Variegated Calamondin Orange is our pick for Unusual Edible May 2017

Characterized by small striped fruit, leaves with parallel yellow marks and compact growth habit, the Variegated Calamondin is an attractive small shrub which can be tucked into just about any small garden with a little ingenuity.
Derived from citrus originally cultivated in China, Calamondin and Variegated Calamondin are heavily cultivated in the Phillipines where it is enjoyed as a lemonade type drink, used to flavor fish dishes or frozen solid and used to chill and flavor cocktails.  The rind has a high concentration of essential oils which can be extracted with a steaming process or alternately the oil rich rind can be dried and used in potpourri.

Thought to be a hybrid of Mandarin Oranges and Kumquats, Calamondins were introduced to the United States in 1900.   Never popular in the states due to it’s sour taste, these typically columnar colorful shrubs with fragrant flowers were mostly used as ornamental container plants.  With bright light, a variegated Calamondin makes a good houseplant!

The extraordinary explosion of culinary diversity over the last ten years has created a Calamondin renaissance in the kitchen.  Expand your gustatory horizons with this unusual edible!

3 gallon Variegated Calamondin $34.00