BUD VARIATION IN" THE MARSH GRAPEFRUIT. 3 
bearing. The past season several additional large plantings of the 
Marsh variety have been made, particularly in the Imperial and 
Coachella Valleys in southern California, and many smaller plantings 
have been made in other citrus districts of the State. 
While the grapefruit crop of California at present is of relatively 
small commercial importance as compared with the orange or lemon 
crops, it seems likely that in the next few years it will become a 
more important factor in the citrus industry of the State. Many of 
the growers, with this viewpoint, have organized the California 
Grapefruit Club, for the special purpose of cooperating in extending 
the market for this fruit, in order to take care of the greatly enlarged 
production now in prospect. One of the most important means for 
increasing the consumption of this fruit is through the improvement 
of the crop by discarding all inferior varieties, standardizing the 
Marsh variety by the elimination of all trees of inferior and poor 
strains, 1 and the growing of only the best strain, propagated from the 
most productive and valuable trees, selected on the basis of their 
performance records. 
The California Grapefruit Club took official action to this end 
during the season of 1916. It began a tree-census record of all of 
the grapefruit orchards belonging to the members of the club, securing 
accurate data upon the number of trees of each variety and each 
strain in every orchard. The members of the club agreed to top- 
work the trees of all varieties other than the Marsh, and the trees of 
all strains other than the Marsh, 2 or most desirable, strain. The 
top-worked trees for the most part have been rebudded with buds 
secured from superior select trees of the Marsh strain, or, in a few 
cases, with buds from trees of other varieties of citrus fruits. Most 
of this work has already been accomplished, and it was expected 
that it would be completed during the season of 1917. 
In March, 1917, the California Fruit Growers' Exchange, through 
its field department, undertook similar work for its members with 
the standard orange and lemon varieties. Individual-tree perform- 
ance records are being kept in several very productive groves, for the 
purpose of locating desirable trees as reliable sources of bud wood 
for use in top-working or for the propagation of young trees. This 
action was taken because the commercial nurserymen were able to 
supply only a very small part of the bud wood or nursery trees of 
this character demanded by the citrus growers. 
These actions are interesting examples of the utilization of the results 
of scientific research in agriculture by large commercial organizations. 
1 The term "strain" is here used to designate a group of individuals of a horticultural variety which 
differ from all other individuals of the variety in one or more constant and recognizable characteristics 
capable of perpetuation through vegetative propagation. 
2 The name Marsh has been applied to the best strain of the variety, because, as nearly as can be deter- 
mined, it is similar in character of tree and fruit to the original Marsh introduction. 
