Citrus County’s next big thing

By the 1930s, the phosphate boom was over. Demand for Naval Stores such as turpentine had declined with the adoption of steel ships. Tracts of the original pine forests had been harvested. Cotton growers were fighting a new threat from boll weevils. Citrus County’s namesake orange and grapefruit crops had been wiped out by a deep freeze in the 1890s. The world was facing an unparalleled economic calamity. Growers in the area looked for new opportunities to stay afloat and thought that they had discovered the solution on the hillsides of China. Were their high expectations met?

An Ancient Solution

Unless you’re a professional painter or a dedicated furniture refinisher, you’ve probably not heard about tung nut oil. The Chinese had discovered the superior adhesive properties of that product millennial ago. It’s a quick drying oil that produces a glossy, impervious barrier that can last for centuries. The tung trees (Vernicia fordii) grow extremely fast in relatively poor soil. Their pleasing shape and brilliant flowers make them a favorite with some landscapers. The tree produces about 5 nuts per growing season and each one yields about 40 percent oil when processed. Given the traditional remote location in Sichuan (Szechuan) province, harvesting and processing of the tung nut was a time-consuming manually intensive process. Transportation of the processed oil to distant markets added to the price that buyers had to pay. Supplies were often disrupted by the fractured politics of China at that time.

American paint companies were searching for a way to reduce the cost and uncertainty of tung oil supplies. The US Department of Agriculture obtained some of the raw tung nuts for further study in 1905. The United States was importing over 5 million gallons of high-priced tung oil by 1912. The prevailing thought was “if it’s an exotic plant, let’s try it in Florida”, so the University of Florida was tapped to plant some experimental tung trees about 1910. The UF study showed that the trees adopted well to the conditions in Gainesville and the nut production was better than expected. The plant fared well in the tracts of land that were formerly occupied by pine trees and could thrive in compact areas. Other than a mild aversion to freezing temperatures, the crop could be planted and left unattended to produce valuable yields. University experts saw only positive results and started to distribute young tung trees to farmers in Central Florida. Trees were also destined for other Gulf states as well.

The Varnish and Paint Manufacturers Association, comprised of companies such as Pratt and Lambert, Benjamin Moore, Valspar and Pittsburg Paint, paid $50,000 to clear acres of land and establish the first large stand of tung trees in 1923. They aggressively marketed the benefits of tung oil for any application that required baked-on surfaces such as automobiles and airplanes. At that time most automobile companies offered cars in any color the customer wanted – as long as the customer wanted a black car. Any color other than black was costly for the automobile manufactures and tended to fade shortly after purchase by the consumer. Oldsmobile shocked the automotive world in 1924 by using tung oil in their paint finishes, which gave customers the option of a cost-efficient alternative colors that withstood the elements. Oldsmobile management reported that a car formerly took 10 days to complete the painting and varnish baking process. Use of tung oil reduced the elapsed time to nine hours.

Increased usage throughout many industrial processes led to the large paint manufacturing companies to increase their investments in Florida and surrounding states. Consumption in the United States jumped to over 17 million gallons in 1924. Spurred by a positive bulletin from the UF Agricultural department, companies such as the Alachua Tung Oil Company purchased thousands of acres in the Gainesville area and prepared to plant millions of tung trees to satisfy the increased demand. After being harvested, the nuts were shipped to a modern factory nearby to be processed using automation. The improved process resulted in a substantial decrease in tung oil prices, more consistent supply and increased number of applications across many industries, such as airplane manufacture.

While the area around Gainesville were pronounced as the prime growth location for tung trees, investors and local entrepreneurs looked to Citrus County as another area where the trees could be grown. The firm of Connell and Schutz were at the vanguard of this movement in 1930. They started with a 100-acre plot at their chicken farm off the old Route 5 in Inverness (now Route 44) and planted 4,500 young trees. They also cleared another 1,000 acres and sowed enough tung nuts to produce 15,000 trees. (A.C. Schultz was a successful businessman who would become the future father-in-law of Francis “Cowboy” Williams). The partners eventually produced enough stock to sell to other Citrus County farmers who wanted to join the movement.

