It’s time once again for the annual Orange and Grapefruit sale, brought to you by Altadena Nursery School. Since 1953 ANS families have offered gourmet-quality California navel oranges and Arizona ruby grapefruit, delivered to your door by the schools’ current families.

Only days off the tree and priced well below market rates, the citrus is an excellent boost to those whose post-holiday good intentions are waning. The fruit will last up to five weeks if kept in a cool place, and a portion of the price is tax-deductible. Orders must be placed by Wednesday, January 27. See the school’s web site for details and to place your order — and yes, credit cards are accepted.

In the first orange sale 57 years ago, the co-op nursery school purchased oranges directly from a grower in Upland and hauled them in a borrowed truck to the school, where members counted and packed them into their own boxes. Since then, the sale has become the school’s primary fundraiser, while providing buyers a nostalgic, small-town experience.

Started in 1950 by a small group of Caltech parents as a babysitting co-op, ANS has grown into a cooperative, nonsectarian, nonprofit nursery school for up to 50 children from 2 to 5 years old.