Des Moines courier. ([Ottumwa] Iowa) 1848-1854, 1853-11-17
From the Iowa Farmer.
Inducements to Raise Fruit.


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From the Iowa Farmer.
Inducements to Raise FrWit.
In the Transactions of the New
Hampshire Agricultural Society we find
an excellent and vtry interesting paper
on the cultivation of fruit by that indie
faticahle veteran in the cause Henry f.
French. If the facts he states can be
brought abou, in the sterile soil and in
hospl.able climate Of New Hampshire,
what may not be done in the fertile soil
Of lows!
Mr.. French says that "In the year
1852, tits fact beyond controversy. tina,
even the COLI climate and hard soil OF our
own Granite Hills have produced apples
in such profusion, that many towns in
our eastern counties have received mere
money in exchange for them than for any
other article of produce which they have
sold"
ut is a fair estimate, that Ten barrels
of winter apples will sell generally for
as much money as a lun of the best bay.
Hay has been considered, for many
years. the most profitable crop tina, can
be raised Tor sale, in this section, and has
borne price for ten years past, not upon
an average above ten dollars ton.
"a few facts may tend 10 indicate The
comparative prof, of the crops of hay
and of apples:
MIR. Robert r, Williams gathered
from an orchard in Hampton, of one
acre only, the past year from gratis set
in lS47 in very old and decayed trees,
two hundred barrels of first rate Bald
win apples. He says further that the
ground about these trees was kept in
perfectly pulverized state for half a
dozen years, and MANFRED like gar
den.
"John Lowe. jr., Of Exe.er, set sixty
six trees from the nursery, in the spring
Of ls43. and forty two more in the fall
of the same year. They bore a few
apples in lS47 and IS48. In 1850 be
picked six barrels; in 1851, twenty.one
barrels; in 1852, fifty barrels of fruit of
the best quality.
..It would be a fair estimate that forty
trees, which would stand upon an &C e,
at the distance of thirty feet apart, would
produce an annual crop of sixty barrels
OF the best fruit, worth sixty dollars. Il,
is not unusual TO see single trees bearing
eight or ten barrels of fine apples. and
occasional instances occur where sixteen
barrels are gathered at once from one
tree. At the lowest rate of product that
any man in his senses, who ever proper
w cultivated an orchard in the eastern
part of the State, would estimate as a
common crop, an apple orchard will give
four or Eve times the profit as the same
quantity of land in grass, with lar less
cost of cultivation, through long series
of years"
Many men are supposed to have ''bet-
ter luck" than their neighbors, in raising
fine fruit, good stock, and excellent quail
lily of farm produce generally: culiiva-
ton like The following is the great secre,
in exceling in fine fruit;
"Select any soil, no. so low as TO be
saturated with stagnant water, nor so
sandy as to be dry. A granite soil is as
good as any, and slate soil perhaps
equally good; but for convenience of
cultivation would prefer land not very
stony. Subsoil il TO The depth of eigh-
teen inches if practicable, and if not, pillow
as deep as possible, and excavate places
for the trees eighteen inches deep and
six feet in diameter, making the soil
thrown out rich with compost before re-
placing il. Plant the trees, which should
be two or three years from the bud, in
the spring or autumn lin the spring al
ways in iowa.-ED.) as is best conyen-
lent. Many persons much prefer The
spring, and no one, believe prefers the
autumn. have myself sci them both
seasons and have discovered no differ
ence. Set them thirty feet apart which
will give forty trees TO the acre. Keep
the land under culture with hoed crops
until il is too much shaded 10 be produc-
tive, and then let il lie fallov, with plow
ing and narrowing enough to keep down
weeds. Apple trees will not thrive in
sward land; mean in land kept in grass.
In all paris of the country fruit trees set
in grass land may be seen struggling
desperately for life and nd value what
ever excep. as warning against similar
folly
Many hundreds of bushels of apples
arc daily hawked about our sueeis of
lille or no value for cooking or any
other purpose. not even for cider. The
trees are seedlings. bearing fruit actually
good for nothing, and the cullivaiors who
sell them do no, make wages for them.
selves and team in carrying them round.
much less get paid for raising the fruit
This rs fair sample of misplaced econo-
my. 70 all farmers having such trees.
we would say. get scions of approved
varieties, and graft all your old trees over
as fast as you can, working hall the head
the coming season, and the other half The
succeeding year. 1t costs no more 10
raise the best quality Of fruit than it does
the poorest. The latter is nearly worth
less, while the former is always in de.
mand at faisprice.