The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1901-11-08

! Engle on Prospect Hill near Paw Paw
and n. II Bitely on the high ground back
of Lawton were the pioneer planters and
teachers of the new gospel for fruit
growers. Mr.. Bitely, now deceased, used
TO assert that he could detect, by the
flavor the grapes growing on the hill
top from those on vines on lower land in
his house garden. Mr.. Engle also was
a connoisseur in grape flavors and re-
called his friends and committees at hor-
ticultural meetings with new seedlings
of his own propagation, and eXpatiated
upon their table qualities with an ardor
! that carried conviction and brought
blue ribbons.
The evidence that these favors were
no conjurer's trick hes in the fact that
the supply is nowhere equal to the de-
mand, as | shall show farther along.
That this is native soil for the peach is
shown by the fact that several of the
well known and widely cultivated sorts
originated here: "Snow's Orange, ""Hills
Chill, '"Eugle's Mammoth, "Minerva -
the latter two among Mr.. Engle's seed
lings are illustrations of what the eli
mate and soil will naturally produce.
Many other seedlings of notable quality
are being tested that have not as yet
been extensively planted.
The marketing of fruit has passed
through the successive stages of the
peddler, shipping to local dealers in dis
tant towns, and to Chicago, South Water
street commission men, the returns of
which have been a mixture of curses and
commentator and lastly, selling through
fruit growers associations and street
buyers, this last arrangement proving
: more satisfactory than any Of the former
methods of sale. Many of the growers
have telephone connection with the
towns, and their loads are sold before
J leaving the packing house and a check
/ is given as soon as the packages are
counted out at the car. These buyers
and agents of the associations handle
entirely in carload lots and ship by
! freight in refrigerator cars.
TO get at the amount of fruit-peaches
and grapes-sent from this locality, |
sent to each of the freight agents at Paw
Paw, Lawton and Mattawan, asking
answers to the following questions re-
garding numbers OF full cars shipped:
Date of first shipment
Date of last shipment
! Whole number of cars.
Estimated number of cars in small ship
! mentS.
Average number of packages per car.
The replies are in and | find that
Lawton, from August 20 to October 10
go day shipped AGA cars, with an
average of 1900 packages per car.
Mattawan, from August II to October
5-54 days-shipped 30 cars with an
average of 1900 packages per car.
! Paw Paw, from data furnished by
purchasing agents and officials, sent out
/ 240 cars with an average of 3, 100 packages
per car.
A little computing and study of
these figures brings out some interest
| ing facts. There have been 100 cars of
fruit shipped from these three stations
over the Michigan Central and South
Haven q Eastern lines, with an aggre-
gate of 2,274,000 packages.
Some of the early grapes Melted the
|
bulk of the crop was sold for 1917 to 13
cents as the demand was normal or act
i've. Peaches brought from ID to 20
cents for ffth-bushel baskets. There
is no way of separating the shipments,
as both peaches and grapes were shipped
in the same car frequently; the average
price per package is difficult to ascertain,
httf of lou rfa Of
a million of dollars was distributed among
the fruit growers within radius of eight
miles, taking Paw Paw as the center, from
these shipments to outside markets alone.
The canning factories at Paw Paw,
Gobleville, Lawrence and Decatur were
also running on peaches during the sea-
son, taking the entire crop of yellow
peaches from some of the most extensive
growers, estimated at 10000 bushels.
This, with the returns for other small
and tree fruits, would swell the amount
quite materially.
For the benefit of those who may de-
sire to figure farther on the profits in
fruit growing, l give the following:
Grapes are set about 49, to the acre
and come into bearing the third year,
when two baskets to the vine may rea-
sonably be expected for a series of years
to follow. About 100 peach trees "a lit
tie more) are set to the acre and come
into bearing the fourth year and increase
in productiveness for four years, when
they attain their normal size. 1t is safe
to count on three crops out of five and a
! bushel to the tree is not large average.
1t is on record in the court of this county
in suit for damages, that a peach tree at
four years old is worth "a and damages
were based on that figure.
A little consideration will show that it
is unwise for beginner to go far outside