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THE FRUIT-GROWERS GUIDE-BOOK

The Fruit-Growers

Guide-Book

BY

E. H. FAVOR

Associate Editor
THE FRUIT-GROWER

Published by

THE FRUIT-GROWER

St. Joseph, Mo.
1911

Copyrighted 1911

by

THE FRUIT-GROWER
St. Joseph, Mo.

PREFACE

.This little book has been prepared as a means of as-
sisting many persons who have answered the call "back to
the land," and who are undertaking the growing of fruit
on a commercial scale. It is not intended as an exhaus-
tive treatise on fruit growing, as such is manifestly im-
possible within the size of such a book. Neither is it ex-
pected to tell all that is to be told about fruit growing.
Its purpose is to serve for the guidance of the beginner and
as a handy reference manual for the busy orchardist.

The foundation upon which this little book is based is
the many letters which reach the office of The Fruit-
Grower, containing inquiries about many phases of fruit-
growing. These inquiries come from all parts of the United,
States and from Canada, and cover almost every phase of
horticultural work, although in preparing this book only
the general problem of growing the ordinary deciduous
orchard fruits has been considered. This problem has been
considered in a very general way without specific direc-
tions for any particular fruit. Where details for a given
fruit have been needed, the treatment of the subject has
been boiled down to as concise a form as possible.

497702

6 Preface

The present age is witnessing a remarkable advance-
ment in fruit growing, as well as all other lines of agricul-
ture. This development is coming about through the fact
that greater individual attention is being given to each
line of work. Fruit-growing has been largely a matter
incidental to the general line of farming. But as it is the
specialist in any line who succeeds, so it has come that the
business of growing fruit has been drawing away more and
more from its connection with other phases of farming.
This very fact is one of the great reasons for the rapid
advancements which have been made in orcharding. So
rapid is the advancement in fruit-growing that the pro-
gressive orchardist must be continually on the alert to keep
up with the new ideas and practices which are being devel-
oped. Ten years ago the box as an apple package was prac-
tically unknown. The spraying machine was a novelty and
was looked upon with suspicion; fruit-growing under irriga-
tion was a novelty in the extreme arid cold storage plants
were rare. Even so recent as three years ago, but few fruit-
growers had ever heard of really effective means of beating
Jack Frost at his own game. But the orchard man of the
hour knows how to spray effectually, how to pack his fruit,
how to fight frost; recognizes all of these things as vital
factors in the management of his business.

The facts which are outlined in this volume have been
culled and compiled from many of the important articles
which have appeared in the columns of The Fruit-Grower
during the past two or three years, as well as from some
of the bulletins which have issued from the Bureau of
Plant Industry of the United States Department of Agri-
culture and the State Experiment Stations. These articles

Preface 7

have been condensed and only the essential facts retained,
to bring them within the space of one small book. The
publishers have for a long time felt the need for such a
book as this, and it is their hope, as well as the hope of
the writer, that it will be of assistance to many persons in
paving the way for more profitable orchards and better
homes.

January, 1911. E. H. FAVOR.

Contents

CONTENTS

Page
Chapter I — The Orchard 15

Chapter II — Orchard Heating .-,;.•« 48

Chapter III — Thinning and Harvesting 64

Chapter IV— Packing 76

Chapter V — Spraying , Ill

Chapter VI — Orchard Pesj;s and Diseases 134

Chapter VII— Principles of Pruning 173

Chapter VIII — Profits in Fruit-Growing 199

Chapter IX — Small Fruits 204

Illustrations 11

ILLUSTRATIONS

Page

Wash through deep soil 16

A compact orchard community 25

Diagram of orchard planted in squares 28

Diagram of orchard planted in triangles 30

Diagram of an orchard planted with "fillers" 39

Troutman oil burning heaters 51

Filling "Ideal" coal burning heaters 55

Peaches at right stage for thinning 65

Apples at right stage for thinning 66

Interior peach packing shed 90

A nicely faced barrel of apples 93

Apples are usually barreled in the orchard 94

General appearance Hamilton grading machine 99

Upper end of the machine 100

The belts of the grader 101

Looking down on the belt 103

Four tier apples packed "straight." 104

Beginning the pack 107

Finished box, 4^ tier apples 108

Starting the straight and diagonal pack 109

Barrel spray outfit 112

Power sprayer in operation 115

High pressure spraying machines and refilling tank... 117
Convenient arrangement for mixing spray material. .. .120

Woolly aphis : 135

Galls produced by woolly aphis 136

Codling moth . 140

Plum curculio . ..142

12 Illustrations

Apple curculio 144

Flat headed borer 145

Apple blossoms at stages for spraying .159

Strawberry leaf spot 172

Long stubs left in pruning 177

Large wounds properly made 180

Apple tree with open-top 184

Good arrangement of branches in young peach trees ..186

Three branches in head of peach tree 187

Average type of peach tree 188

Open head on peach tree 190

Low headed peach tree with open top 191

Dewberry trained to a post 197

Crops between trees 200

Tomatoes as a catch crop 202

Currant cuttings 209

Grape cuttings 214

Black raspberry cane with rooted tips 221

Strawberries for planting 230

Old strawberry plant 232

Strawberry flowers 236

Wide matted rows of strawberries . . 238

Portable canning outfit 241

A fine young apple orchard in the irrigated country. . . .250

Apple grafts 258

Long and short scions 259

Right and wrong way to plant a graft 260

Pear graft and scions for cleft-grafting 261

A top-worked apple tree 263

Budding sticks 266

Budding peaches 268

Irrigating an apple orchard 277

"BROTHER JONATHAN"

Trade Mark of The Fruit- Grower

St. Joseph, Mo.

Soils fch 'an* Orchard -^ , -; j - 15

CHAPTER I

The Orchard

One of the first questions that confronts a person who
is starting an orchard is the problem of where to put it.
It is true that fruit trees will grow and thrive under a
variety of conditions, but there is always one which is best.
This condition is based on such factors as the soil, site, lo-
cation, kind of fruit that is to be grown and markets that
are to be supplied.

Soils for an Orchard

Apple trees will grow on a great variety of soils, but
they do best on well drained, deep, rich clays and loams.
The early summer apples do well on light sandy soils,
because they ripen their fruit before the dry weather of
summer reduces the amount of available soil moisture.
Late maturing varieties can be made to ripen their fruit a
little earlier by planting on warm soils, such as the lighter
clays. Late apples do best on heavy soils, as such are
usually more retentive of moisture. Excessively rich soils,
such as some of the muck lands of the Northern and East-
ern states, will produce very rank-growing trees, but they
will not be very good fruit producers, as the energy of
the trees is spent in producing wood. On such soils there
is the added danger of the wood growth being so soft at
the time winter comes that the branches will be severely
frozen back.

Orchard soils should be rich, however, as it takes a
great amount of soil fertility to supply the necessary ele-
ments to build up the wood in the tree, and this must

16 i c t .« vvThe.Rruit-6rowerzj Guide-Book

always ^ be -<l-one ^before -fire" fruit can be developed. Nur-
sery trees are very hard on the soil, and for this reason
nurserymen know that it is necessary to fertilize their
lands very thoroughly, as by that means only can they
produce good, strong and vigorous trees. If trees con-

m

A wash through deep soil. Such a soil is ideal for fruit,
as it allows the roots to penetrate to a great depth.

tinued to grow as thriftily in the orchard as they do in the
nursery, there would be a thousandfold greater returns
from the orchard than there are today. A very large pro-
portion of the trees that are planted in the orchard today
are lost by starvation before they reach bearing age. A

New Land 17

soil which has been cropped to death and worn out before
being planted to trees is not suitable for orchard land until
after it has undergone several years of soil improving
culture.

New Land

New land is very -desirable for an orchard, and especial-
ly land which has just been cleared of a heavy growth of
timber. The decaying foliage and roots of the forest
growth leaves the soil with a generous supply of humus,
and will produce a luxuriant growth of wood in the young
trees. However, the land should be freed from all stumps
and roots before the orchard is planted, as this work is
done more easily and cheaply while the entire area is open
and free for the movement of the teams necessary in clear-
ing the land.

In lands that are covered with a growth of scrub oak
there is much danger from root rot becoming troublesome
and planting immediately after the timber is removed is
not advisable. In any land from which the timber has just
been removed it is always best to put the grotfnd into
some cultivated or soil building crop such as corn, pota-
toes, clover or cow peas for a couple of years before plant-
ing the trees.

Stony land is not at all objectionable for orchards, as
on steep slopes the stones help in protecting the soil from
excessive washing, and no doubt help materially in warm-
ing up the soil in the spring. A stony soil is usually a
well drained soil. On lands which have a very steep slope
the stones can easily be made into terraces below the trees
or they may be placed in the form of terraces between
each two rows of trees. Unless the soil is very thin stones
may be considered as a benefit rather than otherwise, be-
cause of the value they are to the land in assisting in drain-
age and in protecting the soil from washing.

Where virgin soil cannot be had for the orchard, only
rich land should be used. An orchard will occupy the land
for many years, and very thorough preparation should be
given before the trees are planted. Never set the trees

18 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

on poor or dry land, for if they do start they are so
stunted that it is next to impossible to ever get them to
make a satisfactory orchard. Lands which have been used
for grain crops for several years, without the addition of
plenty of manure, or green manuring crops, should not be
planted until the soil has been built up. Old pasture lands,
while possibly rich in fertility, should be in some culti-
vated crop for at least one season before planting to or-
chard, so as to get the soil into better tilth. It is always
cheaper and easier to prepare land for an orchard before
the trees are planted than afterwards.

Before trees are set in an orchard the land should be
deeply and" thoroughly plowed and put into the best pos-
sible tilth. In soils that are excessively stony, or in which
it is very expensive to plow the entire area, a strip through
the field where the rows are to stand should be made, and
the soil worked deep. In case the soil is shallow, and un-
derlaid by a hardpan, it is always desirable that a subsoil
plow follow the furrow after the turning plow, so as to
break up the hardpan immediately under the trees, and let
the young roots penetrate as deep as possible, thereby in-
creasing their feeding area, and affording a better anchor-
age for the trees.

Selecting a Site for the Orchard

The site of the orchard has great influence on its fruit-
fulness, and in a commercial orchard the site needs due
consideration with reference to the surrounding condi-
tions, such as the slope of the land, and the direction it
faces, the nearness to a large body of water or high bluff
or mountain, etc. For the home orchard the site is often
predetermined, and the orchard has to be planted on what-
ever land is left after the house and lawn have been pro-
vided.

For a commercial orchard it is always to be desired
that the orchard should be somewhat elevated over the
surrounding country, in order that free air drainage be
secured, and thereby reduce the tendency toward late
spring frosts. In many instances this will give material

Selecting a Site for the Orchard

19

assistance in preventing frost in the late spring, as it is
well known that cold air is heavier than warm air, and
flows to the lower levels. To get the benefit of' this air
drainage, the orchard must be on high land with lower
land immediately near, such as a ravine or valley. Hill
tops afford the most ideal positions as regards air drainage
and if other conditions are satisfactory make excellent lo-
cations for orchards.

Rolling- land, such as this, gives good air drainage and
furnishes a good orchard site.

Northern and eastern slopes are regarded as best for
apple orchards, owing to the fact that they are slower in
warming up in the spring than slopes in other directions.
This condition results in retarding the blooming period of
trees, and is often sufficient to avoid injury from frost in
many seasons. A site facing the direction of the prevail-
ing winds will often have a marked influence on the less-
ened damage from frost in spring. This is especially true
of those sections in the mountainous states where there
are strong canon winds, as the constant movement of the

20 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

air prevents frostiness. Soils on the northern and eastern
slopes are generally deeper and richer than those found
on southern or western slopes, possibly because the sun
cioes not strike such slopes so directly and does not burn
out the humus so quickly.

Southern slopes are earlier and permit of a longer
growing season. Trees which are situated on southern
exposures receive more sunshine, and usually develop
fruits of higher color than on the north and east. In
regions where the growing season is short, it is always
best to select a strong southern exposure for the orchard.
In high altitudes this fact is often of great importance, as
any element which will prolong the season for late apples
and induce them to take on their full color should be fav-
ored. Early varieties in high altitudes will usually mature
on northern or eastern slopes.

The soil on southern and western slopes is usually
drier than on the opposite sides, and for this reason it
frequently happens that fruits from orchards having strong
southern or western slopes is smaller than from orchards
on the other sides. The dryness of soils on southern ex-
posures may be easily controlled by the use of manures
and cover crops, together with intelligent cultivation and
handling of the soil.

Large bodies of water, either a lake or river, has an
ameliorating influence upon the climate in their immediate
vicinity. Orchards on lands which slope towards large
bodies of water are more immune from radical atmos-
pheric changes. The slope on the side of such body of
water towards which the prevailing winds blow is prefer-
able, because the air in passing over the water becomes
modified in temperature and its moisture content is in-
creased.

Location for a Commercial Orchard

The location of a commercial orchard is a matter that
varies widely with the local conditions, and is dependent
largely on the part of the country, nearness to transpor-

Location for a Commercial Orchard 21

tation and market, condition of the soil and water, alti-
tude, latitude and climate and the kind of fruit to be grown.
In selecting a location for a commercial orchard it is
always best to get into a community where fruit is being
grown commercially,' as in such a location there will always

This orchard, situated on rolling land and right along
the railroad, has all that could be asked for in the way of
site and location.

be found the right conditions for that particular kind of
fruit, as well as persons who are acquainted with the lo-
cality and able to give reliable advice.

With a commercial orchard, about the first consider-
ation is the transportation facilities. It is always best to
get where .there are satisfactory means of carrying the
product to market, and where one can have the advantage

22 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

, of competing lines, such as two or more railroads or steam-
boat lines. It is true that transportation lines will enter
any section where there is business for them, but it takes
many thousands of acres of fruit to produce enough busi-
ness to induce a railroad to build into one's territory. It
is always best to locate the markets and ways of reaching
them, and then the location of the orchard can be more
easily selected.

In the eastern portion of the United States it is less
difficult to get easy means of reaching one's market than
it is in the far western states, and in such locations the
matter of transportation may not be of such serious im-
portance, as soil which is adapted to the particular kind
of fruit that it is desired to grow. For the general run of
our orchard fruits, soils which are not excessively wet, or
too very sandy, will serve, although this may be varied to
some extent under local conditions.

