No. 6. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 537 



APPLES. 



Notwillistandiiij;- llicse adverse eoiuiilioiis, there was a fair crop 

 of apples tbrou^lioiit. the State, especially iu the counties border- 

 ing on the New York line, where, in fact, the yield was large. In 

 other sections the crop was below the average. A severe storm 

 in the earlj- part of October was very destructive just at the time 

 when winter varieties of apples were to be picked, and there was a 

 heavy loss in consequence. Some growers in Pennsylvania, having 

 regular customers for apples, were compelled to go to northern 

 Pennsylvania to obtain supplies of fruit. 



PEARS. 



The season was favorable for pears in most parts of the State, 

 especiallj' for the Kiefler, Avhich seems to have all seasons as its 

 own. Every grower had Kieffer pears, but the price realized was 

 so small as to scarcely pay for the picking. The fall varieties, such 

 as the Bartlett and Seckel, did not do as well as usual. It appeared 

 to be an off-season for the Bartlett, and the pears of this variety 

 which were marketed commanded a good price. Pear trees in a 

 number of sections of the State suffered from blight more than in 

 previous seasons. 



PEACHES. 



There were very few peaches. The same conditions which inter- 

 fered with the success of the apple crop, injured the peach crop, viz: 

 An early starting of the buds and then a succession of rain storms 

 just as the trees were in bloom. One grower, for instance, who in 

 the previous year had 10,000 baskets of peaches, did not have over 

 200 baskets to send to market in the season of 1903. The outlook 

 for 1904 is very uncertain. The severe cold experienced this winter, 

 especially during this month, when the temperature was at different 

 times under ten degrees below zero, makes the problem very un- 

 certain. 



PLUMS. 



The Japanese varieties of plums seem to be the salvation of the 

 plum crop. Where orchards of the approved Japanese varieties 

 have been planted there have been fair crops and the plums have 

 been marketed at prices which have paid the growers. Not much 

 more can be said in regard to the plum crop, except that sprayings 

 with the Bordeaux mixture have proved quite effectual, 

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