76 The Commercial Apple Industry 



CALIFORNIA 



Watsonville district. 



The Pajaro Valley, centering about Watsonville, is the 

 oldest and from the standpoint of total past production, 

 one of the most important of the western apple regions. 

 In later years, however, both the Yakima and Wenatchee 

 valleys of Washington have far outstripped it in produc- 

 tion. With the possible exception of the Wenatchee Val- 

 ley, it is doubtful whether any apple region in the country 

 exceeds the Watsonville district for intensity of planting. 

 The most important orchards are included in an area of 

 five by ten miles about the town of Watsonville. This 

 limited area is responsible for nearly two-thirds of Cal- 

 ifornia's commercial apple crop, and has a production 

 record of almost 3,300,000 boxes of apples for a single 

 season. 



Apple plantings were known to have been made in 

 the Pajaro Valley in the early fifties. Commercial or- 

 chards existed as early as 1870. The period of greatest 

 commercial growth occurred in the decade 1890-1900. 

 Crop failures are uncommon in the Pajaro and this valley 

 has a very high record for annual production. Irriga- 

 tion is little practiced, the normal annual rainfall of 

 forty inches being sufficient to insure heavy annual pro- 

 duction. Yellow Xewtown is the leading variety and 

 comprises over 50 per cent of the regional production. 

 Yellow Bellflower is next in importance while both Ked 

 and White Winter Pearmain, Langford Seedling and 

 Missouri Pippin are grown in limited quantities. Red 

 varieties, however, are not adapted to this region. 



A most peculiar system of handling the crop prevails 



