Costs Modern Box Making and Strapping Is Effecting ing Plants. Parker Cover and Strapping Machines solidly pack the fruit to eliminate Initial investment is soon forgotten, because the savings effected year after Parker Machine Works The railroads have revealed the most intense The railroads made possible the wide education The railroads have given generous support to INDEX The railroads are co-operators in community building. They help maintain schools and high- ways and they keep their own property in best possible physical condition. They maintain Entered as second-class matter June 1, 1921, at the Post Office at Redlands, Cal., under Act of March 3, 1879. Published monthly by the Mutual Orange Distributors, Redlands, California. CALIFORNIA GRAPEFRUIT Economic survey discusses probable future marketing situation summer season. EDITOR'S NOTE: H. R. Wellman and E. И. Braun, extension specialists in Agricultural Economics, University of California, in their recent bulletin entitled "Grapefruit," present some very interesting material of which this article is the summary. THE available facts indicate that California grapefruit growers are likely to experience much greater competition during the winter months in the coming years than they have in the past few years. With the return to normal conditions in Florida, it is expected that the supplies of both grapefruit and winter oranges from that state will be substantially larger. In addition the larger shipments of grapefruit from Texas, Arizona and California will probably add greatly to the future supplies. Some further increase in the demand for grapefruit, both here and abroad, may be expected, but it is doubtful if the demand will be increased as rapidly as supplies are likely to increase. In view of the probable developments during the next few years, it does not appear likely that the present high level of prices in the winter months can be maintained. Market Outlook Growers of summer grapefruit, however, are in a more favorable position. In recent years there have been practically no plantings of grapefruit in sections which ship during the summer months. Consequently, the supplies of fresh summer grapefruit are not likely to be increased. On the other hand, if a very large expansion in the canning of grapefruit occurs, it will tend to extend the marketing season for winter grapefruit into the summer months. The commercial production of grapefruit in the United States is confined to the four states of Florida, California, Texas and Arizona. At the present time Florida is by far the most important of these four states in quantity of production. Over 90% of the total carlot ship- shi ments in the United States in 1926-1927 originated in Florida. Texas and California each supplied less than 4% of the total; while only 1% came from Arizona. Each of the four grapefruit-producing states has experienced a substantial increase in bearing acreage, production and shipments during recent years, and it is likely that this expansion will continue during the next few years. Florida Acreage In Florida the bearing acreage was trebled between 1919 and 1928. Shipments also increased rapidly up to 1925, but since then they have been considerably below normal because of the unfavorable conditions in that state. The low crop in 1925-1926 was a result of neglect arising out of the real estate boom; the 19261927 crop was injured by frost and hurricane; and the 1927-1928 crop, by frost and drought. These unfavorable conditions, however, should not be expected to continue, in which case the yield per acre will be substantially higher. Furthermore, an additional increase in the yield per acre may be expected as the present bearing trees become older, since a considerable proportion of those now in bearing have not yet reached the age of full bearing. In addition to a larger yield per acre, it is expected that there will be some increase in the bearing acreage. As a result of these two factors, increased yield and increased bearing acreage, the production of grapefruit in Florida is likely to be much larger during the next few years than it has been in the past. Increase Expected The future rate of increase in grapefruit production in Texas is likely to be even greater than in Florida. Texas has only recently become an important factor in the grapefruit situation. In the past few years the expansion in that state has been very rapid. In 19211922 only eight cars of grapefruit were shipped from Texas; this season (1927-1928) over 1,000 cars have been shipped. Plantings of grapefruit in Texas during recent years have been very large. According to a recent census there were 34,440 acres of grapefruit in the lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas in 1928, only 14% of which were in bearing. As yet Arizona has not been an important factor in grapefruit production, but she is likely to become so very shortly. Less than onehalf of the 3,800 acres of grapefruit in that state is not yet in bearing, and a much larger proportion has not reached the age of full bearing. Furthermore, heavy plantings are in |