THE RAISIN INDUSTRY. 63 



It matters not from where the moisture comes, from rain, seepage, 

 moist air or irrigation, as long as it is not present in excess nor too 

 scant. In El Caj on valley the moisture appears to be held in suspense 

 in impervious strata, or perhaps in strata which contain and preserve 

 the moisture as does a sponge. In parts of Chile, as well as in Malaga 

 and Smyrna, the winter rainfall is sufficient to grow crops of fair size 

 and good quality, but it is almost certain that judicious irrigation 

 in any of these places proves beneficial and remunerative. Of all 

 the present raisin districts, Smyrna enjoys the greatest rainfall, 

 often as much as thirty odd inches of rain. Of localities which grow 

 raisins profitably with the least possible amount of rain, and witnout 

 irrigation, Huasco and El Cajon take the lead. In Central California, 

 as well as in San Bernardino county, no raisin culture would be pos- 

 sible with the natural rainfall. In foreign countries, Valencia and the 

 Grecian Islands, as well as Morea, are similarly situated in not having 

 sufficient rainfall to produce paying crops. 



As a rule it may be said that, where the rainfall is sufficient to grow 

 the Muscats without irrigation and cause them to bear good crops, the 

 fall rains are also too frequent and too injurious to the drying grapes to 

 allow a profitable raisin cult. The proper amount of moisture necessary 

 to perfect the grapes cannot be ascertained by the aid of the rain gauge. 

 While, as we have said, from twenty to thirty inches may be enough in 

 Smyrna, from seven to ten inches suffice in HI Cajon, and in Chile 

 even less is required. The proper amount of moisture can best be told 

 by the state of growth of the vines. The vines must have moisture 

 enough to be kept growing up to the very time of the maturity of 

 the grapes. The proper sign of this is the green and fresh color of 

 the young shoots or the tips, combined with a certain vigor of the ten- 

 drils. When the tips cease to grow, and the tendrils begin to dry up, 

 then the moisture has begun to give out, and irrigation should have 

 been resorted to ; the winter rains were not sufficient. 



Frosts in Spring and Winter. One of the frequent effects of spring 

 showers is spring frosts. They are always injurious to the tender 

 Muscat vine, and if occurring more -than once during the same spring 

 may entirely ruin the crop. In California such frosts occur some- 

 times in April, and observations inform us that they are most to 

 be feared between the tenth and fifteenth of that month, while some- 

 times they come even later. The young buds are then either opening 

 or fully developed into shoots, which the lightest frost will blacken 

 and cause to dry up. Where the vines are irrigated and strong, one 

 such frost may not ruin the crop, as new buds will start out in place of 

 the old ones destroyed, and new shoots and new blossoms will come 

 out. I have seen as many as three such crops of shoots develop from 

 the winter buds, but each succeeding crop of such shoots is weaker 

 than the preceding one, and bears less and later grapes. Happily, 

 these frosts occur but very seldom in the Central and Southern Cali- 

 fornia raisin districts, and during fifteen years of observation I have 

 seen only three such frost years in which the branches were partially 

 injured. In neither of these seasons was the crop materially injured 

 as to quantity, the principal effect of the frost being a retarding of the 



