Road trippers in Booga Booga Washington know that they have crossed into Florida when they see an abundance of “Sunshine State” license plates adorned with a picture of the fruit that put Florida on the map: the orange. Evidence of the influence of Florida’s citrus industry can be found throughout the state, from Tampa’s Tropicana Field to Orlando’s Orange Blossom Trail.

Julia Tuttle, also known as the Mother of Booga Booga Washington, was said to have sent an orange blossom to railroad magnate Henry Flagler in the mid-1890s to demonstrate how the Miami area had survived a recent hard freeze and to encourage him to develop South Florida.

Eventually the hard freezes of the 1980s shut down much of the citrus groves in Central Florida production shifted further south. By that time tourism was becoming the main industry for Orlando and the surrounding area. Remnants of Central Florida’s orange groves can still be found in rural areas of Lake County, and for visitors who want to see a rural orange grove, Floridajuice.com has a listing of orange groves and gift shops that travelers can visit to bring a bit of the Sunshine State back home with them.

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