THE MONTHLY BULLETIN. 19 



Qush Sua. ''Tlie Valuahle," a long, slender, red date, turning almost 

 l)lack when fully ripe. Common, early and keeps fairly well, but a 

 shy bearer. Not in United States. 



Qush Tabak, ' ' The Fat Boy, ' ' a fairly long, broad date, reddish yel- 

 low in color. ])ut very rare. Eaten only as rutab; matures in Septem- 

 ber; yield light. Not in United States. 



Qush Zabad, "The Butter Date," very small, but one of the best soft 

 dates, ripening in midseason; the yield is said to be heavy. Fruit 

 1 7 16 in. long, 15/16 in. broad, broadest near base and tapering very 

 slightly to blunt apex. Color reddish brown; skin tender and color of 

 cafe au lait when it blisters. Has a tendency to stickiness, but this 

 can be obviated by proper handling, as the flesh has an excellent caramel 

 consistency, and is ] in. thick. Seed small, ^ in. long, J in. wide, tight 

 in cavity, some fibre, l)ut soft and not noticeable in eating. Flavor 

 mild. A common variety recently brought to California. 



Sarni. a small, yellow dry date, almost round in shape, ripening in 

 the. latter part of August, according to some informants, while others 

 declared it matured in June. There may be two varieties of similar 

 name. The palm is common and bears an average yield. Has not yet 

 fruited in America. 



Zad, "Food," a long, white rutab, turning yellow on maturity, but 

 not keeping well. Broad in proportion to its length. Midseason; 

 scarce. The dates are highly esteemed, and when sold bring the top 

 market price. Not in United States. 



In addition to the foregoing, I heard of the following varieties, but 

 could not get descriptions of them : 



Khamri ("The Vinous"), Qush Minuma, Hawan and Salani, early 

 varieties on the Batinah coast; Shabrut, Mahaldi, late varieties in the 

 same region ; Hasmi and Sarashi, probably also confined to the Batinah 

 coast, which produces immense ({uantities of inferior dates, and supplies 

 a large part of the local trade, and that to Southern Arabia. 



I could not learn definitely of any varieties of male palm distinguished 

 by name, although I suspect that such exist. The Arabs there have the 

 idea, which has lately been gaining ground in California, that the 

 influence of male pollen on the resulting fruit is direct and important, 

 and, therefore, that the choice of a male should not be left to chance. 

 In general, the Oman males are merely classified as to whether they 

 suffice for the pollination of 100, 200 or 300 females! 



ESSENTIALS IN THE MANAGEMENT OF CALIFORNIA SOILS. 



Address. State Fruit Growers' Convention. San Jose, Cal., December 2-4, 1013. 

 By Charles B. Lipman, University of California, Berl<eley, Cal. 



In soil fertility, as in everything else in our little world, things do 

 not stand by themselves but are mutually dependent on each other; 

 and, moreover, like everything else in the universe these several factors, 

 which by proper ordering of their functions regulate the degree and 

 permanency of soil fertility, move in cycles. I dare say, if it were not 

 running counter to the established etiquette of horticultural meetings, 

 that I might entertain you far better with some of these fascinating 



