Middletown transcript., 1869-08-14
Eastern Maryland and Delaware.

the distance, as the crow flies, is between
Is and 20 miles. This is the narrowest
part of the isthmus, which connects with
Pennsylvania the great peninsula formed
by the waters of the Delaware, the Allan
tic Ocean and the Chesapeake Bay. This
peninsula includes within its limits nearly
the whole State of Delaware, the eight
counties of Maryland, called the Eastern
Shore, and the counties of Accomac and
North Hampton, belonging to Virginia.
BY glance at the map it will be seen that
there is not a spot in all this favored re-
gion more than five miles from transport
tation, by water or rail- to the great cities
of Baltimore, Philadelphia, New York and
Boston. With climate tempered by the
surrounding waters, the ineXhaustible sup
plies of fertilizing material in the shape of
shells, fish and sea grass, are furnished by
these same waters, the remarkable facili-
ties furnished by three railroads and by
water for reaching the very best markets,
all show the inevitable and enyiable desti-
ny of this peninsula is, to become at no
distant day, the fruit and vegetable mar
kct of the great cities of the scaboard.
Farming will give way to horticulture, and
the land be devoted to the more poftable
production Of fruits and vegetables, all of
which can be delivered upon the market
by the safe cheap, and rapid transportation
afforded by the steamboat and rail car. As
most people have but an imperfect idea of
the enormous profits of this branch of ag-
riculture, we will give some of the results
arrived at, not in New England, the West
| ofbor l;sto ont ,,niplc hut in, +liu
ninsula of which we are now writing.
These data are furnished the Cultivator by
Mr.. Henry L. Williams, whose authority
no one will dispute. OF apples, he tells
us the trees will come into bearing two
years earlier than at the North, and that
for early summer apples the prices are al
most fabulous. The fruit from seven
year old tree has been sold for seven dol
lars, and thirty dollars has been the yield
, Of q twelve year old tree. Pear trees come
carly into bearing; all kinds succeed to
) admiration and are troubled with no di-
scsse, worms, or leaf blight whatever. An
. orchard of four hundred dwarf pear trees,
} only four years old, averaged last fall one
basket per tree and from one tree three
} baskets. All were sent to New York, and
averaged SIX dollars per basket or twenty
four hundred dollars for the entire acre.
Peaches, which form the largest orchard
product Of the State CDelaware.) are ex
cecding profitable, whether grown on small
or large farms Some idea of the magni-
tudo Of this production may be gained
from the fact that last year the entire crop
sent to market, by railroad and by water,
reached the figures of million and hun
dred and eight thousand baskets by rail,
and seven hundred and fifty thousand by
water.
J. B. Fenimore, of New Castle Coun-
, ty, sold from an orchard of hundred
acres (tcn thousand trees)in four consecu-
tive years eighty-seven thousand dollars
worth of peaches La another instance an
orchard of less than two thousand trees
yielded in one season four thousand dollars
net profit.
Another orchard, near Dover, which
myself visited in crop time, yields from
seventy acres profit of ten thousand dol
lars yearly---the purchasers buying the
crop on the trees. There are other instan-
ces where place of forty acres yields two
thousand dollars per year; one of three
and a half acres yields five hundred dol
lars per year; Que of five acres, thirteen
hundred dollars; one of twenty acres yield
ing fruit to the amount of forty-three hun
dred dollars annually; and one of five
acres, also, where the income from the
peaches is greater than from the remain
der of the entire farm of three hundred
and fifty acres At Milford between eight
and nine thousand dollars have been clear
E cd in three seasons from twenty-five hun
dred trees.
Strawberries and all other berries pro-
mise prolific and profitable crop. Straw
berries shipped in small quantities to New
York brought from dollar to a dollar and
twenty-five cents per quart. The price
gradually declined to seventy-fve, fifty, and
finally forty cents, which was the lowest
price obtained. One-third of an acre near
Dover ncttcd six hundred and eighty dol
lars. Three acres netted two thousand
dollars. -Four acres at Smyrna brought
four thousand dollars, the purchaser doing
!, his own picking. Pickers can pick till
three or five o'clock (afternoon,) } put their
fruit ON an express train, and it is on the
stalls of the New York markets before six
the next morning, sweet, fresh and unin-
jured.
1t is safe to say, for a series of years to
come twenty-five cents per quart will be
as low as prices will go. With good cul-
, tivation five hundred and thousand dol
lars an acre will be common results for
Delaware.
Cherries are exceedingly early. From
single Morello eight dollars worth have
been taken Ssdiscase has yet afflicted
this tree here.
Apricots and plums will pay to raise, and
to hire man to do nothing else but pick
over the trees every day and keep them
| free from disease or insects. James Lord,
of Camden, in 1867, had small apricot
tree, six years old, that bore four bushels
of fruit. The first bushel was sent to ;
..l..,.t &C Ms.,. Ns.l. =.