®tj^ ^. p. pU pbmrg 
 
 'Novih Carclma State Colteae 
 
 SPCCIAL C.KLtCTIONS ^ 
 
 I IIIH ilfi— iiii- II — ~- 
 
THIS BOOK MUST NOT BE TAKEN 
 FROM THE LIBRARY BUILDING. 
 
PRACTICAL 
 
 ORANGE CULTURE 
 
 INCLUDING THE 
 
 CairG of ttie OraiB, Lemoi, Lime 
 
 AND OTHER CITRUS FRUITS, 
 
 AS GROWN IN FLORIDA. 
 
 .^. H. IvC-^^rLT-V-XXiXjE. 
 
 JACKSONVILLE, FLA : 
 
 ASHMKAD BROS.. ROOKSELLKRS, STATIONERS, PRINTERS AND BINDERS 
 
 1883. 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 Orange culture, like everything else in our busy mod- 
 ern world, is progressive. What a few years since was 
 a chaos of conflicting opinions and practice has been 
 reduced to something like system. The more success- 
 ful growers throughout the State pursue essentially the 
 same plan, modified to suit the peculiarities of soil, loca- 
 tion, etc., with which they have to deal. The following 
 pages are intended to be a practical guide to orange 
 culture, according to the most approved methods. 
 
 The profits and delights of orange culture do not 
 come, strictly speaking, within the scope of this work, 
 and they have been too often and too fully set before 
 the public to need further mention here. 
 
 The author has not attempted the history of the 
 orange and its congeners any further than is involved 
 in a descriptive list of the varieties known in Florida. 
 The origination and introduction of the several species 
 and varieties are treated at length in other accessible 
 works, and though the subject is one of great interest, it 
 has no practical bearing upon successful culture in this 
 State. 
 
 Bearing groves have been n)ade in an incredibly 
 short time by grafting or budding wild trees found in 
 the State. These wild groves, few at most, have now 
 almost or entirely disappeared, and methods for their 
 development having no longer a general application 
 have not been thought sufficiently pertinent for a place 
 in these pages. 
 
 As few growers now raise their own trees, saving time 
 
6 PREFACE. 
 
 and money by buying them ready to plant in grove 
 form ; no space is given to the germination of seed, grow- 
 ing of young trees, or propagation of varieties. 
 
 The classification of species and varities has been 
 made as complete as possible, with comprehensive hints 
 on selection for general planting ; and special attention 
 has been given to the modifications of culture required 
 by different locations and soils. 
 
 The author has endeavored to exclude purely theoret- 
 ical and irrelevant matter, and in as concise and simple 
 manner as possible to keep strictly to the necessary re- 
 quirements of practical culture. 
 
PKEFACE. 
 CHAPTER I. — Situation and Exposure. 
 
 The Frost Xiine— Water Protection— Forest Protection— Forest 
 Culture— Wind Breaks 9 
 
 CHAPTER II.— Soil. 
 
 High Hammock— Low Hammock— High Pine Land— Low Pine 
 Land— Scrub Land— The Best Soil for Orange Culture 13 
 
 CHAPTER III.— Preparing the Ground. 
 
 Wild Land— Low Land— Drainage 17 
 
 CHAPTER IV.— Choice of Treej^. 
 
 Variety — Age — Size— Thorns — Shape— Fibrous Roots — Stock — 
 Method of Propagation 22 
 
 CHAPTER V. — Selection of Varieties. 
 
 The Sweet Orange— The Mandarin or Tangierine Orange— The 
 Bitter Orange 28 
 
 CHAPTER VI.— Season for Planting. 
 
 The Best Time— Late Planting 3.5 
 
 (iHAPTER VII.— Distance Apart. 
 
 Size of Trees — In the Northern Part of the State — On Low 
 Lands— On High Lands— Dwarf Trees— How to Ascertain 
 the Number on an Acre 37 
 
 CHAPTER VIII.— Planting. 
 
 Handling the Trees— Preliminaries— Setting Out the Trees- 
 Watering— Deep Planting — Large Trees 41 
 
3 CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER IX.— Cultivation. 
 
 Deep Culture— Shallow Culture— Infrequeut or Partial Culture 
 —The Suspension of Cultivation Late in Summer— Summer 
 Shading by a Green Crop— Cropping— Other Fruits— Best 
 Methods on High Land— Best Methods on Low Land- 
 Mulching 46 
 
 CHAPTER X.— Mulching. 
 
 Its Advantages— Its Application— Objections Considered 63 
 
 CHAPTER XI.— Fertilizers. 
 
 Humus— Green Crops— Mulching -Muck— Barn Yard Manure- 
 Cotton Seed— Lime— Potash— Phosphoric Acid— Land Plas- 
 ter—The Value of the Compost Heap — The So-called Com- 
 plete Manures 57 
 
 CHAPTER XII.— Fertilizing. 
 
 The Best Fertilizers— The Best Time— Application— Leachy 
 Soils— Hammock Land— Young Trees— Bearing Trees 68 
 
 CHAPTER XIII.— Pruning. 
 
 Object— System— Young Trees— Older Trees— Height of the 
 
 Stem— Time— Instruments— Root Pruning 74 
 
 * 
 CHAPTER XIV.— Diseases. 
 
 Die-back— Limb Blight— Gum Disease or Bleeding— Foot Rot- 
 Sweet or Black Rust 79 
 
 CHAPTER XV.— Insects. 
 
 Scale Insects— The Mealy Bug— Other Insects— The Rust Mite... 85 
 
 CHAPTER XVI.— Marketing the Crop. 
 
 Drying or Packing-house — Gathering — Curing— Sorting— Wrap- 
 ping— Packing 93 
 
 CHAPTER XVII.— The Lemon, Lime and Other Species. 
 The Lemon — The Lime — Other Species 09 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 Classification and Description of the Species and Varieties of 
 the Citrus as known in Florida— Dwarfing the Orange 103 
 
ORANGE CULTURE. 
 
 CHAPTER I 
 
 SITUATION AND EXPOSURE. 
 
 «) HE FROST - LINE.— ISIuch nonsense has 
 been circulated about what is termed the " frost- 
 line," i. e. an imaginary line somewhere in the 
 ^^ State, north of which, the orange cannot be suc- 
 cessfully grown, and south of which lies the so-called 
 " Orange Belt." The severe cold in December 1880, 
 froze the fruit and stripped the leaves from the trees in 
 the northern part of the State, in some places killing 
 the tender twigs and branches ; further south the foliage 
 was uninjured, though the fruit was frozen ; still further 
 south neither fruit nor trees were injured. Still, little 
 serious damage was done ; even where the trees suffered 
 most they speedily recovered and grew all the more vig- 
 orously on account of the check they had received. 
 The destruction of the fruit was the greatest loss sus- 
 tained ; this could have been avoided by gathering the 
 fruit earlier, as it matures before there is danger of 
 frost. On the other hand there have been instances 
 where groves in the southern portion of the orange region 
 seemed to suffer as much as those further north, owing 
 to the irregularity of the cold wave, or to the trees being 
 full of sap and growing. This has led many to the op- 
 posite and quite as erroneous conclusion that orange trees 
 are equally liable to injury from cold in all parts of the 
 State. Every locality is visited by frosts, but there can 
 be no doubts that they are modified by latitude and are 
 
 MflfERTT UBitfr 
 
lO JIAXVILLE'S TREATISE ON 
 
 most frequent and severe in the more northern counties. 
 Trees are probably less frequently injured by cold south 
 of about 29^ and 30' north latitude; no arbitrary line 
 however can be drawn, as many locations above this are 
 naturally protected from cold, and at' some points below 
 it the frost is unusually severe. Still the cold is seldom 
 severe enough anywhere within the State, except in the 
 northwestern portion, to injure bearing trees, as their 
 dense foliage affords them excellent protection. Young 
 trees are more liable to injury, and are sometimes killed 
 to the ground, but where there is no natural protection 
 they can be artificially protected in winter until they 
 attain size enough to protect themselves. Exemption 
 from frost is not the only consideration in orange cul- 
 ture, and the northern jDortion of the State possesses 
 some decided advantages. We find therefore that w^here- 
 ever suitable soil is found throughout eastern, middle, 
 and southern Florida the orange can be and is profitably 
 grown. 
 
 Water Protection. — It is well known that currents 
 of cold air passing over large bodies of deep water are 
 modified in temperature. The cold waves in this State 
 come from the north or northwest. Bodies of water on 
 the north or northwest therefore afford more or less pro- 
 tection from cold according to their extent and proxim- 
 ity. In sections where there is severe cold in winter, 
 situations thus pi'otected, are especially desirable. 
 
 Forest Protection. — The orange when properly pro- 
 tected will stand considerable cold. This is true of other 
 tender plants ; geraniums exposed all night in freezing 
 weather will survive if moved early in the morning and 
 allowed to thaw out gradually in a cool dark celler. 
 For the same reason, orange trees, if shielded from the 
 morning sun by forest trees or other shade, are less liable 
 to injury from frost. It is the sun which damages the 
 
ORANGE CULTURE. 11 
 
 trees after a severe frost by thawing the congealed sap 
 too rapidly and destroying the life of the part wherever 
 the sap vessels are rnptured, if a cloudy day ensues, no 
 harm is done. Bodies of water protect by keeping the 
 temperature above the point of injury ; forest shade pro- 
 tects by shielding from the sun when the temperature 
 falls below this point. 
 
 Forest Culture. — The advantages of forest protec- 
 tion has led to the advocacy, and in some cases, to the 
 practice of forest culture ; that is to say, the cultivation 
 of the orange between strips or belts of timber arranged 
 to shade the trees during the forepart of the day. 
 Upon high sand hammocks covered with those species of 
 deep-rooted, hard wood trees, which do not interfere 
 with the growth of the orange, this is an excellent plan. 
 As much of the orange region lies below the necessity of 
 such protection, as some lands that are already cleared, 
 and the bulk of the orange lands being pine land, where 
 the timber would afford too little shade to be of use, and 
 where, like that upon much of the hammock land, it is 
 unsuited to the purpose and uncongenial to the orange, 
 this plan will probably never be largely adopted. It 
 will not pay to plant trees for this purpose, as the 
 orange trees will protect themselves as soon as they at- 
 tain sufficient size. When this method is adopted the 
 requisites to success are: keeping the forest roots fi-om 
 interfering with the orange trees ; cultivating the latter 
 as thoroughly as upon open land ; and while keeping 
 the morning sun from the trees in winter, to allow the 
 sun to reach them a portion of the time, which is neces- 
 sary to the perfect development of tree and fruit. 
 
 Wind - Breaks. — Upon the coast and in some other 
 sections of the State, violent winds do considerable dam- 
 age to the trees. But generally throughout the orange 
 region the necessity of wind-breaks is not yet felt. As 
 
^2 MANVILLE'S TREATISE ON 
 
 the country is denuded of its forests the winds will have 
 greater sweep. In those sections liable to violent winds, 
 and indeed, in any locality which will be without 
 shelter from the winds when the timber has been cleared 
 away, it is the part of wisdom to leave or plant belts of 
 forest trees upon the side of the grove from which the 
 most severe winds come. There are many species v)f 
 deep rooted, strong growing, shapely forest trees in the 
 State which would serve this purpose admirably. There 
 is an important exception to the benefits of surrounding 
 belts of timber to be noted in those sections where there 
 is danger from frost. In such localities, timber upon 
 the north or west does more damage by causing the 
 cold to settle down with greater intensity and by re- 
 flecting powerfully the rays of the morning sun, than it 
 does good by shielding from the wind. Timber upon 
 the south and east is not open to this objection, but is 
 rather beneficial as we have seen above. Much of the 
 damage done to the tree, but especially to the fruit, by 
 being whipped about in the wind, is caused by thorns, 
 and can be avoided by planting t hornless trees. 
 
CHAPTER II 
 
 SOIL. 
 
 ^»r^ IGH HAMMOCK.— "High hammocks are 
 ^^1^ found iu many poilions of the State, and are 
 >^S^ generally covered with a luxuriant growth of 
 ^"^ magnolia, live and w hite oak, hickory and other 
 hard wood trees. The surface soil in these high ham 
 mocks is usually deep, consisting of all intermediate 
 grades between a light and rather heavy loam, with a 
 sub-soil of sandy loam or a ferruginous clay." In some 
 places the soil is mixed with shell, and where not too 
 abundant, they are not detrimental. To many, the word 
 hammock conveys the idea of low land, but much of the 
 best hammock land is high, and constitutes the richest 
 and most productive land iu the State. High ham- 
 mocks of the first quality, having deep soil and heavy 
 hard wood timber, are probably the best orange lands in 
 the State. 
 
 Low Hammock. — "Low hammocks are distributed 
 over the State, and are generally covered with palms, 
 live and evergreen oaks, bays, cedar, etc. They are dif- 
 ficult to clear, but not more so than the rich timbered 
 lands of the North and West. If ditched and em- 
 banked when low or near streams, to guard them against 
 extraordinary floods and rains, they would furnish for 
 cultivation some of the richest lands in the State. In 
 these hammocks is found a dark vegetable mould, from 
 one to two feet in depth, below which a dark sand exists, 
 
14 MANVILLE'S TREATISE ON 
 
 generally becoming paler until clay or limestone rock 
 i< reached." Low hammock lands are more expensive 
 to prepare for trees than high hammocks. They em- 
 brace the richest lands in the State, and when of good 
 quality and above liability to overflow, they probably 
 yield the quickest returns of any soil. 
 
 High Pine Lauds. — " The elevated and undulating 
 pine lands are remarkable for their beauty, salubrity 
 and productiveness. The timber is generally large, tall 
 and straight." There is no undergrowth excepting scat- 
 tering dwarf oaks, and a few hickories in some places, 
 the ground being covered with wire grass. " These 
 lands have a surface soil of fair depth, containing a 
 large amount of vegetable matter. Beneath the surface 
 soil will be found a stratum of loamy sand of variable 
 depth, and beneath this, clay. In some localities the 
 clay is near the surface." High pine lands are compar- 
 itively poor, and require liberal applications of ferti- 
 lizers to produce the best results ; in other particulars 
 they have the same general advantages of high ham- 
 mocks. The soil is esteemed as good, better, or best, ac- 
 cording, as the timber is exclusively pine, oak and pine, 
 or hickory and pine. 
 
 Low Pilie Land. — Low pine lands may be divided 
 into two classes, namely. Flat Pine Land and Lower 
 Pine Land. Flat pine lands are found at points in the 
 interior, along some of the river's, and near the coasts. 
 Some are covered with a growth of bushes, and sparsely 
 supplied with grass and pine trees, others are covered 
 with medium sized pine timber and wire grass, and still 
 others consist of savannahs, without trees or bushes. 
 During the rainy season these lands are liable to over- 
 flow, and as a consequence are unfit for cultivation. In 
 some of the flat lands there will be found a layer of 
 hard pan or clay. At some points the surface soil is 
 
ORANGE CULTURE. 15 
 
 black, deep and apparently productive, but in dry 
 weather it bakes, and is unsuitable for gardening or ag- 
 ricultural purposes. 
 
 " Lower pine lauds are not subject to overflow during 
 the rainy season. One objection to some of them is the 
 fact that they are encumbered with bushes and saw pal- 
 metto, and are difficult to clear," Others have no un- 
 dergrowth save the common wire grass. These lands 
 are underlaid with sand or clay, or where hard pan is 
 found it is too deep to be injurious. They are either 
 naturally drained or susceptible of thorough artificial 
 drainage, and are amons: the best pine lands in the State. 
 
 The above distinction between " flat pine lands " and 
 " lower pine lands " should be observed, In common 
 usage the terms " low pine land " and " flat woods " are 
 applied indiscriminately to all pine lands excepting the 
 high rolling pine land and scrubs of the interior, em- 
 bracing a varied range of surface from overflowed bot- 
 toms to elevated level tracts sufficiently inclined to carry 
 off" surplus water. The quality of the soil differs as 
 widely as the appearance of the surface ; in some places 
 (described above as " flat pine lands ") it is unfit for 
 culture of any kind, while in others, (described above as 
 "lower pine lands ") it is adapted to the orange or other 
 crops. From failures made upon the former, a general 
 prejudice has arisen against low pine lands; some writers 
 go so far as to condemn their use entirely for orange 
 culture, failing to recognize the fact that there is a vast 
 difference in the land they thus include in a sweeping 
 denunciation. Upon the better class of these lands are 
 located some of the finest groves in the State, many of 
 which have been brought into successful bearing, and it 
 is high time that a distinction be made between worth- 
 less " flat woods " and low pine lands that are really 
 excellent. 
 
16 MANVILLE'S TREATISE ON 
 
 Scrub Land. — Scrub lands have a coarse white, or 
 poor yellowish, sandy soil. In the scrub sections water 
 is scarce. The timber usually consists of stunted pine 
 and oak. Notwithstanding the poverty of scrub lands, 
 some large groves have been made upon them by irri- 
 gation and extensive fertilization. It is very doubtful 
 however, whether they can be profitably utilized for 
 orange culture to any considerable extent. 
 
 The Best Soil for Orange Culture. — It costs less 
 to clear and prepare high lands than low ; they du not, 
 like the latter, require exjiensive drainage, and when 
 properly cultivated are not more liable to suffer from 
 drought. Still, low lands (either pine or hammock,) 
 which are adapted to the orange, are profitably cultiva- 
 ted, yielding perhaps quicker results, though the trees 
 do not attain as large size or as great age as on high 
 land. High hammock, high pine, low hammock, and 
 low pine are generally valued for orange culture in the 
 order mentioned, though the orange succeeds upon them 
 all, and each class of soil has its advocates who regard 
 it as yielding the best results. 
 
 In the above chapter the quotations are from an article on 
 the soils of Florida, by Dr. C. J. Kenworthy, in which he di- 
 vides the lands of the State topographically into Flat Pine 
 Lands, Elevatad Pine Lands, Lower Pine Lands, Low Ham- 
 mocks, High Hammocks, Scrubs, Prairies, Swamps and 
 Marshes. 
 
 ^'^cA^(^<^^^ts)A.>2 
 
CHAPTER III. 
 
 PREPARING THE GROUND. 
 
 'ANY iu their haste to get trees into the 
 ground neglect to give the soil the proper prepa- 
 ration ; time is lost rather than gained by 
 this, as the trees will do no good until the soil 
 is in condition for their growth, and thej'^ are very liable 
 to become diseased or stunted. The trees will be further 
 advanced in a few years time if planted on soil which 
 has been thoroughly prepared, even if this delays the 
 operation an entire year. 
 
 Wild Land. — If the grove is to be made on wild 
 land, the first work of preparation is to cut and clear 
 a\vay the timber. Some high pine and high hammock 
 lands are naturally so sweet and friable that trees do 
 well planted before the land is cleared of roots or 
 plowed, provided places for the trees are thoroughly dug 
 over, pulverized, and all the roots, turf, etc., removed. 
 Even when this plan is pursued on lands that will ad- 
 mit of it, the general surface must be broken immedi- 
 ately after the trees are set, or they will soon suffer. 
 Although there are exceptional instances where with 
 proper treatment the trees can be set before the land is 
 broken, as a general rule it is far better not to plant 
 until the entire surface has been prepared. High pine 
 land can often be broken with the plow as soon as the 
 timber is cleared away, on other pine and all ham- 
 mock lauds, the roots must be grubbed out or removed 
 
18 MANVILLE'S TREATISE ON 
 
 before the plowing can be done. The removal of stamps 
 is not necessary, but renders subsequent culture much 
 easier. After it has been thoroughly broken with the 
 plow, the soil should be smoothed with harrow or drag 
 that the trees may be planted upon the same level. 
 When the land is very new, large holes should be dug 
 where the trees are to be planted, and after the earth 
 has been sweetened by sun and air, it should be returned 
 to the holes again. 
 
 Low Land. — Low lands, especially low pine lands, 
 are more difficult to subdue than higher lands. Owing 
 to their saturation with water, they are often very sour, 
 requiring some time and effort to reduce them to a 
 proper pulverulent state. Such soils should never have 
 trees set upon them until in condition for their reception. 
 If necessary, it is far better to defer planting until some 
 other crop has been first grown upon the soil. Upon 
 low land it is a good plan where practicable to plant the 
 trees on beds thrown up by the plow with w^ater furrows 
 between the rows to conduct heavy rain-fall to the 
 ditches. These beds should be raised from one to three 
 feet above the surface, as the case may require. 
 
 Drainage. — The great desideratum upon low lands, 
 and all soils liable to become saturated with water, 
 ' is drainage. At present, this is usually accomplished 
 by opan drains or ditches. Wherever possible, under- 
 drainage should be substituted, it is more expensive at 
 the start, but in course of a few years will have cost less, 
 occasioned less annoyance, and been more efficient than 
 open drains. Under-drains work admirably where there 
 is much less fall than is generally supposed. The writer 
 has succeeded in thoroughly under-draining a piece of 
 low land where there was but one inch of fall in every 
 ten feet of the drain, the latter being some six hundred 
 feet in length. Tiles when properly laid, make the most 
 
ORANGE CULTURE. -19 
 
 durable drain, but in this State they are quite expensive, 
 and unless put down with great care, are liable to fill up 
 with the fine sand which constitutes so large a portion of 
 the soil. The tiles being short (usually fourteen to six- 
 teen inches), it is very difficult to lay them in such a 
 soil so as to retain their position. Owing to inequalities 
 in the ground or imperfect laying, they are liable to 
 sink in places from the general inclination of the drain, 
 thus forming corners which collect debris and eventually 
 clog the drain. The only way to remedy such a stop- 
 page is to remove all the tiles until the defective place 
 is reached. In a stiff clay soil these objections would 
 have less weight. Drains of " heart pine " lumber will 
 last for years, cost much less than tile, and are more 
 easily and less expensively laid. Another advantage of 
 board drains over tile is that they are in longer sections, 
 (they should be made twenty feet or more in length) 
 and are therefore not liable to sink from the position in 
 which they are placed. When properly constructed, 
 drains of this character can be readily cleaned without 
 being taken up, in fact, it costs less to clean them than it 
 does to clean open drains. To be efficient, ditches must 
 be reopened in our soil as often as once a year, while un- 
 der-drains of " heart-pine " will last for years without 
 clogging. The drains above referred to have now been 
 laid six years, and are still working perfectly. Board 
 drains in the shape of the letter V probably clear them- 
 selves better than square box drains, but the latter will 
 do good work for a very long time, and the writer has 
 found them easier of construction, more convenient to 
 clean, and for practical use, the best. The boxes should 
 be made in as long sections as possible. The sides should 
 be lapped over and nailed to the edges of the bottom, 
 the top rests upon the sides unnailed, being held in place 
 by cleats nailed upon the underside of the top, and fit- 
 
20 
 
 MANVILLE'S TREATISE ON" 
 
 ting between the sides. The bottom board and the cleats 
 on the top, being between the sides, and the top resting 
 upon the sides presents the greatest possible resistance 
 to pressure. The following diagram represents a trans- 
 verse section of the drain as thus constructed : 
 
 C A A represent the 
 
 I sides, B the bottom, 
 C the top, and D the 
 cleats nailed to the 
 under side of the top. 
 By digging down to 
 and removing the 
 unfastened top, the 
 drain can easily be 
 cleaned with a hoe 
 of the same width 
 as the inside of the 
 drain. The size of 
 drains and their dis- 
 
 B 
 
 tance apart should be governed by their length and 
 tiie amount of fall they have. Drains five or six 
 inches in diameter placed fifty or sixty feet apart will 
 afford thorough drainage where there is as little descent 
 as will render under-drainage possible. Where the de- 
 scent is greater they can be placed farther apart and 
 have less diameter. To lay under-drains does not re- 
 quire as much excavating as for open drains, a narrow 
 opening just wide enough at the bottom to receive the 
 boxes is sufficient. Where there is danger of caving, 
 the opening should be made and the drains laid one 
 section at a time. The depth of the drain will depend 
 somewhat upon circumstances, the deeper they are, the 
 greater will be the amount of soil drained. Where 
 they cannot be laid deeper, if simply placed below the 
 reach of the plow-share they will dry out the soil a 
 
ORANGE CULTURE. 21 
 
 great deal. From two to four feet is the best depth in 
 average Florida soil. The drains should be laid at 
 right angles with or diagonally across the steepest nat- 
 ural descent of the surface. In this way they intercept 
 the water courses in the soil, and carry off the water 
 much more effectually than if laid in the same direc- 
 tion the latter flows. 
 
