S26 
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AGRlcuLttJEigf. [i^^ov. i, mi. 
gfrowp, grown in India, Ceylon, Santh China, the Bast 
Indies, and Australasia, might be tried. The Anslra- 
lians have for two or three years been sendins oranges 
to England. They are mostly of the L^ortiig.il variety 
and have reddish skins. This is, of course, rather an 
attraction, and so they sell at about two or three 
tiiiies the prices of tine ordinnry ones. Considering 
that it. takes three times Ion? for ships to reach 
Engli-nd from Australia thsn from Egypt, this should 
greatly encourage growers here. 
Bfionging to the Portugal group there are many 
kinds which ought tobs grown here with grea/t snccess. 
Already Egypt has successfully reprodaoed the blood 
orange from seed — a feat apparently as yet unaccom- 
plished in any other country. Other varieties have 
bern grown well in private gardens. There ahonid, 
thsrefore, be a great extension in ihe growth of the 
seedless, egg-ahaped orang«! of Malts, the Jaffa seedless 
varieties, and the '■ Bisry," which is gi-own from seed, 
and is one of the best of Jaffa oranges. All of these 
are too nrell-known to need description. The great 
advantage of this class of orange is it<< keeping quali- 
ties. With careful packinqr it will keep for two or 
even three months, i'he British Chamber of Com- 
merce in Egypt reports that the egg orange has been 
introduced into Plorida. and has been so successfully 
cultivated that it is probably now more extensively 
planted there than »ny other kind. In Malta there is 
Slid to be also a unique orange of the same group 
which is never sour from beginning to end bnt sweet 
and juicy. It is there called " Jjoomi Larenj." Such 
an orsnge should be well worth cultivating and should 
always command a good price. Another orange sold 
in Bombay, the " Musserabi,'' is brought froM Poona, 
and it ia said that it can be kept on the trees for a whole 
year without deteriorating. The Chamber of Commerce 
rightly complain that the " Leimoun Hindi," often 
exhibited at ourhorticnltural shows, is not properly 
cultivated. To obtain a really delicious fruit the 
trees must have, as nearly as passible, conditions of 
B-)il, heat, and humidity similar to what they have ia 
i;he island of Labuan »ud at Amoy where tliey grow 
to perfection. 
As regards the treatment of the orange tree, 
practical experience combined with logical reasoning 
fs <-f far more value than theoretical book information. 
Nevertheless, it is both interesting and very useful 
to read of results of others' experiments and work, 
and to profit by their successes and failures. The 
number of trees per feddan should be, to obtain the 
best results, one hundred. At Jaffa, however, as 
many as six hundred per feddan are generally to be 
found. Abundance of irrigation water is the sine qua 
non of a plantation and the watering should be done 
continually. The fruit consisting of over 90 per 
cent water, it will be understood that without a suffi- 
cient supply the tree cannot possibly do well. The 
average of several analyses of the orange shews that 
there are four parts each of nitrogen, phosphoric acid 
and potash per thousand. Calculating from this, 
1,000 kilos of oranges will contain 4 kilos of each of 
theee three constituents. Growers generally fail to 
supply this amount again to the soil, and, consequently, 
it gets Weaker and the produce of oranges less. To 
obtain theoretically this amount of each, the trees 
supplying the thousand kilos of fruit should receive 
2^, 2J and i kilos respectively of nitrate soda, super- 
phosphate of lime, and sulphate of potash in return, 
besides an additional quantity for their growth of 
wood and leaves. Manure is one of the ftbsolnte 
necessities of the orange tree if it is to produce well. 
Every piastre properly expended in well manuring the 
trees brings much over a piastre's worth of extra 
f mit, eiiher numerically or in size, besides giving a 
better flavour to it. The soil of Egypt is admirably 
suited to the physical requirements of the orange tree. 
A perfect soil is a mixture of sand and a little clay 
and lime. The lightness of this soil allows the water 
to sink in easily and the roots to spread out well. 
Now, if thsre be added to this fooA food for th« tret, 
it can, 9f coura«, do well. Tht Bill mad.like the "loeis" 
of China, is a typical fertiliser. Bnt growers must 
remember that where the deposit is thin or absent' 
cultivation cannot be carried on profitablv without, 
abundance of artificial manures. Speaking in a 
simple way, nitrogen produces wood and leaves phos- 
phates pi-odnce fecundity, and potash produces sweet- 
ness and flivour. Lime is absolutely necessary for 
the orange tree, which absorbs great quantities of it. 
If not present in the soil it sl ould be supplied in 
the form of Gypsum. If too abundant the sap will 
not run freely hut J kilo of sulphate of iron for 
each thousand kilos of fruit produced will correct it. 
The Gypsum and iron sulphate also help to fix the 
fruit on the tree. Seeds should not be treated with 
mineral fertilisers but should be given plenty of organic 
food. Stable refuse is excellent for the seed beds, 
but it should be passed through a very course sieve and 
the big atriwa taken away. Most people in Egypt 
mike the mistake of digging holes round their trees 
and filling these with water. Instead of a hole, in the 
middle ef which stands the tree, a ring should be 
m.ide 80 that neither fertiliser nor water will toUoh 
the truijk- One very successful orchard owner bores 
holes in the ground in a circle round the tree varying 
in the siZ j, depth and distance from the stem accord- 
ing to the size of trees. These he frequently fills with 
liquid fertiliser so that the roots thus receive a greater 
benefit and the tree can better keep its upright posi- 
tion. The best time to apply the raannrei ia abont a 
month after the gathering of the crop and again 
when the fruit is abont half-grown. Thus the first part 
will strengthen the tree for producing the fruit and 
the other part will supply the nomishment for the 
fruit when growing. 
Lemons, limes, citrons, and other trees of the Citrus 
group require almost the same treatment. The lemon 
and citron need more nitrogenous manures than the 
orange to the extent of about 12 par cent, and the 
other sour fruits of about 10 per cent Lemons in this 
country are smaller but more juicy than others, and 
limes are very inferior. Both would repay generously 
more liberal feeding, A few only of the best and most 
suitable kinds of oranges have been named. There 
are many others which might be grown to advantage. 
Young trees and picked seeds can generally be obtained 
from the nurserymen and horticulturists in the differ- 
ent countries. Those who are anxious to obtain them 
would, no doubt, be able to get information and he'p 
from their respective Consuls. It is to be hoped that 
orange-growers will tsko " Excelsior " as their motto, 
and that we shall soon see a great development in 
the orange trade. With a little experimenting and 
oare, many new varieties should be well "established 
and both quality and quantity improved. Those wjio 
prefer to keep to their present variety should at any 
rate spend a little on improving it. One thing ia 
certain, any expenditure the growers may make in 
doing either or both will prove a good investment, — 
Egyptian Gazette, September 2, 
THE DIFFICULTIES OF SBLANGOK 
COCONUT PLANTERS. 
Mr, Tanner, of the Kempsey Estate, Knal«i 
Selan^or, has again been visited by elephants. 
They damaged over six acres of .young coconui trees. 
Two Malays followed the herd and state that they 
wounded some of them, Tliis is the third time 
that Mr. Tanner's Estate has been similarly 
patronised. 
It is reported that the Inspectorship bf 'Coe6« 
nut Trees ia to be a Federal appointment. 
Grieve, of Kapar, is making a collection of th« 
various kinds of coconut beetles, which he will 
ultimately hand over to the officials. 
There is a report that there is a particularly 
bad bit of coconut-beetle infested ground imme- 
<liataly itidjoinin? a Malay school in the neighbour* 
hpod of Kuala SelaDgor.—SirMiili limes, Sept, 18« 
