Evening journal., 1897-08-30
FEW PEACHES, SURE.
The Crop a Total Failure, and
Growers Lose Heavily.
THE FRUIT DESERTS KENT COUNTY.

Il |
KETS OF DELAWARE PEACHES
FOR MARKET rs 15O,OOO-FROST
LARGELY RESPONSIBLE FOR
THE GREAT LOSS - PEACH
BELTS SOUTHWARK MOVE
MENT.
Dover, Aug 2S.-Delaware peaches
will not glut the markets this year. The
crop Is a dismal failure, and emphasizes
the belief that has been held here for
many years that the peach belt will
soon belong entirely to the South.
For the past eight or ten years q cry
has regularly risen from some point ini
Delaware about the first of July which
sounded something like this: Della |
ware peach crop ruined. The yield
will be smaller than any previous
year" This cry was generally followed
by such an enormous yield OF peaches
that soon it was regarded by commits
sion men and other outsiders interested
in Delaware's peach trade as an annual
joke which they looked for in the
newspapers about the first OF July as
much as to look forward to as Fourth of
July Indeed, 1t soon became a house
hold summer joke among the peach
growers and farmers of the lower coun-
ties, who could scarcely wait till it was
time ito hear somethin about the
peach crops ruination." To upper
Delaware people it was bigger joke
perhaps. than to anybody else, because
they invariably found carload after
carload of peaches dumped almost at
the front doors by August at prices that
were next to nothing. But this year
the cry was not a jOke-nOt even to
these upper Delaware people. 1t con-
tanned a fact-an important fact-that
has become woefully evident to all the
people OF Delaware and particularly
those who have grown peaches and
have caused the fame that surrounds
a Delaware peach"
Delaware's crop of peaches this year
is shorter than ever before. This time
last year growers in Kent and Sussex
counties were shipping 10000 baskets
day The shipments during the past
week from Georgetown, Milford and
Bridgeville averaged 300 baskets a day
or 300 per cent. less than last year.
Kent county, which has for four OF
five years been the centre OF the peach
belt of Delaware is practically without
peaches this year. The belt has grad
ually moved southwark until Bridge
Vile, Sussex county is its centre, and
the main shipping point.
An orchard containing 10000 to 49,
600 peach trees in Sussex county used
TO yield on an average one basket to 6
tree, but this year one thousand baskets
from the whole orchard is considered
q fortunate crop. Perhaps the largest
orchard in the state is that of Colone
j. J. Ross. at Seaford. Colonel Ross
is the peach king OF Delaware, and is {
scientific farmer. The crop in his or
chard, which contains about 2500i
trees, this year, is a total failure. Col
onel Ross will not have his pesche
picked. He will go to Europe in few
DAYS. Last year the big yield compellel
The growers to dispose of the fruit 70
2 song; this year the crop being shor
they are able to get fair prices, but tn
increase I'm the prices over last yea
will by no means offset the loss to tn
growers by the shortness OF the cror
A grower who got $4,000 for his GRO
of peaches last year will get $500 L
5000 or less this year. This Is one O
the important differences in the valu
Of the crop of 1896 and 1897, eve
though the growers are to-day gettin
on an average better prices for tn
fruit than last year. The averag
revenue per orchard to the farmers &
Delaware who have made peach grow
ing a special business for many year
has until this year been from $4,000
$1,000. These growers of course ha
large orchards. The average this yea
among these growers is estimated q
from 81 900 to S1,500
These figures, however. by no mean
show the entire loss to the peac
growers of Delaware by the shortnes
of the crop this year. There are man
growers in the peach belt who last yea
cashed in several thousand dollars o
their crop, but who haven't any peachC
TO offer for cash or anything else tn
year.
While travelling through the belt tn
week your correspondent noted a p'
culiar natural condition in conneetio
with the failure Of the crops OF Il
growers just referred to. On one SIC
of a road was an orchard containin
5000 trees which last year yielded i
owner a snug sum. There was not
marketable peach on any of the tree
The grower's efforts this year had bee
I'm VAN. On the other side of the ro5
was an orchard not quite so larl
whicn yielded we'll last year. Evei
tree was laden with peaches and n
groes were at work picking and baske
ing Them for market. This is the col
dition all through the belt and accoun
for The shortness of the crop. III
growers attribute the condition to q
frost and the movement of the be
last April. when the first peach bio
SONS came out the weather was G
pecailly fine and warm for a week
ten days. The buds spread OF cour'
and the growers hearts were light WI
the hope that winter was over and tn
everything was favorable to go
peach crop. But this warm spell W
followed by heavy rain and frc
which nipped the buds. This frost, [
same as previous frosts, Travelled in Il
gag fashion, striking an orchard he
and there, leaving many between u
touched
Thus the difference between the Y
orchards referred to is accounted T.
In Kent county the frost was especial
vicious. .nipping so many orchards Ni
the croD in that county is so short VI