Palestine]
implements, which have been introduced by the Jewish and German colonists, can be employed advantageously in certain conditions, which, however, are by no means always present.
Owing largely to the exhaustion of the soil, produc- tivity is comparatively low except in especially favoured districts. On the unmanured lands of the fellahin the yield of wheat may be reckoned at eight to tenfold; of barley, beans, lentils, and peas at ten to fifteenfold; of sesame at forty to fiftyfold; of durra at sixty to eightyfold. Under native cultivation a hectare (2 acres) of land of best quality in the neighbourhood of Jaffa produces only about 1,540 kg. of wheat or 1,760 kg. of barley, though yields of 2,000 and 2,880 kg. respectively are obtained by the better methods of the Jewish colonists. A typical holding of 100 donum (23 acres) of medium quality cultivated with grain by a fellah and his wife gives in an average year a net income of about 750 frs., and this is not more than doubled on the best land; with the usual rent, the profit would be reduced by about 40 per cent. In the Jewish colonies of Galilee, where working expenses are heavier, the net income per hectare for grain cultiva- tion is even lower than on the fellahin holdings, but much better results are obtained by German colonists near Jaffa, who supplement grain by production of milk, vegetables, and fruit. The relatively poor returns obtained from pure agriculture have led the colonists and others who can command the capital to turn to plantations of oranges, vines, and other fruit trees. On land of medium quality in the Jaffa district the net annual return per hectare of oranges is 557 frs., of almonds 267 frs., of apricots and peaches 196 frs., of olives 170 frs., and of vines 214 frs; the profit on these forms of cultivation works out at 10-11 per cent. on the capital outlay, and this may probably be reckoned as the average return on fruit-tree culture elsewhere in Syria.
Irrigation and drainage. In the hot dry months of summer irrigation is necessary for oranges, lemons,
