43 



tures with too great humidity and too frequent rainfall — 

 may spell disaster to the strawberry and red raspberry 

 grower as was the case in parts of New York State the past 

 season. 



YIELDS AND PROFITS 



Productiveness is a decidedly elusive and variable fac- 

 tor subject to change without notice, and dependent partly 

 on things within the control of the grower but unfortunate- 

 ly partly dependent on some conditions entirely beyond his 

 control. It may be influenced by variety, rainfall, tempera- 

 ture, character of soil, amount of available food either in 

 manure or fertilizers, amount of humus in the soil, the cul- 

 tural treatment given and the degree of freedom from insect 

 and fungus pests. Average yields are low as compared 

 with the high water mark reached by some growers, yet at 

 present we are concerned more particularly with averages. 

 The average yield of strawberries is about 3000 quarts per 

 acre, red raspberries 1400 to 2000 quarts, black raspberries 

 1600 to 2400 quarts, blackberries 2000 to 3000 quarts, with 

 dewberries yielding considerably less, currants 100 to 150 

 bushels and gooseberries 200 to 400 bushels per acre. 



Costs and profits are still more difficult to ascertain 

 involving as they do not only many of the factors already 

 mentioned but in addition there must be taken into considera- 

 tion the exceedingly changeable costs of manure , and 

 fertilizers, cost of the cultural items, the value of the land, 

 taxes, the equipment required including horses and tools 

 which are always used in connection with other lines than 

 Small-Fruits, interest on investment, loss through depre- 

 ciation, every item connected with harvesting and marketing 

 the fruit, and last but not least the price received for the 

 product together with length of time required to bring the 

 plantation into bearing and the duration of its profitable 

 existence. Suffice it to say snap judgments on profits are 

 guesswork pure and simple and some of the factors of 

 Small-Fruit growing become a game of chance from start 

 to finish, never alike in any two seasons or on any two farms 



