July, 1910.1 



27 



Edible Products. 



the average consumer looks at the 

 texture ; if it looks coarse and has many 

 seeds it does not appeal even though the 

 flavour may be all that could be desired, 

 which is well illustrated in the russet 

 orange. It is well known among the 

 planters that a russet orange is sweeter 

 than a brighter one, but it must be 

 washed and polished in order to sell 

 well. 



Of grapefruit such varieties as the 

 Walters and Pernambuco are favourites 

 with the planters, because they are 

 large, round, juicy and of good flavour, 

 but the buyer will pay more for the 

 Silver cluster, because it is brighter and 

 silkier to look at, and the consumer will 

 usually take the Marsh seedless or some 

 variety in which he knows there are 

 fewer seeds even though the flavour may 

 not be as good as in the more seedy 

 varieties. 



The same holds good for oranges. The 

 best selling oranges are medium to large, 

 bright and smooth, with few or no seeds. 

 In Cuba we are proud of the fact that 

 we produce a better orange than the 

 California Navel, but that is all the 

 satisfaction we get out of it, the con- 

 sumer buys the Navel aud pays more 

 money for it every time, therefore those 

 who are in the bu.°iness for money had 

 better get close to the Navel standard 

 as soon as possible. That is in regard 

 to bright and seedless fruit. Flavour, 

 texture and juiciness ought to be better. 

 The Navel is a promising variety in 

 Cuba, although it is yet too early to 

 predict whether it will be extensively 

 planted or not. Most of the trees are 

 young yet, and it is a characteristic of 

 the Navel here that the fruit is large, 

 coarse and juiceless until the tree attains 

 the age of six years or more, although 

 that cau be overcome to some extent by 

 judicious fertilizing. 



While appearance, as stated, is one of 

 the main considerations, it is really the 

 time of ripeness that determines the 

 price. The best orange will be a slow 

 seller in a glutted market, while a 

 comparatively poor orange will bring a 

 good price when the supply is scant. As 

 the market for Cuban fruit is at present 

 in the United States, the aim is to pro- 

 duce a fruit that can be marketed before 

 and after the Florida crop — that is, from 

 March to October inclusive. Unfortun- 

 ately most of the oranges planted ripen 

 in the other four months, and as there 

 are no cold storage facilities the market 

 is over-supplied and the prices unsatis- 

 factory. The first remedy is the making 

 of new varieties, because such as are 

 recommended as very early in Florida, 

 like Booties Early, Early Oblong and 



Sheet Seville, are not very much earlier 

 here than in Florida. Neither are they 

 very late, like Harts Tardiff, Valencia 

 Late and Lambs Summer, late enough. 



Another remedy that naturally sug- 

 gests itself is to introduce the fruit into 

 the European markets where it would 

 probably compete successfully with the 

 present supply. Another way in which 

 the fruiting might be timed would be by 

 irrigation, and results from experi- 

 ments with that during the last few 

 years of extremely dry winters are very 

 promising. 



The soil would seem to be of minor 

 consideration in Cuba, judging from the 

 fact that groves are beine planted 

 wherever a man's fancy dictates. It is 

 apparent, however, on closer examin- 

 ation, that much of the land is utterly 

 unfit for citrus cultivation, and some of 

 the groves planted are not recognized 

 as good investments, partly on that 

 account. The soil requirements of citrus 

 trees, are very similar to those of most 

 other fruit trees. It may be sandy, 

 clayey or loamy, but if it is so sandy as 

 to let water and plant food leach through 

 readily, it is obviously not fit for citrus 

 trees. Neither is a stiff clay soil which 

 puddles and bakes after every rain. 

 Those are surface indications apparent 

 to any one. Where most of the mistakes 

 have been made and are being made is 

 in the sub-soil. It frequently happens 

 that land with a fairly good loam soil is 

 underlaid by a more or less hard, im- 

 pervious stratum, and if that is within 

 four to six feet of the surface it is wisest 

 not to plant an orange grove there. To 

 begin with, the trees may grow all right, 

 and in the first three to four years, with 

 moderate rainfall, there may be no un- 

 favourable indications, but in extremely 

 w et or dry seasons there is sure to be 

 trouble, and after the trees become 

 larger and the roots strike hard pan, 

 many a man wonders what the matter 

 is, and if he finds out he wishes he had 

 known before he planted. 



The soil water is of no less importance. 

 Good drainage is absolutely necessary. 

 A citrus tree may thrive well close to a 

 creek or a pool where the roots reach 

 into the water, but in soil that is 

 water-logged, that is where all the 

 space between the soil particles is filled 

 with water and the air excluded, 

 the roots soon die. The question is 

 often asked at what distance from the 

 water-table to the surface is it safe to 

 plant. That cannot be answered with- 

 out knowing the conditions. Six feet 

 may be safe on some soils, whereas ten 

 feet would not be enough on other soils. 

 A sudden flood caused by heavy rains ov 



