The Arizona sentinel., 1896-05-30

lnce lt IS constantly supplying the land With the elements. The soil of the valleys s extremely rich In dedompOsed vegetable matter md uncombined carbon, readily absorbing the AeEial gases such especially, as oxygen, which en- tering the so, decomposes the organic matters SO hat they can be taken up and nourish the plants which may be considered a leading featur. in it's fertility. It also readily takes up and retains moisture, while the rmness of its particles affords every facility for percolation and ths activity of capillary action In its mechanical composition It's particles are in state of very fine division, which renders it more productive than coarser soils It acquires heat readily in the daytime and the loss of the heat at night is very gradual, that 1t mains always warm and is not subject to sudden changes of heat and cold Besides it's essential con- stituents of water, organic or vegetable matter, sand and clay, chemical analysis shows that lime, soda, magnesa, iron, ammonia and available forms of nitrogen phosphoric acid and potash enter into composition in the proportions best adapted to add to its fertility, though, of course is always the case in soil analysis it's composition varies in different localities and Is not always constant.
 The soil of the uplands, or mesas, lighter and more gravelly and in some places of lree, loamy, calcareous character The mesa lands are warm and generous. They seem especially adapted for the grape, olive and citrus fruits generally. Their soil contains more magnesiA, lime or chalk than the bottom lands It never cracks and retains moisture admirably in summer It is of that character which will produce wine that will keep good for fifty or 2 hundred years, and improve annually. not being liable to sour, exposure to the air, after one year old to become turbid and change color ia the bottle or glass.
 We can safely say that the soil of Yuma County can nowhere be surpassed containing as it does all the essential elements of richness and fertility.
 FRUIT CULTURE.
 Fruit production throughout Arizona is sub iect great interest at present, and will no doubt, be the principal industry in Yuma County The remarkable results that have sprung from very superficial and imperfect culture has de- monstrated that the soil and climate of Yuma County are peculiarly adapted for this branch of agricultural enterprise. The development of these resources is of the utmost importance and is at tracting carefnl attention. Experiments have been msde with care, and facts in regard to the culture of different kinds of fruits have been collected which cannot fail to convince, tbe most skept ical, of the wonderful superiority of Yuma County over Southern California in fruit growing, and which must lead to large and varied production, of the most remunerative character.
 The Commissioner of Immigration in his report, published in ls86, writes as follows of the rich valleys of the Gila, Colorado and Salt rivers.
 "The soil of these valleys is among the richest on the continent. It is formed of the detritus which the streams for ages have brought down from their mountain homes in their journey to the sea- By constant overfows and change of channel, the deposit of this rich vegetable matter has form cd a soil of extreme fertility, Near the streams it is a dark alluvial mold, well adapted to small grains and grasses. Farther back there is a rich sandy loam, mellow and porous, and especially favorable for fruit culture. It has been already demonstrated that the productive capacity of these valleys is not surpassed by lands of equal area in any part oS the United States So rapid and prolific is the growth of the fruits cereals and vegetables that the labor of the cutivator is reduced to the minimum. In nearly all of them two crops a year can be growth, and vegetation is one month ahead of California. The farmers plants cottonwood sapling before his door, and within the year he hal shade tree twenty-five feet high! Alfalfa can bt cut six times during the season, and it is an actual fact the grape-cuttings have produced within eigh | teen months! What State or Territory can make such showing? The climate, it must be remem bered, is nearly perpetual summer. Snow never falls in these southern valleys The farmer begins to plant ia November, and by the middle of May his harvest is ready. Roses are in bloom, fruit trees are blossoming, and the grain fields are se' of green, when the fields of the Eastern farmer are covered with snow and ice.
 Every variety grains. grasses, fruits and vege tables grown in the temperate and semi-tropi' zones can be produced in the valleys of' Arizona Wheat, corn barley, oats and all the small grain give yield of from twenty-five to fifty bushels tC the acre. Alfalfa clover, timothy, Bermuda ana all the cultivated grasses grow luxuriantly, th' former giving from eight to ten tons to the acr' each year, Every variety of vegetable raised il the United States can be grown in Arizona, ana nowhere are they found of better quality.
 Besides the products mentioned, these semi | tropical valleys produce cotton, sugarcane, to- baceo, hemp and rice With the exception of tn sugar-cane but little attention is paid to the culti walton of otherstsples; but it hasbeen demonstrat ed that the soil and climate are specially adapted to their successful growth. Cotton growing is n' experiment in Arizona, for it is on record tha when the Europeans first penetrated this region they found the Pima Indians wearing fabric made of cotton grown in the Gila valley.
 ''But it is their adaptabil1ty for fruit cultur that assures to these valley lands dense popula tion and aprosperous future. Almost every var iety known can be raised in their fruitful soils. Tn apple, pear plum, peach, apricot, quinee and nee ,tarine, are of delicious flavor, and give gen erous yield. The grape of all varieties is at hom In these sunny vales. No place in the grape-grow ing belt of the Pacific Coast can show prolific
 yield. The quality is all that could be desired and the wine, although its manufacture is yet ex | perimental, is of fine flavor, delicious bouquet and unsurpassed by any native product as tabl | beverage. Experiments with the raisin-grap have shown that this climate and soil posses every advantage for the production and curing o this staple article of commerce.
 | Besides the fruits already mentioned, tho or ange, lemon, lime, olive, fgI pomegranate, ant others of the citrus family, be grown success fully in the valleys of Southern Arizona. .Orang trees are now in bearing in the Salt River valle! and at Yuma; while the bananas is also being cul tivated at the latter place. The Arizona orange il quality and flavor will compare favorably with tn | best California.
 "In the valleys of the Colorado, the Salt and tn
 Gila rivers, there is room for thousands. It is no
 teo much to say that nowhere within the limits o
 this broad Union can be found more desrabl
 region for the making of home. Nc lsboriou
 clearing of the land is required; it lies almoS
 ready for the blow. Trees and shrubbery have S rapid growth that within eighteen months tn
 immigrant can surround his abode with attraction
 which would require years to atare in less favore climates. Fruits ripen and are ready for lnarke
 il full month before the California product. In