It wasn’t all that long ago that Florida was synonymous with the orange grove. But today, the heyday of citrus growing is long gone.

Citrus first came to the region via Spanish explorers in the 16th century, but mass cultivation in what would soon become the state of Florida didn’t take root until the 1830s. A devastating freeze in Georgia and the Carolinas in 1835 caused farmers to look farther south for land. As railroads forged their way deeper into the peninsula in the late 1800s, citrus farms started to flourish, as well.

By the 1900s, Florida had become the top orange-growing state in the nation. During World War II, the idea of frozen concentrated orange juice was born — and it ushered in a new citrus boom in Florida. The tubes of frozen O.J. were essential for troops overseas looking for a boost of Vitamin C. Stateside, frozen foods were starting to take hold in supermarkets. By 1952, 72 million boxes of oranges were being produced a year. Advertisements touted the benefits of a tall glass of Florida orange juice. Colorful postcards portrayed Florida as a land of sunshine and orange groves, as pictured above. An image of an orange in some shape or form has appeared on the standard state license plate since 1991.   

In the current era, growing oranges has become more challenging due to disease, drought and devastating hurricanes. Farmland has been eaten by developments. Citrus greening, a disease with no known cure, has wreaked havoc on crops in recent years. Producing hit its peak in 2004 at 242 million boxes but has fallen since. Only about 18 million boxes were produced last year.