The Arizona sentinel., 1905-12-13

COL ORADO and CELIA VALLEYS

In the valleys of the Colorado ard Gila rivers there is room for thousands. It IS not too much to say that nowhere within the limits of this broad union can be found a more desirable rc- zion for the making of home. No laborouls clearing of the land is required 1t lies almost ready for the blow. Trees aud Shrubbery have so rapid a growth that within eighteen months the immigrant can surround his g bcde with at fractions which would require years to mature in less favored climates Fruits ripen and are ready for the market full month before the California products. The bright sunshine makes life luxury, and the pure dry atmOS- pherc brings health to all who inhale 1t. For the establishment of colonies, such as are made in Southern California. Arizona presents un- riyaled opportunities. Thousands of acres now profitleSS can be made productive by the con- struction of irrigating ditcheS. and there is no investment which assures larger and more per manent return.
 The Statements in this article onYuma county are not exaggerated; in fact they fall short of doing justice to this wonderful bit Of country Pineapples dates, almonds and walnutS will do we'll Strawberries. raSpberries, blackberrles; currents goCSeberricS and all varieties Cf small fruits Can be successfully cultivated h. deed. Yuma county IS not only the naturai home of the citrus and semitropical fruits, as. almost every fruit, nut, plant, grain, grass, or vegetable which can be produced in either troplc of the temperate zones will thrive in the rich and fertile soils
 With the bright prospects ahead of the town of Yuma and Yuma county there can be no bet ter investment for cDpital seeking large and re- munerative returns than is afforded here. With
  ease known to the damp and vigorous regions of the east and north are unknown, where the bright sunshine kisse' into bloom and fra grance every form of vegetation, and where the | clear days and cool balmy nights are one long continued poem of happiness and delight, we can offer capitalists an ideal field for invest ment and to hOmeSeekerS a Verltable parad1Se | in which to Settle
 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 | frOr their mOUntain homes in their tourney | to the sea. By constant Overf1owS and change of channel, the deposit of this rich vegetable matter has formed soil of extreme fertility Near the streams it is dark alluvial mold, | we'll adapted to small grains and grasses. Far | ther back there is Q rich sandy loam, mellow and porous, and especially favorable for fruit culture. It has been already demonstrated | that the productive capacity Of these valleys IS not surpassed by lands of equal area in any part of the United States So rapid ana pro 1 fife is the growth of thefruits, cereals and veg ctables that the labor of the cultlvator IS re- duced to the minimum, In nearly all of them two crops year can be grown, and vegetation IS | one month head of California. The farmer plants q cottonwood Sapling before his door, l and within the year he has shade tree twenty five feet highl Alfalfa can be cut six times dur | ing the season, and it is an actual fact that | grape cuttings have produced within eighteen months! What state or territory can make such showing? The climate, 1t must be re- | membered is nearly perpetual summer. snow never falls in these southern valleys. The far | mer begins to plant in November, and by the middle of May his harvest is ready: Roses are | in bloom, fruit trees are blooming, ana the grain fields are a sea of green, when the fields of the Eastern farmers are covered with snow and ice.
 1 vegetables grown in Semitropic zones can be produced in the valleys of Arizona. Wheat, corn, barley, oats and all the small grains give | a yield of from twenty-five to fifty bushels per acre. Alfalfa, timothy clover, Bermuda and all the cultivated grasses grow luXurlantly, the former giving from eight to ten tons to the acre each year. Every variety of vegetable raised in the United States can be grown in Arizona, and nowhere are they found of better quality.
 Besides the products mentioned, these semi tropical valleys produce cotton, Sugar-cane, to- hacco, hemp and rice. With the exception of the Sugar-cane, but little attention IS paid to the cultivation of other staples; but It has been demonstrated that the soil and climate are specially adapted to their successful growth
 Cotton growing is no experiment In ArlZona
 for it is on record that when the Europeans first penetrated this region, they found the
 Pima Indians wearing fabrics made of cotton
 grown in the Gila valley.
 But it is their adAptability for fruit culture
 that assures to these valley lands a dense pop
 uation and prosperous future. Almost every
 variety known can be raised in their fruitful
 soils. The apple, pear, plum. peach, apricot
 quince and nectarine, are Of delicious raVor
 and give generous yield. The grape of all va
 rieties is at home in these sunny wales. NC place in the grape-growing belt or the Paclnt
 coast can show so prolifi9'a yield. The quality
 is all that could be desired; ana the wine
 although it's manufacture is yet experimental is of a fine flavor, delicious bouquet and un
 surpassed by any native product as table bev
 craze. Experiments with the raisin grape have
 shown that this climate and soil possess every
 advantage for the production and curing of thi:
 staple article of commerce.
 '.Besides the fruits already mentioned, tht
 orange lemon, lime olive, fig pomgranate anC others of the citrus family, can be grown sue
 cessfully in the valleys of Southern Arizona
 Orange trees are now in bearing In Salt rive valley and at Yuma; while the banana is alSt
 being cultivated at the latter place. The Ari
 Zona orange in quality and flavor will compare
 fayorably with the best California.