A Short History of Citrus in Australia

Citrus arrived in Australia with the First Fleet in 1788. Mandarins followed several decades later, most likely through trade with China. By the 1860s, commercial groves were established in New South Wales. By the 1890s, Australia had produced its own mandarin variety, the Imperial, at Emu Plains on the Nepean River.

The First Fleet and early colonial citrus

The eleven ships of the First Fleet carried lemon, lime, and orange seeds and seedlings among the provisions brought to the new colony in 1788. Establishing food production was the immediate priority, and citrus was part of that. The climate around Sydney and Parramatta proved suitable, and early colonial gardens began producing citrus within a few years of settlement.

Governor Arthur Phillip and subsequent administrators encouraged orchard planting at Parramatta and along the Hawkesbury and Nepean rivers west of Sydney. The fertile river flats and the relatively mild winters made these areas well-suited to citrus, which requires cold nights to develop colour and sweetness but cannot tolerate prolonged frost.

When mandarins arrived

Oranges and lemons came first. Mandarins arrived later, brought to Australia through trade connections with China. The Sydney Botanic Gardens catalogue from 1828 documented four mandarin varieties already cultivated in the gardens, which suggests the fruit was established in the colony by that date.

The first mandarins were probably brought in as seeds or budwood by Chinese traders or missionaries with connections to coastal China. The Chinese presence in New South Wales, Victoria, and Queensland grew substantially during the gold rush era from 1851 onward, and this connection reinforced the trade in agricultural plants between the two countries.

The 1860s commercial beginning

Small-scale citrus growing gave way to commercial production in the 1860s, centred in New South Wales. Orchards along the Hawkesbury River, the Nepean Valley, and near Gosford on the central coast supplied fruit to the Sydney market. Citrus growing in this era was labour-intensive and transport-dependent: fruit needed to reach urban markets quickly before it deteriorated.

The expansion of rail into regional New South Wales from the 1860s and 1870s changed that. Growers could now send fruit to Sydney from further inland, and the fertile flats of the Murrumbidgee and Murray river systems became viable for citrus production.

In Queensland, the North Burnett region around Gayndah saw its first commercial citrus plantings in this era. In 1924, Walter Benham planted an orange tree on the banks of the Burnett River near Gayndah, establishing what would become one of many family citrus operations that still operate in the region today.

The Murray Valley and Riverland

By the late 19th and early 20th centuries, large-scale irrigation schemes along the Murray-Darling river system opened up vast areas to citrus production. The Riverina in southern New South Wales and the Riverland in South Australia became the backbone of Australian citrus supply.

The Riverina is now the largest citrus growing region in Australia by planted area, with approximately 8,500 hectares of citrus, accounting for about 30 per cent of national production. Communities including Griffith, Leeton, and Hillston are central to this production. The region is the largest producer of oranges and grapefruit in Australia, though it also grows substantial volumes of lemons and mandarins.

This expansion was built on soldier settler schemes after World War One, which placed thousands of returned servicemen on irrigated fruit blocks. The Murray Valley and Mildura districts in Victoria followed a similar pattern. By the mid-20th century, Australian citrus production was substantial enough to supply both domestic and export markets.

Central Burnett: Gayndah takes off

The North Burnett region in Queensland, centred on Gayndah and Mundubbera, developed as a distinct citrus belt through the 20th century. Gayndah is Queensland’s oldest town and sits in a river valley with good winter temperatures for citrus development.

The region’s citrus industry grew steadily through the mid-20th century, with growers producing oranges, mandarins, lemons, and grapefruit. By the 2020s, Queensland had become a significant mandarin exporting region, with the North Burnett supplying fruit to China, Thailand, and other Asian markets. The region’s mandarin season runs from April through September, covering varieties including Daisy, Honey Murcott, and low-seed Murcott.

The Gayndah Orange Festival has been held biennially since 1957, celebrating the region’s citrus production. It is one of the few Australian festivals where citrus is the primary subject.

The Imperial mandarin: an Australian original

The most significant event in Australian mandarin history occurred in the 1890s at Emu Plains, on the Nepean River west of Sydney. A new mandarin variety was raised there, eventually named the Imperial.

The Imperial is an early-season mandarin with a thin, smooth skin, easy peel, few seeds, and a sweet-tart flavour. It typically ripens from April, making it the first mandarin of the Australian season each year. According to nursery and industry sources including The Diggers Club, the Imperial was raised during the 1890s at Emu Plains. It became the dominant Australian mandarin variety of the 20th century and remains significant today, accounting for approximately 24 per cent of fresh mandarin production by volume.

The Imperial’s success reflects several practical strengths: it suits the Australian climate across a wide range of regions, it peels easily (important for school lunchboxes and fresh consumption), and its early season position means it reaches market before competition from later varieties.

20th century industrialisation

Australian citrus production scaled rapidly through the 20th century. Packing sheds, cold storage, refrigerated transport, and later air freight changed the economics of the industry. Varieties were selected for shelf life, transportability, and appearance as much as flavour.

NSW DPI (the NSW Department of Primary Industries) published detailed production manuals for Australian mandarin growers, including a comprehensive manual in 2017 produced with funding from the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR). This manual covered orchard establishment, seasonal management, and the latest research on variety performance across Australian growing regions.

By mid-century, Australian mandarins were a standard winter fruit in homes across the country. The school lunchbox mandarin became a cultural fixture: easy to peel, no mess, portable, and reliably sweet.

The modern Australian mandarin industry

Australia now grows more than ten commercial mandarin varieties. Imperial remains important, but late-season varieties including Honey Murcott, Afourer (Nadorcott), and Daisy account for a growing share of production.

Queensland’s North Burnett region has shifted significantly toward export-oriented varieties. Up to 50 per cent of the region’s mandarin production now goes to Asian export markets, compared to about a third in previous years. Export demand from China and Thailand has driven investment in new orchards and new varieties suited to longer shipping times.

The Riverina in NSW continues to produce large volumes of oranges and grapefruit, with mandarin production spread across the state’s east coast and central regions. Western Australia has its own citrus belt, and the Atherton Tablelands in Far North Queensland produce citrus under tropical conditions.

Australia exports citrus to Hong Kong, mainland China, Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam, and other markets. The clean green reputation of Australian produce, combined with the flavour quality of winter-harvested fruit, underpins export demand.