70 STATE POMOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 



As I have investigated the subject, I am satisfied that Maine fruit 

 g-rowers, even after their land is in orchards, do not place a fancy 

 value upon their orchards. There is a wide margin in the figures 

 given, but none of them exceed $500 per acre, and some are as low as 

 $25. But when we consider that before trees were set the land was 

 worth from $5 to $50, we can readily see there has been a large 

 increase in value. This, by the way, is one of the important 

 features of the industry. About ten years ago, a young man in my 

 county bought a tract of land for 810 an acre, and began setting 

 trees upon it. He now values it at $100 an acre, and it is worth it, 

 for with only 100 trees in bearing, the past year, he sold $450 worth 

 of apples. Don't you think this is a good investment for a 3'oung 

 man to make? 



The orchards in the State are not over-valued, and within my own 

 observation are frequently sold at very low figures. Without loca- 

 ting, I will refer to several. In 1888, the year when croakers said 

 there was no money in apples, a small farm was purchased. Some 

 twent}' years before, a previous owner began to set apple trees. 

 The price paid was $5,500. The fruit the same year netted $1,200 ; 

 the next year the returns footed up the same amount, and when the 

 1890 crop is all sold the owner expects the amount will be $2,000. 



There was another man who got sick of farming, and thought he 

 would rather drive a city truck team. He did not rest content until 

 he had sold his farm for $2,100. There was upon a portion of the 

 farm 300 young, thrifty Baldwin trees, that bore the new owner 

 nearly 300 barrels of No. 1 apples the first year. Each year since 

 it has borne a good crop, and all the while the trees are growing 

 larger, and rapidl}^ gaining in productive capacity. 



Only the past year a young orchard, sloping towards a beautiful 

 body of water, was sold for the sum of 83,000. There were many 

 who thought the price was fancy, and that the purchaser, who had 

 orange groves in Florida, had been taken in. Hanging on the trees, 

 without a dollar's expense to himself, the purchaser sold the crop of 

 1890 for $1,500. The fruit buyers knew what they were doing, too, 

 for when the apples were gathered there were nearly 500 barrels of 

 No. 1 fruit. Do you know of safer or better investments in the 

 West or South? 



These opportunities are not numerous in Maine, but at the same 

 time the writer knows of several that offer great inducements to a 

 fruit man who is on the lookout for good investments. 



