THE CITRUS INDUSTRY

Northern Advocate, 30 November 1937, Page 6

THE CITRUS INDUSTRY

The exhibition of citrus fruit grown at Kerikeri, and which is still on view in the “Advocate’s” publishing department’s window, has enhanced interest in the Dominion’s citrus industry, which is of especial importance to Northland. Much useful information, based upon an address given by the late Mr Goo. Green, is contained in a bulletin recently issued by the Department of Scientific and Industrial Desearch. So far as the history of citrus in New Zealand is concerned, the first authenticated introduction of oranges into this country was made by Mrs James Kemp, one of the missionary party who arrived at Kerikeri in August, 1818, and brought with her a few sweet orange pips from Sydney. These pips were planted in a box of soil a few days after Mrs Kemp’s arrival, and from them there grew two trees, one of which was alive and bearing fruit last year at the home of thoj Misses Kemp, at Kerikeri, and tlie j other at the home of Mr W. H.j Mountain, at Waimate North.} Round about the time the sweet j orange pips were planted, the! citronella (rough lemon) was introduced at the mission stations, i and spread to the Maori settle-! merits throughout the North. It is on record that orange and lemon trees were bearing fruit at Tauranga in the year IS 18, while lemons were introduced to the Nelson district in the early forties. Planting of citrus in vuri-!

oils parts of the Dominica coutiiied; and about 1870 comauToinl named types of both sweet oranges and lemons were duced in quantity. BetweeiTlS7s and 1880, citrus planting on a commercial scale was carried out in the Whangarei district, the largest operators being Messrs. IT. B. Dobbie and L. Hanlon. The former, it is recalled, at one time; produced no less than 7000 bushel eases of sweet oranges a year. In | | the eighties of last century, New i Zealand lemons of high quality! j commenced to feature on the j i markets of the North Island. | j while in 1890 Mr E. Morrison, of; jAVarkworth, staged a most com-! | prohensive exhibit of oranges, j | lemons and grapefruit nt the 1 citrus exhibition held at T h’is-| | bane, where he was awarded a i gold medal With a view to encouraging the more extensive j planting of citrus fruits in the northern portion of New Zealand, and to aiding planters with reliable information on the subject, Air. (1. E. Alderton, who now resides at Kerikeri, published in 1884 a small “Treatise and Handbook of Orange Culture in New Zealand.” -Recent years have seen a remarkable growth of the citrus industry in the Kerikeri district, where, as is well known, planting on a large scale has taken place. This will be gathered from the fact that on Octoitfr 1. 1936, there were in the Kerikeri district 73 registered groves with 11,498 lemon trees and 20,205 orange trees (which include New Zealand grapefruit, as well as sweet oranges). In the "Whangarei district there were 236 registered groves, with 5928 lemon trees and 6928 orange trees. The value of the citrus industry to Northland is therefore selfevident, especially when the possibilities for further development are taken into consideration.