Milford chronicle., 1921-02-25
GROW YOUR own FRUIT
AFEW TREES WILL GIVE YOU AN ABUND-
ANCE; WHAT TO GET FOR A HOME
ORCHARD: AND HOW TO BUY
THEM.
By F. F. Rockwell, horticultural Edi-
tor of Farm & Fireside

Have you ever thought of growing
your own fruit? This is the first of &
series of articles by Mr.. Rockwell
telling just how to produce, in limit
ed space, apples, peaches, plums
raspberries, Strawberries, ETC., fol
your own table and for canning. Fruit
trees and plants are cheaper this year
than they have been in long time
Why not start now?
How many dollars a year do you
spend for fruit-either fresh or in
cans?
Did you ever stop to think that half
that sum invested in a few fruit
trees, would give you many times the
amount of fruit you buy-and keep on
giving it to you, year after years
If you have ground enough for a
fair-sized garden, you have room
enough for fruit. A single peach
tree will yield from so to $50 quarts
of fruit. I have seen 20 16-qt bask-
cts taken from single tree, under
regular commercial culture. A good
young apple tree will give from two
to four barrels of fruit.
And fruit trees require so little
care, as compared to vegetables, that
your whole home orchard will not
take many hours work, during the en-
tire year.
Moreover you can grow on your
own trees, just as fine peaches and
apples as you pay five to fifteen cents
apiece for at the fruit store. There
was time, not many years ago, when
the commercial grower had a big ad-
vantage over the home gardner. That
was when modern methods of spray
ing first came into use, and most of
the Sprays" had to be mixed on the |
job. But now you can get good ready |
to use sprays of all kinds, and an eff
fective hand-power sprayer suitable
fortaking care of few trees. So it |
is possible to produce homegrown
fruit of the very highest quality; and
often of superior FLAVOR, because
such things as peaches, cherries, and
plums, should ripen on the tree to de-
velOp their full sugar content.
A Good Selection for a Home Garden
I am often asked, what shall I
plant to give a good well-balanced
supply of fruit for my home table,
and for canning?
Now of course there can be no gen. !
eral prescription for the home fruit !
garden, any more than there can be
for the home vegetable garden, be- ,
cause peoples tastes differ so greatly.
But in this article, and the ones to =
follow, l have endeavored to answer
that question in a way that will en- :
able the beginner to select the kind =
of fruit-garden that will suit him or !
her, without making those beginners
mistakes that often cause disap- =
pointment and several years. lost time. :,
So far as any mention or particular 7
varieties is concerned, however, the -
reader should keep in mind that some f
varieties do better than others in diff .
ferent sections. So, while all the -
sorts I mention are old standbys that n
have given very general satisfaction :
over a wide range of conditions, or
lew ones that have made good" be-
,Ond question, nevertheless it is al y
ways well to ask the advice of the %
lurseryman from whom you buy your
rees. Any reliable nurseryman will
LnsWer your questions honestly; and
will not knowingly send you variety
hat will not do well in your section.
he American Association of Nursery Sc
len, for whom I am writing these ar a
icles, is making a special effort to 81
ave all it's members (some four hun II
red of the most reliable concerns in 10
ne business) do everything possiblet lo
} assist their customers to select the III
est things for their conditions, and us
, help them succeed with them after qu
ley plant them. sH
But, to get results such as you can III
nd should expect, you must also do ou
our part, ESPECIALLY in planting es,
nd in caring for your little trees OF
lring the first season. This will not go
Ike much time; but trees cannot be
uck in the ground and left 10 them wa
Ives. Even beans and sweet corn da
mt be grown that way. rol
Now as.+o inst what Won will want at
your garden. auo
Apples, perhaps, come first: Though \
your space is very limited it may on
better to put in only peaches, qul
lms and cherries. Don't forget, how L
er, that an apple makes an ideal the
IADE tree; and, in bloom, it is one We
tbe most beautiful things that the ter
Gator ever placed on earth. More Ior.
er, you can get many of the best l.
Die varieties, growing on DWARF eva
,cks-that is. the tree will always enc
main small, although the fruit is ing
sized. Bnt dwarfs require more strC
ention in the way of pruning, than WIZ
!, standard kinds. GRO
f I had room for only half dOZ- slro
apples-and that is enough to give ~
cellar, as well as all plls
It can be used for dessert or cook M
during late summer and fall gy
uld plant one of each of the fol- MT;
ing: Red Astrachan, for very ear y.
fruit, or Dutchess of Gutenberg com
ich fruits at an earlier age; follow qult
by Grimes Golden, a good keeper; our
iciOus, most popular of the Wes- rev
I boxed apples sold so largely in thlnl
big Eastern cities, but grows well tootl
rywhere; Paragon, another favor appe
market sort, good for both dessert we
cooking; and Roxbury Russet.
our varieties of pears will give a
ply from summer until after New
RS; Bartlett, Anjou, Seckel and
ter Nelis, will make a very sat Nc
ctOry collection. greer
S it is almost impossible to have Sal
many peaches, six varieties will to b1
lone too many. Champion, quality while
'idered, is perhaps the most sat MI!
;tory of the earlier sorts; Craw ner 1
s Late, Belle of Georgia, Elberta, ngto
:. Hale, and Iron Mountain, might Mr.
sed to complete the sextette. The ell a
r is rather small and of a whitish Berll
,, with no bright red Cheek" but Mr.
eestone, and of extra fine flavor VIslte
4 very late sort. zee
to cherries, here are at least Fnlla
SORTS Won want if-VO11 like cher WIN