CHAPTER IV 
 
 CHOICE OF TREES. 
 
 ORKS heretofore published upon orange 
 culture have devoted considerable space to 
 methods of raising young plants until ready 
 for transplanting into grove form. Until re- 
 cently such knowledge has been useful, and, indeed, 
 necessary to the grower, as he must needs raise his own 
 trees or buy from a neighbor having a surplus. As 
 trees for j^lanting out are now supplied almost entirely 
 by specialists giving their exclusive attention to this 
 branch of the business, the author has omitted all con- 
 sideration of the subject as foreign to the purpose in 
 a work of this kind. A nurseryman possessing the 
 requisite knowledge and necessary facilities for propaga- 
 ting upon a large scale, can supply the grower with 
 trees of better quality and at less expense than he could 
 produce himself, saving him besides much annoyance 
 and a considerable loss of valuable time. Trees grown 
 upon the most approved plan receive close attention, 
 and are kept vigorously growing from the germina- 
 tion of the seed until ready for planting ; they are 
 propagated from the best varieties, and are pruned 
 and trained systematically to produce the best shaped 
 trees in the shortest time. The grower cannot be 
 too careful in selecting his trees. It does not pay 
 to plant poor trees ; they are dear at any price. If of 
 inferior variety, they must be rebudded ; if affected by 
 
ORANGE CULTURE. 23 
 
 disease or insect, they must be treated ; if stunted, they 
 must be revitalized'; if they have grown unpruned or 
 misshapen, they must be trained into proper form ; if 
 too old or too large, an unsatisfactory result is attended 
 by no end of risk and pains ; all of which causes trouble 
 and expense, and greatly retards the ultimate perfection 
 of the grove. If the best result is to be obtained, the 
 trees must be up to the standard in variety, size, age, 
 stock, shape, etc., and must also be properly handled 
 from the nursery to their place in the grove. 
 
 Variety. — This is a subject of so much importance 
 that its consideration is reserved to the next chapter. 
 
 Age. — It is an important fact that as a rule healthy 
 budded orange trees bear as soon as they attain suf- 
 ficient size to hold fruit. Where there is a difference 
 in the time of bearing it is due to variety rather than 
 age. The supposition that the older an orange tree is, 
 the sooner it will bear, is a mistake, so far as budded 
 trees are concerned. A tree crowded in nursery rows, 
 or otherwise neglected, will remain long past the bear- 
 ing age dwarfed in size and without fruit, while younger 
 trees in grove form are full sized and bearing heavy 
 crops. A tree four years old has no advantage over a 
 tree two years old of the same size ; the former may 
 bear first a few premature fruit owing to its stunted 
 condition; but the latter will grow more rapidly, make 
 the strongest tree, and bear profitable crops soonest. 
 The younger a tree of a given size the more desirable, 
 as it indicates vigorous growth. Size and thrift are, 
 therefore, the important considerations, rather than age. 
 
 Size. — Upon the advantages of small trees, a recent 
 number of the Florida Dispatch says : " Nearly all new 
 beginners go in for ' big trees ' — ' some that will bear 
 right ofl^.' To such readers we would say that in select- 
 ing trees for transplanting the largest are not the best. 
 
24 MAXVILLE'S TREATISE ON 
 
 Medium-sized trees have better roots, are easier handled, 
 are less liable to injury from transportation, start 
 quicker and grow faster than tall' plants that have 
 been drawn up weakly in thick nursery rows. Old 
 trees have wider spread roots, which are certain to be 
 severely abridged in the lifting. The tops must then 
 be pruned severely to correspond with the destruction 
 of the roots, so that there is nothing gained in the way 
 of size, and the check or 'set back' to old or larger 
 trees is often fatal. * * * * Plant small or me- 
 dium sized trees, of healthy, vigorous growth, and hav- 
 ing plenty of roots, and let the impatient ' green hoi'ns' 
 tussle with the big trees !" As a general rule nothing 
 is gained by planting large trees, smaller trees will over- 
 take them in a few years ; they are besides less expen- 
 sive, as to first cost, transportation, planting, etc. A 
 bud of one year's growth upon a stock two or three 
 years old is the most profitable and convenient size 
 and age. 
 
 Thorns. — It is much more agreeable to work among 
 trees which have no thorns. Thorns on bearing trees 
 are very liable to puncture the fruit, especially in 
 windy weather, causing it to decay and drop ofi". The 
 writer has seen thorny trees shed a large portion of their 
 crop on this account. Those leading varieties which 
 are thornless or nearly so, other things being equal, are 
 much the most desirable. 
 
 Shape. — At the age and size above mentioned the 
 stock should be smooth and straight, budded from six 
 inches to one foot from the ground, not extending above 
 the bud, but cut off smoothly at a slight angle just 
 above it. The bud should have one upright stem, and 
 if branched, the branches should be straight and uni- 
 form, but not emanating from or near the point of union 
 with the stock. 
 
 ypPlQUf UBIAR^ 
 
 rJi^t 
 
ORANGE CULTURE. 25 
 
 Fibrous Roots. — To have an abundance of fibrous 
 roote, an item of great importance, nursery trees uiust 
 be from a loose, dry and moderately fertile soil. Trees 
 from low, rich land are apt to have developed a luxu- 
 riant foliage out of proportion to their roots, as the lat- 
 ter finding food and moisture at hand are not properly 
 developed. High land grown trees do quite as well if 
 transplanted to a low soil, and for high land planting 
 are far preferable to trees from low land. Transplant- 
 ing is also an efficient means of developing fibrous 
 roots. A severed root throws out immediately numer- 
 ous rootlets; transplanting produces the same efliect upon 
 all the roots of the tree. Nursery stocks are trans- 
 planted once or more at an age and time when their 
 growth is not retarded, thus securing an abundance of 
 fibrous roots. A transplanted tree, which has been 
 thoroughly cultivated in a dry, loose soil, will have no 
 lack of fibrous roots. 
 
 Stock. — The sour orange germanates more readily, 
 grows more vigorously, and is less liable to injury from 
 disease, insect, or frost than the sweet. For these 
 reasons, and on account of its habit of throwing up 
 strong, vigorous shoots, it is generally preferred as a 
 stock on which to propagate the latter. The sweet 
 orange makes a very fair stock, however, and after the 
 trees are budded, and attain the proper size for planting 
 in grove, there is perhaps little to chose between them. 
 The lemon, shaddock, and other strong growing species, 
 are too tender to use for stocks, except in the extreme 
 southern part of the State. 
 
 Method of Propagation. — Although the orange 
 can be grafted or layered, it is generally propagated by 
 budding or from the seed. In common with other fruit 
 trees the varieties do not reproduce themselves from the 
 seed. Budding is, therefore, the only way of obtaining 
 
26 MANVILLE'S TREATISE ON 
 
 the best, or indeed any particular variety. Were this 
 its only advantage it would be a sufficient reason for 
 discarding seedlings altogether. In practice, this is gen- 
 erally done, few seedlings being now planted in grove. 
 Still, as the latter are advocated by some, a word upon 
 the well-worn subject of budded trees vs. seedlings will 
 be pardoned. As we have seen, budded trees bear, as 
 soon as they are large enough, fruit of a predetermined 
 quality ; while it takes certainly twice, probably three 
 times as long for the seedling to reach the age for pro- 
 ducing fruit, which is good, bad or indifferent, as the 
 case may be, and the probability is it will be mediocre, 
 in quality, possibly decidedly inferior. This loss of 
 time is a matter of no small importance to the grower, 
 es])ecially as there is no compensating gain. The low, 
 spreading head of the budded tree, with few thorns and 
 interior limbs, is a far more desirable shape than the 
 tall, compact seedling, with its interwoven branches and 
 armament of thorns, rendering culture unpleasant, and 
 the gathering of the fruit from the topmost branches a 
 hazardous undertaking, to say nothing of the loss of 
 fruit from being punctured by thorns. Some claim 
 that budded trees grow smaller, and are, therefore, less 
 desirable than seedlings. Even were this true, and it 
 is an undetermined question, it would really be an ad- 
 vantage, as the same quantity of fruit could be pro- 
 duced by closer planting, and the care of the trees and 
 the gathei'ing of the crop would be more easily accom- 
 plished. The most weighty objection that has been 
 urged against budded trees is that they are compara- 
 tively short-lived. The analogy of nature would seem 
 to bear out this conclusion. As a general rule, those 
 plants and animals which arrive at maturity early are 
 proportionately short-lived. The orange is, however, a 
 tree of great longevity, and even if budded, trees are 
 
ORANGE CULTURE. 27 
 
 somewhat shorter lived, a fact that remains to be dem- 
 onstrated, the difference is so inconsiderable as to be 
 practically of little consequence. In Europe, where 
 budding is the exclusive method of propagation, trees 
 are to be found several hundred years old. In this 
 State, budded groves, which were bearing when killed 
 to the ground by the great frost in 1835, are still 
 thriving, with apparently undiminished vigor. It 
 should be borne in mind that by simply planting bud- 
 ded trees, good fruit is by no means secured. Inferior 
 fruit is quite as easily propagated by budding as fruit 
 of a better quality. The important point is to have the 
 trees of a really superior variety. 
 
CHAPTER V 
 
 SELECTION OF VARIETIES. 
 
 :5^UCCESS in orange culture comprises: 
 
 First. — The early and healthy maturity of the 
 trees. This necessitates congenial location and 
 soil; careful selection of trees as to size, mode of 
 propagation, and thrift, and correct methods of treat- 
 ment. 
 
 Second. — An abundant crop commanding the highest 
 market price. Which involves all of the above condi- 
 tions with this important addition, the variety must be of 
 superior quality. Leaving out this one consideration 
 and however vigorous and prolific the trees, the success 
 is but partial — neither in perfection of fruit nor finan- 
 cial return is the best result obtained. Just here a vital 
 mistake is often made. 
 
 It may be asked : Is the selection of a so-called 
 superior variety a guarantee that the fruit produced 
 will be of superior quality? In other words do not 
 many trees of the Magnum Bonum, Homosassa and 
 other approved sorts produce inferior fruit? It is true 
 that trees of the best varieties under unfavorable condi- 
 tions produce fruit of comparatively inferior quality, 
 inferior perhaps to a really ordinary fruit growing under 
 more favorable circumstances. But the superior variety 
 possesses inherent capabilities of development entirely 
 wanting in the inferior sort. Proper treatment will 
 encourage the one to produce fruit of an excellence 
 
ORANGE CULTURE. 29 
 
 which no amount of high culture could obtain from the 
 other. A superior variety produces the best possible 
 fruit under the circumstances, and if the grower fails to 
 supply the conditions necessary to its most perfect 
 development it cannot be reasonably adduced as evidence 
 of its wanting in excellence. Again it may be asked : 
 Of what use are varieties which cannot be distinguished 
 the one from the other, as is the case with many of the im- 
 proved sorts? It is quite possible that fruit is produced 
 in many localities equal to those varieties which have been 
 named and described, but there is no way for the grower 
 to ascertain this fact ; as the former have only been tested 
 in particular localities whereas the latter are of superior 
 excellence as compared with the best production of the 
 State. It is of the utmost importance that the fruit pro- 
 duced be superior as it is now rated in market strictly 
 according to quality. "An orange is an orange" no 
 longer. It is of little moment to the grower whether 
 his fruit is sold as Magnum Bonum or Horaosassa or 
 not, but it is of the utmost im )ortance to him that his 
 fruits brings the highest price in market where fruit of 
 superior quality brings double the price of inferior fruit 
 as at present. Again, there are varieties which are and 
 always will be sold by name. Fruit of the Early Ob- 
 long variety shipped from the w'riter's vicinity last Sep- 
 tember and October brought the highest price obtained 
 during the season, solely on account of its earliness, as 
 the better varieties of mid-season fruit were really su- 
 perior to it in quality. The Du Roi on account of its 
 excellent quality and peculiar appearance brought a 
 higher price than first-class fruit without distinctive 
 marks. Navel oranges shipped by the writer averaging 
 one hundred to the box brought fifty cents to one dollar 
 per box more than the best fruit of other sorts,, 
 which averaged one hundred and fortv tc one hundred 
 
30 MANVILLEis TREATISE ON 
 
 and sixty to the box. The Bijou Mandarin sold for 
 seven dollars and a half per box upon the trees 
 when other varieties were bringing two dollars 
 and a half. The latter may indicate a fancy 
 and unstable demand, but the other cases men- 
 tioned indicate the normal condition of the market. 
 Many other instances of like character might be adduced 
 in demonstration of the same point. 
 
 In planting for profit a person unacquainted with 
 the many sorts might have some difficulty in choosing 
 intelligently. The following hints on the relative merits 
 of the principal varieties of the orange may serve to pre- 
 vent confusion and to facilitate selection. A complete 
 classification and description of the species and varieties 
 of the citrus as grown in Florida appears in the appen- 
 dix to this work, to which the reader is referred for 
 more particular information regarding the different 
 species and their several varieties. 
 
 The Sweet Orange. — This species has many varieties 
 and some have claimed that their peculiarities of size, 
 form, color, and habit of growth, result mainly from soil, 
 cultivation, etc. From the following this will be seen 
 to be erroneous, there being many leading varieties 
 which have distinctive characteristics, and numerous 
 others which, though differing little from each other, 
 are vastly superior to the average Florida product of no 
 special variety. 
 
 The Early Oblong or Thornless Bell and the Egg, are, 
 strictly speaking, the only early varieties we have. 
 They are sweet but somewhat insipid and rather inferior 
 as compared with some of the mid-season varieties. 
 They are desirable, however, as they reach their perfec- 
 tion before any of the other varieties are fit for use. 
 Their juices are matured in September and October, and 
 if gathered at this season, properly "colored up" and 
 
ORANGE CULTURE. 31 
 
 shipped, iliey bring a high price, as they reach market 
 before foreign or domestic fruit begins to come in. The 
 fruit has a tough rind, there is little or no loss from 
 cracking on the tree, and it comes off before there is 
 danger of its being injured by frost; the tree is thornless 
 and prolific ; it may therefore be regarded as a good sort 
 for general planting. The Oblong is the best for mar- 
 ket and the Egg, which is smaller and rather more juicy, 
 is preferable for home use. 
 
 The Tardiff is the best late sort. In appearance it 
 does not differ materially from other first-class Florida 
 oranges of the common type. When other varieties 
 ripen it is tough and acid but becomes tender and sweet 
 later in the season, remaining in perfection on the tree far 
 into the summer, on which account it is desirable. 
 
 The Navel, in quality, is beyond comparison the finest 
 fruit now grown in Florida. It is always distinguish- 
 able by its peculiar mark, which, in market, prevents 
 deception and confusion regarding the genuineness of 
 the variety. This peculiar umbilical formation also 
 prevents the cracking of the fruit so common with most 
 other varieties. This variety possesses, in fact, every 
 desirable quality in both fruit and tree, excepting that 
 the latter is not as prolific as some other sorts. It is, 
 however, by no means as shy a bearer as some have 
 claimed. As the fruit is unusually large and heavy, 
 bringing on account of its quality, a higher price for a 
 given bulk or weight than other sorts, it is, notwithstand- 
 ing its somewhat shy habit, one of the most profitable 
 varieties. 
 
 Of the distinctly marked varieties, the Du Roi, a 
 ribbed fruit of medium size and very prolific, and the 
 Bell, a bell or pear-shaped fruit not to be confounded 
 with the Early Oblong variety, have been long fruited 
 in Florida and are of excellent quality. Like the above 
 
32 MANVILLE'S TREATISE ON 
 
 their peculiar characteristics will always distinguish them 
 in market. 
 
 The Mediterranean Sweet, in the shape of the tree, its 
 strong vigorous habit, entire absence of thorns, peculiar, 
 luxuriant and beautiful foliage, is all that could be de- 
 sired, and in these particulars superior to most other 
 varieties. The same is true of the Jaffa, a variety of re- 
 cent introduction, which promises well. The Mediter- 
 ranean Sweet was introduced from California, where it 
 is esteemed one of the best. It has been fruited to some 
 extent in this State. Thus far it has proved an early 
 and prolific bearer, the fruit being of an excellent 
 quality. Many trees are being planted, and it is proba- 
 bly destined to be a great favorite. 
 
 The Blood has not been fruited long enough in the 
 State to determine its market value, though most 
 growers plant a few trees. 
 
 Charley Brown is very distinctly marked in fruit and 
 foliage ; like the above it has not been fruited long 
 enough to determine its value for general culture. 
 
 The Sweet Seville and St. Michael's, though not as dis- 
 tinctly marked as the foregoing, are distinguishable by 
 the appearance of the fruit ; the former is one of the 
 most delicious for home use, though too small for profit- 
 able shipment ; the latter is prolific and a good average 
 fruit. 
 
 Acis, Arcadia, Beach's No. 3, Creole, Dummit, Dixon, 
 Excelsior, Homosassa, Higgins, Magnum Bonum, 
 NoNPARiEL, Osceola, Old Vini, Peerless, Tahiti, 
 Spratts, Harmon and Parson Brown, comprise the lead- 
 ing varieties of the common Florida orange ; they are 
 mainly native varieties recently brought to public 
 notice by the Nomenclature Committee of the Florida 
 Fruit Growers' Association, together with a few of 
 foreign origin long grown in the State. Those in 
 
ORANGE CULTURE. 33 
 
 SMALL CAPS ars best known and most highly esteemed. 
 In quality they rank next tn the Navel, the greatest 
 objection to them being their thorny foliage. All the 
 above varieties are similar in appearance, the difference, 
 if any, being too slight to distinguish them in market 
 and of little importance to growei-s generally. This 
 multiplication of varieties differing little in character 
 would seem at first to be useless, confusing the grower 
 and burdening the nuseryman; in fact, however, they 
 serve a good purpose, placing a superior variety within 
 the reach of all and being a safeguard against the num- 
 berless inferior sorts. While, therefore, it is immaterial 
 in planting which of these be selected, it is highly im- 
 portant that a well-known, accredited variety be chosen. 
 
 Botelha, Dulcissima and other recently imported 
 varieties have not been fruited long enough in the State 
 to determine their qualities. 
 
 The Maudarin or Tangerine Orange. — This species 
 of all the citrus tribe is the most delicate and aromatic, 
 though scarcely as luciousas the Sweet Orange of Flori- 
 da. On account of its beautiful shape, color and the 
 ease with which the rind and segments separate, it is 
 highly esteemed as a dessert fruit. Comparatively few ^ 
 are shipped, and these bring an enormously high price. 
 The effect of increased production consequent upon the ^ 
 large number being planted remains to be seen. The 
 trees are hardy and prolific. There are two distinct 
 classes. The first, dwarfed, willowed leaved and yellow 
 fruited ; of this class there are many inferior seedling 
 varieties which have occasioned a prejudice against it 
 in some localities ; the trees can be planted much closer 
 than the Sweet Orange. The second, full sized, large 
 leaved, crimson fruited ; much prized on account of its 
 color. The China and St. Michael's of the former class 
 and the Bijou of the latter are superior varieties. 
 
34 MANVILLE'S TREATISE ON 
 
 The foliage of the Satsuma differs from either of the 
 above; the fruit resembles the Bijou in appearance, 
 though more juicy and possessing a distinct and delicious 
 flavor. It seems to stand more frost than the other 
 varieties of the orange. Though of recent introduction, 
 many trees have been planted and it promises to be a 
 favorite. 
 
 The Bitter Orange. — This species is not cultivated 
 for market in Florida. It is largely grown in Europe, 
 where the fruit is preserved, yielding the celebrated 
 orange marmalade. The rind dried forms the orange 
 peel of commerce ; an essential oil is obtained from the 
 leaves and fruit, and a delicate perfume is made from 
 the flowers ; both fruit, leaves and flowers are much 
 used in medicine. The Sour and Bitter Sweet varieties 
 are found wild in Florida ; they are valuable fruits, and 
 a few trees should find a place in every grove. They 
 are an ornamental tree and the plants make the best 
 stocks on which to propagate the Sweet Orange. 
 
 The Sour makes a fine preserve and has been used 
 to some extent in this State for the manufacture of mar- 
 malade. Its acid juice makes a refreshing drink, 
 especially grateful in summer when lemons are scarce. 
 
 The Bitter Sweet is a good substitute for sweet 
 oranges after the latter have been gathered, as, like 
 the Sour, it retains its perfection on the tree through 
 summer. The grain of the pulp is tender and sweet, and 
 when carefully removed from the bitter inner rind and 
 membranes, the better varieties are very agreeable to 
 the taste. There is a local market for the fruit in 
 summer. 
 

 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 SEASON FOR PLANTING. 
 
