MONEY IN APPLES.

Tuapeka Times, Volume XLIV, Issue 5963, 24 July 1912, Page 3

MONEY IN APPLES.

£,700 'AN ACME. On a farm in Havclock' North, Hawko's Bay, there is an orchard in which there io an 'acre planted solely with Stunner Pippins, the best keeping apple known. There are only a hundred trees on the acre, and last season, wo are told,, the trees averaged 28 cases of -10'lb each of ripe fruit. If they were sold at tho moderate rate prico of 5s per case, or per lb, each tree .vould bring in VI, or .ClOu for the acre. The yield se, im to be phenomenal, but wo are assured that it can bo oihciaTy verified. The trees have been skilfully grown, and suitable ;.-but the striking thing about the matter is the great possibility it opens up for increasing tho country's resources of income With a few such orchards the local market would bo glutted ; but New Zealand growers have not to rely upon local There is already a considerable export of apples, which is capable of being expanded into verv large "proportions by regular supplies of iirst-cl-ass fruit, carefully graded for export. New (Zealand grown " keeping" apples >-.jach other countries at a time when no fresh fruit except that imported is available in thoso places, and, a s in the case of the export of our meat, butter, and cheese, there is plenty of room in the world's marmarkets lor all the fruit we can grow, if we grow the right kind, and send it out at the right time. The only drawback to tho industry is the labor question. It is generally somewhat difficult to secure sufficient assistance at harvest time, either for gathering in fruit or grain, and as soon as considerable employment is offering in orchards it is found that tho employees begin to talk of shorttor hours, iijore wages, and half-holi-days, when every hour may be important to the success of the. industry. This mak»s successful fruitgrowing a greater possibility for the small farmer or family man who can do all the 'work without relying upon outside labour at all. So far, the doubtful nature of the market has daunted fruit growers; their r.et returns . a re generally so very much smaller than the price at which apples are retailed lead them to expect. Tho middleman, railway charges, cartine;, &c„ seem to absorb all the possible profit, leaving to the grower his disappointment and vain labour. The opening up af the export. trade should prove some remedy for this, and probably the trouble' could be overcome altogether if fruit growers formed circles, after the, style of the Egg Circles, and got into- touch direct, with the retailors. The enoroub possibility in frril growing is illustrated by tho above report from Havclock, which seems to indicate that more money can be amide per acre fi-oni fruit than, from any other product of tho land. In the export of , apples the same preliminary trouble has been experienced as in the case of the, start of meat and dairyproduce export. The fruit had been badly [rraded or r.ot graded at all, and whole shipments have been condemned through some slight signs of blight in a single case. Sometimes the fruit is picked too soon and it withers, at others to 0 late and i it rots. There are points to \p learned, and we have experts in tho Agricultural Department able and eager to give all the best information availablo on all such matters. It means work, as! well a's skill, and energy and 'business aptitude,, to secure the best results, but the possibilities are all there in the orchard.