GROWTH OF THE FRUIT INDUSTRY IN OREGON IN 



THE LAST DECADE. 



By H. M. Williamson, Secretary of State Board of Horticulture. 



The figures of the United States census of the year 1910 are not all 

 available yet, but the more important items have been published. The 

 following' table shows the population of Oregon ; the number of farms 

 in the State and the amount of production of various crops of the State 

 as shown by the censuses of 1900 and 1910, with the percentages of 

 increase in each case. The crop year covered by the 1900 census was 

 that of 1899, and the crop year covered by the census of 1910 was that 

 of 1909: 



Census Census Per cent 



1900 1910 increase 



Total population 413,536 672,765 62.7 



Whole number of farms 35,837 45,502 27 



Dozens of eggs produced 7,709,970 11,140,624 54.4 



Busheis of all grains grown 23,225,515 26,343,230 13.4 



Pounds of butter produced 10,082,807 14,140,624 40.2 



Tons of hay produced 1,117,400 1,587,796 42.1 



Busheis of potatoes produced 3,761,367 4,822,962 28.2 



Busheis of apples produced 873,980 1,930,926 132 



Busheis of pears produced 112,225 374,620 234 



Busheis of peaches produced 101,190 179,030 77 



Busheis of cherries produced 65,347 181,089 175 



Busheis of plums and prunes produced 359,821 1,747,587 385 



Busheis of apricots produced 1,665 4,618 177 



Busheis of quinces (estimated) 3,000 5,344 



Total busheis of fruit 1,517,228 4,423,214 190 



In the 1900 census the value of all tree fruits are grouped in the 

 published returns. In the 1910 census the values of each of the leading 

 kinds of fruits are given. The value of the apricots and quinces grown 

 in 1909 are not yet available but if we estimate the total value of the 

 4,618 busheis of apricots and 5,344 busheis of quinces grown in 1909 

 at $10,000 then the total value of all the tree fruits grown in Oregon 

 in 1909 was $3,337,717. For the year 1899 the value of all tree fruits 

 grown in Oregon was $906,015. The increase in value for the decade 

 was 268 per cent, as compared with an increase of 190 per cent in the 

 quantity of fruit produced. 



It will be observed that the percentage of increase in the quantity 

 of all tree fruits produced in Oregon was approximately seven times 

 as large as the percentage of increase in the number of farms in the 

 State; four and one-half times as large as the percentage of increase 

 in the production of hay; fifteen times as large as the percentage of 

 increase in the production of grain; and nearly seven times as large as 

 the percentage of increase in the production of potatoes. 



