Citrus aurantium 'Gou Tou'

Among the more intriguing fruits in the Woodlanders citrus collection, the Gou Tou sour orange stands apart, not only for rarity but for a rare combination of hardiness, heavy fruiting, and surprisingly pleasant flavor. Widely cultivated in Southeast Asia, Citrus aurantium 'Gou Tou' carries the form of a traditional bitter orange but with a taste that leans toward grapefruit, which makes this one of the most palatable sour oranges a gardener outside the subtropics can grow.

The fruit looks like a large, slightly rough-skinned orange, with pale orange, juicy flesh that is sour, complex, and citrus-sweet, pleasant enough to eat out of hand for anyone who enjoys a bold citrus bite, and superb for marmalade, sauces, marinades, and general kitchen adventure. Where most sour oranges are relegated to the preserving pot, Gou Tou is both flavorful and refreshing, an unusual thing in a bitter orange.

Woodlanders propagates this selection from a robust specimen growing at Aquinas High School in Augusta, Georgia, where the tree has proven cold hardy and heavy bearing under the good care and keen eye of plantsman Joe Levert, a longtime friend of the nursery. That success in the Southeast makes Gou Tou a distinctive choice for gardens after cold-tolerant citrus with old-world character. Grow in full sun and sharp, well-drained soil, in the ground through zones 8b to 10 or in a large container farther north.