1154 



ORANGE 



lows: Garey, "Orange Culture in California," San Fran- 

 cisco, 1882 ; Moore, "Treatise of Orange Culture in 

 Florida, Louisiana and California," Ni>w York and 

 Jacksonville, Third Edition. 18S:!; IWanville, "Practical 

 Oranfre Culturf iTi.'hi.lin- tli.- I'lilfM,-,- of the Orange, 

 Lemon. LiiiM'. .i'l.i ..■!>. i . m, ■,,.!. Iiniis as grown in 

 Flori.i;i." .1^1 1, ,! , ! - -. "The Orange: 



ItsC'ullurr u. . . 

 also c-unsult Wi.K-.iii'. 'i ': 

 lications of the California 

 For an account of the 

 point of view, see Citrus. 



should 



Ml:' I I iiits." and the puh- 

 p Hoard of Horticulture, 

 nge from the botanical 

 L. H. B. 



Orange CtJLTUBE in Florida.— The foundation of 

 Orange culture in Florida was laid, it is believed, by 

 the accidental distribution of sour Orange seeds by the 

 Indians, who obtained the fruit from trees planted by 

 the Spaniards in early days, and which were probably 

 grown from imported seeds. 



These sour Oranges were carried from camp to camp, 

 and the seeds thus scattered through the northern and 

 central parts of peninsular Florida found congenial soil 

 and conditions in the open hardwood forests and live- 

 oak groves of that region, and in time formed wild groves 

 of great extent, always in places where more or less 

 protected from sun and radiation by towering live-oaks, 

 magnolias and similar trees. 



Sweet Oranges were grown to some extent for family 

 use even before the civil war, but in the absence of 

 transportation facilities were considered of no commer- 

 cial value. 



Between 1865 and 1870, however, the Orange trees 

 along the banks of the St. John's river began to attract 

 attention as a profitable investment, and a little later 

 an enterprising horticulturist bought a portion of a wild 

 grove in the interior, near Orange Lake, and budded 

 the tops of the sour trees to sweet varieties. The prof- 

 its were prompt and large, so much so that this pioneer, 

 who began with an investment of only $1,000, had a crop 

 valued at $231,000, for the year of the great freeze, 

 1894-5. 



Many of these wild groves were in.iured or destroyed, 

 however, by the removal of the protecting live-oaks. 





1553. Tub-gro 



and being located on about the 30th parallel of latitude, 

 the Oranges themselves had to be marketed early in 

 the season to avoid destruction by frost. By 1880 culti- 

 vated groves spread over all parts of Florida where 

 railroad or steamboat transportation was accessible; the 



Indian river hammocks being .iustly celebrated for the 

 quality and abundance of the fruit, while almost every 

 kind of soil and exposure had its champions as best for 

 Orange culture. The winters for several years prior to 



1551. Otaheite Oraiiee 



1880 were almost frostless, and the rains abundant all 

 the year round, so that the growth of well-cultivateil 

 young groves was phenomenal, and the whole northern 

 half of peninsular Florida gave itself up to Orange cul- 

 ture with reckless enthusiasm — it was estimated that 

 the Orange at 12 years of age would pay from 10 to I.IO 

 per cent interest on a valuation of $100 for each tree, 

 and in the case of individual trees even the highest 

 figure was sometimes realized. 



The first check to this state of affairs was received in 

 1886, when a three days' blizzard from the northwest 

 swept over the state and cut back or at least defoliated 

 all the Orange trees down to the 29th degree, and still 

 further south in all but the most protected stations. 

 This injury, however, was only temporary in most cases, 

 and wliile much of the crop of 1885-6 was lost, there 

 was no dimiu\ition in the crop of the following year, 

 although the trees themselves had received an evident 



From 1886 on, there has been a succession of frosts, 

 generally not sufficient to hurt old trees but enough to 

 destroy or seriously cripple nearly all the young groves 

 north of the latitude of Tampa, so that few, if any, new 

 groves have been brought into successful bearing north 

 of that point since 188(1. 



' I r si'vere northwest bliz- 



' ii south as the Manatee 

 I'.ljruary by another 

 M 111. trees covered with 

 tcivlri- «liM..tv :nir! . I i..Iki;;i, with active sap, and 

 I^ili'i ! — ' I ii . ill,- ground from Tampa north. 



ai ' i lih-d them from the repeated 



sh" I I were unable to rally, and are 



to .\■.,^ , iihi r .l.inl o, uoiililess. The loss to the Florida 

 Orange iiidiisti-v bv this double freeze is reasonably 

 estimated at $100,00'0,000. 



The crop of 189-4-5 was the largest hitherto produced, 

 and estiniati'd at (1,(11)1). OOU b.ixes. each of 2 cubic feet. 



The folloxMii.: -..iir a)ioui ::,. ),i,-.,. ^^,•r^■ produced, 



all from -■ i. - -r r i i i ,n,il the crop 



1,000,0011 In, ,- , o . iM I- . . 1,1 ..I iiii,,-,,i ■; I'rora regions 



In December, b'-li 

 zard defoliated all i 

 river, and this w:. 



the 



,.-,i "1„ lore the freeze." 

 .-il>l.- was supplied by Mr. E. O. Painter, 

 iriila A^'riculturist," after consultation 

 it the Florida Fruit Exchange, and may 

 ibstantially correct : 



