Appendix. 241 



It was an inspiring sight that could be witnessed at the Salem cannery 

 for six weeks this spring, to see a continuous stream of wagons drive up 

 and unload berries. Two-horse wagons, one-horse wagons, buggies, dog 

 carts, carrying from two crates to a ton of berries, for which three cents 

 a pound was paid. The cannery paid as high as $300 a day for straw- 

 berries, and the money was distributed to a larger number of people than 

 from any other one crop. 



One cent a box is paid for picking, thus netting the grower two cents 

 a pound. As from nine thousand to fifteen thousand plants are grown 

 to the acre, and the yield of one quart to the plant is easily maintained, 

 it is possible to figure out from $150 to $300 an acre for strawberries at the 

 cannery. Stemming and grading the fruit at the cannery costs about one 

 cent per pound. 



But the cannery is not the only market for the crop. There is the home 

 market if you are near a town and the shipping market that is always 

 open and frequently more profitable than the near-by retail market or 

 cannery. 



A berry can be found adapted to almost any soil, to level or hill land, 

 clay, gravel, or sandy loam, that has the qualities for a successful cannery, 

 home market, or shipping berry. 



In Western Oregon there is no trouble to grow large strawberries. The 

 difficulty is rather to get varieties that are not too large — berries of 

 medium size, that average well, are of regular shape, either round, or 

 conical pointed fruit that look well in the box ready for the retailer. 

 Avoid growing large and unshapen fruit. We should not be compelled 

 to make two bites of a strawberry. 



It is important to grow a variety that does not run out small after the 

 first picking. That is the trouble with a great deal of the old Wilson 

 stock — especially if it has been poorly cultivated, or has been allowed to 

 get too many runners, or a dry spell of weather comes on — it suddenly 

 tapers off to small unmarketable fruit. There is no better all-around 

 berry than the old Wilson at its best, but some kinds hold up better in size. 



For the home market grow a showy berry, ^bove medium size — there 

 are many good varieties like the Tennessee, Magoon, Saunders, Crescent. 

 Jessie, Gaudy and others. The berry for the near-by retail market may 

 be mild in flavor, white meated, unfit for canning or shipment, and yet 

 be very profitable if it has a bright red glossy appearance, because in the 

 stores and for hotels and boarding houses the demand goes mostly on 

 showy qualities. 



For shipment fresh an entirely different proposition is involved. A 

 berry may be a perfect success for the home market and endure hauling 

 several miles, and be entirely unfit for the express car or refrigerator for 

 long-distance shipment. A shipping berry should be solid, have a good 

 skin and fine texture, be of medium size, of roundish, pointed shape, and 

 ripen several days after picking. 



Clark's seedling, as grown at Hood River under irrigation and a crisp 



16 



