The Kadota fig; a treatise on its origin, planting and care,

Abstract

II w <n o o U. IL THE KADOTA FIG This fig, true product of our land and spirit of our people, brings us fame and honor, while radiating pure joy and pleasure. Vibrating from its very heart are the impulses of the Californian; scattering with prodigality and western abandonment its harvest of luscious fruits and fulfilled promises. Discovery The honor and credit for the discovery of the remarkable fig now known as the Kadota belongs exclusively to that wise old horticulturist, the late Stephen H. Taft, of Sawtelle, a member of the Centenary Club of Southern California. When nearing the brave old age of five score years he crossed over the sunset sea, leaving behind him a horticultural triumph whose magnitude and value were but faintly appreciated even by himself. As the planted acres of this fig are leaping from hundreds into thousands, and demand outstrips all possible production even now, only then does the true worth of this fig appear and the magnitude of the discovery become apparent to those interested in this branch of horticulture. The original tree of this variety, then a stranger, discovered and named by Mr. Taft and afterward distributed, first appeared in an orchard grown by Mr. Cyrus Way of Whittier, from cuttings furnished by Mr. Theo. Hockett, from his orchard of Dottatos, which in turn was an orchard grown from cuttings imported from Europe in 1887, by Mr. R. Thompson of Orange County, California. In the orchard grown by Mr. Way was one only tree of most remarkable vigor, growth, and early production, and in every way superior to the balance of the orchard surrounding it. The discriminating judgment of Mr. Taft immediately recognized in this stranger the very qualities and virtues so long sought by all progressive fig growers the world over. Whether it be an offshoot , a sport, or a freak of nature, matters but little to us now, and its remarkable achievements in the few short years of its existence has astounded the fig growers of central California, and it now stands at the very head of all figs of its class, and has indeed created a branch of the fig industry all its own.