12 ORANGE CULTURE IN CALIFORNIA. 



sides and two feet in the center. I think strips one and a half 

 inches wide are as good as wider ones, though I have used them 

 wider; or plasterers' six-foot laths can be economically used. 

 The cloth admits sufficient light and heat to cause the seed to 

 germinate and the plants to grow rapidly, while it protects 

 them from injury from the heat of the sun. 



The embryo trees appear in from four to six weeks from the 

 time of planting the seed. The ground in the seed-beds must, 

 in the meantime, be kept scrupulously free from weeds. After 

 the plants come up nothing remains to be done but to give them 

 general care and culture, with water sufficient to keep the 

 ground moist, as mentioned, until the irrigating season be over. 



As soon as the plants shall have attained a hight of two or 

 three inches they will be hardy enough to withstand the direct 

 rays of the run; the cover may then be removed. It should be 

 put back on the approach of cold weather and remain over the 

 beds till the following spring, as a protection against frosts. 

 Well-grown plants usually attain a hight of about one foot the 

 first season. 



The best time at which to plant the seed is from April to 

 June. Never plant when the ground is cold, if it can be avoided. 

 Never use thin, poor land under any circumstances; the soil 

 must be rich. 



