FRUIT NOTES 

 November 195^ 



SOME MRKET OE«ERVATIONS 



The big talk around the Boston market this year is the subject of New York 

 State apples, vrtiich have come in to fill the supposed vacuum resulting from Hew 

 England's hurricanes* "It's all right — this is a free country", is the comment 

 of one sidewalk apple specialist, "But we could stand it if those boys v/ouldn't get 

 quite so enthusiastic and rush everything over here," Just to give an idea of v/hat 

 New York has been doing this year, the receipts from that state for the month of 

 October, for example, have totaled 38,350 bushels, compared vfith 1,9^0 busliels last 

 year. It's the old story about the "ill mnd," While there is some criticism of 

 this heavy influx of New York State fruit, most of the trade realize that it's only 

 human nature and good business, Vife would do the same if the situation vrere reversed, 

 as vre have in past years. 



In recent times we have been taking advantage of comparatively light crops in 

 the Appalachian area to push our apples in markets that normally might be over-run 

 with southern shipments, liy mind goes back to a rather historic shortage in the 

 I'liddle Vjest in 1930, when we made a big play for markets in the Central V/estern 

 States, I remember it vxell because the llassachusetts Fruit Growers' Association 

 sent me on a tour of those vrestern markets that v/inter, to check on our apples as 

 they arrived, and to get first hsnd information on possibilities of getting into 

 that area vdth our fruits 



In the meantime v:ork goes on taking care of hurricane damage and other orchard 

 jobs 9 I couldn't help but think recently, when I stopped in to see Charlie Dowse 

 out at Sherborn that non-farm people could get an eye opener as to some of the winter 

 work that is necessary in apple orchards e ..'hen I asked for Charlie, Iwastold he 

 Viras out mousing, "Right now", said Lirs « Dc, "He goes mousing in the morning and 

 straightens trees in the afternoon" o Some of the folks who drop into our office Vifith 

 visions of planting an apple orchard and sitting on the back porch, just watching it 

 grow, should hear Charlie Dov/se's side of it» 



Quinces and Russet apples are a couple of old-tijne favorites that you don't see 

 every day, I spotted-them alongside each other not long ago at Jock Davis's roadside 

 stand. The quinces were unusually nice and the young lady said they had |uite a 

 demand for them. She told me that they were the personal project of the senior mr, 

 Davis ~ so a grand old timer is grovj-ing a grand old ¥eu England fruit. The Russets 

 vrere nice — real Roxburys, I should say, and I'll bet some old New Englanders pop 

 their eyes when they see theme 



Bill Thies told me to pick nry ovm subject for this month's contribution to FRUIT 

 NOTES. If you read this far you can see that I have taken him at his vrord and ramb- 

 led from one subject to the other. So let's add one other bit of variety to this 

 p§ge by passing on a little ditty which may or may not have come down to us from 

 Confucius, It is something that all apple men might take to heart in considering 

 promotion of s^s of their fruit: 



Man who, v/hispgrs, dofn, a well ,, 

 About the goeds he like to sell. 



No gather in the golden dollars 



Like he viho climbs up tree and hollers o 



^^Yalter E, Piper 



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