142 ANNUAL EEPOETS OF DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



Of the avocado varieties in Florida the Trapp, which is the lead- 

 ing fall variety of the West Indian race, will probably be the one most 

 commonly planted in protected localities for some years to come, 

 as in the past. Of the Guatemalan varieties, Avhich are thicker 

 skinned and hardier than the West Indian avocado, the Fuertc, 

 Avhich has come to be one of the standard varieties of California, 

 appears to be one of the best for conditions in Florida. It maintains 

 there the same high oil content and other qualities that characterized 

 it when grown in California. 



Further work in California confirms the wisdom of the selections 

 made b}^ the California Avocado Association, announced in a circular 

 published October 25, 1917, which recommends the Fuerte, Spinks, 

 Blakeman, Lyon, Dickinson, Taft, Sharpless, and Puebla varieties. 

 The Taft does not seem to be as hardy as many*of the other varieties 

 in the list, however, and for this reason it should be planted only in 

 specially protected localities. Furthermore, it is a slow grower and 

 the trees do not begin fruiting until they are 5 or 6 years old, which 

 is at least two years later than most of the other recommended 

 varieties. The Lyon does not make a very satisfactory growth ex- 

 cept in the Montebello and Whittier districts. There is some ques- 

 tion whether these two varieties should be retained in the list. The 

 other six, however, appear to be si^ecially well suited to California 

 conditions. The Puebla is gaining in favor, and it will probably 

 be extensively planted in the future. 



A further study of Florida citrus varieties so far as they relate 

 to oranges confirms the conviction, which is shared by officials of the 

 Florida Agricultural Experiment Station, the State Plant Board, 

 and a number of prominent nurserymen and growers, that the 

 " accredited " list recommended by the Citrus Seminar in 1916 for 

 planting in Florida should be continued. This list included, in the 

 order of their maturity, the Parson {Parson Broivn), Homosassa, 

 Pineapple, Valencia, and Luc (Iaic Gim Gong) varieties. Some 

 growers and nurserymen believe that the Lue may be eliminated, as 

 it resembles the Valencia in so many particulars. 



Comprehensive investigations of the Satsuma orange industry in 

 the Gulf States, and particularly in Alabama, have shown that 

 there are at least three different varieties of these oranges being 

 grown more or less extensively in this region and that the name 

 Satsuma is, in fact, a group name rather than a variety name. This 

 interpretation of the significance of this name explains many of the 

 wide differences previously observed in the fruit grown and passing 

 as " Satsuma oranges." The Satsuma varieties of principal iin- 

 portance are the Owari and Ikeda. The Zairai orange is found in 

 a few orchards, but it is relatively unimportant except for the 

 reason that, because of its unlikeness to other varieties, it may con- 

 tinue to create confusion if the fact that it does occur is not fully 

 recognized. 



In connection Avith the bud-selection work in California consider- 

 able attention has been given to the pruning of citrus trees. It is 

 expected that the results of this work will be prepared at an early 

 date for publication. The most striking features of these investiga- 

 tions have been what appears to be a clear-cut demonstration of the 

 fact that the very heavy pruning pi'acticed by some growers is 

 detrimental, but that a limited amount of pruning, wisely applied, 



