6 CIRCULAR 16 8, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 



The sections of Japan in which the various deciduous fruits are 

 grown are in some cases quite restricted, owing to various factors. 

 The distribution of the areas devoted to the various fruits, with a 

 discussion of the reasons for their adaptability to these fruits, is given 

 in detail by Ikeda {37). The apple is grown largely in northern 

 Honshu and Hokkaido, and the sand pear, which is much preferred 

 and more generally grown than the European varieties, is produced 

 throughout all of the main islands, but most extensively in central 

 Honshu. The peach is grown throughout Honshu and southern 

 Hokkaido, whereas grape production is largely restricted to western 

 and northwestern Honshu. 



The manner of growth of the tree, whether natural in form or 

 artifically trained, has an important bearing upon the possibilities 

 of insect control by the various methods employed. The sand pear, 

 for instance, is grown almost entirely upon either vertical or hori- 

 zontal trellises. With the vertical trellis the thorough application 

 of sprays is much more easily accomplished than where the natural 

 tree form is retained. A considerable part of the commercial pear 

 orchards, however,- are grown on the horizontal trellis. This usually 

 consists of heavy uprights about 10 feet apart supporting a network 

 of bamboo crosspieces at 1 to 2 foot intervals at a height usually of 

 5% feet above the ground. This covers the entire orchard, and the 

 snoots of the young trees are tied to these poles and trained to the 

 proper form. This method of growth has many advantages, but 

 renders insect control by the application of sprays more difficult. 

 Grapes are now grown largely after the manner employed in Europe 

 and the United States, though formerly almost entirely on the hori- 

 zontal trellis. 



The inclosure of the individual fruits or clusters in paper bags 

 for protection against insects is a practice which has been followed 

 for a long period of time. While formerly applied to oranges also, 

 it is now restricted to the deciduous fruits. It is claimed that 

 this practice, in addition to providing protection from insect attack, 

 favors growth, accelerates ripening, gives a more delicate skin, and 

 is conducive to a greater uniformity in size. The bags are removed 

 several days before the fruit is picked in order to permit of better 

 coloring. Small holes are always left in the corners for drainage 

 and aeration. 



The paper used for the bags is either ordinary newspaper or a 

 special paper know as "mino-gami." In some sections it is treated 

 with the juice of the persimmon, which renders it waterproof. 

 Persimmons are often grown for this purpose alone. The fruit is 

 bagged immediately after thinning, this being said to prevent 

 premature dropping. 



This bagging of the fruit is done entirely by women, and each 

 worker is capable of covering from 1,500 to 2,000 fruits per day. 

 Prior to the present century this method was satisfactory, as labor 

 costs were very low, but at the present time farm labor is demanding 

 a rapidly increasing wage, and the cost of bagging, including both 

 labor and materials, is now approximately 75 cents per tree. In 

 addition to this protection of the fruit, spraying is often necessary 

 to kill leaf or sap feeding insects, and the combined costs have had 

 much to do with the maintenance of a retail price for the product 

 nften higher than that in the United States. 



