26 THE KANSAS CHERRY. 



shipped direct from the orchard under the management of W. R. 

 Geiger, a son. Since the death of her son Mrs. Geiger has herself 

 managed the orchard and directed the cultivation, harvesting, pack- 

 ing and shipping with great success. 



She has trusted help in all departments which she secures year 

 after year. 



Men with long ladders, tin picking buckets and hooks gather the 

 cherries from the trees. The fruit is then taken to a large packing- 

 shed, and young ladies pack carefully in shallow ten-pound boxes 

 with ventilated tops and sides, and a partition across the middle to 

 check any movement. The fruit is all packed in straight rows and 

 layers, and a neatly packed box presents a beautiful appearance when 

 opened. The great fruit wagons stand under the shed, and large 

 loads are taken to the cars. Sometimes more than 1000 pounds of 

 cherries are gathered from a tree in this orchard. 



Cherries generally bring good prices. From four to eight cents 

 per pound is about the range, and the income from a good cherry 

 orchard is often from $500 to $800 and even $1000 per acre, with a 

 good crop and a good market. 



PRODUCTION OF CHERRIES. 



By E. F. Wetmoee, before the East Tennessee Horticultural Society. 



We have observ^ed that nursery catalogues state that the cherry 

 will thrive and bear almost anywhere so long as it is planted upon 

 well-drained land. We note that it makes but little difference where 

 these catalogues are i^ublished; whether north, south, east or west — 

 all are the same. Our opinion is that the cherry may grow almost 

 anywhere, but to produce successful crops of fruit it has its prefer- 

 ence of location and climate. In the extreme north the fruit-buds 

 winter-kill •, while south of the latitude of Tennessee the climate is 

 too warm. Even here in this state we find that in some locations they 

 are not productive. This, we believe, is usually the case where they 

 are planted upon heavy red clay soil. Our observation has been that 

 the cherry, where planted on sandy, loamy soil, especially if somewhat 

 elevated, has proved more productive one year with another than on 

 heavy clay soil. 



I have a little orchard containing 360 trees, some of which have 

 been planted four years, and some three years. I also have a few 

 trees that have been set ten years. We have had cherries every year 

 without a single exception for the past nine years, the quantity in- 

 creasing each year with the growth of the trees, until last year, 1897, 



