The Bizzarria Story

Pietro Nati, 1625-1685, studied medicine in Pisa and was appointed in 1672 by the Medici leader Cosimo 3rd to be director of the Pisa Botanic Garden.
In 1674 he published 'De malo limonia citrata aurantia vulgo la Bizzarria' the first description of a bizarre hybrid between a sour orange and a citron. Instead of a normal hybrid seedling offspring which would form intermediate characteristics between the parents, this showed some regions of one parent and some regions of the other parent. It is what is now called a graft-hybrid, or chimera, of Citrus aurantium and Citrus medica. Technically, it is said to be a periclinal chimera, with a core of citron and outer layers of sour orange.
The plant arose in 1640 in the garden of the villa called Torre degli Agli, owned by the wealthy Panciatichi banking family. A citron bud inserted into a seedling sour orange failed initially to grow, but later produced the mixed shoot at the point of union. Although no physical traces remain, the site of this villa and garden, now near Florence's airport, is commemorated by two of the local street names.

Abstract: An Intergeneric graft chimera between Citrus reticulata 'Ponkan' and Poncirus trifoliala (L.) Raf. was found in a farmholding orchard in Juxi Town, Liancheng County, Fujian Province, in 1986, which was obtained from the buds appeared after freezing damage in graft union of 2-year-old seedling of cultivar 'Ponkan' grafted on the stock of Poncirus. The graft chimera is named as+Citroponcirus 'Hormish' which has unifoliate, bifoliate and trifoliate leaves in some branches, and trifoliate in other branches, showing a chimera of the two species. Young fruits are pubescent as those in Poncirus. Mature fruits are similar to 'Ponkan' in shape and in flavour, but some have the appearance of chimera character of both Poncirus and 'Ponkan'. Juicy pulp is mostly orange-red in colour with a few yellowish pulp.

Aurantium callosum multiforme...........................(Ferrari, 1646)
Mala limonia citrata-aurantia, vulgo Bizzarria.....(Nati, 1674)
Bizzarria...............................................................(Bartolomeo Bimbi, 1715 )
Bizaria, genus multiplex.......................................(Volkamer, 1714)
Bigaradier limo citré à fruit méIangé, Bizarrerie..(Gallesio, 1811)
Bigaradier Bizzarrerie or Melangolo Bizaria........(Risso & Poiteau, 1818)
Citrus Aurantium Limo citratum Bizzarria ...... .....(Targioni Tozzetti, 1825)
Citrangolo di Bizzarria.........................................(Gallesio, 1839)
Bigaradier-bizzarrerie..........................................(De Noter, 1926)
Bizzarria ..............................................................(Tanaka, 1927)

The Bizzarria citrus has fascinated botanists for centuries, and there are several early botanical drawings showing details of leaves, flowers and fruit.
Exact names and spellings have varied over the years, as you can see from this list of some of the scientists and artists who studied it.

Thought to have been lost, Bizzarria was re-discovered in the 1970's by Paulo Galleoti, head gardener of the citrus collection at Villa Medicea di Castello in Florence. It has since been propagated, and is apparently also now growing in the Botanic Garden and the Boboli Gardens in Florence. Most varieties from Villa Castello are now propagated for sale by the nearby Oscar Tintori nursery, but when I spoke to Paulo Galleoti he insisted that Bizzarria was the one variety he had not made available to them. Indeed, when I asked at the nursery, they said they didn't have it. However, it is described in the Tintori/Galleoti book 'Ornamental Citrus Varieties' and www.florealia.com, a web based seller of Tintori's plants, claims it can be supplied. Very bizarre!

In my citrus collection in England, I have one small plant labelled 'Citrus aurantium Bizzaria (Castello)'. It was sent to me a few years ago, but I have never dared to ask how it was obtained! I also have a plant originating from Menton, France which is said to be Bizzaria - but an inspection of the mother tree at Palais Carnoles showed no sign of it being a chimera.
I also have a lemon, from Oscar Tintori, named Limone Bizzaria. I have asked about the origin of this plant, so far without response.

Other citrus chimeras have been described, though the variation in characteristics is rarely as pronounced, or as thoroughly muddled up, as in Bizzarria. Occassional striped fruits are not uncommon. In Menton, France, there are lemon/orange chimeras which produce both varieties on a single tree, without having been grafted. See my page about Palais Carnoles.
I have recently come across an article describing a citrus chimera found in 1986 in China, part of which is reproduced below. Images are from Hormish Wu - with permission.