Arizona republican. [volume], May 23, 1915, SALT RIVER VALLEY, Image 23

About Arizona republican. [volume] (Phoenix, Ariz.) 1890-1930

Image provided by: Arizona State Library, Archives and Public Records; Phoenix, AZ

                
f
X
THE
EPXTB
AJN
TWENTY-FIFTH YEATl
12 PACES
PHOENIX, ARIZONA,
12 PACES
,VOL. XXV. NO. ?J2
nelhi Acr
tem
rnsaitaoini
s Crops
Uodler Awakemsng
Too
ich off I
lo Decidoous Frinlts audi Berries
Is Riclh Reward For Growers
Practically all of tlie principal de
ciduous fruits and berries thrive anil
are grown successfully in commercial
Muantities in the Salt River Valley,
"with the exception of cherries, goose
berries and currants. Following is
about the order in which they r;tn!;
in commercial importance: Apricots,
reaches, plums, pears, prunes, figs,
apples, quince, nectarines, pomegran
ates, strawberries, blackberries and
raspberries.
The apricot season opens nboo
May mth. with the New Castle ami
Prinsle varieties, followed by the
Tloyal. Rlcinheim. Tilton. Hemskirk
nd Voorpnrk. The Moorpnrk is the,
last to ripen, most of them .being ;
none by the middle of Julv. Th- '
Moorpark is the largest and l, -st fla- ;
cored variety, but is a nit her shy j
bearer. Royal and Bleinheim are very j
heavy producers of good high-grade 1
fruit, though not as large or of ,:s,'
Kood a quality as the Moorpark !
Apricots are very early bearers, pro- !
ducing considerable fruit the second j
year after planting, and a commercial
rop the third year. Individual trees
m full bearing frequently yield from
n nve nunured
of the best eating varieties of pears
the blight seriously affects their
bearing, but if proper care and at
tention is giving to cutting out the
blighted twigs, a good crop can be
obtained. The pear blight, is not so
serious in the valley as it is in more
humid climates, for the hot. dry sum
mer stops its work- The Keiffer
pe::r is the most important commer
cial variety. the P.artlett, Winter
Xel'.is, Winter Bartlett, I". Harry,
Anjou, and many other varieties also
being grown. Pears commence to
bear the fourth and fifth years after
being planted, and gradually increase
each year after that. The average
price received is about three cents
per pound on the local market. Sev-
eral cars of pears are shipped each i
year to California and eastern mar- '
kets.
Xot a great many prunes a''e be- ',
ihg grown in the valley. One lea-
son is that they are not very early
bearers, and for that reason and j
others, they have not been planted ,
extensively, although those that are
being grown do wonderfully well.
Figs grow almost as readily as
weeds and yield big crops (r deli
cious fruit. n account of the fruit
pounds nf fruit
overage price received hv ih ! being so tender they are difficult to
the
."vi ls net ween, two and
wits per pound, though some
rs probably realize better
three and one-half cents a
on me local market. Quite
-vt-iiiase oi the apricot
three i
ship, and
the va Hex-
row- I
than I
pound !
a large j
crop of i
! fere with
the
the
summer i
drying of
Sold
t WO
.-.nii'peu oy local ev.
Iress companies as far east as Chi
cago, the net price received for
them Ieing three to five cents a
pound, after paying four to five
cents a pound for express. There
is a good market for them
east, as at that time of the year
they are the only deciduous fruits on
the market, with the exception of
cold storage apples. They stand
shipment exceedingly well.
Peaches are distril
longer season than any other fruit,
for the earliest variety ripens the
latter part of May. and from that!
time until the middle or Xovemi.er '
different varieties are constantly I
npemnjj. Practically all of the
peaches are consumed by the local
and state markets, for eating fresh
and for home canning, and the aver
age price the season through is bet
ter than three cents a pound.
