Daily Los Angeles herald., 1881-08-09
The Vineyards OF Los Angeles.

EDITOR HERALD: A short edi-
toriAl in the HERALD, few mum.
bers back, on the capacities of our
section to produce grapes, has at
tracted no little attention. refer
to it here for the purpose Of WIDEN
ing the statement as to the maxi
mum yield Of grapes per acre. I
do not so much intend to show u
greater maximum yield as to show
more extensive prevalence of the
maximum.
For instance, L yesterday saw
Mr.. Geo. Harter's vineyard in new
Los Nietos, about two miles south
of Downey City. Mr.. Harter has
Mr.. L. J. Rose's receipt for IL tons
and 700 pounds of last years. crop
of grapes from an acre Of ground.
Mr.. Harter sold to others and used
170O pounds from the same acre,
making
FOURTEEN TONS YIELD
Per acre of raisin and other vari.
eties Of grapes. The vines seem to
be about as full this as last year.
Mr.. Walters, of the same neigh.
borhood, sold about the same num-
ber of tons of grapes from an acre
Mr.. Grandip, of old Los Nietos,
above DowDey City, has Il vine-
yard the vines of which seemed TO be
more heavily fruited last year than
Mr.. Harter's. Mr.. Josiah Russell,
of Florence, had an average yield
last year. of forty pounds to the
vine, or twenty tons to the acre of
raisin, Mission and Rose of Peru
grapes. Mr.. Joseph Mace, of Flor
ence, had a yield, last year, Of all
Muscat at the rate of twenty tons
per acre. Mr.. Sbaffsr's vineyard,
near Santa Ana, yielded, judging
by q careful comparison with
known yields, .mething over
fifteen tons Of white grapes per
acre.
I might increase the instances,
but as the given ones are distri but
ed from end to end of the artesiaD
belt, they do fairly grade its gen.
eral capacities for producing
grapes. The Florence, old Los
NietOs and Santa Ana vineyards
are not irrigated. 1 forgot to ask
about irrigation as to the other
vineyards mentioned. The yields
are the results OF such skill in
handling vineyard as one may
expect of grain and stock farmers
who plant a vineyard simply as a
side dustry of but feeble original
expectations. Where skill fails
here the climats comes in and tides
the vineyard over ihe errors and
negligences OF the the novice. No
such accom- m odating climate
broods over the vineyards in Eu-
rope.
This seems to be suitable occa.
sion to refer to the price of grape
lands in California. In central
California the best grape lands
near the railroads and centers of
population sell as high as $500 per
acre. In Southern California SIM
iIarly located grape lands sell at
from $50 to 5000 per acre. The
CHEAPEST GRAPE LANDS
In California, or perhaps in the
world, as eligibly situated, are
those near Los Angeles city, all
near railroads and commencing at
Florence and Compton, and thence
extending eastwardly. These
lands in vineyard and under the
care of mere novices, yield from
five to twenty tons per acre of raj
sin and vine grapes. The very
minimum wholesale market price
Of these grapes is twenty dollars
per ton, at the vineyard. At the
given price and an average OF eight
tons per acre, all cnsts are paid, in
Guiding taxes and interest on $400
per acIe for the land at 10 per Cent,
leaving
CLEAR PROFIT
Over all expenses of $9l per acre.
Lands alongside of vineyards
yielding as above can be lad with
in ten minutes railway ride of Los
Angeles city, at from $50 to $50
per acre. In other parts of CALI
fornia with equal social and trans
poitatiOn advantages, at from 500
to $500 per acre. In France, yield
Ing less, at
FIVE THOUSAND DOLLARS
Per acre. There is plenty of excel
lent vineyard land in California,
more remote from settlement, on
terms from homesteaders up to
So so and more per acre. or course
the more or less iDexplicable DIS
orepAncies In the values Of lands
alike eligibly situated are facti-
tious and must disappear as our
new State grows older.
1t is eviuent that uniformity Of
prices will be attained not by
lowering the higher prices of land,
but by raising the lower prices.
There is just here world of sug-
gestiOn to those contemplating
husbandry h in California aud who
are not yet supplied with land.
THE LOCAL TRANSPORTATION
PROBLEM
Is already engaging the attention
of soil tillers in Southern Califor-
MIA where square mile produces
as much tonnage for the public
carrier as eight square miles in the
E,st. To transport Mr.. Harter's 8
,,fald ~ q q m ~ 10 aora m Mr. Ropat q