IN THE CITRUS INDUSTRY 17 



These pioneer experiments with seedling varieties were, 

 however, destined to be thrown into obscurity by the intro- 

 duction of an infinitely superior seedless variety, now known 

 the world over as the Washington navel. The common 

 orange is probably a native of the south of China, and 

 spread thence to India, Arabia and Syria. Europe first 

 became familiar with it in the fifteenth century. At present 

 there are eighty more or less distinct varieties of oranges, 

 but all of these are derived from the sweet and bitter 

 oranges of China.^ 



Our first description of navel oranges was written in the 

 seventeenth century. But it is not from the navel varieties 

 of Europe that the Washington navel is derived. At an 

 early date in Brazil's history oranges were transplanted 

 thither from Portugal. According to information gathered 

 by an expedition sent to Brazil in 19 13 by the United States 

 Department of Agriculture there is a tradition among the 

 Portuguese orange growers of Bahia, Brazil, that about 

 1820 a bud sport appeared on the seedless variety known 

 locally as the laranja selecta. The sport was found to be 

 seedless, of unusual size and of superior quality. A grower 

 at Bahia propagated buds from this sport and developed 

 a variety known locally as the laranja selecta de umbigo 

 and internationally as the "Bahia."" 



In 1869 the attention of William Saunders, superintend- 

 ent of the propagating gardens at Washington, D. C, was 

 directed to the existence of this superior variety of orange 

 at Bahia. Immediately he sent to Bahia and procured 

 twelve newly budded trees. These he established in the 

 grounds at Washington and set about propagating other 

 trees for distribution by means of buds from the original 

 importation. 



2 The Packer: "The Orange Historically," May 14, 1910. 

 * Shamel : "The Washington Navel Orange," in Riverside Enter- 

 prise, May 20, 1915. 



