Difference Between Orange Trees & Tangerine Trees

Tree Size and Shape

• The tangerine tree is usually smaller than the orange tree. The average orange tree grows to about 25 feet, and may reach as high as 50 feet if allowed to reach a great age. The average tangerine tree, however, reaches 25 feet only even at a very great age. The orange tree is usually rounded on top, while the tangerine may have an oval-shaped canopy that is wider than the tree is tall.

Branches and Thorns

• The branches of the orange tree are slender and twisted, and may have blunt, flexible spines in the leaf axils -- the upper angle where the leaf stalk joins the stem. The branches of the tangerine tree are more brittle and willowy than those of the orange tree. The trees of some tangerine varieties are described as thorny, while the trees of other cultivars, including Dancy and Clementine, may be almost thornless.

Leaves and Flowers

• The leaves of the orange tree are elliptical to oval in shape and may have distinctly winged petioles. Orange leaves may be very faintly serrated, but are usually smooth-edged. The leaves of the tangerine tree, on the other hand, are lancelike in shape, have narrow wings on the leafstalks, or petioles, and have small, rounded serrations --- or teeth --- along the edges. Both species bear white, five-petaled flowers, though the tangerine tends to bear fewer flowers in each cluster than the orange does.

Fruit

• The fruit of the orange tree tends to be round, with a firm, fairly smooth, close-fitting skin. The fruit of the various types of tangerines is more oval in shape, and the skin is generally loose. The texture of the skin varies in both species, with some oranges and tangerines being quite smooth while others are pebbly. Tangerines are also sometimes referred to as mandarin oranges or mandarins