Altitude and latitude will affect the possibilities of com-
mercial orcharding, directly as it influences the climate.
In most of the mountainous sections of the country, how-
ever, fruit growing cannot be carried on at an altitude
much above 6,000 feet, as the growing season is generally
too short for a crop of fruit to be matured. Climatic con-
ditions influence the variety of fruit that may be grown,
although the greatest orchard fruit, the apple, is grown in
every state in the union and in every country in the world.
It, however, has its climatic limitations as a commercial
crop, doing better where the winters are cold and the sum-
mers not too long and hot. In the Southern states the
possibilities of apple orcharding are more limited than in
the Northern states, and the list of varieties confined more
particularly to the summer, or early maturing kinds.
Peaches have limitations of much the same kind, as some
types of peaches, the Peen-to especially, cannot be grown
with satisfaction outside of the extreme southern Gulf
coast country.

The distance of the orchard from the shipping point
has an influence in the location of the orchard, as the labor
of transporting the fruit to the shipping point reduces the
profits, and increases the danger of spoiling the fruit by

Preparing Land for an Orchard 23

bruising. In some of the Western states, where the fruit
growers are well organized into compact communities, the
growers find that it is best not to get farther than three
miles under general conditions from the shipping point
when peaches are to be handled. The apple grower, on the
other hand, can get farther away than that, and the grower
of strawberries may not profitably get so far away. Where
the fruit producing area extends to a distance of several
miles away from the railroad station, spur tracks can
sometimes be constructed to reduce the distance.

If one is not acquainted with the possibilities of any
particular location, when it comes to selecting the fruits
for a commercial orchard, it is always best to consult with
someone who is able to give the desired advice. Many
mistakes can be thus avoided.

Preparing Land for an Orchard

A serious mistake that is commonly made in planting
an orchard is to be in too great a hurry. An orchard is
planted to last for years, and undue haste at the beginning
will generally result in a shorter life for the trees. This
great hurry to get the orchard planted is most apparent in
lack of preparation of the soil. It takes time to put any
soil in the best condition to receive the trees, and fre-
quently,-to get the trees planted as cheaply as possible,
they are put into the ground before the soil is ready to
receive them. This is especially true when orchards are
planted on land from which the native growth has just
been removed.

Land that is to be planted to orchard should be under
cultivation for at least two years before the trees are
planted, and especially so on lands which have a heavy
growth of timber. With such land all of the stumps and
roots should be removed, and this can be done at a much
smaller expense before the orchard is planted than after-
wards. New land is always hard to cultivate, because of
the roots which sprout and try to grow, and among young
orchard trees such sprouts cause endless trouble until they
are removed. It is best on" such new land to plant some

24 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

crop that must be cultivated, such as potatoes, corn, sugar
beets or cotton, and follow this the second year with a le-
guminous crop, such as cowpeas, soja beans or crimson
clover. The cultivation necessary for such a crop as pota-
toes will keep the soil so continually disturbed during the
first summer that many of the roots will be dragged out
and few of them will have a chance to grow. The heavy
growth made the next season by the leguminous crop will
so shade the soil that any sprouts that appear will be
smothered out, so that they can make but little if any
growth. This crop of legumes should not be cut for hay,
but turned under, where their fiber will become humus.
Most soils are deficient in humus, and especially in nitro-
gen so that a two-fold purpose can be obtained by growing
and plowing under a leguminous crop.

Land which has been under cultivation a long time will
be materially helped by having a crop of green manure
plowed under, as old fields generally have the humus sup-
ply so worn out as to be badly impoverished, and not in a
fit condition for trees to do their best. A young orchard
should make a strong and vigorous growth during the first
few years so as to build up a large framework for fruit
production, and this framework cannot be obtained on
weak soil. The soil in an old pasture is generally excel-
lent for an orchard, as it will contain a larger supply of
humus and nitrogenous food materials than any other
ordinary fields.

In preparing the ground for an orchard it should be
plowed as deep as possible, so as to loosen up the soil and
make it possible for the tree roots to penetrate into the
lower soil. Shallow rooted trees do not live long, and are
easily influenced by dry weather. It is best to do, every-
thing to make the tree roots go deep into the soil, as they
will thus have a better anchorage, and be nearer a more
constant source of water than when the roots are allowed
to run close to the surface. The land should be plowed
in the fall and not less than six weeks before planting time
if a very heavy crop is to be turned under. This is to give
time for the crop to decay before the trees are planted.
When a heavy crop is turned under it is best in most cases

26 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

to wait until spring to do the planting. The soil will then
be in the best condition and the planting can proceed rap-
idly.

Preparing Irrigated Land for Planting

Most orchards in irrigated sections are planted in raw
land, and when well and carefully done it is satisfactory,
but when done by inexperienced and uninformed persons
it does, not always result in a good orchard. Raw irri-
gated lands should be cultivated for at least one season
with either grain or alfalfa, and are materially improved
if a green manure crop is turned under the fall before
planting.

The land should be plowed thoroughly and deeply all
over and not just down the tree rows. Fruit trees are
shallow rooted at best in the majority of irrigated soils
because of the dry and hard subsoil, and unless the soil is
loosened up deep and the subsoil well soaked with water,
the trees will not root as deeply as could be desired.

Lands which settle after being put under irrigation
should be thoroughly watered and settled before planting,
and all irrigated lands should be perfectly leveled before
the orchard is planted. This will materially assist in lay-
ing out and planting the trees, and do away with releveling
after the trees are planted. It is always best to plow the
land in the fall and allow the soil to lay rough all winter.
It will be loose and friable in the spring and be much
more easily worked than if not fall plowed. Fall plowing
has the additional advantage of enabling the soil to take
up more of the winter precipitation, and hence it will water
more easily when irrigation is attempted. It is often very
difficult to get the water over spring plowed land the first
time it is irrigated.

Laying Out the Orchard

The plan for laying out the orchard can be arranged
in any manner that suits the convenience of the planter,
although there are two systems that are in common use,

Laying Out the Orchard 27

one of them being the square or rectangular, and the other
the hexagonal system, or system of equilateral triangles.

In the square system of planting, the trees are planted
at right angles to each other and at the same distance
apart each way, the distance apart varying according to
the kind of tree and to the ideas of the planter. The hex-
agonal system allows the maximum number of plants per
acre at a given distance apart, being approximately 15 per
cent more than in the square.

These trees are set in perfectly straight rows.

The great advantage of the square system is that it
allows cultivation in either direction with the same ease.
In the hexagonal system the trees are planted -so that they
have the same amount of space all around, and alternate
in the rows, making the space between the rows narrower
than the distance between the trees in the rows. The
distance apart at which any variety of fruit should be set
will depend largely on the distance at which the planter
cares to set them, and to some extent on the habit of the
variety and on the soil. Missouri Pippin and Wagener
apples can be set closer together than varieties having the
wide spreading habit of Mammoth Black Twig.

With apples, the customary distance for planting varies
somewhat with the section of the country, being wider

2S

The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

apart in the Eastern states than in the far Western. In
the far Western states apples are frequently set as close
as twenty feet, while in the extreme East they will be
double or treble this distance. The usual, and perhaps the
best distance apart for apples in commercial orchards, is
about thirty feet. At this distance there will be ample
room between the trees for a number of years after they

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This system gives greatest amount of room between rows.

come into bearing. With pears the distance can be some-
what less, as most varieties are of a more upright habit
than the apple. Peaches are generally set about eighteen
or twenty feet apart, although when trained with an open
center it crowds the trees after they have reached their
maturity.

Before laying out the orchard it is always best to figure
out how the trees can be arranged to best advantage. They
ought to be set so as to allow of ample room around the

Laying Out the Orchard 29

sides to do the necessary work without crowding against
the boundary fence. It is better always to plant the trees
so that they have the same, or nearly the same, distance
on all sides, rather than to have twice the distance in one
direction as in the other.

There are a number of different ways of laying out an
orchard and some of the simple plans are very satisfactory.
In using any plan the effort should be to get all of the
trees set in perfectly straight rows, so that they may be
sighted over in any direction and perfect rows can be seen.
This is simply to improve appearances.

Begin the rows sufficiently far inside the fence line to
enable all operations to be done without crowding against
the fence when the trees get large. This will vary a good
deal with circumstances, but ought to be not less than
twenty or twenty-five feet.

Along one side of the orchard, say the north, lay off
a line indicating with stakes that can be plainly seen.
Along the east side of the orchard lay off another line at
right angles with the first, and mark it plainly in the same
manner. Lay off two more sets of lines in the same man-
ner through the middle of the orchard and on the other
two sides, making all lines at right angles and erecting
substantial stakes that can be plainly seen. Along each of
the lines now put in a stake at the exact place the tree is
to occupy. This will make three guide stakes in every tree
row, and with a plow following along each line of stakes
the tree rows can be quickly laid off ready for planting.
A shovel plow is most useful for this marking, especially
where a large area is to be marked off at one time.

Another plan that works very satisfactorily, but takes a
little longer is to lay off the first rows as above described
and instead of plowing lines across the field a small stake
is placed at the exact spot a tree is to occupy. This has the
advantage of enabling the planter to line up all of his rows
perfectly straight before a tree is planted. In either case
the holes are dug with a spade, and in the latter case the
tree is set in the exact position of the stake by use of a
board some three or four feet long having a hole in each

30

The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

end and a notch in the middle. Before the stake is dis-
turbed lay the board down so that the notch is at the stake,
then drive a peg through the holes at the end of the board.
The board can be removed and the hole dug without fur-
ther care for the original stake. When the hole is ready
place the board back over the pegs and place the tree in
the notch, and it will occupy the same position exactly of
the original stake. If the stakes are lined up perfectly,

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One Acre _

Diagram of an orchard with trees planted in triangles.
This system gives a greater number of trees per acre than
when planted in squares, but leaves less room between rows.

the trees will also be in perfectly straight rows when the
planting is finished.

Where the trees are set in triangles, a common method
for small plantations is to plant only one outside row.
Then with a large triangular frame whose sides are the dis-
tances between the trees in the triangle, is placed so that
two corners are in contact with two trees in the row. At
the third corner a third tree is set. By moving this tri-

Laying Out the Orchard 31

angle from tree to tree across the field and setting so that
a tree is in exact contact with each corner, the trees will
all line up perfectly and be in exact triangles. This method
does not give perfectly straight rows unless used care-
fully. All trees must be in contact with the triangular
frame each time.

Laying Out an Orchard on Rough or Steep Hill Land

It is a comparatively easy matter to lay out an orchard
on land that is level or approximately so, but it is a dif-
ferent matter where the ground is very rough or steep,
and which may need to be terraced. In some of the moun-
tain cove lands of the Eastern states planting in contours
or terracing may be necessary in order to prevent the soil
from being washed away, or to facilitate the tillage of the
crops. In many instances these terraces can be easily
constructed without the use of instruments, but in others
a surveyor's level, or instruments of the same nature may
have to be put into use. Mr. F. T. Meecham describes a
home-made instrument called an " 'A' level" that serves
very well in laying out terraces on hill land as follows:

"To construct an A level, use well-seasoned timber,
pine being preferable because it is light and does not tend
to warp. Take three pieces 10 feet long, 3 inches wide and
y2 inch thick. Now lay on a level floor so as to get the
instrument of a rod span. The rod is commonly used in
measuring land and is generally best, as it gets over land
faster than a ten-foot level. Drive two nails in the floor
just a rod, or 16J^ feet apart, saw off the ends of the two
pieces to be used for legs so that the ends will rest on the
floor. Now place one end of each leg against the nails
and let the pieces cross above your head and just exactly
over the center of the rod span. Put a bolt here through
both pieces fasten them together at the point A then we
have two legs of the level, AB and AC. Now take the third
piece and use as the crossbar, DE. Fasten the piece DE
to AC at about D, bolt so as to permit it to work easily.
Now at F securely place a spirit level, such as you
can get from almost any hardware store for 10 cents.

32 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

Bring DE, at E end, to a point on leg AB, where the
spirit level indicates level; then mark or put a hole
through both for bolt to work in. This hole on AB leg we
call zero, which means level. Now we wish to make a
scale that will enable us to run a terrace having a fall
anywhere from an inch to four inches. Let some one raise
the foot of AB one inch and lower crossbar DE until level;
then put a hole through AB leg, and call this hole No. 1.
Now raise foot of AB two inches and put another hole in
AB leg and call it No. 2, and so on until we make our scale
to four or five inches. The half-inch is then gotten by di-
viding the distance between holes and numbering halves.
Now we have an instrument made that should not cost

Meecham's "A" Level.

more than 50 cents at the outside, and will, if properly
handled, suffice for most of this kind of work.

"In terracing a field start about three 'feet from the top
of the hill, and begin to lay off the first terrace. Usually
about one or two inches fall to the rod ^jill be sufficient.
Try to put the second terrace so that it will be about three
to four feet lower than the first, and so on down the hill
until the whole field is terraced. Now, if a field has a
swag about the center and water collects from both direc-
tions in this swag, to avoid this begin the terrace in the
swag and go both ways, providing there is a good outlet
at each end. Lay off the terrace, giving one to two inches
fall, as desired, by fastening the cross-bar DE at E in the
hole giving the fall desired. Start at the point we have
selected to begin, and let the short leg, or the leg with the

Clearing Sage Brush Land 33

scale on it, be up-hill. The place for the terrace is found
by raising the foot of the instrument up or down hill until
the proper level is obtained, then let the boy carrying pegs
stick one at the front end of the level; then go with the
instrument to that point, and repeat same operation until
€f.\\ the terraces are laid off. When you come to a gully
make half sets with the instrument and set up-grade stakes
to tell how high to build the banks to prevent breaking
over by heavy rains. Now walk back over the line of
stakes and when a place is found where there is too short
a turn in the terrace, straighten a little or give a more
gentle curve by moving the upper stakes a little down
hill; never move lower stakes uphill.

"After the terrace has been staked out a furrow can be
run connecting the stakes. If desired, the terrace can be
listed up by throwing several furrows together and the
trees planted on the terrace. In planting orchards on con-
tours it is impossible to have the trees line-up as they
would do on even land. The first row is set by simply
spacing the trees along the contour at the regular distance
desired. The second row is set by alternating, as nearly
as possible, the trees with those in the first row. As
the work of setting proceeds the trees in each row will be
alternated with those in the row preceding it. On account
of the variability of slope it will be found impossible to
exactly alternate the trees. Occasionally a tree will have
to be shifted one way or the other, or one left out, in order
to keep the spaces between the trees fairly uniform."

