The Arizona sentinel., 1906-11-07
COL ORADO and GILk VAL LEYS

In the valleys of the Colorado arCSGila rivers there is room for thousands. It is hotNoo much to say that nowhere within the limits of this broad union can be found a more desirable re- zion for the making of home. No laboroulS clearing of the land is reQuirGd 1t lies almost ready for the blow. Trees aud Shrubbery have so rapid growth that within eighteen months the immigrant can surround his ebode 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-
 phere brings health to all who inhale 1t. For
 the establishment of colonies, such as are made
 in Southern California. Arizona presents un-
 rivaled 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 OnY Yuma 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, blackberr1eS,
 currents, gooSeberries and all varieties of small fruits can be successfully cultivated In deed, Yuma county is not only the natural 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 rlch and fertile SoilS
 With the bright prospects ahead of the town
 of Yuma and Yuma county there can be no bet
 ter investment for capital seeking large and re
 munerative returns than is afforded here. With [; matchleSS climate, where all forms of dis 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 aR delight we
 can offer to capitalists ideal field for invest ment and to homeSeekerS a Verltable paradise 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 from their mountain homes in their journey to the sea. By constant overhowS and change of channel, the deposit of this rich vegetable matter has formed a soil of extreme fertility Near the streams it is dark alluVlGl mold,
 well adapted to small grains and grasses. Far
 ther back there is rich sandy loam, mellow and porous, and especially favorable tor 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 and pro-
 life is the growth of thefruitS, cereals and veg etLbleS that the labor of the cultiyator. 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 a cottonwood Sapling before his door, and within the year he has shade tree twenty
 five feet high! 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 it must be re- mem bered 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. hOSeS Hre in bloom, fruit trees are blooming, and the grain fields are a sea Of green. when the heIdS of the Eastern farmers are covered with snow and ice.
 Every variety of grains, grasses, fruits and vegetables grown in SemitrOpic zones can be produced in the valleys of Arizona. Wheat,
 corn, barley, oats and all the small grams give
 yield of from twenty-five to fifty bushels per acre. Alfalfa. timothy clover, Bermuda ana all the cultivated grasses grow luxurlantly, the former giving from eight to ten tons to the acre oooI,x rin nfyT nf the United States can be grown in AIlZona, and
 nowhere are they found of better quality. Besides the products mentioned, these semi tropical valleys produce cotton, Sugar-cane to- bacco hemp and rice. With the exception Of l the Sugar-cane, but little attention Is paid to
 the cultivation of other staples; but 1t has been | demonstrated that the soil and climate are specially adapted to their successful growth Cotton-growihg is no experiment. in ArlZona for it is on record that when the Europeans l first penetrated this region, they 1ound the Pima Indians wearing fabrics made Of cotton | grown in the Gila valley
 But it is their addptability for fruit culture
 that assures to these valley lands dense pop
 ulation and prosperous future. Almost every l variety known be raised in their fruitful | soils. The apple, pear, plum reach, aprlcot Quince and nectarlne are Of delicious HaVor | and give a generous yield. The grape of all va | rictieS is at home in these sunny ValeS- NO | place in the grape-gr0wing belt Of the Paclnc | is all that could be desired; and the wine, although it's manufacture is yet experimental, l is of fine flavor, delicious bouquet, and un-
 surpassed by any native product as table bev-
 craze. Experiments with the rals1n grape nave l shown that this climate and soil possess every
 advantage for the production and curing of this l staple article of commerce.
 | ''BesideS the fruits already mentioned, the orange, lemon, lime, olive, fig, pomgranate ana
 others of the citrus family, can be grown sue
 cesSfully in the valleys of Southern Arizona.
 Orange trees are now in bearing In Salt rlver valley and at Yuma: while the banana Is also
 being cultivated at the latter place. The Ari-
 zona orange in quality and flavor will compare | favorably with the best California