THE NAVEL OEANGE OF BAHIA. 3 



the form tends to become more nearly that of the navel orange, i. e., 

 spherical, and the number of seeds was reduced to an average of 

 nine in the specimens examined. 



When all the evidence is considered, there is scarcely any room 

 left for doubt concerning the origin of the navel orange of Bahia 

 as a sport from the Selecta variety. Other accounts obtained at 

 Bahia substantiate the belief of Dr. Waddell that the variety orig- 

 inated in the CabuUa district during the first or second decades of 

 the nineteenth century. 



The origin of the Selecta orange is even more obscure than that of 

 the Bahia navel. It has been known in Brazil since a remote date, 

 and in all probability was brought there by the Portuguese from the 

 Iberian Peninsula, though it might have come through one of the 

 Portuguese settlements in the Orient. An article which appeared in 

 " The Garden " and is quoted in the report of the United States 

 Department of Agriculture for 1877 mentions it as occurring in the 

 Azores, with the note that it is "large, of first-rate flavor, little 

 acidity, and of deep yellow color. It has scarcely any pips and does 

 not ripen until April, which gives it a higher value." In Kio cle 

 Janeiro it is preferred by many to the navel orange; in fact, it is 

 classed by some as the best orange in Brazil. Its fine quality at Eio 

 de Janeiro may be due in some measure, however, to the effect of 

 climate or soil. 



The extension of the navel-orange industry in Bahia, which has 

 resulted in the present large groves of Cabulla, Matatu, and other 

 districts near the city of Bahia, has taken place since 1860 or 1870, 

 according to the statements of the oldest orchardists. This is about 

 the time of the introduction of the variety into the United States. 

 Previous to that time there were only a few small groves in the 

 Cabulla district. A census taken in 1913 by Dr. V. A. Argollo Ferrao 

 showed that there were in the territory immediately adjacent to the 

 city of Bahia about 67,000 trees, and about 6,000 more in small planta- 

 tions in the interior of the State, notably at Matto de Sao Joao, Santo 

 Antonio de Jesus, Amargosa, and Bom Fim, making a total of 73,000 

 trees. The principal orange districts within the municipality, as 

 shown upon the map (p. 8), are as follows: Cabulla, containing 

 al)ont 30,000 trees; SaV>oeiro, with 12,000 trees; Cruz do Cosme, 

 7,000 trees; Matatu, 8,r>fX) trees; Brotas, 6,000 trees; Sao Gon^:alo, 

 2,000 trees; and Victoria (including Barra, Gra^a, and Eio Ver- 

 melho), 1,500 trees. As there are usually about 100 trees to the 

 iicre, the total acreage in oranges within the State is approximately 

 730. About one-third of the total number of trees have been planted 

 h'ss fh;in three years; oru^tliird are from 3 to G years of age, and the 

 jejjiaining tliird, 6 to 40 years of age. 



