324 



The Garden Magazine, February, 1922 



BECAUSE appetites and preferences vary so much; and as 

 climate, soil, care, and the variety of the fruit so greatly in- 

 fluence the yield, it is impossible to do more than vaguely suggest 

 the amount of each kind of fruit to be planted in order to meet 

 the needs of a given number of persons, yet the following esti- 

 mate of results that may reasonably be expected, under favor- 

 able conditions with good care, will give a basis for judgment. 



Table of Approximate Fair Yields of Fruits 



SMALL AND VINE FRUITS 



Kind of Fruit 



Yield per 10 Ft. 



Distance between Rows 





of Row 



Center to Center 



Everbearing Strawberries 



; 2 qts. 



3 ft. 



Common Strawberries 



5 qts. 



4 ft. 



Red Raspberries 



5 Pts. 



6 ft. 



Black Raspberries 



7pts. 



7 ft. 



Blackberries 



9 pts. 



8 ft. 



Dewberries 



i to 3 qts. 



6 ft. 



Currants 



6 qts. 



5 ft. 



Gooseberries 



6 to 9 qts. 



5 ft. 



Grapes 



io to 18 lbs. 



TREE FRUITS 



9 ft. 



Kind of Fruit 



Yield per Tree 



Distance between Trees 



Apple 



io to 25 bu. 



30 x 30 to 40 x 40 



Pear 



3 to 15 bu. 



20 x 20 to 30 x 30 



Quince 



1 to 4 bu. 



15X 15 



Peach 



3 to 10 bu. 



20 x 20 



Plum 



2 to 8 bu. 



15 x 15 to 20 x 20 



Cherry (Sour) 



5 to 25 gal. 



l8 X l8 tO 22 X 22 



Cherry (Sweet) 



5 to 30 gal. 



25 x 25 to 30 x 30 



Bearing Ages of the Fruits 



IT IS important to have some idea of the ages at which the 

 fruits begin to bear and at which they yield abundantly. 

 Among the tree fruits, soil and climatic conditions and varietal 

 characteristics cause these times to vary greatly for the same 

 kind of fruit. The following data, however, may be helpful. 



SMALL AND VINE FRUITS 



Kind 



First Bearing 



Abundant Bearing 

 Begins 



Everbearing Strawberries Latter part of 1st 



.year 1st or 2nd year 



Common Strawberries 



2nd 



year 2nd or 3rd year 



Black Raspberries 



2nd 



year 3rd year 



Red Raspberries 



2nd 



year 3rd year 



Blackberries 



2nd 



year 3rd year 



Dewberries 



2nd 



year 3rd year 



Grapes 



3rd 



TREE FRUITS 



year 4th to 5th year 



Kind 



First Bearing 



Abundant Bearing 

 Begins 



Apples 



4th to 8th year 



10th to 15th year 



Pears 



3rd to 8th year 



8th to 15th year 



Quinces 



2nd to 3rd year 



5th to 7th year 



Sour Cherries 



2nd to 4th year 



6th to 9th year 



Sweet Cherries 



4th to 7th year 



8th to 1 2th year 



Peaches 



2nd year 



4th to 5th year 



Plums 



3rd to 7th year 



5th to 1 2th year 



Areas for Small Fruits and Grapes 



IF THERE is not sufficient space for a com- 

 plete fruit garden, the most satisfactory 

 course to follow is to provide first for a 

 supply of the most perishable of the 

 desired fruits, as it is 

 easier to buy the other 

 kinds in good condi- 

 tion. Three square 



rods (about 800 square feet) should yield an abundant supply of 

 the common Strawberries, in season and for putting up. There is 

 considerable danger of crop failure of the Everbearing Straw- 

 berries through drought ; but, with favorable weather conditions, 

 or with irrigation, two square rods (about 550 square feet) should 

 yield an ample supply from early August until killing frosts. A 

 dozen Currant bushes, occupying a little more than a square rod 

 (say 300 square feet), should yield a bountiful supply for the year. 

 Gooseberry bushes produce even more abundantly. Ten square 

 rods (about 2700 square feet) of Red Raspberries should provide 

 an ample supply for the year. In many places Everbearing 

 Red Raspberries give satisfaction; and, where they do well, 

 may be planted instead of the early summer varieties, if pre- 

 ferred. Somewhat smaller areas of Black Raspberries and 

 Blackberries should yield abundant supplies of those fruits. 

 Dewberries are more exacting in soil requirements, and — unless 

 the soil be sandy or gravelly, or a sandy or gravelly loam — 

 may well be omitted as there is now a hybrid Blackberry that 

 is more productive, adaptable, and reliable, as well as equally 

 good and early. Twenty Grape vines, occupying a little more 

 than five square rods (1440 square feet), will supply the family 

 table from the time when the Delaware and Moore Early varie- 

 ties ripen for as long as the fresh fruit may be kept, besides 

 leaving considerable surplus for grape juice. 



The small fruit season opens with the Strawberries, usually 

 before the middle of June in the latitude of New York City; 

 the latest varieties being succeeded without a break, by Rasp- 

 berries, Gooseberries and Currants, followed by Dewberries. 

 Before the season of most of these is over, Blackberries are 

 ripening. Everbearing Red Raspberries and Strawberries suc- 

 ceed these and continue in bearing until hard frosts. 



In most years less than a quarter of an acre should provide 

 an abundance of small fruits and grapes for the entire fruit 

 supply of an average sized family, from strawberry time until 

 frost. It should also supply most of the canned fruit, jams, 

 jellies, etc., for the remainder of the year, if desired, with 

 frequently a surplus after these demands have been met. 



Tree Fruits 



MOST families attempting any sort of fruit garden will 

 wish to include one or several tree fruits. Sweet and 

 Sour Cherries begin ripening almost with the Strawberries, and 

 continue bearing for five or six weeks. Our earliest Plums start 

 to ripen a few days after the cherry season closes and the latest 

 varieties are not gone until October. Apples commence ripening 

 with the Plums, and those who have cold storage facilities within 

 reach, may enjoy home grown apples the year round. Pears 

 come in a few days behind apples and their season may last until 

 winter. Peaches of good quality begin to ripen within two 

 weeks of the end of the cherry season and continue into October. 

 To have varieties of these tree fruits ripening in succession 

 usually means a large surplus of fruit, unless one tree be top- 

 worked to two or more varieties, when a single tree will some- 

 times produce a supply ample for the year. The tree fruits also 

 lessen the quantity of the small fruits used. But, with neigh- 

 bors who appreciate the superiority of home grown fruits of 

 varieties that excel in quality, the larger the surplus the greater 

 the profit it should bring. If all of the kinds of 

 i tree fruits are to be grown in sufficient variety to 



k-g'\ insure an unbroken succession through as long 



a season as possible, between half and three 

 quarters of an acre of land will be needed. 

 This area may be reduced about one half 

 by choosing fewer var- 

 ieties or by working 

 two or more varieties 

 on the same tree. 



