Citrus A World History. By David J. Mabberley. Published in 2024 by Thames & Hudson Ltd., London, 272 pp., illustrated throughout. ISBN 978–0–500-02636-6

Abstract

Citrus are commonplace in our lives. Opening the fridge to get lunch while writing this review the first thing to catch my eye was a jar of pickled lemons; on another shelf there was a dish holding lemon wedges of forgotten origin and limited future. Dedicated dishes hold lemons and limes, or tangerines, in kitchen and living room respectively. I'm out of oranges. My washing up liquid claims to involve lemon and Aloe vera, and a cleaning cream under the sink is also boldly lemon scented.

Citrus – both the botanical Citrus, or the everyday familiar citrus of commerce, has been a subject of passionate interest for David Mabberley for decades, whether through phylogenetics to elucidate the complex history of the genus, or as an element in our lives, for example by following-up the source of containers used to import juice concentrate to the UK. Elsewhere he has presented a classification of cultivated Citrus: in this book he weaves the story of citrus through human culture, demonstrating just how important these fruits (it's mostly about the fruits) have been and still are to religion and art, to medicine, our diet and to agribusiness.

On opening the book the most obviously striking feature is the wealth and breadth of its illustrations. The first spread, of Botticelli's Primavera, whose characters are placed in an orange grove, sets the tone. What follows is a fabulous progression through the classical, medieval and early scientific illustration of citrus, to the glorious citrologies of the Renaissance, architectural drawings of the orangeries in which the patriotic tributes to the House of Orange (carefully disambiguated) could be grown, to photographs of industrial-scale citrus production and a really superb gathering of images used for marketing citrus, a showcase of great design. One feels that the picture researchers and designers of the book for Thames and Hudson must have had some fun bringing it together: it seems unfortunate that they are not acknowledged.

In the text the subject of citrus is pursued down the centuries, as suggested in the subtitle, from the first records of cultivation in Asia to the contemporary situation of a vast industry threatened by disease. We learn how the golden apples of the Hesperides morphed in concept from quinces to citrus; why citron is so important in Jewish ritual; the migration of citrus cultivation through Europe and its association with those of high status and sufficient wealth to be able to afford to cultivate them in limonaie or great orangeries; and how the protection of such individuals, grown rich on citrus production in Sicily, may have led to the expansion of the mafia. Scurvy, and its conquest by citrus-derived vitamin C, gets the treatment it deserves, and it is interesting to learn that Casanova used a solution of lemon juice to prevent pregnancies among his conquests, it having since been demonstrated to be a very effective spermicide. The work of Walter Swingle of the US Department of Agriculture and his team in hybridising citrus for genetic novelty and disease resistance is covered, as is the development of the American citrus industry. My first overseas trip, as an eighteen year-old in 1986, was to visit relatives in southern California, and a clear memory is of driving south through Orange County from Los Angeles airport on that first golden afternoon and smelling the scent of orange-blossom wafting across the freeway, so it was sad to learn that California no longer has commercial citrus production.

Among all this wealth of knowledge botanical information is surprisingly limited. There is a useful general introduction to the biology of Citrus, discussing its evolutionary history in the Rutaceae, with the fruit's unique structure being discussed in detail: its longevity as a juicy delicacy is after all the reason for the success of citrus. Each of the important taxa is introduced in order of its appearance in the record, but coverage is patchy and most do not have any form of botanical description. There is, for example, no clear definition of what an orange (Citrus × aurantium) is. It would have been really helpful if there had been a family tree to show the web of hybridity that has created the genus as we know it, especially in its familiar guises available from greengrocer, or at least a summary table to provide a guide to the contemporary classification which Mabberley himself is responsible for. A short, but very interesting section does however describe and discuss the unfamiliar Citrus species native to Australasia, which the author sees as potentially being important for breeding advantageous traits for disease resistance into the narrow genetic pool of cultivated citrus, on which a huge industry depends.

The threat to this industry, especially from the huanglongbing bacterial disease, vectored by psyllids, is described with brutal clarity. The once-great Florida citrus industry is on the point of collapse, from the disease's arrival only in 2005, and inroads into production elsewhere are becoming very significant. It seems likely that the days of easy ‘OJ’ are numbered. Options for mitigating the disease are discussed, but it's clear that as yet there is no solution. Despite the importance of the disease its symptoms and effects are not illustrated.

It is not entirely clear who the intended audience for this book is. I found it in the nearest independent bookshop, the excellent Kemps of Malton, among the cookery books – yet it contains no recipes, and indeed little reference to the culinary usage of citrus. My pickled lemons do not feature, though there is a short section on marmalade. Nor would I gain any information if as a horticulturist I was trying to grow my own. Its botanical deficiencies have been mentioned above. But it is a paean to the cultural phenomenon that citrus has become over the millennia, affecting peoples all round the world, and anyone interested in how plants intertwine with our own lives and experience will find this a remarkable and rewarding read, and a visual treat.