Tarocco
(Blood Orange)

Physical Features
Tree Size: Medium.
Tree Characteristics: Moderately vigorous, somewhat irregular in form. Moderately productive. Fruit held toward inside of tree.
Fruit Size: Medium-large to large.
Fruit Color: Rind, orange, blushed with red at maturity. Flesh, deeply pigmented

Sicko Department
Ease of Peeling: Fair to good.
Seeds: Few.
Holds on Tree: Poor. Tends to deteriorate quickly after maturity.
Flavor and Juiciness: Rich, sweet and distinctive. Juicy.

The Tarocco is mainly grown in Italy, where it originated. It is also the oldest known blood orange. Its flesh color is somewhere between that of the Sanguinelli and the Moro oranges.
Citrus: How to Select, Grow and Enjoy describes the flavor of blood oranges like this: "The juice flavor of blood oranges is a pleasant surprise to most palates. There is the familiar citrus tang with a hint of raspberry." Ah, to have analyzed the taste of blood! And to have found it palatable! You are vampires, all of you! I call the Florida sunshine down upon you!

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Facts immediately after the orange type have been unmercifully ripped from Richard Ray and Lance Walheim's Citrus: How to Select, Grow and Enjoy from Horticultural Publishing Co., Inc. Facts used in the ranting paragraphs after the basic description are all true and from Citrus: How to Select, Grow and Enjoy, except for those obvious bits that are the Erin-madness.