The Manitowoc tribune. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1866-1878, 1868-04-09

HOW ORANGES ARE GROWN.
The Crop in Florida.

pOi uCi luoS1 VI TIE streams ana SWamps
afford the soil in which the orange most
delights and no part of the peninsula
Is more than sixty miles from the sea
1t was natural to suppose that the orange
would thrive here. Very early the Span
lards imported and planted trees, which
grew and throye as if the peninsula were
their native home. Indeed, they made
their way into the forests of the interior
to such an extent, and because SO COM
mon in the widest parts of the country,
that at this time nearly all the people of
the state believe and Will stoutly maintain
that the sour orange IS an indigenous tree.
This is certainly not the case. The sour
orange of the Florida woods is the true
Seville orange, native of Africa, and
introduced into the West Indies, Florida
and Mexico from Spain. In all these
countries it now grows wild commonly,
where before the Spanish occupation 1T
was wholly unknown.
In Florida there are, perhaps, millions
of these wild trees. In few places they
grow in almost compact groves, eXclud-
they are found singly or in clumps In
thick forests of oaks, walnuts, sweet
gums, laurels and magnolias. Rarely do
much shaded for that The other trees
overtop them, and their roots are caught
in vast network of other roots, and
must contend with them for nourishment.
They are seldom more than twenty feet
high and five or six inches In diameter,
with few struggling branches. Where
one has grown III an open space, or where
the wild trees have been left standing in
cleared field, they grow large with very
thick heads, and produce great quantities
of fruit The tree is almost identical in
appearance with the sweet orange, and
can only be distinguished from it by
close examination of the leaves and fruit
They are beautiful trees. and grove in
bearing is a luXuriant mass of gold and
green.
The beauty of the orange tree is greatly
enhanced by it's fruit, which grows pro-
fusely on the extreme boughs, seeing the
sun and the air. Small trees, only three
or four years budded, and with branches
spreading out seven or eight feet, fire.
quently bear 4 thousand oranges. Some
groves bear an average crop of two thou
sand oranges per tree +; and what tree
may bear is uncertain, for there is hardly
large tree in Florida. The tree between
the attitudes 29o and 800 usually blossoms
In February. The oranges begin to ripen
in November, but few are picked then;
for, though the orange is perishable
fruit when picked, it will hang ripe on
the tree for twelve months, growing bet
ter and sweeter until spring. Very rare
" does an orange fall off. Climb into the
tree you can. Sharp thorns two inches
long, make the task difficult. To pick
an orange you must pull smartly, and
often the fruit falls at last only when
section of the peel about the stem is
pulled out. On the tree the orange is
more lasting thar the apple. Occasion
ally in the wild groves the bitter-sweet
orange may be found. This has very
bitter peel, and the pithy skin at the
core is also very bitter; but the pulp is
sweet and well favored. Very rarely the
true sweet orange of commerce grows
wild. Its seeds are much less numerous
and less hardy than those of the sour
orange, and the tree is less robust and
vigorous.
NEW GROVES.
The prospect of permanent productive
ness and profta bleness of the orange crop
has attracted the attention Of thousands
of immigrants, aud many Of them are
planting new orchards During the war
nothing was done, because there was no
one to 10 1t, and there was very little
inducement to raise anything for market.
For the first two years alter the War the
people thought of nothing but cotton.
The failure OF the cotton crop. and the
belief that it will be improbable hereafter
has driven men to seek for some other
marketable product. The success of the
orange was visible to almost every man.
To plant grove Is neither difficult nor
costly, and thousands of men have set
out trees this winter. some giving their
attention wholly to orange culture, Others
planting groves in connection with market
gardens or plantations, and many more
business men putting out trees on small
lots or fields about their houses, as men
North plant small orchards about their
village residences. Almost every man
on the ST. John river has planted trees
this winter Some have a dozen or two
about their houses and others have groves
of a thousand trees or more.
At St Augustine there are young
groves of several thousand trees. The
Immigrants to the Indian River, all IN
tend to plant groves, but most of these
arrived too late to transplant trees this
season On the banks of the Oklamaha
and Lakes Critic, Eustis and Harris,
most of the inhabitants are planting, OF
preparing to plant, trees. In few To-
calities in the interior, as at Mlcanopy
many trees have been planted On the
Gulf coast | am told that hundreds of
groves are planted, the people there
hoping to supply the Gulf States and tho
NIississippi valley Almost every lmmI
grant who arrlves-and very many come
here from southern and northern states
designs to plant an orange grove, What
ever else he may do Ii no misfortune
Details the trees Florida will be full oil
orange groves very soon, and IN few
years VIII produce fruit enough to supply
the northern market
4 few groves have been made by bud
ding the trees where they stand and clear
ing away the other growth of the hum
mocks. Such groves grow magnlhcently
from the first, having all their roots IN
tact, and receiving no shock by transplan
taron. There are not many places where
fhe wild trees grow thick enough or wei
enough distributed to make groves, but
advantage of such natural groves as dc
occur is not often taken. On Lake Grill,
fin northern man has made a grove o
800 trees simply 10y clearing hummocb
of forty acres This is probably the larg
est grove in the state. and Is three time;
as large as any grove now IN bearing.
The beauty of the groves is best seer
when ascending the St. Johns. The
rich color OF the oranges set in the bril-
liant green of the leaves, with a back
ground of dark live oaks and sombrt
pines. and the dark water of the broat
st. John in the foreground, all unite tt
make picture not easily forgotten.
In the little VILLAGES and hamlets OF