SimplePlant

Rutaceae

Bitter orange

Citrus × aurantium L.

Family
Rutaceae
Genus
Citrus

Pets and kids

  • CatsMildly toxic
  • DogsMildly toxic
  • KidsMildly toxic
Why

Cats: Mildly toxic

Mildly toxic to cats. Toxic principle: essential oils and psoralens.

Signs: vomiting, diarrhea, depression, photosensitivity, dermatitis.

Dogs: Mildly toxic

Mildly toxic to dogs. Toxic principle: essential oils and psoralens.

Signs: vomiting, diarrhea, depression, photosensitivity, dermatitis.

Kids: Mildly toxic

Mildly toxic to young children. Toxic principle: essential oils and psoralens.

Signs: vomiting, diarrhea, depression, photosensitivity, dermatitis.

Bitter orange: Keserű narancs (Bergamott) citrus amurantium
Photo: A. Barra, CC BY-SA 4.0, from Wikimedia Commons

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Is Bitter orange safe for cats, dogs and kids?

Is Bitter orange safe for cats?

No. Our sources call Bitter orange mildly toxic to cats. Toxic principle: essential oils and psoralens. Signs: vomiting, diarrhea, depression, photosensitivity, dermatitis.

Is Bitter orange safe for dogs?

No. Our sources call Bitter orange mildly toxic to dogs. Toxic principle: essential oils and psoralens. Signs: vomiting, diarrhea, depression, photosensitivity, dermatitis.

Is Bitter orange safe for kids?

No. Our sources call Bitter orange mildly toxic to young children. Toxic principle: essential oils and psoralens. Signs: vomiting, diarrhea, depression, photosensitivity, dermatitis.

Ate some? Call your vet or the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center at (888) 426-4435 (a fee may apply). For a child, call Poison Help at 1-800-222-1222 (US). If they are struggling to breathe or collapse, call 911. Don't give anything by mouth unless a vet or poison expert tells you to.

See all cat-safe plants, dog-safe plants and child-safe plants.

Similar names and close relatives

A shared name doesn't mean a shared answer: check the exact plant.

  • Lemon Citrus limonsame genusCats: Mildly toxic; Dogs: Mildly toxic; Kids: Mildly toxic
  • Mandarin orange Citrus reticulatasimilar nameCats: Not sure; Dogs: Not sure; Kids: Not sure
  • Shaddock Citrus maximasame genusCats: Not sure; Dogs: Not sure; Kids: Not sure
  • Citron Citrus medicasame genusCats: Not sure; Dogs: Not sure; Kids: Not sure

Common names

By language (85)
aeb
Aranj, أرنج, زهر
Arabic
نارنج, النارنج, كباد, ليم, نفاش
Armenian
Սևիլյան նարինջ
arz
نارنج
Asturian
Naranxal amarga
azb
نارینج
Azerbaijani
Narınc
Bambara
Matarini
bar
Bittapamarantschn, Bitterorange, Pomeranze
Basque
Laranja mingots
Belarusian
Памяранец, Бігарадзія, Горкі апельсін, Кіслы апельсін
bo
ཚ་ལུ་མ་སྐྱུར་མོ།
Bulgarian
Горчив портокал, Бигардия
Cantonese
苦橙
Catalan
Taronger agre, Taronger amargant, Taronja agre
ch
Kahet
Chinese
苦橙, 代代酸橙（代代花、玳玳花）, 常山胡柚, 枳实, 橙, 橙叶, 橙皮, 玳玳花
Corsican
Citronu
Croatian
Gorka naranča
cv
Померанец
Czech
Pomerančovník hořký
Danish
Pomerans
dga
Aŋkaa miiruŋ, Aŋkaa tuo, Bigarade aŋkaa, Marmalade aŋkaa
dsb
Pomeranca
Dutch
Zure sinaasappel, Bittere sinaasappel, Bittersinaasappel
English
Bitter orange, Sour orange, Bigarade orange, Marmalade orange, Seville orange
Esperanto
Bigaradujo
Estonian
Pomerantsipuu, Hapuapelsinipuu, Mõruapelsinipuu
Finnish
Pomeranssi, Hapanappelsiini, Pomeranssinkuori
French
Bigaradier, Bigarade, Orange amer, Orange amère, Orange de Séville, Oranger amer
frr
Bateraapelsiin
Galician
Laranxeira amarga
Georgian
Ნარინჯი
German
Bitterorange, Pomeranze, Pomeranzenschale, Saure Orange
Greek
Νεραντζιά, Νερατζιά, Κιτρομηλιά, Νεράντζι, Νεράτζι, Νεραντζάκι, Νεραντζέα, Ξινονεραντζιά
Haitian Creole
Zoranj konmenn
Hebrew
חושחש
hsb
Pomeranča
Hungarian
Keserű narancs, Sevillai narancs
Indonesian
Jeruk pahit
Italian
Arancia amara, Arancio amaro, Melangolo, Zhi shi
Japanese
ダイダイ, だいだい, ビターオレンジ, 回青橙, 橙柑, 橙皮
Kannada
ಹೇರಳೆಕಾಯಿ
Kazakh
Bïgaradïya, Бигарадия, بىيگارادىييا
koi
Померанец
Korean
쓴귤
kv
Померанец
Latin
Aurantium, Arancium, Arantium, Citrangulum, Citrangulus
Latvian
Rūgtais apelsīns, Pomerance, Seviljas apelsīns, Skābais apelsīns
Lithuanian
Karčiavaisis citrinmedis
mad
Jherruk budhun
mrj
Померанец
mzn
نارنج
nap
Melángura
Nepali
मुन्तला
Norwegian Bokmål
Pomerans
Norwegian Nynorsk
Pomerans
nup
Lemu baka
Occitan
Bigaradièr
os
Померанец
Pashto
نارنج
Persian
نارنج
Polish
Pomarańcza gorzka, Pomarańcza kwaśna
Portuguese
Laranja-azeda, Bergamoteira
Russian
Померанец, Померанцевое дерево
sc
Aranzu, Arantzu
scn
Aranciu amaru, Arancia amara
sco
Bitter oranger
Sinhala
පැණි දොඩම්
Slovak
Citrónovník horký
Slovenian
Grenki pomarančevec
Spanish
Naranja agria, Naranja amarga, Naranja cachorrena, Naranja cachorreña, Naranjo amargo
Swahili
Mdanzi, Mdaranzi
Swedish
Pomerans, Citrus ×aurantium. Amara-Gruppen, Storcitrus
Tamil
நரந்தம்
Telugu
చేదు నారింజ, చేదు ఆరెంజ్, చేదునారింజ
Thai
ส้มซ่า
Tongan
Kola, Andropogon halepensis, Sorghum bicolor, Sorghum halepense, Sorghum sudanense
Turkish
Turunç, Acı portakal
udm
Померанец
Ukrainian
Померанець, Помаранч, Помаранча
Urdu
کنو
Uzbek
Bigaradiya
Vietnamese
Cam đắng, Cam chua
wuu
苦橙

