f Ml fmncAi AQmcisifum^f. tAi>^t i, mi. 



TW.' I '• T Jina4rK1ii!Va 



^gj i jw^^nwHfw m i rru-T- Tinr-nTTan gni 



STiWOTUn 



THE tiaE OF THE ORANGE. 



(Translated from the French of Louis Figuer.) 



The orange is extensively cultivated in order to ex- 

 tract from its flowers and leaves the essential oil 

 which they contain. In the south of Italy, about 

 Sorren o, whole forests of oranges exist, thf fruit of 

 which is carefully harvested, of which liamartine 

 sings : — 

 " On the Sonorous Shore where the sea of Sorrento 

 At the foot of the Orange unrolls its hlue wave. " 

 The orange sometimes attains great age and dimen- 

 sions. In the orangery of Versailles a magnificent 

 bitter orange ( C. Bigaradier ) familiarly called the 

 "Great Constable. " is known to be 150 years old. 

 Its trunk is 30 inches in circumference. It was plan- 

 ted in 14il by the gardener of the Queen of Navarre. 

 The orange tree at the Convent of St. Sabina, at 

 Kome, dates from the year 1200. It is about 33 feet 

 in height. At Nice, there was in 1789, a tree which 

 usually bore upwards of 5000 oranges, was more than 

 fifty feet high, with a trunk which it took two men to 

 grasp. 



The substance to which odoriferous plants owe the 

 qualities which render them so useful at the toilets 

 is_ a volatile oil. It happens sometimes that distinct 

 oils exist in the same plant. The orange furnishe, 

 an example. The essence drawn from the flowers of 

 the orange is very different to that furnished by the 

 leave.s, and the latter differs from that furui.shed by 

 the fruit. The mode of extracting these essences 

 varies according to their nature and condition. Some 

 of them may be extracted by simple pressure . But 

 the greater part of the essences are obtajne.l by 

 distillation but even this practice is being sup erseded. 

 The essential oils obtained by distillation dissolve 

 readily iu fatty oils or alcohol, but very imperfectly 

 in water. The condensed water, however, which 

 passes over with the oil is a true watery solution of 

 the essences, in fact, orange flower water. A large 

 proportion of the essences used by the perfumer are 

 not made by distillation at ali, they are extracted 

 from plants by the agency of fat. 



At the season when the flowers are in bloom, 

 clarified fat, generally lard, is " melted in a watei 

 bath, " such as a " double glue-pot, •' and as many 

 flowers, such as jasmine, orange or rose, are put into 

 it. These are allowed to remain commingled about 

 24 hours, at a temperature just sufheieut to keep the 

 f&t liqud; the fat is then strained off. It is strongly 

 scented ; the flowers have lost their perfume. The 

 same fat is melted again and further flowers are added. 

 The process is repeated in all " seven times, " and 

 is then very highly scented, and is ready for 

 use or exportation as pomade : to obtain the 

 spirituous essence or tincture, suitable as a perfume 

 for the handkerchief, the pomade is macerated in 

 spirits of wine, which dissolves the greater portion of 

 its perfumed oil, what remains, however, is sufficient 

 to render the grease a rich pomatum for the hair, 

 — Rural Auilralian, 



OEANCtE AND LEMON CULTIVATION IN 



SICILY, 



Consul Woodcock, of Catania, atatss that oraugee 

 and lemona are designated, In S cily^ nuirina and 

 inontano, the former growing in the fower altitudes 

 lieir the sea, and the latter on the mountains, The 

 moutano, or mountain fruit, is the choicest, and com- 

 mands the best prices in the market, but the crop is 

 hot so sure, owing to the frost. The marina orchards 

 bear more abundantly, and the crop is more certain, 

 tn Commencing an orange or lemon orchard, the 

 following is the method adopted :— Fir^t, the seed of 

 the bitter orange is planted, an! when the young 

 plants are a year old, they are transplanted. Vhen 

 they have grown to be about one inch in diameter, 

 that is, when they have attained the age of three 

 to four years, they are again transplanted, and placed 

 in the orchard where they are intended to remain. 

