CULTIVATION OF THE ORANGE IN NEW SOUTH WALES. 117 
in the commencement of December, 1866, in company with Dr. Fyffe and 
Mr. C. Moore, of the Botanic Gardens, to the extensive and fertile 
orangery, the property of Mr. James Pye, near Paramatta. It is 
situated on a point of land known as the Governor Arms, immediate!, 
on the south side of a creek, running from Castle Hill into the head 
ot the Paramatta river, and the fruit trees grow on the slopes, as well 
as on level ground. I observed that the Orange, Apple, and Lemon 
tiees (forming the majority of the fruit trees in the gardens) were in a 
most healthy state, and thriving in the greatest luxuriance, in a soil 
consisting of a very poor sandy loam soil, from which cropped out over 
he whole of the land, large sandstone rocks, the trees being planted 
around and between them. The situation was sheltered, and the whole 
extent of the fruit gardens was twelve acres, divided into three paddocks 
or enclosures, and the neatness and order of the ground, and the per- 
lection of the trees in growth and bearing excited our admiration. I 
remarked in the Azores or Western Islands, that the soil is volcanic and 
generally a friable loam, and many of the orange gardens were formed 
m places where there was often not a depth of soil greater than 18 to 
inches above the shattered mass of rubble and rock which had been 
brown together by volcanic action. The Orange-trees at Mr. Pye's 
w ere still loaded with ripe fruit, and a quantity of a second crop, as 
.ve small and immature, were on many of the trees ; for there are often 
iree crops of oranges during the year. In many instances the fruit of 
each crop differs in form and size, but arc all of excellent flavour. I 
remarked that the oranges were of a dark reddish-orange colour, of a 
Jjeper hue than I had usually seen them,— whether this was from the 
danced state of the season or other causes, I could not determine; a 
quantity of oranges, from this garden, were lying in heaps in the out- 
JTa!**^ ^ Packing ' as weU as a miiabe r of well-filled boxes pre- 
port 1 lra " Smissio11 t0 Sydney. A large quantity of oranges are ex- 
Ausf I* Tasmania ' Melbourne, and other of the southern ports of 
often and aIS ° *° NeW Zealand - There is a dark-skinned orange 
^ en seen on the trees, which hue is occasioned by a species of fungus 
by tlfe ° ped on 'he mid . it is called the " Black or Maori orange " 
as nn gr ° WerS ; at first si o ht its dark colour occasions it to be rejected 
a ^ °" nd ' uut > wh en tasted, it is found to be of as luscious flavour as 
exceUenrf ™ 11 ^ 8 * ^ U ° r ' naI COl ° Ur ° n the tre6 ' and '* is considere<I 
01 kee ping. In these gardens there were few very young 
