2G2 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



if he can get the apple seeds. It ought to be the poor man's oppor- 

 tunity. And why is it not? Perhaps 30U will see the reason when 

 I tell you what an orchardist must expect. 



In the first place he must expect to wait about about fifteen years 

 after setting trees before he gets any great income from them, and 

 all this time he must manure, mulch, and be continually looking 

 after them. He must expect continued warfare with the enemies of 

 fruit trees, must expect to have man}' seasons injurious to them and 

 to the fruit. He must expect that his labors will benefit others 

 after he has passed away. But few persons can expect all this and 

 be willing to take the necessary steps to get up an orchard even if 

 the}' can find nothing else to do. One quite large class of persons 

 are so fearful that the business will be overdone, yankee like, so as 

 to make it unprofitable, that they dare not undertake it. " So many 

 setting out trees," they sa}'. The 3'oung expect to get rich in a 

 quicker way, and older men are scarce who are willing to work with 

 an CA^en chance that others will enjoy the benefit of their labor. 

 Then again not one in ten who do undertake it will be successful — 

 not at least until the}' have a better knowledge of how to do it, and 

 put that knowledge in practice. All the apples that can be raised 

 in this little corner of the United States will hardly effect the market. 

 If they can be raised at a profit on high priced land, that is well 

 adapted to all cultivated crops in other States, then certainly we 

 can do so on our cheap but good orchard lands that are not so 

 well adapted to anything else. The time was w'hen for want of 

 trans[)ortation facilities we had only a local market, that all fruit 

 more than was needed at home was almost worthless. Now we 

 have the whole world for a market, and by canning and evaporating 

 it can be kept a long while, or until there comes a scarcity. Thus 

 we are assured of an even price and a sure market. jMaiue cannot 

 raise too many apples, for the market is extending uuicli faster than 

 the orchards. A large number of persons have tried fruit raising 

 and failed. That is, they have tried it so far as to set out the trees, 

 and that was about all. It seems to be a common idea with many 

 that if they put the trees into the ground, they have only to wait a 

 few years without any further effort, when they will have a good 

 orchard. They think, and 1 have heard them say so, that a load 

 of manure put around an apple tree as a top dressing and mulching 

 is wasted ; and even if they are planting where there are large 

 apple trees they will put little or no dressing near them because they 



