266 STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



at the depot to 2c. per basket, but it could not be done with inexperienced 

 help. One hundred baskets is a good day's work for a packer, and one 

 man can cover for about five packers. To give the figures for the six 

 years: The land occupied was 1 3-5 acres; total cost the first year was 

 $135.75; the second year increased the cost to $156.75; the third year the 

 crop of grapes amounted to 1,800 lbs. and netted only $25.60. However, this 

 paid expenses and $1 over, the reason being that very little work was put on 

 the vineyard; other and better paying fruit demanded attention. The 

 fourth year, on account of wiring, the expense was $63.14, but the net 

 sales of grapes amounted to $186.42, leaving a profit of $123.28. The yield 

 was 12,048 lbs. The fifth year a cold rain storm mixed with snow came 

 the 30th of May, when the vines were in blossom and blighted the crop. 

 The yield was only 4,575 lbs., but they sold for $110.55, leaving a profit 

 over expenses of $41.71. The sixth year (1890) the expense of pruning, cul- 

 tivating, hoeing, etc., was $30.34. It cost $75 to market the crop, and the 

 baskets, 2,709, cost $94.82; 1,630 lbs. were sold by weight to home con- 

 sumers, which if packed would have made a total crop of 2,912 baskets 

 from 1,000 vines. The entire expenses for the year were $200.16; receipts, 

 $655.92; net $455.76 — about 250 per cent on the investment. Who wants 

 to go to California? 



Nearly every variety of grape requires difPerent treatment either in 

 pruning, distance apart, or in richness of soil. Moore's Early requires 

 a rich soil, and as yet I have not been able to make it produce paying 

 crops. The cutworm, steel beetle, thrip, and rose chafer prefer Moore's 

 to Concord, and I have sometimes thought that might be the trouble, but 

 aside from this they make a poor growth. Delawares need plenty of 

 room, notwithstanding they are slow growers. The past season vines set 

 6x8 feet produced 8 lbs. per vine; 8x8, 9 lbs. per vine; and a' row of 40 

 vines, 8 feet apart and 20 feet from the next row produced 19 lbs. per 

 vine. Concords at the latter distance produced a less number of pounds, 

 but ripened their crop so the vines were cleaned at the first picking. Of 

 the Niagara I have had but little experience ; 100 vines set two years ago, 

 bore only 15 lbs. of grapes this year. I have been unable to keep them in 

 good condition, while Empire State, picked at the same time, is in 

 good condition now. 



It is often, stated that grapes pay at two cents per lb. The average net 

 price received for Concords in 1886 and 1887 was only 1 7-lOc. per lb., 

 picking and packing to come out of this. In '88 it was 1 8-lOc. per lb., in 

 '89, 2 2-lOc.; in '90, 2 4-lOc.; in '85, 2 6-lOc.; in '82, 2 9-lOc.; in '84, 3c.; in 

 '83, 3 6-lOc. per lb. 



The net price received for Delawares was in '82, 7c.; in '83, 6c ; in '84, 

 6|c.; in '85, 5 9-lOc.; in '86, 4^c.; in '87, 4c.; in '88, 5c.; in '89, 4c.; in '90, 

 4 1-lOc. per lb. 



On account of the scarcity of other fruit this season, grapes have sold 

 well considering the enormous crop all over the country. At Lawton local 

 buyers came in and the bidding was sharp, resulting in very little fruit 

 going to Chicago on commission. Grapes shipped to Chicago Sept. 10 

 and 11 netted 17c. per basket; 12th, 18c.; 13th, 20c. Sept. 15tli I received 

 a telegram from Chicago: "Grapes selling for 26c.; ship all you can." 26c. 

 in Chicago would net 20c. at Lawton, but I sold for 23c. at Lawton, and 

 the price held at 22c. to 24c. to the end of the season. At the same time 

 the Chicago quotations were all the way from 20c. to 27c. 



What the future of grape-growing will be with its rapidly increasing 



