Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1895-03-23
BIC THINGS IN CALIFORNIA,
Gigantic Fruits, Flowers and Vegetables
Grown on tho Pacific Coast

Gigantic Fruits. Flowers and Vegetables
Grown on tho Pacific Coast.
"We have some big things in Cali
fornia," said l.. German of Los An
geles to the Chicago Times man.
"Of course you have heard of the biz
grapevine at Santa Barbara, which
covers three acres. Then there ia
the monster rosebush at Santa Rosa.
1t grew to an enormous height and
completely covered the house where
it grew. Ruring my lifetime here in
California have handled squashes
running all the way from $50 to 800
pounds each. Watermelons l have
seen weighing all the way from thirty
five to 100 pounds. Beets are fre-
quently known on this coast weighing
all the way from forty to seventy-fve
pounds. | remember one beet raised
at San Rafael which weighed about
eighty pounds. Last fall | saw three
onions the aggregate weight of which
was nearly five pounds. In the Po-
mona valley have known of onions
weighing from one and three-ouarters
to two and one-half pounds. Tomato
vines frequently grow ten or twelve
feet across. and | have often seen rad
ishes that looked like big turnips.
~ have seen specimens of the Hum
5oldt county potato which weighed
from two to three pounds. 1t is not
unusual at all to see cabbages weigh
ing from thirty-fve to seventv-five
pounds. Some years ago a Mr.. Fox,
who lived down in the Santa Cruz
mountains raised a carrot of the white
Belgian variety which weighed about
twenty-eight pounds. 1t was the
largest carrot on record. The largest
pears that come to the San Francisco
market are what they call pound
pears.
At Kesley's orchard, near Santa Bar
bara, is remarkable plum tree. known
as the Japan plum, which was planted
in 1876. The fruit is heart shaped and
of rich yellow color. The plums are
frequently from eight to ten inches in
circumference. In Los Angeles H. L.
Baker displays rosebush which has
reached the height of sixteen feet.
Grated Upon its branches are twelve
varieties of roses. The parent stalk
is II years of age. The stalk few
inches above the ground is five inches
in circumference. S. II. Shaw of On
tario recently discovered an apple
blossom on one of the trees in his
orchard which resembles large-sized
rose, measures nine and one-half
inches in circumference, and is what
may be called second-crop blossom.
An ordinary apple blossom contains
five petals, while this one had thirty
or forty.
The big grapevine at Montecito,
near Santa Barbara, is famous. The
vine was planted about forty wears
ago. The grapes are of the Mission
variety. The parent stalk is FORTY
six inches in circumference one foot
from the ground. Where it COM
mences to branch, three feet from the
ground, its circumference is sixty-
three inches. The vine yielded four
and half tons of grapes in single
season. The vine covers an area OF
100x90 feet.
AT the rooms of the state board of
trade in San Francisco some remarka-
bic products of California soil are on
exhibition. Last year, when the sea-
son was well advanced, pumpkins
weighing 267 pounds were on exhibi-
tion there. There were also cabbapes
weighing ninety-five pounds, onions
that tipped the scale at five pounds,
and huge sweet potato, raised near
Santa Ana, that weighed twenty-five
pounds. Apples weighing twenty
ounces are frequently on exhibition,
and five-gallon glass jar containing
eight pears, the weight of which is
thirty three and third pounds. These
eight pears completely fill the jar.
Florists say they have seen lilies in
California fourteen feet high, while
geraniums that look like trees are
common.