Synonyms

  • Aurantium corniculatum Mill.
  • Aurantium distortum Mill.
  • Aurantium vulgaris M.Gómez
  • Citrus aurantium var. amara L.
  • Citrus aurantium var. bigaradia Hook.f.
  • Citrus humilis Poir.
  • Citrus keraji hort. ex Tanaka
  • Citrus koozi (Sieb. ex Yu.Tanaka) Yu.Tanaka
  • Citrus madurensis var. deliciosa (Ten.) Sagot
  • Citrus nobilis var. koozi Sieb. ex Yu.Tanaka
  • Citrus omikanto hort. ex Yu.Tanaka
  • Citrus reshni hort. ex Tanaka
  • Citrus reticulata subsp. deliciosa (Ten.) D.Rivera, Obón, S.Ríos, Selma, F.Méndez, Verde & F.Cano
  • Citrus reticulata subsp. deliciosa (Ten.) Rivera, et al.
  • Citrus reticulata subsp. tachibana (Tanaka) D.Rivera & al.
  • Citrus reticulata subsp. tachibana (Tanaka) D.Rivera, Obón, S.Ríos, Selma, F.Méndez, Verde & F.Cano
  • Citrus reticulata subsp. unshiu (Marcow.) D.Rivera & al.
  • Citrus reticulata subsp. unshiu (Marcov.) Rivera, et al.
  • Citrus reticulata var. chrysocarpa (Lush.) Tanaka
  • Citrus sinensis subsp. crassa (Risso) D.Rivera, Obón, S.Ríos, Selma, F.Méndez, Verde & F.Cano
  • Citrus sinensis subsp. fetifera (Risso) D.Rivera, Obón, S.Ríos, Selma, F.Méndez, Verde & F.Cano
  • Citrus sinensis subsp. hierochuntica (Risso) D.Rivera, Obón, S.Ríos, Selma, F.Méndez, Verde & F.Cano
  • Citrus sinensis subsp. lusitanica (Risso) D.Rivera, Obón, S.Ríos, Selma, F.Méndez, Verde & F.Cano
  • Citrus succosa Tanaka
  • Citrus sulcata Yu.Tanaka
  • Citrus tangerina Tanaka
  • Citrus tarogayo hort. ex Yu.Tanaka
  • Citrus tosa-asahi hort. ex Yu.Tanaka
  • Citrus truncata hort. ex Tanaka
  • Citrus vangasy Bojer

Characteristics

Growth habit
Shrub, Tree
Lifespan
Perennial
In the US and Canada
Lower 48 states: introduced, Navassa Island: introduced, Puerto Rico: introduced, U.S. Virgin Islands: introduced

Photos

More in Citrus

Sources: classification, synonyms from World Flora Online Plant List (2026-06, CC0 1.0); common names, popularity from Wikidata (2026-10-26, CC0 1.0); common names, US characteristics from USDA PLANTS Database (2025-05-29, CC0 1.0). About our plant data.