Fort Worth gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1891-1898, 1891-10-18
OLIVE CULTURE FOR TEXAS.

| FOtS
We are going to build a great city at the
mouth of the Brazos-no doubt about that
| but we want to start in Alright so as to make
every edge cut for permanency as we go
| along. Needing your suggestion to the ef-
! feet that the surroundings of city ought
to be kept in pace with that city, so far as
relates ITO progress, we are planning to
work that way here from the very start,
| and with such an object in view We are
| casting about for fruits, etc, with which
we may make permanent plantations. Your
| talks on hardy oranges and pecans have
! been laid away for reference in the near
| future. We know we can have the pecan
| groves to entire success, and from what
| you say we think we can be equally IS sue
| cessful with the orange groves. The Or
| ange succeeds very well here, even in its
| tender varieties, but of course there IS
| some risk of having those tender varieties
| damaged more or less by an unusually Sc
we're blizzard. Such thing might not hap
| pen in thirty years, but SO long as there ex-
lists possibility OF its happening. one can
| not feel altogether safe, you know. But
with variety only little more hardy than
the ordinary tender varieties, there could
| be no risk whatever.
| have never Yet seen anything in THE
| GAZETTE with reference to olive culture.
| The olive is profitable thing to grow and
| If | am not mistaken it IS q growth consid-
|
| Do you think the olive could be made to
succeed in Texass If so, please tell us
| something about the olive and its culture.
| Going down to Velasco to recline in the
shade of her olive groves and enjoy her
heaith-giving breezes direct from the sea"
| How would that sounds Well we are in
| for anything good. We would as willingly
| have Velasco styled the SOLVE city as any
| thing else. GULF COAST.
| Velasco, Tex.
1t is entirely probable that the olive would
| prove a splendid success all along our Texas
| coast but it is strictly coast tree. and
therefore could not be depended upon for
the far interior, particularly on high lands.
They have not been able to make it much of
a success in California, generally speaking,
owing to the fact that their lands are too
much elevated, as q rule. Our coast soils
are perfectly adapted to its soil needs, and
our coast climatic conditions are everything
for it that could be required, therefore one
| can see no kind of reason why Velasco has
it not within her easy possibilities to soon
become city in the midst of great olive
groves.
There is already one fine olive grove on
the shores of the gulf-the only one we
know of in this country east of the Rocky
mountains. 1t is ct Ocean Springs, Miss,
| and is the property of Mr.. A. A Maginuis
of New Orleans. In recent mention of it
the New Orleans Picayune says:
The common olive is said to be a native of
Asia In its wild state it is thorny shrub.
Cultivated it becomes tall tree and lives
to 4 very great age. The olive plantations
~, nj 4 col how cod
from the time of Pliny; and some trees in
Turkey are credited with being 1900 years
old. The oil extracted from olives is said
to be almost the cream and butter of Spain
| and Italy. T. is nutritious and wholesome
| food, especially adapted to warm climates.
To make oil the fruit is allowed to ripen,
when it is crushed to paste and subjected
to pressure.
The unripe olives fare picked, eaten at
home and exported from France, Spain and
Italy. All Americans are familiar with the
picked olive as an appetizer. Englishmen
take the picked olives before their meals
to whet their appetite and at their desert
with wine. Nearly three million acres of
land in Italy are said to be devoted TO olive
culture.
The Picayune then adds that the olive
| can be successfully grown along the sea
coast of the Southern United States, and
that when this undoubted fact becomes
generally known steps will be taken all
along the line to put US in way entirely
destructive to all existing necessity for
importing our olive oil and our picked OIL
ives. Away back in the Seventeenth GEN.
fury Jesuit missionaries introduced the
olive into Mexico, where it is still growing
and doing decidedly well. The Picayune
continues:
To Mr.. A. A Maginnis of this city should
be given the credit of Introducing the olive
to the gulf coast, and showing the posi-
biities of that favored land by successfully
growing olive trees and fruit there.
On his elegant grounds at Ocean Springs,
Miss, MIR. Maginnis has several acres de-
voted to olive culture. He is an enthusiast
in that line and has some 400 healthy bear
ing olive trees in his orchard. The other
day he brought an olive branch to the Plea
yune office loaded with olives, fit and big
enough to pickle, showing that he can raise
the olives he talks about with so much en-
thusiasm.
The trees Mr. Maginnis has growing
came mostly from roots, or layers, shipped
to him from Italy and California, while
some were propagated from cuttings.
These trees are very beautiful. having a
clean, smooth bark. with dark green leaves
about two inches long and one-half inch
wide, tapering with the under surface
silvery white, strongly suggestive of the
silver maple. The trunks of the trees will
measure-those in bearing are referred to
from four to eight inches in diameter.
Trees on this place are in all stages of
growth, but those that are in fruit are from
ten 10 fifteen feet in height with long, thin,
pendant limbs, and are literally loaded with
fine olives Some of these trees are ap-
parently of different species, that is, to
Judge from the shape of the fruit, some be-
ing elongated, whilst others are of round
shape and very large. They are planted in
rows about fiji .een feet apart.
We here break in upon the Picayune to
state that Mr.. Maginnis has evidently
made mistake in planting his trees so near
together. The olive grows to quite large
tree with considerable spread of top, and
therefore should have more room-thirty
or thirty five feet at least Other small
growing fruit trees might occupy the space
between the rows, if necessary, while the
olive trees were still young and small. Says
our contemporary:
The field in which these olive trees are
growing is as near the salt water as posi-
BILE and just to the rear of the Maginnis
mansion and there the trees were planted
from five to eleven years ago. Perhaps this
nearness to the water may have something
to do with this wonderful output. The trees
II. lx<n- 1s1