CHAPTER XIII 



FRUIT RAISING ON THE FARM 



Fruit as a special crop. Fruit farming has become a 

 highly specialized industry requiring expert management in 

 the care of orchards and marketing of the products. In 

 most cases where there are regions particularly well adapted 

 to the production of some kind of fruit, we find many farmers 

 giving their entire attention to fruit raising, as the production 

 of oranges and other citrus fruits in California and Florida, 

 apples in Washington, Oregon, Michigan, New York and in 

 portions of several other states. 



The importance of one kind of special farming is shown 

 in the value of the product apples for a single year. In 

 1915, the apple crop amounted to more than $60,000,000. 

 Facilities for keeping fruit in cold storage until ready for the 

 market, its high price on the market and a growing demand 

 seem to indicate a promising field for special fruit farming. 

 But climate, soil, relation to markets, and other factors are 

 so important that much care must be taken in selecting a 

 site for an orchard which will be profitable. Fruit regions 

 are so extensively exploited by advertising, that a prospective 

 investor should make a careful personal investigation and 

 consult with the fruit experts connected with the State 

 Agricultural Experiment Station rather than buy upon the 

 advice of a land promoter. 



Place of fruit raising on the farm. Beside the regions 

 mentioned in the brief reference to fruit farming, there are a 



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