INDIANA HORTICULTUEAL SOCIETY. 37T 



A Member: What is the outlook for the planting of commercial apple 

 orchards in Indiana? 



Mr. Keach: I know of two pieces of land, of 200 acres each, 

 which are being put out as commercial orchards — one this side of Vin- 

 cennes, the other this side of Bedford, Ind. The people who purchased 

 this land are not farmers, but they are men who are interested in the 

 apple business, and see in the climate, in the soil and in the general 

 situation, a good investment for capital. They are thoroughly practical, 

 and will plant an orchard for its commercial value, not because of any 

 question of preference for one variety over another, or because this va- 

 riety happens to have a little better flavor, or something of that kind, 

 but it is a question of money making. In all probability these pieces of 

 land will be planted largely to Ben Davis, Winesap, perhaps some York 

 Imperial, Jonathan, a few Rome Beauties, but I think the varieties will 

 run largely to Ben Davis, Winesap and Grimes Golden. There are a 

 number of different varieties that are raised in other States that I be- 

 lieve Avould bring good results in Indiana, and I base my opinion on that 

 from what I have seen here and there. I have occasionally run across 

 a tree of York Imperial in this State, and I found the product very su- 

 perior to product of Virginia; they raise largely York Imperial. I think 

 experimenting in new varieties is a field open and worthy of considera- 

 tion, but my advice in planting an orchard for market is, stick close 

 enough to your principal varieties to have something to sell. In other 

 words, if j'ou have 500 barrels of apples to sell, you should not have 150 

 different varieties and but three or four barrels of each variety, confine 

 yourself to a few varieties and make it an object to have purchasers 

 hunt your orchard. Those orchards are in demand. There is today in 

 existence what is known as the National Apple Shippers' Association, 

 composed of the principal dealers throughout the United States (two 

 members of this association are in Indianapolis), and made up of heavy 

 dealers all over the Union. They devote some time and attention to 

 looking up statistics; not only that, but hunting up good orchards, what 

 they consider good orchards, are those that run pretty well to straight 

 varieties. An orchard of that kind is more valuable to them, and they 

 will pay more per barrel than for small orchards, and a saving in ex- 

 pense is material. A fine block of fruit, representing 1,000 to 2,500 

 barrels, is of sufficient importance to buyers to pay its full value and to 

 put a force of men there to take care of it, but in small, five, ten, twenty 

 and fifty barrel orchards the fruit must be bought low, as expenses are 

 too high to justify paying a very high price. 



This organization of the apple shippers has done some very good work 

 in the line of aiding horticultural societies. They are in very close touch 

 with them in Illinois, Missouri, New York— the large apple growing 

 States— but little consideration has been given to Indiana, as there are 

 so few good orchards. This season, orchards cultivated and properly 



