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4 Citrus and Tropical Fruit Culture 
A Fruit Growers Supply Company Washington Navel performance record tree 
CITRUS FRUITS 
It seems unnecessary to go into detail regarding 
the early introduction of citrus fruits in California; 
however, for the purpose of enlightening those not 
familiar with early events in the citrus history of the 
state, it will probably not be out of place to recite 
some of the more important occurrences connected 
with the industry that have added so much to Cali- 
fornia's horticultural wealth. 
It is said that California owes the introduction of 
horticulture to the Mission Fathers who, first of all, 
planted fruit-bearing trees on the Pacific Coast. 
Coming north from Lower California in 1769, 
they established their first Mission at San Diego and 
worked northward, locating Missions wherever con- 
ditions warranted. In all they established twenty-one 
Missions, and it is said that at all but three of these 
gardens and orchards were planted. These plantings 
ranged from just a few trees to several hundred and 
consisted chiefly of oranges, figs, grapes and olives. 
It is interesting to note that all of these fruits are 
now important industries in California horticulture, 
although a hundred years elapsed after they were 
first introduced before they attained commercial im- 
portance. 
It is said that the most extensive orange orchard of 
early planting was at the San Gabriel Mission, in 
this county, planted by "Father" Thomas Sanchez 
in the year 1804. Other small plantings were made 
in and around Los Angeles, the most notable of which 
was planted by William Wolf skill in what is now the 
heart of Los Angeles city, in the year 1841, and con- 
sisted of two acres. This acreage was added to from 
time to time, but as late as 1862 it is recorded that 
there were but 25,000 orange trees in the entire state, 
and fully half of these were in the Wolfskill orchards. 
Other sections of the state were also credited- with 
some of the early plantings, all of which were grown 
from seed. These sections ranged from San Diego on 
the south to as far north as Shasta County. 