Peaches bear pome the second sea
son after planting and .commercially
after that. Individual trees in full
bearing yield from three to four
hundred pounds of fruit. In the past
two years there has been a consid
erable acreage planted to peaches of
canning varieties and also to apri
cots. Fifteen or twenty different van
of plums are raised commercially in
the Salt River Valley. Nearly all of
them are exceptionally heavy pro
ducers of quality fruit. The lead
ing commercial varieties are the
Shiro, Gold, Wickson. Satsuma, Gon
zales. Burbank, Orient, Santa Rosa.
Formosa, Climax and the Simon
I'lum or t-runus ssimoni, as it is j
generally called. The last two
named varieties are about the finest I
eaung varieties known, but both are
very shy bearers. Plums like apri
cots and eaches, bear some the sec
ond season, and commercially after
that, and are the heaviest producers
f any of the deciduous fruits. An
individual tree of the Shiro variety
on Hall Brothers' fruit ranch pro
duced a total of over 2300 pounds of
fruit in three years. the seventh,
eighth and ninth years after plant
ing. A few plums are shipped out
of the state, but practically all the
crop is consumed by the local and
state markets, the price averaging
around three cents per pounds.
Pears of some varieties do ex
ceedingly -well in the valley, espe
cially those varieties that are most
immune from the blight. On some
ams mter-
them as a
commercial proposition. Those
on the local market hiing from
to five cents per pound.
For a long time it was though that
the summers were too hot here for
growing apples, but many varieties
have been tested and have provn
to do exceedingly well, and now
there are several commercial or
chards of apples. on account of
the' warm weatner ami me aosenee
r irosi. tne apples oo not eoior
up as well as in the cooler climates,
but the quality is practically the
same as those grown in the cooler
climates. Apples bring from tare
to five cents tier pound.
Truck Farming Is
Ideal Chance To
Make Most of Land
Having been asked to give some of my
experience in truck farming in the Salt
River Valley. 1 will begin by saying j
that not everything undertaken has,
turned out as I wished, and the tilings
I shall speak of are those I have)
worked out to a successful finish. J
I have :i intention to mislead any- j
one. The figures given are what Ij
kept for my own benefit to prove i
which were the best crops to raise to
get the greatest results from the soil I
and obtain the most money on the i
market, and also which were handled'
with the least amount of cost render- j
ing to me the greatest amount of j
profit.
I have f irmed on what is known as I
"i inT wash", a sandy loam soil which
is adapted b all truck fanning. T have '
raised surii crops as melons, cante
loap. s, potatoes, gre en corn, onions, let-
tuce and other vegetables. Melons!
h.;ve brought me .ti.iU.hii per acre gross
retiri.s, anteloupos have done even
t letter. 'orn sold in roasting ears
have brou -lit $ piti.no ;ind Irish potatoes
nearly Sl'ii'i en. J!y farming Irish po
tatoes in the spring and green corn in
the t,,ll. i have reaped the best returns
with the least oust. I-ttuce, cabbage,
or ins :'n be grown in winter and a
ii corn or canteloupes in suift
v.Pich gives you the use of the
ihe entire yt.tr. I do not assume
y that I have alwavs obtained
"at
i jr
In the Salt Five- Valley are
THEIR PEDKJIJKKS AIM- STANDARD
many registered anim Is and the breeding r.tsio'ards are. constantly improving.
CITRUS PRODUCTS OF THIS VALLEY
COMMAND PREMIUM OVER OTHERS
ALFALFA ON HOOF
IS GOIH GETTING
COOP OF ARIZONA
400.000 Tons of llav and
100,000 Acres of Pasturo
Are Produced in Valley,
from January to December.
(By FOSTER ROCKWELL.)
