The Arizona sentinel., 1901-05-01
The Climate Conditions Favorable to Great
 Variety of Marketable Produce.

The following report from the direc- tor of experiment station, is published as giving a fair resume of the cOnclu- sions which have heen reached in re- gard to agriculture in this territory: One of the most encouraging signs of the times | in connections with Arizona Is the growth of her agricultural interests. These interests, by creating settled population and certain sources | of wealth insure the Territory, as whole, against those excessive fluctuations in popula- 1 tion and finance which are so often observed in
 purely mining communities Although but
 small percentage of the total area of Arizona is
 under cultivation. yet when the actual amount l and preductfveness of these lands is considered,
 the place of agriculture among the industries 1 of the Territory is very important. Arizona has
 and always will have land in excess of the water l supply available for irrigation, without which
 agriculture can. excepting in rare instances | hardly be considered Out of about 72,s00OO0
 acres in the Territory only 5,7OO,0OO acres are privately owned, of which about 45O,OOO acres
 are under irrigation ditch. For the total amount
 of land under ditch, there is not sufficient water in all instances to insure crops; but in time
 there can be little doubt that the storage and
 development of water will lead to the successful
 irrigation of much more than the area under ditch
 The future of agriculture in Arizona is, with
 out question, more than usually good, and foI
 the reason that the conditions of soil. irrigation
 and climate combine to produce an uncommon
 variety and amount of marketable produce
 The soil of Arizona as Is usual with the sotis o1
 arid regions, are rich in the elements of fertlll | ty, requiring only the ever-needful water, skill and industry in their management to secure
 abundant returns. The fertility of cultivated
 soils in irrigated regions is further assured by
 the depoSite of silt brought upon the land witt irrigation water The problems of fertilization which become so serious in humid sections, art
 therefore of much less importance here and no
 to be so carefully reckoned with in connection
 with the future of ouragriculture.
 The most marked advantage in connection 1 with agriculture and horticulture, especially il southern Arizona, is the climate. From Januar.
 to June the temperature resembles that o spring and early summer in the latitude of Ken lucky. From June to September the climate i of subtropical fervor while from September t. 2 November there is second mild season of teul 9 perate weather. The winter season, from Nov ? ember to January, though subject to sharp frost . in southern Arizona, is not seriously or eye uncomfOrtably cold.
 , Owing to this combination of seasons re t markable variety of crops may be found in tn ' same locality at different times of the veal : Strawberries, which flourish in Greenland, ma = be found on the same land with dates and palm f from Sahara. Alfalfa, the great forage of tn > arid West, f1ouriShes alongside with whea V corn, and sorghum, respectively characteristic e of Minnesota Illinois, and Kansas. Oranges lemons and olives from California may be foun
 in the same neighoorhood with peanuts an y sweet potatoes from Virginia In brief, man g of the leading crops of both temperate and sui 2 tropical countries, which are not affected b n a too arid atmosphere or by the frosts Of winte t flourish in southern Arizona In northern Ar
 zona where the temperatures more resembl = those of northern Illinois, many of the more di
 tinctively temperate-region crops flourish, stsuc . as potatoes, apples and various small fruits When, with this diversity of products ! coupled healthful, and for the most of the yea ' agreeable, climate, it will be seen that agricu
 tural in Arizona possesses distinct advantage