Melogold facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Melogold
Melogold in growth
Hybrid parentage	Citrus grandis × C. Paradisi/Citrus maxima/Citrus grandis
Cultivar	Melogold
Origin	University of California, Riverside

The Melogold is a special type of citrus fruit. It's a hybrid, which means it's a mix of two different fruits. The Melogold was created by crossing a pomelo with a grapefruit. This makes it similar to a sweet grapefruit. Another fruit called the oroblanco is also a mix of these two fruits.

Why Melogold Was Created

Scientists wanted to create a new fruit that tasted like a grapefruit but was less bitter or sour. They aimed for a fruit that was sweet, like a pomelo. They also wanted it to be smaller than a pomelo but have more flavor, like a grapefruit.

To make the Melogold, scientists used a special kind of grapefruit and a regular pomelo. Their goal was to create a fruit that would not have any seeds. This process helped them get the exact qualities they were looking for in the new fruit.

What Melogold Looks Like

A Melogold citrus tree

The Melogold fruit is quite similar to the oroblanco. You can eat it with a grapefruit spoon or peel it like an orange. A cool fact about Melogold is that it's ready to eat even when its skin is still green!

The skin of the Melogold is smooth or slightly bumpy. It's a bit thicker than a regular Marsh grapefruit. However, compared to the size of the fruit, its skin is actually thinner than the oroblanco. Inside, the Melogold looks and feels like the oroblanco.

The center of the Melogold fruit becomes more hollow as it gets older. The fruit's flesh is soft and very juicy. It separates easily from the membranes that divide the segments. Melogold fruits have a lot of juice, similar to a Marsh grapefruit.

The History of Melogold

The Melogold fruit was developed by scientists Robert K. Soost and James W. Cameron. They started their work in 1958. They crossed a pomelo with a specific type of grapefruit that had seeds.

From this cross, they got two special new fruits. One of these was released in 1980 and named 'Oroblanco'. The second one was later released as 'Melogold'. The Oroblanco was more like a grapefruit, while the Melogold was more like a pomelo.

Melogold fruits grew to be much larger than both Marsh grapefruits and Oroblanco fruits. For example, tests showed that Melogold fruits weighed about 470 grams on average. Oroblanco fruits weighed around 360 grams, and Marsh grapefruits were about 280 grams.