The morning call., 1892-12-25
HORTICULTURE IN CALIFORNIA

"
HORTICULTURE IN CALIFORNIA.
The fourth annual report of the Horti
cultural Bureau has just been issued from
the State Printing Office. 1t contains infor-
nation which should be in the hands OF
every one who proposes to grow fruit
whether as pastime or as means or sup
port. The men who are at the head OF the
bureau appear to be laboring faithfully TO
overcome the prevailing ignorance on the
subject Of Embarrassing, and TO possess the
knowledge necessary for the task.
OF the 155, $50 square miles of land area ia
the State only about 100000 acres are
planted in fruit. or these 2s2. 1856 acres are
in bearing trees. and 11S.91S are in trees
which are not yet in bearing. The culti-
waited horticultural area Of California bear
to the possible horticultural area about the
relation which flower pot bears to field.
We can form no sort of an idea from the
present yield what the State will do when
the science of Embarrassing has been per-
feeted and the business of marketing fruit
crops has been syStenatiZed.
OF the total area under cultivation,
which we have roughly given at 400.0 600
acres-it is. in exact figures, 401, 415-one-
fifth, or 81, ODD acres, are in raisin grapes,
and l6, 452 acres in table grapes. OF raisins
the crop this year will not be less than
100000 pounds, or 10 per cent more than
the total amount of foreign rasins imported
into the United States. The price is low
to Az cents for the best grades, down to
to 213 cents for inferior grades. But the
business is in It's infancy. Ii was stated
lately that California fruits had not been
brought to the notice of over 100000 con-
Sumers in the Eastern States. whereas there
are 60,000, 600 such consumers. Every year
the knowledge Of our fruit spreads, and if
the Fresno and San Bernardino people per-
severe in raising and curing fruit which is
equal to the best Spanish fruit. we shall
not only cong uer the home market, but
shall make serious inroads upon the English
aud other foreign markets, which have
hitherto been supplied from Spain. 1t
must never be forgotten that the raisin in
dustry largely depends on the weather, and
that untOward rains or frosts quickly con-
vert a profit into a loss. This year the
three-yeaT-old vines of Fresno lost nearly
three-fourths of their crop, and the four
and five year old vines % per cent of theirs.
The yield of London layers will not be
much over one-half Of what was expected.
But the prices are better than last years,
especially for seedIess Muscats and Four
crown loose.
Next 10 the raisin grape in Importance
comes the orange. We have roughly 10000
acres in orange trees. IL ,24S acres of which
are in bearing trees. Over half of all the
orange trees in the State are in San Ber-
nardino County, Los Angeles and Orange
counties following at a great distance. The
great county owes its fertility to its natural
tray.ix ,,.aff aA
BerDardino range and the thoroughness
with which irrigation works have been
prosecuted. The Washington navel con-
tinues to be the most popular variety. 1t
sells at twice the price of seedlings. but as
the seeding trees produce about twice as
much fruit. the profit per tree is about the
same. Growers are doing well with the
St. Michaefs orange, ana not so we'll with
the Mediterranean sweet, which seems to
have had its day. The past year has been
bad one for orange growers. A large
proportion of the first shipments arrived at
Chicago in bad condition. having been dam
aged by wind and frost. The consequence
was dem oraliZati0n of the market which
made California fruit unstable for time.
Even when recovery took place, Washing
ton navels did not rally above So. whereas
in former years they easily commanded SIS.
Shippers destroyed their market by ship
ping unstable fruit, Instead Of feeding it
TO hogs as they do in Spain.
About 100000 acres are nearly equally
divided between peaches and prunes, the
former trees being mostly young. while half
the latter are in full bearing. Santa Clara
leads all the other counties in the produc-
ton of both. At the present time the chief
demand for peaches comes from the Gamers
and dryers, but as the export business Of
green fruit gets better organized, the demand
for table use will increase. Peaches shipped
from Sacramento last summer were ON sale
in the London fruit-stalls within sixteen
days from the time they left the orchard,
and ine fruit easily commanded a shilling
apiece. Two or three days may be saved
by shipping the fruit in large steamers from
New Orleans. In this way market will be
opened which will try CalifoTnia's capacity
for production.
The prune crop of 1891 was q. 800, 900
pounds, all of which was marketed at good
prices. This year the crop will not exceed
10000. 600 pounds, if it reaches that figure
The long cold weather and heavy rains in
jured the fruit in the late spring. The con-
sumption of prunes in the United States is
reckoned at about 70, 600, 900 pounds annually.
Five years ago all of these came from Europe
Now California supplies about one-third
and Europe two-thirds. and it has not in
frequently happened of late that the fine
Alameda and Santa Clara prunes have sold
in Chicago above the best French and Ger
man prunes.