The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1872-06-08
TROPICAL FRUITS.

How THE OLIVE, LEMON, AND ORANGE
FLOURISH IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA.
Charles Nordheff writes as follows from
Santa Barbara, California, on the subject
of fruit culture
The olive, of which the Oldest and one Of
the finest groves in the State is at the San
Diego Mission, is propagated by cuttings.
1t grows slowly at first, begins to bear at
four years. under favorable circumstances,
but does not yield full crop until the
tenth, or even the twelfth year. 1t shonld
then return an average for the orchard OF
25 gallons of olives per tree. Sixty trees
are planted to the acre, here, by the most
experienced men. The olives are sole here,
at this time, for sixty cents per gallon in
the orchard, and the few olive groves now
in full bearing about here at that rate, are
worth, gross, 5000 per acre per annum.-
No doubt, as new groves come to bear, the
price will go down; but there is here an
immense margin, as you will perceive
The finest olives have ever tasted. l ate at
the San Diego Mission; and the olives of
this State, when carefully picked, are far
superior to those we get from France or
Spain. They are of moderate size, but
very plump, juicy, and full favored. Pic
killed. olives fetch here rs cents per gallon.
am told by proprietors of olive orchards
that it is more profitable to make the fruit
into oil than to pickle them. From five to
seven gallons of ripe olives 60 to one gal
Ion of oil, and this is worth now So. The
machinery for pressing the oil is very SIM
pie, and usually stands under a shed in the
orchard; the pulp is crushed from the pits,
and stuffed into strong rope nets, which
are then pressed, the oil running down into
tub of clean water, on the surface Of
which it collects. 1 am told that the re-
fuse and the crushed seeds, ON pressure,
yield quantity of oil of lower quality,
which is boiled to clarity it. The first oil
needs not even bleaching here. The olive
tree, with its curious greyish-greGn fol-
iage, does not at first seem beautiful to
you; but it grows on the sight, and think
there is no finer object than grove of
these heathful, finely-grOwn trees. There
are several young orchards about here, and
Santa Barbara is likely to become the GEN.
tire of this culture. The olive is not partic-
ular as to soil, and it does not here need
irrigation. The gopher eats the roots of
the young tree, but this is its only enemy.
That you may not think have exagger-
ated the olive trees productiveness, I will
add that one tree, in this town, now thirty
years old, bore $4S worth of olives for three
years in succession; another, at IL years,
bore over two barrels of olives. At San
Diego tree reputed to be 20 years old bore
this year over 100 gallons; but in that old
orchard, which has been shamefully abus-
ed, some trees did not bear at all this year;
and this one tree may have had rest for
years past. l do not know the cost of
working an olive orchard; the cultivation
should not cost more than that Of the al
mond; but the picking is probably expen-
sive, as it would employ number of
hands. Children, however, are used in this
labor. The fruit does not ripen all at once,
and it must be picked by hand.
The lemon, which becomes stately, far.
spreading tree, bears in ten years valua-
BILE crop. 1t is not yet planted in orchards
to great extent; one tree, ten years old,
which saw in Los Angeles, yielded 600
lemons; one fifteen years old bore 1000
lemons. They fetch in San Francisco $50
per 1000. Last, come to the orange
"All these trees do we'll, and are profita-
ble," said an orange cultivator to me; ''but
they don't compare with the orange; when
you have bearing orange orchard, it is
like finding money in the street."
Los Angeles is the centre of the orange
culture in this State. The tree grows well,
in all Southern California, wherever water
can be had for irrigation. 1t does best
nearest the mountains among the foot
hills, probably because it there gets more
uniform temperature; and I think have
noticed in orchards at Los Angeles, San
Gabriel, and near San Bernardino, that it
is grateful for such protection as house,
out-huildings or hedges gives it from Sc
we're winds. At Los Angeles, the frosts
are sometimes severe enough to nip the
tender leaves of the young plants, and on
the plain near San Bernardino found that
year-old plants were protected with some
slight covering during the past winter,
which everybody tells me has been uncom-
monty hard.
Sixty orange trees are commonly planted
to the acre. They may be safely trans
planted at three or even four years, if care
is used to keep the air from the ROOTS
They grow from seed; and it is believed
that grating does not change or improve
the fruit. 1t begins to bear in from six to
eight years from the seed, and yields crop
for market at ten years. With good thor
ough culture and irrigation, it is healthy
tree; if it is neglected, or if the gopher has
gnawed it's roots, the scale-insect appears;
but diseased tree is very rarely seen in
the orchards. 1t is tremendous bearer.
At Los Angeles saw two trees in an Or
chard, one seventeen years old, from which