ORANGE 



ORANGE 



1153 



Mediterranean regions, but tlie Florida Orange has 

 taken the place, to a large extent, of the imported fruit. 

 Since the great Florida freeze of 1895, however, the 

 California Orange has come to be much better known 

 in the eastern states. 



Fifty years and more ago, Oranges were commonly 

 grown under glass in England and parts of the conti- 

 nent. At that time there was no rapid transportation 

 between the Orange-growing regions and northern 

 countries, and the Orange fruit was a luxury. Special 

 houses, known as orangeries, were devoted to the cul- 

 ture of the fruit. The trees were ordinarily grown in 

 large tubs or boxes (Fig. 1553), and were kept in the 

 open in summer and were placed in the orangery in 

 winter. These orangeries were scarcely greenhouses 

 in the modern understanding of the term. In many 

 cases they had slate or shingle roofs, the sides only 

 being provided with an extra amount of glass in the 

 shape of windows. Some of them, however, were 

 houses with glass roofs. As imported Oranges came to 

 be more common, these Orange houses gradually fell 

 into disuse. It is doubtful if there are any of these 

 establishments now standing in this country, but one 

 sees them occasionally in Europe. As the Orange trees 

 disappeared, other plants were grown in the house, so 

 that an orangery came to mean a particular kind of 

 house in which plants are grown that will thrive in con- 

 ditions suited to the Orange. It came to be no uncom- 

 mon thing to see orangeries in which there were no 

 Oranges. 



The Orange tree is still a popular subject in conser- 

 vatories, however, and in window-gardens. In the latter 

 conditions it rarely produces fruit of any consequence, 

 but the shining evergreen foliage and the very fragrant 

 flowers make the plant interesting and desirable. The 

 plant is sub,ieCt to scale and mealy bug, and constant 

 attention must be given to syringing and sponging the 

 foliage. The leading difliculty in the growing of an 

 Orange tree in the dwelling house is a tendency to keep 

 it growing the entire year and to keep it too wet at the 

 roots. After the fruiting season, in late fall or early 

 winter, the plant should be allowed to rest for a time 

 in order to harden its wood for the next year's bloom. 

 It may then be kept at a temperature of 40° to 50° 

 and fairly dry at the roots. Water should not be with- 

 held entirely, however, because the plant should be 

 kept in such condition that the foliage will not drop. 

 After a period of relative inactivity of one or two months, 

 the plant may be set in a sunny pUace and given a some- 

 what higher temperature, and water and liquid manure 

 may be applied at the roots. It should be in bloom dur- 

 ing the summer and early fall. Best results are secured 

 if the roots are somewhat confined. When the plant is 

 small, it may be potted on from time to time; but after 

 it has attained the height of five or six feet, it should 

 not be given more root room than a small tub or a half 

 barrel. Ordinarily, it will not need repotting for several 

 years at a time after it has attained this size. Some of 

 the surface soil may be removed from time to time and 

 fresh soil added and liquid manure applied. Usually 

 the stocks which are used are grown from seeds, and 

 the plants vary as peaches or apples do. S- me of the 

 plants may give desirable fruit, l>ut the larger part of 

 them will give fruit of indifferent or even inferior 

 quality. If the best kind of fruit is wanted, the young 

 plants should be budded after they are well established 

 in the pots. Buds may be secured from any tree that 

 bears a desirable fruit, or they may be obtained from the 

 South. 



In recent years the Otaheite Orange (described in 

 Vol I, page 323) has come into prominence as a pot- 

 plant. Fig. 1551. It is a dwarf form of the common 

 Orange species. It is undoubtedly the best form of Or- 

 ange for growing in the house. The fruits are small 

 and handsome, and the flowers have a pinkish tinge 

 and are very fragrant. These plants will bloom and 

 bear when not more than a foot high if the roots are 

 .somewhat confined or the plants not overpotted. Usually 

 they will bloom the greater part of the vear, but, like 

 most hard-wooded plants, the best results are secured 

 if they have a period of rest, as described above. The 

 temperature for all Oranges should be relatively low; 

 that is, it should be the temperature of the intermediate 



house or one which will grow carnations, chrysan- 

 themums, geraniums, and the like. 



There is much literature on the Orange, but there is 

 no full and comprehensive treatise on Orange culture in 

 North America. An authoritative general work on 

 Oranges is Risso and Poiteau, "Hisfoire et Culture des 



1552. Japanese types of Orange. 



Top. Sakura-jiraa, small, dwarf in growth, coarse 

 in quality. Second from top, Shiriwa-koji. sweet and 

 solid, of good quality, the rind thin and yellow. Oon- 

 shin or Satsuma, one of the "kid-glove *' class. Ka- 

 wachi, also a "kid-glove " Orange. 



Oranges," Paris. On the oriental forms and histories 

 of Oranges, one should consult Bonavia, "The Culti- 

 vated Oranges and Lemons of India and Ceylon," London, 

 1890. The American books on the Orange are as fol- 



