Fruits^ Vegetables and General Interests. 23 



acreage during the season of 1889-90 has been particularly 

 heavy, the planting to vines of tracts of from 250 to 1,000 acres 

 being quite a frequent occurence.' 



f What is especially interesting to the home-seeker in con- 

 nection with this information is the fact that every one of 

 these vineyardists is prosperous. No other horticultural in- 

 dustry is so profitable as the culture of the raisin grape ; in no 

 other is the work so pleasant ; and no other yields a return so 

 quickly. 



'<An acre of Muscat vines in full bearing will yield from two 

 to three tons of grapes, on good heavy soil; at 5)^ cents a 

 pound in the sweatbox, this means from $225 to $325 per acre, 

 gross. Numerous instances are known, however, where the 

 yield of an acre of Muscats amounted to as much as $450, this 

 being the result of careful cultivation and favorable circum- 

 stances. Some grapes are borne on the vines when they are 

 one-year old, while two-year olds have been known to bear a 

 crop. At three years the vines pay the expenses and interest 

 on the money invested, and at four years from planting they 

 bring the first large paying crop. 



''An acre of wine grapes will yield from seven to nine 

 tons. These may be sold either wet or dried. The former 

 will sell at about $12 a ton, or from $85 to $100 for the yield 

 of an acre. Dried, the yield will shrink to from one and a-half 

 to two tons, which will bring $60 a ton. These figures are for 

 land that is of fair quality and which has received intelligent 

 cultivation. Some vineyards yield less and others more, so the 

 figures given are a fair average. 



"■ Multiplying the 3^ield of an acre of grapes by the total num- 

 ber of acres in bearing, the value of its vineyards to Fresno 

 county at once becomes apparent. There is a difficulty, how- 

 ever, in striking an average for an acre of grapes for the pur- 

 pose of making this calculation, for the bearing vines are of all 

 ages and the difference in soil and methods of cultivation also 

 cut an important figure. Of the 28,000 acres in bearing, the 

 vines on about 20,000 must have attained their full growth by 

 this time. A very moderate estimate of the amount of money 

 to be gained from an acre of grapes is $200. This would bring 

 the total for the 20,000 acres to $4,000,000. 



'' In about four years more the total acreage now in grapes, 

 49,086, will be in full bearing; multiplying this by $200, the 



