THE GARDENING WORLD . 
January 10, 100:1. 
28 
Apple-growing for Profit. 
By F. W. MOOKE, A.L.S. 
(Concluded Jcom page 287, Vol. XIX.) 
(3) The question of how to plant requires consideration. Is 
the plantation to be a grass orchard, or a general fruit planta¬ 
tion! If a grass orchard, the permanent trees must be stan¬ 
dards of half standards, on the Crab' stock. They should be 
planted in rows 21 ft. apart, and between each tree a dwarf 
bush tree on the Paradise stock should be planted. These 
dwarfs should be moved, or cut out, about the tenth year, 
before which time they will have yielded a handsome profit. 
For several reasons, I am strongly opposed to meadowing 
orchard ground. I believe this practice has a most injurious 
effect on the trees, and the price got for hay is more than lost 
in the crop of Apples. It is much better to graze sheep, or 
small plantations may, with excellent results, be used as a 
“ run ” for poultry. 
If a general fruit plantation is to be made, dwarf bushes on 
the Paradise stock should only be planted. These should be 
12 ft. apart eveiy way, and if labour is scarce, an extra tree 
may be planted between each four trees, this extra tree to 
lie removed as the permanent trees grow. The advantages of 
dwarf bushes are that they come earlier into bearing, the fruit 
is easier to gather, and the fruit is less liable to be blown down. 
Between the rows bush fruit or Strawberries may be grown. 
For bush fruit I recommend Gooseberries and Black Currants. 
The following are the best Gooseberries for general cultivation : 
—Crown Bob, Keepsake, Langley Green, Lancashire Lad, 
Whinham’s Industry. The best Black Currants are Baldwin 
and Victoria. It is well to draw attention to the demand there 
has been in recent years for Black Currants—a demand which 
has far exceeded the supply. This year, both in England and 
iu Ireland, 40s. per cwt. has been the regular price for good 
Black Currants. 
A word may usefully be said as to the treatment of the 
trees. The branches should be shortened back before plant¬ 
ing, always cutting to an outside eye ; and the roots, where 
broken or injured, may also be cut back to where the -wood is 
sound. Growers should be careful not to plant too deeply, and 
spread the roots out in every direction. Manure should never 
lie given to young trees. Manure will not be necessary until 
the trees begin to carry crops; then regular and liberal manur¬ 
ing will be required. The second season’s pruning will consist 
in shortening back the gross shoots, removing ill-placed or 
superfluous shoots, and ensuring that the centre of the trees 
are kept open. Summer pruning is a debatable question, and 
although I advocate it, I believe the extent to which it is to 
be earned out is largely dependent on soil and situation. I 
think it is advisable to stop the shoots in July, especially in 
young trees. In fruiting trees veiy little pruning is necessary ; 
the fruit has a restraining influence on growth, and more leaves 
are required to provide material for forming fruit. 
All these details may have been carefully attended to, and 
yet the results may be unsatisfactory, although there may be 
a heavy crop, if special care is not given to gathering and 
marketing. Careless gathering, and, worse than careless, dis¬ 
honest marketing, can easily turn what should be a handsome 
profit into a dead loss. Apples must be very carefully handled : 
each fruit should be picked separately and placed in a tray 
or basket, to be carried to the packing shed or store. They 
should never be shaken off the trees or thrown into the recep¬ 
tacle. They are easily bruised and disfigured, the bruises turn 
black, and rot quickly sets in, and bruised and disfigured fruit, 
of course, demands but a poor price. 
The Marketing of Fruit. 
On all sides complaints are made about the indifferent way 
in which home-grown Apples are sent to the market. In 1895, 
Mr. George Munro, of Covent Garden, stated that Apples and 
Pears were w T orse packed than they were twenty years ago. 
But, above everything, it is the want of grading that is felt. 
American Apples are well packed and carefully graded, hence 
buyers know exactly what they are getting, and buy readily. 
Much of the home-grown fruit is sent to market loosely packed, 
in packages of varying capacity, and ungraded, simply as taken 
from the tree®, large and -small Apples mixed, or not infre¬ 
quently packed so that large Apples are on the top and small 
Apples underneath. This absence of system has been ruinous 
to the trade in home-grown Apples. English and Irish growers 
of repute who pack securely in uniform packages, boxes or 
barrels of known capacity, as the case may be, and who care¬ 
fully grade their fruits into firsts, seconds, and even thirds, 
have no difficulty in disposing of it at really good prices. A 
study must be made of the particular market to which con¬ 
signments are sent—a study of the most suitable package to 
use, and the capacity of that package—a study of the varieties 
most in demand—for there is a difference in the Dublin, Glas¬ 
gow, Liverpool and London markets; and if these points are 
attended to, fruit will sell well. 
Growers for market will find it much to» their advantage to 
use with first quality fruit a cheap, non-returnable package, 
which will be sold with the fruit, as the barrels in which 
American Apples are imported are sold. Grocers and retail 
dealers are more inclined to purchase fruit in such packages, 
as they are saved all further trouble', and the fruit can be sold 
direct out of the boxes or cases, without having to be unpacked. 
System of Storing Fruit. 
The method of storing Apples also requires consideration. 
An elaborate, expensively-built, fruit store is unnecessary. 
Apples keep best in a cool store-, which is not too diy, but which 
must be ventilated, and from which the light can be excluded. 
An old stable or store, with brick or concrete floor, is an ex¬ 
cellent place, and if lined with jpin. planks, such frost as we 
get in Ireland will do very little harm. Good broad shelves 
made of strips of wood, with small space between each, the 
shelves 12 in. apart, can be put up very cheaply. The smaller 
and firmer fruitxan be placed several layers deep on the floor. 
The large Apples should be placed in single layers on the 
shelves. Do not use straw or hay in storing. In case of frost 
keep doors and windows closed, and do not open the store for 
some days after a thaw. A little frost will not injure Apples 
if they are allowed to thaw slowly, and are kept from sudden 
changes. If kept in a bright or diy room Apples shrivel 
quickly, and get unattractive. They must not be put too near 
the roof, nor must they be allowed to touch the outer walls. 
A store with a wooden roof inside slates, or with a loft or 
packing room over it, is best, and, provided ventilation can be 
secured, Apples can be stored underground. 
When orchards are in full bearing they require additional 
attention. The trees must be fed both with stable manure 
and with artificial manure, to secure the best results. An 
excellent plan is to dress one year with stable manure, the 
succeeding year with chemical manure, and the third year to 
give a dressing of fresh lime over the surface, reverting to 
stable manure the fourth year. Both ground and trees must 
lie kept clean by constantly keeping weeds down, and each 
winter very lightly forking over the surface under the trees, 
not going deep enough to touch the roots. The trees can be 
kept clean and healthy by spraying. Spraying should be done 
in spring, before the buds open. Bordeaux mixture makes a 
good spray, and an excellent mixture can be prepared by dis¬ 
solving 1 lb. crude soda, 1 lb. caustic potash, fib. agricultural 
treacle, in 8 to 10 gallons of water : this will suffice for twenty 
fair-sized trees, if carefully used. In conclusion, I may remark 
that larger growers almost unanimously state, and market 
statistics prove, that a higher price is now given for good 
Apples than twenty-five years ago. 
F. W. Moore. 
DELAYS in the post may be avoided if you will, 
at once, alter the address of THE GARDENING 
WORLD in your books to 37 and 38, Shoe Lame 
London. E.C. 