In irrigated sections land can be planted in contours
and terraced, with the irrigation ditch flowing on the upper
side of the terrace. This will let the water percolate
through the soil to best advantage. In case the hillside is
long it may not be necessary to water the lowermost rows
as they will sub-irrigate.

Clearing Sage Brush Land

The method adopted by Western farmers in clearing
their land of sage brush varies a good deal with the sec-

S4 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

tion of the country, and the means that may be at hand.
It also varies to a greater or less extent with the condition
of the land, whether the brush is thick or scattering, and
whether the brush is large or small and whether the soil
is dry or wet at the time the clearing is to be done. One
of the commonest methods consists in what is known as
the "railing and raking" system. This consists in dragging
a heavy railroad rail back and forth over the land, mash-
ing down the brush and pulling out more or less of it.

These rail drags are generally home-made affairs, con-
sisting of a 10x12 timber that may be about 12 feet long,
to the edge of which is bolted the railroad rail or a heavy
iron plate that is flat and the edge of which can be drawn
down and sharpened to a cutting edge. On the opposite
side of the timber fasten a little platform supported on
shoes so that the front edge of the rail will dip forward
and not slip over the brush without mashing it down or
pulling it out.

A lever can be conveniently arranged on the back of
the frame so as to lift the cutting edge and let it free itself
when clogged with brush. It will take four or six horses
to pull such a drag, although this will depend largely on
the condition of the soil and the brush, and the size of the
horses.

The land will have to be gone over several times in
different directions with such a drag to get the brush loos-
ened up, and when this is done the brush is gathered into
windrows by means of a rake. This rake can be made
from a heavy piece of timber in which steel teeth about
two inches wide and half an inch thick are placed about
six inches apart in the timber. This rake should be ar-
ranged to dump when it gets clogged. With this rake,
drag the brush into windrows and set on fire. Any brush
that remains will need to be grubbed out with a grubbing
hoe.

Where the sage brush is small and scattering and the
soil is not too hard and dry the brush may be plowed out.
The plow for this purpose should be a 14 or 16-inch plow
having the mould board removed, and using nothing but

What Kind of Nursery Stock to Plant 35

the share and land side. The share will need to be kept
sharp and possibly have to be drawn down a little so as
to hug the ground better. After the land has been plowed
the brush can be dragged out with a rake into windrows
for burning, and if the brush is not too heavy an ordinary
sulky rake is very satisfactory.

Land which is cleared from sage brush by grubbing is
difficult to plow and harrow because of the roots that are
in the soil. These may be so numerous in some fields that
it will be necessary to rake them up and burn.

What Kind of Nursery Stock to Plant

There is always more or less uncertainty in the minds
of the inexperienced fruit growers as to the kind of nur-
sery stock to buy. It always pays to get the best, and if
the planter is uncertain whether to buy one-year-old stuff
instead of two-year-old trees of the same variety it will
pay to write to your state experiment station, or to The
Fruit-Grower, and find out. The tendency is now for fruit
growers to prefer the one-year trees, rather than trees that
are older. There are a number of advantages in this, as
the trees are smaller and more easily handled, and the
head has not been formed, leaving it possible to head the
tree just at the height the orchard man wants it. In the
Middle West and Western states a low-headed tree is most
desired, as it facilitates all of the operations of caring for
the trees throughout their life. In the Eastern states it
has been the custom to head the trees high, often times
above the head of the average man. It is a hard job to
pick the fruit off of such trees, especially while they are
young. But in general the trees of the Eastern states
seem to be longer lived than the Western, and when these
trees reach the age of forty years their lateral branches
have so spread out that they hang down within easy reach,
although the tops are high in the air.

It sometimes happens that the buyer orders one-year-
old trees, and when the order is delivered he has two-year-
old trees, the side branches of which have been carefully
removed, leaving a whip that looks quite like a one-year-

36 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

old tree. Such trees cannot be handled to advantage, for
as a rule they must be headed very much too high on ac-
count of the lower limbs having been cut off, the very
limbs that the orchard man wanted to form the head.

It does not pay to buy trees just because they are
cheap. Good trees cost money to grow, and the buyer
must expect to have to pay a good round price for good
trees. Cheap trees, cheap just because the nurseryman
wants to get rid of them, are too many times fit only for
the scrap pile. Buy nothing but good trees and then in-
sist on having that kind. If you can visit the nursery and
pick out your trees, so much the better.

Time to Plant

Fruit trees can be set out in either the late fall or early
spring months. In the Western states spring planting is
preferred, as the soil is then in much better condition and
more easily worked than in the fall. But in the rest of the
country the land is generally in good shape in the late .fall,
unless excessively wet or unusually dry.

Fall planting has the advantage of getting the trees
into their new location with the least amount of time ^n
storage, and trees set out in the fall will make some root
growth during the winter and be in good shape to start
into growth in the spring. There is generally more time
for planting in the fall than in the spring and the work can
be done in better shape.

When the planting must be deferred until spring care
must be taken that the trees are set out at the earliest
possible date. In rare instances it happens that the trees
have started into growth slightly at the time of planting.
Such condition is not serious, provided the trees have not
been allowed to make a growth of a few inches before
being planted. In any event it is always necessary to
prune the tree back somewhat at the time it is set. This
is done in order to equalize the balance between the roots
and the top. In digging the trees from the nursery the
greater portion of the root system is removed, and if the
trees are planted without an equal reduction of the top

How to Plant a Tree 37

the roots will not be able to supply the large top with
crude sap, and the trees will not make as strong a growth.

The amount of cutting back of the tops that is neces^
sary at the time a tree is set depends largely on the age of
the tree, the kind, whether peach, apple, plum, etc. Peach
trees are generally cut back to a whip; two-year-old ap-
ples are usually shortened back not more than one-half;
pears, plums, cherries, etc., when two-year-old stock is
used, are cut back about one-third, and where one-year-old
whips are used, the cutting back should as a rule be about
one-third of the length of the tree.

How to Plant a Tree

Many persons inexperienced in handling trees lose a
number of trees in setting an orchard because of their lack
of skill or acquaintance with handling such plants. It
must be remembered that from the time the trees leave
the soil of the nursery until they are firmly planted in the
orchard, the roots should be exposed to the air as little
as possible, and especially to air that is moving rapidly,
or which is dry. Trees should not be left with their roots
exposed to the sun or wind any longer than can possibly
be avoided. When waiting to be planted they should be
heeled in, that is, have their roots covered with moist soil,
and should be taken out only as actually needed for im-
mediate planting. Where it is necessary to transport a
number of trees from the heeling-in grounds to the or-
chard, it is best to pack the trees in a tight wagon box,
mixing the roots with a plentiful supply of wet straw.
Small quantities of trees may be placed in a barrel contain-
ing a little water. In the Western states it is a common
practice to load the trees into a barrel filled with water and
then as a tree is planted to pour a little of the water around
the roots of the tree before the hole is filled with soil.

The hole that is dug for the tree should be large
enough so that the roots may be spread out naturally,
without any crowding. These holes need not be very wide
but need to be deep enough to allow the tree to be set a
little deeper than it stood in the nursery. All of the long-

38 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

est roots need to be shortened in to about six inches and
cut with a smooth clean cut. Any roots that are broken
or bruised need to be removed, and all cut surfaces need
to be made smooth so they will heal quickly.

Filling in the soil about the trees is a very important
step in tree planting. To get the best results the soil must
be packed closely about the roots, so that there are no air
holes or crevices. The best way to do this is with the
hand. When the tree is in place spread the roots out
and throw a shovelful of soil over them, shake the tree up
and down several times and then work it into the crev-
ices between the roots with the fingers. Throw in a little
more soil and work into the remaining crevices, and
then with the feet tramp the soil solid. Throw in
more soil and tramp, repeating until the hole is full and
the dirt about the tree is packed down solid and tight.
Moving the tree up and down while the earth is being
thrown in will assist materially in avoiding air holes and
in bringing the soil in close contact with the roots. There
is little danger of packing the soil too tightly about the
roots. The greatest danger is in not getting it packed
tightly enough and leaving air holes that will let the roots
dry out and the tree die.

The trees should be set just a little deeper than they
stood when in the nursery, although not over an inch
deeper. Setting too deep is as dangerous as not setting
deep enough. The best guide is the line marking the
change in color of the bark at the crown where the tree
enters the ground.

After the tree has been firmly packed in the hole throw
an inch or so of loose earth over the packed soil to serve
as a dust mulch and prevent from drying out. Watering
at the time the tree is planted is not necessary in the East-
ern or Middle Western states, but in the semi-arid country,
where the trees cannot be irrigated immediately after be-
ing planted, it is often advisable to pour a bucketful of
water about the newly planted tree. This should be done
before the hole is filled with soil, and the water allowed
to percolate away. Then fill up with the dry soil and do

Use of Fillers 39

not pack the surface, but rather let this soil lie loose and
prevent the water from evaporating. A dust mulch will
very effectively conserve the moisture in the soil for the
use of the tree.

Use of Fillers

The use of "fillers," or temporary trees, in an orchard
is not always to be recommended. Such trees can in many
instances serve a useful purpose, but they too often be-
come permanent. After they come into bearing the

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Diagram of an orchard planted with "fillers." The black
spots represent the temporary trees. In the upper portion of
the diagram the fillers are in the centers of the squares,
making the "quincunx" system of planting. In the lower
rows the fillers are in the rows of permanent trees.

owner always wants just one more crop from them before
they are removed. Years pass by in this way and the
orchard becomes so crowded that the yield from all the
trees is less than from what the permanent trees would be
if the fillers were out.

When the kinds of trees to be used as fillers are careful-
ly selected and then removed at the right time they can be
made profitable. Peaches can sometimes be used as fillers
in an apple orchard, if the soil and climate are suitable.

40 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

Pears are not advisable as fillers, especially in an apple
orchard, on account of their susceptibility to fire blight,
which can be communicated to the apple trees.

Quick maturing varieties of apples make the best fillers
in an apple orchard, and especially so if the fillers have
an upright habit, such as Missouri Pippin, Wagener, or
Rome Beauty. Such kinds can be handled to advantage
in an orchard laid out on the rectangular plan, with the
filler in the center of the square. This will double the
number of trees per acre, and give each tree the maximum
of room. It is not so easy to plant fillers to advantage
when the orchard is laid out on the hexagonal plan with-
out crowding the trees.

A common and satisfactory method of arranging fillers
is to set the permanent apple trees thirty feet apart, with
a filler midway between the trees in one direction only.
This will put the trees 15x30 feet apart.

While good returns can be made from the fillers in
an orchard, it is safe to say that practically as good re-
turns can be made by using crops of other kinds. In
small orchards some of the small fruits, such as straw-
berries, blackberries or currants are good money makers.
In large orchards it is better to grow some kind of cover
crop and work towards building up a large framework and
strong trees that will be heavy bearers when they come
into fruiting, rather than to try to get an extra amount of
fruit from the temporary trees.

One of the great dangers of intermixed planting is that
nine persons out of ten will not take the fillers out when
they ought to. There is danger in it to the whole enter-
prise and the system should be recommended very guard-
edly, if at all. Peaches should not be planted among apples
as a rule. It is better to stick to one kind of fruit.

Orchard Tillage

The style of tilling used in the Eastern and Western
fruit sections are vastly different. In the Western sec-
tions, where irrigation is practiced, clean cultivation is in-

Orchard Tillage 41

variably the rule, and the soil is often cultivated continu-
ously year after year until every trace of humus has been
consumed and the soil bakes after each irrigation so hard
that it takes a good sharp pick to make a hole in it. In
the Eastern states, where rainfall is abundant, it is a com-
mon practice to sow the orchard down to grass, and allow
it to remain in sod for a number of years. Either prac-
tice alone is not the ideal which the modern orchardist
should follow.

The excessive cultivation as practiced in the irrigated
sections burns the humus out of the soil, making it very
difficult to work in the course of a few years. Under the
cloudless skies and burning sun of those regions the trees
are in a continual glare of light, and the reflected light
from the soil has a tendency to cause more or less sun
scalding on the trunks and lower limbs of the trees. The
continual cultivation not only wears out the soil, but wears
out the trees as well. The tendency of trees in the irri-
gated sections of the West is to overbear, and the con-
tinuous cultivation stimulates this condition.

On the other hand, the sod mulch, or as too many times
happens, the weed mulch, of the rainy sections, harbors
a multitude of orchard pests that sooner or later bring de-
struction to the trees, unless means are taken to prevent
their depredations. The ideal system of cultivation for
any orchard, either East or West, is to combine the tillage
with a cover crop. Stirring the soil is a necessity, not
only for the purpose of improving the physical condition
of the soil, but for liberating the fertility. In soils that
are plowed early in the spring air is admitted and the soil
warmed up and drained of excess moisture through evap-
oration. In summer the plowed layer serves as a means
of preventing the evaporation of moisture that is deeper
down in the soil, by breaking the capilarity. It also in-
creases the water holding capacity of the soil. By increas-
ing the moisture in the soil decomposition of the organic
materials is hastened, and their fertility made available
for the use of the plants.

The exact manner of cultivation in an orchard will be
governed largely by the kind of trees and the location.

42

The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

It is best in most instances to put the young orchard into
a crop of some sort which will necessitate the cultivation
of the land. Crops like corn, cotton, potatoes, strawber-
ries, cantaloupes, or other crops of that nature make ex-
cellent crops in a newly planted orchard. These crops are
temporary, and are planted for the profit that can be ob-
tained from them. Their culture is intensive and requires

An Orchard in Clean Cultivation.

a frequent stirring of the soil, and these are just the con-
ditions which are needed for the young trees. During the
first few years of an orchard the effort should be directed
along the line of promoting as much wood growth as pos-
sible, in order to get a large framework for the future pro-
duction of fruit. A tree that is starved and stunted in its
early life will not make a productive tree when it comes
into bearing.

