Robinson mandarin

Citrus reticulata Blanco RUTACEAE

CRC 3850
PI 539524
VI 416, 200 (No longer available)

Source

Received as budwood from Florida, 1962.

Parentage/origins

Clementine mandarin and Orlando tangelo

Rootstocks of accession

Carrizo citrange, C-35 citrange

Season of ripeness at Riverside

November to January

Notes and observations

3/1987, EMN: Most on ground. Small fruit.

11/23/1988, EMN: Medium-small, dark orange, oblate mandarin subject to alternate bearing and small sized fruit in on-crop years. Does not peel readily and is too seedy; flesh is coarse, ricey, raggy; but flavor is very good.

11/29/1989, EMN: Note from May, 1978 Citrograph CCPP update (pp 163): Robinson…has proved to be unsuited for commercial use in California. The trees exhibit excessive dieback in the nursery and orchard; this has also been reported for Robinson in Florida (4) and South Africa. Lit. Cit (4) is Fedder, et al. 1966. Twig gumming and dieback of the Robinson tangerine. Plant Disease Reptr. 50:429-430. Our source of Robinson (VI 200) has now been STG'd and planted in the CB at Lindcove (VI 416). This tree (CB 32-4, pl. 1986) should be watched; maybe STG took out the twig gumming & dieback tendency. (Var. Coll. trees at 12B-26-15, 16 are from VI 200, before STG).

Description from The Citrus Industry Vol. 1 (1967)

"Fruit medium-large, oblate (more so than Osceola): base evenly rounded or slightly necked; apex broadly depressed. Rind thin, tough and leathery, moderately adherent but easily peelable: surface smooth and glossy; color deep yellowish-orange at maturity. Segments numerous (12-14), readily separable; axis large and hollow. Flesh color deep orange; juicy; flavor rich and sweet. Seeds moderately numerous and cotyledons light green. Early in maturity (about the same as Lee and Osceola but colors earlier).

Tree upright-spreading, nearly thornless; dense foliage consists of large broadly lanceolate, taper-pointed leaves, commonly notched at the tip and crenate-margined on the upper half. Appears to be a regular bearer.

This very early maturing, rather large-fruited variety is a sister to Lee and Osceola, all three resulting from a Clementine mandarin-Orlando tangelo cross made by Gardner and Bellows of the U.S. Department of Agriculture in Florida in 1942 and released in 1959 (Reece and Gardner, 1959). Robinson is currently under commercial trial in Florida. Since its parents are both self-incompatible and more fruitful if cross-pollinated, it seems likely that Robinson will exhibit the same characteristics."