STATE POMOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 119 



and small fruits. In the production of fruit let us briefly glance 

 backward over the history' of orcharding in Maine, the better to get 

 our bearings as to the future of this industry in our State. 



IN ITS NATURAL STATE. 



The orchards of Maine which primarily covered the hill-sides on 

 the farms of the pioneers of our State, and which now liave nearly 

 all passed off the stage of dut}' in producing their inferior fruit, 

 were raainl}- composed of trees bearing natural fruit. An orchard 

 engrafted to better sorts of apples was the exception and a long way 

 from the rule. 



But the change was gradually made of grafting these natural apple 

 trees, which were more or less produced on the farms where set, by 

 fostering the chance seedlings which came up from scattered seeds 

 of apples brought to or produced upon the farm. This, in brief, 

 was the beginning, and for many years was the practice ruling in 

 Maine orchards. 



After a while our farmers began to wake up to progressive ideas 

 — better fruit and more of it — as population increased and made a 

 demand for both. Progress has been gradual on the same line to the 

 present time, till now, in view of the amount of apples produced and 

 the low prices which have ruled for the past two years, the question 

 is frequently asked : Will orcharding in Maine pa}' in the future, 

 taking into consideration the greatl}' augmented interest shown in 

 this industry within the last ten j'ears all over our country? 



This is the vital question which interests orchardists in Maine at 

 the present time. In the first place let us consider the present status 

 of Maine apples in relation to the markets. 



PERISHABLE FALL FRUITS. 



Our orchardists, as a whole, cannot count on a remunerative 

 market for fall fruit ; that is, as a specialty. It is true our cities 

 and larger villages consume large quantities of the earl}' and later 

 fall varieties, and farmers living near enough to market so that 

 transportation is not great, can find ready sales for a limited supply 

 of such apples. But easy and rapid transportation renders compe- 

 tition from apple growers in Massachusetts, New York and localities 

 farther south, a matter of easy accomplishment, which makes the 

 marketing of perishable fall fruit an unsatisfactory business as a 

 rule. The lesson here is obvious — curtail production in this direction. 