Orchard Tillage * 43

Where strawberries arc grown between young trees
they will occupy the ground for at least three years, after
which time they should be plowed under, and the land
planted to clover or some other legume. This is for the
purpose of restoring nitrogen to the soil and stimulating
the wood growth of the trees. Where corn, cotton or
other "hoed" crop is grown, the land will be occupied by
any one crop no longer than one year. It is considered
to be the best practice not to plant the same kind of crop
in the orchard for more than two years in succession. In
fact soil experts will advise that any particular crop occupy
the land but one year and then be followed by a crop of
a different sort. This is because the soil quickly becomes
impoverished where one kind of crop is repeatedly grown
on the same area. In the young orchard this is especially
true, as the trees are to remain for many years and the
soil's fertility must not be reduced. A good rotation of
crops in a young orchard is to plant cotton or corn the
first season and follow with potatoes the next year, fol-
lowing it the next season with a legume of some kind.

Vegetables of all kinds may be grown in a young or-
chard in place of the crops mentioned, and will serve well
in keeping the ground of the orchard well stirred and the
trees growing thriftily. Sugar beets are extensively used
in the irrigated districts, but are not always desirable be-
cause of the late watering that is needed to get the beets
to mature. This late watering induces late growth in the
trees and makes them liable to winter killing.

Under no condition should small grain be planted in an
orchard, as it will not permit of cultivation, and cultiva-
tion is necessary in a young orchard for reasons which
have been mentioned. This statement applies to the grow-
ing of a grain crop that is to be allowed to reach maturity
and be harvested either as grain or hay. Rye, wheat, oats
and buckwheat are frequently planted in an orchard, but
they are used altogether for green manures and under
the best systems of culture are not allowed to remain for
more than a few weeks, or over winter at the longest.

In plowing the ground in a young orchard, the plows
should be run six or eight inches deep, so as to provide a

44 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

deep covering of plowed soil, and to cut the surface roots
of the new trees, and make them penetrate into deeper
soil where they will be cooler during the hot summer
weather and away from the freezing of the winter's cold
and into a zone of more regular supply of moisture.

When it comes to the bearing orchard, no crops are
grown to be removed. If any crop is grown it is for the
purpose of being turned under and adding to the fertility
and humus supply of the soil. It takes an immense amount
of soil fertility to provide a bearing orchard with the
foliage and wood each year, and it takes a still larger sup-
ply to furnish the fruit. Under such conditions it is too
much to ask the orchard ground to produce a crop of some
other sort when that crop returns nothing to the land.

The bearing orchard does best when the soil is plowed
in the spring as soon as it can be worked, and then
kept in cultivation until at least mid-summer, when a crop
of some sort is planted to serve as a shade or cover crop.
Professors Whipple and Paddock have pointed out to the
orchardists of the irrigated sections of the West the impor-
tance of growing a shade crop in their orchards, not alone
for the improvement it will produce in the physical condi-
tion of the soil, but to shade the ground and prevent
reflection of the sunlight and scalding the branches.

WTith the system of tillage practiced by Western fruit
raisers the humus supply of the soil is depleted quickly,
and because of this becomes light colored. Running the
irrigation ditches close to the trees on hot sunny days in
summer has caused the death of many trees by sun-scald-
ing, because of the light reflected from the surface of the
water in the ditches. The shade crops are planted early in
the summer and serve to lessen the reflection from the soil,
and from the water in the ditches.

Stirring the soil by plowing or discing has the effect
of stimulating wood growth. If the cultivation is con-
tinued too late in the summer there is a possibility of the
trees continuing to grow so late that they will go into
winter with wood that has not been properly ripened, and
may in consequence not be able to stand the cold. With

Cover Crops 45

trees that are easily attacked by fire blight, as pears and
quinces, soft wood, such as is produced by continuous cul-
tivation, is not desired, because of the immense damage
that can be caused by blight. Pear orchards are frequently
planted to a permanent sod early in the life of the orchard,
simply for the purpose of preventing very soft wood.

Orchards need to be plowed early in the spring and cul-
tivated until mid-summer when they are sowed down to a
cover crop that is to remain on the soil during the winter
to be turned under the next, spring. In the case of dry
seasons when the normal precipitation is scarce, tillage
throughout the summer will conserve the moisture in the
soil, and by plowing the ground late in the fall and allow-
ing to remain rough all winter a still larger amount of
water can be stored up in the soil than if left smooth and
level.

Cover Crops

Cover crop, called also green manures and shade crops,
arc such crops as are grown in the orchard for the purpose
of clothing the surface of the soil during late summer and
winter months. They are used to protect the soil from
washing during the winter rains, and for this reason are
always to be advised for orchards that are on steep, hilly
land. In the arid section of the West they serve to cover
the soil and protect it from the sun, thereby guarding
somewhat against sun-scalding of the trees. They increase
the humus supply when plowed under, and make available
or conserve the mineral elements of fertility that might
otherwise be leached out of the soil. This is especially
true of the soluble nitrates. When some sort of legumi-
nous plant is used for a cover crop it adds nitrogen to
the soil.

Cover crops increase the water holding capacity of the
'soil through the addition of humus, and thereby improve
the tilth and prevent the puddling and baking of the soil.
On this account alone cover crops, or rather shade crops,
are useful in the orchards of the irrigated sections. There

46 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

the custom has been of continuous cultivation, with the
result that the tilth of the soil is ruined and that it bakes
badly after each irrigation.

Cover crops are of three kinds: (1) Those grown in
seasons between other crops; (2) those which occupy the
land for one or more seasons before they are plowed un-
der; (3) those which are sown late in the season for the
purpose of protecting the soil during the winter.

In general orchard practice cover crops are sown late
in the summer and allowed to remain throughout the
winter when they are to be turned under the following
spring and become a green manure. For such purposes
a number of different kinds of crops are used, depending
largely on the soil, climate and the needs in hand.

Winter rye is one of the most useful cover crops for
the orchard. It may be sown at any time from the mid-
dle of August until November, and grows all winter where
the climate is not too severe, resuming growth again early
in the spring. It is very efficient in gathering the soluble
nitrates that might be leached from the soil. It is especi-
ally well suited for light soils.

Buckwheat and oats are sometimes used, especially in
the Northern states, but they are killed by the winter
weather and need to be planted early in order to get a
good cover over the soil before winter.

Winter vetch is useful on the medium loamy soils and
is hardy as far north as Massachusetts in well drained
locations. It is a legume, and consequently increases the
nitrogen supply in the soil. It does best when sown with
rye, and is not well adapted to stand hot weather.

Canada field peas are used as cover crops in the North-
ern states, and in the higher altitudes of the West where
the climate is cool. They are very effective where they
thrive.

Crimson clover is useful in sections where it will do
well as along the eastern part of the United States. South
of Nfew Jersey it is hardy, but north it is uncertain. It is

Cover Crops 47

a deep rooting legume, which opens up the subsoil and
adds nitrogen.

The common red and mammoth clover are used very
extensively as cover crops, although they require the use
of the land for two seasons. They are deep rooting, gather
nitrogen from the air and are hardy. They make a heavy
growth of tops and generally need to be mown during
the first summer. It should be the practice in most cases
where clover is grown for a cover crop to not remove the
hay, but allow it to remain in the orchard where cut to
add to the humus supply. But where the soil is already
quite well supplied with humus there is no objection to
the removal of the hay. The clover should be turned under
in the spring of the third year.

Sweet clover is used in a small way in some parts of
the country as a cover or green manuring crop. Alfalfa,
however, finds a much wider range of adaptability and is
extensively used among the irrigated orchards of the
Western states. It must be plowed under during the
second year, otherwise the roots become so woody as to
make plowing very difficult.

In the Southern states the cowpea takes first rank as
a cover crop for orchard lands. It makes a rank growth,
roots deeply and gathers nitrogen from the air. It is
killed by the first frost, but its coarse herbage makes an
excellent ground cover during the winter. It can be sown
late in August and still make a good cover before being
killed by freezing weather.

48 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

CHAPTER II

Orchard Heating

Every orchardist is agreed that spraying is an absolute
necessity in order to produce fruit free from the defects
caused by insects and fungi. Yet spraying as a commer-
cial proposition is of only recent adoption, dating no
farther back than 1872, when Le Baron, the state entomol-
ogist of Illinois, found that Paris green would control the
potato beetle. Spraying began to be of commercial value
in 1885 when the effectiveness of copper sprays was dis-
covered by the vineyardists of France. Yet there is a
still newer practice, viz: orchard heating, which is bound
to take rank on a par with the practice of spraying as a
means of securing crops of fruits against an unfavorable
environment.

New Idea

Orchard heating as a commercial proposition is of very
recent origin, although for many years fruit men and
gardeners- have tried various plans of preventing frost
from injuring their plants and blossoms. Some of these
attempts was by keeping the trees sprayed during the
winter with whitewash, under the belief that since the
whitewash would reflect much of the sun's rays the wood
of the trees would not get so warm during sunshiny days
of winter, and hence retard the development of the fruit
buds. However, such methods in practice would hold the
buds back for only three or four days behind those trees
which were not sprayed, while the danger period in spring

• A
\

Influence of Environment 49

would probably remain for as much as a month or six
weeks.

Another method which had some advocates, and which
is still practiced in some sections, although with but little
commercial success, is the mulching of the ground very
heavily in late spring before the frost leaves the soil.
Another plan is to heap the snow around the roots and
trunks of the trees, or, as one fruit grower in the region
of the Cascade Mountains has done, to actually haul ice
from the mountains and pack it around the trees in an
effort to prevent the trees from starting into growth in
the spring until after the danger period had passed. Such
means, however, have not given success, for the reason
that the branches of* a plant can start into growth inde-
pendently of root action, provided the branches are in a
suitable temperature. Any person can prove this to his
own satisfaction by pulling the branches of a tree or vine
into a warm room late in the winter and blocking up
around the opening through which it is passed to keep out
the cold air. The roots may be frozen solid, but in the
course of a few days the buds will start into growth, and
may actually come into blossom. The only way in which
a mulch packed over frozen ground to prevent its thawing
out early, or storing snow and ice in the orchard could
effect the blooming period of the trees, would be directly
dependent on the way in which such means affected the
temperature of the atmosphere surrounding the buds.

Influence of Environment

The relation which any district will bear to frostiness
will depend to a great extent on the natural surroundings.
Nearness to large bodies of water has a great influence on
frost, and some sections, even though they are far north,
have very mild climates and with a minimum of frosty
days* in late spring. In the northern part of the state of
Washington, and in southern British Columbia, the climate
is mild, considering the high latitude, due to the influence
of the chinook winds which pass over the region directly

50 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

off the warm waters of the Japan current that sweeps
the Pacific coast. The eastern shore of Lake Michigan
has a warmer climate than the opposite side, on account
of the lake currents which keep open water on the eastern
side while the other shore is ice bound.

On account of the movements of warm currents of air
oranges are being grown in the southeastern corner of
North Carolina, two hundred miles north of the northern-
most place at which it is considered safe to grow this fruit
on the Atlantic coast. This is because the warm waters
of the gulf stream come in close to shore at this portion of
the coast and the temperature of the air is less frosty than
farther south.

Natural prominences, such as high bluffs which absorb
the heat of tiie sun during the day and then radiate it
slowly at night have a great effect in ameliorating the
night temperature in small localities, although this influ-
ence cannot be counted of any serious value in protecting
an orchard against late frosts in the spring. In the moun-
tain sections of the Western states districts near the
mouths of great canons are frequently safe from serious
damage from frost in late spring on account of the con-
tinual breeze which flows or blows out of the canons dur-
ing the night. These breezes come from the cooler air
which surrounds the high tops of the mountains, flowing
down their sides into the lower grounds in the valleys.

While natural conditions are of material assistance,
they cannot be depended upon as being of absolute cer-
tainty in protecting against frost, for the vagaries of air
currents and frostless belts are as uncertain as the flight
of a bird. In many fruit producing districts there are
ardent promoters of certain areas as being frostless, be-
cause of some natural condition which provides favorable
air currents or temperatures at critical times. However,
it may be but a short time until those conditions change
and the frostless area is seriously damaged by a freeze.
It was not many years ago that the orange growers in
Florida believed that the southern limit of frost was at
the northern boundary of that state. However, in 1895 it

Influence of Environment

51

was demonstrated to the sorrow and dismay of thousands
of orange men that even half way down the peninsula was
not safe from frost, as in one night a cold blast from the
north came and the "big freeze" on which the pomologi-

Troutman Oil Burning Orchard Heaters Properly Distributed.

cal chronology of Florida is founded, made hundreds of
families homeless and hopeless. In every fruit district in
fact it is expected at times to have an untimely frost cause
damage of greater or less extent to the fruit crops.

52 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

Water as an Aid

Water has often been used as a means of preventing
frost to plants, through the large amount of heat which
can be stored up in it to be liberated more slowly in the
field. In the irrigated sections of the West this method
has been used to a large extent in some districts, although
with but little real success. Spraying the plants with a
continuous spray of water, however, has proven to be
satisfactory, although finding little application just yet out-
side of the garden. That this system can be used to ad-
vantage though, is very evident in some sections of the
South where truck patches and orange groves are provided
with an overhead irrigation system, in which the water is
carried at a high pressure and is applied through spray
nozzles located at intervals of a few feet throughout the
length of the pipe. Celery has been saved in this manner
when the temperature reached as low as 12 degrees. Where
a grower is equipped with such a watering system it is a
comparative!}^ simple matter to provide a heating device
where the water can be heated as it is run through the
pipes and plants be safely carried through a very hard
freeze with entire safety.

Irrigation, either in ditches or overhead, cannot be re-
tlied on at all times as providing against low temperatures,
and either system has many disadvantages. But horticul-
turists have another means of providing against frost dam-
age by means of heating the air in the orchard or garden
by means of numerous small fires. In the commercial
orchards this method is the result of modern ingenuity
striving to overcome some of the enormous losses which
fruit growers have met with through the damage wrought
by late frosts in spring.

Development of Modern Frost Fighting

In the Yearbook of the United States Department of
Agriculture for 1909 Prof. G. B. Brackett, in an article on
"Prevention of Frost Injury to Fruit Crops," briefly traces
the development of means of fighting frosts. One of the

Development of Modern Frost Fighting 53

early methods used by fruit growers to protect their fruit
from injury through unfavorable climatic conditions, was
used by a vineyardist in Austria, who resorted to the use
of explosives to dispel threatening hail storms. The region
was one where hail storms were prevalent and wrought
destruction to the grape crops. Mr. Albert Stiger, burgo-
master, Windisch-Briestrits, Austria, owned extensive vine-
yards, and decided to drive away the threatening storms by
firing small charges of powder from wooden mortars
towards the storm clouds. These explosions had a ten-
dency to break up the stratum of cold air and prevent its
settling in the low ground. The experiments were con-
tinued for some time and were considered as successful.

