The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1901-10-13

cret of thrifty trees and large fruit Cen
orally crop of grass or clover or some
leguminous plant is sown in the orchard
IN the fall and permitted to grow lux
uriantly through the winter, when. the
abundant rains and the warm and sunny
days give it heavy and rank growth
In the spring this crop is plowed in and
becomes splendid fertilizer for. the
feeding of the trees. The careful or
ohardist who thus provides food for
MS trees and cultivates his orchard
thoroughly is the one who profits the
most from abundant crops of large sized
frult. The influence of example hasabcen
so great that the number of slovenIy or
chardists to be found in the valley ia
very few and so far as appearances so
the whole valley might be a single orchard
ana under~GD single management so per-
-Nc1-y are all the orchards cultivated and
cared for
The prune tree has its insect and fun
gus pests, like all fruits bijt care and
scientific attention @neutraIizes .+bn,,o
PROBABLY nowhere in the world has the
science OF orcharding on a large scale
been raised to a higher standard than
IN the prune districts of California and
nowhere Will be found thriftier trees
or more perfect fruit. In this care and
Ihe perfectlon of fruit resulting from it
L
norma prune over that grown in any
other section of the world The notorious
san Jose scale is probably more a
stranger to the orchards about San Jose.
whose name 1T bears than any other old
orchard district in the country. This is
because the growers know how to fight
1t ana nave fought it with determination
and complete success. It was not ma
tive of Santa Clara valley. but was i'm
ported 9
it is found in profusion on the native
trees. San Jose, however, was the first
locality where it was recognized as a.
deadly enemy of fruit trees and where the
first successful efforts were made to fight
IT, and hence the name it received. What
is true Of the scale is also true of the
borer, Goblin moth, curcuIio and other
pests. They are fought by the prune
growers intelligently and unremittfngIy.
with the result that the orchards are
thrifty and clean and the fruit superior
and, incidentally and practically, the
profits greater than in fruit districts
where the pests are permitted to gain
the upper hand.
A drive through the prime orchards
in March, when the trees are in bloom.
is pleasure worth going many miles
to enjoy. For miles and miles the
We'll kept roads, like city beuleyar,7s
aOelO IllAOlSh COIlIlILOOuS wilderness.
blooming trees. The air is laden with
perfume, and the white blossoms com:
bining with the small green leaves
make picture of beauty. impossible
for the camera to catch One can
Start at San Jose in the morning and
drive all day long through continuous
stretch of blooming orchards and over
the finest roads kept sprinkled as care
fully as the streets of the city. Every
hT1Y1d o,,IC
in the orchard and fine residence an
pears sagTound&a bya we'll kept lawn.
ornamental trees, flowers and all that.
go to utakeszHp the home of luxury and
refinement in. the suburb Of a CITY. Such
are thee homes of the prune growers
and they INDICATE. the character OF The
men who have made a business Of
prune growing. So, popuIous is the or
chard district that graded schools are
to be- found e throughout the valley,
where the little country school house is
found s4ine the ordinary farming DISTRICT
In fact the entire valley presents more
the appearance of a city suburb than II
does of rural. district ~
1t is In the fall, when the crop is ga HI
cred, that the gre est activity is wit
nessed Beginning about the miGdIe Of
picking curing and housing of the crop
calls for tllesjaboF of a. large, !nIl rnber Of
persons, Usually the fruit, which is5
OF rich, ddiShzpurple when ripe is per-
mltted to fan to the ground, either when
shaken from the tree by the wind erSwfrenl
the tree is purposely Shaken. The soft
ground prevents injury from falling. and
the fruit lies until picked up and placed
in boxes, generally several days Squads
of pickers go through the orchards and
MI the boxes and then wagons age driven
through to Gather them up "a n carry
them to the drying house or va u. It is
not necessary III CAP fOrnia to dry by
expensive artitieiRl lIeat as is sthe case
in Oregon anHg other prune growing
sections. The fruit iBs cured naturally in
the sum and Is CONSEQUENTLY of better
quality than that eyaporated by heat in
drying houses. y is first dipped in a.
weak solution of I've to cut the skin,
Slightly TO facilitate the driving process
and is then spread upon trays, Which are
SXS feet In size.s These trays are then
spread out upon Athe, ground and permit
ted to remain there several days A dry
ing yard is an interesting sight. Often
it covers several acres of ground. rami-
fled by little railways upon which flat
cars Piled nigh with trays of fruit are
pushed by hand to and from the saed or
house, where the fruit. is handled.
Shoqld IT rains which seldom happens.
during tn drying season, the trays are
stacked up during the shower and spread
out again at it's close. 1t is remarkable
how free the drying yards are from dust
owing largely to the fact that there is no