 HE BEST TIME.— The deciduous fruit trees 
 of more northern latitudes are entirely dor- 
 mant during a considerable portion of the 
 year, at which time they can be safely handled. 
 Most semi-tropical fruit trees, however, are evergreen 
 and must be moved when growing, still there are seasons 
 when this can be done to much better advantage than at 
 other times. Orange and other citrus trees should be 
 transplanted in winter when, though their foliage is 
 green, they are not actively growing. Some seasons 
 small trees can be successfully transplanted in the rainy 
 season of summer, but it is better to defer it until wintei*. 
 They can be safely moved from the time they cease 
 growing in the fall — usually in November — until they 
 show signs of starting in spring. January is the 
 best month; in the northern part of the State, where it 
 is desired to defer planting until danger of severe cold 
 is over, the first ten days of February will do. Decem- 
 ber is a better time than the latter part of February, and 
 November is far preferable to March or April. Owing 
 to the danger of late frosts in the northern part of the 
 State* some have recommended planting in March and 
 April. This is a mistake, as during these months, which 
 are usually dry, the trees are full of sap and making the 
 most vigorous growth of the year, in fact, no more un- 
 favorable time could be selected during the year than 
 
36 MANVILLE'S TREATISE OIV 
 
 these spring months. The trees generally commence 
 growing in February and should never be dug after the 
 fifteenth of this mouth. Many trees ai*e lost annually 
 by being transplanted too late ; dug from the open ground 
 when full of tender growth, perhaps transported some 
 distance, planted in the warm weather of a southern 
 spring, they must suffer severely if they do not die. 
 Even if dug before they commence growing and " heeled 
 in " until planted, they have to endure the heat and 
 drouth incident to this season of the year ; while if 
 planted earlier, new roots would have formed, and the 
 trees been ready to begin their spring growth at this 
 season. 
 
 Late Planting. — If late planting is unavoidable, the 
 trees should be dug before they commence growing and 
 " heeled in " in a building for the purpose, or other 
 suitable place where temperature, light and moisture 
 can be controlled, and here kept dormant until the 
 time when they are to be planted. In the " heeling-in 
 house," if jjroperly made, low temperature and absence 
 of light prevents the trees from putting on new growth, 
 while abundant moisture keeps them in perfect condi- 
 tion. If planted as soon a^ dug, the tree must sustain 
 itself until new rootlets form, and if late in season, has 
 heated atmosphere and dry ground to contend against. 
 If heeled in properly, the severed roots heal and new 
 feeders are formed while the foliage is not drawing upon 
 the vitality of tree, the plant is thus prepared to absorb 
 food from the soil and begin growing as soon as set in 
 the ground. 
 
CHAPTER VII. 
 
 DISTANCE APART. 
 
 'IZE OF THE TREES.— The general opinion 
 has been heretofore, that sweet seedlings grow 
 larger than budded trees, and budded trees on 
 sweet stocks than those on sour ; and that the 
 distance between the trees in grove should be more or 
 less, according as one or the other of these were planted. 
 This conclusion may have arisen from the dwarf habit 
 of some of the varieties propagated by budding, or from 
 the fact that seedling^ are larger when they reach the 
 bearing age than the budded trees, after which they 
 grow faster than the latter. Budded trees bear younger 
 and smaller than seedlings, and their energies being thus 
 early directed to making fruit rather than wood, their sub- 
 sequent growth is much slower than the latter, whatever 
 may be the size they ultimately attain. Some of the largest 
 trees in the State are budded on sour stocks, and it is 
 questionable whether there is any considerable differ- 
 ence in the size of the mature trees. However this may 
 be, it is of no great consequence, as seedlings are being 
 generally discarded by more progressive growers, and 
 there is too little difference if any between the size at- 
 tained by trees budded on sweet and those budded on 
 sour stocks to make any difference in the distance which 
 should separate them in grove. The orange under 
 favorable circumstances grows to a very large size. The 
 branches of some isolated trees are forty feet or even 
 
38 MANVILLE'S TREATISE ON 
 
 more in diameter. In general planting, they are set from 
 twenty to thirty feet apart, according to the location or 
 the fancy of the grower. 
 
 lu the Northern Part of the State. — In the ex- 
 treme north, where the trees suffer from cold in winter, 
 they should be set as close as 20x20 feet ; at this dis- 
 tance the foliage soon forms an efl&cient protection from 
 frost. 
 
 On Low Lands. — On low lands, where the soil is in- 
 frequently cultivated and seldom stirred, it is impor- 
 tant that the surface be shaded as much as possible. 
 The nearer together the trees are the sooner they will 
 accomplish this object. Twenty by twenty feet is not too 
 close, especially as trees on low land do not attain as 
 large size or great age as on higher land. 
 
 On High Lands. — On high lands in the central and 
 southern portion of the orange growing region, varieties, 
 not dwarfish in tendency, should be allowed more room. 
 Twenty-five by twenty-five feet is not too great a dis- 
 tance where the trees are to be planted in squares, and 
 even where planted 30x30 feet they will ultimately 
 occupy the space. A very good plan is to lay off the 
 rows fifteen feet apart each way, and to set a tree at each 
 alternate intersection of the rows as laid off. This leaves 
 the rows fifteen feet apart, the trees thirty feet apart in 
 the row and twenty-one feet from each other in squares 
 running diagonally across the rows. This gives about 
 one hundred trees to the acre, and should they ever be- 
 come crowded, by removing every other row, they will be 
 left thirty feet apart in regular squares. Some varieties 
 do not grow as large as others ; those less vigorous in 
 growth or of small size can be set from twenty to thirty 
 feet apart as the case may be. Where dwarf trees or 
 other fruits are planted between the rows, the standard 
 trees should be at least 30x30 feet apart The willow- 
 
ORANGE CULTURE. 39 
 
 leaved varieties of the Mandarin do not grow as large 
 as other varieties of the orange, and when planted by 
 themselves, can be set as close as 15x15 feet. 
 
 Dwarf Trees. — If the efforts now being made to dwarf 
 the orange prove permanently successful, and the experi- 
 ments already made certainly promise well, the dwarf trees 
 can be planted betwen the standard trees in the grove, 
 or will form a grove in miniature if planted by them- 
 selves. As they require so little room, gardens and other 
 areas too limited for standard trees can be thus utilized 
 for orange culture. For an account of the experiments 
 which have been made in this direction see article on 
 " Dwarfing the sweet orange " in the appendix to this 
 volume. 
 
 How to Ascertain the Number on an Acre. — 
 The following rules are given for ascertaining the 
 number of trees or plants that can be set on an acre: 
 
 First — When they are set in the common order, that 
 is, in the form of squares or rectangles. 
 
 Rule. — Multiply the distance in feet the rows are apart 
 by the distance apart in the row, and divide 43,560 — the 
 number of square feet in an acre — by the product. 
 
 Example : How many trees, twenty feet apart each 
 way, can be set upon an acre ? 
 
 Solution: Twenty multiplied by twenty equals 400, 
 or the number of square feet each tree will occupy ; 
 43,560 divided by 400 equals 108.9, or the number of 
 trees. 
 
 Second — When set in the quincunx order, as in the 
 
 diagram : 
 
 ^ B C 
 
 E 
 
 A D 
 
 Rule. — Multiply the distance apart in feet in the row 
 
40 MAXVILLE'S TREATISE ON 
 
 {from A to B) by the distance apart and diagonally 
 {from A to E) ; multiply the product so obtained by 
 .866, and divide 43,560 by the product last obtained. 
 
 Example : How many trees, twenty feet apart each 
 way, can be set in the quincunx order on an acre ? 
 
 Solution : Twenty multiplied by twenty and the pro- 
 duct multiplied by .866 equals 346.4, or the number of 
 square feet each tree will occupy ; 43,530 divided by 
 346.4 equals nearly 123, or the number of trees. 
 
 Note I. — Half the distance from A to D may be 
 found by multiplying the distance from A to E by .866. 
 
 Note II. — The tree at E should be in the center of the 
 rectangle formed by those at A, B, C and D. 
 
CHAPTER VIIL 
 
 PLANTING, 
 
 ^|» ULL directions for preparing the soil for a 
 grove appears in a former chapter. The fol- 
 lowing suggestions on planting are given un- 
 der the supposition that these have been com- 
 plied with. 
 
 Handling the Trees. — As soon as the trees are dug 
 or received from the nursery they should be "heeled in" 
 in a cool, damp, shady place, or in other words, they 
 should be buried in a slanting position and covered with 
 eai-th up to their lower branches. In winter they can 
 be kept safely in this manner for weeks and can be set 
 out at leisure. It is very important to the welfare of the 
 trees that they be kept from sun and wind, and that the 
 roots be kept damp from the time they are dug in the 
 nursery until they are planted in grove. When the 
 trees are to be at all exposed before or during planting 
 it is a good plan to protect the roots by dipping them as 
 soon as pruned in a thin mud made of rich soil. Before 
 planting, the broken roots should be removed with a 
 sharp knife and the branches cut back fully half their 
 length. This rule applies to young budded trees with 
 regularly formed tops. Other trees should have their 
 top cut back in about the same proportion. In dealing 
 with trees that have not been systematically pruned, or 
 which have irregular shaped tops the grower will have 
 to use his judgment, as no definite rule can be given 
 
42 MANVILLE'S TREATISE ON 
 
 for such cases. The main stem of the tree should never be 
 severed below the last season's growth as there is noth' 
 ing gained by it and the tree will require some time to 
 recover from the shock. The length of the tap root iS' 
 a matter of no great consequence; from eight to twelve 
 inches upon trees two to four years old is sufficient for 
 all practical purposes. A new tap root, or rather roots 
 will soon be formed if the tree needs them in its new 
 position. When possible the " cutting back " or prun- 
 ing should be done as soon as the trees are dug from 
 the nursery, as the juices are constantly evaporated 
 through the foliage so long as it remains upon the tree. 
 Preliminaries. — After the land has been properly 
 staked off in the form desired, repeated sighting can be 
 avoided and the trees be accurately set by the aid of the 
 following simple device. Take a board long enough to 
 reach across the place to be prepared for the tree, cut a 
 notch in one side opposite the center, and two holes 
 through it, one at either end, as in the following illustra- 
 tion : 
 
 0^ A ^0 
 
 A represents the notch in the side and B B the holes 
 through the ends. Place the board on the ground with 
 the notch (A) against the stake which marks the place 
 for the tree, and drive two short stakes or pegs through 
 the holes (B B) in the ends of the board. The board can 
 now be removed and the soil be prepared for the recep- 
 tion of the tree. When the tree is placed in position and 
 the board put over the pegs again, the collar of the tree 
 can be adjusted to fit the notch, thus bringing the tree 
 into exactly the same position occupied by the stake 
 which marked the place for it. It pays to take pains in 
 laying off the ground to have each tree in its proper 
 
ORANGE CULTURE. 43 
 
 place. It is but little more trouble to have the rows 
 straight and they are much easier cultivated and will 
 always be a source of satisfaction. 
 
 Holes for the trees are not necessary, and when dug 
 to sweeten and pulverize the soil where the general sur- 
 face has not been properly prepared, they should be 
 filled in long enough before the trees are planted to 
 allow the earth that has been removed to become moist- 
 ened through again. The places where the trees are to 
 be set, should be thoroughly pulverized with the spade 
 and hoe, and rounded up a little above the general level. 
 Setting Out the Trees.-When ready for planting, the 
 tree should be placed in position, and holes hollowed 
 out for the tap and lower lateral roots deep enough to 
 allow the upper layer of lateral roots to spread out on 
 the surface. Moist earth should be pressed carefully 
 and firmly about the roots with the hand, giving them 
 as nearly as possible their former positions, especially 
 the rootlets and fibres. Cover with more earth than it 
 is intended shall remain, taking care not to pile it up 
 around the collar. This extra earth serves to keep the 
 roots moist until new rootlets are formed; when the 
 tree commences growing it can be drawn back from the 
 roots. The entire mound thus formed should be covered 
 with a mulching of straw, grass or litter, and the work 
 is finished. This mulch should not be disturbed until 
 the tree begins to grow, but if weeds or grass grow 
 through it they should be removed. 
 
 Watering.— Damp weather is, of course, preferable. 
 Still, the trees can be set with safety any time during the 
 transplanting season, at which time the trees are dor- 
 mant and the weather cool. A moist soil is a great ad- 
 vantage, as it obviates the necessity of immediately or 
 subsequently using water. The use of water while 
 
44 MAN VILLE'S TREATISE ON 
 
 planting hinders the operation ; but if the ground be 
 dry it should be plentifully applied when the work is 
 finished. Frequent watering after the trees have beens 
 set, excej^t in cases of severe drouth, is to be depreca- 
 ted; it makes considerable unnecessary labor, and is of 
 questionable advantage to the tree. It produces a 
 growth dependent upon this water supply, renders the 
 trees more sensitive to extreme heat, and when once be- 
 gun they suffer if it is not kept up. If very dry 
 "Weather renders watering necessary, the ground should 
 be thoroughly saturated, and a& long intervals as possi- 
 ble allowed to intervene between the applications. 
 
 Deep Planting. — Although a great deal has been 
 8aid and written against deep planting, it is still the cause 
 of much loss and failure in orange culture. It is a pro- 
 lific source of disease and if the tree survives there is 
 little prospect of its ever becoming vigorous. In its 
 normal condition the large brace roots of the orange tree 
 protrude above the ground at the collar and should still 
 be exposed when the tree becomes established in its new 
 position after being transplanted. The trees will settle 
 considerable after being planted, and should therefore 
 be set several inches above the surface ; even higher on 
 low land, where it is best to plant them on beds thrown 
 up for the purpose. Trees suffering from being set too 
 deep should be raised at once. 
 
 Large Trees. — In transplanting large trees there is 
 much less risk if they are not pruned some time before 
 their removal. This is done for the same reason that small 
 trees are transplanted, r. e., to produce a growth of fibrous or 
 feeding roots. They should always be moved in winter 
 and the proper time for pruning the roots would be the 
 previous spring or summer. The trees are not shocked 
 so much, if one side be taken at a time. Sufficient time 
 should intervene between the operations on the different 
 
ORANGE CULTURE. 45 
 
 sides, and between pruning and planting to allow the 
 fibrous roots to perfect their growth. The most conven- 
 ient instrument is a sharp spade. A trench should first 
 be dug around the tree at a distance ranging according 
 to its size age and other conditions, and deep enough to 
 bare the lateral roots; then with a quick stroke the 
 roots are severed at both sides of the trench to the depth 
 of the spade, the pieces of roots thus detached are re- 
 moved, the trench filled in and the work is done. The 
 removal of a portion of the severed roots gives the new 
 rootlets a better chance to grow than if the laterals were 
 simply cut and allowed to remain in their former posi- 
 tion. Care should be taken in moving trees whose roots 
 have been pruned that the new, fibrous roots are not in- 
 jured, on which account digging should be commenced 
 at some distance from the line of pruning. In other 
 particulars large trees require the same treatment recom- 
 mended above for smaller trees. 
 
CHAPTER IX. 
 
 culture, 
 
 CULTIVATION. 
 
 HERE is more difference of opinion regard- 
 ing cultivation than perhaps any one point 
 in orange growing. Deep culture, shallow 
 culture, clean culture, cropping, constant 
 nfrequent culture, partial culture, sum- 
 mer shading by a green crop, and mulching a part 
 or the entire surface, are variously advocated with ap- 
 parent reason, as each is applicable under some condi- 
 tions. Some of these methods produce good results only 
 in isolated or exceptional instances, others succeed on 
 certain classes of soil, while others have a general appli- 
 cation. More intelligent growers follow a uniform sys- 
 tem modified to suit the circumstances of soil, loca- 
 tion, etc. 
 
 Deep CultlU'e. — Deep culture does not seem to be 
 injurious on some high, light soils, and in some places 
 where a light, poor top soil is underlaid with a rich sub- 
 soil several feet below the surface ; in fact the trees seem 
 to do better when cultivated deeply. Where deep 
 plowing is to be practiced it should be commenced when 
 the trees are small and followed uninterruptedly to keep 
 the soil aei-ated and porous above the roots, and to pre- 
 vent the latter forming within reach of the plow share. 
 It will not do to alternate between deep and shallow 
 culture, nor to plow up the roots after they have become 
 established near the surface. 
 
ORANGE CULTURE. 47 
 
 Shallow Culture. — Shallow culture is generally the 
 best method, as there are few soils where deep culture is 
 not injurious, and fewer still where it is beneficial. The 
 orange is a surface feeder, and the soils of Florida are 
 not deep and as a general thing do not harden or bake. 
 There is no reason therefore for cultivating deeply, fre- 
 quent shallow stirrings of the surface being all that is 
 necessary to keep the soil mellow and the trees growing. 
 
 Infrequent or Partial Culture. — This method is 
 advocated and practiced by some who recognize the 
 benefits of shading the ground in summer, or observe 
 that some low lauds require very little stirring. Ac- 
 cording to this plan, the soil is stirred but few times dur^ 
 iug the year, generally in the spring and fall, or the 
 area work is confined to a limited space about each 
 tree. Upon some poor soils producing little but coarse 
 weeds, which have to some extent the efiect of a green 
 crop, and where the spring and fall working has been 
 very thorough, this has succeeded passibly well among 
 large trees, but it will not do among small trees. As a 
 rule, however, except on low lands, this is a pernicious 
 practice. When covered with a green crop or mulched, 
 the surface becomes porous and friable, which conduces 
 to the health and growth of the trees ; a natural grow' th 
 of weeds and grass does not answer the same purjjose, 
 but on the contrary renders the soil compact and firm, 
 and absorbs the moisture and nutriment which would 
 otherwise nourish the trees. It is a poor policy to re- 
 duce the cost of cultivation to a minimum from motives 
 of economy, thereby loosing the gi'ow' th the trees would 
 otherwise have made even if they suffer no apparent in- 
 jury. The orange will stand much abuse, but the best 
 results can only be protluced by projier and thorough 
 cultivation. 
 
48 MAXVILLE'S TREATISE ON 
 
 The Suspension of Cultivation Late in Summer 
 
 — to check the growth of the trees and allow them to 
 ''harden up" before cold weather, is open to the same 
 objections as the foregoing. If allowed to stand in 
 grass for so long a time the vitality of the tree is im- 
 paired, and though active growth may be checked, the 
 wood is not matured as perfectly as it would be if the 
 trees were kej^t in full vigor ; in this condition they are 
 more liable to injury from frost or disease. On rich 
 soils, a heavy sod is formed by spring which is trouble- 
 some and difficult to break without injuring the roots of 
 the trees. The spring growth of the trees, which should 
 be the most vigoi'ous during the year, is thus interfered 
 with, and the trees rendered more liable to grow late in 
 the fall. If early culture has been indifferent, or late 
 culture is unusually thorough, this sudden change in 
 the method of treatment may force the sap into the 
 trees, which at this time of year would prove disastrous 
 to them in case of severe frost. If properly cultivated 
 through the season the trees will put on and mature the 
 several growths which they should make through the 
 summer, each in its proper time. Sufficient stirring in 
 the fall to keep down the herbage, which does not grow 
 very rapidly at this season, will not prevent the trees 
 from ceasing active growth as cool weather approaches, 
 which is their natural habit. Warm spells in winter 
 often cause new growth to start out on the trees. Sus- 
 pension of culture makes no difference in this particular, 
 and the most thrifty trees will sustain the least injury. 
 In the more northern counties it is perhaps necessary to 
 resort to some measure to check the circulation of sap 
 in winter. Where this is necessary, seeding the land in 
 oats is a more efficient and less objectionable method of 
 accomplishing this result than allowing the natural 
 growth to take the ground. As a general rule it is bet- 
 
ON ORANGE CULTURE. 49 
 
 ter to keep the land free from grass and weeds the year 
 round. 
 
 Summer Sliadiiig- by a Green Crop. — Clean, con- 
 stant culture in summer is not advisable. When stir- 
 red at this season, in dry weather, the powei-ful niid-cUiv 
 sun renders the earth as hot and dry as an ash heap ; it 
 often remains in this condition through the night, and is 
 still hot a few inches below the surface in the morning. 
 This parches the roots of the trees and prevents their 
 growth. Summer shading by a green crop is a much 
 better plan. Pease or other similar crops planted late 
 in spring will cover the ground through the summer, 
 forming a complete protection from the rays of the sun. 
 They should be planted in hills or drills and cultivated 
 until the vines take the ground, when they will form a 
 •good mulch, keeping the soil cool and mellow and pre- 
 venting other growth. They draw little from the soil, 
 and if desired, the vines can be used for fertilizing or 
 mulching the trees and a second crop raised for seed. 
 
 Cropping. — When the trees are small any crop can 
 be grown between the rows, which does not require til- 
 lage, without interfering with the proper cultivation of 
 the trees. Care should be taken not to plant too near 
 the trees and to contract the area — planted as the roots 
 of the tree extend. A summer crop of melons or other 
 vines will shade the surface as recommended above. 
 Garden vegetables are usually raised for profit in fall 
 and spring ; when this is done pease or other crops can be 
 grown for summer shade, the same as when clean cul- 
 ture is followed at other seasons. While cropping is ad- 
 raissable, it is far better to cultivate solely with regard 
 to the trees'; any other crop is to a greater or less ex- 
 tent a hindrance to this. * 
 
 Other Fruits. — Other fruits adapted to the climate, 
 which are dwarf in their habit or short lived, can be 
 
 'n 
 
50 MANVILLE'S TREATISE ON 
 
 planted between the rows, as it will be some years before 
 the orange trees occuiDy the same space. Limes, and 
 other dwarf species of the citrus, guavas, pine-apples, 
 bananas, grapes (excepting the scuppernong family), 
 peaches, etc., can thus be grown where the climate and 
 soil is adapted to their several requirements. 
 
 Best Methods on High Laud. — The cultivation of 
 high lands and all light, dry soils should be continued from 
 the time the grass and weeds start in spring until vegeta- 
 tion dies in the fall, say from February until October. 
 The surface should receive frequent shallow stirrings, the 
 object being as much to keep the soil loose and porous 
 as to subdue the weeds and grass. This can be done 
 with either sweep, horse hoe, or cultivator. These im- 
 plements are now constructed to run very shallow with 
 special reference to orange culture and so adjusted that 
 the depth can be regulated at will. When possible 
 some green crop should shade the ground in midsum- 
 mer as described above. Most soils left in good condi- 
 tion in October will require no further working until 
 spring. In the southern pait of the State and on some 
 rich lands there is considerable growth during winter; 
 where this is the case the surface should be cultivated 
 lightly, often enough to keep down the grass. If it is 
 necessary to commence cultivation in spring by turning 
 over the surface with the plow, it should be done as 
 lightly as possible, running shallow and taking pains 
 where there is danger of disturbing the roots. 
 
