10 



Smyrna the thermometer's extreme range is from 90 to 100 degrees in 

 the shade; 130 to 140 degrees in the sun as the highest, to 26 degrees as 

 the lowest. A heavier frost, however, will not do serious injury to the 

 tree or injure the crop. 



The same climate that suits the olive is favorable to the .fig a warm 

 climate, where excesses of heat and cold do not exist. It is worthy of 

 note that on the right side of the Rhone, in France, figs do not develop 

 very well, the fruit remains small, and is not good for drying; whereas 

 on the left side, and from the Rhone to the Italian frontier, figs attain a 

 far higher degree of quality; they are larger, sweeter, more delicate, and 

 are excellent for drying. The explanation of this fact is that the plains 

 and districts on the right side of the Rhone are not sheltered by hills as 

 on the other side. , Sheltered hillsides are very favorable to fig culture, 

 and exposure to cold winds is not conducive of good results. 



The soil in Smyrna and vicinity is very variable. It contains a fair 

 percentage of lime and potash, but is otherwise of various qualities. 

 The most luxuriant growth is obtained in a deep, rich soil, but the best 

 figs are grown on a soil which is made loose and porous by a fair admix- 

 ture of sand. A sandy loam is thus the best, probably because the 

 drainage is here the most perfect. Such soils produce large figs, of a 

 white, thin skin, of high flavor and great sweetness. 



In aspect, the Meander Valley resembles our lowest foothills small 

 valleys, separated by low ridges, during the dry season as uninviting as 

 the foothills of the Sierra Nevada or the Sierra Madre. Some of the 

 fig orchards are planted on hill land, and some in the valleys, neither 

 locality having any decided advantage over the other. The valleys and 

 plains generally give thickest skinned fruit, the skins of the mountain 

 figs being considered thinner. In rainy or foggy weather the mountains 

 or hills dry up the fastest, in this respect showing a decided advantage 

 over the low, perhaps swampy plains. 



PROPAGATION. 



The propagation of the fig is very simple, and can be multiplied in 

 various ways, viz.: by suckers (shoots that spring from the roots), by 

 layers, and by cuttings. 



Suckers. The young shoots that spring up from near the base or 

 crown of the tree, are called suckers. They generally contain a small 

 portion of roots, which, upon being transplanted, soon form trees. The 

 wound made on them by removing from the parent tree soon heals over. 

 There are, however, great objections to trees produced from suckers. 

 First among all is, perhaps, the fact that the sucker generally con- 

 tains a portion of bark from the parent tree, from which many shoots 

 or suckers put forth ; also, the growth is not well formed, resembling 

 water-sprouts, having but a feeble body, and as they are required to be 

 topped in order to branch out, put forth feeble shoots which the body of 

 the tree cannot support. In such cases it is best to allow such trees to 

 grow the first year without trimming to form their body, and the second 

 year the trees can be pruned as desired; in this way they become more 

 healthful. 



Cuttings. There is no better way to propagate the fig than by the 

 simple method of cuttings, which is the most practical, and above all 

 the best. By this method nearly every part of a tree can be utilized. 



