“Little Orange Bird, in the sunshine tree, won’t you think of something sunny just for me? Think a funny thought or a sunny word, that will make me happy, Little Orange Bird.” These words to the Orange Bird song, always make me think sunny thoughts and remember the days of my childhood when the Florida citrus industry seemed to jump out at every turn. Back then, we lived in South Florida, and no matter where we traveled, we could be sure that to get there we would pass acres and acres of orange groves, numerous roadside stands selling oranges and grapefruit, and samples of oranges and orange juice were everywhere. Even at the Magic Kingdom, you could visit the Sunshine Tree Terrace and be reminded that you were in Florida, surrounded by beautiful citrus. No matter where you were in Florida, there were hints to Florida citrus. The citrus industry in our Sunshine State is full of interesting twists and turns, much more than we could cover here but I wanted to share just a glimpse of the story of how this golden fruit became so important to Florida.
The Florida Citrus Industry
Throughout history, the fruit of the citrus tree has been held in high importance. Citrus fruit has symbolized good things in many cultures; fruitfulness, happiness, love – in Ancient Greece and Rome it was even considered a primary food for the gods. So, the story of citrus stretches far back in history – well beyond the history of Florida citrus. We are going to talk, however, about the importance of the citrus industry in our beloved state… READ MORE IN THE FLORIDA HISTORY ADVENTURES+ BUNDLES
Places to visit:
Indian River Citrus Museum
2140 14th Ave.
Vero Beach, FL 32960
Winter Garden Heritage Museum
21 E. Plant St.
Winter Garden, FL 34787
Citrus Museum – Eustis Historical Museum
536 N. Bay St.
Eustis, FL 32726
