Oroville's Mother Orange Tree has been dug up and moved twice, the second time in 1964 to make way for the Oroville Dam. It is a Mediterranean sweet orange from Mazatlan, bought in Sacramento in 1856 and planted in 1856 by its plaque, or 1854 by one other account. The 1998 frost hollowed its trunk and stopped the fruit for a time; the fruit came back, and in 2003 UC Riverside cloned it. It is California Historical Landmark number 1043.
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Sweet Orange (Citrus x sinensis) · ~170 years · Oroville
This orange tree has been dug up and moved twice, the second time in 1964 to get out of the way of the Oroville Dam.
It is a Mediterranean sweet orange from Mazatlan, Mexico. Judge Joseph Lewis bought it in Sacramento in 1856, and here the record splits: the plaque and several sources give 1856 for the planting, Wikipedia gives 1854. Either way it is about 170 years old. It is California Historical Landmark number 1043, and a sign on Glen Drive points you to it.
It was a big tree once, over 60 feet tall before the twentieth century. The hard frost of 1998 nearly finished it: decay fungus hollowed the trunk and the fruit stopped for a while. Then the fruit came back. In 2003 UC Riverside cloned it.
The most recent account we have of the tree itself is a visitor's from September 2021, who found it healthy with lush green leaves. That is five years ago; if you have seen it since, tell us how it looks.
It stands outside the California State Parks office at 400 Glen Drive, free to see from behind a fence that keeps visitors a few steps back. The fruit on the tree is not for picking.