Heretofore, California almonds have been marketed chiefly in the shell. A small proportion has been cracked annually to supply western brokers and confectioners, and practically all of these have been sold west of the Rocky Mountains. Only the whole nuts have been shipped to the eastern markets. The European crops are sent to the United States largely as kernels and have had a practical monopoly of the shelled almond business east of the Rockies. The Tarragonas and Valencias shipped to America come into direct competition with the I.X.L., Drake, Languedoc and other California almonds, all of which are unshelled for the eastern markets. The imports of unshelled almonds average about the same as the California production. The Jordan, Princess and other varieties, however, come in shelled, constituting the bulk of the importations. The Jordan, because of its superior quality, is in a class by itself and does not compete at present with the California product. The Princess and other almonds of that type are much the same as the California shelling varieties and will be serious competitors when sold in the same markets.[4] _Storing._—Almonds awaiting removal or sale will become rancid if stored in warm or damp places. If the almonds have been properly cared for during the handling process to prevent worm infection, and if the nuts have been thoroughly cured, they will keep satisfactorily for a year or more. The ideal condition is to keep them stored in a uniformly cool, dry storage place with ample ventilation. YIELDS The yield of almonds in different years and in different orchards is probably more variable than that of any other of the common orchard fruits. The fluctuations from year to year are largely due to climatic conditions, while the variations in different orchards are largely due to variety, care given the trees throughout their life, the character of the soil, and location with relation to local frost conditions.