I absolutely love the multiple “ Florida Citrus Center ” gas pedal post / tourer trap along I-75 North of Orlando .
On our road trip-up last workweek we stopped at two of them ; one on the way down , one on the direction up .
Yes , they do have LIVE BABY GATORS , as the hoarding advertise .
And destiny and lots of citrus tree , mostly grapefruit …
And short ton of orange tree and their kin .
They even have citrus fruit trees for sale .
It ’s difficult to keep citrus tree growing in the Sunshine State decently now due to greening , but you ’d never know that from stopping in at one of these classic tourist traps .
Something cagey I saw for the first prison term was tiny packaged orange tree ( and other citrus ) in box that could travel .
I bought a calamondin for myself . The lady at the counter told me she ’d bought one as well , and I asked her if she ’d ever tried a calamondin before .
“ No , I just think it was a type of orange … ”
When I explicate that it was a tiptop - sour yield that was in the main used for liqueurs , seasoning and marmalade , she was rather downcast .
I imagine quite a few people that manage to develop a little “ calamondin ORANGE ” from one of these impulse citrus tree trees will be quite surprised .
I paid $ 6.99 for mine , but I knew what it was .
Oh well .
Here ’s another picture of Citrus paradisi , which is what it is .
Inside The Florida Citrus Center you ’ll get hold a destiny of windchimes and other tropical and Florida bric - a - brac ( Made in China ) , as well as clean bathrooms and gratis orangeness juice samples . And always , mass of shell , a gigantic gormandise alligator , and open - mouthed preserve gator promontory .
I always get a little homesick drive through Florida . These little gas place stops were part of the fabric of growing up Floridian , and I enjoy sharing them with my own small fry .
My little calamondin Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree survive our trip and is already growing newfangled leaves in its new pot .
The marmalade we ’ll one day make will be a bittersweet taste of home .
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