1292 



FRUIT-GROWING 



FRUIT-GROWING 



once relatively more important, as explained in a sub- 

 sequent paragraph. The "fruit garden" is now little 

 seen. It is very desirable, however, that the growing 

 of the choicest fruits in the most painstaking personal 

 way shall be encouraged amongst us; and with the 

 further development of the country this will take place 

 if writers do not overlook the subject. 



In Canada, the total yields of fruits for thirty years 

 have been as follows, in quantities (Canada Yearbook, 

 1910): 



The exports of fruits from Canada to all countries 

 has been as follows : 



Of the green apples, the most part went to Great 

 Britain, but the dried fruit went largely to other 

 countries than Great Britain or the United States. 

 Ontario was far in the lead of any other province in 

 fruit-production in 1901, in grapes, small-fruits and 

 apples exceeding all the other provinces combined. 



In the United States, the value of fruits (including 

 small-fruits or berries) and nuts produced in 1909 (as 

 reported in the thirteenth census) amounted to $222,- 

 024,000, or 4 per cent of the total value of farm crops. 

 The value reported for 1899 was $133,049,000, the 

 increase for the decade amounting to 66.9 per cent. 

 While it is impossible to reduce the quantity of the prod- 

 uct to a single total, the statistics for individual 

 classes show that in general the value increased by a 

 much larger percentage than the production. Of the 

 total value in 1909 of fruits and nuts, $140,867,000 

 was contributed by orchard fruits, $29,974,000 by 

 small-fruits, $22,711,000 by citrous-fruits, $22,028,000 

 by grapes, $4,448,000 by nuts, and $1,995,000 by tropi- 

 cal and sub-tropical fruits (other than citrous). In 

 both acreage and quantities, strawberries far exceeded 

 any other class of small-fruits; similarly, apples are far 

 in excess of any other orchard fruit; oranges far exceed 

 in value all other citrous-fruits taken together. In 

 nuts, the production in pounds in 1909 was, Persian 

 or English walnuts 22,026,524; black walnuts 15,628.- 

 776; pecans, 9,890,769; almonds, 6,793,539; unclassified, 

 7,988,402. The values of fruits and nuts in 1909, by 

 states, are displayed in Fig. 1593. 



The progress in fruit-growing. 



The development of American fruit-growing is well 

 illustrated in the radical change of ideals within recent 

 time. These new points of view may be arranged con- 

 veniently under seven general heads: 



(1) The most important shift is the fact that there 

 is a horticultural industry as distinguished from a 

 general agricultural industry. At the opening of the 

 nineteenth century American agriculture was more or 

 less homogeneous, largely because the extent of it was 

 limited and because there was little demand for other 

 than the few staple commodities. The horticulture of 



that time was confined chiefly to a small area about the 

 homestead. A few vegetables, flowers and fruits in a 

 small plantation, with here and there a single green- 

 house, represented the horticultural effort of the time. 

 At the present day we conceive of great geographical 

 areas as horticultural regions. Persons now buy farms 

 with the explicit purpose of devoting them to the pro- 

 duction of fruits or other horticultural products. Even 

 sixty years ago horticulture was largely an amateur's 

 avocation, but today it is one of the leading commer- 

 cial occupations of the country, and the most important 

 single factor in it is fruit-growing. With this rise of the 

 horticultural industries came a demand for new knowl- 

 edge on a host of subjects which were unheard of even 

 as late as a half-century ago. The contemporary prog- 



1591. Young plum orchard, showing clean tillage and high- 

 heading. 



Some growers head-in vigorous young trees like the above; 

 others prefer to let them take their natural course, keeping the 

 heads open rather than thick and close. Neither method is best 

 under all circumstances. 



ress in pomology is largely a breaking away from the 

 old ideals. Practices that were good enough for amateur 

 purposes, or for the incidental and accidental fruit- 

 growing of our fathers, may be wholly inadequate to the 

 new-time conditions. 



A century ago there was practically no commercial 

 orcharding. The apple was grown somewhat extensively 

 in many parts of the country, particularly in New Eng- 

 land, but it was used chiefly for the making of cider. 

 Small-fruit growing, as a business, had not developed. 

 In fact, commercial strawberry-growing (the most 

 readily developed of the fruit-growing industries) may 

 be said to have begun with the introduction of the 

 Hovey in 1836, although previously there were market 

 plantations of small extent about some of the larger 

 towns. The commercial culture of blackberries and 

 raspberries, although it began about the middle of the 

 century, did not acquire distinct importance until 

 after the reaction from the Civil War. The fruit-grow- 

 ing industries now constitute a distinct branch or 

 department of our agricultural condition, in the newer 

 regions as well as in the old. In fact, great areas of 

 virgin lands are now put at once into orchards. 



(2) With the rise of commercial fruit-growing, there 

 have developed novel questions related to market- 

 ing. The new marketing revolves about three centers: 

 (a) The necessity for special products for special uses, 

 (6) the growing demand for small packages, and (c) the 

 remarkable development of transportation facilities and 

 of pre-cooh'ng, handling, and storage. There has arisen 

 an increased desire for special grades and for particular 

 kinds of fruit. The fruits that were current fifty years 

 ago may not be good enough for the markets of today. 

 Commercial fruit-growing rests on the fact that more 

 persons are consuming fruits. Many of these persons 

 buy only in small lots for present consumption. They 

 go to the market often. They have no facilities for 

 storing the fruit, and they do not buy for the purpose 

 of selling. Therefore, the small package has come to 

 be increasingly more important. There has been a 



