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Show Apple .Trees Are Cut by Millions Survey Shows Concentration inrFavorable Sections of Country (Prepared by the United Slates Department - of. Agricultural ) In twelve of the last fifteen years the average farm price of apples hai been below the general prewar wholesale whole-sale price level of all commodities. As the re&tult, millions of apple trees have been removed and others have been aeglected. From 1910 to 1U2T the num ber of apple trees lu the United States decreased nearly 40 per cent. Notwithstanding Notwith-standing the decline In the number ot apple trees, production of apples baa been practically maintained. These are some of the Important facts noted by the United States Department of Agriculture In an analysis tf the prospects pros-pects of the apple Industry. Recent changes and present tendencies, the department Indicates, promise a better bet-ter npp.roach to stability in the Indus try, but with the number of trees now planted, commercial production is expected ex-pected to continue at, a high level for several years. Production Increased. Though total upple production bus declined MIghtly since 1017, commercial commer-cial production has steadily Increased. Moreover, carlot shipments have In creased at an average of 4,000 carloads a year since l'JIS, and movements by motor truck have grown considerably. Increased production per tree has largely offset the decline in the num ber of trees. The department expects further Increases In ommerclal npple production during the next few years, accompanied of course by an Increase in the domestic demand resulting from population growth. The rate of in crease, according to the department, will be less than it was during the last ten years. The future appears somewhat brighter for the real com mercial giower who is favorably located locat-ed and who produces apples of high quality at low cost. Conditions in the Industry are changing so rapidly, however, how-ever, that success for the Individual grower requires attention to condl Hons throughout the country, as well as to the technical, .problems of his own orchard. Apple production Is a business In which ' long views are necessary. The orchard planted today will not return a revenue for seven or ten years. When It starts producing, however, it may be a source of Income for 30, 50 or 00 years, in the past this fact seems not to have been sufficiently suf-ficiently borne In mind, and overplant-ing overplant-ing has resulted. In a survey, started by the department, depart-ment, information has been obtained on the number of trees of differtut varieties and ages In the country as a whole and In different apple producing pro-ducing sections. Some of the outstanding outstand-ing facts revealed arc announced by M. R. Cooper, senior economist In the bureau of agricultural economics. Future of Industry. So thai the future of the apple industry in-dustry may be regionally considered, Mr. Cooper grouped 22 important apple ap-ple states In six divisions, largely according ac-cording to location, but partly accord ing to the number of varieties grown. These 22 states have about 74 per cent of all the apple trees of bearing age In the country. They produce about 81 per cent of the annuul apple output. In tho? western group of apple states (the Pacific coast and mountain states) apple production has Increased enormously enor-mously In the last fifteen years. These states from 190'.) to 1013 produced an nually about 10,000.000 bushels. Their average annual production In the years 1924 to 1028 was more than fil.OOO.. 000 bushels. In recent years apple production pro-duction In the western states has been fairly well stabilized, though many of the trees there have not reached their full bearing capacity. It seems certain that heavy Increases In production pro-duction In this region will not recur In the Immediate future. |