Page 12 



BETTER FRUIT 



September, 1919 



BETTER FRUIT 



An Illustrated Magazine Devoted to the Interests 



of Modern I'niit Growing and Marketing. 



Published Monthly 



by 



Better Fruit Publishing Company 



703 Oregonian Building 

 PORTLAND, OREGOiN 



Marketing the 1919 Apple Crop. 



The llll'J harrel apple crop is now 

 estimated at 12,850,000 barrels, or 

 equivalent to about 38,500,000 boxes. 

 The box apple crop is estimated at 

 30,675,000 boxes. Of this estimate, 

 Washington, Oregon, and Idaho, in the 

 order named, are expected to produce 

 23,000,000 boxes. California, Colo- 

 rado, Utah, Montana, Arizona, and 

 New Mexico will largely produce the 

 remaining 7,675,000 boxes of apples. 



Due to light production in the East 

 and heavy and increasing production 

 in the West, boxed apples are the big 

 factor in the apple market for the 

 first time in the history of the indus- 

 try. The successful moving and mar- 

 keting of this big crop of Pacific 

 Northwest apples is. therefore, a mat- 

 ter for serious consideration. .\t the 

 present time the prospects for a wide 

 distribution of apples in the domestic 

 trade, at very attractive prices, are 

 bright. A light crop in the East wilh 

 high prices for barreled stock should 

 have the effect of creating a greater 

 demand for box apples at more than 

 satisfactory figures. In the export 

 trade, particularly in England, how- 

 ever, there is considerable uncertainty. 

 This is due to food control by the 

 English government, labor troubles 

 abroad, depreciation in foreign ex- 

 change and lack of information as 

 to how much space can be obtained 

 on ships for export shipments. The 

 possibility of increased transportation 

 charges and a railroad strike are also 

 factors that must be considered in the 

 export as well as the home trade. 



Should the foreign and labor situ- 

 ations be cleared up and the selling 

 agencies which are handling the 

 Western domestic trade make arrange- 

 ments for a wide distribution, the Pa- 

 cific Northwest should have the most 

 successful year it has ever experienced 

 in the apple industry. If not, as (he 

 season advances, growers or owners 

 of crops who have not sold will do 

 well to watch the marketing situation 

 closeh. The situation is not one of 

 too many apples, but with a restricted 

 export trade, a case of properly dis- 

 tributing almost one-half of the apple 

 crop of the United States over a con- 

 sumption area that is from 2,000 to 

 3,000 miles away from the prothiction 

 points. 



Plant for the Future. 

 Growers who expect to plant addi- 

 tional acreage to apples, or those who 

 are contemplating planting a new or- 

 chard this fall, will act with wisdom 

 if they will look into the matter of 

 selecting varieties that are especially 



adapted lo the districts in which they 

 are to be grown. In considering this 

 point they should obtain all the infor- 

 mation possible as to the varieties that 

 bring the best price, produce the best 

 average yield and for which there is 

 liable to be the largest demand in fu- 

 ture. This advice applies to pears as 

 well as apples and the matter of polli- 

 nation must also be considered in both 

 cases. Before stock is purchased for 

 planting, the number of poUenizers 

 that are necessary for any particular 

 variety should be provided for. The 

 importance of planting under this 

 method is fully set forth elsewhere in 

 this number of Better Fruit. The se- 

 lection of stock is also very important 

 and should be gone into carefully. 

 Plant for the future. 



i 



How You Can Get 



Better Fruit's 



Apple Packing Chart 



Better Fruit's apple packing chart as 

 it appears in this number, but printed 

 on cardboard so that it can be hung in 

 the packing house, will be mailed to any- 

 one desiring it on the following terms: 



One card FREE with a new sub- 

 scription to Better Fruit. 

 One card without subscription ... 10c 

 Twelvecards without subscription,$l. 00 



For quantity prices write us. 



Better Fruit Publishing Co. 



