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  AMERICAN 
  HOMES 
  AND 
  GARDENS 
  

  

  March, 
  1907 
  

  

  Life 
  on 
  An 
  Olive 
  Ranch 
  

  

  By 
  Charles 
  F. 
  Holder 
  

  

  HEN 
  the 
  wild 
  olive 
  was 
  discovered 
  

   and 
  under 
  cultivation 
  turned 
  into 
  the 
  

   olive 
  of 
  to-day 
  is 
  not 
  known. 
  Its 
  his- 
  

   tory 
  in 
  this 
  country 
  is 
  fairly 
  well 
  

   known. 
  In 
  the 
  seventeenth 
  century 
  

   it 
  found 
  its 
  way 
  from 
  Europe 
  to 
  

   Mexico. 
  When 
  the 
  splendid 
  chain 
  

   of 
  Missions 
  was 
  begun 
  on 
  the 
  Pacific 
  

   coast 
  the 
  padres 
  planted 
  the 
  olive. 
  

   It 
  found 
  a 
  home 
  in 
  congenial 
  sur- 
  

   roundings 
  and 
  groves 
  of 
  olive 
  trees 
  sprang 
  up 
  from 
  San 
  Diego 
  

   to 
  Santa 
  Barbara, 
  many 
  of 
  the 
  old 
  trees 
  still 
  standing 
  about 
  

   the 
  ruins 
  of 
  the 
  old 
  buildings. 
  They 
  seem 
  to 
  blend 
  well 
  with 
  

   long 
  corridors, 
  tiled 
  roofs, 
  and 
  the 
  rich 
  tones 
  of 
  adobe 
  in 
  

   the 
  shadow 
  of 
  the 
  cross. 
  The 
  exact 
  date 
  of 
  the 
  coming 
  of 
  

   the 
  olive 
  to 
  Southern 
  California 
  was 
  doubtless 
  1769, 
  when 
  an 
  

   expedition 
  sailed 
  from 
  San 
  Bias, 
  Mexico, 
  and 
  one 
  Jose 
  de 
  

   Galvez 
  saw 
  that 
  the 
  vessel 
  was 
  provided 
  with 
  "seeds 
  and 
  

   plants." 
  The 
  olive 
  was 
  first 
  planted 
  at 
  San 
  Diego 
  Mission 
  

   from 
  the 
  Galvez 
  supply, 
  and 
  from 
  these 
  grew 
  the 
  tall, 
  wil- 
  

   lowy, 
  graceful 
  trees 
  known 
  as 
  the 
  Mission 
  olive. 
  

  

  Little 
  wonder 
  that 
  men 
  and 
  women 
  in 
  Southern 
  California 
  

   are 
  fascinated 
  with 
  the 
  olive. 
  It 
  has 
  an 
  aroma 
  of 
  Araby 
  the 
  

   blest, 
  of 
  the 
  Orient, 
  and 
  there 
  is 
  an 
  estheticism 
  about 
  it 
  that 
  

   lures 
  men 
  on 
  to 
  cultivate 
  it, 
  whether 
  there 
  is 
  profit 
  in 
  it 
  or 
  not. 
  

   Your 
  true 
  poet 
  scorns 
  return 
  in 
  lucre, 
  so 
  I 
  fancy 
  do 
  some 
  olive 
  

   men 
  I 
  have 
  met. 
  

  

  One 
  of 
  the 
  padres 
  at 
  the 
  Mission 
  of 
  Santa 
  Barbara 
  was 
  

   showing 
  me 
  the 
  olive 
  grove 
  one 
  day 
  — 
  a 
  genial, 
  kindly 
  man, 
  

   with 
  a 
  fund 
  of 
  wit 
  — 
  and 
  as 
  we 
  strolled 
  up 
  to 
  the 
  Mission 
  

   and 
  parted 
  he 
  said 
  that 
  "all 
  the 
  olive 
  men 
  who 
  were 
  success- 
  

