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tained. As a matter of course, seedling trees may turn out to be 

 excellent varieties, but, on tlie other hand, the fruit may be very inferior. 

 Therefore, it is not wise to depend upon seedlings for a plantation of 

 Citrus fruits except as stocks that have been grafted or budded with 

 approved varieties. 



Rnisiny Plants from Seed. Seedling plants make the best "stocks," 

 and should be used exclusively. The seed should be sown thinly in rows 

 about two feet apart, or in small beds, covering it about an inch deep. 

 It should be sown soon after it is taken from the fruit if practicable, and 

 if it has to be kept any time before sowing, care must be taken that the 

 seed does not get too dry. The young plants, as soon as they are large 

 enough to handle, should be thinned out so as to stand about six inches 

 apart. In localities where the sun has great power it will be advisable 

 to slightly shade the rows or beds, as the case may be. The following 

 season transplant into rows three feet apart, leaving about fifteen inches 

 between the plants in the lines. Many growers plant closer, but it is not 

 well to overcrowd the young trees, as they require room for development 

 both for their roots and branches. The plants will be ready for working 

 the second year. 



Layering. Plants can be readily obtained from layers, which root 

 freely, but the trees are, as a rule, not so vigorous and durable as those 

 raised from seed. This mode of propagation is, therefore, not to be 

 commended as a means for obtaining trees under ordinary conditions. It 

 may, however, be adopted without any drawback with the Kumquat, 

 Myrtle-leaved, and other dwarf species of Orange grown merely as 

 ornamental plants. Layers may be put down at any time, but the most 

 favourable periods are late in the summer or autumn and early in the 

 spring. 



Cuttings. Plants of any species of the Citrus family may be obtained 

 from cuttings of ripened shoots of the current season's growth, which will 

 readily strike in sand or light soil if placed in a frame or under a glass to 

 protect them from the weather. This method of propagation is, however, 

 not to be commended except for special purposes, as the plants are slow 

 in growth, and, as a rule, do not make such robust and long-lived trees as 

 seedlings. 



Madding. There is some difference of opinion among growers as to 

 whether budding or grafting is the best mode of propagating the Citrus 

 family. Budding is not so generally practised as the other method, 

 though it finds favour with many experienced cultivators, including the 

 writer, who considers it the best mode of working trees. One great 

 advantage obtained by budding, and a very important one, is that, the 

 trees being worked well above the ground, there is less risk of the disease 

 known as "collar rot" than when the union is under or near to the 

 ground, as it usually is with grafted plants. This mysterious and 

 destructive disease seems to attack trees most readily at the point of 

 union between stock and scion when it is near the surface of the ground* 

 and the risk is materially lessened when the plants have been budded 

 well up the stems. The time for budding will depend, to some extent, 

 upon local conditions such as the character of the season and climate. It 



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