242 THE monthijY bulletin. 



said to be a seedling, but the writer wishes to point out the fact that 

 nearly every fruit grower upon finding an unusual tree in his orchard 

 has called it a seedling. This universal custom is responsible for much 

 misinformation concerning the origin of fruit varieties. The writer 

 would like to suggest to citrus fruit growers and others that unless it 

 is definitely known whether or not a tree originated from a seed or a 

 bud, the origin of the tree be left in doubt and a simple statement of 

 the facts concerning the finding of the tree be made and recorded. 

 There is no longer any reason or excuse for any one's .jumping to the 

 conclusion that an odd or unusual tree must of necessity be of seedling 

 origin. 



In connection with the history of the origin of this variety, the further 

 statement is made that "this pomelo has not the distinct, pronounced 

 flavor of the typical fruit, but the quality is good, and the fact that it 

 is so nearly seedless is a very desirable feature." This statement con- 

 cerns Florida-grown grapefruit and is a comparison of the Marsh Seed- 

 less with other Florida-grown varieties. It is an illustration of the 

 fact that the behavior of a variety jn one section of the country is not 

 a reliable criterion of its behavior in other districts having different 

 climatic, soil, and cultural conditions. 



DISTRIBUTION OF PLANTINGS. 



According to Vaile,* in his discussion of the "Outlook for the Po- 

 melo," 600 acres of grapefruit trees are in bearing in California (1915), 

 from which 250 carloads of fruit will be shipped and marketed this 



Fig. 77. — Cross section and stem end views of standard type Marsh Seedless 



grapefruit. Reduced. (Original.) 



season. One thousand one hundred additional acres of trees are under 

 five years of age, from which it is estimated the California output will 

 be more than doubled in the coming five years. 



Further, Vaile states in this report that Florida has some 16,000 acres 

 of full-bearing grapefruit trees, from which this season about 8,000 

 carloads of fruit will be shipped. In addition to this large planting, 



^Monthly Bulletin, California Commission of Horticulture, for November, 1915, 

 p. 509. 



