ON TROPICAL FRUITS 



lemon, or vice versa, however widely the progeny 

 may differ from the parent form within the limits 

 of specific variation. 



Attempts to Produce a Hardy Orange 



My attempts to cultivate the citrus fruits date 

 back about a quarter of a century. 



I pursued the investigation actively for a time, 

 securing everything that was to be had, including 

 the small Japanese variety called the Kumquat, 

 Kimkan, or Kinkit, Citrus Japonica. This is a 

 small, lime-like fruit produced in amazing abun- 

 dance, having acid flesh but a skin with sweet, 

 pleasant, orange flavor. 



Wild oranges were sent me also from Central 

 Africa, Australia, and South America, and the best 

 cultivated varieties from Burmah, Ceylon, and 

 various less distant regions. 



The object primarily in view was the produc- 

 tion of a hardy orange; one that would grow in 

 northern California, and in regions of the eastern 

 United States well to the north of the present 

 limits of growth of this tender fruit. 



My experiments were promising at the outset, 

 and I soon had a variety of hybrid seedlings. 



But there came a series of cold winters that 

 destroyed the entire citrus orchard, and after one 

 or two other tentative efforts, I was compelled to 

 admit that my farms are located in a region un- 



[275] 