 Best Methods on Low Lands. — Low land culture 
 should be very different from high land culture ; thus 
 far this chapter applies especially to the latter, if what 
 follows seems contradictory, it should be borne in mind 
 that methods admirably adapted to high or light, dry 
 soils are absolutely injurious on low land. The lateral 
 roots of the orange tree, naturally near the surface on all 
 
 ^" UBRA^V, 
 
 M^oa of thi^st^s< 
 
ORANGE CULTURE. 51 
 
 soils on low lands, are necessarily so owing to the prox- 
 imity of water below. It would be very difficult to cul- 
 tivate as required on a light, dry soil without injuring 
 or preventing the formation of surface roots. Low soils 
 are often soaked from rainfall at the season when grass 
 and weeds gi'ow fastest ; if stirred in this condition the 
 grass is not killed, and the hot sun injures the soil as 
 well as the roots of the trees. The best method on such 
 soil cannot be better indicated than by the following 
 quotations from two of the most successful growers on 
 this class of land. Mr. J. T. Tenney, of Federal Point, 
 says : " When first set, small trees may be worked with 
 a plow, being careful not to plow too near, but when the 
 trees attain any considerable size, the plow or even the 
 cultivator should be discarded and the grove cultivated 
 with the hoe alone. Be careful not to cultivate your 
 trees during the midsummer months, but let grass and 
 weeds grow as much as they will, for the reason that the 
 roots being near the surface, the disturbance of the soil 
 about them brings the heated earth to the roots protluc- 
 ing death to them and ' die-back ' to the tree. Some 
 say : ' Why not use the plow instead of the hoe if it be 
 run shallow? ' Because the hoe even will reach some of 
 the roots, and where it does so it cuts them off clean 
 while the plow would simply tear them up and produce 
 disease and decay clear to the body of the tree." Mr. 
 E. H. Hart, of the same place, says : " To insure suc- 
 cess, the trees must be planted on raised beds with water 
 furrows between, and the ground scraped over lightly 
 but once or twice in the season. Under deep or fre- 
 quent culture the trees would become diseased and 
 perish from * die-back.' " Low lands are generally 
 strong and the trees keep growing even if the ground 
 becomes foul, but it would be much better to keep the 
 growth down if it could be done without stirring or ex- 
 
 
 •*^:?;.:>'^. 
 
52 MANVILLE'S TREATISE ON 
 
 posing the soil and roots to the sun. This result is ac- 
 complished by mulching the trees. 
 
 Muldlillg. — As mulching is applicable to high as 
 well as low land, and is a subject of considerable impor- 
 tance, its consideration is reserved for another chapter. 
 
CHAPTER X 
 
 MULCHING. 
 
 TS ADVANTAGES.— Pulverizing the sur- 
 face by frequent stirring, or shading the 
 ground with a green crop, is, in effect, mulch- 
 ing ; and an orange grove can be successfully 
 produced by these methods alone. But mulching, as 
 commonly understood, that is to say, the covering of the 
 surface with dead vegetation, is too important an auxil- 
 iary to be ignored. It is the natural method; the an- 
 nual falling and decay upon the surface of leaves, grass, 
 and other vegetable products, is nature's way of shading, 
 protecting and enriching the soil. Mulching keeps the 
 soil moist and mellow, shades the ground from the sun, 
 and preserves an even temperature, which are the con- 
 ditions required to produce a vigorous and healthy 
 growth of the trees ; and at the same time it obviates 
 the necessity of culture, and supplies all the fertilizers 
 needed on the space it covers. Its value as a means of 
 culture is being more and more appreciated by orchard- 
 ists throughout the country. Some theoretical objec- 
 tions have been urged against its application in orange 
 culture, but the extensive experiments of the last few 
 years have, when properly conducted, pronounced in its 
 favor. Mulching undoubtedly benefits the trees, and 
 its practicability, in any particular location, depends 
 only upon the availability of the material and the ex- 
 pense of its application. 
 
54 MANVILLE'S TREATISE ON 
 
 Its Application. — Dry grass, weeds, straw, pine 
 needles, wire grass, marsh grass, the undergrowth of the 
 pine woods, bagasse, and other like litter are used for 
 mulching. Those that do not decay too quickly, and 
 that make the best fertilizers when decayed, are most 
 desirable. Rotten bark, rotten wood, and similar sub- 
 stances, which will soon decay and help to enrich the 
 soil, can be added to the mulch when the latter is to be 
 applied constantly, in which case, as the mulching is not 
 to be removed, they will not interfere with cultivation. 
 They should be placed on the outer edge of the mulch, 
 or at some distance from the tree, as they are liable to 
 harbor wood-lice or other insects, which would do dam- 
 age if these substances came in contact with the tree. 
 The depth of the mulch required, depends on the char- 
 acter of the soil; it should be thick enough to keep 
 down herbage of all kinds. From three to five inches 
 is usually sufficient for this purpose. It should be 
 spread when the ground is moist — winter being the most 
 favorable season, though it will do no harm if applied 
 at any time. An uncovered space of several inches, and 
 if the trees are large, of several feet, should be left 
 around the stem of the tree to admit air and light to the 
 collar. As a general rule, the more space covered with 
 mulch the better. Where the trees are small, however, 
 it is seldom practicable to cover more than a limited 
 area around each tree ; where this is done it should ex- 
 tend a little beyond the extremities of the roots. Where 
 a portion of the surface is mulched, the remainder 
 should be cultivated in the usual manner as recom- 
 mended in the last chapter. Larger trees shade a por- 
 tion of the ground themselves, the undergrowth is 
 more easily subdued, and the same amount of mate- 
 rial will cover a much larger area. In bearing groves, 
 where it is difficult to apply fertilizers or cultivate in 
 
ORANGE CULTURE. 55 
 
 the ordinary way without disturbing the roots, mulching 
 obviates the necessity of this, and aiFords the trees just 
 such a fertilizer as they need at this age. In some 
 groves of this character the entire surface has been 
 mulched with great advantage. The same is true of 
 groves which have been budded upon wild trees, where 
 the roots are already established near the surface. 
 
 Mulching is adapted to all soils, but is especially 
 valuable upon high, poor land, where it not only acts as 
 a fertilizer, but also protects from sun and drouth ; it is 
 even more so on low, heavy land, where the roots, which 
 cannot penetrate deeply, are protected near the surface. 
 Speaking of methods of low land culture, E. H. Hart 
 says : " For heavy lands, a good mode of treatment is 
 to mulch the rows lengthwise for a width of six feet, and 
 in May or June plant the middles with cow peas, which 
 should be kept clean until they cover the ground." 
 
 Objections Cou.sidered. — Those who oppose mulch- 
 ing, claim that it is expensive, draws the roots to the 
 surface and renders small trees more liable to be killed 
 by cold. Where there is abundant material at hand, as 
 there is in most places in F'lorida, it costs less to mulch 
 than to cultivate and fertilize the same space in the or- 
 dinary way. Mulching does not attract the roots from 
 their natural position, but rather protects and nourishes 
 them near the surface where they belong. Mulching 
 will not render trees of any considerable size more liable 
 to injury from cold, and does not seem to make any 
 difference even where the trees are small. If this should 
 be the case in the extreme north, it can easily be 
 avoided by raking away the mulch during the cold 
 months. The following is from the pen of an experienced 
 grower : 
 
 " It has been urged that mulching makes an orange 
 tree tender and more liable to be killed by a freeze. 
 
56 MAXVILLES TREATISE ON 
 
 " Believing a statement of this kind, I was kept from 
 mulching for nearly three years. Then I only began by 
 a trial on a few trees at first. I am satisfied by careful 
 experiment and observation that no harm can come to 
 trees on that account if properly applied. Old trees and 
 young trees, trees just set out and trees beai'ing 500 
 oranges each, have alike been benefited. Trees that 
 were mulched during la.st winter came out of the freeze 
 much better than those that were without mulching. 
 And now during the present dry weather, whilst other 
 trees are becoming yellow and curling the leaf at mid- 
 day, the mulched trees retain a dark green and healthy 
 color, and continue growing ' right along.' 
 
 " The objection that the roots come to the surface and 
 prevent after culture with the plow or cultivator in con- 
 sequence of mulching is of little force. I do not think 
 trees should be plowed or cultivated where mulch has 
 been or would be applied with advantage. The hand 
 hoe is the only tool I would allow near a growing orange 
 tree, and besides any surface manuring in like manner 
 causes the roots to develop at the top of the ground. 
 The few feeding roots that are cut ofi' in a good hoeing, 
 no more injures the health and life of the tree than a 
 slight pruning of its leaves and branches." 
 
ij:i^zj:i^i2^jj^sa:i^^xj^ ^-!u^^L3Li^'i£f3^zs^.j^ "^ 
 
 CHAPTER XI, 
 
 FERTILIZERS. 
 
 UMUS. — "A pulverulent brown substance 
 formed by the action of air upon solid animal 
 or vegetable matter," is the element that gives 
 fertility to all soils. Some scientists have 
 claimed that vegetable growth could be sustained by 
 artificial means upon a soil containing no humus. Al- 
 though this may have proved true in experiments on a 
 limited scale, still there can be no doubt that in practi- 
 cal agriculture or horticulture the presence of this ele- 
 ment is absolutely necessary to the successful produc- 
 tion of crops. Supplying plant food in this form is 
 nature's method, and therefore a practical and efficient 
 method of keeping up the fertility of the soil. " Take 
 into consideration nature's gi-and and universal compost 
 heap. Of what does it consist ? Of every falling leaf, 
 decaying blade, the remains of all insect and animal life ; 
 these falling to the ground and being incorporated with 
 its universal substance, constitute soil. The coloring of 
 the ground extending on our sand hills from one to four 
 inches deep and in our bay heads or around our lakes or 
 ponds to as many feet. On the rich pampas of South 
 America, the fertile valley of the Mississippi — all over 
 the face of the universe where vegetation grows, nature 
 furnishes in death and decay the germ of a new life, or, 
 in other words, furnishes food for the rejjroduction of 
 
58 MANVILLE'S TREATISE ON 
 
 itself. This food, on our sand hills, in our muck beds, 
 in the Mississippi Valley, all over the world, is identical. 
 This important fact should always be borne in mind." 
 There may be, it is true, such an excess of humus in the 
 soil as will be uncongenial to the growth of plants. 
 Such instances in Florida are extremely rare, however, 
 the soils of the State being, as a general thing, especially 
 upon the high pine and other poor lands, deficient in 
 this element. The only fertilization on such soils that 
 will give lasting and satisfactory results is the applica- 
 tion of humus in one form or another. It should be 
 noted that while humus is the product of both animal 
 and vegetable decay, all decayed animal and vegetable 
 matter is not humus. The term is properly applied to this 
 substance only when in the proper pulverulent and soluble 
 condition adapted to vegetable nutrition. Some soils 
 contain a large amount of decomposed or partially de- 
 composed vegetable matter in an insoluble condition not 
 taken up or assimilated by plants. The action of the 
 air converts this material into plant food or humus ; 
 such soils should, therefore, be aerated by stirring and 
 by drainage when necessary. Alkaline mineral fertili- 
 zers are efficient in bringing about this change, as are 
 also animal fertilizers to some extent, owing to the 
 ammonia which they contain. 
 
 Green Crops incorporated with the soil have long 
 been regarded as effective as a fertilizer or renovator of 
 worn out lands. The plants thus turned into the soil 
 derive their sustenance largely from the atmosphere and 
 rainfall, and return to the soil a much larger amount 
 of plant food (humus) than they take from it. Like all 
 fertilizers, composed largely of humus, they improve the 
 mechanical texture of the soil as well as increase its 
 fertility, an effect by no means unimjiortant. There is 
 no better way of enriching orange lands. Many plants 
 
ORANGE CULTITRR 59 
 
 have been recommended for this purpose. These are 
 valuable in proportion to the cost of seed, rapidity of 
 growth and the amount of vegetable matter they afford. 
 Cow pease are extensively used and yield perhaps the 
 best results. They should be sown in May or June 
 either broadcast or in drills and plowed in before they 
 commence to run. After they become matted it is diffi- 
 cult to turn them under with a plow. This method en- 
 riches the general surface by distributing the vines 
 evenly through the soil ; it is a good way to prepare the 
 ground for treas, and can be continued for some time 
 while the trees are small. Among large trees the roots 
 interfere with the operation, and it is a better way to 
 apply the vines directly to the trees. For this purpose 
 they should be planted in drills or hills, worked fre- 
 quently until the pods begin to form. At this stage of 
 their growth they are richest in nutrient elements and 
 should then be cut with the hoe. Some advise piling 
 them around the trees and allowing them to rot on the 
 surface, but the better plan is to bury them lightly just 
 beyond the roots of the trees. This keeps the vines 
 moist, facilitating decay and at the same time secures 
 all the fertilizing elements they contain, some of which 
 would escape in gaseous form if allowed to remain un- 
 covered. Where the trees are too large, or for any 
 other reason it is not convenient to grow the pease be- 
 tween the rows, they can be grown else\vhere, and if the 
 roots prevent their being buried, they can be covered 
 lightly on the surface. Succulent weeds, grass and other 
 rank growth carried to the grove and applied green, an- 
 swers the same purpose admirably. Some recommend 
 sowing rye, oats or barley in the fall and turning the 
 same under in spring. 
 
 Mulching, another and similar method of supplying 
 
eO MANVILLE'S TREATISE ON 
 
 humus to the soil, has been treated at length in the pre- 
 ceding chapter. 
 
 Muck is one of the principal sources from which, 
 humus is obtained in this State. It is one of the most 
 abundant and valuable fertilizing agencies we have ; it 
 abounds in swamps, marshes, ponds, " bay heads " and 
 along the shores of streams and lakes. In these muck- 
 beds vast quantities of organic matter, partially excluded 
 from the air, has slowly decomposed. The compounds 
 thus formed, contain the elements of plant-food, but in 
 an insoluble condition. For this reason applying muck 
 in a raw state as dug from the ground, is of little benefit 
 to the trees and often really injurious. The only way 
 it can be of any value in this condition is when pulver- 
 ized and incorporated with the soil, it thus affords an 
 abundance of plant-food, but in an insoluble condition, 
 requiring the acticm of tillage and exposure to the sun 
 and air, or the application of other agencies, as lime, 
 etc., to render it suitable food for plants. Muck is ren- 
 dered soluble—the only condition in which it can be 
 taken up by plants — by the action of the .atmosphere. 
 Throwing it up in heaps and allowing it to remain until 
 light and friable, is generally a sufficient prepara- 
 tion when it is to be composted with other materials ; 
 when it is to be applied directly to the soil it takes too 
 long to reduce it in this manner to the proper condition, 
 and it should be treated with lime, ashes, potash, or 
 other alkaline fertilizers. Lime is said to be more effi- 
 cient if slacked in brine. The ammonia of nitrogenous 
 manures acts in the same way — indeed, this qualitj' of 
 absorbing, combining with and retaining in a soluble 
 condition the valuable ingredients of more active fertili- 
 zers is one of the most valuable properties of muck. On 
 this account it is far more valuable combined with other 
 fertilizers or used as a basis for composting than when 
 
ORANGE CULTURE. 61 
 
 applied directly to the soil. Black sand is sometimes 
 mistaken for muck, with a little practice a purely vege- 
 table deposit is i-eadily distinguished from such worth- 
 less material. 
 
 Barn Yard Manure, containing, as it does, all the 
 necessary elements of plant-food, has been from time 
 immemorial the staple fertilizer of the farmer and fruit- 
 grower. It is the standard by which the value of all 
 commercial fertilizers are determined. There is no bet- 
 ter fertilizer for the orange. Well-rotted and applied 
 directly to the soil it is an efficient fertilizer. This is 
 not an economical method of using it however. Stable 
 manure and all fertilizers made from the blood, bones. 
 flesh, or excrements of animals, contain an excess of 
 ammonia and other valuable ingredients which escape 
 in the form of gasses during the process of decomposi- 
 tion. Indeed, if decomposition be complete there will 
 be little left but humus. If composted with muck, these 
 elements are not only saved but the muck through their 
 action is converted into plant-food. Thus one load of 
 stable manure, composted with two loads of muck, will 
 make three loads of fertilizer equal to the best barn 
 yard manure. The same is true of other animal fertili- 
 zers to a greater or less extent. 
 
 Cotton Seed is also a good fertilizer for the orange. 
 The cotton seed meal, if pure, is more valuable than the 
 crude seed, as the former contains more elements of fer- 
 tility than the same weight of the latter. Like other 
 active fertilizers the best result is obtained by compost- 
 ing it with other materials. 
 
 The above are natural fertilizers. In addition to 
 these, the following mineral fertilizers are used to some 
 extent in orange culture. It should be borne in mind, 
 that while they are often very beneficial, their use is not 
 really necessary, as the natural fertilizers afford all the 
 
62 MANVILLE'S TREATISE ON 
 
 elements necessary to sustain the trees in perfect condi- 
 tion. They are sometimes applied directly to the soil, 
 but are especially valuable as constituents of the com- 
 post heap. 
 
 Lime, like other alkaline fertilizers, acts by neutraliz- 
 ing acids, rendering insoluble substances soluble, or by 
 forming new combinations in soils or fertilizers. Nu- 
 tritive elements, existing in soils in a condition not 
 suitable for plants, are thus rendered available. By 
 sweetening " sour " earth, hastening decay and prepar- 
 ing crude elements for plant-food, it forms a valuable 
 addition to soil or compost. It is not, strictly speaking, 
 a fertilizer, as it is not itself taken up by plants. Its 
 effect on soils generally is to impoverish, for which reason 
 it should not be applied directly to the soil, except 
 where it contains a superabundance of plant-food in an 
 insoluble condition as on wet, boggy lands. Its princi- 
 pal use in orange culture is in the preparation of muck. 
 
 Potash acts much in the same way as lime, but is 
 more valuable as a fertilizer. It scarcely pays to pur- 
 chase the commercial article for application to orange 
 trees, at least until they attain the bearing age. In the 
 form of ashes we have it combined with other valuable 
 ingredients in an available form. Hard wood ashes is 
 one of the best fertilizers for orange trees. Like lime, 
 they are best used combined with muck. Potash or 
 lime should not be combined with nitrogenous manure. 
 " Potash, most available to us in the shape of ashes, 
 should be used strictly as a manure ; but the farmer 
 sliould always remember the property of both ashes and 
 lime of displacing or driving off ammonia. Frequently 
 they will take ashes and lime and combine them in the 
 same compost heap with barn yard manure, chicken- 
 house scrapings, or cotton seed. Knowing that each is 
 good, he naturally supposes the combination excellent, 
 
ORANGE CULTURE 63 
 
 when, in fact, it destroys in a large degree the value of 
 the other fertilizers. This important element, the ashes 
 or lime, displaces from its proper combinations, and it 
 escapes ; hence the manure is damaged." 
 
 Phosphoric Acid is perhaps the most important 
 mineral fertilizer applied to the orange. As it enters 
 largely into the composition of the fruit or seed, it is es- 
 pecially applicable to bearing trees. It is derived from 
 raw bone, bone ash, bone black, phospate guanos, etc. 
 In the form of ground bone it can be applied directly 
 to the soil with good effect. But as superphosphate, 
 ground bone, or in other form, it gives the best results 
 when composted. 
 
 Laud Plaster has been recommended by some as 
 beneficial on sandy soils, absorbing and retaining the 
 volatile manures so easily expelled by our abundant 
 sunshine. 
 
 The Talue of the Compost Heap the writer has 
 endeavored to keep constantly before the reader in the 
 foregoing pages. When intelligently composted the 
 fertilizing properties of all manures are vastly increased, 
 and valuable elements which otherwise go to waste, are 
 saved. Some valuable manures applied in a crude state 
 are injurious, when composted all such injurious effects 
 are avoided. It also affords an opportunity of utilizing 
 the debris of the farm, animal and vegetable refuse of 
 all kinds should be carried to the compost heap and in 
 this way converted into valuable fertilizers. Muck, 
 where it can be obtained, forms the best basis for the 
 compost. Straw, dry grass, pea vines, etc., can be added 
 with profit. Herbage, cut green, can be added with 
 good eflfect, owing to the nitrogen (ammonia) it contains. 
 Where muck cannot be had, these latter humus-produc- 
 ing substances are especially valuable. The compost 
 heap should be sheltered from the weather and kept 
 
64 MANVILLE'S TREATISE ON 
 
 moist to facilitate decomposition, and should be turned 
 over or thoroughly mixed occasionally if necessary. It 
 is not ready for use until it is so thoroughly decomposed 
 as to be entirely homogeneous and pulverulent. One 
 of the best ingredients for the compost is barn yard 
 manure. It should be mixed in the proportion of two 
 parts of muck to one of manure. Other animal manures 
 can be substituted for stable manure in about the same 
 proportion. Another combination, which has been 
 highly recommended, is one part stable manure, one 
 part cotton seed (or cotton seed meal), and three parts 
 muck. If the muck is to be treated with ashes or lime, 
 this should be done some time before it is composted 
 with the manure, in order that the latter be not injured 
 by the loss of its ammonia, which these ingredients 
 would occasion. Another way of using muck with 
 stable manure is to place it under the feet of the stock ; 
 it is not only thoroughly mixed with the manure in this 
 way but absorbs the urine, which is the richest portion 
 of animal excrement. Many formulas for composting 
 have been recommended, all of which are good and can 
 be used according to the material at hand. Dr. G. W. 
 Davis, in his excellent " Treatise on the Culture of the 
 Orange," says : " One of the best fertilizers we ever used 
 for the growing orange trees was a compost of muck, 
 hard wood ashes and fine ground bone — three parts 
 mucl'., two parts ashes, and one part bone. Sink a box 
 in the ground sufficient to contain the amount of com- 
 post you desire to make. First, a layer of finely decom- 
 posed muck, then a layer of finely ground bone, then 
 ashes, and so on alternately until your compost is com- 
 plete ; finishing off with a thick layer of muck, moisten 
 thoroughly Avith water, and at intervals of two or three 
 weeks renew the moistening ; when in about three 
 months the solution of plant food will be complete. No 
 
ON ORANCxE CULTURE. 65 
 
 escape of ammonia will occur while the fishes are dis- 
 solving the bone, as the muck will absorb that as fast as 
 it is developed. Remove from the box, mix thoroughly 
 and you have a complete manure rich in plant food." 
 The Department of Agriculture of the State of Georgia 
 has, in a series of experiments, extending through the 
 past six years, carefully compared a compost of super- 
 photr-phate, cotton seed and stable manure with the best 
 grade of commercial fertilizers. The result has been 
 decidedly in favor of the former. The following formu- 
 las are given in the report of these experiments : 
 
 •" If the stable manure and cotton seed have been pro- 
 tected from waste by exposure to rain and sun, this formu- 
 la is recommended : Stable manure, 650 pounds ; green 
 cotton seed, 650, and superphosphate 700 pounds, mak- 
 ing a ton of 2,000. If the compost is intended for use 
 on soil particularly deficient in potash, the following 
 formula may be employed : Stable manure, 600 
 pounds ; cotton seed, green, 600 pounds ; superphos- 
 phate, 700 pounds, and kainit, 100 pounds, mak- 
 ing a ton of 2,000 pounds. These ingredients may 
 be varied in proportions to adapt the resulting composts 
 to different soils or crops, but either of the above is 
 recommended as giving satisfactory results on any class 
 of soils and on all cultivated crops. 
 
