NORTH AMERICAN STATES 



NORTH AMERICAN STATES 21.55 



mountainous in parts, extending from the Massa- 

 chusetts Hne on the soutli to the White Mountains on 

 the north and whicli lies a little west of the central part 

 of the state. This ridge is the watershed between the 

 Connecticut River on the west and the Merrimac River 

 to the east. It is on the cast and south sides of this 

 riilge that many of the best orchards of the state are 

 located and an exceptionally fine tyi)e of apple, especi- 

 ally Baldwin, is grown in these locations. 



The state may be divided into three sections, horti- 

 culturally, as shown in the acconijianying ma]). In the 

 lower section are found by far the largest fruit interests 

 and north of this line there is practically none of the 

 go-called tender fruits, such as peaches. In the central 



2488. New Hampshire, showing three agricultural divisions. 



section, the apple and pear thrive and the opportunities 

 for further development of the industry are excellent. 

 The price of good apple land is reasonable and by means 

 of the higher land a long-keeping, high-colored apple is 

 produced. North of this central .section there is little 

 development of horticultural interests, although along 

 the Connecticut River on the west and in northern 

 Coos County to the north of the White Mountains, the 

 hardier varieties of apples and small-fruits may be 

 grown. 



While the average rainfall for the state is 40 inches, 

 the past few seasons have been much below this figure 

 as recorded at Durham. In 191.3, the rainfall for the 

 year was 80 inches and in 1914, 31 inchi's. 



The apple is the principal fruit grown in the state and 

 may be said to be the leading horticultural product. 

 The fruit thrives naturally throughout the southern 

 half of the state a-s indicated by the large number of 



seedling trees that spring up through the open fields and 

 along the fences. In fact, many of the bearing trees 

 (especially the older orchards) are these seedling trees 

 top-grafted to desirable varieties. It is a common sight 

 in New Hampshire to see the apple trees planted along 

 the stone walls or as scattered trees about the farms, 

 rather than planted in orchards. This, however, is not 

 true of the younger plantings. 



Like most other sections of the country, there is a 

 greatly renewed interest in the fruit business and a large 

 number of trees have been jjlantcd in the past ten 

 years. Also, many non-residents arc planting a part of 

 the farms about their summer homes to apples. In 191.3, 

 New Hampshire was awarded the first prize on her 

 state exhibit of apples in competition with the other 

 New England states, and several times New Hampshire 

 Baldwins have won the sweepstakes prize at the New 

 England Fruit Show. The commercial outlook for 

 fruit-growing in the state is bright and the fact that 

 some of the best markets in the country are ])ractically 

 at its door has stinndated much of the planting. Many 

 growers ship exclusively to foreign markets and it is a 

 short haul to place the fruit on the steamship pier at 

 either Boston or Portland. 



Modern methods of orchard management are being 

 used by the progressive growers, a number are packing 

 their apples in boxes and realizing the highest prices 

 for them; power spray outfits are in use in a number of 

 sections and proper cultural methods are being prac- 

 tised by more growers each j'ear. But, notwithstanding 

 this renewed interest, in many sections it must be 

 noted that the older orchards are dying at an alarming 

 rate; especially is this true in the southeastern part of 

 the state. Many are cutting out their trees, deeming 

 them worthless and impossible of renovation. The 

 primary causes of this general dying of the old trees 

 are the insect pests which have been defoliating the 

 trees year after year and the fact that they are standing 

 in sod and receive no stimulation of any kind. The 

 brown-tail and gypsy moths are the most serious insects 

 in the state and both feed freely on the apple trees. It 

 is not difficult to control them in the orchard, and con- 

 timied education and demonstration should do much 

 to check their ravages. It is a more difficult matter to 

 introduce tillage methods for the apple, partly because 

 the growers fear the lack of color which commonly 

 results and also because the trees are often scattered or 

 along fences as above mentioned. Several notable 

 examples in the state of the good results of orchard 

 cultivation are having their effect and many of the 

 young orchards are being tilled. 



The varieties most commonly grown are Baldwin, 

 Rhode Island Greening, Northern Spy, Fameuse, Blue 

 Pearmain, King, and Mcintosh. The last-named variety 

 has been more largely planted than any other in recent 

 years. In some sections the Nodhcad or Jewetts Red 

 is grown largely, also the Roxbury Russet, Gravenstcin, 

 Hubbardston, Wealthy, Porter, Tolman Sweet, Bethel, 

 Twenty Ounce, and many of the older varieties. Among 

 the newer plantings are found considerable numbers of 

 Delicious, Stayman and Winter Banana, but their 

 adaptability to this section has not been estabhshed. 



Plums are grown only in a limited Wiiy and they are 

 mostly of the Japanese varieties. The domesticas have 

 been abandoned largely because of the prevalence of 

 black-knot. The Abundance, Burbank, Chabot, and 

 Red June are the varieties commonly grown and they 

 are able to withstand the winters to a sufficient degree 

 to warrant their recommendation. 



Peaches are successfully grown in several sections, 

 notably about Portsmouth, Rochester, Derry, Wilton, 

 Lyndeboro, and Milford. Instances are rc|)orted on 

 good authority of obtaining nineteen successive crops, 

 but this is quite unusual, possibly three out of five being 

 nearer the average of the more favored regions. Prac- 

 tically all the peach orchards are cultivated, and crim- 



