Arizona weekly enterprise., 1890-10-25
FIG CULTURE.
AN INDUSTRY or PRIME IMPORT
 ANCE TO ARIZONA.
4 Discussion Upon the Varieties Best Adapted for Cultivation and Profit The True smyrna Fig and its Su- periority---H to Increase the
 Crop in Quantity and
 Quality.
Pacific Rural Press.

|
 cussion on fig-growing. The following outline was prepared by CharlesS s. Aiken, n member of the society, iOr the Evening
 Bulletin:
 An interesting address on the Smyrna fip was given by Dr. Gustav Eisen. He related that in the fig plantation at James Shinn's at Niles. among the trees grown from Bulletin cuttings he had found three of the five known varieties of choicest Smyrna figs, and he had found also grow
 with these trees numbers of Capri figs the wild fig of Greece and Asia Minor. There
 was very little fruit to examine but the ] leaves and habit of growth denoted the characteristics of each r5riety. Some ! leaves were full lobed, some three; some
 were sharply serrated, others smooth
 edged. There were distinct features
 enough to show beyond all question the presence of three varieties, highly prlzed l abroad for their large and delicate fruit
 '"These varieties Dr. Risen said in re- l sponse to a question, "are without doubt 1 the true Smyrna, and as such they are 1 destined to be of great value to the State.
 I am thoroughly satisfied that they are 1 very distinct type from the White Ad-
 riatic fig, grown here, and far superior" i Very unexpectedly, following these | l w. Masliu of Placer, who has made a 1 special study of figs, eorroborated Dr. | Eisen's views as to the identity of the l Bulletin fig. A leaf shown by Dr. Risen
 taken from one of the Niles trees, is pre- | cisely the same in shape and structure as
 those on MT. Maslin's trees, which he raised from seed taken from box of the ! best imported Smyrna figs that he could | get in the New York market.
 The value and use of the Capri fig, l found with the Smyrna importation, were
 explained by Dr. Risen in detail It is | the fig that is relied upon in districts of l the Old World for caprifcation purposes, i for the little insect, blasto- -faga, breeds
 only in these wild figs. Some fruit taken 1 from the Niles Capri figs were examined
 and found to contain, differing from other 1 figs, traces of both male and female bios
 soms The precise difference in forma
 tion between the Capri and other figs was
 explained by blackboard illustration. The
 value of republication was explained in
 great detail In summary, Dr. Eisens
 views were that republication Is necessary
 for the Smyrna fig, in order to produce paying crops of fruit. It will set its fruit
 without republication. for some figs ma
 tJlred this year at Niles, but, in his iudg
 ment, the trees will not bear in abundance
 without republication. This matter of
 republication is easily managed. Since
 the trees are here, the insect which makes
 its home in them may easily be obtained
 by importation, and with them perfect
 fruit and more of 1t on Smyrna trees may
 be assured. An obstacle similar to this
 was met by West India planters some
 years ago when they started to raise
 vanilla beans The bearer would not ma
 ture until they brought from South
 America a pollen-carrying moth which
 made fruitful the otherwise barren blos-
 sons. In figs of this type, it IS claimed
 by Dr. Eisen, republication will increase
 size and yield, will prevent possible sour
 ing, and will make the figs drop in every
 instance when ready for gathering. The
 White Adriatic sets fruit without capri
 tication, but its fruit is not perfect. Its
 seeds will not reproduce. There is wild
 fig similar to the Capri in Lower Califor-
 mia, but the fruit of the Capri is about 50
 times larger than this native fig. Any
 failure of the wild fig crop in the Symrna
 districts is regarded by the natives as a
 great calamity because then all the fruit,
 from the effect of non-caprifcation has
 to be cut from the trees instead of picked from the ground where it falls There has lately been much complaint around
 Fresno of White Adriatic figs souring;
 republication would likely prevent this trouble. Apparently figs som more iIl
 hot interior districts than where fogs prevail. In order to produce technically perfect fruit, caprifcation will be found
 necessary, and the speaker expressed con fidence that ill the future the practice will be thought all ll-important in fg-growing. A member suggested that some of the l o771 l tivated banana produces no seed, neither i does the Washington Navel orange, nor , the Sultana or Thompson grape.
 f Secretary Lelong of the State Board o
 Horticulture took issue with Dr. Eisen as
 to the need of republication for successful
 fig-culture. Recent European cores pondence has given results of tests made
 in the Grecian archipelago. There tree: , have beer entirely inclosed in tents and
 kept from the pollen carrying insect, and
 yet those have borne and ripened figs q; , well as trees freely exposed In som, : places it has been found that the fruit ! simply ripened earlier with insects thal P without The French Minister of Agri . culture has lately recommended the en I tire abandonment of the practice of capri h fcation.
 | Dr. Eisen, replying to Lelong, said that  n are now no true Smyrna figs, similar t, 2 these Bulletin figs, in either Italy o V France So, if the Minister Of Agricul 2 ture of France discourages republication ;. he is considering matter which he likel, II knows nothing about
 Regarding treating figs, Secretary Le
 long favored sulphuring by careful fun
 ing, claiming that the process was neces
 sary to kill all fungus. He showed som
 of the Delemater figs from Placer sul
 blurred in this way last year, and defie k any one to detect the traces of sulphur. Il Mr. Maslin expressed the belief tha n sulphuric fumes gained entrance to tn le fig, generating gas that would spoil tn IS finest fruit.
 IS Mir Maslin said he had not yet mad y up his mind as to the value of caprifca a tion here. His fig growing experiene y dated from 1885, when he bought a bo d of the largest Smyrna figs he could get i s the San Francisco market and plante ar the seeds. Last year some of the tree IS from these seeds bore. The leaves varie ,e in form, and the fruit of these repute 'l, white Smyrna, some of 1t, at least, wf ;h blue as any ever seen and nearly circula t, in shape. In 1886 he obtained from Ne Id York another box of Smyrna figs, th e, largest he ever saw The following yea ". he set out seven acres of young trees frol e, these seeds. Last year they had sent u m shoots nine and ten feet high, and for at trees bore about two dozen figs The lg were yellow skinned, with amber me; ch and very sweet. He decided he wante Id stocky trees, so he cut the long shoo le, back. The result was a disastrous, fc D. some branches died, some trees died, an en none bore any fruit this year. From tn en experience, he has decided to never agai he prune fig tree. Fully five per cent V the trees in his seven acres plante nd hexagonally, 25 feet apart, have died, bl at the rest are doing well, and choice fruit A looked for next year. The leaves of tre ng from his New York seeds are similar lat above noted to some of those found 1 9m Dr. Eisen on the Bulletin Smyrna Ire de at Niles. From his observation of fl nd about the State he is satisfied that tl at foothills are best adapted to fig cultul
 producing the thinnest skinned and
 far the sweetest fruit. ar, Emory Smith referred to sulphuril cal figs, condemning the indiscriminats pra ys: tice. He told lately of testing some ii jet in the local market which came Fresr i'll They had been sulphured so much th if thav xuaro oo tao+a1arS ac co 1o711oh oo4tc