 '' The , ingredients may be mixed either by building 
 up the heap by alternate layers of the ingredients, or 
 they may be thoroughly mixed and then thrown into a 
 heap. In either case water should be freely used on the 
 coarse materials while composting. A plan of compost- 
 ing followed by many consists in spreading under shelter 
 a layer of stable manure four inches thick ; on this 
 sprinkle a portion of the jjhosphate ; next spread a layer 
 of cotton-seed three inches thick ; wet these thoroughly 
 with water and then apply more of the phosphate ; next 
 
66 MANVILLES TREATISE ON 
 
 spread another layer of stable manure three inches 
 thick, and continue to repeat these layers in the above 
 order, and in proportion to the quantity of each used to 
 the ton, until the material is consumed. Cover the 
 whole mass with stable manure, or sc2*apings from the 
 lot, one or two inches thick. Allow the heap to stand 
 in this condition until a thorough fermentation takes 
 place, which will require from three to six weeks, ac- 
 cording to circumstances dependent upon a proper de- 
 gree of moisture and the strength of the materials used. 
 When the cotton seed are thoroughly killed with a 
 sharp hoe or mattock, cut down vertically through the 
 layers, pulverize and shovel into a heap, where the fer- 
 mentation will be renewed and the compost be still 
 further improved. Let it lie two weeks after cutting 
 down ; it will then be ready for use. 
 
 The so-called Complete Manures have been ex- 
 tensively used in orange culture, giving satisfaction in 
 some instances and dissatisfaction in others. They are 
 said to contain the chemical elements in the same pro- 
 portion as found in the plant which they are designed to 
 nourish, the ingredients and their relative proportions be- 
 ing altered according to the requirements of the crop to 
 which they are to be applied. It is doubtful whether 
 chemical analysis can be safely relied upon to this extent 
 in the manufacture of fertilizers. Chemistry deals only 
 with dead matter, by it we learn what forms the dead 
 plant ; it affords us means of ascertaining the component 
 parts of the living plant, and if these be the same as in the 
 dead form, it fails to indicate how they are affected by the 
 vital principle. It is quite possible that vegetable nu- 
 trition goes on entirely independent of chemical action, 
 perhaps resolving the plant food taken up from the 
 soil into more ultimate elements than chemistry has yet 
 been able to do. The following is from Youman's 
 
ORANGE CULTURE 67 
 
 Chemistry: "Prof. Auderson states that it is only in 
 rare instances possible to connect together tlae chemical 
 composition and properties of the soil ; that analysis is 
 frequently incapable of distinguishing between a fertile 
 and a barren soil ; that it discloses only a part of the 
 conditions of fertility, and that with each advancement 
 in the accuracy of its processes the difficulties have in- 
 creased rather than diminished. Still, in the study of 
 soils we cannot dispense with the aid that chemistry 
 affords." However this may be, it is probable that 
 other manurial properties than their chemical constitu- 
 ents gives this class of fertilizers their value, which is 
 only determined by actual experiment. These and 
 most other commercial fertilizers, which are prepared 
 for immediate application, act quickly, though their 
 effect is seldom lasting, forcing the trees into rapid but 
 often abnormal growth. They may be adapted to the 
 production of annual crops, but are too stimulating and 
 concentrated to be applied to orange trees. 
 
CHAPTER XII. 
 
 FERTILIZING. 
 
 M'0^ ONSIDERABLE space has been given to 
 '•'^^'' ■ the subject of fertilization, because in most 
 places in Florida it is the sine qua non in 
 orange farming, the great ])r()blem being to 
 accomplish this most effectively at the least possible 
 cost. The orange can be grown u])on very poor sf)il, 
 but with indifferent success ; it is naturally a strong 
 grower and a voracious feeder and responds generously 
 if afforded a liberal supply of plant food. 
 
 The Best Fertilizers. — Various fertilizers are used 
 and different methods employed in their application. In- 
 deed, the experimental and hap-hazard nature of the 
 methods generally employed, is one reason why better re- 
 sults are not obtained. The present extensive use of com- 
 mercial fertilizers in orange culture is to be deprecated. 
 Although they are easily transported and handled, and can 
 be applied without loss of time, producing an immediate 
 effect, they are expensive, and it is questionable whether 
 the results obtained are commensurate with the outlay. 
 Again, there is no safeguard against their adulteration, 
 and a large proportion of them are undoubtedly adul- 
 terated. It is impossible fort he grower to detect this, 
 and he has no means of knowing whether his applica- 
 tion will prove beneficial, useless or injurious. Those 
 fertilizers which are used with the best results in orange 
 culture are indicated in the preceeding chapter. The 
 
ORANGE CULTURE. 69 
 
 mineral fertilizers enumerated are not designed for gen- 
 ei'al application and should only be used on soils and 
 under circumstances where they have special applica- 
 tion. The natural fertilizers are best suited to the 
 orange and are most economically used in the form of 
 composts. As it matters little which particular material 
 or formula for combinations are used, those materials and 
 methods should be used in any particular locality, which 
 are least expensive and most readily a[)plied. 
 
 The Best Time. — Fertilizers should not be applied 
 until the trees have taken hold upon the soil and com- 
 menced growing after being planted. If there is to be but 
 one application during the year it should be made early 
 in spring, say in February or in March ; if the trees 
 are to be fertilized twice, the second application should 
 be made in June or July. They should not be fertilized 
 later than this as there is a possibility of injury from 
 frost if the trees are forced into too active growth late in 
 season. 
 
 Application. — Whatever the fertilizer may be, ex- 
 cepting of course, green crops and mulching, it should 
 be reduced to the proper homogenous and pulverulent 
 condition before it is fit for use. If the trees are to re- 
 ceive individual applications, the soil should be drawn 
 back with the hoe in a circle just beyond the extremi- 
 ties of the feeding roots and the fertilizer spread lightly 
 over the surface thus laid bare, raked in and covered 
 lightly by drawing the earth which has been removed 
 back to its place again. As the trees grow larger, the 
 better way when possibfe is to cast the fertilizer broad 
 cast and turn it under lightly with the plow, or thor- 
 oughly mix it w4th soil with the cultivator. A large 
 quantity is not necessary to keep the trees in vig- 
 orous growing condition, a limited amount, in the 
 proper condition, frequently applied, produces the best 
 
70 MANVILLE'S TREATISE ON 
 
 results. The common practice of scattering fertilizers 
 upon the surface and simply raking them in, or at least, 
 but imperfectly mixing them with the soil, is a poor one. 
 While they should not be turned under too deeply, they 
 should be completely covered with soil or thoroughly 
 incorporated with its substance. 
 
 Leachy Soils. — Although the soils and subsoils of 
 Florida are for the most part sandy, it is a mistaken 
 notion that there is any considerable loss of fertilizers 
 through their being carried down beyond the reach of 
 the roots by rainfall, or in other words, through the 
 leachy nature of the soil. The fact is that the greatest 
 and only loss of any consequence is by evaporation oc- 
 casioned by the action of sun and air. This is one of 
 the reasons why constant culture in mid-summer is so 
 injurious, stirring the ground continuously at this season 
 soon bleaches and impoverishes the soil. One of the 
 earliest settlers and most celebrated orange growers in 
 Florida is the authority for the statement, that the 
 richest land in the State can be so completely exhausted 
 by constant stirring without allowing anything green 
 to grow, that at the expiration of a few years it will not 
 sprout cow pease. The writer cannot do better than 
 quote the following, on this point, from an article which 
 appeared in the Country Gentleman, having special refer- 
 ence to the sands of New Jersey, but equally applicable 
 to Florida: 
 
 " We are continually hearing and reading of the 
 leachy character of light soils, especially those having 
 a sandy sub-soil. Now, there is no more mistaken idea 
 in existence than this, that sandy soil, being leachy, is 
 liable to suffer terrible from drouth. The writer's soil 
 is quite light, in places very light, but it rarely suffers* 
 from dry weather, and never from wet. In a dry time 
 the cultivator will turn up moist soil, and the corn and 
 
ORANGE CULTURE. 71 
 
 mangles will go on growing and retain their color when 
 crops on clay soils are wilted and baked. He has seen 
 clay land cracked open with dry weather and the sur- 
 face too hard to be touched, while sandy soils remained 
 loose and absorbent, and were continually bringing up 
 moisture from below. The soil at Rothamsted is clay 
 and Mr. Lawes states that nitric acid is lost with great 
 rapidity from his soil in the drainage water ; therefore, 
 it might be said that clay soil is lekchy. It is well- 
 known that a sandy loam soil retains and holds in ab- 
 sorption a much larger quantity of water, and resists 
 evaporation much better than a clay soil. It must then 
 be even less leachy than a clay soil. In actual practice 
 and from long experience, he is well satisfied that a 
 light, sandy, loam soil can never be so thoroughly satu- 
 rated with manure by any ordinary course of farming 
 as to become affected one foot from the surface, unless 
 it is by the ploughing in of manure to that depth. So long 
 as the manure is kept within six inches of the surface 
 the line of dark soil will be less than a foot in depth. 
 But supposing that the manure should flow downwards 
 two feet, that would be all the better, for the roots would 
 be after it without fail, And very quickly. But the 
 manure does not pass downward through the sand ; as 
 he has proven by digging under his manure heaps and 
 barnyards exposed to all the rains of the season for a 
 year — he found signs of it but an inch or so below the 
 surface on the sandy soil. 
 
 " To further test the matter, Mr. Stewart had some 
 bottomless glass test tubes, two inches in diameter, filled 
 with sandy sub-soil, clean and yellow in color, a foot 
 deep with an inch of space on the top. Every week he 
 fills this inch with liquid manure of the color of coffee, 
 gathered from the manure gutter and diluted with water. 
 This is equivalent to 52 inches of rainfall in the year. 
 
72 MANVILLE'R TREATISE ON 
 
 The surface is exposed to the air under cover. He has 
 been keeping this in operation for three years, and as 
 yet not a drop of water has passed through the bottom 
 with the least appearance of color or mixture or any 
 scent whatever, nor has he until recently found any in- 
 dication of the presence of organic matter in the filtered 
 water by a test of nitric acid. The soil is now discol- 
 ored for about three inches in depth, which is not more 
 than a fourth of the depth he wants fields enriched. To 
 call such soils as this leaky, or without a bottom, or 
 unable to hold manure, is a great mistake." 
 
 Mr. .Steward admits that light soils require peculiar 
 management. Contrary to the general opinion, he be- 
 lieves them to be the very soils for diary farms — being 
 warm, dry, and yet moist; never muddy ; easily worked ; 
 productive of the very best fodder crops, such as rye, 
 oats and pease, clover, orchard grass, corn, mangels and 
 millet ; and of the very best market crops, as potatoes, 
 pease, beans, sweet corn, melons, carrots, turnips and 
 tomatoes, and there is no other farming that is so profit- 
 able as these two combined. 
 
 Hammock Laud. — Rich hammock lands require lit- 
 tle fertilizing for some years, but even on such lands it 
 is well to turn under green crops or to apply fertilizers 
 occasionally to keep their fertility up to the standard. 
 
 Young Trees. — While the trees are young the ob- 
 ject is to hasten them along to the bearing age as soon 
 as possible and they should be kept growing as rapidly 
 as is consistent with perfect health. To accomplish this, 
 active nitrogenous manures are applied with advan- 
 tage. 
 
 Beariug Trees. — When the trees reach the bearing 
 age, the object is to produce the greatest possible amount 
 of perfect fruit. If the same manures are still applied, 
 the fruit, though large and fine in appearance, will be 
 
ORANGE CULTURE. 73 
 
 coarse, pulpy, and insipid, indicating that bearing trees 
 require a change of fertilizers. As the trees are no 
 longer growing so rapidly they do not require fertilizers 
 which produce wood, but rather those which go to make 
 up the fruit. The fruit or seed contains a much larger 
 percentage of potash and phosphoric acid than other 
 portions of the plant, the latter element is especially 
 essential to all mature plants. Though a limited amount 
 of stable manure or similar fertilizer, if thoroughly com- 
 posted, will produce no bad effect and keep the trees 
 growing moderately, still for application to bearing 
 trees, the quantity of nitrogenous manure should be 
 largely reduced. Potash, phosphoric acid or fertilizers 
 containing these ingredients such as ashes, ground bone, 
 etc., can be substituted for them with advantage, and 
 either applied directly to the trees or in compost, the 
 latter being far preferable. Or in place of more stimu- 
 lating fertilizers, the grower can rely entirely and with 
 equally as good effect upon decayed vegetation in the 
 form of muck, mulch, or green crop ; these will sustain 
 a healthy growth of wood, and at the same time afford 
 material for the production of superior fruit. 
 
CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 PRUNING. 
 
 ROM the fact that the orange tree, if allowed 
 to grow without training, will in time acquire 
 a symmetrical form and reasonable fruitfuln ess, 
 many have inferred that it requires little or 
 no pruning in order to produce the best results. This 
 is an error, however, for nature will accomplish the de- 
 sired result much sooner and more satisfactorily if judi- 
 ciously aided with the knife and saw. At the same 
 time it is also true that more harm than good is often 
 done by an injudicious use of these instruments ; hap- 
 hazard or arbitrary methods are always injurious. 
 
 Object. — The object to be accomplished and the 
 methods to be used should always be kept distinctly in 
 view. Orange trees are pruned to promote growth and 
 fruitfulness. This is done in three ways : 
 
 1. By removing decayed or useless branches. 
 
 2. By assisting the tree to form a proper shape. 
 
 3. By admitting light and air to the interior of the 
 tree. 
 
 Excepting the necessary " cutting back " at the time 
 of transplanting, the above comprises all the objects to 
 be accomplished in pruning orange trees. 
 
 System. — The system of pruning applied to the ap- 
 ple, peach, pear, and other fruits of more northern lati- 
 tudes, is not adapted to the orange. The former make 
 a regular growth at stated times each year and by fol- 
 
ORANGE CULTURE. 75 
 
 lowing a certain plan of pruning year after year the 
 tree is given the desired form. Although the orange and 
 other citrus fruits are more irregular both in their habit 
 and time of growth, requiring a different method of 
 treatment in this particular ; still, if pruning be com- 
 menced early enough and followed up systematically, 
 the growth of the tree will be guided in the right direc- 
 tion, and it will increase in size much faster and assume 
 the proper shape much sooner than it would otherwise 
 have done. 
 
 Young Trees.— The most important time in forming 
 the shape of an orange tree is during the first two or 
 three years after it has been budded. The tree needs 
 the closest attention at this time and should be gone 
 over every week or ten days during the growing season, 
 the useless shoots removed and each successive growth 
 pinched back so as to form a regular and systematical 
 top. If the buds are properly pruned for the first two 
 or three years, their subsequent pruning is greatly sim- 
 plified and they will rapidly assume the desired form. 
 This point will bear emphasizing. While orange trees, 
 after they attain any considerable size, cannot be pruned 
 down to form low heads, pruned up to form high heads, 
 or shaped at will with the same facility as some other 
 fruits which have been systematically trained, still, if 
 properly pruned while young, they will naturally and 
 rapidly grow into beautifully and systematically shaped 
 trees. Trees thus trained in the nursery are far prefer- 
 able to those which have been allowed to grow at will. 
 Little attention has been given heretofore to this matter, 
 but nurserymen and propagators are now giving it the 
 attention it deserves. 
 
 Older Trees. — After the buds have grown two or 
 three years and the trees have been set in grove form, 
 the pinching back practiced in the nursery is no longer 
 
76 MANVILLE'S TREATISE ON 
 
 practicable, and the trees must be allowed to some ex- 
 tent to take their own course. It will no longer do to 
 shorten the growing branches of the tree. Water 
 sprouts, however, from either the body or top must not 
 be permitted to grow ; a distinction is to be made be- 
 tween the strong shooting branches, which are to form 
 the enlarged top, and the crude immature water sprouts 
 which are to be removed. Limbs which chafe or inter- 
 fere with each other should also be removed. The in- 
 terior of the tree should be kept free from dead wood, 
 thorns and small branches. The orange bears all its 
 fruit upon the terminal branches and the inner branches 
 add nothing to its capacity for fruit. The head of the 
 mature tree extends from the ground at the ex- 
 tremities of the lateral branches in symmetrical form to 
 the topmost bough, and the interior kept open allows 
 light and air to penetrate freely and prevents the har- 
 boring of insects. This is the natural as well as the 
 most advantageous form. If allowed to grow without 
 attention, the lateral branches reach to the ground on 
 either side and the inner twigs and branches decay and 
 fall off; if these are pruned away, however, the ener- 
 gies of the tree, which would be taxed with their re- 
 moval, are directed exclusively to making new wood, 
 thus increasing the bearing surface of the tree. Very 
 few, if any of the trees that have been planted up to this 
 time in the State, have been pruned while young, accord- 
 ing to any particular plan or system, and they conse- 
 quently present every variety of form imaginable. 
 Here, common sense must be the guide, and the opera- 
 tion modified and adapted to the exigences of each indi- 
 vidual case. Keep the inside of the head open, and if 
 the tree has not yet reached maturity, select those 
 branches on all sides best suited to form a symmetrical 
 top, remove other branches and smaller limbs from the 
 
ORANGE CULTURE 77 
 
 inside of the tree. The trees will look rather bare for a 
 time, but the branches thus selected and trained will 
 soon form a more shapely top. It will not do after the 
 first two.or three years (during which time the shape of 
 the tree should be determined) to cut back the principal 
 upward shooting branches of the tree in order to form a 
 low head or to extend the lateral branches, this will not 
 accomplish the object and will only result in checking 
 the growth of the tree. If the trees run up tall and 
 straight, as is often the case with trees that have not 
 been properly pruned, especially with seedlings, after 
 the thick branches have been removed from the inside 
 of the tree, the long straight branches that stretch sky- 
 ward can be bent over and fastened in this position by 
 lines tied to stakes driven into the ground. This not only 
 encourages the trees to extend their branches laterally, 
 but also hastens fruit bearing, as does any operation 
 which checks the upward flow of sap. 
 
 Height of the Stem. — It matters little whether the 
 stem be one or four feet high so far as the ultimate 
 shape of the tree is concerned, as the outer limbs ap- 
 proach constantly nearer and eventually touch the 
 ground in either case. But while the tree is young, the 
 lower branches are a great protection to the stem, and 
 for this reason should be encouraged to form as low 
 down as possible, though it will be necessary to remove 
 them as the tree becomes larger and the main lateral 
 •branches extend farther. If the tree has been trained 
 when young to branch at some distance from the ground, 
 forming a long stem, the branches cannot of course be 
 made to protect the stem until the pendant laterals ex- 
 tend out far enough to do this. 
 
 Time. — When pruning is begun when the trees are 
 young and continued systematically as they grow older, 
 it makes little difference at what season of the year it is 
 
78 MANVILLE'S TREATISE ON 
 
 done, as there would be little to remove at any one 
 time the effect on the tree would be slight. With bear- 
 ing trees the bulk of the work can be most conveniently 
 done perhaps, after the fruit has been gathered .and be- 
 fore the trees bloom, as at this time there is no danger 
 of interfering with the fruit. When considerable wood 
 is to be taken from the trees, or there is to be extensive 
 pruning, it should always be done in the spring after all 
 danger of frost is over. If done earlier it is apt to start 
 the trees growing, rendering them liable to injury from 
 cold. When done at the proper time the trees have all 
 summer to grow in, and by fall the openings have been 
 closed up by new wood and the trees are prepared for 
 winter. 
 
 Instruments. — The instruments used in pruning 
 should always be kept sharp ; a smooth, clean cut will 
 heal over in half the time required by a rough, uneven 
 wound. Large branches should be cut with the saw ; the 
 knife should be used for smoothing over the cuts made by 
 the saw and in making smooth cuts in severing smaller 
 branches frohi the larger limbs ; the shears are the best in- 
 strument for cutting back the smaller branches and for re- 
 moving thorns and dead wood. In cutting back a limb or 
 branch make a clean cut close to a bud on the side from 
 which the next growth is desired, in this way the new 
 growth is directed and the form largely controlled. 
 
 Root Pruning. — Root pruning is practiced to pre- 
 pare large trees for transplanting, and sometimes to pro- 
 mote fruit bearing. For particulars regarding the oper- 
 ation, see chapter on planting. 
 

 tc^ta^is^Li^xxj;^^^!!^^ 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 DISEASES. 
 
 *)^' HE orange and its congeners are perhaps the 
 longest-lived fruit trees grown in semi-tropi- 
 cal climates. Where surrounded by condi- 
 tions, which conduce to their most perfect de- 
 velopment, they live and flourish for upwards of a cen- 
 tury. Indeed, we have recoixi of trees which have sur- 
 vived more than four hundred years. In its best estate 
 in Florida, the orange tree is seldom or never affected 
 by disease, and premature decay or disease, where it 
 exists, is largely if not entirely attributable to the in- 
 adaptation of location, soil, food or culture to the i-e- 
 quirements of the tree. Proper conditions in these par- 
 ticulars will invariably produce healthy trees. In other 
 words, no disease has yet appeared in this State which 
 attacks the orange or other citrus trees to any consid- 
 erable extent where properly planted upon a soil adapted 
 to its growth and cultivated in the proper manner. The 
 general treatment applicable to all diseases alike being 
 to remove the aggravating cause and to supply the condi- 
 tions necessary to the normal development of the tree, 
 which latter conditions, the writer has endeavored to 
 set forth in the foregoing chapter of this work. 
 
 Die-Back. — Die-back is the most common and perni- 
 cious disease that aifects the orange tree. Trees affected 
 by this disease exhibit to a greater or less extent the fol- 
 lowing symptoms, viz ; The rapid formation of imma- 
 
80 MANVILLE'S TREATISE ON 
 
 tiire, angular new growth, twisting and turning down- 
 ward, bark of the affected part wrinkled and blistered ; 
 these blisters or nodules generally burst, exuding sap, 
 which collects on the surface in the form of resinous 
 gum of a reddish-brown or rust color, on which account 
 it is sometimes called the red rust ; buds abnormally 
 developed, forming diseased clusters which fail to per- 
 fect leaves or twigs, leaves somewhat curled ; the new 
 growth dies back first, then the smaller branches, the 
 process continuing until the entire tree becomes diseased 
 and dies. Although the disease is produced by various 
 causes, these symptoms are always present to a greater 
 or less extent in all cases of true die-back. 
 
