No. 6. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 322 



REPORT OF THE POMOLOGIST. 



Bv Cyki'S T. Fox, lieadino. Pa. 



As the Pomologist of jour honorable body, it becomes incumbent 

 upon me to give the result of observations in regard to the fruit 

 crop of 1902 in Pennsylvania, with some thoughts on the general 

 subject of fruit culture. 



APPLES. 



First, as to the apple crop. Of all fruits the apple is the most im- 

 portant, and that this is so is evidenced by the fact that the acreage 

 devoted to apples in this State is greater than that of all other 

 fruits combined. Pennsylvania ranks as the third apple-producing 

 state of the Union, being only excelled by New York and Ohio. 

 Missouri is credited with having the largest number of trees, but 

 stands sixth in the matter of production. The apple crop of Penn- 

 sylvania in 1902 amounted to 35,000,000 bushels, worth more than 

 125,000,000. 



These figures are somewhat less than those of the previous year, 

 when the crop amounted to 38,000,000 bushels, while in 1900, when 

 the yield was exceptionally large, there were 40,000,000 bushels. Es- 

 timating the yield in this State last year at three and one-half bush- 

 els per tree, there are 10,000,000 apple bearing trees in Pennsylvania. 

 New York is credited with having 15,000,000 trees, and Missouri 

 with having no less than 20,000,000. 



That the apple is a northern fruit, requiring a cold climate, is 

 apparent by the larger yield of the orchards of New York and 

 Canada. New York, having three-fourths as many trees as Mis- 

 souri, had as large a crop last year as the states of Missouri, Kan- 

 sas, Illinois and Arkansas combined. The Province of Ontario, 

 Canada, having about one-half as many trees as New York, had a 

 crop of 50,000,000 bushels of apples in 1902, as against New York's 

 52,000,000. The average per tree in Ontario was seven bushels. 

 These figures are given for purposes of comparison. If as much at- 

 tention would be given in Pennsylvania to the apple crop as is given 

 in Western New York, where five counties produced one-fourth of 

 the crop grown in the Empire State, it would easily stand at the 

 head of the apple-producing states of the Union. 



No other state furnishes apples of finer quality; and yet there are 

 belts stretching across the State particularly adapted to this crop, 

 having the requisite soil and exposure, where but little interest 

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