The Florida agriculturist. [volume] (DeLand, Fla.) 1878-1911, 1884-07-09

parenchyma which covers the sections
of the fruit. It's juice is sharp, and also
slightly bitter from the membrane form
ing the vesicles III which the juice is
contained.
THE cITRoN FRUIT.
The citron is eaten only as comfit.
The quantity of iuice in its pulp is so
small that no account is taken OF it; it
has the propertieslof lemon juice but is
less acid and has less perfume. The
peel of the citron is the part most used;
the essential oil which it contains in the
exterior part is in a liquid state in the
prominent vesicles, which give to it the
tuberosities which characterize it. This
oil is often pressedout, and, mixed with
sugar, is soluble iii water, and used for
giving an aromaticflayor to liquors. The
interior part of the peel, or the white, is
agreeable to the taste when its aroma is
corrected by sugar; it is especially deli
cious when preserved, and in this form
it is generally found in commerce.
THE LEMON.
The lemon peel contains also an essen
tial oil full of aroma but this fruit is
used only for it's acid and agreeable juice,
which is very abundant, and serves for
seasoning animal and vegetable substan-
ces. From it is also made, with sugar
and water, drink beneficial to persons
suffering from infammatory and putrid
fevers. 1t is the principal specific in
scurvy, and the best antidote against
vegetable poisons.
The lemon contains citric acid in
perfect state, only mixed with water,
from which it can be easisly separated.
1t furnishes to the art Of dyeing means
OF enlivening red colors taken from the
vegetable kingdom, and especially the
color of the carthamus or sunfower,
which thus becomes SO brilliant in silks.
1t has similar use in China and India,
where the juice is also used in order to
lprepare metals for gliding, in the same
manner as Europeans employ aqua fortis.
THE FRANCE.
The sweet orani@e is one of the most
delicious assiai s. fs'is Il nnlioa L
maladies. Its pei has an essential OF
full of aroma, WISHzeT at maturity loses
its biting and bitt9r quality; the peel
may then be eatenI In the finest varie-
ties the peel is verN thin. 1t is thicker in
others, but the WlSite part, instead of
| being tieshy as in the citron, is always
cottony, light, and tasteless. Orange
juice is extremely sweet and agreeable.
The sweet orange is eaten in it's natural
state, and this is almost its only use.
THE BIGARADE.
The bitter orange is not eaten. Pre-
serves are made from them, which are
very agreeable. The peel is more aro-
matte than that of other species, and the
essential oil it contains has always
bitterness and caustic taste which distin-
guishes it from the sweet orange. The
juice of the bigarade is sharp and bitter.
it is used in the same manner as that of
the lemon, as an agreeable seasoning for
animal and vegetable substances, and
especially for fish, whose tendency to
putrefaction is thus greatly diminished.
But the principal OF the bigarade tree is
that of its flower. This is exceedingly
sweet-scented, and from it are made per-
fumed waters and essences, which sur
pass in gratefulness those of the lemon,
sweet orange, or citron.
This finishes the description of the
four primitive species into which the
numerous family of the Citrus is divided.
OCAOIO OllOOA Odh1klS tllC UC6CIlpL1Oll
and Identification Of their derivatives, it
is necessary to establish the acceptation
of several terms which have been adop-
ted by botanists, agriculturists, and gar
deners to designate some different races
whose characteristics have not been we'll
determined. We will examine the
meaning of the words lime, lumie, and
poncire.
1t is difficult to determine with exact
ness the idea attached to each of these
terms, and still more difficult to follow
out all their application to various races
by different writer's; but we shall not
have much trouble in recognizing that
all these names have only been invented
in order to designate the hybrids which
we meet with every way in our gardens,
and which could not be called by the
names already in use, because these
names belonged to the species and their
varieties As, however, the origin and
nature of these fruits was little known,
they were unable to employ systematic
| ally the names which they have assigned
indefinitely to individuals of very differ
ent nature.
Ferraris seems to designate, under the
name of lime, IMPLIED fruits derived from
the orange and the lemon, and under
the name of lua,ie, hybrids of large,
round fruits with yellow, thick skin,
and very sour thin pulp. But in prac-
tice he does not always make this dis
tinction, and for example, places among
lines the lemons called sweet as well as