Page 24 



BETTER FRUIT 



August 



1425-24 



MORTMWESTERN BAMK 8LDG. 



PORTLAND. OREGON. 



E.5HELLEY MORGAN 



NORTHWESTERN '' 



APPLES PEARS ORANGES 



For European Distribution 



Boxed Apples and Pears a Specialty 



GERALD DA COSTA 



100 & 101, Long Acre, Covent Garden, Lofidon, W. C. 2, England 



Cables: "Geracost, London." Codes: A. B. C. Sth Edition and Private 



Shipping Agents: Lunham & Moore, Produce Exchange, New Yorit 



THE GOLDEN GATE WEED CUTTER 



Greatest Weed Cutter on the Market Today 



Cuts seven feet or lees, weighs 230 pounds and is all made of 

 steel. The Golden Gate Weed Cutter Is the greatest of Us kind 

 on the market. For workmanship, simplicity and durability it 

 cannot be excelled, aa It does Its work to perfection. Those 

 who are using It say that no money could buy It if they could 

 not get another. It not only cuts all kinds of weeds, but culti- 

 vates the ground as well. One user said that it has saved him 

 $200.00, as he did not have to plow after using. 



Write for free descriptive circular and list of testimonials from 

 those who have purchased machines and praise it in every way. 



Manufactured by C. C. SIGURD 

 Capital Ave. and McKee Road San Joso, Cal. 



EWBALTESAND 

 COMPANY 



Printers ♦ Binders 



Unexcelled facilities for the production of Catalogues, Book- 

 lets, Stationery, Posters and Advertising Matter. Write us 

 for prices and specifications. Out-of-town orders executed 

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CORNER FIRST AND OAK STREETS 

 PORTLAND, OREGON 



can be clone is to protect the young trees 

 from it. If possible form the head of 

 tlu' tree so that none of the main limbs 

 will iiave to be cut olT in later years as 

 the head becomes thick. The wounds of 

 course can be protected by a coat of 

 paini, wax or asphalt until it heals over. 

 This application will likely need be 

 followed by another during the summer 

 to prevent the spores from gaining en- 

 trance through the cracks in the cuts. 

 The reason why the older orchard is in 

 a fair state of health while the 25-year- 

 old tract is dying is due to the method 

 of pruning, or rather of not pruning, 

 practiced in the early days of prune 

 growing. None of the main or large 

 limbs have ever been removed from the 

 43-year-old orchard, while the other 

 has been pruned without regard to 

 heart rot. 



The grower who religiously prunes, 

 sprays and cultivates in the most ap- 

 proved orthodox manner, aside from 

 the facts of the presence of heart rot 

 and poor location, may still fall far 

 short of maximum crops year by year. 

 His trouble is apt to be due to moisture 

 content or fertility or to both, because a 

 tree that is not receiving proper nour- 

 ishment cannot function at its best. 

 This is clear to anyone acquainted with 

 the principles of Plant Physiology. As 

 the years go by, the fertility and moist- 

 ure holding content should logically be 

 improved and not allowed to decrease, 

 because as the trees become larger they 

 naturally become a greater strain on 

 the soil. Roots of a 7-year-old Italian 

 tree big around as a lead pencil have 

 been dug up 18 feet from the trunk. 

 The feeding area is greater than gener- 

 ally known and to produce regular 

 crops of 2 tons dried this balance must 

 be maintained. Cover cropping is the 

 cheapest fertilizer and soil improver 

 that we have, but unfortunately the 

 vetches cannot be made to grow every 

 year in the Northwest. Where acces- 

 sible, manures are very valuable. Mr. 

 Russel, of Washougal, in rejuvenating 

 an old prune orchard by applying 10 

 tons of sheep manure to the acre 

 for three years, succeeded in making 

 the trees net $300 an acre. Some 

 growers in Douglas county are irrigat- 

 ing this year and the results will be 

 watched with interest, because there is 

 a suspicion that Western Oregon in re- 

 ality is a semi-arid district, at least the 

 last two seasons warrant that conclu- 

 sion. Others are experimenting with 

 nitrate of soda. 



The fact that prune culture is not 

 considered as high grade a form of 

 Horticulture as apple, pear or citrus 

 culture is due largely to the nature of 

 its development in the Northwest. When 

 Seth Lewelling, in 1859, near Milwaukie 

 planted 5 acres to Italian prunes, he in- 

 tended to supply the California markets 

 which were at that time paying fabu- 

 lous prices for fresh and dried fruits. 

 Today, or before the war, we were 

 shipping prunes to all of the main mar- 

 kets of the world from Moscow to 

 Buenos Aires. Commercial plantings 

 began in Oregon in the early 70s, after 

 the excellence of the fruit in Lewell- 

 ing's orchard became known for its 



WHEN WRITING ADVERTISERS MENTION BETTER FRUIT 



