St. Tammany farmer., 1922-12-23
.$100 in 40 Years Per Acre
in Timber, $500 in /
Year in Oranges
PARISH SUITABLE
ORANGE CULTURE
Pioneer Energies of Paul
Friedlander Attracts
Attention Experts
By A. E. Briggs

By A. E. Briggs
Recently some of the people of this
parish have taken in the work of
the Experiment Stations in Pearl
County which adjoins us on the east
side of Pearl river. The history of
the Station at Mcneil is interesting
especially in view of its abandon
ment by the State Of Mississippi for
the new Station at Poplarville and
the course of its handling since it
has come into possession of the Fed
eral Government.
The Federal authorities were SO
engrossed by many of their pet
schemes, among which reforestation
now seems to be a leading favorjte,
that they were disposed to neglect
and discontinue some of the very
noteworthy projects started there,
and in consequence some of the old
equipment is falling into ruin. It
is said that one of the highbroW ex-
perts who first viewed the site for
the purpose of converting it took
particular affront at the Satsuma
orange orchard on one side of the
entrance, pronouncing it an .eyesore
and recommending its removal. The
sequel, however, illustrates the fact
that such experts are sometimes
wrong.
OF course an experiment station
is not run for profit, but it is con-
Quoted presumably for the benefit OF
the agriculture in its vicinity and
would therefore seem to illustrate
the products which can be proitably
cultivated on lands of similar char
acter and location.
But the attitude of the said ex-
pert is typical, for such have an eye
open only for the crankism which
happens to be in vogue at the mo-
ment. Sos.he wanted to cut down
the orange trees and give way for a
pine. nursery or some other whoop-
er-up fancy just then occupying his
brain. Well, of course, it is neces-
sary for the general good that the
Station should try out a
number Of things and plants, ETC..
which are necessarily failures: in or
der to find something new which may
may be Of great value. And when
said expert proposed tc cut down The
Satsuma grove, he was probably fall
ing somewhat short 0f tie ldeals OF
Station work, whicn among other
things should be to give fair trial
20 the growing of oranges in this
section.
The conclusion seems to have
weakened the Station Department
heads to the merit Of DR.. Ferris ex-
pertinent. For, although the trees
nave been shamefully abused by
-urning hogs into the orchard and
he trees bear evidence not only OF
Neglect to trim out dead wood anG
also Of destructive injuries, yet they
have returned a profit this year
which the Department will be hard
put to if it can provide another ex-
acreage. Certainly with the lack Of
care and actual mistreatment from
which this orchard has suffered, it
cannot show elsewhere an equal ac-
If indeed it can pro-
iuce another crop succeeding at all
without attention, it would be a god
send to the lazy farmer.
Now, what is the record OF the
Mcneil orchard? It ought to prove
The merit of the orange industry in
his section. The ill-cared for orch
ard we have just described yielded
sufficient oranges at zoe dozen (the
price for which they were sold) to
make a return of about $500 per
acre.
If we will stop to think what these
facts may mean to this parish, that
is if we will do our own thinking In
stead of letting the State Conserva-
tion Department do it all for us, we
can easily see that in comparison
with orange-growing reforestation
cannot make any showing at all. A
writer in the Times-P icayune the
other day by letter estimates that
with care a pine forest can be pro
duced in 40 years which will be
worth 500 an acre, which means
that in 40 years that acre will have
produced under good care only 500.
But here is an orange grove which
with abuse makes in a single year
$500 per acre.
Somewhat tardily the Government
experts have Investigated this par
ish and adjudged it suitable for
orange culture. II it had not been
for the pioneering energies of Paul
probably the Govern
ment experts would not yet be aware
Of the fact that orange-groWing will
pay in this parish. Nevertheless we
are grateful for their recognition,
for the reason that their testimony
may have more weight with doubt
ing Thomases Of which we have an
abundance in this par
ish. At any rate the experimental
stage of orange growing here has
passed, and if the general public has
not learned it, insofar as they are
land owners and farmers, they are
losing money every day they are de-
laying the planting Of orange orch
ards.
We. have worried our heads off