File:Cost of producing apples in Yakima Valley, Washington - a detailed study of the current cost factors involved in the maintenance of orchards and the handling of the crop on 120 representative bearing (14577514560).jpg

Identifier: costofproducinga614mill (find matches)
Title: Cost of producing apples in Yakima Valley, Washington : a detailed study of the current cost factors involved in the maintenance of orchards and the handling of the crop on 120 representative bearing orchards
Year: 1918 (1910s)
Authors: Miller, G. H. (George Harvey), 1884- Thomson, S. M. (Samuel Mable), 1891-
Subjects: Apples
Publisher: Washington, D.C. : U.S. Dept. of Agriculture
Contributing Library: U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Library
Digitizing Sponsor: U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Library

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3.10 $7.748.447.96 3.663.803.70 16.0714.2815.30 $4.023.573.83 $0.81.92.86 $4.834.49 4.69 North Yakima and Zillah districts. Management. Numberof irriga-tions. Man-hours. Laborcost. Watertax. Totalcost. 4.144.134.14 18.5015.8917.55 $4.633.97 4.38 $1.872.362 flfi $6.50 6.33 fi 44 COST OF PRODUCING APPLES IN YAKIMA VALLEY. 39 THINNING. Thinning is an annual practice of all orchardists visited in thevalley. (See fig. 7.) Usually it is begun during the month of June,shortly after what is known as the June drop. The time requiredfor this operation varies much, depending on the size of the crop,the variety, age, and size of tree, and the method adopted in thinning. The usual practice is to thin so that the fruit is well distributedover the tree. No set rule can be given, although the growers aimto leave only one apple in a place, partly for the reason that wheretwo apples touch each other a favorite opportunity is offered for thecodling-moth larva to work. The amount of thinning depends to a
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Fig. 7.—Thinning a 7-year-old Winesap tree in the Zillah district. Alfalfa is used as an intercrop andmulch crop here. Note the size of tree for its age. considerable extent upon the season. If the crop is light and theapples are borne in clusters, two apples sometimes are left in a place;but with a heavy crop and varieties which tend to small size, manymake a practice of thinning to 6 or 8 inches. Needless to say, witha large crop the work of thinning will be doubled or even trebled.Many times it is necessary to do more than one thinning during theseason, this being especially true of red varieties. Practically allthinning throughout the valley is done with thinning shears. Thetrees are of such size and age that most of the work may be done fromthe ground or from an 8- to 10-foot stepladder. The amount of thinning is governed not only by the size of thecrop but by the amount of pruning that is done. The cost of thinningoperations in the valley is 18.38 per cent of the total gross l

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