 The specific nature of the disease is not perfectly un- 
 derstood. It is, however, neither caused by fungus nor 
 insect, but probably results from faulty nutrition occa- 
 sioned by improper conditions which surround the tree. 
 As a rule, it is not communicable from one tree to an- 
 other, and is only found where the conditions exists 
 which produce it. 
 
 Die-back prevails upon a certain class of flat-lands, 
 even when drained, where a poor white sand overlays a 
 pernicious hard-pan very near the surface. It is also 
 found where a quicksand subsoil comes in contact with 
 the roots of the trees, especially where drainage is defi- 
 cient. Upon such soils, and wherever the ground is 
 liable to become saturated with water beyond the possi- 
 bility of drainage, the only remedy is to remove the 
 trees to a more congenial spot. 
 
 Deep planting is another prolific source of this disease, 
 the smothered roots are unable to perform their func- 
 tions in supplying the proper nourishment and the tree 
 soon languishes. Whenever the trees are affected by 
 die-back, or otherwise diseased or stunted from this 
 cause, they should, if not too far gone to pay for the 
 
ON ORANGE CULTURE. 81 
 
 trouble, be raised at once. (See chapter on planting. ) 
 Earth, weeds, grass, or other debris about the collar or 
 above the roots affect the tree in the same way. Unless 
 care be taken, plowing, hoeing or mulching the trees 
 often gives rise to this trouble. Accumulations of this 
 character should be kept drawn away from the trees. 
 
 Another cause of this disease is a wet soil and the 
 remedy is ditching or underdraining. In cases where 
 the land, though adapted to the orange, is so low as to 
 be in danger of saturation in seasons of excessive rain- 
 fall or flood, in addition to surface drainage, the trees 
 should be set on ridges two or three feet above the level 
 of the surface thrown up for the purpose. Trees, which 
 in their original positions upon such land were affected 
 with die-back, have been entirely freed from it by be- 
 ing raised in this manner. 
 
 Powerful manures, such as barn-yard manure, cotton 
 seed, guano, animal refuse, etc., if applied in a crude or 
 undecomposed state, produce die-back. All such fertili- 
 zers should be well rotted, or better still, composted, be- 
 fore they are used, and even then should not be applied 
 in excessive quantities to individual trees. Trees af- 
 fected by die-back from this cause generally recover in 
 time, as the materials decompose, unless the quantity 
 applied has been very large. 
 
 Clean culture in summer or tearing the roots with the 
 plow, often produces this disease, especially is it the case 
 on low land where the moisture in the soil renders the 
 roots liable to be scalded by the sun. The remedy in 
 such cases is of course to substitute correct for iujurious 
 methods. 
 
 The disease can generally be traced to (me or other 
 of the above causes. The diseased parts should be 
 removed as nearly as possible in all cases, and the trees 
 surrounded by every influence conducing to health and 
 
82 MANVILLE'S TREATISE ON 
 
 vigor. Where the trees are very badly diseased, it is 
 the best policy to discard them altogether aud begin 
 with new specimens. 
 
 Die-back is often erroneously used as a general term, 
 including all affections of the orange which occasion a 
 dying of the twigs or branches. As has been shown 
 above, it is distinct, each case exhibiting the peculiar 
 symptoms of the disease. Where these symptoms are 
 wanting, even though the limbs may die, the tree is not 
 affected by die-back. Poverty of soil, insects, the natural 
 thinning out of the interior branches of trees which 
 have not been properly pruned, and perhaps other 
 causes, will sometimes occasion the death of the limbs 
 when there is really no disease ; the only treatment re- 
 quired being to remove the decaying part and give the 
 tree proper attention in the matter of cultivation, fertili- 
 zation, etc. 
 
 Limlb-Blight. — Limb-blight is the name applied to 
 a dying or blighting of the limbs observed in some sec- 
 tions to distinguish the disease from die-back from which 
 it is distinct, resembling the latter only in the dying of 
 the limbs. It is supposed by Dr. Z. H. Mason to be the 
 result of a fungoid growth, from whom we quote the 
 following, viz : " There is another disease that may 
 properly be termed limb-blight, to distinguish it from the 
 die-back. It is known among old settlers in this sec- 
 tion as ' curl leaf.' As far as my observation extends, 
 its attack is confined to trees sixteen years old and up- 
 wards. I have seen it only in bearing trees. In my 
 own grove it affects my oldest and most productive 
 trees, except the large trees that I transplanted years 
 ago, shortening the tap root, they continue healthy. I 
 have noticed it in trees that were apparently healthy 
 and vigorous, yet having some curled leaves ; they were 
 planted on land having a natural drainage. I find the 
 
ORANGE CULTURE. 83 
 
 disease in groves planted on ham mock as well as upon 
 high pine land. The disease generally continues several 
 years before all the limbs become affected. Its first ap- 
 pearance is in the leaves, during the day they look 
 wilted and curled up as though the tree needed water- 
 ing. Next morning they look fresh until the middle of 
 the day ; gradually the outside limbs begin to die and 
 when the tree becomes badly diseased, the growth of the 
 fruit is arrested. The next year the tree may be cov> 
 ered with a heavy crop of blooms, which fall off, and 
 the top of the tree dies. I dug up one tree twenty-three 
 years old that had lost all the top, and made a careful 
 examination of the roots, they appeared to be perfectly 
 sound. This tree was transplanted into new ground 
 more than two years ago, and now has a new top ap- 
 parently free from disease. I am unable to say what the 
 disease is, or what causes it. It is found upon trees 
 planted upon ground naturally rich, and on those on 
 fair pine land. The only effectual remedy that I have 
 found is to remove every limb that shows the least ap- 
 pearance of disease. When this is done, the trunk puts 
 out healthy, sound shoots which make a rapid growth." 
 "Gum Disease" or "Bleeding." — This is an ex- 
 udation of sap from the trunk or main branches of the 
 tree, spreading over the bark like a coat of varnish, 
 hardening into gum, killing the bark and diseasing 
 the wood beneath. If not checked, it eventually girdles 
 and destroys the branch or tree. To stop this, cut an 
 incision through the bark and new wood completely 
 around and a little beyond the spot affected, which can 
 be distinguished by the discoloration of the bark ; then 
 carefully remove the bark and diseased wood within the 
 limits of the incision, and cover the wound with wax, 
 gum shellac, or mud. This sometimes makes an ugly 
 wound, but it will heal over in time and is the only way 
 
84 MANVILLE'S TREATISE ON 
 
 to save the tree. From the fact that there is an exuda- 
 tion of sap in both, gum disease and die-back are some- 
 times confounded ; there is, however, no connection be- 
 tween the two. The former seems to resemble in some 
 particulars a disease called " gamma" which is described 
 by General Sauford in his essay on " Orange Growing 
 in Southern Europe." 
 
 Foot-rot. — Another disease called foot-rot is enum- 
 erated by some authorities. " The symptoms are the 
 decaying and sloughing of the bark around the crown 
 and tap-roots of the tree." It is supposed to be caused 
 by the fermenting of the sap in the parts affected, occa- 
 sioned by contact with fermenting manures or stagnant 
 water; if this be true, it is not, strictly speaking, a 
 disease, but simply a decay of the parts, owing to their 
 being surrounded by an uncongenial element. 
 
 The last three diseases enumerated, namely: limb 
 blight, gum disease, and foot-rot, need give the orange 
 growers of Florida no uneasiness, as they are of rare oc- 
 currence and seldom or never affect healthy, vigorous 
 trees which receive the proper treatment. 
 
 Smut or Black Rust. — The sooty appearance com- 
 monly called smut or black rust, sometimes found upon 
 the fruit and foliage of the orange tree is not a disease 
 but a fungus. If the trees are kept in good condition 
 by thorough drainage, proper culture, and moderate 
 manuring ; and a weak alkaline solution, such as potash, 
 soda, or ammonia, is applied where the smut shows itself, 
 it will speedily disappear. 
 
 The trunks and main branches should also be kept 
 free from moss or scurf by occasional washings with 
 strong soap-suds or a weak alkaline solution. 
 
CHAPTER XV 
 
 INSECTS. 
 
 'CALE INSECTS.— The most formidable in- 
 sect enemy of the orange family is the scale in- 
 sect. There are many species. In " Orange 
 Insects," by Wm. H. Ashniead, and " Report 
 of Scale Insects of the Orange," by H. G. Hubbard, 
 Special Agent of U. S. Department of Agriculture, six 
 species are enumerated as found upon the orange trees 
 of Florida. The majority of these are rarely seen, the 
 common Long Scale being most destructive and wide 
 spread. They propagate very rapidly, and were they 
 not preyed upon by other insects their ravages would be 
 far more extended and disastnjus. Mr. Ashmead men- 
 tions no less than eleven insect enemies of the scale, and 
 there are doubtless others. These beneficial insects 
 make their appearance as soon as the scale shows itself 
 to any considerable extent. Some lurk beneath deserted 
 scales, others deposit their eggs beneath the scales, their 
 young feeding upon and destroying them ; and thus in 
 one way or another these parisites wage persistent and 
 effectual warfare, which usually prevents the scale from 
 spreading to an injurious extent. Occasionally, how- 
 ever, the scale outstrips its enemies for a time, and if 
 the trees are not vigorous, or are so small that their 
 limited foliage is soon covered by the scale, they are 
 very liable to succumb if measures are not taken for 
 
86 MANVILLE'.S TREATISE ON 
 
 their eraclicati(jn ; but strong growing trees with abund- 
 ance of wood are seldom materially injured. 
 
 The newly hatched larvie have legs, move about the 
 tree and are easily killed by mild insecticides ; they soon 
 insert their beaks, become stationary, shed their legs, 
 and exude the scale which covers them ; later, eggs are 
 deposited and hatched beneath the fully formed scales. 
 These successive stages of development have been termed 
 respectively periods of migration, g7-owthand incubatiov. 
 The insects are more difficult to destroy after the scale 
 begins to form, becoming invulnerable with age, the 
 eggs being unaffected by ordinary applications. 
 
 It has been thought that excessive cold in winter de- 
 stroys the scale. This has, however, no other effect 
 than to delay the hatching of the eggs until warm 
 weather, when, appearing simultaneously, they seem 
 rather to have been increased by the cold. 
 
 There are generally three broods during the year, the 
 largest number hatching during the months of March 
 and April, June and July, and September and October. 
 As the insects are most easily killed in the migratory 
 stage, and most difficult to destroy during the period of in- 
 cubation, washes are most effectual, applied during the 
 above months and least effective when a majoiity of the 
 scales are filled with eggs, or during February, May, 
 August and the winter months from November to Jan- 
 uary. If the broods were clearly defined and the eggs 
 hatched simultaneously, it would be an easy matter to 
 eradicate the scale. Unfortunately, though, the broods 
 hatched are more numerous during the months indicated 
 above, they breed to a greater or less extent continuous- 
 ly throughout the year. For this reason, whale oil soap, 
 tobacco concoctions, and the numerous alkaline washes 
 generally recommended, fail to give entire satisfaction. 
 Although they destroy the young larvae, they do 
 
ORANGE CULTURE. 87 
 
 not entirely destroy the mature scales, and have no 
 effect upon the eggs. Mr. Hubbard, in his experiments 
 as special agent of the Agricultural Department, found 
 lye to be entirely without effect upon this insect. A 
 very strong solution of whale oil soap failed to destroy 
 the eggs. Oil of creosote, bisulphide of carbon, sulphuric 
 acid, and sulphate of iron were all more or less injurious 
 to the trees. Of all the preparations tried, he found 
 kerosene oil to be the most effective, as well as the least 
 injurious and expensive. Kerosene has long been known 
 to the orange grower of Florida as a powerful insecti- 
 cide; but its use, either pure or mixed with water, es- 
 pecially in inexperienced hands, is liable to damage the 
 trees more or less. Mr. H. mixed it with milk, in which 
 form he found it to be quite as effective as the pure oil 
 and entirely harmless to the tree. This kerosene emul- 
 sion, now in common use, is perhaps the best insect wash 
 we have. Mr. Hubbard gives the following instructions 
 for its preparation and application in his report : 
 
 "As the result of numerous experiments, I would 
 recommend an emulsion consisting of refined kerosene two 
 parts ; fresh, or preferably sour, cow's milk, one part (per- 
 centage of oil, 661.) Where cow's milk is not easily 
 obtained, as in many parts of this State, it may be re- 
 placed by an equivalent of condensed milk (Eagle 
 brand) diluted with water in the proportion one to two. 
 As the cans of condensed milk usually sold in the stores 
 contain exactly 12 fluid ounces (three-quarters pint), 
 the following receipt will be found a convenient one : 
 
 Kerosene 1 gallon =8 pints =64 per cent. 
 
 Condensed milk 2 cans =U '' ) ^gg ^^^^^^ 
 
 Water 4 cans =3 " j ^ 
 
 " Mix thoroughly the condensed milk and water before 
 adding the oil ; churn with the Aquapult pump until the 
 whole solidifies and forms an ivory-white, glistening 
 
88 MANVILLE'.S TREATISE ON 
 
 butter as thick as ordinary butter at a temperature of 
 75° F. If the temperature of air falls below 70°, warm 
 the diluted milk to blood heat before adding the oil. 
 
 " In applications for scale insects, the kerosene butter 
 should be diluted with water from 12 to 16 times, or one 
 pint of butter to one and a half gallons (for Chaff Scale) ; 
 one pint of butter to two gallons (for Long vScale). The 
 diluted wash resembles fresh milk, and if allowed to 
 stand, in two or three hours the emulsion rises, as a cream, 
 to the surface. The butter should therefore be diluted 
 only as needed for immediate use, and the mixture 
 should be stirred from time to time. 
 
 " A wash prepared in accordance with the above direc- 
 tions will kill with certainty all the coccids and their 
 eggs under scales with which it can be brought into 
 direct contact. No preparation known to me will, how- 
 ever, remove the scales themselves from the tree, or in 
 any way reveal to the unassisted eye the condition of 
 the insects within. This can be ascertained only by 
 microscopic examination of detached scales. Time alone 
 and the condition of the tree itself, will indicate the re- 
 sult of an application. Kerosene, it is true loosens the 
 scales from the bark, so that for a time they are readily 
 brushed off, but they afterwards become more firmly 
 adherent, and are very gradually removed by the action 
 of the weather. 
 
 " Upon trees thickly infested, a large proportion of the 
 scales are so completely covered up by the overlapping 
 of the other scales, or the webbing together of leaves by 
 spiders and other insects, that the wash cannot be 
 brought into direct contact with them, and they are only 
 reached, if at all, by the penetrating action of the oil. 
 This takes place gradually, and the number of bark-lice 
 killed, increases for some time after an application, 
 reaching the maximum in the case of kerosene about 
 
ORANGE CULTURE, 89 
 
 the fifth day. In long scale the oil penetrates the 
 outer end, killing first the eggs at the broad and thin 
 outer end, but its action is gradually exhausted and 
 several pairs of eggs in the middle of the scale are often 
 left alive. It is, therefore, impossible, in a single appli- 
 cation, to destroy every scale upon an orange tree. This 
 can, however, be accomplished by making two or three 
 applications at intervals of four or five weeks. The 
 mother insects being nearly or quite all killed by the 
 first treatment, and the surviving eggs having in the in- 
 terval all hatched, a second application, if thorough, 
 will clear the tree. 
 
 " The great difiiculty experienced in reaching every 
 part of the tree renders it absolutely necessary that any 
 liquid used should be applied in fine spray and with 
 considerable force. An ordinary garden syringe does 
 not accomplish this and can never be used satisfactorily 
 against scale insects. 
 
 " The most effective instrument known to me is the 
 Aquapult force pump. This throws a constant stream 
 of moderately fine spray with such force that the fluid 
 is driven into close contact with the bark, and on strik- 
 ing the leaves and branches is dashed into fine mist 
 which envelops the tree and wets every leaf. The tree 
 should always be sprayed from each of four sides, and 
 rather more liquid should be used than seems necessary 
 to drench every portion. 
 
 " Although I have thought it^advisable to recommend 
 several applications, a single very thorough spraying 
 with a good force pump will, in most instances, prove 
 entirely effectual in clearing the tree, since, if only an 
 occasional egg or coccid escapes, the great army of par- 
 asites and enemies will be almost sure to complete the 
 work." 
 
 Published statements regarding the scale are often 
 
90 MANVILLE'S TREATISE ON 
 
 more alarming than the facts warrant. The natural 
 checks upon their increase are usually sufficient to pre- 
 vent their spreading to an injurious extent. Trees 
 diseased or stunted from improper location or bad treat- 
 ment are, it is true, liable to serious attack, but trees in 
 this condition are liable to be affected by any or all of 
 the maladies and ailments to which the trees are sub- 
 ject. In dealing with this pest it may be laid down as 
 a rule that healthy vigorous trees are seldom or never seri- 
 onsly attacked. The best and only way to prevent their 
 attacks, and an efficient means of checking their rava- 
 ges, is such thorough cultivation as will keep the trees 
 in thrifty growing condition. In fact, the application 
 of washes to remove the insect will avail little unless 
 the trees are kept in this condition, they may, it is true, 
 be removed for the time being, but the conditions favor- 
 ing their development are still present and they will re- 
 turn with increased destructiveness. While it is useless to 
 depend solely upon washes to keep the trees free from in- 
 sects, it is unwise to rely entirely, as some have done, upon 
 culture and fertilization to accomplish this result. The 
 latter is the best possible way to prevent the attacks of 
 scale in the first instance, but where they are already 
 established upon the tree, both agencies should be used, the 
 one to remove the insects and give the tree a chance to 
 recover, and the other to stimulate a more active, vigor- 
 ous growth. 
 
 The Mealy Bug. — This is another insect of the same 
 genus as the scale, though diflfering from it very much 
 in appearance. It has received its name from the mealy 
 substance which covers its body ; its eggs are laid be- 
 neath a cottony-like substance secreted by the female, 
 which gives the branch affected the appearance of being 
 covered with barnacles. Although in injurious effects 
 they rank next to the scale, they are not nearly so damag- 
 
ORANGE CULTURE. ©1 
 
 ing to the tree, and are easily destroyed by the methods 
 employed to eradicate the scale. 
 
 Other Insects. — Although, with the possible excep- 
 tion of the rust mite, the scale and the mealy bug are 
 by far the most serious insect enemies with which the 
 orange grower has to contend, there are other insects 
 which feed to a greater or less extent during some periods 
 of their existence upon the foliage of the orange tree ; of 
 these, Mr. Ashmead enumerates the following, viz: 
 Leaf-Footed Plant Bug, Orange Butterfly and Orange 
 Dog, Lance Rustic Moth, Woolly Bear or Stinging 
 Caterpillar, Angular Winged Katydid, Lubber Grass- 
 hopper, Large Bluish White Weevil, Small Bluish 
 White Weevil, and Orange Aphis. These feed mainly 
 upon the new growth, and where the tree has but little 
 foliage, or has been recently budded and is just starting, 
 they are sometimes very troublesome. Their ravages 
 are, however, so comparatively limited they can scarcely 
 be considered serious ; they are annoying rather than 
 alarming in their character. The weevils can be re- 
 moved by gently shaking the tree, catching them upon 
 a sheet spread beneath for the purpose. The aphis or 
 black plant louse is destroyed by applications of pow- 
 dered sulphur or ordinary insect washes. The other in- 
 sects enumerated must be destroyed by hand. 
 
 The borer found in the decaying wood of the orange 
 tree sometimes extends its operations into parts apparent- 
 ly sound. It never attacks the growing wood unless 
 in close proximity to decayed parts. The sure preven- 
 tive is to keep the tree free from dead or decaying 
 wood, and the only remedy is to dig out and remove 
 the intruder. 
 
 The orange, in common with other fruit trees, is some- 
 times girdled by the wood louse or white ant. Like 
 the above, they seldom attack growing wood unless en- 
 
92 MANVILLE'S TREATISE ON 
 
 couraged by the proximity of decayed wood. Trees set 
 too deep are much more liable to attack than where the 
 brace roots protrude above the ground in the proper 
 manner. If the ground above the collar is kept clean 
 and free from decayed matter, and where the trees are 
 set too deep, if the earth be removed to expose the roots 
 there will be no trouble from this source. 
 
 The Rust Mite. — This chapter would be incomplete 
 without some mention of the little mite which causes the 
 rust so often found upon the fruit. Although the indi- 
 vidual insects are not visible to the naked eye, large 
 numbers of them give the fruit the appearan6e of being 
 covered with fine dust. The discoloration of the fruit 
 follows the appearance of the insect. They puncture 
 the oil cells in the rind of the fruit and the exudation 
 and oxidization of the oil upon the surface produces the 
 rust. The earlier in the season the mites appear, the 
 darker will be the color of the rust. The rust does not 
 damage the fruit, but as it injures the appearance of the 
 exterior, depreciates its price in market. The rust is an 
 advantage in one particular, it toughens and hardens 
 the rind so that it will keep for a great length of time. 
 The mites are said to be easily killed by any of the in- 
 secticides used to destroy the scale. But as they are 
 wide-spread and breed very rapidly, it would be too ex- 
 pensive and laborious to prevent their ravages in this 
 way. A practical and efficient method for their exter- 
 mination remains to be devised. 
 
CHAPTER XV L 
 
 MARKETING THE CROP. 
 
 >^ITHIN the past decade, facilities for shipping 
 and methods of preparing the Florida orange 
 crops for market, have greatly improved. 
 The comparatively small crop of ten years 
 ago was put up with little care or system in packages 
 of the most nondescript character and forwarded to 
 commission merchants unknown to the grower and 
 whose dealings were often questionable. Freight rates 
 were high and time in transit uncertain. The grower 
 can now dispose of his crop in various ways. He can 
 sell the fruit outright, either upon the tree, delivered in 
 the grove, or at the purchaser's packing house. Or he 
 can consign his fruit to reliable commission merchants 
 in the principal towns of the State, or any of the larger 
 cities of the country North or West. He can pack it 
 himself or he can have it done at a reasonable price at 
 the principal shipping points in the State. The fruit is 
 transported by various railroad and steamship lines in 
 quick time and at low rates to all parts of the country. 
 The shipping season begins in September and October 
 with the Egg and Oblong varieties, and closes late in 
 spring with the last of Hart's Late variety, the bulk of 
 the crop at present being shipped between the fifteenth 
 of November and the fifteenth of March. The early 
 and late fruit bring the best returns. 
 
