May, 1931] Studies in Economics of Apple Orcharding 15 



LABOR REQUIREMENTS ON OPERATIONS UP TO HARVEST 



Operations in producing apples may roughly be divided into three 

 parts for study: — 



1. Production up to harvest. 



2. Harvesting apples. 



3. Grading, packing, storing and marketing. 



With the exception of propping and thinning, which are practiced 

 in some orchards, the operations up to harvest must usually be done 

 about the same whether there is a large or a small crop. Up to this 

 point, it is possible to compare operations between farms fairly accu- 

 rately, on the basis of mature tree equivalent or expected normal yield. 

 Then, too. the problem of budgeting the orchard through a 60-year 

 period is much simplified by carrying costs to the harvest period and 

 allowing income on the tree. 



The problem of harvest of apples varies with the yield to a large 

 extent and can best be handled separately. The grading, packing, 

 storage and marketing of apples could be studied only on a few farms, 

 and it was difficult to make comparison on account of lack of uni- 

 formity of services performed. 



The studies of orchard organization and management are inter- 

 related. One might assume a given orchard and then study the best 

 management plans in producing fruit, but a close study of the labor 

 requirements and the inauguration of possible improvements of ef- 

 ficiency will soon disclose that efficiency may require a different size 

 of orchard. 



We have attempted to study the labor requirements on the twelve 

 farms to determine how individual men are carrying on orchard opera- 

 tions, to compare methods and time requirements with the objective 

 of determining the best and most economic practices, and then lastly 

 to sum up the situation as to the most economical size of orchard. 



For this purpose the operations have been arranged into two 

 classes: (1) those requiring special orchard training and skill and (2) 

 those which can be performed by unskilled labor if supervised by a 

 trained orchardist. The operations have been classified as follows : — 



I. Special orchard skill required. 



a. pruning 



b. spraying 



II. No special orchard skill required. 



(1) Early spring work 



a. brush hauling 



b. brush disposal 



(2) Operations in summer to control moisture. 



a. cultivation 



b. mowing 



c. mulching 



(3) Operations when heavy set of fruit is had. 



a. propping 



b. thinning 



(4) Miscellaneous. 



