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Show 4 PURING the first week in February, 1910, the Cuban National Horticultural Horticultu-ral society, an organization the membership mem-bership of which Is almost exclusively exclusive-ly American and Canadian, held its fourth annual meeting in Havana. In connection, a horticultural show was open; among the exhibits were citrus cit-rus fruits from every section of the island. The fruits were large, juicy, clean, thin-skinned, heavy, beautifully colored and delicious in flavor. Florida Flor-ida had sent across grape fruit and oranges from famous orchards of the leninsular state, to facilitate invidious comparl-on, comparl-on, and the comparison, when made, showed that ;uba can produce citrus fruit of first-class qual-ty, qual-ty, and, moreover, that she Is doing so. Citrus-fruit culture is the principal Interest if American and Canadian settlers throughout 3uba. Cubans and Spaniards are growers of no .ltrus fruits save pineapples the grape fruit and irange groves belong to the English-speaking lolonists. Orange and grape fruit culture is the tusiness which has been boomed mercilessly by and companies advertising largely and some-imes some-imes unscrupulously all through the United Itates and in Canada during the past ten years. Their customers, arriving In Cuba, have insisted ipon growing nothing but grape fruit and or-mges, or-mges, even in regions where other cops would issuredly have proven more Immediately proflt-ible proflt-ible if not the better investment in the long run. For instance, there are Americans and Cana- PURING the first week In February, , fr--ZS f 1910, the Cuban National Horticultu- - . " Vi'; V'.i : ' 1 I VA ral society, an organization the mem- t . . . . W I jj5Vv bership of which Is almost exclusive- f N .J0, v "wl J ly American and Canadian, held its I ,W VA2$S? ll fourth annual meeting in Havana. In -v V V vH-V1 Wi & IS connection, a horticultural show was N . t JT " . VN" "W'ii,r'1' Y open; among the exhibits were cit- II VN v - hW- -"V .'". 'S' VT" KxVK x V rus fruits from every section of the r - W X, VtT J? 11 island. The fruits were large, juicy, fcl HVb ? 1 x v. xvvvWt clean, thin-skinned, heavy, beautifully iVMi J2 tr" , colored and delicious in flavor. Flor- I Uf sXViftL 1 C v , - , v N , x x Ida had sent across grape fruit and M 1. t ft VWVA . x ,,1 - oranges from famous orchards of the vl lKi 1 - v f& V- v s i leninsular state, to facilitate invidious comparl- i 1 4 I V ' v & ." " V 1 on, and the comparison, when made, showed that Hi1 v V H"" s v vX XX tv $L :uba can produce citrus fruit of first-class qual- yrfXV t4W1 1" " X Vyi ty, and, moreover, that she Is doing so. 71 1 l f"J V x i-- !I' Citrus-fruit culture is the principal Interest ( V ) t'T - iv N TTl f American and Canadian settlers throughout I ,s , N ' ...,l g ff :uba. Cubans and Spaniards are growers of no ,1 "x"1'' ,..jsi- - i I M I 1 1 1 SSpmP .ltrus fruits save pineapples the grape fruit and CTvfr. - i ' Z"fjrW Of f V irange groves belong to the English-speaking OfI I 1 ' ' " i I'l iiiiniiiiiiiili liiillliimUHiiK iWIIII'HllBUIiiTTlIbt'i1" (UK 'Tlt" lolonists. Orange and grape fruit culture is the "" " ftt;i:i:':(pA'i:?:V-ibji.& tusiness which has been boomed mercilessly by lf If! TTPTsH tfii'lST W'S and companies advertising largely and some- CTyV yyyK ) ffS ' ' ' ' .' " " ' Imes unscrupulously all through the United niA )A)JSs31 S'KfM Itates and in Canada during the past ten years. ' (Mk&' Their customers, arriving In Cuba, have insisted -cd5i!7 YiV ( ) I ?$tttS3tS ipon growing nothing but grape fruit and or- 7rMK JsfP MlM inges. even in regions where other crops would lMEfTk IT SMUfll issuredly have proven more Immediately profit- 'uWL?i ' ible if not the better investment in the long run. ZWPHfl)W 1 For instance, there are Americans and Cana- Uwl kVCf X-ci j , lians growing citrus -KOfVNL lK K MPIil tnlts in the heart of hiilHft ) mW&W ,ue,ta Abajo and In t ither parts of Plnar JJ x&P&P of the qualities hich Fl ' . .'"'r TYpcAL "cojLosfy oujc" or cjrm?' lave made western 17 Jfe. -SHv fWT GAOWJTAd Tuba famous the world VYlM iround for this one . than otherwise, for, exactly the opposite of :rop, were the owners feflfffl fe west, these far eastern lands need billing to co-operate Jfef ' " f 1 , X, ' ' I t be reduced wth Cans on the par- liMmiiW ' W ' ' I They are almost too rich, and the fruit of Jdario system accord- ffeigttlltl trees they produce, particularly young trees. Is ng to which the new- apt to be coarse-skinned, too big, and pithy. :omer furn shes the re- MitfeliSl These defects, nevertheless, time remedies, for ,u site capital and the , flit JM as