San Antonio light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1911-1993, 1923-09-27
U. S. Agent Says Juiube
Could Be Raised Here
With Little Care-De-
clares Root-rot Is Second
Enemy Of Cotton Freak
Tree at Station Grows
Photograph Needles.

Though G. I. Ratliffe. superintend
ent of the United States agricultural
experiment station on the Corpus
Christi road. considers the jujube. oi
Chinese apple, the only really certain
fruit crop for this part of the cour
try. it is one of which the average
garden owner and fruit grower knows
comparatively little.
The jujube is native of China.
but was introduced into this country
through the Foreign Seeding Associa-
ton. 1t has proved a very successful
importation particularly adapted to
this part of the country. as II requires
little water. and does not bloom until
late in the spring when all possibility
Of frost is past. The late frost last
spring that proved so detrimental 10
early figs. peaches and pears. had no
effect whatever on the jujube apples
at the station, and in the last fifteen
years during which the trees have
been growing in the station. not a
single crop failure is recorded.
Unlike other fruits the jujube grows
on the leaf-stalk of its trees instead
of on the stem. The leaf proper Is
composed of small smooth leaf-seg-
ments joining the stalk in pairs, and
1t is at the crotch Of the leaves that
the fruit is joined. The iujube has the
skin and the flavor of an early green
apple, and is more like an apple in
appearance than anything else. but II
has a seed much like plum seed. The
experiment station recommends them
highly for making pickles and pre-
serves.
Plant Is Easily Grown.
While the jujube may be considered
the most unusual product raised at
the station. it is not one that requires
great deal of attention. The most
important work of the station, accord
ing to Mr.. Ratliffe, is the experiments
conducted in crop rotation and differ
ent tillage methods. Crop rotation Is
a system for proving by long expert
mentation which series of crops is OF
greatest benefit TO the soil. Tillage in
cludes tests of manures in various soils
and comparison of the same crop
grown in different soils and with diff
ferent fertilizers.
The station has 80 quarter-acre plots
of ground devoted to various expert
ments, with crops grown most success
fully in this part of the state: cotton.
corn, oats. hay sorghum and grain
sorghum and sudan grass. As far as
possible, no two plots of ground re-
ceive the same treatment or the same
crop rotation, so that the widest pos
sible data may be obtained. A two
year crop system will plant corn one
year and cotton the next, and in the
next plot the rotation will be reversed,
cotton will come first and corn after
wards. In n three-year system, oats,
perhaps. will be added. and. with ali
the combinations of these crops and
the different methods of cultivation
infinite information Of great value TO
farmers is bound TO be obtained.
Cannot Prophecy Texas Weather.
tsS."The data we gather. however" Mr..
Ratliffe says, sis not of as much value
as it would be in a part of the coun-
try where the climatic conditions are
| more fixed. No two seasons are ever
alike, and it is impossible to prophesy
from the weather in any winter we
have in this part of the state what
the conditions in the harvest time will
be. We had an expert here for a
whole season trying to gather data
that would give him some sort Of basis
for giving definite information to the
farmers about planting. but gave it up
as being impossible. IL we could
prophesy a rainy summer from dry
winter, or vice versa, We would know
lot more than we do about how and
when to plant cotton. But in Texas.
all rules fail.
I'VE have many requests from farm
ers for advice about planting frui. =;
more about fruit than about every
! thing else put together. The soil about