Tangerines: Taste-Tempting Florida Treats

Markedly smaller than most standard orange varieties, tangerines also offer a uniquely different, sweeter taste. They also vary from the orange in skin texture and color with the tangerine darker hued and with a rougher, more pebbled skin.

Often confused with mandarin oranges, tangerines are actually a variant of the mandarin. Tangerines, although similar in size, differ with a skin that has more red in it than the mandarin’s deep-orange tones.

Although an Asian cultivar of more than 30 centuries, tangerines are named after the African continent’s Moroccan port city of Tangiers, from where the fruit was first shipped to the United States and Europe in the 19th century.

Due to its exceptional sweetness, Florida citrus growers most widely market a variety known as Honey tangerines, officially labeled “Murcotts” after the 1920s Florida grove owner who originally cultivated them, Charles Murcott Smith. Other popular varieties of the tangerine include the Sunburst, Fairchild, Robinson, Fallglo and the Dancy. Though still in demand, Dancy tangerines are not grown for market as often as in the past. This variety is still sometimes called the “Christmas Orange,” from children receiving it in their holiday stockings.

As with much citrus, tangerines also have their own hybrid offshoots, most notably, the tangelo. Tangelos stem from a cross between grapefruits (or pomelos, a grapefruit relative) and tangerines. The tangelo most prized by its Florida growers (and the many consumers who enjoy them) is the Honey tangelo, a hybridization of Duncan grapefruits and Dancy tangerines. Tangelo varieties include the Minneola (along with Florida’s own Minneola Honeybell tangelo) and the Orlando. Minneola and Honeybell Minneola tangelos are notable in appearance for their somewhat elongated-ovate shape and stem-end bulge.

Another cross with tangerines from their relationship with the mandarin paired with the sweet orange produced the tangor. Now, the following varieties of tangor exist: King, Murcott, Temple, Umatilla and Ortanique. While not all tangor varieties do well in Florida, some, such as the Umatilla, may not be largely cultivated but are specially grown and are considered a valued fruit crop for selective gift-box/basket recipients.

Tangerines should be chosen as fresh as possible. Look for glossy, robustly pebbled skins with a deep, orange coloration. The skin of mature tangerines should be firm (not rock hard), but can be slightly soft. The fragrance of tangerines is delicately sweet, not overpowering, and the fruit should feel somewhat heavy in proportion to its size.

There’s no doubt about it: Tangerines provide a host of nutritional benefits – from Vitamins B, C, folate, beta-carotene and more. But when it gets right down to it, and what keeps the tangerine lover coming back for more now and in the future is this simple fact: Tangerines taste delicious!

Taste the Sunshine with Hale Groves

At Hale Groves, we believe the best gifts come from the land, not a factory. For generations, our fruit has been grown slowly under the Florida sun, picked at its peak, and delivered fresh to your door. From sweet Navel Oranges to rare Honeybells, every gift shares the simple joy of real flavor—perfect for holidays, milestones, or everyday moments worth celebrating.

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