FRUITS FROM THE TROPICS 295 



The process of budding is altogether similar to 

 the budding of other trees and it presents no dif- 

 ficulties. Stocks may be grown from seed but, 

 as already noted, seedlings cannot be depended 

 upon to reproduce the parent forms, and all the 

 best varieties of orange are propagated by 

 grafting. 



The chief peculiarity of orange culture is that 

 it is necessary to grow the fruit on irrigated soil. 



Water is, of course, essential to all plant life, 

 but a tree like the orange, with heavy evergreen 

 foliage, makes exceptional demands, and it is 

 imperative, if the large, juicy fruit is to be 

 brought to perfection, that these demands shall 

 be adequately met. It also requires a high sum- 

 mer temperature. 



It was the recognition of these facts by the old 

 Moors more than a thousand years ago that made 

 Valencia in Spain, thanks to the Moorish system 

 of irrigation, the heart and center of the orange 

 industry of the world. The irrigation system 

 established by the Moors is still in successful 

 operation, and Valencia remains the largest sin- 

 gle shipping port for oranges anywhere in the 

 world. 



It is only in very recent years that California 

 fruit has challenged the product of the Spanish 

 orchards. 



