NORTH AMERICAN STATES 



NORTH AMERICAN STATES 2165 



New Haven, Bridgeport and other cities of the state 

 through e(]vially long seasons. 



From the earliest settlement of the state, fruit- 

 growing for the family home-supply has been a promi- 

 nent feature of Connecticut agriculture, the ajiplc being 

 a main reliance. The old seedling trees scattered over 

 all our farms today are plain evidence that our ances- 

 tors took their ajiple-juice through the spigot of the 

 cider-barrel rather than fresh from the pulp of the ripe 

 fruit of some finer variety. A hundred years ago every 

 farmhouse cellar wintered from thirty to fifty barrels 

 of eider, while today it is hardly respectable to have 

 any, and probably not one family in ten now has even 



2492, Connecticut, marking the three main 

 horticultural districts. 



one single barrel on tap as a beverage. Yet in quantity 

 and variety the family fruit-supply has wonderfully 

 increased and a daily supply of fresh home-grown fruit 

 is the rule rather than the exception in most farm 

 homes, — small-fruits in variety, apples, pears, peaches, 

 plums (both European and Japan), cherries and 

 quinces, in all the best standard varieties, coming to 

 their highest perfection in every section of the state 

 when rational methods of culture are followed. 



Natural timber and semi-abandoned farm- and 

 pasture-lands, growing up to brush and timber, with 

 increasing acreage yearly up to the beginning of the 

 twentieth century, are now furnishing the "new lands" 

 for extensive horticultural enterprises and many 

 thousands of acres of these lands have been cleared and 

 planted to peaches, apples and grapes within the past 

 fifteen years, particularly in Hartford, Tolland, Middle- 

 sex and New Haven counties, mostly by newcomers 

 from the north of Italy, although a few of the large 

 developments have been made by old-time pioneer 

 orchardists. Lying midway between New York and 

 Boston, the greatest horticultural markets of America, 

 Connecticut is better situated than any other state 

 in the Union to realize quick cash returns from her 

 horticulture. Every farm is within driving distance of 

 some one or more of the busy manufacturing towns 

 and villages, whose people are appreciative of choice 

 fruits and are able to pay far them. 



District No. 1 comprises the Connecticut River 

 valley and adjacent hills, along the Northampton 

 branch and the main line of railroad from Hartford to 

 New Haven, and all of the shore towns. This region 

 contains most of the sandy plain lands of the state, 

 and the loams and clay most free from rocks and 

 stones. On the hills back from the river, on the ridges 

 either side of the railroads, and a few miles back from 

 the Sound shore, there are many places where soil and 

 topographical conditions are much the same as in dis- 

 tricts Nos. 2 and 3; but, having much larger tracts of 

 easily cultivated lands, and being better located as to 

 market conditions, this district is more highly developed 

 horticulturally than either of the others. Here are 



the great market-gardens and small-fruit farms, peach- 

 orchards, vineyards and melon-fields. 



District No. 2 comprises Tolland and Windham 

 counties and all of the Middlesex and New London 

 counties, except Cromwell and the shore towns, and is 

 particularly well suited to apple- and peach-culture, 

 owing to the rolling condition of the country and 

 natural fertility of many of the hills. Every few miles 

 are little valleys and pockets suited to the production of 

 small-fruits and vegetables in variety. A few town- 

 ships in the northeast grow apples rather extensively, 

 while in the west and southwest conamercial peach- 

 orchards are found to considerable extent. 



District No. 3 comprises western Hartford, north- 

 western New Haven, northern Fairfield, and all of 

 Litchfield counties, and is somewhat similar to dis- 

 trict No. 2, except that the soil is generally heavier, 

 with rather more mixture of clay and the hills are more 

 abrupt and rocky. Some sections of Litchfield County 

 are too cold and bleak for any but the most hardy 

 fruits. Apples grow freely everywhere, and, while 

 always of good quality, the brightest colors, firmest 

 texture and highest quality of fruit is produced on the 

 rocky hills, at an elevation of 300 to 1,000 feet. Bald- 

 win, Rhode Island Greening, Roxbury Russet and 

 Spy are the leading varieties, although all the varieties 

 that thrive well in the northeastern United States grow 

 to perfection here when properly cared for, and in the 

 new orchard developments of the past ten years,,. 

 Wealthy, Mcintosh, Banana and DeUcious have been 

 very extensively planted. 



Peach-culture on an extended scale is a recent 

 development. Thirty-five years ago the only com- 

 mercial orchard in the state contained about 2,000 trees, 

 and probably 5,000 trees would be a liberal estimate 

 for the state at that time; now upward of 1,000,000 

 peach trees are grown in the state. While many vari- 

 eties are grown, the main plantings are of Greensboro, 

 Carman, Hiley, Champion, Belle of Georgia and Elberta, 

 of the North China type, an almost entire abandonment 

 of the older Persian types as formerly grown, such as 

 Mountain Rose, Oldmixon and the Crawfords. High 

 culture, close pruning, spraying and a thinning of the 

 fruit are generally practised, and fruit of brightest color, 

 largest size and high quality is thus secured. In the 

 markets of this and neighboring states, "Connecticut 

 peaches" usually sell at a much higher price than tho.se 

 from any other section. The only serious drawback is 

 the winter-killing of the fruit-buds in the valleys when 

 temperature drops to 10° to 20° below zero, this happen- 

 ing probably two years out of five, while on many hill- 

 sides and hilltops at least four crops out of five are 

 assured; but there are many favorable localities where 

 annual crops are almost a certainty. 



Japanese plums, largely planted from 1895 to about 

 1905, were for a few years very vigorous, productive 

 and profitable. Abundance, Burbank, and Red June 

 being the most acceptable varieties. Of recent years, 

 however, the trees have become very short-lived and 

 their commercial planting has been almost entirely 

 abandoned. 



Raspberries, blackberries, currants and gooseberries 

 grow and produce freely all over the state, and all local 

 markets are abundantly supplied in season. 



Grapes are grown successfully all over the state, 

 except on the highest and coldest hills; and on the sandy 

 plains and warm, rocky hillsides all the best standard 

 varieties can be produced in perfection. There are a 

 number of smaU vineyards in every county. There are 

 many vineyards of three to ten acres in Hartford, 

 Middlesex, New Haven and Fairfield counties, mostly 

 owned by Italians, and grown for wine-making pur- 

 poses, although in recent years many of the selected 

 grapes from these vineyards find their way into market, 

 where they sell at much higher prices than any from 

 outside the state. Concord, AA'orden and Niagara are 



