72 



MAINE AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION. 



lines. Our native nuts should be improved. Nuts are subject 

 to as many and great varietal changes as apples and are doubt- 

 less as susceptible of improvement. 



THE CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF NUTS. 



It is believed that with the larger supply, the improved quality 

 and the lower prices that would in time follow an increased 

 demand, our American dietaries would make an important gain 

 at a small cost. It is with a view of calling more general atten- 

 tion to this subject that the analyses given on the following pages 

 are presented. Those analyses to which the fuel value is added 

 were made at this Station. The others were compiled from 

 various sources, as indicated in the foot-notes. 



Almond. {Amygdalus communis) . 



Of the almonds consumed in the United States, by far the 

 larger part is supplied by France, Italy and Spain. Repeated 

 attempts have been made to grow the almond in this country, but 

 nearly all have resulted in failure. California, however, seems to 

 offer a promising field for this culture, and the crop of that state 

 for 1 89 1 was estimated at 1,000,000 pounds. As the imports for 

 the same year amounted to about y}^ million pounds, valued at 

 nearly $1,000,000 it may be safely predicted that our production 

 will be largely increased. 



Below is given the average of the analyses of eleven varieties 

 of California almonds, and also four analyses of European 

 almonds. 



COMPOSITION OP THE ALMOND. 





6 



in 



5 

 > 



.3 

 'S 



p 



b 



® 



i 



Edible portion : 





4.8 

 6.0 



1.7 



21.0 

 ■23.5 



7.3 



54.9 

 53.0 



19.3 



17.3 

 14.4 



6.2 



■2.0 







3.1 



As purcliased: 



C64.8 



.7 







a. California Experimeot Station Report, 1895-96; 1896-97, p. 151. 

 6. Koenlg: Nahrung9-und Genusmittel, I, p. 608. 



c. As the proportion of shell to kernel for the dry nut was not given, we have 

 used here the proportion found in nuts purchased in the Maine market. 