  

  ful 
  were 
  artists. 
  Their 
  homes 
  were 
  beautiful, 
  they 
  had 
  the 
  

   poetic 
  nature," 
  and 
  then 
  he 
  told 
  me 
  of 
  "Elwood," 
  and 
  the 
  

   day 
  following 
  I 
  rode 
  out 
  of 
  the 
  old 
  Spanish 
  town, 
  by 
  its 
  lofty 
  

   mountains 
  the 
  Sierra 
  Santa 
  Ynez 
  that 
  stand 
  smiling 
  at 
  the 
  

   sea, 
  and 
  found 
  my 
  way 
  out 
  into 
  the 
  country, 
  in 
  search 
  of 
  the 
  

   most 
  beautiful 
  olive 
  grove 
  in 
  California, 
  where 
  the 
  padre 
  

   told 
  me 
  olive 
  oil 
  was 
  made, 
  each 
  drop 
  of 
  which 
  was 
  like 
  

   amber, 
  the 
  nectar 
  of 
  the 
  gods. 
  

  

  I 
  rode 
  on 
  up 
  near 
  the 
  mountains, 
  along 
  fine 
  groves 
  of 
  trees, 
  

   the 
  blue 
  ocean 
  always 
  in 
  sight, 
  the 
  islands 
  of 
  Santa 
  Cruz 
  and 
  

   Santa 
  Rosa 
  resting 
  in 
  the 
  water 
  off 
  shore, 
  and 
  came 
  out 
  at 
  

   Elwood 
  with 
  its 
  splendid 
  groups 
  of 
  eucalpytus 
  and 
  oak 
  backed 
  

   up 
  against 
  the 
  hills. 
  In 
  all 
  probability 
  this 
  is 
  the 
  most 
  pic- 
  

   turesque 
  and 
  attractive 
  olive 
  orchard 
  in 
  Southern 
  California 
  

   — 
  certainly 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  oldest 
  of 
  the 
  modern 
  ones, 
  dating 
  back 
  

   as 
  it 
  does 
  to 
  1870. 
  The 
  orchard 
  is 
  the 
  result 
  of 
  much 
  

   experimenting. 
  It 
  was 
  found 
  that 
  olives 
  could 
  be 
  raised 
  more 
  

   quickly 
  from 
  clippings 
  than 
  from 
  seeds. 
  In 
  four 
  years 
  Mr. 
  

   Elwood 
  Cooper 
  produced 
  a 
  crop 
  from 
  his 
  clippings. 
  To 
  

   plant 
  seeds 
  would 
  have 
  taken 
  twice 
  as 
  long. 
  

  

  The 
  olive 
  seems 
  to 
  thrive 
  here 
  in 
  any 
  soil 
  as 
  the 
  big 
  ranch 
  

   has 
  all 
  kinds 
  and 
  conditions 
  from 
  heavy 
  adobe 
  to 
  sand, 
  the 
  

   higher 
  elevations 
  evidently 
  being 
  the 
  most 
  favorable, 
  but 
  not 
  

   over 
  3,000 
  feet. 
  The 
  trees 
  which 
  form 
  the 
  splendid 
  grove 
  of 
  

   Mr. 
  Cooper 
  came 
  from 
  the 
  old 
  Missions 
  of 
  San 
  Diego, 
  San 
  

   Fernando 
  and 
  Santa 
  Barbara, 
  and 
  the 
  view 
  up 
  the 
  long 
  street 
  

   or 
  avenue 
  in 
  his 
  orchard, 
  lined 
  on 
  either 
  side 
  by 
  hundreds 
  of 
  

   olive 
  trees, 
  is 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  interesting 
  things 
  in 
  California. 
  

  

  It 
  has 
  been 
  found 
  here 
  that 
  a 
  regular, 
  even 
  temperature 
  

   is 
  best 
  suited 
  to 
  the 
  olive, 
  and 
  the 
  situation 
  of 
  Santa 
  Barbara 
  

   with 
  its 
  splendid 
  climate, 
  about 
  the 
  same 
  the 
  year 
  around, 
  is 
  

  

  A 
  View 
  of 
  a 
  California 
  Olive 
  Ranch 
  

  

  