Getting to Know Navel Oranges

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Navel oranges are the most well known oranges in the US. Most of the time the oranges that you give your family, or ate as a child, are navel oranges. They are easily accessible, are grown throughout the fall and winter, and have a very distinct shape and taste that make them easy to recognize. Navel oranges got their name because there is button shaped indentation on the end of the fruit that looks like the human navel.

This indentation is caused by a unique property of the fruit which causes a “twin” orange to grow inside the fruit while the fruit is growing. The lump of fleshy sections that lies at the center of the orange is actually the twin of the larger fruit which never split off and grew to full size.

This unique characteristic occurs in all navel oranges because all navel oranges are exactly the same. All navel oranges, unlike other citrus fruits, are grown by cutting and grafting so all the navel oranges grown are exact copies of the very first navel orange that was grown in the 1800s. Here are some other interesting facts about navel oranges:

All navel oranges are seedless – the unique process that created the navel orange also left it seedless. That's why it's necessary to cut and graft navel orange plants, they cannot reproduce on their own. Navel oranges that are grown today are exactly the same as those that were grown thousands of years ago
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Navel oranges are very easy to peel – the skin on the navel orange is very loose and pulls away from the fruit very easily. Because of this parents often give small children navel oranges or Honeybells, another sweet citrus fruit with an easy to remove peel, because even small children can easily peel the fruit by themselves. This helps the kids become more independent and gives them a feeling of accomplishment. Just watch out for sticky orange juice covered fingers on the furniture or pets!

Navel oranges are often given as holiday gifts – Because they are at the peak of their growing season during the holidays navel oranges, along with grapefruits and other citrus fruits, are very popular holiday gifts. Gift baskets full of navel oranges and other bright citrus fruits are a great holiday gift for families who can never have too much healthy and delicious fruit around the house.

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