groves age they lessen the supply of plant .atrve furnishes the p& food Eventually it will become necessary to fer- klll no less necessary l.fr.Vi & Vtf J) tilize the trees, and then growers, by selecting- .o success in the deli- If 1 1 $ ,V . ilf? hhw their fertilizer, can control the quality of their :ate undertaking. It is fruit 1 notable fact that few Mi mWmW They hile' th Americans or Canadians IMifiMli4iiIti iKs without the expense for fertilizer the grower m .vho themselves dp the I PfWMiicM W0MWf-fW'IM the west has been put to in order to produce his. ictual work in their to- fcfiil! He. on the other' hand, has been to less expense 4 than the man in the east in the matter of clear- TO PrKfelfPf 11 II I ing, and he has not had to sit up nights weeding )j Tf'L' 77lWFs!JSag y to keep his grove from disappearing under a ?BWwi!vSS5Swr SKteSi tangle of tropical vegetation. jJS, tS3X C7?Z? fffl7FXTr The ohvious conclusion, is therefore, that six sSfti. lrnp- StNt-K ' is one-half dozen. Groves In both eastern and 4i wr western Cuba will produce trees and good fruit, BKSffwOQ but neither will do so for any owner not willing SIffUi there are worn-out fields, sun to pay the price under one head or another la Ii'Wii. Hk baked through years, which cash and also in hard work. PSSiJpfip wear- however, to the inexperi- It is conservatively estimated that no man tflnKfe W-fWi"07f 4 enced e5'e. the aspect of virgin, should undertake even a five-acre grove anywhere tM0Wi though lightly wooded or sa- in Cuba .unless he has at least $5,000 where her WB vannah lands; there are also can lay his hands on it. If he is a lively, capable PfppliMf! other sections desolate palm man he will probably not need that amount of 'iMjilMffM barrens where no man save money, but no matter what his ability he should IllIit?liiS the sort who purchase real es- De able to command at least that sum before em- l$l:jilitciW tate "sight unseen" would barking in the citrus fruit business here. He may' iffiiB think of attempting to grow need it all, and more. 0$'&BjiW anything. There are, too. south While no complete statistics are available, It Sfop! of the mountain range, on the js the writer's impression that in western Cuba.- j plain which drops gradually including the Isle of Pines, the acreage of or- " crj from its skirts to the Caribbean anges is more than that of grape fruit, while in GiOVJT OF YOViG 7y?tt3 sea. certain sandy, gravelly tne east it would seem that the grape-fruit acre-roaches, acre-roaches, poor in plant food. It age js the larger. The older groves seem, usu- lians growing citrus ruits in the heart of fuelta Abajo and In ither parts of Plnar lei Rio province on ands that might be nade to produce tobac-io tobac-io of the qualities which lave made western Tuba famous the world iround for this one :rop, were the owners willing to co-operate with Cubans on the par-:idario par-:idario system, accord-ng accord-ng to which the new-:omer new-:omer furnishes the re-lulsite re-lulsite capital and the lative furnishes the ikill no less necessary :o success in the deli-:ate deli-:ate undertaking. It is l notable fact that few Americans or Canadians fvho themselves do the ictual work in their to- there are worn-out fields, sun baked through years, which wear, however, to the inexperienced inexperi-enced eye, the aspect of virgin, though lightly wooded or savannah sa-vannah lands; there are also other sections desolate palm barrens where no man save the sort who purchase real estate es-tate "sight unseen" would think of attempting to grow anything. There are, too. south of the mountain range, on the plain which drops gradually from Its skirts to the Caribbean sea. certain sandy, gravelly roaches, poor in plant food. It so than otherwise, for, exactly the opposite of the case in the west, these far eastern lands need to be reduced. They are almost too rich, and the fruit of trees they produce, particularly young trees, is apt to be coarse-skinned, too big, and pithy. These defects, nevertheless, time remedies, for as groves age they lessen the supply of plant food. Eventually it will become necessary to fertilize fer-tilize the trees, and then growers, by selecting their fertilizer, can control the quality of their fruit. They have, meanwhile, acquired their grove without the expense for fertilizer the grower in the west has been put to in order to produce his. He. on the other' hand, has been to less expense than the man in the east in the matter of clearing, clear-ing, and he has not had to sit up nights weeding: to keep his grove from disappearing under a tangle of tropical vegetation. The obvious conclusion, is therefore, that six is one-half