143 



Edible Products. 



THE AVOCADO: A SALAD FRUIT PROM THE TROPICS. 

 Part II. - Conclusion. 



CULTURE. 



The avocado was in all probability planted and more or less eared for by the 

 natives of America before the advent of the Spaniards, for although Oviedo in his 

 first account of the fruit in the northern part of Colombia says that the Indians 

 apply no Avork to these trees, he later adds that "in the province of Nicaragua they 

 are placed by hand in the gardens of the Indians and cultivated by them." Their 

 culture, however, must have been of the crudest sort, limited probably to the mere 

 planting of the seeds, perhaps of the more desirable kinds, near their houses and 

 affording the young plants some slight protection. Nothing that corresponds to 

 culture in the modern sense was applied to the avocado until the fruit was taken 

 hold of by the planters of Florida. 



PROPAGATION BY SEED. 



The avocado tree is propagated almost entirely by means of seed, the unifor- 

 mity of the fruit in many localities indicating that certain forms, at least, come true. 

 Like most tropical fruits, the seed of the avocado, if dried, will not retain its vitality 

 for any length of time, and should be planted as soon as possible after it is removed 

 from the fruit. If carefully packed so as to conserve the moisture, the seeds can, 

 however, be kept alive long enough to permit of their being sent to any part of the 

 world. A very successful method of accomplishing this is to pack them in slightly 

 moistened charcoal placed in a closed receptacle, such as a wooden or tin box. It is 

 recommended that the avocado be planted where it is to remain, as the long tap root 

 makes it difficult to transplant. If transplanted when small this will, however, be 

 no great obstacle. The spacing will depend largely on the variety and the location, 

 but should be from 15 to 30 feet. 



ASEXUAL PROPAGATION. 



The avocado is ordinarily considered a refractory subject for grafting or 

 budding. Grafting is, indeed, seldom practised, but the practicality of budding is 

 now fully demonstrated. Rolfs gives an account of the methods practised in Florida, 

 where the matter has received the most attention. The chief difficulty there is in 

 causing the buds to start after they have taken. It may be that this difficulty is on 

 account of unfavourable climatic conditions, for at the Hope Gardens, in Jamaica, 

 Mr. T. J. Harris, under the direction of Hon. William Fawcett, has budded the avo- 

 cados in large numbers with the loss of hardly a bud. The operation is successfully 

 performed, not only by experienced hands, but students who are budding for the 

 first time are quite as successful with the avocado as with the orange or other plants 

 which are usually considered easy to bud. Mr. Harris's method is practically the 

 same as that recommended by Rolfs. The only difference that could seem of any 

 importance is that the bud is simply tied with raffia instead of being wrapped with 

 waxed cloth. Mr. George W. Oliver, of the United States Department of Agriculture, 

 states that the avocado is by no means a difficult plant to bud. A healthy stock is 

 considered by him the prime essential, and this is not often secured in the green- 

 houses of the North. If the method of pa tch- budding with old wood that has been 

 found successful Avith the mango can be used with the avocado it would greatly 

 facilitate the introduction of desirable varieties. 



SOIL. 



Like a great many tropical plants, the avocado is less exacting in regard to 

 soil than it is with respect to climatic and other conditions. The drainage and the 

 amount of protection that the soil receives from the heat of the sun are probably the 



