a large number. There will be found also considerable variation in 

 the time of ripening, some trees yielding early and others late ripening 

 fruits. Such an orchard cannot'be as profitable as one which produces 

 fruit of uniform character, and so the practice of setting out trees of 

 certain varieties having characteristics of a desirable nature is now 

 fast coming into general use in this country. These favourite varieties 

 may have originated in the first place from seedling trees which have 

 been recognized as possessing certain advantages over others and then 

 set aside for purposes of propagation. They are generally given a 

 distinctive name. The Jaffa and Malta Blood oranges betray their 

 origin in their names, and in vSouth Africa we have our " Clanwilliam " 

 seedling. 



It is in connection with the propagation of varieties of citrus fruits 

 that we will now deal. 



The -preparation of "seed beds" is the first operation, and this 

 is undertaken by selecting a position sheltered as far as possil)le from 

 high winds and not liable to flooding ; the soil must be suitable and a 

 supply of water easily obtainable. Soil such as is usually termed 

 " good garden soil " answers well ; those in which gravel or clay pre- 

 dominate are the least suitable. It should be broken up deeply either 

 by trenching — which is perhaps the best method to adopt in small 

 undertakings where only a few tliousand trees are to be grown — or by 

 ploughing and subsoiling, disking and thoroughly harrowing until a 

 fine surface is reached in those cases where work on an extensive scale 

 is contemplated. During this operation such fertilizers as are 

 considered necessary should be applied. 



Generally speaking seed beds of four feet in width are regarded 

 as being about right. They are then easily kept free from weeds 

 without trampling on the land — any convenient length may be adopted. 



Selection of Seeds. — No matter what kind of seed is to be planted 

 there are two points to be observed, the first is that it must be taken 

 from fruit which is thoroughly ripe, and the second that such fruit 

 should have come from perfectly sound and healthy trees — the latter 

 is one of those matters which is frequently lost sight of. 



The seed itself should be selected on account of its fullness and 

 plumpness, and light undeveloped specimens rejected. There are 

 various methods of extracting seed from the fruit. Left to nature the 

 fruit drops from the tree, rots, and the seeds get scattered about — 

 some may take root, the majority are lost. 



Trifoliata oranges, containing little pulp, may be simply opened 

 and the seeds washed. Rough lemons and oranges may be allowed to 

 rot in barrels and the seeds washed out through a sieve. They may 

 also be cut up when ripe into quarters and halves (though some seed is 

 lost this way), placed in a barrel, and covered with water; in a few 

 days the seed may be washed out almost as easily as if the fruit were 

 rotten. 



Whatever method has been adopted to secure it the seed itself 

 should, after selection, be placed in damp (not wet) sand if not for 

 immediate use. It may either be stratified or mixed up indiscrimi- 

 nately. After a few days it is ready to plant. The method of drying 

 seeds of citrus fruits customary in some countries does not seem to 

 answer well in South Africa ; the object sought here is to keep it moist 

 until it is in the ground. The seed will not keep long in this way 

 without attempts to germinate, so that for transmittal to any oversea 