dozen. Groves In both eastern and western Cuba will produce trees and good fruit, but neither will do so for any owner not willing to pay the price under one head or another la cash and also in hard work. It is conservatively estimated that no man should undertake even a five-acre grove anywhere in Cuba .unless he has at least $5,000 where he can lay his hands on it. If he is a lively, capable man he will probably not need that amount of money, but no matter what his ability he should be able to command at least that sum before embarking em-barking in the citrus fruit business here. He may' need it all, and more. While no complete statistics are available, it is the writer's impression that in western Cuba, including the Isle of Pines, the acreage of oranges or-anges is more than that of grape fruit, while in the east it would seem that the grape-fruit acreage acre-age is the larger. The older groves seem, usually, usu-ally, to be orange groves; the younger the grove the larger the proportion of grape fruit in it. Problems of transportation to market demand careful study from all growers, prospective or established. Groves situated at a distance from railway lines are handicapped at the start, for, although there are many good roads in Pinar del Rio province, and all over the Isle of Pines, every foot of haul counts, and where the roads are not excellent, it counts heavily, most especially la-wet la-wet weather. Americans and Canadians have plunged headforemost head-foremost into citrus-fruit culture in Cuba. They are building up against odds, by their indomitable' rorrag? and optimism, an industry into which preceding owners of the lands they hold did not venture. The Spaniards and Cubans did not so venture may have been because they were blind to the possibilities, lacked specific knowledge, or the energy required; or possibly tbey were outmatc-hed by adverse conditions in past decades. dec-ades. Then again, it may be they were deterred not by these things at all. but by a true understanding under-standing of basic conditions here; ' by , a realization realiza-tion of difficulties in the way of competing, not try say controlling, in the markets whore the citrua fruit of Cuba must be so'd; and, especially, by . keen appreciation of morn profit lo be made more quickly and inexpensively elsewhere. In fine,. Ihey may have been governed by caution, which dees not notably distinguish the Anglo-Saxon wlien engaged in opening up fit?;. Is to him new. New to him, b3 it ncted, but in Cuba's ase not In themselves either new or untried. This island Is not a virgin wilderness In toto. It has been under the domination or white men Tor 400 years. Not all these white men were Idle and Incompetent. They appreciated the country and' In developing its resources not to the fullest extent ex-tent possible nowadays, to be sure, but as far as was possible lo them In their times (hey made fortunes. The Spaniards devoted all the energies they-had they-had for agriculture in Cuba to sugar cane and tobacco to-bacco in the eastern and central province and! especially to tobacco in the west. For four centuries cen-turies they held rast lo these two products thus demonstrating that Ihey were possessed i,f no-more no-more versatility than I he American and the Canadian Ca-nadian who, in Cuba, insist upon discovering no future save in citrus fruit. From tobacco au.l from caue the Spaniard and the Cuban with him, has wrested the "wonltli of the Indies." -Rich as a Cuban planlcr" pl.uttfr of cane and tobacco, not of oranges and grap l'rult-is a significant English phrase. To aUu. to the wealth ami the ease It implies has bwi. the ambition of Ihe adventurous and MK, avail, clous from 1491' to (ho present lime bacco fields have found this crop profitable. There are "tricks in the trade" of which Cubans are masters, especially those persons whose fam- ilies have for generations out of mind engaged in tobacco culture entirely. They seem to be possessed pos-sessed of an intuition which enables them to handle the seedling, the plant and the leaf, when germinating, when maturing, and especially when curing, in a manner to insure a better outcome than any foreigner is likely lo compass. To grow the very best tobacco requires capital. The venture ven-ture is a gamble, the result of which, however, is known in a single season. If the planter wins, he probably rakes in "big money." If he loses, at leasl it takes him only months, not. years, to find it out. In the Isle of Pines, which was formerly a cattle and hog country, producing especially valuable val-uable draft oxen for sale in Cuba proper, American Ameri-can citrus-fruit growers consume large quantities of