Clementine

Box of Clementines with hand for size reference.

Clementines are easier to peel than oranges.

This article is about the fruit. For other uses of the word clementine, see Clementine (disambiguation)

A clementine or mandarin is the fruit of Citrus reticulata, and may be a cross between a mandarin orange and an orange created by the Algerian priest Pierre Clément in 1902. The Online Etymology Dictionary proposes that it was "originally an accidental hybrid said to have been discovered by Father Clément Rodier in the garden of his orphanage in Misserghin, near Oran, Algeria." In Arabic, it is called "Kalamintina", while in German it is generally referred to as "Mandarine", that is, as a member of that broader supergroup. However, there are claims it originated in China much earlier.

Clementines are sometimes mistaken for tangerines, but the clementine has a thinner and more easily removed skin, a sweeter fruit, and very few seeds. It is an oblate, medium-sized fruit. The exterior is a deep orange color with a smooth glossy look. Clementines separate easily into eight to twelve juicy segments filled with a taste of apricot nectar.

Clementines have been available in Europe for many years, but the market for them in the United States was made only a few years ago, when the harsh 1997 winter in Florida devastated domestic oranges production pushing up price and lowering availability. This variety was introduced into California commercial agriculture in 1914, though it was grown at the Citrus Research Center at the University of California, Riverside as early as 1909. California clementines are available from mid-November through January; this availability has them referred to in some areas as "Christmas Oranges".

These little mandarins have also caused large headaches for some beekeepers. Big companies like Paramount Citrus in California have threatened to sue local beekeepers for their bees trespassing on the land that the Clementines are grown on. When bees cross pollinate the Clementines with another fruit they end up losing their seedlessness.

Like all fruits, "clementine" can also refer to the tree.