The author took the case of the piedmont of Mt. Shodai in Kumamoto Prefecture, and inquired into the formation of the orange growing area, taking lead in the special orchardist who found their way over the villages. Special orange orchardists (61 families) in the piedmont of Mt. Kinbo and in the south of Fukuoka Prefecture have made their way into the one of Mt. Shodai, and they are engaging in orange growing in the orchards 30-35km. or 20-45km. away from their own villages by their cars. These clearing lands for orchards in 1962 were promoted by the two groups, which formed the core of rapid convertion from forests into clear orange orchards, and these orchards have over one ha. in area a family.
Of all the area of orange orchard in Arao City in 1963, 74ha. (45%) is the ones by the farmers over the other villages, though every of the orchardists runs 0.5-3ha. wide orange orchard in their own villages.
Out of the various factors which stimulated and promoted orange growing over the villages, there are as following:
(1) The land is limited in area and its price is high. (2) There are capital money and skilled techniques. (3) Suitable land for orange growing can be obtained easily and at a low cost in the other villages.
The land under these good conditions the farmers are eager to obtain and have their aggressibly enterprising spirits of building modern orange orchards.
Clearing land for orchard by the farmer over the villages gives a great impetus to the local farmers. And long established pear orchards have been converting into orange orchards by replanted. The farmers chiefly cultivating rice and barley, came to begin orange growing as an object of the convertion of dry field farming.
This district, however, is on the suburb of Omuta Industrial City, and consists of many part-time farmers work in their small farm field (average 55a.). And so, the introduction of orange farming is limited.
To the farmers over the other villages, the local farmers were handicaped by the scattering of orchards owing to the convertion of dry field farming, capital money, and technique.
As the problem in the future, the connection between special farmers and local farmers growing orange as a side job would be an indispensable condition to foster and promote the producing district of orange growing. On this occasion, the discrepancy of farmers' senses and the differance of managements would be left as a problem in the future in systematization such as marketing-organization.
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