canned condensed milk, at high prices, as well as large amounts of canned meats and vegetables, despite the fact that some good pasturage exists, while still more could doubtless be planted, and the further fact that fine vegetables in remarkably remark-ably large variety can be grown along the river banks, or. really, almost anywhere else where Irrigation is possible. They also import hay and feed at ridiculous cost. All this into a region where corn at least can be grown and large herds used to "find" themselves. In central, but most particularly In eastern Cuba, Americans and Canadians are developing groves in lands admirably adapted to sugar cane, which is a quick, certain and profitable crop, sold either in the field, or cut and delivered wherever there is a mill near enough to buy up the cane. They are growing their trees on sites natives would assuredly prefer for coffee and cacao, or, more wisely, for the numerous indigenous crops (names, honlatos, etc.) for which there is constant con-stant and remunerative demand. American and Canadian settlers in Cuba, including in-cluding the Isle of Pines, are citrus-fruit mad. tu Pinar del Rio. In the Isle of Pines and In central and eastern Cuba there is, nevertheless, in their madness so much method, plus grit and utter inability in-ability to realize the odds they are "up against." that It seems to be very probable they will succeed suc-ceed regardless Money, time and hardship are to them no object at all. Pinar del Rio Is a province possessed of most fertile lands in certain districts. There are among the foothills and in the "Organos" themselves them-selves rich valleys; unfortunately, some of the choicest are as yet almost Inaccessible. There is good land always along the streams, and arable areas are to be found, here and 'here, everywhere. every-where. Al'o here and there and everywhere Is here, however, with proper fertilization and care, that growers are developing orange and grape-fruit, groves. These lands will produce the trees, if food to support them is supplied in the shape of fertilizer, fer-tilizer, and the trees will bear citrus fruit of the very best quality bright colored, weighty, full of juice, inclosed in smooth, thin rind. No fair-minded fair-minded person can longer doubt that they will do so after seeing fruit of the quality which growers located at Taco Taco exhibited at the latest horticultural show in Havana. These gentlemen gen-tlemen had, however, the money to keep their trees properly nourished. Many others who have failed to succeed as they are suceeding owe that failure to the fact that they did not have the money to do as much for their groves. Some land companies doing business i:i western west-ern Cuba deny overtly or by implication that fertilization fer-tilization is necessary, but no prospective owner of a citrus-fruit grove In western Cuba can afford not to include in his et-timate of expenses the cost of fertilizing early and often in amounts . properly augmented as years pass. Fertilizers in general use in the groves of the reg-'on p;entioned cost, on a fair average, about $4 5 a ton. This Is the situation In the Isle or Pines, as well as in the western and central mainland of Cuba. "The soils are all poor in plant food compared com-pared wilh the average soils in the United Slat?s. and the gravel ridges are especially so," states Mr. H. C. Henricksen, secretary of the Cuban National Horticultural society, referring particularly particu-larly to the Isle of Pines, "but I have never seen the effect of good fertilizers so sharply outlined as in these very soils, and from experience in Florida and Porto Rico I would predict an abundant abun-dant crop of fruit of superior quality wherever the groves are properly treated." The vital question in these regions is, then, whether the owner is able to afford proper treatment. treat-ment. He will, save in exceptional cases, where the soil is too "American" for any use whatsoever, whatso-ever, get his crop provided he has the money to supply enough fertilizer. For there are richer lands in Cuba than those on which Americans and Canadians are developing develop-ing their groves in western Cuba and the Isle of Pines. Along the Cauto river, lo mention but one locality, there are exceedingly deep, fertile, virgin vir-gin soils which need no fertilizer to produce citrus cit-rus fruit groves. Such lands must, at the very commencement, be cleared, at some expense, of the thick woods that cover I hem, and groves, once planted, must at all costs he kepi fairly free of weeds. Secondary crops corn, for instance mav be g-ovn between rows without detriment U) the tree, In fact, it would seem wiser to do |