58 The Commercial Apple Industry 



to more than 1,000 cars for a single season. In most 

 instances the orchards reflect the careful attention which 

 always insures a high state of productiveness. 



Orchards in northwest Missouri are older, have a larger 

 proportion of Ben Davis trees and in the main have re- 

 ceived less attention than those on the Kansas side. 

 Buchanan County on the Missouri River ranks among the 

 foremost, if not the foremost apple county in Missouri, 

 and yet it is doubtful whether 50 per cent of the trees 

 are sprayed. While Buchanan County has been singled 

 out on account of its central location and relative impor- 

 tance, other counties in northwest Missouri, including 

 Kodaway, Holt, Jackson and Lafayette, are of almost 

 equal importance. 



The orchards in the Missouri River region are more 

 uniform in type than those in the Ozarks and are, as a 

 whole, better cared for. There are many old neglected 

 orchards in northwest Missouri, but these are fast going 

 out and the production from strictly commercial orchards 

 promises to dominate the output of the region. The great- 

 est increase in production may be expected from the young 

 plantings in Kansas, many of which are just coming into 

 bearing. 



Outside of the intensive commercial apple regions, the 

 Middle West has suffered a tremendous loss in trees. 

 However, most of these were in the farm orchards and it 

 is felt that such regions as the Missouri River or loess 

 soil region will serve to maintain the commercial produc- 

 tion of the Middle West at some point near its present fig- 

 ure. It must be remembered that apple-growing along the 

 Missouri River has never reached the intensity of many 

 other regions. General farming with here and there a 