Compare the Salt River Vally with;
its heat and cold as a habitat of the
ciange, the giv.pe fruit and tile lemon
with California and Florida districts
in price trial the Arizona Xavi 1 b;
virtue of its weii re- ognized sw.-et
ncss and early maturity obtains wit!
the t ndency to produce as w'eil a:
Caiifornia. trees of like a tie when v.
citrus culture
And we find ir
has flourished confine
so doing that prompt
i r
ha I
crop
', .ner.
i kind
to s:
I the.'t
: e"en
f"";
, here
!:
1 igtirc!
done b
the If
;:s t?ie. do in
or anvuhcie
or nu
tter on s
ner.ts fsi
rops. but I have
line occiisions. 1
cor as much
I
i orangf
t ion
j foijow
the r,
! b th
t rees wit
j Here
: bears bet
not
tlie oiing .rco.es
n the stability "f
:rn'WeI'S tile jl!(S-
ay here. it also
business demands
f the old grov,.s
f the unprofitable
i young pedigreed sto-k.
tgain the seedling lem(.n
er than the seedless. Thete
many lemons grown but
data t
a belief i
uiture and
tilat good
lion
replacing
the .Mississippi
else I have
VaT-read
of. Tiiere i:
ha'.; never
: on" thing more my crops
lacked for water when the
I
C,c. Jv7 -J J:- N fl' y-'C t" ' X ' V 4P- &
A CL'TTING EVERY SIX WEEKS
Four
crops in the stack
crops of alfalfa
in this picture, and a fifth ready to
is the average here, eleven the record.
cut. Five
i
Nearly every orchard has a few j supply was properly handled, nor have
quince trees and also nectarines. ; they kicked for sunshine. I have been
both of which do very well, but ! injured sometimes by a late frost in
neither of them are ranked as com- I the spring or an early one in the fall,
mercial fruits. Pommegra nates are : but not as often as when living in the
grown for hedges and are sold on I Mississippi Valley. From all experi
the local market and a few of them I enee and judgment, I would say the
east at a very profitable
are shipped
price.
The strawberry is one of the most
profitable of the small fruits, and
they are extensively grown for the
local and state markets. The prin
cipal varieties grown are the Klon
dike .Arizona Kver-bearing, Aroma,
I-ndy Thompson, Michael's Karly and
the Blue Ribbon. The Blue Ribbon
(Continued on Page Four)
chances for a man with good horse
sense, some capital anil health and
grit to win cut is as good in Salt River
Valley as anywhere else.
P. I. KDSOX.
Care Scottsdale Stage,
Phoenix, Ariz.
-ci-
Out of r.'MO automobiles in Ari-
; zona in 1S14, L'.lisS are registered in
j Maricopa county. The auto is now
a, necessity on the farm.
where
well.
it is better for comparison to di
vide the variiies grown here into
two classes; e. g. seedling and seed
less: the Jaffa orange varieties, tic;
Mediterranean Sweet, and the so
called seedling orange, the C'layson,
the Duncan Grape Fruit, these witu
'.he local Arizona and Villa Franca
It mon comprise one class w hile the !
Washington navel, the Marsh Seed- j their ipiaiity equals the best liiat
less Grapefruit and the Kureka lem- j California boasts. The existing low
on constitute the second. The first j tariff on lemons permitting vast Sici-
variety is characterized tor its many
seeds whih; the second matures with-
I nut seeds, bring practically seedless.
Ml seedling varieties produce regu-
lariy and well here. The net return
to the grower year in and year out
.exceeds that of the similar growers
j either in California or in Florida. But
I tlie tendency of the second class is
to seedlessness and somehow judging
from past performances some subtile
malign influence has been at work,
for the regularity and ysize of the
rop has left considerable to he do
sired. The Washington navel particu
larly taken throughout the valley has
not been a dependable performer as
to quantity produced. There are very
few bumper crops recorded, possibly
as low as one in five. Fortunately
its early maturity with its accomp
aning high market value somehow
has tended to further its popularity
hence its cultivation over the varie
ties that crop heavier and pay more
in the aggregate. The average pro
ductiveness of the Washington Xacel
tree here while somewhat below the
average )t California perhaps is not
a fair criterion wherewith to final
ly judge same. Some growers con
tend that maaiy trees in the old
groves were originally cull trees
which would not have been profit
able in any country. These have
never paid here and perhaps never
will. So upon the crop record of the
young groves now coming into bear
ing a fairer estimate of the value of
this variety for fiver valley orchards
can be had. Now a few young groves
have cropped on a par with Cali
fornia trees of same age.
