OPERATING COSTS OF A XEW YORK APPLE ORCHARD. O 



EARLY TREATMENT OF THE ORCHARD. 



. Up to the time that the orchard came into bearing it was cropped 

 with a rotation of beans, barley, wheat, and clover. When the trees 

 came into bearing, the orchard was allowed to remain in sod and 

 was used mainly for a cattle and sheep pasture. Owing to the low 

 returns, orchards in western New York were cut down to a great 

 extent about 1893, and at that time land on which apple trees stood 

 was assessed for little or nothing. But on this specific farm in 1894 

 greater care was taken to make the orchard produce more, and in 



1896 it bore its heaviest crop, like many orchards in the region. In 



1897 the orchard was plowed and cultivated. This was the begin- 

 ning of an organized effort to make the orchard profitable. Since 

 that date greater care in pruning, spraying, and cultivation has been 

 given. 



CULTURE SINCE 1907. 



In the spring of 1907 the entire orchard was plowed 3 J inches deep. 

 During that season it was harrowed five times, and a cover crop of 

 clover, 6 cpiarts of seed to the acre, was sown the latter part of July. In 

 1908 the orchard was left in sod. In 1909 a double-action disk was 

 used to break up the sod. This was followed by a spring-tooth harrow 

 during the summer, and in the month of July the orchard was again 

 sown to clover. It was mowed in 1910, and in 1911 the soil was 

 plowed away from the trees. During the summer the orchard was 

 cultivated five times and sown to clover in the latter part of July. 



In 1912 there was an excellent clover sod, but during the month 

 of August the army worms appeared in great numbers, eating the 

 clover to the ground and giving the remaining cover the appearance 

 of having been swept by fire. 



RATES PAID FOR LABOR. 



The rates of labor used in showing the costs of the orchard opera- 

 tions are the same as those of the other enterprises on the farm, such 

 as the growing of beans, wheat, and hay. The cost per hour of man 

 labor was 17.9 cents, and the cost per hour of horse labor was 15.3 cents. 

 These rates represent the total cost of paid labor plus the value of 

 board and privileges. The proprietor's labor was considered at the 

 same rate as that of the regular workmen on the farm. 



In the case of horses, a cost of $10 per month, or $120 a year, was 

 used. This amount, divided by the total number of hours worked 

 by the horses, gave an hourly cost of 15.3 cents. The rate of both 

 man and horse labor was lessened by reason of the general farm crops, 

 which utilized the labor when not needed for the fruit. 



LABOR COSTS FOR VARIOUS OPERATIONS. 



Three cost factors present themselves in any business enterprise. 

 In this bulletin these are termed labor, cash, and fixed costs. 



