Clearfield Republican. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1851-1937, 1881-03-09
ABOUT APPLES.
ESSAY READ BY CALVIN COOPER AT A
MEETING OF THE LANCASTER COUNTY
AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY, MON
DAY, FEBRUARY 7, 1881.

1t has, for some years, been manifest
that Lancaster county cannot compete
with western, Now York and some of
the northwestern States in growing
apples for market. Our apple crop of
1880 was q plentiful one, but about the
holidays very few good Lancaster
county apples could be found 10 our
market, while York State apples, of
the best quality, were plenty, at about
two dollars a barrel. Owing to the
extreme hot and dry Summers that
have been the rule for ten or more
years past, our apples ripened so early
in the season that they were not to be
relied on for Winter use. Many per.
sons pronounced apple cultureun profit
able, and IN consequence orchards are
left to go down, and new ones are
sparingly planted. 1t may be admit.
ted that, in commercial sense, nine.
teen-twentieths OF our orchards are
a failure, but it is, nevertheless, a mis-
take for any one to think that he has
q well regulated farm on which there is
no orchard. An acre orchard of good
varieties with ordinary care will one
year with another, without selling a
dollars worth Of fruit, realize more to
the owner than bis average acre of the
farm. 1t furnishes us with sauce, pies,
cider, vinegar apple butter, snits, a
supply OF ripe fruit from early in July
to Winter, giving comfort and health
to the children and all about the house;
also, taking into consideration the saw.
ing of bread and meat and il will also
be quite an item in the saving OF corn
by feeding the scrubs and surplus to the
pigs.
Add all these together, and see if
your orchard does not compare favor
ably with your other acres. But apple
culture is not so entirely discouraging,
but that by judicious selection of varie-
ties, soil and care, orchards could be
made profitable, commercially.
An intelligent farmer in Strasburg
township realized five hundred dollars
(actual sale) from an orchard of one
hundred and fifty trees. His selections
of varieties is good one, but for his
special market purposes his profits
would have better if he had only had
half or perhaps one-third as many va.
rieties.
A good selection of fifty trees for
home use would be about as follows,
viz:
Early Harvest, 2 All Summer
Red Astrachan, 9 Benoni, 2 Maidens
Blush, 2 Jeffries, 2 Townsend, 2 Hub.
bardston Nonsuch, 4 Smokehouse, 2
Mellinger, Rambo, A BALDWIN, A
Griest's Winter, 4 York Imperial, 4
Smiths Cider, 4 Willow Twig, 4 Rus.
sets, 4 Sweet.
If the fruit is wanted for general
marketduring the season the list would
be better somewhat like this.
2 Early Harvest, Red Astrachan,
4 Benoni,6 Mellinger, G Maden's Blush,
8 Smokehouse, G Hubbardston Non.
such, s Baldwin, 6 York Imperial.
Or, il the fruit is wanted for a special
market the list would admit of further
improvement, say:
10 Smokehouse, 10 Baldwin, 10
Ewalt, 10 York Imperial, 10 Smiths
Cider, 10 Grcists Winter.
Many years of observation has shown
that the foregoing varieties are relia.
bic and valuable, but there arc many
other kinds that are equally good
The rule by which the planter should
be governed is to plant largely of varie.
ties that he knows are especially good
and profitable in his own neighborhood.
In order to bo more successful with
our future orchards, we will have to
pay more attention TO the soil and 10.
cation. Our dry southern slopes must
be avoided as much as possible. North.
ern inclinations are preferable, because
they are not so much affected by the
sun and dry weather. Deep clay
loans retain moisture better than sandy |
soils, and therefore should have the
preference.
To grow the special list above given,
it will be Of the highest Importance to
have rich moisture, retentive soil, u
level bottom or drained swamp,
where the water may be buta few feet
beneath the surface, but where no stag.
nant water remains alter a rainfall, or
rather steep northern slope of a bull.
ANY one having such q situation
could hardly fail in having an orchard
that would yield far better returns
than the average crops of the farm.
II these northern slopes, or moisture.
retaining soils, are not available we
must guard against the effects of heat
and draught BY cultivating and mulch
ing.
lfall the water that falls in our
Summer thunder showers could be
made available, our trees would want
very little more. But these fall so fast,
aud often last but few minutes, that
the soil becomes moist only an inch or
two, while the bulk Of the water flows
away. Some one has suggested that
q basin be made around the tree by
banking up the earth that would hold
0 bogshead or more, into which the
waste water could be turned with very
little labor. The water would soon
sink away and molsten the earth
30 deep that II would take some time