Benton Citrange

Benton Citrange is a Ruby Blood sweet orange × Poncirus trifoliata hybrid selected from the NSW Agriculture rootstock breeding program initiated by Dr F. T. Bowman in 1945. The program sought compatibility with Eureka lemon, resistance to Phytophthora and tolerance of citrus tristeza virus. The NSW factsheet reports successful Eureka-on-Benton trials on the Central Coast and at Yanco.^⁠[1]

Seed was first released to industry in 1984. Commercial lemon plantings using Benton were established from 1990; initially poor seed production in source trees constrained wider use, and the 2005 fact sheet reports that the issue had improved.^⁠[1]

In The Mulberries’ taste test, California-grown fruit supplied by Brad at Lyn Citrus was very juicy, almost seedless and difficult to peel, with orange and floral flavors. The companion scorecard records 130 g, 11 °Brix and pH 3.0, describing low sweetness, very sour juice and low bitterness. The reviewer enjoyed the fruit fresh and suggested juice, marmalade and baking; these are impressions of the sampled fruit, with differences between spoken and scorecard descriptions retained in the tasting note.^⁠[5]⁠[6]