The Twin Falls times. [volume] (Twin Falls, Idaho) 1905-1916, 1910-07-14
ADAPIED TO WINTER APPLES
Noted Fruit Authority Writes Conclu-
si0ns After Exhaustive Investigation.
ny 0. H. Worth. J

VI COIliu6ICldi UTCudTub III 6OutuSIA
Idaho. This interest Is not limited TO
the land owners here, or to fruit men.
Parties who have no land here, AMI
men who know nothing Of the fruit
business, alike, see a chance for big
returns from properly conducted
commercial apple orchard. Every man
who has land In southern Idaho, be-
lieve has an expectant feeling In re-
gard to the commercial growing OF
fruit He may be going for potatoes,
alfalfa, or other popular crops at pres
ent, but he really Is watching, with
considerable interest, the fellow who
Is putting out the orchard and going
ahead with the so called experiment.
Men from other fruit districts, such as
Wenatchee, Hood River. Yakima,
Grand junction, are investigating the
conditions here carefully. They real
ize that II this district proves as good
as the afore mentioned localities that
there are fortunes here In the sage
brush awaiting the skilled harvester.
| have met these men in many locali-
ties; sometimes they were simply in
vestigating the conditions; many
times I've met and talked with them
on their Idaho ranches One and all
they are confident in the future of a
we'll conducted fruit farm, especially
| the apple orchard, in Idaho. Orchard
Co.'s are a rapidly appearing phase of
the apple" future of Idaho. have
found these embryo companies in all
| districts; some of the already well or
ganized, and with well laid plans for
the planting of hundreds of acres Of
land to apple trees and other varieties
of fruit
The general inquiry is as to the pos
sibilities of these orchards. Can we
grow apples successfully from a fin
ancial point of view? Can we depend
on market for our apples ten years
from today, considering the vast or
chards being set throughout the Co
lumbia, Snake and tributary valleys?
These and many other questions are
bothering the prospective orchardists
of southern Idaho today, especially in
the high attitudes Of the Snake valley
To consider these questions In turn:
1t Is conceded by all fruit men of ex-
perience, that apples grown in high
attitudes are of a better quality thar
those grown in lower altitude The
rule is: The higher the altitude, the
better the fruit, as long as it's possible
III
generally placed at about 5000 feet OF
Whereabouts, although many orchards
are producing at higher attitudes. II
the Bitter Root country of Montana
we probably have as good an example
| of high altitude apples as any know
Of Of course we must grow a variet.
| of fruit adapted to high altitude Thu
Mcintosh Red seems to be the appl
raised in the high altitures of Mon
tana, principally. A man would b
foolish indeed to try to raise some var
ieties of apples in our high attitudes
although they do very we'll in the 10y
attitudes.
| Coming to our own country, ther
are orchards which have been bearin
for the past Is or 20 years, very salts
factorily, despite the fact that tn
trees were not the best adapted varie
/ ties, were not carefully tended, weT
| not sprayed, or protected from dis
east; that the fruit was not thinnet
| sprayed, or cared for to the best &C
vantage. At Oakley, about rs mile
south of Burley at an altitude of aDol
1900 feet, found orchards as much 6
% years old, which have been bearin
large crops of apples, pears and otht
fruits for 20 years. | saw trees thel
last year, with as much as 20 bushe
of apples hanging on them They wei
rot marketable, DIS they had not bee
thinned to produce uniform size, al
| the worms had almost destroyed Il
j crop in that vicinity. But that is not
- ing against the natural conditions Il
fruit growing. At Oakley they are
certain extent protected, perhaps,
the proximity of the mountains, but
HALEY on the opposite side of the va
lney, they are not at all protected, al
they are even higher than Oakle
These places, and orchards near Sh
shone, had fine crops of fruit this yea
a season which has been blow to Il
fruit industry of the whole northwes
Their apples are of a size and coll
which will compete with any apple
any district The altitude gies them
color which cannot be equalled in tt
lower attitudes, probably because
the great amount of sunshine whi'
the fruit receives, which has a gre
deal to do with the composition of t
skin of the fruit. Our Jonathans, Ron
Beauties and Stayman Winesaps W
keep till the following July. At Ho
River and Wenatchee, the Jonathan
considered a fall apple and will n
keep as long as here. The Rome Bea
ty, while it seems to be one of t
commercial apples Of Idaho, is on
commanding price of $1.45 per b
at Wenatchee this year as compar
with $3.50 for the Spitzenberg, a
; $2.25 fer the Winesap. But the Ro1
Beauty here is a different apple
n colors highly, keeps well, and is
r. very consistent bearer. 1t is not
IN low altitude apple but strictly
AN Idaho product, and under our con
lions can be made very popular a
q high priced fruit. The Stayman VIII
III sap is also not such good apple
N the lower attitudes and is inferior
SA quality and price to the old Wines
SN Here, | consider it just the reverse
I'LL compared to the old Winesap.
u In regard to spring frosts: Our
cality does seem to be afflicted W
late spring frosts but on the oil