The Arizona sentinel., 1899-12-23
FHUIT CULTURE.

FHUIT CULTURE.
 Fruit production throughout Arizona is 3 sub Ject great interest at present, and VIII no douOt, be the principal industry in Yuma County The remarkable results thst have sprung from very superficial and i'm! erfett culture has de- mOnstrated tha' the soil and climate of Yuma County are peculiarly adapted for this branch of agricultural enterp-ise. The developments nf these resources is of the utmost importance and is a, made with care and facts in regard to the culture Of different kinds of fruits have been collected which cannot fail to convince, even tbe most skept ical, oft Ondcrful 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 70 missioner of immigration in his report published in ss6, writes as follows of the rich valle, of the Gila. Colorado and Calt 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 iourneS to the sea- By conStaI overiOws and change of channel, the deposit of this rich vegetable matter has form ed soil of ,xtreme fertility Near tn! streams ii is dark Llluvial mold, well adapted to small grains and grasses. Farther back there is a rich l sandy loan, mellow and porous, and especially favorable for fruit culture. It has been already demonstrated that the productive apacity of these valleys is not surpassed by lands of equal area in any part of the United States So rapid and prolific ia fhe fvYrika nd afohlo that the labor of the cutivator is reduced to the minimum. In nearly all of them two crops year | can be growth, and vegetation is one month ahead of California. The farmers plants a cottonwood sapling before his door, and within the he has shade tree twenty five feet high! Alfalfa can be cut six times during the season. and it is actual fact the grape-cutt;ngs have produced within eigh l teen months! What State or Territory make | such . showing? The climate, 1t must be remem. | bered, is nearly perpetual summer. Snow never falls in these southern valleys. The farmer begins | to plant in November, and by the middle of Way "is harvest is ready. Roses are in bloom, frIli. trees are blossoming, and the grair fields . sea l of green, when the fields of the Eastern farmer, | are covered with snow and ice.
 Every variety grains grasses, fruits and v"2e | tables grown in the temperate and semi-.ropiC zones can be produced in the valleys of Arizona. Wheat. corn barley, oats ard Ill the sms,: grains give yield of from twenty-five to fifty bushels to | the acre. Alfalfa, clover, timothy, Bermuda anj all the cultivated grasses grow luxuriantly, the | former giving from eight Go ten tons to the acre each year, Every variety of vegetable raised ill the United States can be grown in Arizona. and | nowhere are they found better quality.
 "Besides the products mentioned, these semi l tropical valleys produce cotton, sugar-csne, to- bacco, hemp and rice. With the exception of the
 ugarcane but little attention is paid to the cult yation of other staples but It has been demonstrat ed that the soil and climate are specially adapted 1 to their successful growth. Cotton n-growng is nc experiment in Arizona. for 1t is on record that when the Europeans first penetrated this region ! they found the PimA Indians wearing fabrics | made Of .tt1n grow in the Gila valley.
 "Bui it is their sdsptability for fruit culture ;hst assures to theSe valley lands dense popula- | sion and aprosperous future. Almost every var iety known be raised in their fruitful sols The "pple. pear, plum, peach, apricot, qunce and nee tarine, of delicious flavor, and give gen erous yield. The grape of all varieties home in these sunny vales. No place in the grape-grow
  1 yield. Th= quality is all that could be desired | and the wine, although it's manufacture vet ex perimenta!. is or A fine flavor, deicious bouquet | and uns lrp;ssed by auY native pI"duct table | Leverage Experiments with the raisin- grape nave shown that this climate and soil posses | every advantage for the production and curing 6t ! shis staple article of commerce. "Besides he friits already mentioned, tho or. l ange, lemOn lime, olive, fig. pomegranste, and others of the citru. family, can be grown success fully in the valleys of Southern Arizona. Orange trees now in bearing in the Salt River valley md at Yuma; while the bananas is also being cul .ivated at the latter place. The Arizona orange in quality and flavor will compare favorably with the best California.
 "In the valleys of the Colorado, the Salt and the Gia rivers, there is room for thousands. It is not | roo much to say that nowhere within the limits of | this broad Union be found a more desirable region for the making of homo. No laborious l clearing of the land is required 1t lies almost ready for the blow. Trees and shrubIery nave SO rapid growth that within eighteen months the lmmie rant surround his abode with attractions which would require years to matur in less iaI vred climates. Fruits ripen and are ready for market full month before the California product. The bright sunshine makes life luxury. and the pure, dry atmosphere brings health to all who ihhale It For the establishment of colonies, such as we have made of Southern California a arden, Arizona presents nnrivaled opportunities Thousands 0f acres, prohtless, can be male productive by construction of irriEatins dtches and there is no investment which assures larger or more permanent returns"
 LAMBS ANO SOIS