Smyrna times., 1922-06-28
DELAWARE COMING BACK TO
ITS REPUTATION FOR FRUIT
APPLES BECOMING A PROFIT
ABLE CROP-PEACHES BETTER
Tomatoes, as Usual, Will Be Prolific
With All Canneries Operating
Melon Crop Most Promising


With All Canneries Operating
Melon Crop Most Promising
Bearing out the prediction for
bumper fruit year, statistics assem-
bled by the freight traffic department
of the Pennsylvania Railroad for the
present season, when compared with
last year, show that Delaware is grad
ually returning to its place among the
leading fruit raising sections of the
country. The business up to and in
cluding last week, says the Delmarvia
Star of Wilmington, shows an increase
ranging from 25 to many hundred per
cent, the greatest increase being on
apples and peaches, the crop of which
was practically nil last season. The
! strawberry season was a good one in
the state, and the blackberry and
raspberry shipments are now on,
with huckleberries soon to reach their
peak. On Friday, which amounts to
practically the last shipping day for
the week, the markets of course being
closed on Sundays, there were 1901
quarts of berries shipped north. For
this year up to and including Fridays
shipments the total consignment of
berries from Delaware had reached
11,375,545 quarts. Before the end of
the season this total may be increased
by several million quarts. Up to this
time last year the total shipments
were 9,101 ,S49 quarts while the total
for the season was 9,190,479 quarts.
But the strawberry crop is by no
means where it ought to be. In 1915
1917, before this country became busy
with the war, and when help was plen-
tiful, one town in Sussex county, Sci
byville, the home of former Governor
John G.. Townsend, Jr., was the heav-
lest strawberry shipping center in the
United States. The shipments from
the state in 1916 totalled twenty-one
million quarts of berries. This grad
5 ually decreased,u until in 1920, the ship
ment of berries had fallen off to fOul
million quarts. Last year the berry
5 acreage began to grow again and thi;
= was increased this year, and according
: to plans of farmers, the crop mex
( year will be at least 60 per cent heav
: ier than the present season and thu
e totals for 1923, if there are no disas
: trous cold spells to kill the early yield
: ought to produce crop more clOsel!
: to normal than any time for the las
:. five years.
y Apples Start Earlier Than Usual
. The apple shipping season began OF
. Thursday, which is about ten day
: earlier than common. On Friday ther
. were 1886 baskets or 10 carloads o
q apples consigned to northern point:
. From all indications the crop this yea
- will be at least 500 per cent increas
a over last year when it amounted
:, little. During the entire season Q
= 1921 there were but 14,442 basket
: shipped whereas in the first few ship
70 ments last week the total includin
i Friday shipments was 40,505 basket
Ie Potatoes, both white and sweet, wi
70 return heavier yields this summer t
l, Delaware farmers than for man
n years. dllOIS SOlhS 4Oi
!, ward to care for the larger shipment
- The outlook for cantaloupes and wa
> ermelOns, according to data whiC
Traffic Agent Stein of the Pennsy
vania Railroad has assembled, show
that the melon crop is speedily II
P" turning to normal and this year wi
Is show big percentages of increase ov'
IN last year.
:, Tomatoes and Peaches Promise Gre
S. Although the growers of tOmato'
IN held off for a long time last wint'
ne and early spring, refusing to NAL
adj contracts to raise tomatoes for Il
nd canneries, it is now stated that pra
or tically all of the canneries that ha'
d. been accustomed to canning tomato
he will be operated this season. The
of may be some few houses that will n
in operate, but this will not be due e
NJ tirely to absence of tomatoes. II
.st crop of peaches, which used to be o.
of of the largest in Delaware, will she
pn a slight return to the old times tn
of year. 1t is anticipated that there W
N. be at least 300 carloads of peach
of moved this summer.
Dr.