578 FRUIT CULTURE IN FOREIGN COUNTRIES. 



described by botanists ; but seventy-sevcu kinds are particularly known 

 and divided into thirty-two of sour and forty-five of sweet oranges. Of 

 the latter only the ten species mentioned in my report of 1874 are culti- 

 vated for their commercial importance, in this province; of these the 

 most valuable is the common, middle-sized orange, heavy in hand, of 

 very fine peel, aromatic smell, and containing a great amount of juice 

 of great sweetness, spiced by an agreeable dash of sourness. Although 

 there is also another very sweet orange called Imperial and Orange of 

 the Queen, this early orange makes' its appearance in the market at 

 the end of October, when the same is exported to France and Algiers, 

 and consumed in Spain. None of these oranges are exported to the 

 United States nor to England, where they are not liked, for they are of 

 too great a sweetness, without tartness, and found unpalatable, there- 

 fore of a limited cultivation. 



The best results in this country are yielded by the open orchards in 

 the districts of Alcira, Carcajente, and of Gandia, in the valley between 

 the city of Valencia and the mountain chain which limits the province, 

 facing the south and being sheltered from the north winds by said 

 mountains; these orchards produce the finest and sweetest oranges, 

 enjoying higher prices in the market than those of the district of Cas- 

 tellon, less shielded from the north winds, and producing oranges of a 

 more inferior quality and prices ; they also ripen later than the first. 



/Situation. — Some years ago a Frenchman founded in this port an 

 important agricultural establishment called " La Malvarosa," situated 

 about half a mile from the very sea-shore where he cultivates with ex- 

 cellent results oranges on a large scale. Notwithstanding, on the road 

 from this port (Grao) to Valencia, distant about 3 miles, and in the 

 public gardens in and round this city, they grow very poorly, yielding 

 only a few small and sour fruits, while in the botanical garden on the 

 west end of the city they grow with satisfactory results. 



The soil of this locality is very sandy, and the subsoil may want cer- 

 tain] elements and proper consistency in order to form a soil able to 

 produce oranges in perfection. Before risking his capital the owner of 

 the land should examine its topographic situation, analyze the surface 

 and subsoil to the depth of 1^ to 2 meters, and consider the possibility 

 of irrigation. 



The best soil of Alcira, Carcajente, and Gandia analyzed, ,nave : 

 Sand (silicate), 70 per cent. ; clay, 10 per cent., and salt of lime (car- 

 bonate), 20 per cent. 



Cultivation. — Excepting some rare cases, such ground is not eulti- 

 vated, and when so, then the distance between the rows of the trees, 

 which generally is from 3 to 5 meters, must be from 6 to 7 meters, and 

 consequently at the expense of a certain number of trees planted less 

 in a given space. 



An intelligent orange-grower never cultivates the ground between the 

 trees, as such would make difficult the free access of ailing the same, and 

 tilling of the ground round each tree in a space of 3 meters in diame 



