The age-herald., 1901-08-16
DATE CULTURE IN ARIZONA.
Experiments Which Promise to De-
 velop an Important industry.

From the New York Evening Post.
 Phoenix, Ariz.-The development of an industry which will convert large tracts of desert land into profitable properties and make the Southwestern part of the United States a source of date supply IS promised by experiments being made here in culture of the date, result worthy of consideration when it Is known that the United States imported s66l, ,6s0,- 31 worth of dates last year. That the date-palm will ultimately solve the prob lem of what to do with the arid and all kali lands of Arizona and other Western localities, there seems little doubt. Ex- periments made here by the government stations and by private growers have demonstrated the great possibilities of the industry, but renewed interest Is being taken by the section Of plant in- troduction of the Department of Agricul- ture. Prof. D. c. Fairchild, agricultural explorer for the department now travel ing in Africa has procured from the delta of the Nile a number of suckers of off, shoots of the date-pa1m, which he has shipped to the department. and which will be distributed in the Southwestern part of the country.
 The date-palm, although grown profit ably only in arid and semi-arid regions Is not in the proper sense of the word a desert plant It requires a supply of water at the roots and at the same time 1t delight sin a perfectly dry and very hot climate The date-palm is able to stand much more cold than the orange tree but not so much as a peach tree.
 While the culture of the date fruit is new in the United States, the date-palm has long been known in some localities. In Florida California and Arizona and restricted areas in a few states, 1t has been grown in the open ground for decor alive purposes for a century. or possibly longer. In Florida 1t seldom fruits, and the fruit produced Is, from an economic standpoint practically worthless. At AL tar and Hermosillo in Sonora, the early plantings are the Mission Fathers have been continued to the present time, and many seeding dates growing in these cities and other places in Sonora are now producing a fairly good quality of fruit punches of which occasionally find their way to American cities.
 At Tucson, Ariz., a large date-palm, some twenty-five feet in height, Is grow ing on a ranch owned by Joaquin Carillo. This date was planted prior to 1865 and is probably the oldest date tree growing in Arizona. At Yuma, however, there are records of seeding dates that have been bearing from ten to fifteen years, and 1t is probable that number of them have fruited for number of seasons longer Dates seeds were planted near the ter ritorfal prison at Yuma, by persons em- ployed at the institution during the civil war;. probably during the years 1862-63 The plants from these seeds are now large trees and have fruited for fifteen or more years. etween ten and fifteen years ago number of seedlings were planted at Phoenix. A few of these seed- lings are now producing fruit of a good quality. The earliest dates produced in California were grown at the missions along along the coast of San Diego and northward. region where the date-paim grows to the size of large trees and ire quently blossoms but where the fruit does not perfectly develop on account of the humidity of the atmosphere and lack of intense summer heat. In a few places in California dates planted by the Mission Fathers are still standing, while others have gone to decap within the last few years.
 It is now an established fact that dates of good quality and in commercil qun- titles can be produced in the warmer parts of Arizona, Mexico and California During the past year. at the government experimental station farm near Phoenx, three imported trees bore more than 300 pounds, the fruit ripening between Au- gust and January. The fruit placed on the market sold for 25 cents a pound. wholesale, at Phoenix. Thousands of pounds could have been sold at this price. Packed in neat labelled bokes they retail ed at 50 cents to 75 cents per pound. The seeding date tree in various parts of the territory bore last year forty to POO pounds per tree. Those of good quality sold for 25 cents pound wholesale at Phoenix. For some years yet the principal part of the dates grown in the region will be on seedling trees. Not less than 2oo0 trees have been planted during the last two years by ranchers near Phoenix, and most of them are in fine condition