64 THE MONTHLY BULLETIN". 



to the local demand. One concern in Ohio uses over 600 tons of Cali- 

 fornia dried figs for the manufacture of its pastry products. The 

 American Biscuit Company is a large user. I know of one shipment of 

 eight carloads to its factory. These establishments use mostly small 

 figs and the refuse from the packing houses. The purchasing agent 

 in San Francisco for the Harvey eating houses and the newsboys' trade 

 on the Santa Fe Railway system two years ago purchased from a leading 

 packer in Fresno, 80,000 half pound packages of Smyrna figs, last year 

 100,000 packages, and has just closed a contract for 120,000 packages 

 for this season. This party handles no other figs than California grown 

 Smyrna, until the supply is exhausted. 



BERRIES AS AN INTERCROP IN YOUNG ORCHARDS. 



By M. J. MoNiz,* Sebastopol, Cal. 



The outstanding feature of the business of fruit growing is the await- 

 ing the day when the orchard, by its first box of fruit, will begin to pay 

 dividends on the primary investment. Up to that time, to use a com- 

 mon expression, it is a question of everything going out and nothing 

 coming in. One of the big problems of the fruit grower is economical 

 orchard management and meeting current expenses. In few eases 

 do we find the owners of fruit land placed in such a position financially 

 as to be able to hire their work done and wait with folded arms until 

 the harvest day. But we do find many a grower devising ways and 

 means of meeting expenses by using some other form of agriculture on 

 the farm. It is not my intention to discuss at too great a length the 

 advantage of intercropping with berries, but will advocate the using of 

 this method in most cases; while there are men who financially don't 

 need to intercrop, yet there are many others who must do so, in order 

 to meet the expenses that confront them soon after the land is planted 

 out, and besides leaving them a profit which they would not have real- 

 ized if they had not intercropped at all. 



Intercropping with berries is an important proposition, and it puts 

 another iron in the fire which must be handled at the proper time, and 

 we must never allow one or the other to be neglected. 



The next consideration of the fruit grower is to find the best outlet 

 for his perishable product. Do not wait until the crop is ready to 

 harvest and then hunt up the market. As soon as the grower is being 

 confronted with these difficulties, he should at once begin to look into 

 the advantages that are obtained by cooperation, and this should at 

 once be practical. He should also provide for the marketing in carload 

 lots. 



Berry growing in the orchard or anywhere on the farm means a great 

 deal of detail work, and it requires proper management; sometimes 

 the orchard details come in at a time when the berry crop is ready for 

 harvest, and should the grower be far from being a first-class orchardist, 

 he must manage to secure the best of help available ; in fact, this ought 

 to be done at all times in order to proceed with the harvesting of his crop 

 with as little delay as possible. 



♦Address before the State Fruit Growers' Convention, Davis, California, June 1 

 to 6, 1914. 



