Page:Popular Science Monthly Volume 44.djvu/222

212 as closely calculated. Floating estimates vary even more than the floating estimates of the acreage. Healthy, well-managed orchards probably average gross sales of $100 per acre, taking all classes of fruit together, and one season with another, but there are no reliable statistics of this side of the industry. Returning to an estimate of a present surplus of 600,000,000 pounds of fresh fruit, this at two cents (the average value in the orchards one year



with another) would yield the growers $12,000,000 and would probably cost the consumer $36,000,000. This does not include the value of the product of the wine grapes. It only represents the output of the gold mine of the orchards. Commercially, of course, the volume of business created is represented by the cost to the consumer.

Studies of the future of an industry are seldom useful. Planting of trees and vines continues steadily, and if there is a demand