36 



Navels lie wants that variety of fruit, and would be grievously 

 disappointed if in a few years he found that some other kind of Navel 

 " just as good " had been supplied. 



4th. Roots. — Most nurserymen in South Africa are in the habit 

 of using the rough lemon as a stock on which to bud. All kinds of 

 oranges and lemons and some naartjes are budded on this stock. In 

 Natal exceptions are made in favour of the sweet seedling orange, 

 whilst in the Midlands of the Cape Province the pampelmoes is 

 frequently used. 



Why the Lemon Stock is Selected. 

 Primarily the lemon root is selected on account of its resistant 

 properties against the disease known as " collar rot," " root rot," 

 or " mal de goma." Secondly, on account of its suitability to different 

 soils, and perhaps, lastly, on account of the fact that it is easier to 

 " work " than any other stock. It may be stated broadly that the 

 lemon stock is perhaps the best general stock to use. This is certainly 

 the case in the dry lightish sandy loams and granitic soils of the 

 Transvaal. As a stock, however, it is not ideal, in that for the first 

 ten years in the life of a tree grown upon it there is a tendency on 

 the part of the fruit borne to inherit a slightly " lemony " taste, also 

 for the skin to be a little coarse and the shape of the fruit to be 

 somewhat elongated. Later on in life the orange trees worked on 

 lemon stock appear to overcome these tendencies, and it is difficult to 

 tell the difference between the fruit grown thereon and that produced 

 on the orange budded on sweet orange roots. During early life, how- 

 ever, these faults do occur, and the ideal citrus stock or root has yet 

 to be found. 



The Sweet Orange Root. 



Natal growers claim that the sweet orange root suits their 

 conditions best in that it produces fruit of first-class quality from the 

 very beginning and it is less subject to collar rot. 



As a rule one may say that different classes of soil, taken in 

 conjunction with climatic conditions, require different roots ; for 

 instance, sweet orange or pampelmoes roots are useless in the Trans- 

 vaal, whilst Natal soils and climates suit them. Deep and somewhat 

 heavy soils carry the latter better than any other, whilst only very 

 occasionally can one find a soil suitable for the " bitter Seville " root; 

 yet this latter is largely used in California and Australia. 



Another Stock. 



Still another stock is the Citrus tnfoliata, and this has been 

 experimented with on the Government citrus orchard at Warmbaths. 

 The results are so far satisfactory, but not sufficiently so to justify its 

 recommendation as a stock for general use. There is a marked tendency 

 towards early development, in that trees 30 months from the bud have 

 carried crops of 100 and more fruits. Such phenomenal bearing 

 interferes with the proper growth of the tree, and, consequently, those 

 which have been allowed to bear are somewhat small. Enough has 

 been said to enable the prospective planter to gain a good idea of the 

 right kind of tree to plant. 



There is a further piece of advice to be given, and that is if you 

 wish to secure a good lot of trees of any special kind of uniform size 