703 Oregonian Building 



Portland, Oregon 



I 



J 



The New Oregon Association. 

 During the past month the Oregon 

 Growers' Cooperative Association has 

 made rapid strides. It now includes 

 in its membership the majority of the 

 Willamette Valley apple growers as 

 well as a large proportion of the prune 

 and walnut growers, and, as R. C. 

 Paulus, general manager of the new 

 organization, says, "It is winning its 

 place in the sun." The policy that the 

 organization managers of the associa- 

 tion have adopted in presenting all the 

 facts to the growers and in announc- 

 ing that it is not the intention of the 

 association to enter into conflict with 

 the fruit industries already in the field 

 where it is possible to co-operate with 

 them, is winning for the new organiza- 

 tion many supporters. It is felt that 

 this is the true spirit of "Oregoniza- 

 tion" of the state's fruit products, as 

 proposed by Mr. Paulus, Mr. Hunt, Mr. 

 Holt, Mr. Lewis, Mr. Langner and the 

 others associated in the work of or- 

 ganizing the association. 



Saving Labor. 

 The saving of labor is becoming 

 more and more necessary to the or- 

 chardist, and those who have not al- 

 ready done so must look to putting by 

 enough from their profits to secure 

 equipment that will reduce this cost. 



With wages, freight rates, box mate- 

 rials, paper and other items that go 

 into the expense column in producing 

 apples at a high level, labor saving de- 

 vices i)resent themselves as the great- 

 est factor in reducing the cost of pro- 

 duction. The using of modern orchard 

 eciuipment is no longer confined to 

 any particular section of the United 

 States. It is rapidly being adopted in 

 the barrel apple raising districts of 

 the East and South as well as the 

 Northwest, and this year California is 

 taking it up on a wider scale than ever 

 before. California has this year pur- 

 chased a larger number of apple grad- 

 ers than in any one year in its history. 

 Virginia is going to grade its apples 

 more closely and even New York and 

 Missouri, where apples are almost en- 

 tirely packed in barrels, are establish- 

 ing a more uniform and better grade 

 through using apple sizers. All of 

 these districts are adopting other effi- 

 cient labor saving devices looking to a 

 better grade and lower cost of produc- 

 tion. Growers in the Northwest can 

 not, therefore, lag behind. In fact, 

 the\- should be in advance of the situ- 

 ation and benefit accordingly. 



By-Products and Drying Plants. 



A healthy condition for the future 

 of the fruit industry is evidenced by 

 the erection in all the sections of the 

 Pacific Northwest of by-product and 

 drying plants. These establishments 

 are creating a big demand for both 

 sound and imperfect fruit, the output 

 of which reaches a wider and an en- 

 tirely difTerent market than the fresh. 

 This demand, once created, should re- 

 main stable and call for an immense 

 tonnage of cull fruit which has here- 

 tofore been wasted, or for sound fruit 

 for which there was no market be- 

 cause it was too perishable to be 

 shipped fresh. The psychological time 

 to make this market for the superior 

 fruit products of the Northwest is now, 

 while the demand is on, and it is to 

 be noted with satisfaction that pro- 

 gressive fruitmen are not slow in 

 taking advantage of the opportunity. 



Prohibition, bringing with it a na- 

 tional desire for fruit juice drinks, 

 coupled with extensive advertising, is 

 another factor that is building up a 

 demand for Northwest small fruits 

 that are adapted to this purpose, on a 

 big scale. 



Editorial Comment. 

 "By their fruits ye shall know them." 

 With the largest apple crop in its his- 

 tory moving out of the Northwest this 

 year the fruit of this section should be 

 more widely distributed and better 

 known than ever before. 



From present indications 1920 will 

 set a record as a mortgage lifter for 

 the fruitgrower. 



Don't forget to take measures against 

 that last worm crop. It's not the early 

 worm to look for this year, but the late 

 one. 



