Orange Training.

Is not a single leader in an orange tree more desirable than the much-forked tree so commonly seen!  Can a single-leader tree be made from the nursery trees which have already formed their heads, by cutting off the heads below so that only a straight stick without any branches is left?

An orange tree with a central leader would not be at all satisfactory if it were carried very high.  Of course, a central stem can be to advantage taken higher than it is often done, but we would not think of growing an orange tree with a central stem to the apex.  The laterals would droop, crowd down upon each other badly, open the center to sunburn, and encourage also a growth of central suckers and occasion an amount of pruning altogether beyond what is necessary with a properly branched tree without a central stem.

Curing Citron.

I wish to know a way to cure citrons at home.  I have a fine tree that has borne very fine-looking fruit for the past two years.

An outline for the preparation of candied citron is as follows:  The fruit, before assuming a yellow color, and also when bright yellow, is picked and placed in barrels filled with brine, and left for at least a month.  The brine is renewed several times, and the fruit allowed to remain in it until required for use, often for a period of four or five months.  When the citrons are to be candied they are taken from the barrels and boiled in fresh water to soften them.  They are then cut into halves, the seed and pulp are removed, and the fruit is again immersed in cold water, soon becoming of a greenish color.  After this it is placed in large earthen jars, covered with hot syrup, and allowed to stand about three weeks.  During this time the strength of the syrup is gradually increased.  The fruit is then put into boilers with crystallized sugar dissolved in a small quantity of water, and cooked; then allowed to cool, and boiled again until it will take up no more sugar.  It is then dried and packed in wooden boxes.

Crops Between Orange Trees.

What crop can I plant between rows of young orange trees to utilize the ground as well as pay a little something?

It depends not alone upon what will grow, but upon what can be profitably sold or used on the place, and unless sure of that, it is usually better not to undertake planting between young trees but rather to cultivate well, irrigate intelligently, and trust for the reward in a better growth and later productiveness of the trees.  It is clear, California experience that planting between trees except to things which are demonstrated to be profitable should not be undertaken, and where one does not need immediate returns is, as a rule, undesirable.  The growth of a strip of alfalfa, if one is careful not to submerge the trees by over-irrigation, would be the best thing one could undertake for the purpose of improving the soil by increasing the humus content, reducing the amount