The ranch. [volume] (Seattle, Wash.) 1902-1914, 1907-03-01


Growers Association in Seattle, in
January past, that two hundred car
loads of apples were shipped out of
the Yakima valley to the east during
the past fall. When the new orch
ards now set in that valley come into
bearing ten times as many cars load
ed with apples will have to be sent
east. and this will go on increasing
with wonderful strides as the new
lands are brought into cultivation.
Nothing but the raising of the high
est grade of apples and the sending
of these away in vast quantities, Will
save the apple grower from ruin.
am not a prophet and may be mis-
taken, but my honest conviction is
that many will rush into the business
influenced by these land booming
yarns and will be disappointed and
will neglect their orchards and, as
consequence, apple orchards can be
bought cheaper ten years hence than
they can today. If the sequel shall
prove that | am mistaken, l shall
gladly acknowledge my mistake.
II may not be amiss to say in this
connection that while | have put the
net annual income of well kept or
chard at 500 per acre there are many
orchards that do not nearly come up
TO that standard. We must not make
tha mistake of confounding the gross
income of an orchard with the net
income. The net income is What
is left after all expenses are PAID.
The cost of running an orchard is
heavy draft on ones income. we
must prune, spray for San Jose scale,
for apple scab, for black spot canker,
for oyster shell scale, and Tor the
cooling moth. We must cultivate anu
in some places irrigate; we must tnln
the fruit, and then comes the expense
of picking, sorting, packing, the Cost
of boxes and paper. What Will aA
this expense amount to! l nave ns,
ured this over and over. again anu
know from actual experience tnat the
expense will amount to from so Genus
to 60 cents per box. In the YAKIMA
valley. where we have neither scab,
anthracnose nor oyster shell scale,
know the cost is about 40 cents per
hox On low grade apples, like the
Ben Davis and Missouri pippln, that
often sell at so cents per box and
sometimes at less, we would have TO
raise fit for the market, more than
| 900 boxes per acre in order TO net
100 ner acre. This is more than
twice the yield of good commercial
apples ordinarily secured. The Spit
zenburg and Newton may sometimes
weld bumper crops and the pronts
per acre are very large, but some
years the yield is so small tnat all
nrofit is consumed in caring for the
orchard.
am not discouraged in raising
apples but the person that thinks l
roll in wealth because my sons and !
own and manage a good commercial
orchard, would learn something l!
they should go behind the scenes ana
see things as we do. Those "ploWs
who are publishing to the world that
from $500 to $1,000 per year can De
made on each acre as regular net
income never come to me for their IN
formation. I have been published Tar
and wide as having a net annual IN
come of from $4,000 to $4,000 per
annum, but none of these statements
ever emanated from me.
know the value of apple orchards
pretty well from personal experiences
in the business and from travelling,
but I am free to say that l do not
know of a single apple orchard away
from near some city that could be
sold for more than $500 per acre and
very few would bring that. l have
young apple orchard Of fifteen acres
on nv lower farm in the Yakima
valley, consisting of Winesaps, Jona-
thans and Rome Beauties, and II any
one thinks it worth $1,000 per acre
let him come around with the "chink"
and | will make him deed to 1t and
throw in Al acres fenced and In cul-