El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1900-01-06
CAMfHOR CULTURE.
Long Headed FlOridians Are Enter
ing Extensively Into 1t.

pOrary backSet to the orange industry
have led to the planting of camphOr
trees to considerable extent. 1 have
personal knowledge of three groves, in
Crescent City, De Land and Orlando,
numbering from $500 to 5000 trees
apiece.
The camphOr of the earlier part of
this century was a precious gum pro-
duced in small quantities by tree
growing wild in Sumatra and BOrneO.
the Dryobalanops camphOrG. This
camphor is still sold among the Chi
nese for more than it's weight in gold.
The Chinese will use no other. Not
many years ago it was discovered that
another tree, the Cinnamomum cam
phora, also produced the gum; and the
camphor of commerce is now obtained
from FormOsa, Japan and some Of
the islands.
In China the production, which used
to be considerable, has altogether ceas-
ed. In Japan only limited amount of
camphor forest remains. This is I'M
der government control, and the output
is very limited. The island of FormO-
ga remains the principal source of sup
ply. The interior of this island used
to be one vast camphor forest
Not very long ago an attache of the
German legation in Washington, who
has been engaged in making research
es in forestry in various countries,
brought the Information that the cam
phor forests of Formosa, from which
he had lately returned, are nearly all
destroyed. A number of Europeans
who had been carrying on the indus
try, after penetrating the island in
several directions, had withdra wn
from it, as they considered the indus
try practically terminated.
This very unexpected information led
q number of farSighted Floridians to
set out camphor trees extensively or
enlarge the paintings they had already
made.
The camphor' flourishes admirably in
all soils in Florida where it has been
tried, and it is harder than the orange.
though young trees have been killed
by cold in extreme north Florida, and
at my home, about 40 miles below the
Georgia line, 1 had about a dozen
2-year-olds killed to the ground in the
severe freeze of 1895, but 1 had been
forcing them too fast with fertilizer.
and they were extra tender. Others
less rank in their growth escaped. A
magnificent tree about 40 feet high
and nearly as wide a few miles south
only had its outer twigs singed a lit
tie. When young, it's bark is smooth
and green as a watermelon. AS soon
as this becomes thickened and rough
like an oak the tree is much harder.
To obtain this camphor it is not nee
essary to destroy or even to fnjure the
trees, as has been recklessly done in
the orient. A camphor tree will stand
pruning back to almost any extent. 1t
makes three growths year in north
Florida-one in April, one in June and
scattering growth in late summer.
Under the heavy fertilizing which 1
gave my trees they made fair growths,
attaining a height of six feet in two
years. When cut down by the freeze.
they sprouted up with great vigOr
reaching nearly their original height
in one year, --s1:.:a zsazfzis: --rSsS :,
The cultivation of camphor offers
some unusual advantages. Foremost
is the Important fact that it removes
nothing from the soil. The gum is
wholly a product Of the gases of the
atmosphere. If the leaves, after the
gum has been extracted, are returned
to the land, nothing is lost On the
contrary, there is constant gain as
In the forest the soil will grow richer
year by year. An old camphOr or
chard, therefore, after it has covered
the ground, will need no fertilizing
whatever. The only advantage in fer
tiliZing will be to hasten growth in
young trees.
Another great advantage is that in
Florida the crop can be harvested al
most any time. Except when the trees
are in young growth one season is
as good as another.
Young camphor trees may be made
20 produce at two or three years from
The time when they are planted. The
rec makes the densest head of all
.rees l am acquainted with-almost
to a bird. There is al
ways considerable inside foliage which
AN be removed not only without detri-
nent to the tree, but even with bene-
it. This inside growth contains as
much camphor as the outside, if not
more. In a tree that has been plant
ID three years the inside cuttings will
mount to 60 or 80 pounds in the
curse Of the fourth season. At the
anne time two cuttings of 100 or $50
pounds of leaves each can be obtained
rom the outside growth of the same
rec. In other words, the tree will pro-
luce four or five pounds Of gum.
10 to II feet high at the be-
inning of spring, the trees should not
'e reduced in size by the cutting.
Planted Is by 20, at years of age they
hould yield 5000 or $500 per acre, with
amphor gum at so cents pound Gt
5 now quoted in New York at So
entS)