222 CALIFORNIA FRUITS: HOW TO GROW THEM 



Range, known as Suisun bay, for in all these regions there is a modifi- 

 cation of climate due to the influence of ocean temperature and 

 moisture. Away from these influences the cherry also thrives on the 

 alluvial bottoms of large rivers and their tributary creeks, both on the 

 low lands of the valleys and the foothills, while on broad valley plains 

 and foothill slopes it is not usually satisfactory. In the mountain val- 

 leys cherries also thrive in suitable soils. In southern California at 

 elevations where moisture is adequate and temperatures favor suitable 

 winter dormancy of the trees, good cherries are profitably grown, 

 while on the mesas and valleys below, where citrus fruits flourish, the 

 cherry is an aggravation. 



How far atmospheric conditions which are beyond control influence 

 the growth and fruitage of the cherry, can not yet be fully determined, 

 but ample trial seems to demonstrate the unsatisfactory character of 

 the tree, manifested in small fruit and sunburned foliage, on the plains 

 of interior valleys, although the soil is kept moist enough. There is, 

 however, still the chance of securing varieties of the fruit which have 

 been developed under conditions similar to those prevailing in the 

 interior of California. The Russian cherries, which are largely grown 

 in a region subject to high summer heat and dry air, will succeed in 

 parts of California where the varieties originating in west Europe fail. 

 Though this was suggested long ago, the effort has not yet been made. 



SOILS FOR THE CHERRY 



The cherry thrives in free deep soil, in which water does not stand 

 too near the surface. It delights in deep deposits from old water 

 courses, and does not dislike a moderate amount of sand. A loam 

 underlaid by a sandy subsoil is acceptable if it is not allowed to dry 

 out in the late summer, but a loam underlaid by clay has shown its 

 unfitness by the early failure of the trees, because of standing water in 

 the rainy season, while those on deep loam near by have remained 

 vigorous and profitable. On the foothills it thrives in the light, mellow 

 soil and fails in the tight clay either in soil or subsoil, as it does in the 

 adobe of lower lands; and yet a clay loam of no great depth upon a 

 clay subsoil may grow good trees if the clay be so disposed that sur- 

 plus water from winter rains can escape and water is at hand to guard 

 against summer drouth. Commercial orchards should have a good 

 depth of sufficiently retentive soil. The great cherry trees which we 

 have mentioned, are growing right on the bank of the American River, 

 where the soil is a pure, sandy loam, in some places over sixty feet 

 deep, as proved by an old shaft once dug near the center of the 

 orchard. 



But though the cherry dislikes a wet soil, it is particular about 

 its water supply and insists upon enough, its requirements being 

 greater than some other trees. During the dry year 1898-99, also in 

 1912-13, trees came into distress where they had never suffered before, 

 and many large valuable trees died. The only new condition they 

 encountered was lack of soil moisture. It thus appears that while 

 the cherry is undoubtedly injured by excess of water in the soil 



