Ruby Red Grapefruit

Ruby Red Grapefruit
Citrus x paradisi 'Ruby Red'
(SIT-rus) (par-ih-DEE-see)

This a partial shot of my crop of Ruby Red. We picked and ate one yesterday and it was delicious. It had way more juice than the store bought type. This tree is about 15 years old and is not much to look at. Lets just say it has undergone substantial pruning several times. We have had fruit before but never 8 or ten at the same time. I am beginning to worry about the branches being able to support the weight of all of the fruit. Behind the fruit in this photo is a Mandarin orange (Citrus reticulata), which also has a bumper crop this season.

Grapefruit is considered a hybrid between the sweet orange and the pummelo fruits. It was discovered in Barbados in the 1700’s and was first brought to Florida in the 1820’s. After the introduction of the first patented cultivar (‘Ruby Red’) in 1929 the Grapefruit became an agricultural success. The United States leads the world in production with over 1.5 millions tons produced in 2007, primarily grown in Florida, Texas, California and Arizona. The name Grapefruit was given to the fruit because of the way it grows in clusters similar to grapes.

It is possible to grow Citrus in Connecticut and other than watching out for insects and having to have the trees under glass in the winter it is fairly painless. Our Myers Lemon tree has been producing for years, although it doesn’t have anything this year. I am going to try and buy a few ‘regular’ orange trees for the conservatory at work and see what happens. It will probably take a bit of research to figure out what varieties are best.

Just to add a flower picture for today here is the Floribunda Rose ‘Black Cherry’. Introduced by Jackson & Perkins in 2006 this is our first year with this rose. This flower has faded a bit but the bush itself has been producing fairly well all season. The color is a real nice red and the foliage has remained clean. It does look like it needs a little fertilizer in this photo. It has a nice but light fragrance and the flowers are on what I would call the smaller side.