Tf remains, then, that the premium I ducer
. iian importations, however, limits the
i -.n- nnt that profitably can be plant
ed here to an amount sufficient for
the iocal demand.
'("lie profit in growing grapefruit
' has been in some cases enormous.
The hi per cent increase in acreage
Planted thin year is inductive of its
'present popularity. It is marketed in
Arizona and 'alifornia for there is lit
tle fi.il grapefruit grown in the lat
ter slate. Then, too, California has
:a oca rant ine against Florida fruit as
a protection against possible spreading
of male larvae, that the fruit itself
i iiries even after the most thorough
'.vashing in the packing house. Ari
zona so fi r is entirely free from in
sect pest.?.
er.- s
1 , mmwwm
1 I
400,000 tons of alfalfa hay and
100,000 acres of alfalfa pasture are
produced in the Salt River Valley
from January to December, and al
falfa OX" TUB HOOF is Arizona's
biggest PROFIT CROP.
I First in importance in the dis
position of our surplus alfalfa has
been the fattening of range cattla
during the winter months on hay
and pasture, with tho development
during later years of alfalfa fed as
ensilage. The results of experiments
with the two methods show that
a combination of the two systems
brings the biggest profits. The fol
lowing statement will show values
and profits which are to be expected.
1 y this method.
Stock bought in the fall, having
an average weight at loading sta
tion on range of 950 lbs., will arrive
at the feed, yard with an average
shrinkage of 3 percent, and will bo
bought around 5;i to tic. Fed from
ninety to one hundred and twenty
days on a ration consisting of ten
pounds of hay, 20 pounds of ensilage
S pounds of grain, or a proper ra
tion of cotton seed meal and pas
turage, will show an average gain
of more than a pound a day, and a
proportionate spread in tho total
value per pound of beef; thus, with
a gain of 90 to i:!0 pounds per
steer for the season and selling at
from 7 to T'c, your financial state
mfnt on 100 steers will be about as
follows :
100 steers, 9O,.',000 lbs, at fie . . ?34"O.0i)
Freight, buyers commission,
etc I'O.f'O
SO tons hay, at $r,.00 130.00
20 tons barley or equal ration
of cotton seed meal 41m. no
100 tons ensilage 250. 00
Pasture 200.00
Labor aO.oO
Interest 4 months lfil.no
2 per cent loss ISO. 00
Total cost
Selling price of pit)
105,000 lbs., at 7c.
St971.00
steers,
$7012.00
A FN! TREE WORTH WHILE
ten year old fig tree in the orchsrd cf the Arizona Experimental
Fr.-rr. r.ear Phocr.ix.
Alfalfa The Wonder Plant
Of The Salt River Valley
Xet profit
This net profit
taken only
allowed a
feed used
beef, and
duceil the
fit in the
the other
$ fi41.no
you will notice is
after the feeder has been
fair market price for all
in the production of the
in the market so pro
farmer finds a good pro
production of alfalfa and
Ifalf,
Salt Ri
anil
is
a wond
r Valley
year r.
rfi:
County Fairs Are
Features Of Each
Midsu in merHere
am! p
and niu:
on the :
the
fat.
no 1
1 il
If;
A TYPICAL TRITCK OAR DEN
Where soil, water and climate jo in hands with the truck farmer.
I'nder the auspices of the Farmers
Institute of Maricopa County, there
has been held for some years past
a mid summer County Fair at which
has been exhibited the spring ,and
early summer products of the farms
of the valley. Three of these fairs
have been held in Phoenix, but the
fourth one. which is to be held this
summer goes to Mesa.
Fach year the fair has been held
in Phoenix the display has been
arranged along the north side of
the City Hall upon a series o
bench booths provided for the oc
casion. Here have been grouped in
attractive vegetables and fruit of the
temperate zone. with not a few
snrinklings of semi-tropical growths.
