■rUIRTI-l-.XTll .IXXC.IL MEnTIXG. 57 



AFk. I'kxx: TIh' first crop oi ix>aches 1 raised eight or nine 

 vcars aiid, 1 did not have any trouhle in gettino^ $2.00 or $2.50 

 a basket. You can't get that price now : they won't give it. 

 Even the i)eoi-)le who have got the money won't pay such a 

 price. I don't hesitate to say, tlie price is not anywhere near 

 what it was ten years ago. 



A ^^Iember: Well, there are ten peach trees now where there 

 was one then. 



Mr. Hale : Mr. President, in the matter of figures, our large 

 crop of 1899 netted us $1.56 per half bushel basket, and the 

 price has to-day declined until, in 1902, my average was a little 

 less than 46 cents per basket. This last year was back to the 

 old figure, $1.56, exactly. 



Vice Pres. Hubbard: Let us have more experiences from 

 the growers. Is there anybody going to quit the peach business ? 



Mr. Barxes: Xo sir, I think it is better to plant at the 

 present time than for several years. 



Mr. G. H. Hale : I am not ready to quit. I am going into 

 the business again in two or three years at the old stand. 



]\Ir. J. H. Hale : I think most growers having five hundred 

 trees or so are going to meet with the San Jose scale. They 

 don't know it, but they are going to be driven out of business, 

 and thev wont go back again. Our chairman knows that the 

 small growers, who were the negligent ones when the peach 

 yellows was so prevalent some years ago, failed to appreciate 

 the value of fighting it, and many of them w-ere driven out 

 of business. The San Jose scale is about the same at this time, 

 and I believe that 50. per cent, of the peach trees standing in 

 orchards to-day will never bear a crop. I think 50 per cent, 

 in the State to-day are doomed because of the San Jose scale. 



Mr. Platt : Another thing, wdiere the San Jose scale, in a 

 good many cases, is found in the orchard, before the owner 

 learns how to control it that scale wall control the trees. I think 

 Mr. Hale's point is a good one. 



Vice Pres. Hubbard: The program now calls for reports 

 from growers on the present condition of peach buds. In view 

 of the severe cold we have had this winter, so far, it wall be 

 interesting to learn the condition of the buds in the different 

 sections of our State. 



Xow, let us have a brief report from each peach grower 

 present. 



