370 THE MONTHLY BULLETIN. 



COST OF DEVELOPING A TWENTY ACRE ORCHARD OF PEARS AND 

 APPLES, ON GOOD FOOTHILL SOIL IN BUTTE COUNTY. 



(Orchard of Mr. E. Meriam, Paradise.) 



The land when purchased was rough land. Nearly the entire work 

 was done by hired men and teams, day work, often not immediately 

 superintended. The wages were usually $2 for nine hours labor, and 

 $4 for man and team. Not much personal time was given to the work, 

 so no account was kept of it. However, it would be fair to add 10 per 

 cent to the cost for personal labor. (If any one should use these figures 

 as a basis for his own operation, if he intends to do his own work, he 

 should deduct 10 per cent because an owner usually works more 

 intelligently and harder than an employee.) 



The land was covered as follows : Ten acres in native forest of fairly 

 heavy growth oak, pine and manzanita, and ten acres in stumps and 

 logs with a second growth manzanita, which required mattocks to remove. 

 The removal of rocks was not an important item of expense, possibly 

 $50. In the spring of 1913, as many men were employed as possible 

 to clean the land quickly, and especially to cut the marketable wood, 

 with the expectation that the wood would pay in large part for the 

 clearing. This worked out very satisfactorily. 



By June, 1914, the rough land was sufficiently cleared to permit plow 

 ing half of it and the setting of 1,000 trees. The next year, in January, 

 1915, the remainder of the 20 acres was planted. There are now on the 

 place 850 pear trees, 850 apples and 100 border trees of cherry and 

 walnut. These trees are vigorous and of good size for their age. The 

 items of expense which remain until trees come into bearing consist of 

 cultivation and plowing. For this $200 a year will undoubtedly be 

 sufficient. The actual expenditures to date (March, 1913 — August, 

 1916), are as follows: 



Cost of land at $50 per acre $1,000 00 



Blasting powder $49 90 



Tools for clearing 9 60 



Wood cutting and clearing 717 30 



Wood hauling to market 371 90 



Incidentals in clearing 2 60 



1,151 30 



$2,151 30 

 Planting the orchard : 



Rabbitproof fence and construction . , $121 15 



Orchard tools 15 20 



Cost of trees (best of their kind) 218 35 



Tree planting (entire process) 261 45 



016 15 



Care of orchard : 



Plowing and cultivating $211 50 



Lime for whitewash, etc 3 00 



Pruning (largely done by self) 1 5 75 



220 25 



Total cost including land $3,987 70 



Received for wood 90() 10 



Net expense, exclusive of personal service $3,081 00 