It is a well known fact among farmers and fruit men
that injury to plants after a frost is always more serious
when the plants are allowred to thaw out rapidly. This
observation led to many early experiments in devising
means of shading crops so as to guard them from the
early morning sun following the spring frosts. Smudges
of many kinds were used for this purpose, the attempt
being to make an artificial cloud over the orchard to shade
the crops until after they had thawed out slowly. Com-
bustible matter capable of producing an abundance of thick
black smoke was used for this purpose. Heaps of fuel for
this purpose were scattered through the fruit plantation,
and at sunrise were set on fire to form a veil of smoke
over the orchard to protect it from the rays of the sun,
and also to prevent the radiation of heat from the earth's
surface; thereby maintaining the general temperature at a
point which would counteract the effect of frost.

A gentleman living in Bordeaux, France, invented a
process of making thick black smoke for this purpose.
This consisted of small wooden boxes, open at the top
and filled with a compound consisting of equal parts of
resinous and earthy substances reduced to a fine powder
and compressed into a compact mass. A wick was placed
in the center of the mass and. served to light it. The boxes
containing this mixture were made of pine wood and were
eight inches long and six inches square and were placed

54 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

thirty feet apart in the vineyard. This scheme possibly led
to the various smudging devices used in the orange grow-
ing sections of this country.

Vapor smudges were used first in this country and
accredited to a California!! named Meacham. Small areas
were covered with wet straw, manure and cypress brush,
and the vapors furnished by these piles, when set on fire,
together with the vapor from evaporating pans, was cal-
culated to furnish sufficient vapor to cover the desired
areas. This method gave little satisfaction, for several
reasons. It necessitated the co-operation of every land
owner in the region and the vapors even then would rap-
idly disappear into space. The vapor, too, was lifted high
above the ground by the cold air flowing over the surface
from higher altitudes.

The fruit growers of California seem to have been the
most active in this early work of protecting against frost
injury to their fruits. Edward Copley is credited with
having invented a device for burning coal in baskets to be
scattered through the orchard fastened to the limbs of the
trees. This system proved satisfactory, but had its limi-
tations.

Briquets, composed of oil-refinery refuse, sawdust and
low-grade oil were pressed into a tube and used with or
without a wick. Cheap sheet iron stoves in which the
briquets were burned then came into use, and proved still
better than any of the devices yet introduced.

The next stage in the evolution of orchard heaters
seems to have been an oil heater first manufactured at
Fresno, Calif., and since its invention there have been a
great many other styles put on the market.

Colorado has come to the front in this work of devel-
oping frost fighting methods, and through the efforts of
the orchardists of that great state the present methods of
orchard heating have been brought to commercial perfec-
tion.

Development of Modern Frost Fighting 55

Oil and Coal for Fuel

From the experiments that have been carried on there
r.nd elsewhere it seems apparent that the source of heat
must come from any one of three available sources viz.,
wood, oil and coal. Which of these to use will depend
on the cost of the fuel laid down In the orchard.' In sec-

Filling "Ideal" Coal Burning Orchard Heaters.

tions where wood is still the most abundant and cheapest
fuel, it will be the best to use. In sections where oil can
be had cheaper than coal or wood, it will serve; and in
other sections coal will be the cheapest fuel.

Doubtless at the present time more persons are using
coal for fuel in some way than any other material, and

56 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

are more familiar with its combustion. In the work of
orchard heating it has given great satisfaction, and many
hundreds of acres of orchards have been kept from frost
ruin by coal burners.

When oil costs 3 cents per gallon, and coal can be
had for $5.00 per ton, it is the opinion of persons who are
sufficiently experienced that coal is the cheaper fuel.
Heaters are so constructed that they will burn about five
pounds per hour, and at this rate, a heater holding fifty
pounds will burn through most any one of the cold nights
in spring without the necessity of refilling.

One of the great advantages in using coal for fuel, is
that no expensive storage tanks are necessary, and no
special equipment needed to enable the orchard man to
carry it to the pots in the orchard. It can be kept in a
pile at a convenient place in the orchard, merely covered
with canvas or boards to protect it from the weather.
Where oil is used some special means of storing must be
had, such as a cement cistern or large iron tank, or even
in numerous barrels, and for distribution there needs to
be a special tank wagon. Coal, on the other hand, can be
hauled in an ordinary wagon box, or what is better in a
low sled, so as to enable one to get at the coal with the
least amount of labor.

Heaters of this class require some special fuel for start-
ing the fires, and this is most easily obtained from kindling
made from broken-up bits of pine or from the tree trim-
mings that have been kept in a dry place. A bit of cotton
waste should be soaked in oil and placed in the bottom of
the heater, and on top of it a generous amount of kindling,
with the coal on top of that. Egg or small lump coal is
the best and should be handled with a fork so as to avoid
the slack and small pieces that clog the fire and make it
burn too slowly. The coal should be piled in the heater
so as to leave the center open and afford a draft, and also
to allow some of the coal to remain on the side of the
heater, where it will be in reserve.

With coal burning heaters it is the general experience
that fifty per acre will generally suffice to hold the tern-

Oil and Coal for Fuel 57

perattire up about 10 degrees above the minimum during
the frosty period. The greater number of the heaters
should go around the outer rows of the orchard with a
smaller proportionate number through the middle. This
arrangement protects the outside rows, which in turn keep
the middles from low temperatures, and also enables the
workmen to handle the heaters with the smallest amount
of labor.

A Cement Tank used for Storing- Oil.

Heaters need not be distributed until about the time
the buds are beginning to open, and should remain in the
orchard until well after the last frost has passed. The
fires need not be lighted until the temperature has reached
the freezing point, and if it is well past midnight, only
about half of the heaters need be lighted on the start, so
as to hold the remainder in reserve, and to economize on
coal. Where the work has been arranged for in advance,
and has been systematized, many growers have found that
two men can look after the heaters on three acres.

58 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

In using oil as a fuel the largest item of expense, after
the purchase of the fire pots and the oil, is the storage
tank for the oil. Enough oil should be on hand at the
beginning of the season to last through any possible cold
snap that might come. This will mean that all of the oil
will hardly be used in any one season, and perhaps good
fortune will smile on the fruit grower and make it un-
necessary to heat over a period of years. However it is
highly necessary to have both heaters and fuel on hand
in the case of an emergency. The most convenient way
to store the oil is in a large storage tank located on an
elevation such as a hillside where the oil can be emptied
into the storage tank by gravity and withdrawn into the
tank wagon or heaters in a similar manner. Lifting the
oil out of the tanks with a pump is both laborious and
costly, so that where the oil can be handled by running it
down hill it is cheapest to do it that way.

Use Enough Heaters

It is advisable to have more heaters distributed through
the orchard than will possibly be needed on any night.
The advantage of this is that when the fires are required
about one of every three pots can be lighted, and if there
is danger of the temperature dropping still lower, and
this many pots will not keep the temperature up to the
desired point, there are still others to be lighted.

Whatever heaters are used, they should by all means
be properly distributed throughout the orchard a few days
before there is possibility of having to put them into use.
They will need to be covered to prevent water getting on
the fuel, as it will cause trouble. Coal that is wet will not
ignite easily, and at best it is slow and troublesome to set
on fire. With the oil, if water gets into it it will spatter
and possibly fry or boil over on to the ground and not
make as satisfactory a fire as when it is kept perfectly
dry. Nearly all of the various makes of heaters that are
on the market are provided with lids to protect the fuel
from rain or snow. With some of them, however, it is

Cost of Heating 59

necessary to weight the lid down with a clod or stone to
keep it from being blown away in a hard wind.

Cost of Heating

The expenses of heating an orchard will depend alto-
gether on a variety of circumstances that vary with each
orchard and each season. But the entire problem is nicely
summed up by a practical orchardist .on the western slope
of Colorado, who makes this statement in The Fruit-
Grower for January, 1911:

"My calculations of the expenses of heating an orchard,
taken from my own experience, are as follows, based on
a ten-acre orchard:

800 heaters at 45c each - $360.00

?. 1,200 gal. storage tanks at $50 each 1 50.00

1 wagon tank 35.00

1 oil pump 17.50

2 oil pails at 65c each 1.30

6 torches 40

100 pounds waste 8.00

4,000 gallons oil at 5c gallon 200.00

Total first cost of equipment $762.20

"Now suppose we go on for ten years, for of course
we are going to keep this outfit always in readiness, and
we must allow $100 per year to keep our supply of fuel.
We then have $1)00 more, making a total expenditure in
ten years of $1,662.20, or an average of $166.22 per year
for ten* years. This is a cost of $16.62 per acre, making
the cost from 15 to 25 cents per tree each year depending
on the number of trees per acre.

"If I had a bearing orchard that I did not think would
stand this expense, I would pull it out and grow potatoes,
sugar beets or hay." These figures while illustrating very
nicely the cost of equipment for heating, will vary in dif-
ferent localities according to the cost of the storage tanks,
style of heater and the cost of oil, but such figures enable

60 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

one to get an approximate idea of the first cost of equip-
ping an orchard for heating. The additional expenses of
the operation will depend on the number of nights the
heaters will be used, and the cost of the labor. As a rule
the heaters are needed for four or five nights in the spring
and with oil heaters it is the general experience that one
man can take care of five acres while it will take possibly
two men to handle that many acres where coal burners are
used.

During the next ten years there will no doubt be as
great a development in the styles of orchard heaters in
use by the commercial orchardists as there are in the
styles of spraying machines that are in use today, and
which were in use ten years ago. This is to be easily sur-
mised as the heaters, both coal and oil, which are now in
use are not altogether satisfactory in many respects. One
of the principal troubles with the oil burning pots is that
when the oil has burned down half way or more in the pot
the fires are not as hot as when the oil is at or near the
top of the pot This is because the upward currents of
heated air prevent the oxygen getting down to the surface
of the oil to make the flame. This slow combustion of the
oil causes it to deposit larger amounts of soot around the
top of the pot and throwing more of it off into the air.
Several attempts have been made to perfect a heater that
had a reservoir holding several gallons and fed through
a pipe into the fire pan. But up to the present time
no one has succeeded in perfecting such a reservoir
heater which will satisfactorily burn gas or fuel oil in
cold weather. These oils are thick and gummy, and
even become almost solid in cold weather, so that
when the oil must flow through a pipe, as is the case with
all of the heaters of this class at the present time, the oil
thickens so that it will not flow.

Aside from this trouble, the heavy oils which are used
leave a thick deposit of residue or asphalt in the bottoms
of the heaters, so that after burning for three or four
nights this sediment must be scraped out. To do this it

Danger Points 61

is often necessary to heat the pots, and even at best it is
a slow and nasty job.

The style of oil burning pot that is most needed is on^
that is inexpensive, in which the burning oil can be kept
at the same distance from the top of the container all of
the time, and which will make the maximum amount of
heat with a given quantity, and also one that will require
the minimum amount of labor in filling, cleaning and
storing.

In heating an orchard it is important that the operator
know what to do and how to do it, so that for persons
who have never operated orchard heaters it is advisable
by all means that several of the heaters be set out in the
orchard, or an open place some time in advance of the
time they are liable to be needed, and filled up with the
fuel to be used and then lighted. Watch the way the fuel
burns, and time the pots to see how long they will con-
tinue to throw off the greatest amount of heat they are
capable of producing. It will take but little time and be
very little expense to make such a test, while it will more
than likely serve a good turn to the orchardist when the
danger time comes in the spring.

Danger Points

It is commonly believed that the danger point for fruit
buds is 32 degrees F., or the point at which frost forms
and water freezes. This, however, is not correct, as the,
danger point to different kinds of fruits is variable, both
with the kind of fruit and stage of development of the
flowers. It will also vary with the conditions of the soil
as to whether it is wet or dry or warm or cold. The
Missouri Agricultural Experiment Station has found that
dormant peach buds can stand a temperature of 8 or 9
degrees below zero with no injury. When the buds are
appreciably swollen, zero weather is the danger point.
When the buds are showing pink they can stand 15 de-
grees above zero. When the buds are almost open, 25
degrees is the danger point. When they are newly opened

62 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

about 20 degrees would be the point of danger. When the
petals are beginning to fall, 28 degrees above zero is cold
enough to cause uneasiness. When the petals are off they
can stand 30 degrees above zero. When the "shucks"
(calyx tubes) are beginning to fall off, 32 degrees above
zero is the danger point.

The United States Department of Agriculture makes
the statement that the danger point for apples when they
are showing pink is 20 degrees. above zero; in full bloom,
26 degrees above; pears showing pink, 20 above zero; in
full bloom, 27 above zero; peaches showing pink, 23 above
zero; in full bloom, 28 above zero.

Professor P. J. O'Gara stated that in southern Oregon
the temperature at which apricot is injured when in the
bud is 28 degrees above zero and at 30 degrees when in
blossom; cherries are injured at 29 degrees just before
the blooms open, and plums injured at 30 degrees above
zero when the flowers begin to show white.

These figures are not absolute, and will vary slightly
from year to year and with the conditions of the bud, but
they will serve to indicate that the buds will not be in-
jured when the temperature falls below the freezing point
for a couple of degrees. Bearing this in mind it will be
apparent to the orchardist that it will not be necessary to
start up the heaters until the temperature has reached the
freezing point, and if the prospects are for only a few
degrees of frost it will not be necessary to light up all of
the fires in the orchard, but to hold some of them in re-
serve.

In heating the orchard it is not necessary to run the
temperature more than to the freezing point, or at most
a couple of degrees above, as there is nothing gained. In
fact it may be even objectionable through causing the
buds to grow a little and become even more tender than
they would be if the temperature is held close to the frost
line. To be certain as to the departure of the temperature
above or below the freezing point it is necessary that the
orchard be provided with several thermometers located at

Danger Points 63

convenient places where they can be looked at frequently
by the overseer of the operations.

