrus fruit to peel. They are seedless, juicy and aromatic. Their bright orange peel varies in thickness depending on the variety. Mandarins contain significant quantities of vitamin C and provitamin A. They have antioxidant properties which means they can help to prevent cancer and heart disease.
Mandarins		 
Satsuma     This variety of mandarin is the last to flower and the first to be harvested. Satsumas are the mandarins that best withstand the cold. Since they are seedless, satsuma segments are ideally suited to canning in syrup, though they can also be used to make juice.
Satsuma		                                               
Owari      Although the origin of this variety is unknown, it appeared in Japan a very long time ago. The tree is vigorous and medium sized. The fruit is seedless, quite large and has a very high juice content.
Owari		                                               
Okitsu      These mandarins mature early. The harvesting period is short and the fruit is usually picked while the skin is still dark green. It is medium-sized, rounded and slightly oblate. The rind is thick and rough and peels away from the fruit easily. It is greeny-yellow in colour with hints of orange.
Okitsu		                                               
 
This is one of the groups with the most varieties and is the most important type of mandarin. Classic clementines are deep orange, round or slightly flattened in shape, and seedless. Industrial production of their juice is on the rise due to their excellent organoleptic characteristics.
Classic Clementines		 
Marisol      The Marisol variety originated as a spontaneous mutation of the Oroval variety in 1970 in Bechi (Castellon, Spain), and has almost identical characteristics to the Oroval variety. This variety is a serious competitor of the Owari Satsuma which is also harvested very early. The tree is vigorous with dark green leaves and thorns, although these disappear over time. It produces sweet, though slightly more acidic, fruit than other varieties, with a good juice content. The large, round fruit has soft pulp and a rough, orange rind which is easy to peel. This variety is seedless.
Marisol		                                               
Oroval       This variety was discovered in 1950 in Quart de les Valls (Valencia, Spain) as a spontaneous mutation of the Fina variety. The tree is vigorous, grows quickly and has some thorns that disappear over time.
The fruit is seedless and round, with a slightly rough deep orange rind which is easy to peel. Its abundant juice is slightly more acidic than other varieties but has good sugar levels. (Source: IVIA)
Oroval		                                               
Nulera/Clemenules      This is the most popular clementine variety in Spain and was discovered as a mutation of the Fina variety in 1953 in Nules (Castellon, Spain). It is harvested early but has a long flowering period. The tree is vigorous, fast-growing and highly productive. Its fruit is quite large and slightly oblate in shape. The deep orange rind is easy to peel. This variety is seedless. Its abundant juice is of very high quality with good total sugar and acidity levels. It has juicy, good quality pulp.
Nulera/Clemenules		                                               
Hernandina      This variety was discovered in 1966 in Picassent (Valencia, Spain) as a spontaneous mutation of the Fina variety, which has very similar characteristics. The highly productive tree is large and vigorous with dense foliage. It is harvested mid-season (approx. January-February), since it withstands seasonal rainfall well. The fruit is medium-sized and slightly oblate. This variety has excellent organoleptic qualities. It has a thin, deep orange rind which is easy to peel with characteristic green traces around the flower. This is an excellent quality variety which has very juicy pulp, lots of sweet juice and good acidity levels.
Hernandina 		                                               
Oronules    The Oronules variety originated as a spontaneous mutation of the Fina clementine in Nules (Castellon, Spain), in 1970. The tree is vigorous, rounded in shape and tends to grow upwards.
The fruit is medium-sized (approx. 70-80 g), slightly oblate and seedless. The rind is thin and is an attractive deep orange colour. The juice and pulp have very good organoleptic qualities.
Oronules		                                               
Arrufatina      
This variety originated as a spontaneous mutation of the Nules clementine and was discovered in 1968 in Villareal (Castellon, Spain). The tree is large and vigorous and produces thorns which may disappear over time. The fruit is large and has good juice content with average organoleptic qualities. It is a seedless, early variety. (Source: IVIA)
Arrufatina		                                               
Orogrande      Orogrande is a mutation of the Nules variety. The tree is large and uniform and the fruit is similar to the Nules. In some areas, Orogrande is harvested before the Nules variety. This is due to the fact that its flowering period is far more concentrated, (80%of the flowers appear in the first flowering period). The tree is vigorous and grows and bears fruit quickly.
The fruit is medium to large, has a smooth rind and fewer essential oil glands. It has an attractive orange colour and is seedless. It has a high percentage of fine quality juice with good sugar levels, although the acid levels are lower than in other varieties.
Orogrande		                                               
 
