Page 22 



BETTER FRUIT 



Soil and Climate Big Factors in Berry Growing 



By D. E. Towle, Gresham, Oregon 



THINKING your readers would be 

 interested in learning something of 

 the possibilities of berry farming in 

 Eastern Multnomah County, especially 

 in the territory tributary to Greshani, 

 I concluded to ask you for a little space. 

 If you will glance at the county map 

 you will note Gresham's location, some 

 20 odd miles southeast of the confluence 

 of the Willamette and Columbia rivers 

 and on an air line towards Mt. Hood. 

 It seems that nature believes in special- 

 izing and providing special localities 

 for certain products — to-wit, Hood 

 River spells apples; Southern Califor- 

 nia Sunkist oranges, and Gresham ber- 

 ries. Why? Well, there is a reason 

 and it can be expressed in two words^ 

 soil and climate. 



The soil is different from the average 

 soil of the coast country, being a mix- 

 ture of volcanic ash and Columbia 

 river sand forming a soil that is easily 

 tilled, very fertile and being underlaid 

 with a water-bearing sand, the soil is 

 sub-irrigated and with good cultivation 

 holds an ample supply of moisture to 

 mature the finest quality of strawber- 

 ries, raspberries and loganberries in 

 the driest seasons. There is also an- 

 other peculiar local factor that helps 

 to bring the berries to their high stand- 

 ard of perfection which in time will 

 give them a world reputation for qual- 

 ity. It is that life-giving sea breeze that 

 naturally rolls up the Columbia river 

 during the summer season and spreads 

 out over this favored locality. To con- 

 vince yourself of this, please take an- 

 other look at the map, and knowing as 

 you do that the prevailing summer wind 

 is from the Northwest, please draw a 

 line from the mouth of the Columbia 

 river in a southeast direction and you 

 will be convinced that Gresham's berry 

 territory gets the sea breeze direct. 



I have briefly outlined the reason for 

 our success in berry growing in soil 

 and climate. The third reason is intelli- 

 gence and industry by the farmer and 

 then success is assured. This opinion 

 is based on six years of observation and 

 experience. The quality of the berries, 

 especially raspberries and loganberries, 

 is admitted as being superior by our 

 leading coast canners. The berries all 

 come to full maturity with good culti- 

 vation and this means good yields. The 

 raspberry harvest usually extends over 

 a six weeks' period. So you can see 

 that the development is nearly perfect. 

 The berries all mature, and the last 

 picking yields the largest berries. The 

 best yields I know of are four tons to 

 the acre, three tons is a good crop, two 

 tons fair and less poor. The picking 

 cost takes about one-third, cultivation 

 costs about one-third and at present 

 values this leaves a good rental for the 

 land. The price of land here ranges 

 from $200 to $500 per acre. This price 

 may seem high but good berry lands 

 are worth more. I have no land for 

 sale but have bought some very recently 

 and it is not for sale. 



Berry growing in this territory ap- 

 peals equally to the man with capital 



and to those with litlle means. The 

 unit holding should be not less than 

 five acres and ten acres is ideal for one 

 man to operate and will produce a good 

 living for an average family. Berry 

 farming is not heavy work and is spread 

 out well over the year. Cutting out 

 the old canes and pruning can be done 

 from October 1st to April 1st, and the 

 plowing, cultivating and hoeing during 

 the next three months, then the harvest 

 and a thirty-day vacation season be- 

 fore you start the new berry year. In 

 addition to an acreage of berries we 

 recommend the keeping of a flock of 100 

 or 200 hens, a pig and a cow. The 

 Gresham territory is well developed. 

 We have a large mileage of hard sur- 

 faced roads and the balance of the 

 roads are good the year around. Elec- 

 tricity is available in most of the ter- 

 ritory for light and power purposes 

 at a reasonable price. We also have 

 city gas, telephones and special daily 

 paper deliveries; rural mail delivery, 

 good grade schools, a central Union 

 High school. This is a union of five 

 rural districts with Gresham. We have 

 an enrollment of 225 students and a 

 very efficient staff of instructors. The 

 studies include a course in agriculture, 

 manual training and domestic science. 