It needs to be borne in mind when the work of orchard
heating is begun that one has something else to do after
the fires are started than to stand around and see the tem-
perature in the heated zone rise to the point of comfort,
while outside the frost will be forming over all. In fact,
when orchard heaters are started to going it will keep all
hands on the bounce looking after the fires, keeping them
shut down or opened up so as to burn all the more vigor-
ously. When a sudden drop in temperature does occur,
and the heaters have been burning for several hours, it
may necessitate filling the heaters while they burn. This
is not an easy task, and especially when the coal burners
are used, as it will mean that the pots must be cleaned
out and sometimes that the fires must be rekindled. Then,
after working all night with the heaters, it will be neces-
sary on the day following to get them all cleaned up,
kindled and refilled so as to be ready in case they are
needed the next night. This day and night work is ex-
hausting, and it is important that the orchardist prepare
before hand and get sufficient help to do the work, and
have the help well drilled in their work, so that the job
can proceed with the least amount of trouble. Just a little
systematizing of the procedure helps wonderfully in mak-
ing a success of the work.

64 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

CHAPTER III

Thinning and Harvesting

Thinning

The practice of thinning fruit on the trees is not as
extensively practiced by fruit growers as it will be in a
few years in the future. The competition in fruit growing
is becoming more keen each year, and the markets have
less poor fruit each year, and the time is not far distant
when the commercial orchardist cannot afford to grow
fruit which will not measure up to the present standard of
fancy. Thinning is done for the purpose of removing a
portion of the fruit on the trees so as to allow that which
remains to reach a larger size. It is profitable only on
trees that are carrying a heavy load. To a certain extent
the thinning can be done by pruning away some of the
fruit producing wood, but in other cases it will take hand
thinning to properly distribute the fruit.

It has been frequently argued that it costs too much to
thin, but as a matter of fact, it will cost no more to pick
the fruit when it is small than it will when it reaches
maturity. In many instances it will not cost as much.
It is money well invested at any rate, as the reducing of
a heavy crop works to the advantage of enlarging each in-
dividual fruit left on the tree, and allows the tree to form
fruit buds for the next year. In regions where the trees
tend- to an alternation in years of fruit production, the
thinning of the crops will regulate the alternating habit.
In the Western states where trees regularly overbear,
thinning will allow the trees to make more wood growth

Thinning 65

and to enlarge the size of the crop that remains on the
trees.

It is impossible to lay down any formal set of rules
for thinning as more depends on the size of the crop than
any other factor. In years when there is a very light crop
on the trees thinning may not be necessary, but in years
when the crop is heavy it is always advisable.

Peaches in the Right Stage for Thinning.

Apples will usually produce their fruit in clusters of
from three to half a dozen fruits in a bunch. All but the
best apple in a bunch should be removed. On the tips of
(3)

66 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

the longest whips fruit is often formed, but will not de-
velop into fancy fruit, so they had best be removed, allow-
ing only the fruit on the spurs to remain, thinning out to
only one on a spur.

Pears have about the same habit of fruiting as do the
apples, and need to be thinned in the same way. With
young trees and with trees that are not carrying a very
heavy load of fruit, thinning is not always a necessity, as

Apples at the Right Stage for Thinning.

if thinned on such trees the fruit may become larger than
is most desired for market fruit. Very large pears are
not wanted by the average market, as when they have to
sell at a price above 5 cents each the demands are not
sufficient to warrant most dealers handling them.

Peaches, plums and cherries are thinned to a large

Harvesting 67

extent by the operation of pruning. Peaches especially
set a far larger number of fruit buds than the tree can
possibly bring to maturity, and thinning by removal of
some of the fruit producing wood saves a large amount
of labor later on. All of the fruit of the peach is produced
on wood of the last year's growth, and the middle portions
of such branches will have one or two buds at each node.
The thinning should be done before the peaches get any
larger than a pigeon egg, and need to be thinned out so
that the fruit on any one branch is separated by at least
six inches from any other fruit on the same limb.

In thinning stone fruits the work can be done by pull-
ing the fruits off, but with apples and .pears it is safest
to clip the fruit with sharp pointed shears, as if pulled
there is too much liability of breaking off the entire spur.

Harvesting

The harvesting of a fruit crop is only one of the sev-
eral important operations connected with fruit growing,
and yet it is an operation which has a great deal of in-
fluence over the final market value, of the fruit, and takes
a rank only second to spraying. If fruit has been care-
fully sprayed, three-fourths of the loss that occurs by the
lime the fruit reaches the consumer will be due to care-
lessness in picking.

To know when to pick a fruit is a fine art. To know
how to pick a fruit can be learned by practice, but not
every one can or will learn how to do the operation with
all of the care that is necessary in handling a high class
crop. The commercial fruit markets of today demand
fruit that is in excellent condition, and will pay prices
that warrant all of the care that the grower can give the
fruit during the harvest.

All kinds of fruit must be picked by hand, rather than
by raking off the tree, or shaking onto the ground to be
picked up later on. Fruit that is picked from the tree
must be laid carefully into a basket, bucket or bag and car-
ried to the packers with the least possible shaking about.

68 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

Most of the fancy fruit that is produced is held in cold
storage during the early part of the season, and its market
price will be determined largely by its superiority as a
cold storage product. This means that the fruit must be
picked in the proper condition. Fruit which is fully ripe,
but not overripe, well colored and placed in storage im-
mediately after harvesting keeps best.

Picking Apples

High quality apples must be picked by hand. Just
when to pick will depend on a variety of circumstances.
It depends on the variety of apple, the market to which
it is to go, the style of packing and the general excellence
of the crop. Red apples are usually ready to pick by the
time they have reached their full color; yellow apples can-
not always be determined when ready for picking by the
color of the skin. A better guide is by the size of the
apple and by the color of the seeds. When the seeds have
become a good brown color the apple has reached its ma-
turity and is ready for picking. Some varieties of apples
like Ben Davis and Northern Spy will hang on the trees
for a long time after becoming ripe enough to pick, while
varieties like Wagener and Wealthy or other early matur-
ing kinds, will generally begin dropping by the time they
have reached maturity.

The time to pick apples is determined to some extent
by the distance to market. When apples are to be used
in the local market, or to be shipped only short distances,
they can be allowed to hang on the trees longer, and will
take on a higher color. If the fruit is to be shipped great
distances it must be picked as soon as possible after
having reached its maturity, although in some instances
the fruit may have to be gathered while it is still a little
on the green side of maturity.

For high quality fruit it is the practice of many orchard-
ists, especially in the Western fruit sections, to make sev-
eral pickings, going over the trees at least three different
times, picking only the largest fruits each time. This will

Picking Apples 69

often result in increasing the grade of the fruit, as apples
will continue to increase in size, and deepen in color,
during the last few days they remain on the tree. Some
varieties of red apples will not take on the highest color
they can attain until after the leaves have begun to thin
out a little in the fall and allow the sunlight to enter the
tree. |

The coloring of an apple is a character that has a great
influence over the final price the fruit will bring in the
market. Red apples that have reached maturity, and are
perfect in every respect except that they are poorly col-
ored, will not bring the same price as apples that are per-
fectly colored. In some of the Western fruit districts
that make a specialty of fancy fruit, it is demanded by the
associations that the growers put into their first grade
or extra fancy fruit, only apples that are at least 70 per
cent red. By making several pickings the color of much
of the fruit can be increased materially, and the increased
price for high colored fruit offsets the increased cost of
making additional pickings.

In picking fruit every care should be exercised that the
skin of the fruit is not injured by punctures from the fruit
spurs, and from the finger nails of the pickers. It should
not be knocked against any object that would cause a
bruise. A bruise so slight as to not be noticeable will
develop into a discoloration in many varieties, especially
yellow apples, and possibly cause the tissue to break down
and rot. The pickers should be warned and watched
against pulling out the stems of the apples. Every fruit
should have the stem left in the apple, and this can always
be had if the fruit is not pulled off the twig. Each apple
should be grasped firmly and lifted up at a sharp angle
to the twig and given a quick twist. Unless very green,
the stem will break easily from the spur. When a stem
is pulled out of the fruit it always leaves a wound into
which mould spores can enter and start the apple to rot-
ting.

Mechanical pickers are of little value in harvesting a
crop of fancy apples. They may be of some service in the

70 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

home orchard, or where cider apples? are being harvested,
but have no place in the orchard where fancy fruit is being
grown. The principal objection to mechanical pickers is
that they invariably pull the stems out of the apples and
subject the fruit to more or less bruising and puncture the
skin.

Buckets and Ladders

Tin or galvanized iron buckets are the best things to
use in picking apples, and each bucket should be provided
with a large, strong wire hook attached to the bail, in
order that the bucket can be hung on a limb or on the
ladder while being filled. It is better to have the bucket
on the ladder or on a limb, rather than to be attached to
the picker, as the fruit is subjected to less damage from
bruising. Baskets holding a half bushel or less, and which
are well padded inside, are very satisfactory for picking
apples into, but are more unwieldy than the bucket. Some
persons use buckets that have a canvas bottom which can
be loosened so that the apples roll into the lug box or on
the packing table. They answer very well in the hands of
careful pickers, but the fruit is liable to be bruised by
being set down on hard objects. Picking bags and baskets
also serve their purpose very well in the hands of careful
pickers, but as it makes it necessary for the pickers to
carry the fruit about with them at every move, there is
great danger of the fruit being bruised.

Ladders are a necessity, and the best ones, except for
very high trees, are step ladders with three legs. Such a
ladder will set more solidly than a ladder with four legs.
The best for high trees are light ladders with two rails so
shaped that the rails meet at the top and are continued up-
ward for a couple or three feet. Ladders of this sort slip
into the branches easily and are strong and substantial.
It is an advantage in picking apples to have the picking
crew graded according to height. Some of the pickers
should work on the ground, picking no fruit they cannot
reach easily from the ground. Another set of pickers
sliculd work from six-foot ladders, and the remainder work

Buckets and Ladders

71

from high ladders. This will facilitate the picking as the
pickers will quickly adapt themselves to th? height at
which they must work and learn how to handle themselves
and their bucket.

After the fruit is picked it must be kept out of the sun.
The best method is to have the pickers empty their buck-

step Ladders arid Picking Bags used in Harvesting Ap-
ples in Western Colorado.

ets into lug boxes, filling the boxes no more than level
lull, and haul the boxes to the packers immediately. In
emptying the buckets or bags the pickers should not pour
or drop the apples into the boxes, but lift each apple care-
fully ami lay it over by hand. A drop of only a few inches
will in many cases, bruise the fruit. Apples must be

72 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

handled as carefully as eggs. The practice of transferring!
the apples from the picking bucket to a heap on the
ground to await the packers in the orchard is not recom-
mended for fancy apples. They will be more or less
bruised; they will heat and unless carefully covered,
they will be scalded by the sunlight. Some growers trans-
fer the apples from the pickers directly to the wagon,
where they are loaded in bulk and hauled to the packers
and poured out on the packing tables. This always bruises
the fruit to a greater or less extent, and is not recom-
mended. The best practice is to transfer the fruit from
the pickers' buckets into lug boxes of three-eighth inch
sides and bottoms and three-fourths inch ends with a
cleat across the top at each end to keep the boxes apart
when piled on top of each other. It is an advantage in
handling the boxes to have hand holds sawed in the ends
by which they can be carried.

Apples should be hauled from the orchard to the pack-
ing house on low wheeled wagons equipped with good
bolster springs. A low wheeled wagon will pass under
the limbs of the trees more easily than the high wheels,
and will cause less damage to the low limbs and to the
fruit that hangs low on the trees. Where lug boxes are
used, make a platform for the wagon, around the edge of
which there is a one-inch strip to keep the boxes from
sliding off. The boxes can be piled two or three high,
and such a wagon is far more easily loaded and unloaded
than an ordinary wagon box.

Pickers should be paid by the day rather than by the
quantity. This will insure less injury to the fruit, as. when
paid by the quantity the pickers will have no interest than
to get as many apples off in a day as possible. By receiv-
ing a certain sum for each day's work, they will exercise
more care to pick each apple so as to retain the stem and
to handle the fruit without bruising. Apples picked while
wet from rain or heavy dew will rot quickly. It is better
always to wait until the trees have dried off before com-
mencing to pick after a rain.

Picking Peaches
Picking Peaches

73

Peaches for eating out of the hand are best when
picked just before the fruit has become so ripe that it will
fall off the tree. However, for the commercial peach,
where the fruit will possibly be shipped a thousand miles
or more, and where it may have to lay in the package for
ten days or so before finally reaching the consumer, it is

Peach Pickers Using Bushel Baskets.

impossible to let them reach their full maturity before pick-
ing. It is always best to leave them on the tree just as long
as possible and still get them to the consumer without their
being injured or overripe. This means that for nearby
markets they can be allowed to become riper than where
they are sent to far distant markets. However, the fruit

74 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

should not be either too ripe or too green. It is easy to
err on either side.

Peaches vary considerably with the different varieties
as to the stage of maturity they must reach before picking.
Firm varieties like Elberta can be allowed to reach a riper
condition before picking than with the soft fleshed kinds
like Carman. In cool dry weather the fruit can become
riper than when it is hot and muggy. In wet weather
tnere is always much loss from the fruit rotting.

A half-bushel wooden basket is the best thing to use
for picking peaches. The fruit should be picked from the
trees carefully, and just at the time when it has reached
its full size and developed a good blush on the sunny side.
When ready to pick the fruit must be solid, with no indi-
cation of a soft spot, and must be handled carefully so as
to not bruise it by dropping it into the basket or in hauling
it to the packing shed. If a soft spot can be felt when the
fruit is held in the hand and squeezed gently, it is too ripe
to ship far.

It pays to go over the trees several times, as the fruit
will not all reach the same stage of ripeness at the same
time and the smaller fruits that may be left for several
days on the trees will increase greatly in size and pack into
a much larger grade than if the tree is stripped at one
picking.

Picking Pears

It is necessary in putting out a first-class grade of
pears to go over the trees not less than three times, taking
at each picking only those pears which are ready to pick.
To know when to pick a pear can be learned only by ex-
perience. When left on the trees until they have begun to
color pears will become granular in the center, and in
storage they will break down at the core and become soft
and mushy. A pear for market needs to be picked when
it has reached its full size but is still green in color. In
some varieties, such as Bartlett and Cornice, the usual
method of knowing when a pear is ready to pick is when
the pear will snap off the stem when the fruit is lifted and

Picking Pears 75

bent upwards at a sharp angle to the fruit spur. When
such is the case the fruit needs to be picked and placed in
storage to ripen. The yellow coloring of pears is devel-
oped in storage, although the crimson blush which appears
on some kinds must be formed while still hanging on the
tree. Not many varieties of pears will take on a red cheek,
although it is common to some kinds.

