March, 1912. 



American Hee Jonrnal 



The Orange : Its Cultivation and Commercial Value 



The Washington Navel is easily a 

 peerless prince among fruits. To plant 

 and care for it is "a gentleman's job," 

 and when in the hand of a skillful or- 

 chardist, and planted "in the right 

 place," possible cash returns are in- 

 credible. 



The following item that has been 

 going the rounds of the press in this 

 State has elicited many comments: 



" C. B. Pulver, of Santa Ana. reports cash 

 returns of $1800 an acre for two acres of 

 oranges just marketed; that is, $i6oo for the 

 two acres. He states that he made no ex- 

 ceptional effort, and gave the trees only the 

 usual allowance of enrichment." 



This was published in the The Pacific 

 Rural Press of Jan. G, 1912. E. J. Wick- 

 son, Dean of the State University at 

 Berkeley, is editor. He is well known 

 as an eminent authority on citrus fruit, 

 and a most conservative and scrupu- 

 lously careful man. No such item 

 could reach his columns unless he 

 were entirely satisfied as to its truth- 

 fulness. 



Shall we brand this statement as 

 "incredible," or shall we accept it as 

 probably true ? 



Similar items have appeared in print 

 frequently in the past 8 or 10 years, the 

 returns given ranging from $.500 to 

 $1200 an acre. Many of these have 

 been so carefully corroborated as to 

 leave no tenable doubt of their truth- 

 fulness. Occasionally it was 20 to .50 

 acres instead of only two, giving the 

 large returns. 



But the important point is not the 

 credibility of a few isolated freaks, but 

 rather what may we state as a reason- 

 able average for all the ground planted. 

 One thing is certain, somebody is mak- 

 ing a whole lot of money in California 

 off of fruit in general, and oranges in 

 particular. 



Official statistics show our people 

 have the largest percapita wealth of 

 any State in the Union, being $223.j for 

 every man, woman and child in the 

 State. New York comes ne.xt with a 

 percapita wealth of $1868. But New 

 York has a percapita State debt of 

 $■57.64, while California's State debt is 

 $9.71, giving us the largest percapita 

 wealth, and at the same time the small- 

 est percapita debt. Surely, our people 

 are not making a financial failure in 

 "the fruit-business." 



Accepted statistics show we have 

 10,000 orange-growers, with 70,000 acres 

 in " bearing orchards," and that our 

 people received approximately $:W,0i)0,- 

 000 cash returns from oranges last 

 year. Dividing the returns by the 70,- 

 000 acres in bearing, gives a cash re- 

 turn of $485 for every acre reported 

 by our assessors. Again dividing the 

 70,000 acres among the 10,000 growers, 

 we have but 7 acres for each of them, 

 with an average income of $3400. 



Haven't we here reasonable justifica- 

 tion for encouragement given to the 

 man who modestly ventures with "just 

 a small orchard " of only 7 acres, ex- 

 pecting to support a family ? 



But if such returns are actually re- 

 ceived, then what kind of prices are 

 being paid fororchards in full bearing? 



In nearly all cases we find bearing 

 orchards are bought by investors and 

 for an income. The most nervously 



careful man you find using money is 

 "the investor." He not only counts 

 the present returns, but he also care- 

 fully calculates the future. When he 

 buys bonds, he must be content with 

 about 5 percent; but the statistics 

 quoted show the gross returns from 

 oranges gives an income of over 17 

 percent on the accepted statement of 

 $200,000,000 invested in the orange in- 

 dustry. 



Groves began changing hands but a 

 few years since, at about $-500 an acre. 

 The increase has been steady and 

 strong, and what was once sold for 

 $500 is now held at $1,500, and "the 

 rare cases" reach $3000 to $400(1 an 

 acre. The accepted average yield of 

 $485 is 20 percent on a valuation of 

 $242.5 an acre. This, then, would be 



States. I answer that Washington 

 Navel oranges can be grown in only 

 one State — there is no other that is 

 "just as good." Furthermore, we are 

 considering "the best quality of the 

 Navels." Such fruit can not be grown 

 " all over California," as we so often 

 hear flippantly stated. 



The orange is exceptionally arbitrary 

 as to its location — and that is the kind 

 we are talking about. 



To secure tliis you must plant where 

 there is an abundance of water at small 

 cost; where the climate will insure a 

 perfectly ripe and exquisitely colored 

 orange as early as the middle of No- 

 vember. It prefers "red foot-hill soil" 

 that is deep and rich, underlaid with 

 gravel to insure perfect drainage; 

 where it has " a summer of at least 90 

 days, over which the temperature never 

 falls below 90 degrees; where there is 



Okange-Tkees ok the Sacramento Vallev. Butte Co., Calieokma. 



the market valuation of the whole 70,- 

 000 acres. But such a valuation would 

 give us but $169,750,000, while assessors' 

 returns give us $200,000,000 as invested 

 in this industry^this is $30,250,000 

 short in amount, and means the actual 

 value of a bearing orchard as $2425 is 

 entirely too small, or less than the 

 appraised value. 



Have we not here ample corrobora- 

 tion of the probability of occasional 

 returns up to $1800 an acre for a single 

 harvest ? $1800 an acre is 20 percent 

 on a valuation of $9000 an acre. 



But 15 percent is regarded as " a very 

 fair income" on cost of real estate. On 

 such a basis an acre of ground that 

 produces $1800 is worth $12,000. Re- 

 membering that thus far our oldest 

 orange-groves are still increasing in 

 productiveness with age, what shall we 

 say should be accepted as "a reason- 

 able price " for orange-groves when in 

 full bearing ? 



Oh, but you say such prices for or- 

 chards are absurd, because there is 

 such an enormous amount of unused 

 land where oranges can be grown, and 

 they are now produced in 7 of our 



no ocean breeze or fog. Not a drop 

 of rain or dew, nor a bit of humidity 

 or scarcely a cloud to obstruct the 

 continuous flow of pure, unadulterated 

 California sunshine." If any of these 

 are wanting, the sun will be in some 

 measure robbed of its chemical powers 

 to the detriment of its quality and loss 

 to the fruit. 



There must be " no black scale," no 

 smut from scale or from fire-pots used 

 in a desperate battle to " heat all out- 

 doors " and prevent loss from frost. 



Besides, " for the best results," you 

 require a convenient transportation to 

 save time and cost as well as damage 

 to the fruit from hauling it long dis- 

 tances over rough roads. Only " the 

 perfect fruit" can win the prize. 



The cheapest fruit in the market is 

 "a defective orange" — it won't pay 

 freight. It is a mistake to plant any 

 fruit where it will not be a/ ifx best, 

 and this especially applies to the orange. 



I repeat, the land is " strictly limited " 

 where the largest number of oranges 

 per acre of the finest quality, ripe 

 promptly "at the best time," can be 

 grown, and in consequence such 



