44 



ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL, HORTICULTURE 



almond bloomed about four days earlier 

 than the peaches and earlier than the 

 apricot, plum and prune. Thus It seems 

 impractical to grow the almond for com- 

 mercial purposes in a climate where the 

 mercury in winter registers as low as 

 16 degrees below zero, or where there is 

 danger of early frosts killing the buds 

 In the spring time. 



However, for home use the almond may 

 be grown even where there is consider- 

 able hazard, for one or two trees will 

 supply a family with all the nuts they 

 are likely to need. If the fruit is killed 

 on one or two trees, the loss is not very 

 great, or if the trees themselves are 

 killed, the loss is not great, but if a 

 whole orchard is killed, there is not only 

 the loss of the crop for that year, but 

 the loss of time and expense in growing 

 a new orchard. Trees may be protected 

 where nuts are grown for family use; 

 they may be wrapped with paper or with 

 canvas, or canvas may be stretched over 

 the top of one, two or three trees with- 

 out any very great expenditure of time 

 and money, and thus in a comparatively 

 cold climate almonds may be grown for 

 home use. 



The almond can be grown with proper 

 cultivation in semi-arid regions where the 

 rainfall is not sufficient to grow apples, 

 pears, peaches or other fruits, for while 

 it is akin to the peach and its habits of 

 growth are very similar, yet its root sys- 

 tem adapts it to a dry climate, and its 

 leaf system evaporates less water than 

 that of the peach. The leaf is small and 

 slender with not a great portion exposed 

 to the air and sunshine, and is so formed 

 that less water evaporates in proportion 

 to the surface than would evaporate from 

 the leaves of other fruits. I have no 

 doubt but that with proper cultivation 

 and care the almond can be grown suc- 

 cessfully where there is rainfall sufficient 

 to grow wheat. It should be planted in 

 deep, dry soil, and in an irrigated coun- 

 try should be given less water than other 

 fruits. Another reason for this is ob- 

 vious when we consider that the fruit 

 of peaches, plums, pears, apples and other 

 varieties is in the pulp which reaches 



the highest degree of perfection if they 

 have water enough to make them juicy 

 and luscious, while the fruit of the al- 

 mond is in the seed, formed very much 

 like the seed of the peach, which is en- 

 closed in a hard shell. The almond shell 

 is soft, and is enclosed in turn in a thin 

 pulpy substance. It takes less water to 

 develop the pit or seed of the almond 

 than it does to develop both the pulp 

 and seed of the peach; therefore, the al- 

 mond can be grown successfully with less 

 water than is required for almost any 

 other fruit. Experience has shown that 

 if the almond tree is planted in a wet 

 soil, or if it is given too much water, it 

 will not reach its best development, and 

 will not be a long-lived tree. 



Species of tlie .Vlmond 



There are two species and several va- 

 rieties of almonds. 



First, there is the bitter almond, which 

 is used in the manufacture of flavoring 

 extracts and of prussic or hydrocyanic 

 acid. "When the leaves of the cherry 

 laurel, bitter almond, the kernels of 

 peaches and cherries are distilled In wa- 

 ter the distillate contains hydrocyanic 

 acid. It is the most rapid poison known, 

 and causes death within a few seconds. 

 The bitter almond is grown mostly in 

 the countries that cluster around the 

 Mediterranean sea. 



Second, the sweet almond, which is di- 

 vided into two general varieties, the 

 hard shell and the soft shell. The hard 

 shell is considered of little value and is 

 not grown for commercial purposes; while 

 the soft shell, which might be character- 

 ized as thin, thinner, thinnest, the last 

 sometimes being called the paper shell 

 almond, is the almond of commerce. 



Perhaps no other tree of commerce has 

 been more disappointing in its productive, 

 value than the almond. The almond 

 growers of California have probably spent 

 more time and money than any others 

 in experimenting and preparing the way 

 for profitable almond culture, and even 

 now are not quite sure that they have 

 solved the problem; but insofar as 

 they have determined there are three 

 questions that are of great Importance: 