Pears need to be handled with as much care as the
apple, and extra care must be taken that the stems are not
broken off or pulled out. On account of their extending
out of the fruit, and being quite rigid, they are easily
broken, and the way opened for the entrance of germs that
will cause the fruit to rot.

76 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

CHAPTER IV

Packing

Packing in its broadest application consists of the oper-
ation of placing articles, goods, products or merchandise
into suitable parcels, baskets, boxes, cans, barrels or other
packages for safe transportation. In horticultural work
it applies especially to the preparation of fruits and vege-
tables for shipment.

The approved method of packing fruits and vegetables
necessarily differs widely with the nature of the article
to be packed, and for the same product custom has estab-
lished different practices in different parts of the country.
Formerly it was the habit in many markets to return the
empty packages to the shipper so that they could be used
over and over again. With the vast increase in distant
shipments, due to improved transportation facilities, this
became impossible, and now cheap gift packages intended
to be used but once, are coming into favor, and in some
regions are used exclusively. This is by far the best prac-
tice, as it is a sanitary method, and assures a clean, neat
package for the product.

While the shape, size and form of the package varies
widely for the same kind of product in different parts of
the country, some form of crate, barrel, box or basket
constitutes the commonest package for the ordinary fruits
or vegetables. These are modified to suit the particular
purpose.

Modern Packages

Modern packages are characterized by lightness, neat-
ness, cheapness and uniformity, and are of such shape as

Modern Packages 77

will best accommodate the kind of product for which they
are designed. Most packages are intended to contain some
certain standard quantity, as pint, quart, bushel or multiple
thereof, yet every market is more or less full of packages
which contain "short" measure. Legal actions and regu-
lations have been somewhat ineffectual in enforcing the
adoption of packages containing quantities of certain vol-
r.me, yet they should be observed by all growers, especi-
ally when the package is expected to contain a specific
volume of standard measurement.

The sale of any product largely depends on the ap-
pearance of the packages in which they are contained, and
packages which attract the eye of the buyer are most
easily sold. It is always advisable to have a sufficient
supply of the desired packages on hand at the beginning
of the shipping season, as it is often difficult to get the
right kinds of packages at the height of the season for
that particular kind of product. Packages which have
been once used for the shipment of fruit or vegetables
should not be used for the purpose a second time. The
general appearance of such packages are not only against
them, but it frequently happens that the wood is filled
with the spores of organisms which cause decomposition
of the product from the produce which was formerly
packed in them. These will then hasten the decomposi-
tion of the fresh produce which may be packed therein.

Any unused packages at the end of the season should
be carefully gathered together and stored where they will
be kept perfectly dry and clean and where their general
attractiveness will be retained until they are to be put into
use at a subsequent season.

Grading of the product before packing is very essential,
and consists in selecting specimens of uniform size and
condition for each grade used. There is a variety of names
applied to the grades of any sort of produce, depending
largely on the locality and kind. Each package should
contain only one grade and be honestly packed all the
way through.

As a general rule packages for soft and perishable

78 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

produce is packed in small parcels. Red raspberries, for
example, are packed in small cups or boxes holding ap-
proximately a pint. On the other hand, winter potatoes,
a product that does not require such careful handling, are
packed in bags containing about 150 pounds. In the South-
ern states where the trucking industry has reached its
highest development, there is much care given to packing
vegetables, so as to have them reach the markets in the
finest possible condition as there is in the Western or-
charding sections to have the highly perishable fruits, such
as peaches, cherries and apples, to reach the markets in the
best condition.

Potatoes

While the potato is one product which can be handled
with the minimum of care, yet for the early potato it is
necessary to observe certain precautions against bruising
and breaking the tender and immature skin, and in getting
them properly packed so as to reach their distant market
with the least amount of loss from bruising. Early po-
tatoes need to be handled carefully from the time they
are taken from the soil until in the hands of the consumer.
They are sometimes dug with a machine made for digging
potatoes, -and sometimes with an ordinary "potato hook."
They should be gathered from the field as soon as possible
after digging to prevent their wilting and becoming sun-
burned or turned green through the development of chlo-
rophyll. Grading and packing may be done in the field
or they may be taken to the storage house and there pre-
pared for market. The crop requires as careful and uni-
form grading as any other farm product. The tubers
should be sorted according to size into first and second
grades. All scabby, second growth and injured specimens
should be rejected, and the different varieties kept separate.

Early potatoes are generally packed in ventilated bar-
rels with a burlap cover, although in some sections the
barrels are double headed in the same manner as apples.
The 'potatoes are not "faced," but poured in carefully from
a small basket that can be lowered into the barrel. During

Cabbage 79

the process of packing the barrel should be shaken or
"racked" several times so as to cause the potatoes to settle
and arrange themselves into the spaces between the tubers,
and make the pack firm and snug so that it will be well
filled at the time it reaches the market.

Sweet potatoes are packed in the same manner, and
fully as much care is necessary in the grading of them as
very small string-like potatoes are not desirable and tubers
which are considerably over size add nothing to the ap-
pearance of the package. Potatoes of medium size are the
most satisfactory for the Northern markets and usually
bring the best price.

Some of the Southern sweet potato growers are of the
opinion that the use of double headed barrels add materi-
ally to the marketing of the tubers in the North, as a
double headed barrel insures the potatoes reaching the
market in a better condition than is usually the case with
the burlapped barrel.

Cabbage

In the Southern states where cabbage is grown for the
Northern markets the usual package for marketing is a
slat-crate holding about 100 pounds. The heads are graded
according to size and packed as carefully as any other
perishable product. The slat crate or ventilated barrel is
preferred to the ordinary barrel because of the better ven-
tilation that is obtained. Cabbage wilts considerably after
being cut, and unless there is abundant ventilation for this
moisture, the air in the package becomes saturated and
moisture frequently condenses on the sides of the barrel.
In a tight package rot will quickly develop, and the prod-
uct be spoiled.

Late cabbage is most often packed in a square crate
holding about a barrel, and in either sort of package it is
important to pack heads of uniform size in each package,
and to fill the package very full and. solid, as cabbage wilts
and shrinks considerably during transportation so that it
is important to guard against having it reach the buyer in
a slack condition.

80 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

Lettuce

The packages for head and leaf lettuce are somewhat
different. In the Southern states where head lettuce is
grown in the open field for the Northern markets, the
lettuce is generally marketed in half-barrel baskets, while
in the North where leaf lettuce is grown in greenhouses,
the products are packed in half-bushel veneer market bas-
kets, and in one-third and one-bushel boxes.

All of the heads of lettuce will not reach the same stage
of development at the same time so that the field, frame
or house must be gone over several times, selecting each
time only those plants which have reached the proper de-
velopment. The plants are sorted and graded as they are
packed. In the Southern lettuce fields the plants are cut
and trimmed in the field and packed there or taken to the
packing house and packed. In the bottom layer of the
basket the heads are placed stem end down and the re-
mainder of the basket filled with stem end up, placing the
heads in the basket as neatly as possible, and in uniform
layers.

With leaf lettuce the packing is done either flat or
stem end down, packing the basket or box as tight and
firm as possible without crushing the leaves. The leaves
will wilt and shrink somewhat after being cut, and for
that reason the packages need to be well filled, but not so
tightly as to heat, otherwise they will become slack before
reaching the market, and not bring as good a price as
might otherwise be had.

Beans and Peas

Beans and peas from the Southern trucking districts
are marketed in the same sort of half-barrel basket as is
used for lettuce. The packing is mostly done in the field,
each picker putting the produce directly into the package
without any additional sorting at the packing house. In
some sections these packages are covered with burlap and
in others a wooden lid is placed on each basket, thus mak-

Tomatoes 81

ing it possible to put the product on the Northern market
in somewhat better shape than when burlap covers are.
used.

Cucumbers

This crop is grown in the open in the Southern states
and in greenhouses in the north, for the winter and early
spring trade. In the Southern states the customary pack-
age is a one-third barrel veneer basket. The cucumbers
are cut from the vines and carried to the packing house
where they are sorted over and graded, so that each basket
contains specimens of uniform shape and size. The most
desirable market size during the early spring is for fruits
six to eight inches long. These are placed in the baskets
so as to lay flat, and packed in as firmly as possible. The
baskets are covered with a wooden lid made for the pur-
pose.

Cucumbers grown under glass are generally packed in
boxes which are about eight inches deep and twenty-four
inches square, and are either stood on end in the box or
laid flat, according to the size and grade that is being
packed.

Tomatoes

When tomatoes are grown as a truck crop in the South
to be shipped to some distant market it is important to
pick the fruit as soon as the first coloring appears. The
fruit needs to be picked carefully, without the stem, and
taken to the packing shed in small baskets or boxes,
handled at all times in such manner as to prevent any
possible bruises or injury to the skin.

In packing, only sound, perfect fruits should be used
and each package should contain as nearly as possible
fruits of the same shape, size and color. For fancy mar-
kets, or for long distance shipments, it is advisable to wrap
each fruit in a sheet of soft, white paper, upon which the
name of the grower should be neatly printed.

The usual package in the South is the six-basket carrier
similar to the one that is used in some sections for packing

82 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

peaches. In packing such a package, the fruit should be
arranged neatly in rows in each little basket.

Where the fruits are placed on local or nearby mar-
kets they are packed in the Michigan or Delaware type
of baskets.

Beets

For distant shipment beets are pulled when about two
and a half inches in diameter, and are tied in bunches of
from about four to six, with the tops cut back about one-
half. There is no standard sort of package for this root
crop, the kind used depending largely on the market to
which the crop is sent. Some markets prefer the venti-
lated barrels, while others want a bushel slat-crate and
still others want either the half-bushel or half-barrel
veneer hamper. No matter what sort of package is used,
the beets should be well graded and neatly packed.

Celery

This crop is quite uniformly marketed in crates by the
growers in all of the important celery producing regions.
The plants are dug from the field and the roots cut off and
then tied into bundles of from four to a dozen plants in a
bundle and packed root end down in open crates. In some
of the Northern markets, where celery is marketed locally,
the plants do not have the roots cut off, but are packed
in crates which have a water tight bottom in which a
little water is placed. In such crates the plants will keep
fresh much longer than where the roots are cut off; how-
ever, such packages are expensive and do not permit of as
rapid handling as do the standard crates.

Radishes

Radishes intended for long distance shipments are
pulled and tied into bundles of about a dozen roots each
and packed in half-barrels or hampers. It is considered
advisable in warm weather to pack some two or three

Strawberries

layers of crushed ice in each package of radishes, espe-
cially when shipping over long distances. This will assist
in preventing the decay of the tops and roots, and keep
the plants crisp and fresh.

Small Fruits

The packages used for berries of all kinds are pint or
quart "cups" or boxes made of cardboard or thin veneer
and fastened together with wire staples or tacks. The
shape of the boxes varies somewhat with the market to
which the fruit goes, although in a general way square
boxes, which are a little larger at the top than bottom are
preferred on the Eastern markets, while in the Middle
Western states the "Hallock'1 or "Leslie" boxes are used.
Whatever shape box is used, they are packed in crates
holding from 16 to 24 or 32, 48 or 60 boxes.

As a rule the softer the berry the smaller the box should
be, or at least the more shallow it should be in order to
prevent the berries from being crushed t>y their own
weight. For this reason the package most popular for the
fruits of the brambles, such as red raspberries, black rasp-
berries, blackberries and dewberries, are cups which are
about five inches square and two inches deep. These cup's
hold approximately a pint, and in them the berries are not
piled so deep that the bottom ones are crushed by the
weight of those above. Packages of this size are so satis-
factory for small fruits that blackberries have been har-
vested in the Puget Sound country of Washington and
shipped to Chicago, where they arrived practically in as
good condition as the day they were picked from the
bushes.

Strawberries

The system of packing strawberries is undergoing a
gradual transformation, taking the country as a whole.
This is on account of the great extension of the commer-
cial strawberry growing country, and the increasing de-
mands for fancy fruits in neat and attractive packages.

84 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

Cups or boxes holding not over a quart are the accepted
standard as packages for strawberries. In most sections
of the country these boxes are arranged in little trays
holding from four to a dozen boxes, which the packers
take to the field. The berries are picked directly into the
boxes, without any additional sorting or grading. While
this practice is common and used in all parts of the straw-
berry growing districts, it is falling into disfavor for the

A carefully packed crate of strawberries. This style of
packing adds materially to the attractiveness and helps in
bringing a better price.

reason that the pickers are not always as careful as they
should be about grading the fruit as it is picked. Children
do most of the work of picking strawberries, and they be-
come careless about grading unless they are more care-
fully watched than most growers are able to do.

Strawberries 85

Because of this there is an increasing tendency among
growers who are packing fancy and extra fancy fruit to
have the picking done in the usual way, and then repack
the fruit, at the packing shed. In this repacking the fruit
is poured out onto a tray having a bottom made of mos-
quito bar or soft cotton cloth. All of the bruised, over-
ripe or dirty berries are thrown out. The berries suitable
for packing are arranged in two grades, and are placed in
the boxes in rows and layers, much after the fashion of
boxed apples. Berries which are of irregular shape, such
as Bubach or Aroma, do not pack into boxes as smoothly
and evenly as do such varieties as Senator Dunlap, Klon-
dike or Clark's Seedling. But whatever the size or shape
of the berry, the boxes should be graded honestly with
the fruit in the top layer turned with the same side up,
thus "facing" the box. Fruit which runs under three-
quarters of an inch in diameter should not be marketed as
first-class berries, as they are too small, and should be
sent to the canning factory.

In those parts of the country where fruit growers' as-
sociations have control of the harvesting and packing the
better methods are in use, and the growers receive more
careful instruction about picking and packing their fruit.
The association at Ashland, Oregon, issued the following
instructions in 1910 for its berry growers: "Strawberries
are graded 'A' and *B.' The 'A' grade berries must be nice
in appearance, firm and clean; smallest berry for 'A' grade
should be of such size that four berries will form one row
along the side of the cup; face the 'A' grade with medium
size berries; do not put the extra large berries on top.
The *B' grade, firm and clean, no culls, and need not be
faced. Stems on all strawberries should be about half an
inch long. Pick in the mornings only, and keep dry and
cool; do not let crates or picking crates set in sun. De-
liver to warehouse before 10:30 a. m. Use wagon with
springs and cover fruit. Make rule for pickers that ber-
ries must not be carried in hand but must be transferred
to cup at once after picking. Berries should be handled
as little as possible. Fill cups about half an inch above
the rim: fill corners; pack firmly, but do not press. In

86 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

picking blackberries, raspberries and logans, remove all
stems and pick as soon as berries come off readily. Be
careful to not put overripe or crushed fruit in cups, as it
will cause the entire lot to mould. Use no small or dried
berries. Especial care is required to fill the corners; if
not done, shipping causes berries to sink in cup. Currants
and gooseberries are shipped in crates and cups, same as
strawberries. Get instructions from manager as to time
and condition of picking. Mark grower's name in upper
left hand corner of crate. Attention to details gives sat-
isfaction to customers and keeps up the price."

