Orange Fragrance Fills the Garden: Authoritative Evidence Revealed on the Origins of Chinese Citrus
Release date:
2024-11-14
Around 2018, a U.S.-led team published their research findings in *Nature*, explicitly proposing the "theory" that citrus fruits originated at the southeastern foothills of the Himalayas.
Citrus fruits
If this "theory" holds true, it will undoubtedly remain an unresolved emotional burden in the hearts of countless Chinese scholars and citrus experts!
"Great trees of the imperial realm, the orange thrives in its native land. Faithful to its destiny, it remains rooted—born in the southern lands..."
And the orange tree
Many Chinese scholars have proposed that China is the global center of origin for citrus fruits. However, previous research has largely focused on commercially cultivated varieties widely grown around the world—such as mandarins, oranges, pomelos, and lemons—leaving a significant gap in our systematic understanding of wild citrus species and their closely related relatives. This limitation has hindered comprehensive studies on the origins and evolution of citrus, leaving the claim that citrus originated in China without definitive scientific evidence.
As early as before 2013, Deng Xiuxin, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, and Xu Qiang, a professor at the College of Horticulture and Forestry at Huazhong Agricultural University, had repeatedly led their teams deep into southern regions where citrus fruits are naturally distributed. They visited wild ancient trees across the area, searching for rare, ancient citrus resources and studying the genetic backgrounds of these unique varieties. The team aimed to unlock the mysteries of citrus origins by conducting large-scale research on these untapped wild citrus treasures.
The Current Situation with Orange
Over the next decade and more, Professor Xu Qiang and his team ventured from Yunnan, Hubei, Hunan, Guangxi, Guangdong, Jiangxi—and beyond—searching through Southern China’s towering mountain ranges, from the tropical rainforests of Xishuangbanna to Mangshan in Chenzhou, and finally to Mao’er Mountain in Guilin. They believe that the world’s oldest known citrus species still thrives right there.
By analyzing extensive data from models of ancient continental plate movements and the distribution patterns of China’s native citrus resources, combined with a genome-based research approach using wild materials for precise re-examination, the research team at Huazhong Agricultural University has finally been able to objectively and clearly recount the story of citrus origins.
Hunan Mangshan Wild Mandarin Oranges
After painstaking exploration, they hypothesized that the ancient Indian plate may have been the center of origin for the citrus subfamily, while southern China likely served as the primary center of origin for the genus Citrus. Meanwhile, the southeastern foothills of the Himalayas, along with Australia and nearby islands, are thought to be two secondary centers of diversification for citrus plants.
Recently, the team’s latest research paper was published online in *Nature Genetics*. They unveiled the origins and evolutionary history of the genus *Citrus* and its subfamily, constructed a pan-genome map of the Citrus subfamily, identified key genes that regulate citric acid accumulation in citrus fruits, and confirmed that citrus originated in China.
Garden full of citrus fruits, research team, China, origin, wild resources center, originating from
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