Martinsburg independent. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1875-1900, 1875-06-19

win tBat paragon Sptciuicn OItiiS
broad-brims, good old Aaron Hib-
bard, the first Quaker / had ever
81 en- up to the age of twelve.
The surprise which / have refer
red to-that is of there being only
one person who made the raising
OF peaches for market in Berkeley
a speciaity-was caused by my re-
calling The fact that peaches were
not at all scarce in Berkeley when
| was a boy--that is, seedlings or
natural fruit, grating not having
come into vogue az yet at that day.
/ distinctly remember a product
i've peach-orchard which covered a
ridge of slate land less than a mile
Northwest of where H~edge5ville
now stands, which sloped South
easterly from the bluffs Of Back
Greek. 1t was on what WAS known
as the Sneider Farm, and adjoined
that on which [ was bor-. 1t is
now covered with the inevitable
pines that have taken the place Of
the peach trees. Musing on the
history of the oid-time orchard
referred to, last Summer, while
strolling through the hills on my
way back TO the old homestead
where / had my headquarters, it
occurred to me to name the fact of
its former existence to the present
proprietor of the last named farm
and to suggest his devoting an adj
joining field on the same ridge to
peaches. Before doing so / thought
l would inspect it. On reaching
it | discovered that q small peach
orchard had already been planted
there three years before, and that
it gave promise of q fair yield for
the third year and for SO unfavor-
able a season for peaches as that
proved to be throughout the coun-
try.
/ have no doubt about peaches,
with due selection as to varieties
and %favorably exposed localities,
as well as due cultivation of the
soil, doing finely on much of the
slate lands along the Opequon, as
wei! as Back Creek, especially if
planted where the trees could have
the protection of skirts of forest
timber. Where there is a very
high elevation, as at H~edgesville,
the west side thereof will be found
more available for peaches than
the East. This, / was informed,
has been the experience along the
North Mountain. The buds are
said to start TOO soon and the sap
to u too freely when exposed to
the sun-sudden checking of both
being very apt to follow in case of
untimely frost under such circum-
| stances.
/ remember distinctly to have
seen peaches brought to my faith
er's distillery by the wagon load.
They were not of what would be
called improved varieties, but they
certainly were regarded then, and
ought to be now, as better than
none at all. From their being dis
tiled into brandy, / infer that
there was no scarcity of them at
the early day in reference. When
l was a boy / myself made peaches
a specially in a small way at Back
Creek, growing only the natural
fruit, and / certainly did not fail
to get a fair reward TOR my care of
them.
Berkeley county does not raise
one-tenth of what her people
might raise, not only CT this va
riety of fruit, but of apples, pears
and plums as well.
The clay lands of the Valley, es-
pecially on ridges and other eleva-
ted spots, are we'll adapted to APP
Piles. "Apple-Pie Ridge" doubt
less, took its name from its apprc-
priation largely to the growth of
apples. Its sOap-stone formation
supplies a valuable plant-food.-
This ridge runs down to the Poto-
mac, although its name is lost after
passing the Gerardstown neigh
borhood. Its geological formation
cropped out on a limestone farm
which / once owned and cultivat-
ed near what is now North Noun
tain Station, and the field where it
particularly ulu ~ WAC uSNOtCu w
an apple orchard, with sncourag-
ing success until lie lect OF due
pruning and care did It's fatal
work.
The old fashioned "Grangers,''
as it is becoming customary to des-
ignate all farmers since the useful
order of " Patrons Of Husbandry =
came upon the stage of action,
seemed to be beset with the delu-
sion that the apple tree was q sort
of Methuselah. or something even
longer-lived than Jhat Patriarch.
7 Hence, when a young granger
found an orchard on the farm that
be inherited, he treated II as if II
We're bound to live forever He