 The fact is your child graduating from 

 this school is well qualified to take up 

 any line of work except the profession. 

 We have a jitney service that calls for 

 your child in the morning and returns 

 it safely after school. Nearly all of 

 the different religious denominations 

 are organized in the district. To enum- 

 erate, Presbyterian, Methodist, Free 

 Methodist, Baptist, Evangelical, Luther- 

 an, Catholic and Christian Science, and 

 if you cannot find a church house in 

 these enumerated you are within an 

 hour's ride of the city of Portland in 

 which all sects can find a church home. 

 Gresham has an hourly electric car 

 service to Portland and also an auto jit- 

 ney service. If this is not satisfactory 

 use your own car. It is a beautiful 

 45-minute drive. Being near the city is 

 no mean advantage for our locality, 

 especially from a berry grower's stand- 

 point, as berries must be picked and 

 we look to Portland for the pickers. 

 Berry picking is a school vacation-time 

 job and affords a pleasant and profit- 

 able camping out vacation to the city 

 women and boys and girls. The pick- 

 ers express their delight in the change 

 from the restrictions of city life to the 

 freedom and pure air, sunshine and 

 shade and the chance to commune with 

 nature. Berry picking is not hard work 

 but the work is good exercise. The 

 picker is benefitted mentally by relaxa- 

 tion, physically by the exercise and 

 materially by the cash received. 



So, Mr. Editor, to sum up the outlook 

 for berry growers in the Gresham dis- 

 trict, I think you will agree with me, 

 that the future prospect is really bright 

 as the combination as enumerated is 

 hard to beat. First, suitable soil and 

 climate for production; second, a qual- 

 ity that is par excellance and third, the 



April, ig20 



territory adapted to these products is 

 limited; fourth, being near the city in- 

 sures the harvest help, fifth, we have a 

 State Growers' Association, a State Man- 

 ufacturing Association with the selling 

 end in good hands. Sixth, at least six 

 large going concerns, privately owned, 

 who are in the market for ten times the 

 berry product obtainable. Seventh, 

 national prohibition and a substitute 

 needed without a kick. Eighth, we have 

 a healthy growers' cooperative associa- 

 tion that is ready to help the newcomer 

 and will try to steer him right as to 

 location, methods of culture, etc. 



Now a last word to the prospective 

 berry grower. If you are convinced 

 that what I have written is true and if 

 you are interested and would like to 

 better your circumstances by growing 

 berries or if you are not sure of the 

 truth of these claims made for this ter- 

 ritory, all we ask you to do is to come 

 out and look our locality over and sat- 

 isfy yourself. Personally, I have no 

 special interest in your welfare but I 

 have that common interest in commun- 

 ity development and the helping of my 

 fellowmen that prompts the writing of 

 this article. 



Everything for the Garden 



1920 160-page Catalog Free 

 I4S 147 2!!j St. Portland One 



^> Try This Stump 

 f^. PullerDl?.FREE 



end No Money! 



\Qntt Man ^s»,^j^f satisfied, keep puller. If 



1 Alone H«ndl««^?^Sai "ot pleased, return at 



I Blsge»t stump*!^*^^ our expense. Yaudon't 



r| risk a penny. Foar 



easy ways to pay, 



irstin 



lOne-Man stump Puller 



Weighs less — costs less — yet has 

 nreater speed, etrongth, power. Laatt 

 umoer! S-jiear guarantee againat break- 

 age. OnominoioTi^pullaatubbornatTinipa 

 in few minutes at low coat, dae to won- 

 derful leverafire principle. One man and 

 Horae Power models. Shipment from 

 neareat diatribntlnK point naves time and 

 freiaht. Write for FREE BOOK and 

 Special Agent's Pror-isition-toHn." 



*"*■ KIRSTIN CO.. S50E.Morrl»onSt.. Portland. Or. 



WHEN WRITING ADVERTISERS MENTION BETTER FRUIT 



