The Pineapple. 385 
at the East required more than a car-load or two a year so far. 
Those who wish persimmons at all seem to prefer the smaller 
but more piquant Virginia species. 
THE PINEAPPLE. 
Casual experiments with the pineapple in the open air in 
this State have been made for a number of years, the fruit be- 
ing occasionally produced. Most has been accomplished by 
Mr. J. B. Rapp, of Colegrove, Los Angeles County. Mr. 
Rapp’s place is in the Cahuenga Valley, and in that part of the 
valley which is famed as frostless, where even beans and toma- 
toes survive winter temperatures. Mr. Rapp set out his first 
twenty-five plants in 1891, and a number of his neighbors also 
set out groups of plants, but two years finished up all but his. 
In 1893 the first of his plants fruited, but they did not seem to 
take kindly to the situation at first. They grew very slowly and 
the first fruit only weighed half a pound. After setting out his 
own acclimated plants, they have done better each year, and 
the fruit which Mr. Rapp has sold recently has weighed from 
two to four pounds each. If the strongest offsets or suckers are 
planted they bear inside of a year, and Mr. Rapp is endeavoring 
to have his fruit set from May to November, as the fruit setting 
at other times in the year is usually undersized on account of 
the slow growth during the winter and early spring. It seems 
probable that the pineapple resents the dry air of our summer 
as well as the lack of winter heat, and a lath covering and sum- 
mer spraying may be desirable. It is very doubtful whether the 
fruit can be profitably grown in this State on a commercial 
scale. 
The pineapple thrives best on a fine sandy loam, but will 
grow well on many soils if well drained and cultivated. The 
plants can be set three by three or four by five feet, so as to 
allow cultivation both ways while the plants are voung. Plants 
are secured from “suckers,” which come from the root, from 
“slips,” which grow on the stem just below the “apple,” and 
from “crowns,” or the tufts of leaves at the top of the fruit. 
Suckers are said to bear in one year, and slips and crowns in 
two years. Strong suckers are best for planting, and they 
should be set out early in the spring as soon as the danger of 
cold weather is over. 
THE POMEGRANATE. 
This fruit “Funica granatum), famed in literature and art, is 
grown in various parts of the State, and certain amounts are 
profitably sold. The shrub or low tree, in good soil, will 
reach the height of twenty feet. It is a hardy plant, easy of 
propagation from seed or cutting. The beauty of the tree, not 
