Colorado Fruit Industry. 



[OCT., 



in Mesa, Delta and Montrose counties, apples, peaches and 

 pears are the staple fruits grown. On the eastern slope of the 

 - Rockies, in Fremont, Otero, Larimer, Boulder and Weld 

 counties, peaches and apples are also grown as well as small 

 fruit ; the country around Loveland, in Larimer County, is 

 noted for its superior raspberries and blackberries, and the 

 Rockyford district has established a well-earned reputation 

 for the excellence of its cantaloupes. 



All these fruits are grown at an elevation of from 4,000 to 

 6,000 feet. At any greater elevation satisfactory results are 

 not to be obtained regularly. The climate between the two 

 elevations above-named appears to be pre-eminently suitable 

 for the production of apples, peaches and pears in their finest 

 condition, both with regard to quality and size. The abundance 

 of bright sunshine accompanied by cool nights give a richness 

 and delicacy of flavour to the peaches which do not seem to 

 be excelled elsewhere. Consequently the district around 

 Palisades, in Mesa County, is considered the best in the whole 

 State for the production of this soft fruit. This coupled with 

 the fact that it is so sheltered by the surrounding mountains, 

 that killing frosts in the spring of the year are almost unknown, 

 has given the land a very great value, and raw unimproved 

 land with suitable water right sells to-day at from £40 to 

 ^60 per acre, whilst the price of a full bearing peach orchard 

 is £300 or over per acre. 



The district around Grand Junction is noted for the excellence 

 of its apples and pears; and the lat.r varieties of apples, such 

 as the Jonathan, Winesaps, York Imperials, Ben Davis, &c, 

 are much sought after and more eagerly bought than the 

 same varieties of apples grown in other States. The prices 

 paid for Colorado apples and pears are also much higher than 

 is obtained for the same varieties in other districts. 



Full bearing orchards are sold for from £160 to £240 per 

 acre. The reputation and high price of Colorado fruit has 

 become widely known, principally through the businesslike 

 action of the fruit growers themselves. Formerly fruit dealers 

 from the eastern cities and commission men used to buy the 

 crops from the individual fruit grower, and the manner in 

 which one fruit grower was played against the other always 

 had a tendency to keep the prices very low. The fruit dealers 



