The sweet delicious juicy orange we love eating today was actually born a sour fruit. It grew wild in Southeast Asia. Dating back thousands of years ago, the orange was probably grown by the Chinese in 2500 B.C.

The Romans brought orange trees back to Europe after long sea voyages to India in the first century A.D. By the 1200s, orange groves were found in Spain and Portugal.

The orange first ventured across the Atlantic Ocean in 1493 with Christopher Columbus. Columbus carried seeds of the orange, lemon, and citron from Spain to the island of Hispaniola - today this island is called the Dominican Republic.

From Hispaniola, the Spanish brought orange trees to Florida in 1565. Soon orange groves were popping up everywhere! 9 out of 10 oranges produces in Florida are used to make juice. But California grows the oranges we eat! Yum!