OF SO UTIIERN CA LIFOBNIA. 468 



Tlie session adjourned until two o'clock p. m. of Wednesday. 

 Wednesday afternoon the hall was again filled at two o'clock to 

 resume the discussion of questions before the fruit growers. 

 E. W. Holmes, of Riverside, read tlie following paper on 



LEMON CULTURE. 



In response to a request from the Executive Committee that I 

 should offer something upon the lemon and its culture, I present 

 the following, feeling that the very short time given for prepara- 

 tion should be mentioned as an excuse for its incompleteness. 

 Like most of yoa, I had no acquaintance with the su])ject five 

 years ago, and feel that we are only just beginning to obtain facts 

 which shall guide us in the attainment of the riglit varieties and of 

 ' the best methods of cultivation. My attention was first directed to 

 the cultivation of citrus fruits by the statement of acquaintances 

 who had visited Florida; but after a careful study of the peculiari- 

 ties of that climate in summer, I fancied it would not suit me, and 

 started for southern California, Vv^ith the intention of devoting my 

 attention largely to the lemon, for the reason that I was then fearful 

 that the great number of orange trees being planted would depreciate 

 the price of that fruit below a paying basis — a fear which, I am 

 happy to say, has not, and does not appear likely to be, justified — and 

 because it seemed to me the more numerous uses to which the lemon 

 could be put, its better keeping quality, and .the fact that the tree, 

 from its more tender character, could not be so extensively planted 

 as that which produces its more beautiful but not more valuable sis- 

 ter, the orange. 



Upon my arrival at Los Angeles I examined the fruit in the fruit 

 stores to ascertain in regard to the truth of the statement of a 

 dyspeptic acquaintance, who had asserted that Los Angeles oranges 

 were sour and her lemons sweet. I found no fault with the best 

 oranges offered — they were all seedlings, of course, at that time^but 

 the lemons entirely justified the comment of my bilious friend. My 

 first lemon test was like this: To a pitcher containing about a pint of 

 water I added the juice of six of the largest lemons I could find, and, 

 suspicious that I hadn't got juice enough to make satisfactory lemon- 

 ade, added to it sparingly of sugar. It wasn't a success. An ordinary 

 three-ounce lemon of any of the varieties now cultivated would have 

 furnished more citric acid than the whole six. I had ignorantly 

 invested in China lemons. None offered at that time, however, were 

 of a satisfactory character. If this is a specimen of what California 

 can do in tlie way of lemons, thought I, it would be best to give up 

 the idea of a lemon ranch; and when I finally located at Riverside, 

 only oranges were at first planted, of the citrus fruits, upon my ranch. 

 During my residence in Los Angeles, however, I made the acquaint- 

 ance of the venerable Mr. Wilson and other veterans in the business, 

 and became convinced from their statements that the fault with the 

 California lemon was that no pains had been taken in procuring 

 choice varieties, and that the unhealthy condition of the trees was 

 attributable either to the fact that they were prnicipally grown from 

 cuttings, or that a wrong system of irrigation had been followed. The 

 next season new varieties were offered for sale, and I put out a few 

 "Sweet Rinds," which, by the way, are not sweet rinds, except as 

 compared with the seedlings before grown. Then the Lisbon was 



