NUTS AND NUT CULTURE 503 



has been under cultivation in southwestern Asia and in Europe, but with 

 approximately a half century of serious cultivation in this country it has 

 attained its greatest degree of perfection on our Pacific Coast. In the 

 Old World, and until recently in the United States, propagation has been 

 by seedage, but modern American orchards are comprised exclusively of 

 budded or grafted trees. For its best development the species requires a 

 deep, fertile, loamy soil, moist but well drained. However, it readily 

 adapts itself with proportionate results to conditions less favorable. At 

 the present time the chief centers of production in the United States are 

 southern California near Los Angeles, the Sacramento Valley in northern 

 California and the Willamette Valley of western Oregon. Varieties suit- 

 able for general culture in the southeastern quarter of this country have 

 not yet appeared. In that area of the Eastern states lying between lower 

 New England and the Potomac River on the Atlantic Coast and extending 

 west to the Mississippi River, local varieties originating with trees reputed 

 to be hardy and prolific bearers of desirable nuts are being given a fairly 

 general trial. These are being propagated by budding on the black walnut 

 stocks. To date, the chief eastern varieties are the Rush, Nebo, Barnes, 

 Potomac, Holden, Hall, Lancaster and Boston. Thus far none of these 

 have been given sufficient trial to determine their commercial value. For 

 the present, planting should be limited to experimental numbers. 



The most popular varieties of walnuts in southern California are 

 the offspring of the Santa Barbara type, established during the late sixties 

 by Mr. Joseph Sexton of Santa Barbara, with seed supposed to have come 

 from Chile. Southern California walnuts are not sold under variety names, 

 but under such trade appellations as "budded," "numbers one," "two," 

 "three," etc.; the term "budded" applying to the large sizes which will 

 not pass through inch squares of a wire mesh. 



The leading varieties of northern California and Oregon are from 

 French stock first introduced into this country by Mr. Felix Gillet of 

 Nevada City, Cal., whose work closely followed that of Mr. Sexton, and 

 these to a large extent are sold under their variety names. At present 

 the more important are the Franquette and Mayette, direct introductions, 

 and the Concord, San Jose and probably the Chase, seedlings of original 

 introductions. 



The Pecan.— The pecan is by far the most important nut indigenous 

 to this country, and although at present its annual production is less than 

 one-half that of the Persian walnut, the increased attention now being 

 paid to the native bearing trees and enormous number of planted orchards 

 in the south Atlantic and eastern Gulf states combine to make it fairly 

 certain that this will soon become the leading nut grown in America. Its 

 native range includes much of the lowlands of the Mississippi River and 

 its tributaries from Davenport and Terra Haute on the north, south to 

 near the Gulf and a large area extending southwest across Arkansas, 

 Louisiana, Oklahoma and Texas to near the Rio Grande. Its requirements 



