178 PHILIPPINE AGRICULTURE 



ancestors were. All are natives of southeastern Asia and 

 Malaya. 



In the Philippines. The varieties cultivated in the 

 Philippines are mostly not very good, but the climate is 

 excellent for them, and the best varieties can be easily 

 introduced. Not every variety brought in can be ex- 

 pected to produce fine fruit here, but some of them are 



FIG. 117. Pomelo 



sure to do so. The chief orange district in the Philip- 

 pines is about Tanawan, in Batangas. 



Varieties. Flavor and juiciness are the .most impor- 

 tant qualities in an orange ; after these come a loose 

 skin and absence of seed. The finest oranges are the 



O 



mandarin, the navel, and the blood. Each of these has 

 many varieties. The mandarin is a native of China ; 

 the navel probably originated in Brazil ; and the finest 

 blood orange, in Malta. 



Some of the Philippine oranges have a very fine flavor, 

 but they are tight-skinned, seedy, and fibrous. One of 

 the best pomelos is the Chinese, the fruit of which is 



