The Florida agriculturist. [volume] (DeLand, Fla.) 1878-1911, 1879-09-24
Seeding and Budded Oranges.
Editor of The Florida Agriculturist.

Seeding and Budded Oranges.
Editor of The Florida Agriculturist.
If THE FLORIDA AGR1CULTUR1sT
takes up the discussion between the
merits of Seeding and budded orange
trees, it will soon be necessary to en-
large its dimensions. Several years
ago this subject was agitated in the
California journals, and the corre-
spondence became so voluminous, and
finally so acrimonious that, for the
sake of Quietness and good feeling,
the editors were forced to shut down
upon it, leaving the matter as unset
tied as ever. Formerly, many be-
lieved that the seed of the sweet or
ange, budded on sour stock, was
liable to produce a sour tree, but this
opinion no longer passes current, at
least among intelligent people. The
idea is still prevalent that the seed of
the sweet orange will produce fruit
identical with that from which it was
taken. Where the fruit grew among
lot of trees, all of the same kind,
this would probably be the case: but
if it grew in grove composed OF
various sorts of oranges, intermingled
with lines, citrons, lemons, shaddocks,
etc., the result would be uncertain.
There are in existence some choice
varieties of oranges and lemons,
which may be considered as sports or
hybrids, being almost seedless,as is Of
ten the.case with such, and if the seeds
ofthese are planted, The tendency is a
reversion OF the originals from which
these hybrids sprung. 1t is doubtful
whether the Maltese Blood and the
Navel orange, which may be
classed as accidentals, would come
true from seed. I have been informed
that the finest variety of the Sicily
lemon must be propagated by graft
ing, as the seedlings are inferior, and
this accounts for the low reputation
of the lemons here, having been at
the first produced from seed, instead
Uf graIT5 OF the DeSJ vaTI1Cy:
The grove OF the late Dr. Mays, at
Orange Mills, was planted above fifty
years ago, with trees imported from
over the sea. 1t contains two very
gdistinct types of the orange, one, a
large round fruit of sprightly flavor,
and the other, smaller, oblong in
shape, of a mild rich sweet, almost
destitute of acidity, and nearly seed
less. This latter consider sport,
which will not usually reproduce it.
self. 1 have watched with interest
the fruiting of many seedlings from
this grove. The product is generally
of good size, resembling the large
round orange, but shows unmistaka-
BILE evidences of admixture with the
hybrid oblong, by its somewhat elon-
gated shape and greater sweetness OF
Juice. I have known exceptional
specimens of fruit closely resembling
lemons, to be produced on an orange
tree, standing among lemon trees,
and l once picked what was a per-
feet orange in appearance, from a
lemon tree, but which was to the
taste more horribly sour, if anything
than lemon.
The tendency of sweet seeding
trees, planted in Florida, if due care
is taken in selection, is to continually
improve with each generation, fact
probably due to the eminent congeni-
ality of soil and climate but among
these varying percentage will prove
inferior, so that if grower wishes
every tree to be unexceptionable, he
must either bud them all in the be-
ginning, or, after they commence
bearing, work over those that fall
below the standard. Oranges resem-
BILE each other 80 much more closely
than is the case of apples, pears and
peaches, that it is hard, in a lot OF
tirst-class fruit, to detect much dit
terence between separate varleties,ex-
cepting several that are very distinct.
The same fruit is often so changed
by soil, culture or season, as to be
scarcely recognized evenly an expert,
so that consumers in other countries,
unskiiled in nice distinctions, would
be unaware Of any difference, so long
as the quality was good. To most Of
them one Florida orange would be
the same as another, like the person
who saw big differences between
dogs and cows, but thought all sheep
looked alike, likewise all swine and