Sugar Belle® is the commercial name for LB8-9, a University of Florida Clementine × Minneola mandarin hybrid. Selected in 1985 at Lake Alfred, it combines a tangelo-like neck with deep orange color.[2][4]
Its appeal is a rich sweet–tart flavor and abundant juice. The brand describes intense sweetness, while a North Carolina first-crop taste test found a strong, navel-orange-like acid punch. Peelability varies between the easy-peeling brand description and the grower’s more difficult sample; it is also well suited to slicing and juicing.[3][5]
Seediness depends strongly on cross-pollination and crop management; low-seeded fruit is possible, but seedlessness is not guaranteed. Florida harvest descriptions generally run from late November into early January. Grower discussion emphasizes allowing enough hang time for the acidity to soften, especially where seasons are shorter.[4][10]
Trees are vigorous and densely foliated, and time to first bearing varies with propagation and management. Sugar Belle is noted for Alternaria brown spot and HLB tolerance, rather than immunity. In a 2026 North Carolina freeze report, a covered tree with incandescent lights reached 17.8°F and sustained leaf scorch without reported branch damage; that is a protected-tree observation, not an unprotected hardiness limit.[4][6][8]
