When is the latest ripening and market season for tangerines?

The tangerine is a fruit of the genus Citrus in the family Rutaceae. In China it is distributed from Sanya City in Hainan Province in the south, north to Shaanxi, Gansu and Henan, east from Taiwan Province, and west to the Yarlung Tsangpo Grand Canyon in Tibet. It can be said to be a treasure from head to toe, with the effects of moistening the lungs, relieving cough, reducing phlegm and quenching thirst. Now let us take a look at when tangerines ripen and reach the market!

In which month do tangerines ripen?

Tangerines generally begin to ripen after October. In fact, when it comes to the ripening season of citrus, because the varieties differ, the ripening time of each kind of citrus is different. Generally the ripening season of tangerines is in late autumn, that is, October to November. Different varieties have different ripening periods. Early-maturing varieties ripen around National Day, ordinary ones generally from November to January of the following year, and late-maturing ones generally from November to March or April of the following year.

Tips for choosing tangerines

1. Look at the variety: common tangerine varieties include Shatangju, Nanfeng tangerine, rock sugar tangerine, Huangyan mandarin and ponkan, among which Shatangju is the sweetest.

2. By size: medium-sized ones are best, because large ones have thick peel and the flesh is not plump, while small ones are poorly developed and do not taste good.

3. Distinguish the color: choose orange-red or orange-yellow ones, and the peel should be smooth. Over-ripe pale yellow ones, green unripe ones and tangerines with holes in the peel are all unacceptable.

4. Compare elasticity: press lightly with two fingers; those with good elasticity are better. Thin peel, a fresh fragrance that can be smelled through the peel, and some oil that comes out when the peel is lightly pinched with the hand also indicate a good tangerine.

5. Look at the bottom navel: viewed from the side, those with a long stalk and a sunken bottom are better, while those with a flat or protruding bottom are inferior.

6. Pinch the bottom: those that feel soft when pinched at the bottom are mostly sweeter, while those that feel hard when pinched generally have thicker peel and mostly taste rather sour.

What varieties of tangerines are there?

1. Shatangju: the peel of Shatangju is orange-yellow and glossy, thin and easy to peel, covered with small sandy dots, and feels rather rough. The fruit is oblate with a tumor-like protrusion at the top and a sunken stem end. The flesh is reddish and moist, without white membrane, crisp and juicy, tastes refreshingly sweet, and has few seeds. The authentic ones are produced in Huangtian Town of Sihui City and Guantian Village of Heyun Town in Qingxin County of Qingyuan City.

2. Mandarin: the fruit of the mandarin contains many nutrients, such as sugar, citric acid, vitamin C, protein, as well as carotene, vitamin P and other vitamins, among which the vitamin C content is 6 to 20 times that of apples. It is not only rich in nutrients, but also bright in color, strongly fragrant, and moderately sweet and sour, making people miss it when they smell it, drool when they see it, and find it sweet and delicious when they eat it.

3. Tribute tangerine: the tribute tangerine is an excellent variety among Chinese citrus, namely the Nanfeng mandarin, and is also a precious specialty of Jiangxi Province. Historically it has been famous at home and abroad for its golden fruit color, thin peel, tender flesh, residue-free eating, rich sweetness and striking fragrance. According to the "Yu Gong", as early as more than two thousand years ago, Nanfeng mandarin was already listed as a tribute.

4. Huangyan tangerine: Huangyan tangerine is a specialty of Huangyan District, Taizhou City, Zhejiang Province. As the “hometown of Chinese mandarins” and a county and district of the Ministry of Agriculture's high-quality citrus production base, Huangyan District has a long planting history and many varieties. Its citrus is moderately sweet and sour, rich in flavor, especially fresh and sweet, and of excellent quality. It has repeatedly won famous-brand product and quality product awards, and was among the first batch of nationally certified pollution-free agricultural products.

5. Ponkan: ponkan is one of the most common fruits in daily life. It is bright in color and sweet and sour in taste. The fruit is generally large, but smaller than a pomelo, round and slightly flattened, with a rather thick, bumpy and rough peel that is relatively easy to remove, and most of its seeds are white. Ponkan fruits are large, bright in color, loose-skinned and easy to peel, with crisp and tender flesh and plenty of juice that melts in the mouth.

6. Fuju: the Fuzhou Basin is rich in citrus, especially tangerines, which are the best, with thin peel, red color, plenty of juice and sweet taste. They have a unique flavor and are called “Fuju”, and the production areas are mostly distributed along both banks of the lower reaches of the Min River. In late autumn and early winter, green trees line both banks of the Min River, and the branches are covered with red fruits, colorful and gorgeous, which people praise as “the Min River red with tangerines”.