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Dogged determination and plain hard work have been the formula for the success 

 of this orchard. Ernie is a very modest individual and is reluctant to talk about 

 the many handicaps he has had to overcome. The story of the farm in its present 

 high state of productivity is largely the story of Ernie himself. 



Mr. Liarkert, a native of Holyoke, graduated from Stockbridge School of 

 Agriculture, a part of the University of Massachusetts, in 1926. He still has • 

 strong ties v/-ith both his fraternity and the University. His early employment 

 found him first on the Conyers Farm in Greenvfich, Connecticut, and then as manager 

 of the Curtis Orchards in Marlboro, a large commercial operation. In 19iil, Ernie 

 purchased his present farm which comprised 100 acres, nearly all of which was in 

 orchard, plus a cold storage plant. 



He lost no time in his efforts to rebuild the productivity of this orchard. 

 His first season's soil-building practices reveal that he applied 160 hundred- 

 weight of AAA superphosphate and used t^velve tons of nitrate of potash on orchard 

 sod, mowed and left sixty-five acres of fertilized hay in the orchard, and brought 

 in eight tons of mulching materials which he applied to four acres of young 

 orchard. 



Late frosts did much to make the ensuing years unprofitable, but by adding a 

 poultry enterprise and cutting all possible corners, Ernie vras able in 19i4i4 to 

 purchase an additional 160 acres, twenty of v/hich were in orchard. The year 19U7 

 found the Markert orchard with its first big crop of fruit. Yvbrries seemed at an 

 end when the crop was finally in the storage and ready for the routine processing 

 to follow. Fate again intervened in the form of a disastrous fire the last vreek 

 of October, resulting in a total loss of the storage plant and the crop itself. 



Many orchard men v/ould have been willing to quit after this last blow, but 

 not Ernie. Patiently with the aid of his brothers and neighbors, he set about 

 rebuilding the cold storage, this time on an even larger scale and with fireproof 

 materials. His new cinder block storage with 355OOO bushels capacity, a model of 

 modern construction, ytas ready in time for the 19U8 bumper crop. This plant has 

 already served as an ideal location for fruit meetings conducted by the County 

 Agent and personnel from the nearby State University, 



Soil-building Program - Ernie's soil-building practices for the past three 

 seasons read something like this: 1916 — 30 tons of AAA spread limestone, 300 cvrt. 

 of 7-7-7 and 60 cwt. of 5-8-7 applied to hayland and orchard sod, 10 acres of rye 

 and oats cover crops and 30 tons of mulch. 19li7 — 30 tons of AAA spread limestone, 

 ii20 cvrt. of <-8-7 and 100 cvrt. of 7-7-7 on hay and orchard sod, 16 acres of wheat 

 cover crops and 32 tons of mulching materials applied. 1916 — 20 tons of AAA 

 limestone and 10 cwt. of AAA superphosphate, UOO c'.rt. of 7-7-7 on orchard sod, 

 another 16 acres of wheat cover crops and $0 tons of mulch, 



Mr. Markert's farm plans for the 19li9 season go well beyond any he has pre- 

 viously attempted. From the AAA office, he has already obtained UO cwt. of 0-lIi-li; 

 and twenty tons of limestone. He plans to top-dress his hayland and orchard sod 

 with iiCO hundredvreight of 1-1-1 , plant sixteen acres of wheat cover crop, and bring 

 in fifty tons of mulching materials. He will further qualify for four acres of the 

 land clearing practice. With the aid of technicians from the Soil Conservation 

 Service, he has built terraces and planted about four acres of young orchard on 

 the contour. 



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