Brownsville herald. [volume] (Brownsville, Tex.) 1910-current, 1928-10-29
I'm OUR
VALLEY

Ras Erickson, grower of near La
fsria. thinks so.
l. Lawler. president Of white 4
Lawler, La Feria, writes to The
Herald of the case.
he says that on October 2 his
iirm bought the entire output OF
Duncan fruit on the Erickson place.
There were three and one-fifth
acres Of Il.
Picking was completed on October
2l.
The number Of boxes totslIed
1855.
The grower was paid as each car
was loaded.
He received q total Of s5.s7s.75
for the product Of the three and
cne-fifth acres.
HOW MANY citrus fruit trees
should be planted to the acre?
Mention in this column of the
plan of Laredo man TO put $50
trees on an acre, as stated in a news
dispatch from there, has aroused in
terest in the subject in the lower
Valley, where the rule is 10 trees
or less.
The other day The Herald printed
letter from Geo. l.. Lochrie, Ray
mcndville, on the subject.
p. A. Morgan of Harlingen, also
writes his views on the subject. In
letter TO The Herald, he says:
The item in your paper of oe-
tcber 25, under the heading Would
Plant Fewer Trees. has started IN
amount Of talk and thinking along
this line, and properly so. as il is a
very valuable subject, If il brings
solution.
GEORGE r. LOCHRIE. Of Ray
mordyille, refers to a gentleman at
Laredo planting grapefruit at the
rate Of $50 per acre, while we in
the Valley plant only 20 as a rule.
and he uochrie) thinks 20 to the
acre is about twice as many as We
will be planting within ten years
from now, or rather about 40 TO the
acre
"Mr. Lochrie says ne has planted
grove in the Edinburg district 35x
5s square feet per acre of land.
This would give 1925 square feet
to the tree.
planting approximately 10 trees
. per acre, or 25x25, gives each tree
only 625 square feet. Compared to
the expected but unknown life Of
grapefruit tree we people in the
Valley are yet infants in knowledge
as to what sire they win grow to
be. owing to the fertility Of our
soil compared to others.
my SUGGESTION is that we stop
checking our paintings in squares.
but plant them 25x40 or some sim
liar shape. Planting them in this
/ manner allows room for cultivation
4 both ways until the trees get larger.
Aiken IL allows cultivation only one
/ssy for later years. For those that
desire more trees per acre they
might plant two rows 25x25 and the
next row 25x40. In this manner
every other row one way will be 40
feet, which would allow plenty
SPACE for future cultivation to some
extent, but hauling and spraying for
many years longer. BY this method
you could get through your grove
with trucks many years longer than
~ planting them in squares.
ANOTHER SUGGESTION for the
ran who wishes to plant as many
trees as nc present: He could use
<pscing OF 2lx30 feet, making $50
square feet per tree, or 50 trees 20
he acre.
There is still another good sug-
restion. which is TO plant twice as
many trees per acres rs you think
YOU will eventually need, and after
\ Won have received the fruit for three
70 five years. cut out every other
tree.
The only dulcfeLCe WOuiu De the
! cost Of the planting. together with
the little extra cost for spraying and
lacking after these trees for the
first few years. Watering, taxes
ard interest on land is no more than
II half planted.
- sThe advantage Of oblong plant
ing Is that in years to come the
vrower would have plenty of room
a least to subsoil each tree on one
side"
THE ELSA NEWS has been an
ncunced.
Hidalyo county's newest news
paper.
q. L. Scoggin is the publisher.
The business men 4 Elsa decided
,hst the Valleys "tailor-made" town
should have its own newspaper. And
,hsv nut II into the field.
Hidalgo county now has eighties
ds;lv and weekly newspapers.
n fell to seventeen recently when
sbs Valley Outlook at Weslnco dis
eoptinued publication.