CHAPTER XI, 



Crops Admissible in a Young Orchard, 



How am I to live and support my family while my orange or- 

 chard is coming into bearing, is the question arising in the mind 

 of the average grower of limited means. It is a question of much 

 importance, as the universality of orange-growing depends upon 

 its favorable solution. 



The general advice, which admits of no argument, would be, 

 plant your orchard and cultivate the ground solely for the 

 orchard ; plant nothing thereon but trees, and make a living 

 independent of the ground planted to trees. All that have fol- 

 lowed this plan are unanimous in their verdict that this will 

 undoubtedly insure success. But hundreds who have a few 

 acres of land adapted to orange culture would enter the busi- 

 ness, if an annual subsistence could be procured on the same 

 land, but who could not otherwise be induced to venture. I 

 think some comparatively harmless crops may be recommended 

 for this class. Of the cereals, corn only is admissible, always 

 leaving a strip not less than eight feet wide four feet each side 

 of the row for the use of the row of trees. Corn does not sap 

 the ground and apparently poison it for orange trees, as many 

 other crops are sure to do. Corn being a staple, it can be 

 planted quite generally to advantage. Pumpkins, squashes and 

 melons are harmless crops. If the culture of the sugar-beet, 

 which is now attracting attention, be made successful and re- 

 munerative here, and I see no good reason why it cannot, it 

 will, in my opinion, prove to be a sovereign boon to the poor 

 orange-grower till his orchards commence fruiting. I think 

 they can be planted with impunity between the rows of orange 

 trees ; and at the generous prices usually paid for them in the 



