FRUIT CULTURE IN THE ALPS MARITIME. 927 



by hand. There the crop is annual, the harvest being iu November 

 and December, while iu Nice and surrounding country the harvest is 

 biennial. Here the blossom or flower comes iu April or May, and the 

 first fruit, consisting of the smaller and inferior, is gathered iu Novem- 

 ber and December, the better^n January and February and March, 

 while the best (for oil) is the last, in April and May. It produces the 

 best oil when it ripens slowly, and in some exceptionally good years the 

 harvest is continued into June and even July. The tree then recuper- 

 ates until the following spring, when it flowers a^ain. An olive tree, 

 even here, would bear a crop each year if so permitted, but the " whip- 

 ping" necessary to gather in the fruit destroys the blossoms, which do 

 not come again until the next spring. 



HOW THE TREES ARE PLANTED. 



At what distance apart are the trees planted ; how many to the acre ? 



From 10 to 15 yards each way. The larger trees require larger space 

 and the larger the space allowed the larger the trees produced. The 

 trees need sun and air. and if crowded it will be to their detriment. 

 This would permit, if I have figured aright, forty to fifty trees to 1 acre. 

 But they do not calculate by the acre, for the trees are planted on the 

 hill-side, usually on made terraces impossible to plow, cultivated with 

 the spade, and it isdifScult to get au acre of olive trees together. In 

 poorer soil and on the hill-side the frees may be a lesser distance apart, 

 even reducing it 6 to 8 yards. 



OLIVE YIELD. 



What is the average yield of mature trees in fruit; in oil ; and how 

 much or in what proportion does the fruit produce the oil 1 



The difference between olive trees in their product is as great as be- 

 tween apple trees. But the average production, per tree, biennially, 

 may be stated thus : In fruit, from 60 to 120 liters ; in oil, from 8 to 12 

 kilograms, or 12 to 18 liters. 



The production of oil from the fruit is about as one to five; i. e., some 

 5 liters of the best olives will make 1 liter of oil ; though in many cases 

 it takes 7 liters of olives to make 1 liter of oil. 



PICKLED OLIVES. 



The prepared olives of commerce come from Marseilles and farther 

 around the coast. They are outside my district, and my information 

 might not be reliable, therefore, I shall not attempt it. Olives for the 

 table at Nice are usually eaten ripe and fresh. Sometimes they maybe 

 pickled green and 'preserved iu salt or brine, but this is all for the local 

 use and does not enter into commerce. 



OLIVES FOR OIL. 

 "When and how are they picked, and what is the process of extract- 

 ing the oil ? 



