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The Canadian Horticultun^ 



Vol. XXXVIII 



MAY, 1915 



No. 5 



What Does it Cost to Grow a Barrel of Apples ? 



By Manning Ells, Port Williams, N. S. 



IN the early days of apple growing 

 in America the industry was very 

 profitable. Prom 1854 to 1878 

 prices remained uniformly high, and 

 nearly all the bearing orchards in New 

 York State were planted between these 

 dates. Prices then began to decline 

 and planting practically stopped. In 

 1896 thousands of barrels were left to 

 rot under the trees because there was 

 no market for them. Many orchards 

 were cut down, and others given over 

 to the tender mercies of the San Jose 

 scale. Canker worms £tnd caterpillars 

 each had their day until overcome by 

 their natural enemies. Production was 

 much decreased. 



In a few years prices for apples 

 again gained a high level, and plant- 

 ing was stimulated as in the years be- 

 fore 1878, Old orchards were pruned 

 and cleaned up and soon began to bear 

 as if the rest had done them good. 

 The great west, trusting to luck and 

 the government, went to the extreme 

 in planting apple trees as in everything 

 else. 



The signs now all point again for 

 the next ten years or so to overproduc- 

 tion and non-profitable prices. Plant- 

 ing already has greatly fallen off, but 

 that will have no immediate effect on 

 the flood of apples. In one county in 

 New York (Munroe county), of the 

 crop of 1908, less than six per cept. 

 was borne on trees planted since 1878. 

 Better methods of distribution will 

 help, but in the days of keen competi- 

 tion between apple growing districts 

 that are coming, the country that can 

 produce good apples cheaply will have 

 a great advantage, and may be able to 

 stay in the game when others not so 

 favorably situated will have to turn to 

 other lines of farming. 



It has been said that if the everyday 

 business man knew as little al)out his 

 business as the average farmer, he 

 would soon go to the wall. Until a 

 few years ago the farmer's ideas of 

 his capital invested, his expenditures 

 and income were of the most hazy 

 character. There are many difficulties 

 in the way of farm bookkeeping that 

 are not met in more exact 'businesses. 

 A special system had to be devised to 

 meet the farmers' needs. Prof. War- 



ren, in his book on farm management, 

 explains a system of cost accounts for 

 the different crops on the farm that 

 would seem to fill a long-felt want. If 

 the work is followed up, a few minutes 

 each evening M'ill give at the close of 

 the year a fairly accurate idea of the 

 actual cost of raising the different 

 crops, and enable the farmer to know 

 where to give his attention for the 

 most profit. 



What Is the Cost? 



A question often asked in the An- 

 D'apolis Valley is, "What does it cost 

 to grow a barrel of apples"? With a 

 year like the past, when the price has 

 been the lowest in the history of the 

 'business, the question is a pertinent 

 one. It was "because of a curiosity to 

 find an answer to this question that the 

 writer kept an account with three dif- 

 ferent orchards on different parts of 

 the farm last season. While the re- 

 sults are not complete, and at times 

 estimations have to be resorted to, as 

 to the cost of picking for instance, still 



an account of these results may bring 

 out some criticisms or experiences of 

 others who have been working along 

 the same line. 



I will take up the work of each 

 orchard in detail, and show in what 

 way the different charges are made. 



The First Orchard. 



Orchard number one has about two 

 and a half acres of full bearing fruit, 

 ordinary commercial varieties. Last 

 year it produced two hundred and 

 sixty-seven barrels of apples. All the 

 orchards were charged with man labor 

 at twenty cents an hour and horse 

 labor at 15 cents an hour. 



Man Horse 



Operation. hours. hours. 



Pruning and hauling oft brush . . 31 5 



Plowing, harrowing:, sowing cover 



crop 43 84 



Spraying 47 2S 



Total 121 IIT 



Prom this the account for the or- 

 chard is made up as follows : 



121 man hours at 20 cents an hour .... $24.29 



117 horse hours at> 15 cents an hour .... 17.65 



Fertilizer and seed for cover crop 18.25 



Cost of spraying material 11.25 



Cost of 267 barrels at 30 cents 80.10 



Branches cross-grafted to prevent breaking. 



