82 STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



ESSENTIALS IN PEACH rRODUCTION. 



GENERAL REQUIREMENTS FOR SUCCESSFUL PEACH PRODUCTION. 

 BY F. M. BARDEN AND H. J. EUSTACE. 



Before anyone engages in commercial frnit growing, he should not 

 only make a careful survey of the possibilities from the financial stand 

 point, but also consider his personal desires and inclinations to grow 

 fruit. With these points in view, it is hoped that this chapter may be 

 of some value, to the prospective peach grower. 



Attitude toioard Fruit Growing. — Fruit growing in Michigan is pass- 

 ing through a great awakening. From the southern to the northern part 

 of the lower peninsula, old orchard ground is being refitted, new land 

 is being cleared, and most of the desirable sites now cleared, are being 

 sought after. The purpose of all of this activity is to set out fruit 

 trees. Apple trees are being planted more than any other kinds of 

 fruit, and peaches are a close second. Since they are not adapted to 

 so wide a range of conditions as the apple, there is some danger that 

 peach orchards may be set where the local conditions are not altogether 

 favorable. 



It is needless to state that the cause of this activity is due almost en- 

 tirely to the profits many of the Michigan growers have been realizing 

 from their crops in the past few years. An individual's attitude toward 

 a business is probably too often governed by the prospects of the money 

 to be gained in its pursuit. The thought of personal fitness is very 

 frequently kept in the background until the condition of the business 

 requires that it be exercised. The way in which thousands of persons 

 have rushed into peach growing in Michigan at various times in the 

 past half century, may be well compared to the similar rushes that 

 multitudes have made into newly discovered gold fields. The results 

 have been quite identical. No one should start commercial fruit grow- 

 ing with the idea that money is to be easily gathered from an orchard. 

 Correct principles rightly followed will bring results; but it requires 

 a genuine love for the business that knows no faltering, to live up to 

 the principles. The personal equation is of great importance in the 

 work. Discouragements are sure to come and the grower must have 

 a vision, faith, and enthusiasm that will force him onward. His per- 

 sonal supervision is generally necessary, and he must not shrink from 

 taking an active part in any of the operations. 



Because of her natural conditions, Michigan has possibilities for fruit 

 growing that are not exceeded by any of the states, and equaled by few, 

 if any. These conditions consist of: sites, soils, temperatures, trans- 

 portation facilities by water and rail, and a short distance from some 

 of the largest markets in this country. If these advantages are prop- 

 erly combined and used, coupled with hard work and the application of 

 correct fundamental principles, success is sure to follow. 



Region. — The western coast of Michigan has been called ''The Peach 

 Belt/' due to the temperature modifying effects of Lake Michigan, for 