 To secure the best prices, the fruit must not only be 
 
94 MANVILLE'S TREATISE ON 
 
 of superior quality but must be tastefully and carefully 
 packed according to the established standard. As a 
 large portion of the crop is prepared for market and 
 shipped by the growers, the writer has endeavored to 
 give below some hints as to the best methods of gather- 
 ing, packing, etc. 
 
 Drjing or Packing- House. — A drying or packing- 
 house should be built in which to cure and pack the 
 fruit. It should be constructed freely to admit light 
 and air, as well as to close securely against storms and in- 
 clement weather. The plan formerly followed of placing 
 the fruit in bins or piles and allowing it to go through a 
 sweat is no longer practiced by the best packers. It in- 
 jures rather than toughens the rinds, rendering the fruit 
 more liable to decay in transit. Shelves or trays should 
 be constructed to receive the fruit, upon which it can be 
 spread to dry. A very convenient way is to arrange 
 the shelves around the sides of the drying-room, they can 
 be placed about one foot apart from the floor to a con- 
 venient height, and should be about two and a half feet 
 wide. They should be made of slats, say two inches 
 wide, placed about an inch and a half apart with the 
 corners rounded so as not to mar the fruit. The slats 
 should belaid transversely, inclining slightly forward to 
 keep the fruit constantly within reach, the latter being 
 prevented from rolling off by strips nailed across the 
 front of the shelves just above the slats. Tables, bins, 
 etc., to facilitate wrapping and packing can be arranged 
 as seems most convenient. When warm days succeed 
 cool nights, which is apt to be the case during the ship- 
 ping season, the fruit remaining for some time during 
 the early part of the day at a lower temperature than 
 the atmosphere, collects moisture to such an extent as to 
 interfere materially with the operations of wrapping and 
 packing. For this reason, as well as to facilitate the 
 
ORANGE CULTURE. 95 
 
 drying of the fruit and the comfort of the ©perator, an 
 even temperature should be maintained in the drying- 
 house if possible. 
 
 Gathering. — The fruit should be gathered upon a 
 clear, dry day. As the stem adheres to the rind, the 
 fruit should be cut, not pulled, from the trees. Even 
 late in the season, when the fruit can be separated 
 readily from the stem without injilry, it is better to 
 cut it, as the cut stem adhering to the fruit is 
 a mark by which selected fruit is distinguished in 
 market from " drops," wind falls and second rate 
 fruit generally. When cut, the fruit is usually placed 
 in sacks hung to the picker's side, from which the fruit 
 is laid in boxes to be conveyed to the drying house. 
 When first gathered from the tree, the rind is full of 
 water, the least scratch or thump producing an abra- 
 sion and causing decay. For this reason, the fruit from 
 the trees to the drying-house shelves must be handled 
 with the utmost care — as it is put by a very successful 
 shipper, "just as you would handle eggs." 
 
 Curing. — To toughen the rind of the fruit so that it 
 will stand the handling and pressure required to pack 
 securely so that it will not shrink and loosen in the 
 boxes after it has been packed, it is necessary to cure or 
 dry the fruit. This serves also to allow time for any 
 defect which would cause decay to develop, so as to be 
 easily detected and the fruit thus injured rejected. 
 When the fruit is received from the grove it should be 
 spread upon the shelves not more than two or three 
 layers deep, in order that the air may have free access 
 to the fruit. The time required to evaporate the water 
 from the rind varies from twenty-four hours to several 
 days according to the maturity of the fruit and the con- 
 dition of the weather, and can easily be determined 
 with the aid of a little experience. After it has been 
 
96 MANVILLE'S TREATISE ON 
 
 dried, the rind is tough and yielding as rubber, and the 
 fruit will stand considerable pressure without injury. 
 
 Sorting. — From the drying shelves the fruit is sorted. 
 Fruit that is cut, plugged, thorned, or bruised should be 
 thrown out and the remainder sorted into two or three 
 grades according to quality. While shipping, all the 
 decayed or partly decayed fruit should be carefully re- 
 moved from the drying house, as contact with it will 
 cause sound fruit to decay. When the crop is large 
 enough to justify it, the fruit should also be sized to se- 
 cure uniformity and to facilitate packing. A simple 
 device for sorting the fruit is easily constructed by 
 placing side by side upon a frame two pieces of board 
 six or eight feet long elevated at one end so as to lie at 
 an incline of about twenty-five degrees. The inner 
 edges of the boards should be rounded so as not to in- 
 jure the fruit and should be placed at such distance 
 from each other as will allow the smaller sized fruit to 
 fall through a few inches from the upper ends, and the 
 larger size to pass between as it approaches the bottom. 
 Passing through cloth funnels or pockets fastened upon 
 the under side of the inclined pieces, the oranges of dif- 
 ferent sizes are deposited without injury in boxes placed 
 beneath for their reception. In this way the fruit can 
 be separated into as many sizes as is desired. From the 
 shelves or sizes the fruit is placed in shallow raised bins 
 or tables arranged conveniently for 
 
 Wrapping. — By a quick motion of the hands, each 
 fruit is enveloped in a wrapping of manilla paper. The 
 twist which holds the paper in place should cover the 
 stem, to prevent its pressing too hard upon the fruit next 
 to it, and to enable the packer to arrange it uniformly. 
 
 Packing. — The standard box should be used, size, 
 12x12x27 inches outside measurement, being divided by 
 the middle partition into two compartments, each con- 
 
, ORANGE CULTURE. 97 
 
 tainiug one cubic foot. They should be thoroughly 
 seasoned, and if they have already contained fruit, should 
 be carefully cleaued. Green boxes, or those which have 
 contained decaying fruit, often cause the fruit to rot on 
 the way to market. Before putting in the fruit the 
 compartments of the box should be lined with paper ex- 
 tending over the top enough to fold over the fruit when 
 the box is full. Bright colored linings set off the box 
 to good effect. Paper should also be placed between 
 each layer of fruit in the box to give elasticity to the 
 whole and prevent any fruit which should decay from 
 coming into contact with the rest. The fruit should be 
 placed in the box in layers, with the stem end down, not 
 only should the layers be uniform in number and posi- 
 tion, but the number and position of the fruit in the 
 layers should be uniform throughout the box. The 
 number of layei-s and of fruit in the several layers will 
 of course vary with the size of the fruit, but a little 
 practice will enable the packer to arrange each size sys- 
 tematically. For instance, the first layer, of a size which 
 will run one hundred and twenty-eight to the box, 
 should be arranged in each compartment thus : 
 
 o o o o 
 
 o o o o 
 
 o o o o 
 
 o o o o 
 The fruit in the sucessive layers being placed one upon 
 another, four layers or sixty-four fruit filling one end of 
 the box. For a size running one hundred and seventy- 
 six to the box, the first layer should be arranged thus: 
 
 o o o o 
 o o o 
 
 o o o o 
 o o o 
 
 o o o o 
 The fruit in the second layer being pla<;ed over the 
 
98 MANVILLE'S TREATISE ON « 
 
 interstices of the first, five layers alternately of eighteen 
 and seventeen, or eighty-eight fruit filling the end of 
 the box. In this way a system of layering can be de- 
 vised for all the diflTerent sizes. The fruit should be 
 pressed in firmly, and when the box is full should come 
 up even with the top, or extend above it not more than a 
 quarter of an inch. The paper lining is then folded over 
 the fruit, the cover tacked on, and a strong hoop is 
 nailed around each end and the middle of the box, mak- 
 ing all secure. On each end of the box should be neatly 
 and clearly stenciled the number and grade or brand of 
 the fruit within, the name of the consignor and con- 
 signee, and the line by which it is to be shipped. This 
 finishes the work. 
 
 This may seem to be taking extra and unnecessary 
 pains with the fruit, but the fact is that packed in this 
 manner it brings considerable more per box and finds 
 readier sale than that which is hastily or less attractively 
 put up. 
 
CHAPTER XVII 
 
 THE LEMON, LIME, AND OTHER SPECIES OF THE CITRUS. 
 
 HE LEMON. — Until recently, lemons grown 
 in Florida, have been regarded as to(i large, 
 thick skinned and bitter-rind for profitable 
 shipment. The last few years have demon- 
 strated this to be erroneous. Heretofore, comparatively 
 unknown in market, a poor opinion was formed from 
 the inferior quality and improper preparation of the 
 specimens forwarded. 
 
 The cultivation of better varieties and improved 
 methods of preparing the fruit for market has changed 
 this. 
 
 The fruit is now in demand, sought for by local buyers 
 and consignees in Northern markets, and commands a 
 price equal to the best Florida oranges, and much greater 
 than imported lemons. As a result of this favorable 
 condition of market, lemons are being more extensively 
 planted. The lemon is a stronger grower and an earlier 
 and more prolific bearer than the orange. Oranges are 
 essentially a luxury, lemons on the contrary are a staple 
 article of consumption throughout the country, the de- 
 mand being steadier and the price less fluctuating than 
 for the former commodity. For this reason their cul- 
 ture promises to be very profitable wherever they can 
 be grown without injury from frost. Perhaps there is no 
 better authority upon the commercial value of the citrus 
 fruits than Mr. E. Bean, the celebrated orange-packer 
 
lOO MANVILLE'S TREATISE ON 
 
 of Jacksonville, Florida. This gentleman, who has 
 been engaged in this business for the past six or eight 
 years, has probably handled more oranges than any 
 other man in the State ; the shipments from his packing- 
 house amounting to many hundred boxes per week during 
 the shipping season. For some time he has been experi- 
 menting with lemons. The results of these experiments 
 have been so satisfactory that he has arranged to engage 
 largely in packing and shipping the fruit, and has also 
 planted a lemon grove sixty acres in extent. The Flori- 
 da Dispatch for August 14th, 1882, says : " We are in- 
 formed that Mr. E. Bean has decided to put in a curing- 
 house for the ripening of green fruits. We announce 
 this with great pleasure, as it will furnish a home mar- 
 ket for the Florida production of the Sicily lemon. If 
 the lemons are left to ripen on the tree, they grow large 
 and coarse, and are consequently comparatively value- 
 less. Mr. Bean proposes to take them, when they have 
 reached a certain' size and state of maturity, without 
 reference to the color." The lemon will not stand as 
 much cold as the orange, but is successfully grown as far 
 north as Putnam County. There are numberless coarse 
 and inferior sorts. To avoid these, as is the case with 
 the orange, only well-known leading varieties should 
 be planted. The Sicily (not a native seedling, but the 
 imported fruit of commerce), French's seedling (not the 
 so-called French lemon). Lamb and Eureka, have been 
 fruited for some years and are in every respect superior, 
 the latter three being fully equal to the imported variety. 
 The characteristics of these three varieties are essentially 
 the same; fruit is small, with smooth, tough, thin skin, 
 fine juicy pulp, and acid devoid of bitter; French's 
 seedling and, Eureka are less thorny than the other 
 two. Bijou, Genoa, Imperial and some other recently 
 imported varieties promise well. The young trees, even 
 
 ■-■■ ^_^ hlBAhMY. 
 
ORANGE CULTURE. lOl 
 
 of the better sorts, are apt to produce large coarse fruit, 
 which becomes smaller and finer as the trees grow older. 
 
 As important as it is to have the best varieties, they 
 will avail little if the fruit is not projDerly prepared be- 
 fore shipment. Proper preparation for market is in 
 fact the great sine qua uon in lemon culture, and to 
 mismanagement in this particular is to be attributed 
 much of past failure. The following method of curing 
 lemons is taken from the Rev. T. W. Moore's excellent 
 Treatise and Hand Book on Orange Culture in Florida, 
 viz : " My method of preparing for market is to gather 
 the fruit when about one-third larger than we find the 
 Sicily lemon when it reaches our American market. 
 In curing, the fruit will shrink this extra third. The 
 fruit is gathered in latticed boxes holding about fifty 
 lemons each and only two layers deep. The fruit should 
 be cut with short stems and so handled as not to be 
 bruised. The boxes are at once put into a close room, 
 one on top of another, but forming a hollow square. If 
 the room is large, cover the pile of boxes with a cloth 
 that will confine the sulphurous gas with which the 
 fruit is be treated. Place in the center of the square, 
 and sufficiently remote from the boxes not to heat the 
 fruit, an oven of live coals. Throw on the burning 
 coals an ounce of flowei's of sulphur, and fasten down 
 the cloths. If the room is small and tight, the cloth is 
 not necessary. Allow the fruit to remain in a dark 
 room for a week, then expose to sunlight — the direct 
 rays of the sun a part of the day is best — until the skin 
 is yellow. The fruit is then ready for market or to be 
 stored for future use, for when thus treated, it can be 
 kept for an indefinite time." 
 
 The Lime. — Limes are always in demand and their 
 culture profitable. They are rather more tender than 
 lemons and can only be grown safely upon a large scale 
 
102 MANVILLE'S TREATISE ON 
 
 in the southern part of the State, or further north in 
 more favorable locations. They are a small bushy tree, 
 and when planted alone, should be set from twelve to 
 fifteen feet apart. A very good plan is to plant them 
 between the rows of orange trees, as the latter grow 
 much larger and protect them from the cold. The 
 Florida is the variety most generally planted. 
 
 Except in the particulars noted above, the lemon and 
 the lime require the same treatment as the orange. 
 
 Other Species. — In Europe and elsewhere, other 
 species are cultivated for profit — from the rind of the 
 citron the preserved citron peel of commerce is manu- 
 factured, the bergamot yields the fragrant " oil of berga- 
 mot," and various preserves, conserves, essential oils, 
 and perfumes are made from the fruit, foliage and flow- 
 ers of the several species. In time, these species will 
 doubtless be grown and these articles manufactured in 
 Florida, but at present the orange, lemon and lime are 
 the only species that are grown to any considerable 
 extent for profit. The following, however, are worthy 
 of cultivation for home use or for ornament, viz: The 
 Citron, for preserving ; the Shaddock, for its magnificent 
 large fruit and sub-acid juice; the several variegated 
 varieties, Citrus Japonica, Myrtle, Otaheite, Kumquat, 
 and other ornamental varieties. 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 CLASSIFICATION AND DESCRIPTION OF THE SPECIES AND 
 VARIETIES OF THE CITRUS AS KNOWN IN FLORIDA. 
 
 The characteristics of the varieties described follow 
 the common type of the species, except in the particu- 
 lars noted. Those marked with an asterisk (*) are best 
 known and most esteemed. 
 
 The Sweet Orange, {citrus aurantium.) 
 
 Trees of moderate size and compact form ; branches 
 thorny ; foliage dark green ; leaves oblong, acute ; leaf- 
 stalks winged, shoots whitish, flowers white, fruit round, 
 of a deep yellow color. It has received more attention 
 than the other species, hence the many varieties. 
 
 In Europe the varieties of the sweet orange are 
 separated into two divisions, according as they resemble 
 the orange of Portugal or the China orange. The former 
 may be regarded as the type of the species, and is the 
 common sweet orange of Florida. The latter is dis- 
 tinguished by the smooth, thin skin, and the exceedingly 
 sweet and tender pulp of the fruit ; the foliage is less 
 dense than that of the Portugal orange, the leaves 
 are more elliptical and acute, and the branches slender 
 and straggling. The Sweet Seville and Egg Orange of 
 Florida are examples of the China Orange ; the Naval 
 and St. Michael's present some of the characteristics, 
 and may perhaps be included with it. 
 
104 MANVILLE'S TREATISE ON 
 
 To facilitate selection and prevent confusion, the 
 varieties of this species are divided into five arbitrary 
 classes. 
 
 CLASS I. — Varieties Fruiting Early in Season. 
 
 Early Oblong.* — Synonym Thornless Bell. — Fruit 
 medium size, oblong, skin thick ; lacking the sub-acid of 
 other sorts. Quality fair. Although its color turns little 
 if any earlier than other sorts, its juices attain perfec- 
 tion in September and October, when it should be 
 marketed. 
 
 Tree bears young ; prolific ; vigorous ; not as large as 
 some. Leaves illiptical, acute, and scattering ; branches 
 slender and thornless. Like the varieties under class 
 III, it is easily distinguished by the appearance of fruit 
 and foliage. 
 
 Probably originally imported, but long grown in 
 Florida. 
 
 Egg. — Synonym Beach's No. 1. — A sub-variety of the 
 above, which it resembles, excepting that the fruit is 
 smaller, having a smoother skin, and being more juicy, 
 
 CLASS II — Varieties Fruiting Late in Season. 
 
 TardlflF. * — Synonym Hart's Late. — Medium sized, 
 round, skin smooth and thin, grain fine, with a brisk 
 and racy flavor. A common Florida orange, in quality 
 above the average. Retains its juices until the middle 
 of July, or even later, and is especially valuable on this 
 account. 
 
 Tree prolific, a strong grower; branches thornless, or 
 nearly so ; foliage somewhat distinct. 
 
 Native seedling. 
 
ORANGE CULTURE. 105 
 
 CLASS III. — Varieties Readily Distinguished by the 
 Appearance of Fruit or Foliage, whose Marked Pecu- 
 liarities are Constant. 
 
 Bell. — Large, pear or bell-shaped ; skin firm ; juicy. 
 Tree prolific, a strong grower, having fewer thorns than 
 some varieties. 
 
 Probably imported, but long grower in Florida. 
 
 Du Roi.* — Size medium, round, skin firm, juicy. 
 Quality good. Plainly marked, being ribbed like a 
 muskmelon. 
 
 Tree very prolific, vigorous ; few thorns. 
 
 Probably imported, though long grown in Florida, 
 
 Charley Brown. — Large, very much flattened at 
 stem and blossom ends. Quality said to be good. 
 Tree thornless, foliage peculiar. 
 Imported. 
 
 Maltese Blood. — Medium, round ; pulp of a blood- 
 red color. This appears in the form of flakes when the 
 fruit begins to ripen, which gradually increase until the 
 entire pulp is colored. 
 
 Prolific; strong grower; thornless; foliage peculiar. 
 
 Imported. 
 
 Navel.* — Synonyms, Umbilical, Bahia, Emhiguo. — 
 Large, round ; skin smooth ; nearly seedless ; pulp 
 melting ; in quality the best grown. Bears a peculiar 
 umbilical formation on the summit or blossom end of 
 the fruit. 
 
 Tree bears young, not as prolific as some sorts ; thorn- 
 less ; foliage peculiar. 
 
 Imported. 
 
106 MANVIIiLE.S TREATISE ON 
 
 St. Michael's. — Medium-sized, round, thin-skinned, 
 nearly seedle!^s, and juicy. Quality good. 
 
 Tree bear? young, prolific ; few thorns ; foliage dis- 
 tinct. 
 
 Imported. 
 
 St. MichaePs Egg. — Large, oval, thick-skinned, 
 juicy, but not rich. Quality fair. 
 Tree prolific ; few thorns. 
 Imported. 
 
 MediteiTaiiean Sweet."^ — Medium sizp, skin smooth, 
 pulp melting. Quality best. 
 
 Tree thornless and bears young ; foliage peculiar. 
 Imported. 
 
 Sweet Seville. — Synonyms, Sugar Sweet, Golden 
 Angel. — Small, thin-skinned, tender, juicy, very sweet 
 and delicious. 
 
 Tree prolific, vigorous, somewhat thorny. 
 
 Native seedling. 
 
 CLASS IV. — Leading Varietiex of Superior Excellence, 
 Practically Indidingahhahle, mmtly of Native Origin, 
 hut Including some Foreign Varieties Long Groivn, 
 and Thoroughly Tested in the State. This Class In- 
 cludes most of the Best Varieties of the Justly Celebra- 
 ted Florida Orange. The Characteristics of the Sev- 
 eral Varieties Differ Little from the Common Type. 
 
 Arcadia. — Size large ; fi)rm somewhat flattened ; skin 
 smooth ; grain coarse, pulp melting, juice slightly sub- 
 acid. Quality good. 
 
 Tree prolific, vigorous, somewhat thorny. 
 
 Native seedling. 
 
ORANGK CULTURE. 107 
 
 Creole. — Large, round, firm skin, juicy. Qiiiility 
 good. 
 
 Tree prolific, vigorous, somewhat thorny. 
 Imported. 
 
 Homosassa.* — -Size about medium, somewhat flat- 
 tened, very heavy, color bright ; skin very smooth, thin, 
 tough and dense; pulp fine, sweet, and juicy; flavor 
 full, vinous and sprightly; membrane covering seg- 
 ments of pulp very thin and small in quantity ; ripens 
 very early and keeps and carries well. Quality best. 
 
 Tree prolific, vigorous and very thorny. 
 
 J^ative seedling. 
 
 Nonpareil.* — Size above medium, somewhat flat- 
 tened, color ordinary, grain fine, pulp melting and ten- 
 der, juice sub-acid and vinous. Quality best. 
 
 Tree prolific, vigorous and very thorny. 
 
 Native seedling. 
 
 Peerless.* — Synonym, Remberfs Best. — Large ; 
 round ; color light clear orange ; skin smooth, firm and 
 thin; juicy; juice sub-acid; flavor delicious. Quality 
 best. 
 
 Tree prolific, vigorous, and very thorny. 
 
 Native seedling. 
 
 Tahiti. — Large size, round, pale yellow, skin very 
 thin, grain fine, pulp tender and melting, juice sub-acid. 
 Quality good. 
 
 Tree vigorous, prolific, and very thorny. 
 
 Imported. 
 
 Dlimmit. — Large, bright, juicy, sweet, sugary ; a 
 first-class orange, except the skin is thin and tender, 
 which renders it difficult to ship. 
 
 Native seedling. 
 
108 MANVILLE'fs TREATISE ON 
 
 HiggillS. — Medium, fair ; skin smooth and thin ; 
 pulp fine, juicy, sweet and excellent. 
 Native seedling. 
 
 Osceola. — Size large, slightly flattened, skin smooth 
 and glossy, grain coarse, pulp rather melting, juice 
 sweet. Quality good. 
 
 Tree vigorous, somewhat thorny. 
 
 Native seedling. 
 
 Beach's No. 3. — Size medium, shape flattened, color 
 light orange, pulp tender, juice sub-acid. Quality 
 good. 
 
 Tree vigorous, somewhat thorny. 
 
 Native seedling. 
 
 Excelsior. — Medium sized, round, sweet, delicious, 
 slight pine-apple flavor. Quality good. 
 Tree vigorous, few thorns. 
 Imported. 
 
 Magnum Boniim.*— Size large to very large ; flat- 
 tened ; color light, clear orange ; skin smooth and 
 glossy ; grain fine, tender, and melting ; fruit heavy and 
 juicy ; juice sweet, rich, and vinous. Quality best. 
 
 Tree prolific, vigorous, and very thorny. 
 
 Native seedling. 
 
 01(1 Viui. — Synonyms, Beach's No. 4 and Buna 
 
 Vista. — Size above medium, slightly flattened, color 
 
 dark orange, skin rough, grain coarse, pulp melting, 
 
 juice sub-acid and remarkable for a sprightly vinous 
 
 property. Quality good. 
 