I A woman s department has been
I ducted in connection with the
' play and splendid examples of
i inary art have been shown, as
' as the product of the poultry
jand the dairy.
1 Assisted by the generosity of the
'phoenix merchants, together with no
lew" prizes added by outside com
munities and interested foreign or
ganizations, a most attractive list
of premiums have been provided each
year and in consequence the rivalry
for those which are. valuable in more
ways than one, resulting in
ber of entries second only
number of Maricopa county
in the Agricultural division
State Fair.
The regular Farmers' Institute
work is carried on during the two
days of the exhibit which has gen
erally come at the last of the week.
I have grow p.
years. I lores
ordinary work
in good condition
often getting too
with dairy cows Alfa!
handled so-as to give :;tf
r.t least ten months and
sons twehe. T!iey will
milk fed on it than any
plant I know of. They d
to tire of it either as
green fodder or pasture.
Calves, gr.nvin-,' stock
cattle- do well on it; ait
is an ideal feed for b.vc
1
for
::i d-
ami
tlie ;
fi
turned out on
plenty of clean wab
i get too fat but w ill
I condition to !m e th
! pigs make profitable,
the last six weeks
fed on grain. in
eon-dis-cul-well
pen
a pasture plant but here es-
1 peciaily, on light soils it stands pa-s-i
luring well. 1 have seen fields pas-
titled the year round and not hurt
I but it must not be. fed too closely,
j H seems natural to the soil even
I en nev,- desert land. "When watered
j and properly put in it will grow
1 a ml do well. As a hay producei
i it will make from six to ten tons'
I of cured hay per acre, according
'to the stand and condition of the
i land. The most important thing to
j insure a good crop continuously is to
j have the land well levelled so the
i water will cover it. The first seven
j years I lived in this valley I sold hay
beef j from ?10 to $14 V. ton. The last two
11 j years hay is cheaper, running from
sows. If I $7.50 to S10. This I think will result
alfalfa pasture and jin good for the valley as the ranchers
r they will not are turning their attention to dairy
be in a healthy I ing and feeding stock which will
ir pigs. Young t bring better returns. I am planning
pork on it, but j to feed my alfalfa on the ranch.
uid lie i K. S. TOWXSEX1),
1 in I
lro
crop. nine
the
keep
mud,
:amo
can be
feed for
mi.' S'a
ve more
ingle
--eem
hay.
her
not
di y
tli
an.l
. pig
d
on
she
many places
n:-
South side of the River.
feeds used to produce a,
balanced ration.
Along the line of more intensive
farming, the feeding of alfalfa to
dairy stock, means the greatest pro
ductivity for every acre of alfalfa,
and the greatest value for every ton
of hay.
With cows producing- 25 pounds 'if
four per cent milk per day. and but
ter fat selling at ""c, the average
price in the Salt River Valley, alfal
fa hay and pasturage, will produce
the following results with a herd of
ten cows:
Milk produced per day, lbs.... 250
liay fed. lbs. per day 300
Sold f:s butter fat and skim fed
to hogs together with alfalfa
10 lbF. butter fat $3. CO
"40 pounds skim at 20c 4S
SX4S
or a value for each ton of hay sold
as butter fat of $23. 00.
Hogs, sheep, chickens, turkeys and
ducks, find alfalfa a natural feed,
and kept in connection with dairy
stock, transmute the emerald green
of our evergrowing fields of alfalfa,
into the golden coin of your l.ncie
Sa in.
a num
to the
entries
of the
-
: a M V.-.
5- r
Wherever
IN THE SHADE OF THE COTTON WOODS
1 the
one goes in the Valley there are trees a lonq the citv streets. lininn the cnunW rrfs
guarding the canals, patrolling ranch and orchard, are the lovely shade trees ash. olive. Cot
tonwood, eucalyptus, pepper and palm.
V