PROCEEDINGS OF THIRTY-SIXTH FRUIT-GROWERS ' CONVENTION. 73 



is now pushing' to the front and contributing its share to the wealth 

 and culture of our great commonwealth. No other class of producers 

 is so active in seeking a better knowledge of horticulture than are the 

 citrus growers of northern California. The appropriation of $16,000 

 for the purpose of investigating plant diseases in northern California, 

 is equivalent to establishing in this section of the State an experiment 

 station. The benefit of this appropriation is beginning to be felt in the 

 citrus growing interests. 



The burden of this paper is to try to answer the question, why a 

 larger yield to the acre is not produced. While in quantity our prod- 

 ucts do not equal those of the southland, there is nothing to discourage 

 any earnest grower. In quality, both of flavor and sugar content, there 

 is nothing more to be desired. Northern California oranges suit the 

 palate of the most fastidious orange consumer in the East, and that, 

 too, many weeks before our fellow growers in the south can offer their 

 products. 



In the first place we have the earliest product in the State. Then 

 next, in the absence of frosts and high winds, we have much to be thank- 

 ful for. The absence of fogs saves us from many insect pests. The foli- 

 age of our groves always presents a brighter green and a cleaner face 

 than is found even in the more southern belt of our section, an indica- 

 tion of health and vigor. The abundance of water and the system of 

 irrigation contribute largely to the natural advantages of fruit grow- 

 ing, especially the citrus. These are some of the advantages the north 

 enjoys over the south. 



The one thing now is how to increase the quantity of the product per 

 acre. It must be remembered that our trees are yet young. With few 

 exceptions ten or fifteen years is the age of the productive orchard. 



The following statement may be taken as a reasonable estimate of the 

 returns from a well cultivated tract in the citrus belt of the north: 

 The third year, per acre, 10 boxes; the fourth, 50; the fifth, 100; the 

 sixth, 175; the seventh, 225; the eighth, 275; the ninth, 300; and the 

 tenth, 325. This, though not so large as is often reported in the south, 

 is a good showing and is realized in Tulare and in Butte counties as 

 well as in some groves between these two places. Not many orchards 

 during the first ten years produce this amount per acre ; but it is pos- 

 sible to do this, and after this period of growing with the application of 

 the best methods known, these trees may be made to increase this yield 

 almost indefinitely, and in proportion as this culture is wise, the quality 

 may reach as high as 90 per cent of fancy. 



How can this be' accomplished? First, before planting, the character 

 of the soil should be examined. If an impervious soil is found at the 

 depth of two feet and it is so thick that dynamite will not break through 

 it. the orange tree will be able to do w^ork not more than ten years. 

 If the soil is deep and the drainage is good, it is safe to plant the trees. 

 But this planting must be w T ell and wdsely done. The Whitney ranches 

 of Placer County have made their owner prosperous mainly on the 

 method of planting. The soil is of a reddish gravel and looks not very 

 inviting, but the orange tree seems to take to it. The hole is dug some 

 six feet in diameter, and as many feet deep. Then it is widened by 

 filling into the bottom the surface soils about the hole. The tree is 

 planted and then a scraper is used to bring about the trees the surface 

 soil near at hand. 



