Graham guardian., 1900-11-30
CALIFORNIA LEMONS.
Four Million Dollars Wasted in
Growing and Curing.
The Principal Growers Had 20 Send
Experts 10 spain and Italy
TO Learn the Business
Properly.

"The prejudice which existed unit
quite recently in this counutr,
against the domestic grown lemon il
fast disappearing and American con
sumerS of the fruit are beginning t.
| appreciate the fact that as fine lem
! ons caIi aow be obtained from south
| rrn California as ever came from
MeGi cl ranean ports" remarked {
wholesale fruit merchant in New
York TO u Washington Star writer
the Other day. Indeed, as far a.
shape, size, pungency and good keep
ing qualities are concerned the Cali
fornia product has within the past
-four years become dangerous rival
of the best Italian and Spanish fruit
The annual consumption of lemons
in the United States amounts to about
5,000,00O boxes. In 1896 Italy and
Spain supplied us with 100000 boxes
of lemons and 100000 boxes were
grown in California. Last year there
were imported from Mediterranean
countries 3800,OOO boxes of lemons
and l,2O0,Gt0 boxes of the fruit came
from the Pacific coast This year the
importation of lemons will be con-
siderably smaller than ever before,
and, providing the present high stan
dard of the California fr''i' is roain-
tained, the growers. .~y, will
in the cours~ rew seasons sue
ceed II as the Mediterranean
lemons from our markets, just as they
have driven out the foreign prunes
and raisins.
While lemons have been grown in
southern California for over hun
dred years, the cultivation of the
fruit as commercial industry dates
only from 1882. In that year the
first grove was started on large
scale at Riverside with the intention
of producing fruit to compete in the
eastern markets with that imported
from Italy and Spain. The zeal for
lemon growing soon spread to Po-,
mona valley, to Santa Barbara, Ven
tura, Ontario and Pasadena, where
the growers, in trying to make the
cultivation of the fruit profitable
industry met with great many dis
couragements and failures for the
first half dozen years.
"The trees grew and bore some ex-
cellent fruit, but while it was found
that a shapely, thin-skinncd and juicy
lemon could be produced on the trees,
it was found difficult task to cure
the fruit so that it would not only not
rot and show blemishes. but would
retain its rungency and oiIiness of
peel, as well as its full acid juiciness.
from the pickin" on in winter
until the follow imer, when it
was wanted BY lsuIner.
"rhe art of cur emons was only
learned by the Californians
n 1897, when the principal lemo,
growers clubbed together and sent
Experts over to Italy and Spain (.
earn the business. and now they a"c |
Producing excellent results. 70 maR
he lemons sour they are picked he-
ore they begin TO turn yell"w. The |
ruit is then put in curing house. |
where it is kept at temperature of |
bout 80 degrees for some ~ Gays.
which 'sweats out all the Surpr. II |
s then removed to another temper
ture for 60 days more before It is
eady for the market. Thus the high
st degree of acid and the largest de-
rec of juice is obtained One of the
urious effects of this sweating proc
IS is to reduce the thickness of the
kin. 1t originally grows thick and
ough, but the acid seems to eat it
p. Rough estimates put the capital
1vested in California in growing and
uring lemons with all the appurten-
nces Mt S4,5O0,OOO.
"The person whose knowledge of
smons is limited to an occasional rnr-
hase Of n dozen will be surprised to
earn that there are ~ distinct va
ieties grown in California and Flor.
Ia. These differ in size, shape, uual.
" and skin and in keeping qualities.
nut there are only four varieties that
ave any popularity in California and
| eastern markets. These are the
ureka, Lisbon, Villa France and Bon
lie Brae."