 Jhe tpp5 of the young trees are then cut off about 



four feet above the ground, and when they haVe 

 taken firm root, the best varieties of the orange and 

 lemon are budded upon the stock. Two buds are 

 generally inserted, and upon opposite sides of the 

 plant. From these buds, branches shoot out, and 

 when a quarter of an inch in thickness, become of a 

 reddish colour. The distance to be maintained 

 between the lemon trees in the orchards depends 

 upon the situation of the ground, and conditions of 

 soil and climate; usually it varies from thirteen to 

 nineteen feet. When the soil is loose, rich, and 

 easily cultivated, the lemon trees are planted at least 

 nineteen feet apart, as they will then grow luxu- 

 riantly and attain considerable size. The distance 

 maintained between the orange trees is from 

 thirteen to fourteen feet, and this varies in accord- 

 ance with the situation and quality of the soil, 

 as in tne case of the lemon. The ground in the 

 orchards between the trees is always cultivated, and 

 great care is taken to keep it scrupulously clean. 

 The soil is worked at least five times a year, com- 

 mencing in March and ending in October. When 

 the trees are young and small it is not considered 

 necessary to work the soil, as it is believed that the 

 vegetable growth protects the young plants from the 

 too powerful rays of the sun. The annual cost of 

 cultivation in the best orchards per hectare (the 

 hectare being equivalent to 247 acres) is estim- 

 ated at about £80, but where extraodinary out- 

 la3's are necessary, such, for instance, as is incurred 

 when there are streets running through the orchards, 

 as is often the case in the lava covered soil of 

 Sicily, or through the necessity of obtaining steam 

 power for irrigation, the cost per annum is sometimes 

 as much as £80 per hectare. On the average, 

 a lemon tree produces in Sicily one thousand 

 lemons annually, and an orange tree six hundred 

 oranges, and cases have been known where trees have 

 produced ten times this amount of fruit. The trees 

 are subject to various diseases. A parasite growth 

 of a fungus nature frequently apppears upon the bark, 

 and the lemon tree is more subject to this thanthe 

 orange. This growth, after a heavy rain, or after 

 being soaked in water, can be removed by scraping. 

 The fruit of both the orange and lemon tree is also 

 sometimes injured by a small insect which makes 

 its appearance at the beginning of summer, and 

 commences its work of devastation by depositing 

 its eggs in the fruit itself, and these develop into 

 grubs, which entirely destroy it. As a preventative, 

 tar water and water slightly tinctured with kerosene, 

 are used to wash the leaves and fruit, and soda 

 ash is also frequently employed. In picking the 

 fruit for exportation, which is usually done by hand 

 iu the month of November, the greatest care is 

 taken to avoid bruising or injuring it in any way by 

 rough handling, and it is then placed very gently in 

 baskets lined with cloth. The stem is left on the 

 fruit, cutting it about a quarter of an inch from 

 the surface of the fruit. Before placing the fruit 

 in tho boxes, all insects and other injurious matter 

 are removed. The boxes generally used are capable 

 of holding from two hundred and fifty to three 

 hundred and sixty oranges or lemons, and are made 

 with a partition iu the centre. They are lined with 

 common silk paper, and each orange or lemon is 

 encased in the same kind of paper before being 

 placed iu tbera. The bo.\es are not made air tight, 

 but interstices are left between the boards for 

 ventilation- Lemons gathered in the month of Novem- 

 ber, and tluvs packed, are supposed to keep without 

 spoiling for si.x months, but oranges will not keep 

 so long. — Journal of the Society/ of Arts. 



QUESTIONS IN AGEICULTUEE. 



liY PROFESSOR JOHN" SCOTT. 



[We commend this valuable epitome of soil ocfence 

 to the attention of our readers.— Ed.] 

 L — Soil?, 



1. F'Xplaiu the origin and formation of .soils. 



2. Name the chief elements of plant growth fouad 

 iu all fertile soils, 