At the same time, Board of County Commissioners (BoCC) Chairman J.K. Kelley planted 500 trees near his existing turpentine still on old Route 5 and planned to eventually devote several hundred acres to the new cash crop. Open meetings for local farmers were held at the Citrus County courthouse and several speakers, including BoCC members, discussed their experiences and advice regarding how more acreage could be devoted to the new cash crop.

The leaders of the phosphate industry saw tung tree farms as a way to reuse their former mines. The Bradley Phosphate Company announced that they were devoting 600 acres of former mining lands near Floral City to the growing of tung trees. They were planning to use stock from their own nursery to populate that land. Company management stated that they planned to expand this program to other former mine locations if the enterprise was profitable.

The growth opportunities did not escape the notice of northern investors. In 1940 Chicago financier James Norris purchased 15,000 acres in the western part of Citrus County that he planned to devote to the growing of millions of tung trees. It’s unclear whether or not Norris was clairvoyant because tung oil became a strategic material when World War II started the following year. It was used to provide a highly durable finish for the thousands of airplanes and military vehicles that would be used during the conflict. Since the Japanese had invaded China, the price of tung oil from that region more than doubled and import levels dropped precipitously. Some newspapers reported that the Chinese troops found a way to use tung oil to power their vehicles, which meant even less of the precious oil was available for export. All of this was good news for the Florida tung farmers who were still recovering from the Great Depression.

During this period, Citrus County was ranked as the number five producer of tung oil in the State of Florida.

There was one factor about tung trees that was not widely publicized. All parts of the tree, including the leaves, bark and trunk, were toxic and could produce a painful rash similar to poison ivy when touched. Even more disquieting was the fact that the tung nuts were extremely toxic and eating even one nut could lead to death for humans or livestock.

Stories emerged from around Central Florida about visitors and youngsters eating the nut (which resembled a small walnut) and suffering severe illness or even succumbing to the poison in the nuts. Ranchers started to experience livestock losses when their cattle unknowingly ate the leaves and nuts from the tree. In addition, the processed tung oil was extremely flammable and rags that had been used to apply the oil had been reported to spontaneously combust if not properly disposed.

The adverse effect on livestock became a major problem for Citrus County ranchers. Their cattle grazed on lands that were adjacent to the immense tung tree plantations. Since the tung trees expanded their range through both nuts and sucker roots, it was inevitable that the poisonous plants would invade prime grazing lands. While farmers were profiting from their acres of tung trees, cattle ranching was still an important part of the economic life in Citrus County. This prompted the BoCC to order the owners of tung tree groves to control their holdings or face arrest by the sheriff.

The end of World War II resulted in negative implications for the Florida tung oil industry. Military applications dropped as fewer airplanes and military vehicles were needed. The end of conflict in China meant that country could once again export increasing quantities of tung oil. Alternative locations for tung trees were identified in other areas, such as South America, and competition drove prices downward. Synthetic versions of tung oil produced acceptable results at a cheaper price. All of these factors caused prices to crash and demand for Florida tung oil to dwindle. Florida tree farmers petitioned the U.S. Congress for price supports to protect their industry. Some relief was granted, but the writing was on the wall. Real estate developers found that the expansive tracts of land devoted to tung trees were more valuable when used for the County’s next “cash crop” – housing developments – so most of the tung plantations were chopped down and turned into today’s neighborhoods.

While most of the tung trees were destroyed, there are still some examples to be found along the sides of local roads or forests. In a situation that has come full circle, the University of Florida’s Center for Aquatic and Invasive Plants now lists Vernicia fordii as a non-native invasive plant that is highly toxic.

They warn that “… one seed can be fatal to humans, however all parts of the tung tree are poisonous … symptoms may include severe stomach pain, vomiting, diarrhea, weakness, slowed breathing and poor reflexes.”

If you encounter a tung tree, exercise caution and contact your county extension agent for advice on proper removal techniques.

Ken Marotte writes for the Citrus County Historical Society.

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