The ranch. [volume] (Seattle, Wash.) 1902-1914, 1904-06-15


There is no question but it is an ap-
pie of most excellent flavor and could
hardly be surpassed in color. 1t is
not long keeper under ordinary con-
ditions. But it is claimed by those
who have tried it that it keeps re-
markably we'll in cold storage. These
are all points in it's favor. One OBJ
lection to the Jonathan is that in
some localities it is not prolific
bearer. In former years | grew it in
Iowa and that was the objection there.
I grew the Jonathan by the side of the
Ben Davis and the latter yielded four
times as many apples as the former.
At that time the taste OF the people
was not educated in the matter OF
apples as it is now. l could sell my
Bens for as much per bushel as the
Jonathans. Of course under such con-
ditions it paid much better to raise the
old Ben Davis. 1t is quite different
now. Good Jonathans will sell for
twice as much as the Ben Davis. This
means about three times as much to
the grower in favor of the higher
priced apple Some one may ask
how that can be. Well suppose box
of Ben Davis sells in Seattle for Is
cents. How much of that is net to
the grower? The box, the picking,
packing and freight must come out OF
that sum- These items combined will
take about one half of the selling price
of the box of apples. Now let a box
of Jonathans be sold for $1.5O. The
expenses enumerated above will be
lust the same. The additional rs
cents will be all profit, except the COM
mission. In the case of the box OF
Ben Davis the net profit will be not
more than So cents; in the case OF
the Jonathan it will be more than
81 90. This is view point in sell
ing fruit that many fail to see. Ii
a box of peaches sells in Seattle for
SO cents we do not realize more than
20 cents profit If, however, it sells
for 81 90, the profit is 20 cents plus
as cents or 65 cents, which is more
than three times as much. These
figures ought to teach growers the
Importance of raising good fruit.
Fruit not we'll thinned and inferior in
appearance, even though it be good
variety, will not pay. The Jonathan
is an annual bearer and in the west
the trees are always full and have to|
be thinned But one thing must not
be forgotten and that is, that the
Jonathan is a slow grower and at
ten years of age will not, under the
most favorable conditions, bear one
half as many apples as the Ben Davis
or Rome Beauty.
The scare with reference to the
crown gall is subsiding somewhat.
This disease is not some new thing,
but seems to be as old as apple
growing. Whether it is more virulent
than common or whether it does more
harm in some sections than others,
may be an open question. The
writer is studying this disease In
his own orchard. Among several
thousand apple trees he knows that
some half dozen have this disease.
The following things are found to be
true: First, the disease does not
spread from one tree to another. Il
have a tree of the Canada Red that
has the crown gall badly and has been
so affected for years and yet other
trees of that and other varieties not
over 25 feet from it have never shown
the least sign of this disease. With
out doubt, if should dig up this par
ticular tree and plant another in its
+bo paW1U cpt tree would be