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| Diamante Citron | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Species | C. medica |
| Cultivar | var.cedro di Calabria |
| Marketing names | Yanover esrog |
TheDiamante citron (Citrus medica cv.diamante[1] −cedro di diamante [it] is a variety ofcitron named after the town ofDiamante, located in theprovince ofCosenza,Calabria, on the south-western coast ofItaly, which is its most known cultivation point. This is why this variety is sometimes called the "CalabriaEsrog". "Esrog" is theAshkenaziHebrew name for citron.
diamante ('Cedro liscio'; possibly the same as 'Italian' and 'Sicilian')–of unknown origin but the leading cultivar in Italy and preferred by processors elsewhere; long-oval or ellipsoid, furrowed at base, broadly nippled at apex; peel yellow, smooth or faintly ribbed; very thick, fleshy; pulp crisp, non-juicy, acid; seedy. Tree small, spreading, thorny as 'Corsican'. Very similar is a cultivar called "Earle" inCuba.– ThePurdue University website
The Diamante citron was one of the most important varietiescandied by the largest factories atLivorno, Italy; it was gathered fromLiguria,Naples,Calabria &Sicily and then shipped toEngland and theUnited States.[2]
Manyreligious Jews call itYanover Esrog (Genoa citron), because of a long association of the fruit with the trading port ofGenoa in northern Italy, that exported it to other countries.
Genoa was known to supply citron for the Jews since the times of theTosafists, along with surrounding municipalitiesSanremo,Bordighera, and the rest ofLiguria.[3] The city is located in the region ofLiguria, which itself has a long history of citron cultivation,[4] thanks to the massive mountain chain (Apennines) which protects it from turbulent winds.[5]
Genoa has also a known history ofbanking, and they may have also traded the citron grown in the rest of the country, including fromCorsica andCalabria, being a well establishedseaport as well. Therefore, the Calabrian citron is also considered to be of oldestAshkenazic tradition for the Jewishritual during theFeast of Tabernacles.[6]
Most adherent to the diamante variety of Calabria areChabad Hasidim, whose late Rebbes were always in support of this traditional variety, even claiming by virtue of a legend thatMoses himself obtained his esrog from this location.[7] Among the otherHasidic sects, it is most used by theSatmars.[8]
The citron in Calabria was celebrated by poets likeByron andD'Annunzio, but is only saved from extinction thanks to theJewish tradition.[9][full citation needed]
Because Calabria is at the southern point of Italy, and itsclimate mostMediterranean, it is the most suitable for the citron. Despite the milder climate, during the winter it is still too cold for the citron; this is why the farmers need to protect them with blue or green plastic covers. Most of the citron trees in the area aregrafted onto foreigncitrus rootstock, in order to save them from frost and disease. This practice renders their fruits non-kosher for the Sukkot ritual, and therefore in order formashgichim to certify a citron as kosher, they must first carefully inspect the tree to confirm it was not grafted.
A Jewish delegation comes from Israel toSanta Maria del Cedro every year between July and August to choose the best fruit to be used in the holiday for the Jewish community. The selection of the best fruit is a virtual ritual. Themashgichim, each followed by a worker carrying a box and a pair of scissors, go to the citron farms at five in the morning. The mashgiach or machgicha proceeds slowly looking left and right. Then they stop and look at the base of the tree, right where thetrunk comes up from the ground. A smooth trunk means the tree has not been grafted and the fruit can be picked. The mashgiach or mashgicha lies down on the ground to better examine the lower branches between the leaves.
Once a suitable fruit is found, the mashgiach or mashgicha shows it to the worker who cuts it off leaving a piece of thestalk. Then the mashgiach or mashgicha analyses the picked citron one more time and if they decide it is worthy they wrap it inoakum and puts it in the box. The farmer receives the agreed sum for each picked fruit. Then the boxes are sealed and sent to theLamezia Terme International Airport, their final destination Tel Aviv.[10]
Althoughdiamante is also grown inPuerto Rico,Sicily andSardinia, their citrons are not used for the Jewish ritual, since nokashrut certification was present at transplantation. Seeds and cuttings of inspected trees were planted in the Israeli village ofKfar Chabad, with thehechsher certification by major kashrut organizations.
The methods for tree checking to verify if the tree is grafted or not were established by a board ofrabbis in Israel by 1877 as described inKuntres Pri Etz Hadar[11] which was published inJerusalem a year after.
| Citronvarieties |
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| Acidic-pulp varieties |
| Non-acidic varieties |
| Pulpless varieties |
| Citronhybrids |
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liguria citrus wind.
