The herald., 1894-03-18
PLANT LEMONS.
A Profitable Ind ustry Not Tiki ely to BE
Overdone-Facts and Fienres.
Written for the HEeALD.l


Overdone-FRcts and Fienres.
Written for the HEsALD.l
This is the year to plant lemons.
serymen for very low price. A few
years ago they cost $l.50 apiece Now
they may be had for from 1879 to 25
cents. In anticipation of very ex-
tensive planting Of lemon orchards
throughout Southern California, the
nursery business in lemon trees has
been overdone. But the people are not
planting Rs many lemons as was ex-
pected, as it has been discovered-and
the cold snap in January last but en-
phasized the fact-that the lemon ia
much more sensitive than the orange to
the extremes of heat aud cold. and that
q climate that will produce the choicest
of oranges is not necessarily suitable for
the successful culture OF the lemon. 1t
is estimated that there are 100 acres OF
good orange land in Southern California
to one acre of good lemon land, or,
rather, lemon climate, as the produc-
tion of first-clsss lemons seems to be
more dependent upon climate than upon
soil
Lemons grown away from the infu-
ence OF the salt sea air seem to be de-
6cient in "keeping qualities. In Sicily
and Italy lemon orchards may be seen
upon the very shores of the Mediter-
rRnean, the roots of the trees almost
washed by the waves. The lemon tree
is more open tree in its growth than
the orange, its growing fruit being
almost wholly exposed to the weather,
and it may be that the greater summer
heat of the interior valleys, and the
direct action of the sun, have an effect
upon the fruit that impairs ite keeping
properties. By using the utmost care
in the handling and curing, however,
some interior growers have succeeded in
turning out very marketable fruit.
STILL the liability OF the curing fruit to
suddenly take notion to rot when least
expected, has proved a great source of
encouragement, and has seriously ham
pered the lemon industry in many local
itiee.
As tending to prove the theory that
the sea air and exemption from extremes
OF temperature have an influence upon
the keeping qualities of the lemon, Mr.
A. III. Bishop of Colegrove, in CahueDga
valley, states that he has never had a
single rotten lemon on his place, and his
trees, though only a little over three
years from the planting, have yielded
him great quantities of fruit, most OF
which he has cured. His soil is very
rich dark loan, commonly miscalled,
from its color, "black adobe" Mr..
Bishop says that this rich dark soil is
what has built up the great west, and
made Chicago possible"
Fully 50 per cent of the lemons con-
sumed in the United States are imported.
The importRtions of this fruit from Med
iterranean ports amounted last year to
100000 boxes, of the low customs val
uation OF $4,994,342. Three million
boxes is equal to 10000 carloads: which.
by the way, is about twice the amount
of the Southern California orange crop.
The consumption of lemons in the
United States has nearly trebled since
1885, and will continue to increase very
rapidly year by year as the valuable
medicinal properties of the fruit become
better known to the people.
These organoleptic properties are rec
ognized in the scientific name of the
fruit, which is citrus mediea limonum.
A consideration of these facts should
convince the most skeptical that the
likelihood of an overproductlon of lem
ons in Southern California is not to be
thought of, by this generation at least !;
go those having soil and climate such as
will produce in abundance fruit equal
or superior to the imported need not
hesitate about planting.
Florida produces some lemons, but,
like Southern California, the area where
the production is entirely successful is
rather limited. Florida lemons come
into market in September and are gone
by November. Sicily lemons begin to
come into the market, as a new crop, in
October or November. They have fine
keeping qualities and last through the
year, but they get pretty ''rocky" to-
ward the latter part of it. In Cahuenga
valley, adjoining Los Angeles city on
the northwest, and possibly at other
places in Southern California, the lemon
has no season of cropping, but bears
right along throughout the year, the
fruit being picked for caring every two
weeks or'so, winter and summer alike.
The cured fruit may be cold in month
from the picking, or it may be kept for
six months or a year. Where the keep
ing qualities are 30 good the grower is
enabled to hold his fruit for the tip-top
price. This is an advantage which, un-
fortunately, is denied the orange grow
ere, except to a somewhat limited ex-
tent.
At the present price of trees it should
not cost to exceed S25 per acre to plant
and care for lemon orchard the first
year, and SIS should cover the expenses
of the second year. The third year the
trees should produce enough fruit to pay
for all expenses up to and including that
year. By the time the orchard enters
upon it's fifth year che product should
have been sufficient to pay for all ex-
penses, including the cost of the land.
After that the trees should yield an in
come of at least $1,000 per acre. The
word should" is used advsedly, as
young lemon orchards, in Cahueuga at
least, are doing even better than that.
RUsuCUs.
The Foresters.