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About Morning Oregonian. (Portland, Or.) 1861-1937 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 1, 1908)
8 THE MORNING OREGONIAX. WE Triic Sprfinn . nf Orpioron is Fast . Mw.w.. w- C Regaining the Reputation It Enjoyed , - iftM IAMKrwy VMT!f r)r,NM HOME' OPTfSB r . big ! ' By J. C Couper. T1IK Willamette Vallry has aga-ln come into her own as a producer of apples of the highest quality. In pioneer days this beautiful valley -was known an "the. land of big red apples," because of the luscious quality and the exquisite form and eolor of its fruit. Hut the great development of the fruit industry in California and the lack of transportation to more distant centers robbed the valley of its markets. Then the Interests of the farmers became so varied that those old orchards were neg lected, forgotten and soon passed Into a ghostly semblance of their primal glory. But .with ample transportation facili ties; the opening of new markets and the neglect of trees In the apple-growing sec tions of the Eastern and Middle States, ' new commercial ' orchards have been planted In many localities' throughout the valley. The recent apple fair held In Portland has demonstrated conclusively that apples of the very highest grade are raised In the valley, and growers have become Infused with new vigor and en thusiasm for their work. A new Inter est is lent to the planting of trees, and several thousand acres will (be planted in the valley this Winter. Many resi dents of other apple-growing sections are flocking Into the valley, attracted by the magnificent showing of fruit made at the November fair, and the next two years promise to be record-breakers In the planting of apple trees. - The largest commercial orchards In the Valley are the Wallace orchard, in Polk County, managed by C. A. Park, and the Lownsdale orchards, in Yamhill. The m narly juays 1 it - :- : : . T : -- : - ,-.T.;-.. 1 Wallace orchards are almost wholly of Spitzenbergs and are great producers of high-grade fruit. The crop of 1907 was very light, but in IflOS 15.000 boxes were marketed through Hood River channels. Mr. Park expects an enormous crop on his trees this year and is making ex tensive preparations for handling it by up-to-date methods. The paraphernalia of a large apple or chard, the complex operations during the Summer season, the pageantry of gather In and caring lor the fruit after it leaves the tree are as spectacular as in any .of the large orange groves of the South. The great u36-acre orchard of M. O. Lownsdale. of Lafayette, Or., is a fine example of advanced method and system In orchard operations, and probably con tains more labor-saving devices than any orchard on the Coast. This is in fact the largest individual apple orchard west of the Rocky Mountains, and to the de velopment and carrying to .maturity of this great undertaking its owner has de voted the best years of his life. The orchard consists of Baldwins. Ppitzenbergs, Yellow Newtowns and Ben Davis the leading, commercial apples of the wrhj. The chief characteristics of the fruit of Yamhill County, where this orchard is situated, are the great size and beauty of 'Baldwins, the brilliant scarlet and high flavor of Spitzenbergs, the solidity and at the same time juici ness of Yellow Newtowns and the excep tional keeping quality of all varieties. Many innovations and improvements have been devised by Mr. Lownsdale. in cluding new cultivators, new methods of spraying, the handling of a crop by ma chinery after It reaches the warehouse, new methods of storing fruit and of handling it in the warehouse, new styles of packing to present fruit in 'the most attractive manner to the buyer. Mr. lownsdale is a pVst master in these mat ters and is a leader in all that pertains to the apple business. His methods are copied widely by apple-growers through out the. state. The romance of a crop begins in Mr. Iownsdale's orchard when five spraying machines, mounted on wagons, with tiieir crews and attendants, are among the trees just previous to blooming time. A crew consists of two men spraying from a platform over the engine, seven feet from the ground, and one man following the team with a lead of hose to spray underhanging fruit, and what is missed by the overhead men. Another "man with a team delivering spraying material to the tireless engine complete the crew. Three sprayings are given during the Summer in this orchard, though many sections have hitherto thought it neces sary to spray six and seven times. Thin ning of overloaded trees, constant culti vation and watchfulness during the Sum mer; great care in picking fruit and in hauling to the warehouses, make it nec essary to employ an army of men and women, whose handling of the several operations are intricate as well as stately. All fruit is thoroughly washed and grad ed by specially constructed machinery before being stored. This is an innova tion found n no other apple warehouse in the world. The apples are stored on ventilated trays, through which circulate draughts of air, controlled by special in ventions of Mr. Lownsdale. This care ful work is the secret of the keeping of fruit by Mr. Lownsdale until apples from other orchards are off the market, en abling him to secure high prices for his output. There is no question about the keeping quality of the Willamette Valley apple if it is properly handled. Apples in this valley are of extremely high flavor, which is due -to the extraordinary amount of juice and spicy oils they secrete. After the apples have been stored on ventilated trays, through which is a whirl of draughts, they soon begin, to sweat. The