 Tree prolific, vigorous and somewhat thorny. 
 ' Native seedling. 
 
ORANGE CULTURE. 109 
 
 Acis. — Large, roundish orate. Quality good. 
 
 Tree strong growing. 
 
 Imported. 
 
 Dixon. — Fine large orange, first-class, good shipper. 
 Native seedling. 
 
 Spratt's Harmon. — Excellent every way. Said to 
 be very prolific. 
 Native seedling. 
 
 Parson Brown. — Large, .sweet, juicy, fine. Said to 
 be excellent. 
 Native seedling. 
 
 CLASS V. — Imported Varieties not yet Thoroughly 
 Tested in Florida. The Descriptions are Given as Re- 
 ceived and Cannot he Vouched for. 
 
 Botelha. — Said to be superior, with thin rind and 
 rich pulp. Apparently differs little from native varie- 
 ties. 
 
 Exquisite. — A thin rinded, rich and juicy fruit. 
 
 Sustain. — Large and remarkable for its sweet juices. 
 
 Acapulco. — Recently from California. Said to be 
 large and fine. A strong grower. 
 
 Jaffa. — Recently from Syria, bearing the name of a 
 city of that country. Said to be one of the best on the 
 Eastern Mediterranean. 
 
 Dulcissiina. — Synonym, Dulcis. Small, very sweet, 
 generally seedless ; prolific. Well-known in Paris. 
 
 Prata. — Synonym, Silver Orange. Rind pale yellow 
 and thin, flesh-pale, flavor piquant and delicious. 
 
no MANVILLE'S TREATISE ON 
 
 White. — Large, pale yellow, flesh-pale, flavor rich 
 and good. 
 
 NicJiras^ua. — A California variety recently intro- 
 duced, said to be large and fine. 
 
 Portugal. — -Recently introduced by way of Cali- 
 fornia, where it has not been fruited long enough to de- 
 termine its quality. Tree vigoi-ous. 
 
 Queen. — See Portugal. 
 
 Rio. — See Portugal. 
 
 THE BITTER ORANGE, {Citmis bigaridia.) 
 
 The Bigarade, Seville, or Bitter Orange, is distin- 
 guished from the Sweet Orange by the lighter color of 
 its foliage, spiny branches, and broader winged leaf- 
 stalks. Flowers very white and sweet-scented. Fruit 
 round, rough, of a dark reddish yellow color, filled with 
 a sour or bitter pulp. It is the hardiest of all the 
 species. 
 
 Many varieties are cultivated in Europe, chiefly for 
 the perfume obtained from the flowers. 
 
 Sour.'^'^Large, color dark, grain coarse, inner rind 
 bitter, juice acid. Retains its perfection through the 
 summer, when it is much j)rized for its refreshing acid 
 juice. Used also i'nv making marmalade and conserves. 
 
 The tree bears young, very jjrolific, vigorous ; makes 
 a desirable and ornamental shade tree. 
 
 Native wild orange of Florida. 
 
 Bitter Sweet.* — Medium sized, juice sweet and 
 pleasant when separated from the inner bitter rind. 
 Used in summer as a substitute for the sweet fruit. 
 
 Tree indistinguishable from the above. 
 
 Native wild oranye of Florida. 
 
ORANGE CULTURE. Ill 
 
 Yaricgated. — Leaves and fruit mottled with white, 
 pale straw color, and several shades of green. Highly 
 ornamental. 
 
 (irOldeu Variegated. — Leaves mottled with a rich 
 golden color. Very ornamental. 
 
 Myrtle-Leaved. — A handsome dwarf tree, with 
 small, dense, dark green, glossy leaves ; bearing a small 
 flattened fruit of little use. A beautiful shrub for orna- 
 mental grounds. 
 
 Citrus Japoilica. — Synonym, Dwarf Orcuige. An 
 ornamental dwarf tree resembling the sour orange. 
 Fruit resembles the sour, though not nearly so bitter, 
 and is esteemed for preserving. 
 
 Caimsa. — Foliage very peculiar. Leaves narrow at 
 the base and widening slightly their entire length. 
 
 The Mandarin Orange, (C. nob'dis.) 
 
 It is regarded by some botanists as a distinct species, 
 and by others as a marked variety of the Sweet Orange. 
 It is also called the Tangierine Orange. 
 
 The Mandarin, or Mandarin Orange, is a very beau- 
 tiful tree, distinguished by its small, lanceolate leaves ; 
 slender, flexible branches; dwarf and somewhat formal 
 habit of gi'owth, and the aromatic odor of the fruit and 
 foliage. The flowers are white and smaller than those 
 of the Sweet Orange. The fruit is small, flattened, of a 
 deep saffron color, with loosely adherent rind. It is 
 very highly esteemed in the markets of Europe. 
 
 China.* — Svnonym, Willow-Leaved. Small, flattened, 
 deep yellow color, skin thin, skin and segments loosely 
 adherent, flesh dark orange color, spicy and aromatic. 
 
 Tree dwarf, leaves young, prolific, vigorous ; willow- 
 like foliage, having few thorns. 
 
112 MANVILLE'S TREATISE ON 
 
 St. Michael's. — Fruit slightly pear-shaped, in other 
 respects resembling the China. 
 
 Bijou.* — Synonyms, Moragne's Tangierine, Dancy's 
 Tangierine. Fruit a little larger than the China, which 
 it resembles, except in its deep crimson color. 
 
 Tree unlike the other varieties, resembles the Sweet 
 Orange in size and foliage, though it retains the aroma 
 peculiar to the species, thorny. A seedling identical 
 with the parent tree first received the name Bijou. 
 
 Satsuma.* — The fruit is medium sized, flattened, 
 deep orange color, smooth, thin skin, which is sweet, aro- 
 matic and easily detached from the pulp. Color of 
 pulp dark orange ; segments part freely ; fine grain, 
 tender, juicy, sweet and delicious. There is none of 
 that peculiar I'ank odor which characterizes most other 
 varieties belonging to the same class and species. 
 
 The tree is thornless, the leaves peculiarly thick, lan- 
 ceolate, serrated medium, pitiole, linear ; and the fruit 
 is seedless. New and desirable. 
 
 The Lemon, (C. limonum.) 
 
 Trees of straggling, irregular habit ; foliage light 
 green ; leaf-stalks wingless, shoots purple, flowers tinged 
 with violet externally ; fruit oblong, pale yellow, with 
 swollen point, and acid pulp. 
 
 Bijou. — Very small, smooth, thin skinned, juicy ; 
 acid fine. Foliage distinct. 
 
 Everbearing. — Quality fair ; bears constantly, and 
 on this account, very desirable for home use. 
 
 Sicily.* — Size medium ; rind sweet ; skin smooth, 
 thin, tough and dense ; membrane covering segments of 
 l)ulp thin and small in quantity ; pulp juicy ; acid fine; 
 
ORANGE CULTURE. 113 
 
 quality best. Not a Florida raised seedling, but the 
 genuine imported lemon of commerce. 
 
 Bergamot. — Large, rough, flattened ; quality fair ; 
 leaves large and broadly winged ; appearance peculiar. 
 Erroneously introduced under the name of Bijou. 
 
 French's Seedling.* — A native variety fully equal 
 to the imported Sicily, which it closely resembles. Tree 
 has very few thorns. 
 
 Eureka.* — Recently introduced from California ; of 
 medium size, with sweet rind and strong acid. Tree 
 thornless ; strong grower ; early and prolific bearer. 
 
 Genoa. — Imported by way of California, where it is 
 esteemed one of the best. Desci'iption similar to Eu- 
 reka. 
 
 Lisbon. — Imported by way of California. Said to 
 be of good quality, though not as highly esteemed as 
 the foregoing. 
 
 Imperial. — Imported from Europe and highly rec- 
 ommended. 
 
 Lamb.* — A native variety resembling the imported 
 
 Sicily. One of the best. 
 
 Villa Francha. — Recently imported from Europe 
 and highly recommended. 
 
 Willow-Leaved. — Recently imported i'rom Europe. 
 Said to be superior. Leaves lanceolate ; branches flexi- 
 ble with willow-like appearance. 
 
 Sweet. — Same as Dulcis or Sweet Lime, q. v. 
 
 Variegated. — Leaves mottled with Avhite, pale straw 
 color and several shades of green ; fruit said to be su- 
 perior. Very ornamental. 
 
114- MANVrLDE'S TREATISE ON" 
 
 The Lime, ( C. limetta,) 
 
 A shrub, with small ovate leaves and spreading 
 prickly branches ; flower small and entirely white, fruit 
 small, roundish pale yellow, with a slight protuberance 
 at the end. 
 
 Florida.* — Medium sized, skin thin and smooth, acid 
 juice rich and abundant. Best for general culture. 
 
 Sweet. — Synonym, Dulcis. Large, thick skinned ; 
 pulpy; juice insipidly sweet. Valued only for variety 
 and for preserving. Foliage peculiar. 
 
 Persian. — Imported. Said to be superior. 
 
 The Citron, {C.medica.) 
 
 An irregular, branching, strong-shooting tree, with 
 full head ; shoots purplish ; leaves large, thick, oblong, 
 wingless, and toothed ; flowers tinged with violet ex- 
 ternally; fruit very large, warted, and furrowed; rind 
 white, fragrant, and very thick ; pulp sub-acid. 
 
 Lemon.* — Very large, shape like the lemon ; skin 
 irregular and glossy ; inner skin thick, spongy and aro- 
 matic. 
 
 The Shaddock, (C. decumana.) 
 
 A strong-growing tree, with thick spiny branches, 
 distinguished by its large leaves and broadly-winged 
 leaf-stalks. Flowers large and white. Fruit very large, 
 globular, of a pale yellow color. 
 
 Mammoth.* — Very large ; skin smooth and glossy ; 
 rind thick, white, spongy, and bitter ; pulp green, 
 watery, and sub-acid. 
 
 Blood. — Same as above, with blood-red pulp. 
 
ORANGE CULTURR 11.5 
 
 PoniolO.* — Synonym, Grape Fruit. It i« classed by 
 some as a distinct species, (C Pompebnouse.) It is un- 
 doubtedly a variety of the Shaddock, 
 
 Size small ; skin smooth ; color pale yellow ; pulp 
 sub-acid and refreshing, 
 
 MISCELLANEOUS. 
 
 The following do not belong to any of the foregoing 
 species. 
 
 Bergamot. — Known also as the Berganiot Orange or 
 Bergamot Lemon, probably a hybrid. Fruit pear 
 shaped ; pale yellow, with green sub-acid ; firm, fragrant 
 pulp ; fruit and foliage distinct. Grown in Europe, 
 where the fragrant oil of Bergamot is obtained from the 
 rind. 
 
 Otaheite. — A dwarf variety, bearing an abundance 
 of reddish flowers, and small, showy fruit ; sweet and 
 thin skinned. A pretty ornamental shrub, attracting 
 considerable attention as a stock upon which to dwarf 
 the sweet orange. 
 
 Kumqiiat.* — A small species, much cultivated in 
 China and Japan. The plant is a shrub, sometimes six 
 feet high, but in cultivation is not allowed to exceed the 
 height of a gooseberry bush. The fruit is oval, about 
 the size of a large gooseberry ; the rind is sweet and the 
 juice acid. It is delicious and refreshing. The Chinese 
 make an excellent sweet-meat by preserving it in sugar. 
 
 Desimatus. — One of the curiosities of the Citrus. 
 Foliage peculiar ; leaves of drooping habit ; has the 
 appearance of being varnished ; no two leaves alike in 
 shape ; fine for ornamental grounds. 
 
lie MANVILLE'S TREATISE ON 
 
 DWARFING THE ORANGE. 
 
 The Florida Dispatch, for May 29, 1882, contained 
 the following editorial : 
 
 BEARING, DWARF ORANGE TREES. 
 
 A few days since, we accepted the kind invitation of 
 our friend, Dr. C. J. Kenworthy, of this city — a gentle- 
 man very widely and well-known for his enthusiastic 
 and persevering devotion to all matters of scientific and 
 practical value and interest — and visited his garden, 
 especially to see the very beautiful and rare collection of 
 Dwarf Orange trees, which he has in full bearing. 
 
 These niinature trees, ranging from two and a half to 
 four and five feet high, are mostly of perfect form ; 
 branching near the ground, limbed out symmetrically, 
 and presenting, generally, the shape of an obtuse cone — 
 the true form for all fruit trees, in this climate. 
 
 It is about twenty-two (22) months since these little 
 bearing trees were budded ; and they are now carrying 
 each, from ten, fifteen and twenty up to forty beautiful 
 oranges, larger and farther advanced toward maturity 
 than those of the same varieties on older standard trees 
 overhead ! The foliage on these Lilliputians of the 
 citrus family is also larger, thicker and darker in color 
 than that of the ordinary sweet orange trees growing 
 around them ; and they present an air of thriftiness and 
 vigor which we were at first disposed to refer to the 
 liberal use of fertilizers and extra care and cultivation. 
 Dr. K. assured us, however, that such was not the fact ; 
 and stated that all his trees — dwarfs and standards — 
 have been treated precisely alike, and that there are no 
 favored, forced, or pampered ones among them. And 
 now the reader will naturally ask — " cui bono f and 
 " How are these little, precocious trees produced ?" We 
 
ORANGE CULTURE. 117 
 
 shall answer the last question first, and tell how the 
 Doctor propagates his early-bearing Dwarfs : 
 
 Most green-house men, and a few " outsiders," know 
 a little, pendulous, tortuous and drooping pot-plant of 
 the orange family, called the Otaheite. We have had it 
 for a number of years, sometimes in the open ground 
 and sometimes in-doors, but nowhere " to do much good," 
 and had almost forgotten its existence until we visited 
 Dr. K.'s garden. We are now disposetl to " alter our 
 figures" in regard to this variety, and to give it a high 
 place among the " stocks " of Florida nurserymen and 
 amateur pomologists. In short, what the " Paradise " 
 and " Doucin " are to the apple ; the quince, sloe and 
 hawthorn to the pear ; and the mahaleb to the cherry, 
 the Otaheite will, we believe, prove to the orange, the 
 lemon and their congeners ; and the only question in the 
 near future is, how to procure these " stocks " in suf- 
 ficient quantities to supply the demand for Dwarf Orange 
 trees, which is sure to spring up as soon as the novelty- 
 loving public see them. Leaving this to the enterprise 
 of our friends, Bidwell, Manville, Beach, and others, we 
 will try to describe the simple and easy mode by which 
 Dr. Kenworthy produces these little pets of the garden 
 and the grove. 
 
 He plants out a number of the Otaheite shrubs or 
 trees in a fair soil ; and, at the proper season, i. e., when 
 they are making a vigorous growth — he carefully layers 
 (in the usual way) every available limb or branch. 
 When these layers show signs of growth, he buds into 
 them, (very near the ground,) such varieties as he desires 
 to propagate ; and, w hen the buds start, he does not cut 
 off the stock above, but ties a ligature of cord or fine 
 wire around and near the top of the stock, retaining the 
 leaves to assist in nourishing and pushing forward the 
 young bud. If this budding is done very early, the 
 
118 MANVILLE'S TREATISE ON 
 
 bud will make several " growths " during the first sea- 
 son, and the little tree will be large enough to trans- 
 plant the following fall or winter. When thus removed, 
 the dwarfs may be planted six or eight feet apart — (the 
 Doctor's are only five feet) — and they will afterwards 
 require no more care than any good orange-grower be- 
 stows upon the trees in his garden or grove — though we 
 confess we should be tempted to give the little felloAvs, 
 " early and often," an extra handful of bone-dust, etc., 
 just to see them spread out near the ground, bourgeon, 
 blossom and don their " golden apples ! This " spread- 
 ing near the ground." by-the-way, is something greatly 
 under the control of the gi'ower ; who, if he under- 
 stands the theory of "pinching back," or " pruning with 
 thumb and finger," (as set forth in Barry's " Fruit Gar- 
 den," and similar works,) may easily give the young 
 tree any shape he desires, without ever using his knife 
 or pruning-shears. The short and almost hidden trunk 
 or stem of these little orange trees, with their' dense, 
 rounded, solid masses of large, shining, dark green 
 leaves, studded plentifully with ripe Mandarins, Homo- 
 sassa's, Magnum Bonum's, Nonpareil's, Old Vini's, or 
 other choice varieties (which a child could gather with- 
 out standing on tip-toe,) would surely be one of the 
 most charming "pomological exhibitions" which it is 
 possible to imagine ! 
 
 And now for the more practical, dollar-and-cent side 
 of this " new departure " in orange culture : 
 
 1. It expedites the hearing of the orange, so that the 
 great "Bug-Bear" of all new-comers — " having to wait 
 so long for the trees to come into bearing " — is com- 
 pletely vanquished. With a few hundred of these 
 dwarfs in his garden or grove, certain (with good care,) 
 to produce large crops of superior fruit in two or three 
 years, the settler, could wait, hopefully and patiently. 
 
ORANGE CULTURE. 119 
 
 for the larger "seedlings" to mature, and feel that he 
 had achieved some pleasant and profitable results, with- 
 out spending a lifetime in expectancy. 
 
 2. The amateur or city resident, of limited space, who 
 desires to test many sorts and varieties, may plant these 
 dwarf trees four or five feet apart, (or even closer,) in 
 a corner of his garden, and derive from them all the 
 satisfaction enjoyed by the cultivator of many broad 
 acres. 
 
 3. There could be no more perfect blending of the 
 utile cum dulce than borders and groups of these lovely 
 little trees, full of fruit, scattered around the gardens 
 and grounds of the numberless lovely homes on St. 
 John's River ; in the lake region ; along the Gulf coast, 
 and in many other portions of " fair Florida !" 
 
 4. Should there be any danger to the tree or fruit 
 from a " nipping and eager " frost, these little trees 
 could be perfectly protected by turning over them a 
 sugar hogshead, or wrapping a blanket around them. 
 
 5. As " selling stock " for our Florida nurserymen, 
 they would prove, at once, a perfect " Bonanza." Trees 
 large enough to bear twenty to fifty oranges, could be 
 grown in fourteen or sixteen inch pots, packed in small 
 space, and shipped, per express, with the fruit all on ! 
 Such souvenirs of Florida as these, no " tourist " could 
 resist, and the demand for them in the winter, would be 
 something "truly awful !" They could, also, be propa- 
 gated very largely here, in the open ground, then potted 
 and sent to the North, in the fall, for stocking conserva- 
 tories and green-houses. 
 
 Other uses for these pretty trees may suggest them- 
 selves to the reader, but we will close for the present ; 
 merely remarking that Dr. Kenworthy has no trees, 
 roots or stocks to dispose of, and that he does not spec- 
 
120 MANA^LLE'.S TREATISE ON 
 
 ially desire to be troubled with any correspondence on 
 the subject. 
 
 The following communication appeared in the same 
 journal June 12, 1882: 
 
 MORE ABOUT THE DWARF ORANGE TREE, 
 Editors of the Florida Dispatch. 
 
 I was gratified to find that my experiment in dwarf- 
 ing the orange met with your approval ; and I am dis- 
 posed to add a few remarks to what you have already 
 stated. The propagation and cultivation of my orange 
 bushes is a mere practical application of the principles 
 published by my old friend Thomas Rivers, of Saw- 
 bridgeworth, England, in his work entitled the " Mini- 
 ature Fruit Garden ;" written to guide cultivators in the 
 culture of dwarf pears, apples and cherries. 
 
 I, experimented with several stocks, and finally de- 
 cided to adopt the Otaheite. Its roots are fibrous and 
 plentiful ; and in its earlier stages of growth it is like 
 the Paradise or Doucin stocks, very vigorous ; but soon 
 settles down to business. My bushes are grown on 
 sandy soil, with a subsoil of pure white sand. For four 
 years the land was used as an asparagus bed, and during 
 that period it received but one light dressing of manure. 
 On the same land, six years ago, I planted standard 
 orange trees sixteen feet apart, and my bushes are grow- 
 ing between them five feet apart. You, Mr. Editor, 
 will certainly agree with me, that my bushes have not 
 been fairly treated. If my bushes had been planted in 
 new and fertile soil, I feel assured that the product of 
 the first year would have been much greater. I have 
 raised from seed a truly Lilliputian variety of the 
 orange, and I have reason to believe that it will super- 
 sede the Otaheite as a stock for bushes. 
 
 Some of your readers will cry out cut bono, and ridi- 
 
ORANGE CULTURE. 121 
 
 cule orange bushes, as English gardeners ridicule Riv- 
 ers' apple bushes ; but to-day apple bushes have become 
 an institution, and produce larger and finer apples than 
 can be gathered from standard trees. This morning I 
 carefully examined my orange bushes, and I will perse- 
 cute you with figures : 
 
 The bushes are 20 in number. 
 
 Thirteen out of the 20 are in fruit. 
 
 Number of fruit on bearing bushes is: 80, 79, 41, 35, 
 20, 17, 16, 10, 10, 4, 3, 3, 1. 
 
 Average number of fruit on bearing bushes, 24. 
 
 Average number of fruit on bearing and nou-bearing 
 bushes, 155. 
 
 Distance of bushes apart, 5 by 5 feet. 
 
 Number of bushes per acre, if planted 5 by 5 feet 
 apart, 1,742. 
 
 Product per acre first year of bearing on average of 
 15 J per bush, 26,000. 
 
 Twenty -six thousand oranges at $15 per 1,000, $390. 
 
 All who are conversant with the culture of dwarf 
 apples, pears and cherries, will admit that they are pro- 
 ductive and profitable, and my limited experience with 
 my bushes, leads me to believe that they will produce 
 large crops at an early day. As it may possibly inter- 
 est some of your readers, I will furnish a few facts in 
 connection with the Otaheite orange. 
 
 According to Risso and Poiteau, it was introduced 
 into France in 1815, by M. Noisette, a Parisian nursery- 
 man. It is dwarf in habit, almost thornless, branches 
 pendulous, roots fibrous, leaves very smooth and glossy, 
 four inches in length by one and three-quarters broad, 
 leaves concave on upper surface from side to side, ab- 
 sence of leaflet on petiole. 
 
 The fruit is small, being about one inch and three- 
 quarters in length, by one and a third in diameter; with 
 
122 MANVILLE'S TREATIWE. 
 
 prominent rumpled knob or tubercle at calyx end ; sur- 
 face of fruit strewn with small, irregular impressions ; 
 skin thin and charged with a pungent essential oil ; 
 flesh deeper in color than the skin ; juice very unpleas- 
 ant, resembling a mixture of the juice of the lime and 
 bitter orange of Seville. C. J. Kenworthy. 
 
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