FLORIDA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY 
169 
er in giving the orange its flavor. A high 
percentage of sugar should be accompa¬ 
nied by a corresponding high amount of 
acid, otherwise the orange lacks the 
sprightly flavor, and tastes insipid or flat. 
An orange with high acid and low sugar 
tastes sour and is usually immature. 
FACTORS INFLUENCING COMPOSITION. 
In our work we have determined the 
per cent, of sucrose, reducing sugar and 
acid in the juice and the per cent, of juice. 
In the discussion at this time, however, 
we will deal only with the acid and total 
sugar. 
We have very little published data re¬ 
garding the influence of certain factors, 
such as temperature, methods of culti¬ 
vation, locality, etc., on the composition 
of citrus fruits. Still less is known re¬ 
garding the effects of the different fertil¬ 
izing constituents which we use so lib¬ 
erally on our groves. We know that 
their use is necessary on our soils in or¬ 
der to produce adequate growth and pay¬ 
ing crops, but we are entirely in the dark 
as to their influence on the formation, for 
example, of acid and of sugar in the 
fruit. 
The past season’s work has given us 
the opportunity to collect data bearing 
on these points, and supported as it is by 
the large number of analyses made, 
should be of value in throwing some 
light on the influence of the above men¬ 
tioned factors on the development of acid 
and of sugar. 
At.the same time, owing to the large 
number of analyses made, wide varia¬ 
tions in locality, and in methods of culti¬ 
vation and fertilization, we have been 
able to obtain reliable data showing the 
influence of these different factors on the 
acid and sugar content of the orange. 
As regards locality we have received 
samples of seedling oranges from as far 
north as Lake Helen and Tavares, and 
as far south as Punta Gorda, so that 
we shall be able to show the difference 
in composition of oranges grown in what 
we may designate as the northern section 
of the citrus district, the middle, and 
the southern. In the same way we are 
able to divide the seedling samples into 
two series, those taken from groves re¬ 
ceiving little or practically no cultivation 
during the year, and those where clean 
culture is practiced for about eight 
months, with a cover crop the remainder 
of the year, and to demonstrate what ef¬ 
fect these two widely different methods 
have on the composition of the fruit. 
The groves from which our samples 
were received were also fertilized in dif¬ 
ferent ways, so that we can make a fur¬ 
ther classification into those receiving a 
fertilizer high in phosphoric acid, and 
others receiving a low percentage; also 
two series receiving, respectively, high 
and low percentages of potash. 
Finally we have made a study of the 
factor of temperature as influencing the 
composition of the fruit. 
; 1 ma y state that we have found condi¬ 
tions which are contrary to the usual be¬ 
lief as to the influence of these factors on 
the orange. 
CONCLUSIONS. 
i. In the orange there is a gradual 
increase of sugar as the fruit matures. 
