HORTICULTURE 



The Horticulturist having' entered upon his duties near the 

 close of the present hscal year, the major portion of his time during 

 the remainder of the period was given to the study of the general 

 horticultural conditions of the State, and in formulating plans for 

 the future development of the work of the department as pertains 

 both to instruction and investigation. Nine distinct station pro- 

 jects have been outlined and accepted, and work on some of them 

 is now under way. The work of the Department of Horticulture 

 falls naturally into three main divisions : Pomology, Olericulture, 

 and Ornamental Gardening. Progress has been made during the 

 past year in these respective branches as follows : 



POMOLOGY 



Plans have been developed for fruit plantings at the Salt River 

 Valley Farm consisting of a variety orchard of eleven acres, to- 

 gether with additional blocks of three acres each of the standard 

 varieties of such fruits as the fig, olive, and apricot, that have 

 proved themselves ])articularly adapted to commercial growing in 

 southern Arizona. The plantings of standard varieties will be used 

 as a basis of experimentation in pruning, spraying, and other phases 

 of orchard culture and management. As other varieties demon- 

 strate their worth, block plantings will afso be made of them. The 

 first planting in the variety orchard was made with dates in July, 

 1918, including seventy varieties. The remainder of the orchard will 

 be set during the coming spring. 



A three-acre orchard is being developed on the University 

 Farm at Tucson, comprising representative varieties of the leading 

 species of cultivated fruits. This orchard is designed primarily 

 for student instruction in Pomology, but is adaptable as well for 

 purposes of experimentation. 



The unplanted portion of the horticultural block at the Yuma 

 Date Orchard and Horticultural Station will be set this fall with 

 citrus and other sub-tropical fruits. The planting of citrus fruits 

 is made with a view to determining an effective method of pre- 

 venting frost injury, and to testing the adaptability of the Man- 

 darian group of orange to the Yuma Valley. 



The deciduous orchard at the Yuma Date Orchard and Horti- 

 cultural Station is now in its second year. The trees have made a 

 very satisfactory growth, and a few varieties have borne their first 

 crop. The Smyrna and Rea Mammoth varieties of quince, and the 



