Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1909-10-29
FINE n ERMoNr ORCHARD.
Profit from NE 100 Acres viii BE $4,000
Fifty Me Engaged in Picking the

| F"V Wef engaged IN Picking the
Apple Crop,
Sixty men 1re now engaged in pic,s,nq
and packing about 5000 barrels of the
finest apples ever grown i'm Vermont
the 1OO-acre orchard, mostly of Rhode
Island greeni1gs, on the farm in Char
| lotte, Vt, Of Charles I. Holmes says the
New York Tribune Farmer Visitors from
all parts of Nbw England have inspected
this orchard during the last few months
and have gone away marveling at the
high quality And great quantity OF the
fruit there sem. Yet there is no miracle
or luck aboutlit. 1t was hard work and
good husbandfy that did 1t. The crop
throughout the state is below the ave-
rage, 1t being an of year" and fancy
Vermont apples win bring excellent
prices this fat Mr.. Holmes has sold his
apples to a New York commission house
which has marketed his crop for the last
nine years. Conservative estimate Of the
crops value Is $4,000 to $4,000 Mr.
Holmes short time ago was offered
$500 an acre for his 100 acres Of orchard
by a Milwaukee man, who desired It to
sell again. This offer included the pres
ent crop.
The story Of the development of the
Holmes orchard is interesting and educa-
tional. 1t required long years of hard pa
tient and intelligent work to bring the or
chards to their present state of efficiency.
The orchards were planted IL ana AZ
years ago ut took three years to set them
OUT by the father of the present owner
John Holmes, The pity Of It was that
Mr.. Holmes did not live to see the desire
of his heart come to full fruition. He left
rich legacy to his son, however, who
has made the most of It. There were
originally 300 trees. The young trees
were well cared for and grew THRIFTY
When they got larger 1t was found that
they were set too closely together in the
rows for proper cultivation and to produce
the best results. So the present owner
took out every alternate tree This left
about 1000 greening trees-greenings an
being in one orchard-and opportunity
was given to experiment in scientific
apple culture Six years ago Mr.. Holmes
had crop aggregating 5000 barrels. The
profits gave him the start he needed.
The mortgage on his farm was wiped out
three years ago ard he was free to carry
on plans for increasing production.
The greening orchard is situated on an
upland slope running north and south
along a blum overlooking Lake Cham
plafn-an almost ideal location, orchard
lists say. Shelter from heavy winds is
afforded by fringe of taller trees ex-
tending along the edge of the bluff. The
soil is heavy clay loan. Mr.. Holmes
prunes the dead wood and superfuous
branches from the trees regularly every
season, as any successful orchardist must
do. Three years ago Mr. Holmes bought
quantity Of refuse lime, which he
sprinkled literally under the trees as
far as the spread of the branches. Sim
r treatment was given the two follow
ing years, and fertilizing with manure
each year in addition. Frequent harrow
ing of the ground under the trees and a
top dressing of clover or buckwheat serv-
ed to cultivate the surface sufficiently.
Lime cost about So cents a tree 1t was
shipped in carload lots from a lime kiln
20 miles away. Mr.. Holmes believes thor
oughly in the efficacy of spraying his
trees, and this years crop is proof posi-
tive Of its practical value. The last sea-
son he sprayed the entire orchard four
times-twice with bordeaux mixture
and twice with a solution of arsenical
lead. The first poison is put on Just be-
fore the buds open in the spring, the
second when the calix is open, the third
before the middle of July and the fourth
about the middle of August, when the
apples are heavy enough to turn down
by their own weight.
Mr.. Holmes had a windmill installed in
the largest orchard to pump water from
the LAX 1000 feet to a reservoir at the
highest point in the orchard. The reser-
voir has capacity of 1900 gallons. The
windmillA did not prove adequate, how
ever. andl he instalfAd gasoline pump
at the esef the blur. with which he
can fill Nv TANK in six hours, at an ele-
walton % 100 feet. In spraying he uses a
wagon with tower, a spraying tank
holdiny92 $50 gallons, two-horse gasoline
enginGf and hose sufficient. One man,
with an ingenious apparatus Of Mr..
Holm es's own invention, can play six
separate streams at one time upon a tree,
while another man drives the horses be-
tween the rows, The combination of
lime, manure, frequent cultivation and
spraying worked the result, and now Mr..
Holmes asserts that there is no reason
why he should not have big apple crop
every year, barring untoward conditions,
and he expects to secure a harvest in a
few years of 10000 barrels.
Mr.. Holmes takes exceeding care in
picking and packing his fruit Expert
pickers, over whom competent foremen
are placed, are engaged and Mr.. Holmes
superintends the work himself His lad
ders are of different lengths, ending in a
point at the top, and to prevent slipping
the feet of the ladders have steel spikes
Half-bushel baskets are used by the pick
ers. The sorting boxes are portable and
are raised high enough for the sorter to
stand as he works. The end OF the barrel
that Is opened in market is double faced,
with rows of large, even size. Then the
apples of the same grade are emptied in
carefully, and the barrel is shaken after
each basket is emptled.
The fancy grade consists of perfect ap-
pies, not smaller than az inches in diam
eter. and No. grade comprises all firm,
perfect apples, which are all salable.
The remainder a very large percentage
of the whole, are not picked. There is
hardly an unsound apple in the entire
orchard this year. AS a test and object
lesson in cultivating fruit Mr.. Holmes
left one tree without spraying or soil
cultivation. The contrast between 1t and
its neighbors makes the lesson clear. It
contains fair quantity Of fruit, but the
quality is lacking. The apples are small
and imperfect and the tree itself looks
unhealthy. Mr.. Holmes has a worthy
assistant in his labors in Clevis Laradley,
who has been employed on the farm four
years.