156 



FUNDAMENTALS OF FRUIT PRODUCTION 



Table 50. — Ash Content of He art- wood in a Red Beech ^o* 

 (In percentages of dry weight) 



/?t Fruits. — In fruit trees, the calcium required by the crop is insignificant 

 compared with that lost with the leaves and sometimes it is less than that in 

 the new growth. This is shown in Table 51. In one set of determinations the 



Table 51. — Pounds of Lime in Parts of a Full Grown TreeI'"' 



lime in apple leaves was 3.10 per cent, of their dry weight; in new growth 2.39 

 per cent, and in the fruit 0.06 per cent.'*" However, the lime content of fruits 

 is not inconsiderable (see Table 52). 



Table 52. — Pounds of Lime in 1,000 Pounds of Fresh Fruit ^^ 



Almonds . 



1 . 04 Lemons 1 . 55 



Apricots 0.16 



Apples 0.11 



Bananas 0.10 



Cherries . 20 



Chestnuts 1 . 20 



Figs 0.85 



Grapes . 25 



Olives 2.43 



Oranges . 97 



Peaches 0.14 



Pears 0.19 



French prunes . 22 



Plums 0.25 



Walnuts 1 . 55 



According to Trabut, "a high lime content is a very favorable factor in grow- 

 ing olives for oil production, as olives produced in limestone regions are richer in 

 oil and the oil is of better quality than where the soils are deficient in 

 this component. "^"^ 



The Demand and the Supply. — In general it may be said that the 

 calcium requirements of fruit trees are insignificant compared with the 

 amounts usually available in the soil. For instance, it has been shown 

 that certain typical Illinois soils contain quantities sufficient in the sur- 



