The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1886-06-04
PROFITABLE HORTICULTURE.
Quality More Desirable and Remunerative
Than Quantity,

Quality More Desirable and Remunerative
Than Quantity.
Fruit-grOwers should remember that
it is the quality of fruit that brings the
top price, and it should always be their
endeavor to obtain this. After he has
shown that one can produce No. fruit,
then he can give his attention to pro-
ducing so much as he can, consistent
with maintaining the quality up to the
standard.
If the production of a greater guam
tity is causing a deterioration of quail
ity it is time to cry halt, and give
quality of products more attention. It
is the best of every thing that brings
the best prices, and with none of our
farm products is this more true than
with fruits.
Another point in favor of producing
the best of fruits is that in doing so,
while you may not grow the largest
number of apples, pears or berries, you
do not necessarily produce a less
amount in weight or by measure.
With fruits, as rule good size is good
quality; it is not SO with all other
things. And if by giving better cul-
ture and more room one grows apples
only half the number of which are re-
quired to make bushel than would be
needed if this care had not been given,
and one bushel of large apples sells for
a quarter to a third more than the
bushel of small ones, it is easy to see
that there is chance for greater profit
in growing the larger fruits.
One can pick a large strawberry or
apple as quick if not quicker than one
l. ~ Al,
measure twice as fast. 1t costs less to
handle the large than the small fruits.
Customers are better suited with good
fruit than with poor, and by satisfying
their tastes we make them want more,
and the demand is thus increased.
But all the good qualities of fruit do
not, by any means, lie in the size.
There are many qualities which the
grower must try to improve; as color,
flavor, texture of skin and flesh, etc.
There are two principal ways by
which fruit-growers fail to produce the
best fruit, viz, by having a greater
area than they can take care of right,
and by letting their trees and vines
bear more than they can mature prop
erly. If one has already more land in
fruit than he can attend to it takes
some courage to go and cut out part;
yet it is better to do so than to raise
and put on the market a lot of poor
fruit. To those who contemplate
planting we would say, go slow, plant
a small area at first, learn the business
and as fast as you get the skill to grow
the best, increase the plantation.
Many fruit growers fail to produce
good fruit by allowing their trees and
vines to overbear. When the condi-
tons have all been favorable and the
orchardist sees his trees full of bloom
and setting a heavy crop of fruit, his
soul delighteth within him and he is
glad! But if late frost comes and
kills half of the buds he is almost
ready to ''curse and die" But that
which often seems a direful visitation
from Providence is really blessing in
disguise.
A tree will very readily run the
gauntlet of all danger to the buds and
then bear more than the tree can sup
port properly and mature in the best
manner. And the evil is not confined
to the fruit, but results in permanent
injury to the tree. This often happens
to young trees in the beginning of
their career.
The orchardist can do himself no
greater service than by watching his
trees, especially the young ones. and if
they have set too full pick off part of
the fruit; and don't be afraid of taking
of too many. Better be too many than
too few. Don't neglect it either, for
the sooner it is done the better for the
tree and fruit Colz117s's Rural World.