draughts take care qf the moisture by rapid evaporation and soon anoil ar pears on the surface of the fruit, giving 1t an appearance of having been dipped In varnish. This is the fruit's preserva tive. These jspicy oils and juicy secre tions (the very elements that produce delicacy of flavor), if given off while apples are stored in bulk, will tend, to hasten the ripening of fruit. But if tiaporatlon be provided for by "proper methods of handling draughts these high flavored apples will keep longer than the drier fruit of many localities. "When the fruit is brought from the orchard It is emptied into a vat of water, whence it passes Into a revolv- ng brusher, a machine six feet in dia meter, which, revolving under water; carries and turns the fruit over and over among a combination of brushes and then dips it out where It is run over a sizing machine. The fruit is then clean and free from evidences of spray and other objection's bt matter. It is then carried, to the sorti'is tables where off-grades are taken out, to be sent to the evaporator. Prunes are sorted as to variety and put upon trays to be run into the ware house, where they are stacked upon each other, 30 high, to await the pack ing season, which ordinarily com mences after January 1. McLownsdale claims to produce the highest type o Spitzenbergs grown on the Coast. : which means in the world, and his fruit is well known among the commercial handlers. , The apples from this orchard are taken "year after year by the same customers who ex press great satisfaction with them and with the daintiness of their pack. A recent letter to him said: "Your mag nificent fruit is packed superbly. In fact, during our 30 years' of handling apples, we have never seen as fancy a pack of fruit," Mr. Lownsdale's crop was very light last season, but this scarcity was general all over the United States and prices for fancy fruit ruled very high. Mr. Lownsdale sold his fanciest Spitzenbergs for $5 and his next size for $4 per box.. "Yet," he said recently, "the quality "of "fruit this year is - not up to the average apples are too large, too fat, and abnormal physical conditions of fruit are everywhere evident. It is a mistake to say that because the crop was light It would be of high quality give me a tree comfortably filled and normal in all conditions and I will alwavs gather from it the fanciest fruit." Mr. Lownsdalo. is the president of the Willamette Valley Apple-Growers' Association and has been the most potent factor in bringing the Willam ette Valley to the front rank as an apple-producing section. . APPLES IN LINCOLN COUNTY By C. B. CroHno. AT this time the world's consumers of good apples are looking to Ore gon' for their supply, and thus creating t hearty rivalry between the different-). sections of Oregon as' to which locality produces the best . apples. Lincoln County does not lay claim to the ban ner nor profess to produce the best, but Is proud to be recognized as part of Oregon, and its locarion places our county In the ranks as a producer of good', sound appies as good as the best on a commercial scale. Being situated on the western slope of ,the Coast Range, facing the Pacific Ocean, the codling moth and worms that are the pests of other sections are unknown in Lincoln County Once our people planted only small orchards for family use; there are many such orchards in Lincoln County. A number of these orchards have been bearing annually "heavy crops of fine apples for over 3J years, with little or no care or cultivation. The bodies of these old trees are as smooth as the alders, with no moss .or dead limbs to mar the beauty of tho tree. The fruit each year is large, sound and well colored; no trace of worms or other pests a test sufficient to prove that Lincoln Countysis simply immense In its possibilities. But the idea of commercial orchards is new toour people. In J906 a. few carioads. of apples were shipped., -This Winter 14 ears are being sent over the- Corvallis & Eastern Railroad, and large quantities have been sold to con sumers in Portland and the Valley to people who appreciate a good thing when they see it. One man who is shipping ten cars would ship twenty were it not for the recent little panic. He brands each box of apples with Ills name, locality, and guarantees thu fruit sound and free from worms. O.ur people are coming to a glad awakening regarding the great possi bilities of the country tributary to Yaquina Bay. and are planting com mercial orchards and incorporating a horticultural unjpn to work for better pruning, cultivation, packing -and mar keting of their apples. Our appKs grow without Irrigation. All varieties known in Oregon do wefl here, though the hill and bench lands raise the best apples. We have thousands of acres of such lands, which are still cheap and can be easily -cleareo. . In one three-acre orchard on Yaquina River, last season, there were packed 1X34 boxes of shipping apples. The owner also sold 200 bushels of apples out of the same orchard to peo ple in the Willamette Valley who de sired an apple they could eat in the dark. Vet this orchard had very little care. With what nature has done for' us and with cheap land, a good harbor and a railroad, the prospects for apple growing in this district are very bright. S. G. Irvine, of Xewport, made an exhibit of apples at the recent fruit fair at Albany, and though his exhibit was in competition with an extra fin! display, it attracted much attention and had the favorable mention of various Willamette Valley newspapers.. ex PANORAMIC VIEW OF EXTENSIVE COMMERCIAL PEACH ORCHARDS NEAR THE DALLES, OREGON, THE COLUMBIA RIV m K.S.tijg':'j'-:---M tt if . sti a