New Clementines are a growing group of varieties which come into season earlier than classic clementines. They are similar in quality and have excellent organoleptic properties.
New Clementines		 
Pons       This variety originated in 1968 in Pego (Alicante, Spain) as a spontaneous mutation of the Nules variety, which has a similar tree and fruit. It is very productive and starts producing early on. The characteristic that sets this variety apart from Nules is the ripening process, which takes place around two weeks before its predecessor. The large, vigorous tree is very productive.
The fruit is medium-sized and its orange rind is easy to peel. This variety is seedless. Its abundant juice is of high quality with good sugar and total acidity levels. The pulp is juicy and of high quality.
Pons		                                               
Loretina      Loretina originated as a spontaneous mutation of the Marisol variety and was discovered in 1992 in Tormos (Alicante, Spain). The tree is vigorous and thorny, although the thorns disappear as the tree bears fruit. It is easy to peel and seedless. The fruit can stay on the tree for a long time without losing its organoleptic qualities.
The fruit is small to medium-sized and deep reddish-orange in colour. It has a rough rind with prominent essential oil glands. This variety, like the Marisol, has soft, juicy pulp with a high content of slightly acid juice.
Loretina		                                               
Clemenrubí     This fruit is similar in size to the Oronules variety. It has very attractive, deep reddish-orange rind. It is soft and easy to peel. The seedless pulp is orange, tender, juicy and delicious.
Clemenrubí		                                               
Mioro      The Mioro or Capola clementine is an early variety which deteriorates rapidly on the tree. Its fruit is medium-sized and easy to peel, with tender juicy segments.
Mioro		                                               
 
The mandarin group includes numerous hybrids produced by crossing different species of citrus fruit. They are normally late varieties. Hybrid fruit is good-sized, orange to reddish in colour and very attractive. Their highly juicy pulp melts in the mouth, and in general has high levels of sugar and total acids. They are usually relatively difficult to peel as the rind is very tight. It is not unusual for the rind of these mandarins to form a small navel at the stylar end of the fruit.
Hybrids		 
Clemenvilla      A hybrid of the Fina clementine and the Orlando tangelo obtained in Florida in 1942. The fruit is round and slightly flattened. It is medium to large in size and is an attractive reddish-orange colour. The Clemenvilla often has characteristic grooves at the stylar end of the fruit. The rind is thin and shiny and is very difficult to peel. The fruit has excellent deep orange pulp and sweet, juicy, tender segments. Moderate acidity levels and excellent ripeness.
Clemenvilla		                                               
Fortuna      This hybrid of the Fina clementine and the Dancy mandarin was obtained in 1964 in California. Good sized fruit which is a very attractive orange colour with lots of slightly acidic juice. Although its thin rind is rather tight, it is easy to peel. When the fruit has ripened, it has a sweet taste and a good sugar-acid ratio. Excellent juice content.
Fortuna		                                               
Ortanique      An orange-mandarin hybrid of unknown origin. The large fruits are rounded at the stalk end and flatter at the stylar end. The deep orange rind is very tight. This seedless variety has very soft, juicy pulp and an excellent juice content with good sugar and acidity levels.
Ortanique		                                               
Nadorcott     This is the most recent mandarin variety and comes from a mutation of the Murkott mandarin. It is a late-ripening fruit which is ready for harvesting from mid-February to April or May. This highly productive variety keeps well on the tree.
The fruit is almost deep red in colour and has an attractive natural shine. The colour becomes less intense the longer the fruit stays on the tree, but its abundant, excellent juice is unaffected by this. The fruit is 60-65 mm in size and very easy to peel, making it ideal for children.
Nadorcott		                                               
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