Rogue River courier. (Grants Pass, Or.) 1886-1927, 1911-04-14
The blooming period in the early

The blooming period in the early
spring months is the charming part OF
the season, imparting to the night
air a rich and varied aroma. The
young and the old trees vying with
each other in sturdy growth and
boughs laden with bursting blossoms.
present an uncommon sight pleasing
to the eye. AS soon as the blossom
has dropped and the young fruit has
developed into form, then comes the
thinning period.
Thinning does not require tools,
but dexterous hands, steadily en-
ployed, with handy ladders that reach
t, the topmost boughs. All the lit
tie apples must be picked off until
the limbs OF the tree have the guam
tity to insure a uniform growth that
will reach maturity with a good col
or and equal size for packing pur-
poses.
II the labor of plucking the surplus
production from the branches is not
performed at the proper time. the
over-laden trees vitality Is drawn
upon and this materially affects the
fruit that is left upon the tree for
commercial growth. It requires many
laborers from ten days to two weeks
to strip the orchards Of the super
fluous production.
Thinning Increases Revenue
Some Of the best authorities hold
that heavy thinning each year not
only increases the revenue OF the
orchard but has strong tendency to
insure good returns each year. In
thinning and pruning. care must be
taken that the fruit spurs are not
broken off. The little apples left on
the tree grow very rapidly in the
warm sunshine and day by day may
be seen developing the rich deep col
or that makes the Rogue river apples
famous as a commercial fruit.
The best advised horticulturists
and experienced growers find that, af-
ter overcoming the pests and disease.
the orchards are subjected to freak
Years, at which times lighter crops
may be expected. In the eastern dis
tricts and in high belts of Colorado,
where the climate is not tempered
by warm effects of the ocean cur
rents, the problem Of handling early
frosts becomes an important factor in
fruit raising and must be COPIED with
day and night.
A good many devices have been ex-
perimented with and have more or
less answered the purposes in prac-
tical way for orchard heating.
Among the best may be found recep-
tacles for burning oil and coal. These
receptacles are placed at intervals be-
tween the rows Of fruit trees and, as
the weather is forecasted either from
some central station or weather
bureau, the growers, with crew Of
men, advance through the orchard
and quickly light the vessels that be-
gin to pour forth shafts, of heat into
the lowering temperature. These
soon reduce the danger and create a
normal temperature agreeable to the
tender fruit A cheaper way, and
one of the primitive methods, may be
found In using waste material or a
few sticks of wood piled at the prop
er distances. These nocturnal fires
may seem, at first thought and with
out investigation, to be quite expen-
sive, but considering that the ave-
rage yield of Bartlett pears is seven
boxes to the tree with 102 trees to
the acre and that they bring re-
markable price, this minor expense
sinks into insignifIcance.
Side Crops Not Profitable
During the summer months atten-
ton must be given to reasonable cul-
tivation, which requires the soil 10
be stirred deep enough to bring the
moisture to the surface. Some grow
ers find II profitable to plant corn
cr potatoes between the trees, but
In the matured orchards good hus-
bandry denies the burdening OF the
soil with other growth. The expec'
tation period begins to arrive early
in the fall and the telling work ex
pended In spraying. pruning, graft
ing, budding, thinning and cultlvat
ing begins to loom up in the fore
ground. The big end OF the seasor
Is In sight; the bright-colored ap
pies, the Bartlett pears and the de-
licious peaches are all beginning L
ripen ready to be picked and packed
The picking and packing process
involves one OF the problems OF ship
ping, the last event in the handling
OF the fruit.
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