358 The Commercial Apple Industry 



know the total cost of production, but also the various 

 items of which it is comprised. Only by knowing these 

 can he be prepared intelligently to lower his cost items. 

 The same principle applies to the apple-grower. 



An important point in such a study is to determine 

 which operations are profitable and which are not. A 

 grower should not attempt to lower his costs blindly. He 

 must be thoroughly acquainted with the various items of 

 expense in order that in attempting to lower cost he will 

 not cut corners in the wrong direction and thereby lower 

 production. To neglect fertilizing, thinning, spraying or 

 such important operations would be a case of lowering 

 cost in the wrong direction. It would usually pay to 

 spend more on some of these operations in order to increase 

 production, and thereby lower cost of production a unit. 

 It is merely a case of spending wisely. Those who argue 

 against the necessity of knowing the various costs of pro- 

 duction do so through selfish motives or through ignor- 

 ance. 



The survival of any fruit district depends on its ability 

 to produce fruit in competition with other sections. Cer- 

 tain regions by virtue of their extremely favorable location 

 with respect to soil, climate and economic conditions, are 

 firmly established and will always remain prominent in 

 the commercial apple industry. Other regions lacking 

 some of the necessary qualifications can never succeed. 

 In a third class are the marginal districts which lack some 

 of the more desirable qualifications, and yet which in cer- 

 tain years compare very favorably with the best regions. 

 For example, a locality subject to frost might in some 

 years produce a very profitable crop and yet over a period 



