Smyrna times., 1918-05-22
CHESWOLO DESTINED TO
BECOME BIG APPLE CENTER
H.K. CARPENTER AND B.N DAw-
LEY HAVE 10000 TREES
Biggest Orchardi in State to be Followed
by Other Local Orchards Centered
in the Smyrna Brenford Belt

w luC smyrna BTenTOrQ Belt
Cheswold. May 21.- K. Car
penter and B. N. Dawley, owners of
the Commercial Orchards of Delaware.
Inc, located at the northern edge of |
Cheswold, are in the fortunate class
of those who have passed the long,
trying period of patient waiting, with |
tEeir apple orchards and are beginning
to see the dollars they invested in
young apple trees few years ago re-
turn to them manifold. The CONNER
cial Orchards of Delaware contain
20, 600 of the finest 5-year-old apple
trees to be found anywhere in the
State of Delaware, or in any other
State in the Union for that meter.
There are other orchards in the Smyr.
na-BrenfOrd Cheswold belt, while not
as large as the commercial orchards,
are sufficiently large to insure this Sec
tion being big apple producing and
shipping center. Although the COM
mercial orchard was only planted 5
years ago, the trees are as large as
the average 8 year-old trees, and will
this year, produce a large crop of
fruit. This is due to the excellent
care and cultivation they have re-
ceived at the hands of Messrs. Carpen-
ter and Dawley, who are experienced
apple men. Messrs. Carpenter and
Dawley are Western farmers and apple
growers. Some years ago they be-
came interested in the apple growing
industry in Delaware, and 6 years ago
they purchased large farm of 5O6
acres just north of Cheswold, which
the succeeding year they planted in
twenty thousand apple trees, planting
ten thousand in the fall of the first
year they owned the farm, and ten
thousand the following year. All of
these are late winter varieties, mostly
Stayman Winesaps, with the exception
of 2500 carly Jonathans and Grimes
Goldens. The orchards are very con-
venient for shipping, having frontage
of one mile on the Delaware railroad
just above the Cheswold station.
/ While the trees are covered with buds,
and an unusually large crop for such
/ young trees will be harvested, yet the
proprietors are not counting upon a
full crop until the trees attain their
eighth year.
Delaware Good for Apple Growing
Both Mr.. Carpenter and Mr.. Daw-
ley have developed into Delaware
boosters of the first water. They
never tire of comparing apple growing
conditions in Delaware with those of
the Western States, and in pointing out
how much more favorable and ideal
the conditions in this State are to
those west of the Mississippi. For
instance, they point out that Delaware
is much closer to the big markets,
there being approximately forty mill
lion people within one days ride of
this section. The cost of shipping the
fruit to market is much less than in
the west. The weather conditions
are also far superior to the West, as
there is a crop of fruit in this State
every year, the apples being practi-
cally immune from frost. In fact, q
lost apple crop from frost in Della
ware, which frequently happens in
some of the Northwestern States, is
unknown, due largely to the State
ideal location between the Delaware
and Chesapeake bays. These condi-
tions add to both the quality and
flavor of the fruit.
, "Apples Will Make Delaware Famous
1t is predicted that the time will
come when the apple growing indus.
try will make the name of Delaware
famous throughout the world. Right
here the orchards at Cheswold are
beautifully kept Two large tractors
are kept constantly at work cultivat
ing the trees, and it is a beautiful
sight to stand on high elevation anC
glance out over the thousands of trees.
Some idea of the size of the orchard
: can be obtained when it is realized
that were the 20, 900 trees placed il
a straight row, at the same distance
apart as they are planted in th'
orchard, they would span 112 miles
reaching from Wilmington to New
York City.