BUD VARIATION IIST THE MARSH GRAPEFRUIT. 3 



bearing. The past season several additional large plantings of the 

 Marsh variety have been made, particularly in the Imperial and 

 Coachella Valleys in southern California, and many smaller plantings 

 have been made in other citrus districts of the State. 



While the grapefruit crop of California at present is of relatively 

 small commercial importance as compared with the orange or lemon 

 crops, it seems likely that in the next few years it will become a 

 more important factor in the citrus industry of the State. Many of 

 the growers, with this viewpoint, have organized the California 

 Grapefruit Club, for the special purpose of cooperating in extending 

 the market for this fruit, in order to take care of the greatly enlarged 

 production now in prospect. One of the most important means for 

 increasing the consumption of this fruit is through the improvement 

 of the crop by discarding all inferior varieties, standardizing the 

 Marsh variety by the elimination of all trees of inferior and poor 

 strains,^ and the growing of only the best strain, propagated from the 

 most productive and valuable trees, selected on the basis of their 

 performance records. 



The California Grapefruit Club took official action to this end 

 during the season of 191,6. It began a tree-census record of all of 

 the grapefruit orchards belonging to the members of the club, securing 

 accurate data upon the number of trees of each variety and each 

 strain in every orchard. The members of the club agreed to top- 

 work the trees of all varieties other than the Marsh, and the trees of 

 all strains other than the Marsh,^ or most desirable, strain. The 

 top-worked trees for the most part have been rebudded with buds 

 secured from superior select trees of the Marsh strain, or, in a few 

 cases, with buds from trees of other varieties of citrus fruits. Most 

 of this work has already been accomplished, and it was expected 

 that it would be completed during the season of 1917. 



In March, 1917, the California Fruit Growers' Exchange, through 

 its field department, undertook similar work for its members with 

 the standard orange and lemon varieties. Individual-tree perform- 

 ance records are being kept in several very productive groves, for the 

 purpose of locating desirable trees as reliable sources of bud wood 

 for use in top-working or for the propagation of young trees. This 

 action was taken because the commercial nurserymen were able to 

 supply only a very small part of the bud wood or nursery trees of 

 this character demanded by the citrus growers. 



These actions are interesting examples of the utilization of the results 

 of scientific research in agriculture by large commercial organizations. 



• The term "strain" is here used to designate a group of individuals of a horticultural variety vrhich 

 differ from all other individuals of the variety in one or more constant and recognizable characteristics 

 capable of perpetuation through vegetative propagation. 



2 The name Marsh has been apphed to the best strain of the variety, because, as nearly as can be deter- 

 mined, it is similar in character of tree and fruit to the original Marsh introduction. 



