Imperial Valley press., 1912-01-10
THIS VALLEY AND FRUITS

L Once. in a while a writer is sur
prised to lind that certain of his words
have travelled further and caused more
comment than could have been antici-
pated, and this is the experience of
the Press in reference to certain re-
cent comments on citrus fruit growing
in Imperial valley.
Way back in the gardens of the
Greek gods the golden apples of the
Hesperides figured, and for thousands
of years the golden fruit has been
grown on the north coast of the Med
iterranean and on the isles of that
sea.
But with these thousands of years
Haunting the precious fruit in the faces
of all civilized peoples, the growth of
the apples of the gods never crossed
the Mediterranean, never found a
prominent place in the products of
Egypt or Arabia
Why?
For more than twenty years South
ern California has been shipping cit
rus nursery stock to Arizona points.
and thousands of acres of reclaimed
desert have been planted to those
fruits, and yet the small quantity of
oranges shipped from that state is in
significant compared with the plant
ing
Why is this?
The greatest successes men ever
achieve are accomplished by discov-
ering and applying the truths OF adap-
liability
Egypt and Arabia, denied great sue
cess with citrus fruits, were given pal
maceCus fruits in perfection. fruits
that combined with Egypt's cereals
made that nation famous for thou
sands of years as the worlds food
store house
Imperial valley has nothing to gain
by an attempt to hide the fact that
from the early days of Assyria and
Egypt, no reclaimed desert has ever
become a first class citrus fruit re-
gion, though every such desert has
become famous for its dates, more pro-
itable and more valuable to the world
by far than the orange and lemon and
grapefruit combined.
We are blind if we do not rec
OgniZe the fact that while the western
slope OF Southern California has the
climate of Italy, Imperial, Yuma and
Salt River valleys possess the climate
# Egypt. with all the stupendous
riches that implies.
But unless We can find and apply
to this wonderful region the truths Of
adaD1ability we are throwing away
our opportunity.
This is not the first time the editor
Of the Press has been criticized by
some persons for speaking frankly and
a-5in inc mr. al
in the valley, and it probably will not
be the last time, for it is the purpose
Of this paper to help guide the valley
in the development of its resources
on lines that lead to safe results, and
IN speaking of citrus fruits there are
applied the lessons of more than
twenty years Of careful study and OBJ
eeIva1ion in the orange growing sec
tions.
II IS worth while to be specific. now
that the question is raised, in giving
reasons why a desert region is not
adapted to citrus fruits, and why it is
adapted TO that greater industry, the
growing Of dates.
In the vegetable. as in the ami
NAL, kingdom different species require
different foods An arid country is
necessarily rich in salts, for there has
been less rain to leach the soil than
in a humid country. There are GER
tain cultures which thrive best on soil
rich in salts, such as asparagus, beets,
figs, alfalfa, and particularly dates
There are some other cultures that are
especially sensitive to salts, and among
'h"eo are citrus fruit trees. A fine
Illustration OF the effect Of plant food
is seen IN the cactus, which grows
everywhere about the desert, but never
comes below sea level.
2.-The citrus fruit tree has a sensi.
live root organization. Not only does
it get indigestion if the soil is too
rich in salt food, but the soil must be
loose and thoroughly aerated, or the
tree develops fatal root disease, to
which this tree is especially subject
THE citrus fruit tree in its anat-
Omy is the furthest from the typical
desert plant The desert plant has
few and small leaves thoroughly var
nished to protect it from heat and
evaporation. The orange is noted for
its prolific yerduTe and its exceptional
provision for free breathing through
the leaves. This is probably why the
orange is roted for shedding it's fruit
When SUBJECTED 70 excessively dry a!H
hot climate.
The previous comment in this col
umn 10 which reference has been made
was written before 1t was known how
severe the weather had been in the
citrus fruit districts, and it appears
now that in those districts generally
lower temperatures we're recorded
than here. In view of these later
facts it may be desirable to modify
what was said Of temperature condi-
tiOns.
But when all is said, here stands out
the facts that danger from frosts eX-
lists, that generally speaking the fine
texture OF the soil does not meet the
best requirements, that the heat Of our
summers is against prolific produc-
lion, that the soil content does not
afford ideal citrus food. and that we