"Shed packing," as it is called, has found favor with
the strawberry growers at Pierce City, Mo., where the
association has made a fine reputation for its pack and
has been able to realize from 15 to 35 cents per crate above
the average market price. To accomplish this the berries
are culled at the packing shed. There the force of help
is divided into cullers, graders and packers, over whom is
the shed inspector. About two-thirds of the force cull
and grade; the other one-third being divided up into pack-
ers and finishers. To facilitate the work of packing, trays
or pans have been contrived in the shape of a flat, shallow
tin scoop tapering from 8 to 10 inches in width at the
handle to about 4^ inches at the other end, and from about
12 to 14 inches long. These trays expose the surface of all
the berries in such a way that the faulty ones may be
quickly culled out. The good fruit remaining is then
emptied into the box from which it originally came, and
additional berries are added to make it nicely rounded.
Every box and crate prepared for shipment must be exam-
ined by the inspector and receive his stamp of approval
before being shipped.

Grapes

There are a great many different kinds of grapes grown
in this country, yet there are but two styles or type of
packages in general use. One of these is the "Climax"
basket that is used for the Concord class of grapes,- and
finds its most extensive use in the central and eastern

Peaches 87

portions of the country, while on the Pacific coast, where
the Vinifera type, such as Cornichon, Tokay, etc., are
most extensively grown, the four-basket crates are
mostly used. There are various sizes of Climax baskets,
holding 3, 5, 8 and 10 pounds of grapes, and are sold intact
to the consumer. With the grapes from the Pacific coast
they are usually sold by the pound on the retail stands,
the average consumer rarely buying so much as one basket,
which may weigh as much as five pounds. The Malaga
grapes, that reach the Eastern markets in midwinter, are
packed in half barrels with the spaces filled with cork
dust. In such packages the grapes will carry better and
keep for a longer time than when packed in baskets as
other varieties.

In some of the large grape growing districts of the
East the grapes are cut from the vines in the field and
laid into lug boxes that will hold about fifty pounds. These
are taken to the packing house immediately, where they
are allowed to stand for at least twenty-four hours to wilt.
They may stand for several days if the weather is cool, and
will pack into the baskets very much more firmly after
wilting than when cut from the vines.

Growers in some of the smaller sections do not repack
their grapes in the packing house, but pick directly into
the shipping baskets. When filled the baskets are set
under the vines where they will be out of the sun. In
picking, the grapes are carefully arranged in the baskets
and well heaped up. After standing for a day or so they
will have wilted sufficiently so that the lid can be placed
on the basket.

Peaches

The packages for this fruit as it is packed in each of
the many states where it is grown commercially are as
variable as for any other kind of fruit. The most impor-
tant of these are the Climax basket used in Michigan, the
half-bushel and bushel basket, and the Delaware or Jersey
basket, the 4 and 6-basket carrier and the flat box of the
Pacific coast states. Of all of these the last named is the

88 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

only one which requires any especial skill in packing. The
6-basket carriers require that the peaches be graded into
fruits of uniform size and placed in the little baskets in
such manner as to make a good appearance. Some skill
is required to do this in the best manner, but it is easily
learned, and after a day or so any one who is careful can
pack such baskets perfectly.

As a general rule the peach growers in all parts of the
country pack their peaches in especially arranged packing
houses. These houses are arranged so that the wagons
delivering the fruit from the pickers in the field can drive
up to one end or side of the house and unload directly on
the floor ot the house. The house is provided with long
tables usually having a canvas bottom, and at convenient
distances apart on each side of the table are brackets or
racks of such size as to hold the baskets of the packers.
The packers grade and pack at the same time. Culls are
dropped through a chute in the table to baskets on the
floor, and the packers put fruits of uniform size into each
basket.

The bushel baskets are usually packed in the field un-
less the crop is very defective, necessitating the sorting
out of rotten or overripe stock at the house. The Climax
and Delaware baskets are sometimes packed in the field,
although the growers who make the better packs work the
fruit over in the packing house and sort into two or three
grades.

In the great peach growing sections of the far Western
states the packing of fruit has been reduced to a fine art
and it is in these sections that one finds the greatest uni-
formity in the styles of packages and packing. About the
only package that finds commercial use in the West is the
light pine box having dimensions of about lV/2 by 18
inches and 4, ±l/2 and 5 inches deep inside. The ends arc
made of 3-4 inch or 11-16 material and sides of 1-4 inch
wood. In these boxes the peaches are packed only two
deep, so that the lower layer is not bruised by the weight
of the fruit above, and the contents cool very quickly when
put in an iced refrigerator car or cold storage.

Handling the Fruit 89

The majority of the associations in the West make
three grades, and while they are known by different names
in different parts of the West, they are practically uniform
in. size of fruit. These grades are known by the name of
"extra," ''90s" and "108s;M "extra fancy," "fancy," "choice,"
"F," "A," "B," etc.

The "extras" or "extra fancy" is applied to peaches that
will pack not more than 80 to the box; "90s" should run
from 81 to 94 to a box, and the "108s" from 95 to 108. In
the peach growing section of Oregon the "F" grade is.
applied to peaches running not more than 66 to the box;
"A" to 76 and "B" to 88. In this district a fourth grade
running to 100 per box has been packed, but has not been
a profitable size, and peaches running less than 88 are used
up locally or canned.

Handling the Fruit

The first essential in packing peaches for the commer-
cial market and especially where they are to be shipped
for some distance, is to have the fruit picked in the right
way and at the right time. Peaches which are picked too
green or too ripe will not prove satisfactory on the mar-
ket. In picking pick with the hand and not the fingers.
Reach over the peach so that the fruit rests in the palm of
the hand and separate the fruit from the stem by a twist
from the wrist and not by a pull. Peaches picked in this
manner will not show the least mark, even on the ripest
fruit, and the fruit should be laid in the basket and not
dropped. The fruit must be handled as carefully as eggs.

Grading of the peaches is done as the fruit is packed,
as it is the general opinion among experienced packers
that the fruit can be handled in that manner with the least
amount of damage. Grading machines have been in use
to some extent, but they have not proven altogether satis-
factory as yet on account of the bruising which is caused.
Yet there is every reason to believe that satisfactory ma-
chines will be developed within the next few years that
will handle peaches with but little more bruising than they
receive at the hands of careful pickers.

90

The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

Upon being delivered from the field the peaches are
carefully emptied out upon tables having well padded or
canvas bottoms. At the sides of the tables are racks hold-
ing two or three boxes slightly inclined, one box for each,
grade, and the fruit is packed from the lower end up.
Peaches packed in these Western sections are each wrap-

Interior of a peach-packing shed at Koshkonong,
showing the packing table, bushel baskets in which the fruit
is delivered from the field, and a six-basket crate.

ped in paper. This operation is easily learned with a little
experience, although it will go rather slowly at first. The
papers used for wrapping are cut 7x7 or 8x8 and kept in
suitable trays at the side of the boxes and within easy
reach for the packers.

Handling the Fruit 91

The packers stand with one side to the table. A peach
is picked up in one hand and a paper in the other, the paper
being caught about the center between the thumb and
first finger in such a manner that the paper lays flat on
the palm of the hand. The peach is then quickly placed
in the center of the paper, and the paper closed over the
fruit by closing the fingers and finally finished by a deft
little twist into the box so that the corners close over the
fruit and serve as a pad between the box and fruit. After
the first layer has been completed the second layer is put
in in the same manner, and the box is ready for the nailing
press.

There are many styles of arranging peaches in the
boxes, depending largely on the size and shape of the
fruit. It is of great assistance to the inexperienced pack-
ers to have a "size board" or specimen peaches of the dif-
ferent grades continually before them, so that by compar-
ing these frequently the grades can be kept quite constant.
The ''straight" pack in which the fruit is arranged in
straight rows up and down and across the box is the sim-
plest style of packing and one that has been extensively
used, but is being displaced by the "diamond" or "diag-
onal" pack, since in the straight pack each fruit rests
directly on top of others and is thus more easily bruised.
In the diamond pack the fruits are placed so that each
specimen is in the hollow between several others, and long
experience has shown that this style of packing causes less
damage than the straight pack.

The diamond packs are arranged so that the peaches
come in double rows across the box containing 2-2, 3-2,
3-3, 4-3, 4-4, 4-5, etc., corresponding to the "half tiers" in
the boxed apple package. In this style of packing, the
"3-2" for example, three peaches are placed in the lower
end of the box, one in each 'corner, and the third exactly
in the middle. In the second row there are only two
peaches which are placed in the spaces between those in
the first row. In the third row three peaches are placed
in the spaces left by the fruit in the second row, and come
directly above the fruit in the first row, In the fourth

92 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

row there will be two fruits again, and be directly above
the ones in the second row. After the first layer is about
half filled in the fruit needs to be "drawn down" snugly
so as to give the box a little bulge at the side, but must
be done without bruising the fruit. The layer is then
completed. In placing the second layer in the box the
first row at the lower end will contain two fruits placed
over the spaces between the fruit in the lower layer. The
second row contains three fruits, and so on alternately 3
and 2 until the box is filled.

Apples

Apples for the commercial market are packed in fewer
styles of packages than any other kind of fruit. Barrels
holding approximately 100 quarts, and boxes holding a
bushel are the packages most extensively used. Some
trifling differences are made in the sizes of barrels by the
laws of the different states, but they are approximately
28J/2 inches long, with heads 17 J^ inches in diameter, and
64 inches in circumference at the bulge on the outside.
There is a slight difference made in the exact dimensions
of the bushel boxes, on account of the adaptability of
certain sizes to some sizes and shapes of apples.

It takes but little skill to.pack a barrel of apples. A
little experience, combined with the careful sorting of the
fruit will enable any good workman to pack a barrel of
apples, for the reason that the fruit is not arranged in the
barrel in layers or rows, but the apples poured in and al-
lowed to lay in whatever position they will.

In putting up the most fancy package of apples in bar-
rels it is best to line the barrel with white or manilla
paper, with a piece of lace paper over the face and a thick
pad between the fruit and the head to prevent the apples
from being bruised. . %

A barrel ready for packing is placed in front of the
packer with the bottom end out and the head, or top end
down. A few well sorted apples are then arranged with
the stem ends down, so as to completely cover the head.

Apples 93

A second row may be placed in a similar manner if the
barrel is to be packed nicely, otherwise the barrel is filled
with apples of the same size and grade as the face layer,
by lowering into the barrel a basket that can be emptied
Avith the least liability of damaging the fruit by bruising.
The barrel is shaken frequently while it is being filled to
cause the apples to settle, but must not be done so vigor-
ously as to bruise the fruit. When the barrel* is full a
layer of apples is then placed on top, all with the stems
up, and should stand up above the top of the barrel for a
couple of inches.

A Nicely Faced Barrel of Apples.

The chime hoops are then loosened up a little and the
top one removed. The barrel-press and head are then
put in place and the head forced into position. While the
pressure is being applied a few strokes with a hammer di-
rects the head into place, when the chime hoops are driven
down and nailed; the lining hoops are then nailed fust and
the press removed. The barrel is then turned over and
the name of the variety and name of the grower are sten-
ciled on the end that was downward, and which now
becomes the "face."

94

The Fru it-Growers Guide-Book

A barrel thus packed opens up with a nice show of
evenly packed apples on the face and makes a good appear-
ance. The necessity of filling the apples above the chime
and then forcing them down into the barrel must be done
to get the fruit in tight enough to prevent it from shaking
around and bruising. Apples packed firmly will bruise much
less easily than those packed less firmly. In forcing the
bottom of the barrel into place the lower layer of apples
will often be somewhat bruised, and the juice may fly out

Apples are usually barreled in the orchard, thereby doing-
away with the necessity of hauling the fruit to and from the
packing house.

of some of them, but this rarely causes any damage, as the
juice is quickly absorbed by the wood and the slight
breaks in the skin dry up and but little rot will result.

Packing apples in boxes is a fine art, requiring more
skill to do properly, than almost any other single operation
in the fruit business. The box as a package for apples is
comparatively new and has reached its most extensive

Apples 95

application in the irrigated sections of the West, although
on account of its adaptability, and the fact that it has
great advantages as the package for fancy fruit it is being
adopted in all of the Eastern fruit-growing sections.

In the Western fruit-growing sections it is the only
commercial package for apples, and possibly always will
be, but in the East it is hardly possible that it will displace
the barrel as an exclusive apple package. This is for the
reason that in the Eastern states barrels can be had at a
price proportionately less than boxes. The barrel is a
hardwood package, while the box is of soft wood -and is
cheaper in the West on account of being closer to the
great forests of white pine and spruce. The box has been
adopted in the West, not only because it was the cheaper
package, but because it reduced the amount of damage to
the fruit in transit to the minimum, and also because it
was the only package that enabled the growers to put up a
uniform and a fancy pack.

The sizes of these Western boxes have been varied
from time to time in an attempt to get the box to fit the
apple. But after a number of years experimenting, boxes
of only two sizes have been adopted. One of these is
known as the "standard," and is lO^xll^xlS inside meas-
urement, and contains 2,176 cubic inches without the bulge.
The "special" box is 10x11x20 inside measurement, contain-
ing 2,200 cubic inches without bulge, and is used for varie-
ties which run too long to pack in the standard box.

The first essential in packing apples in boxes is to have
perfect fruit. Nothing but the very finest apples should
go into boxes in the Eastern states, and nothing grading
lower than "choice" is packed in the Western sections.
Packing tables having well-padded or canvas bottoms are
next in importance, and are so arranged that the packers
will have a rack sufficiently large to hold two boxes at a
convenient height in front of them for easy packing. A
cull box should be on the floor behind the packer, into
which the culls can be dropped as the fruit is sorted on
the tables.

96 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

The fruit as it is brought from the field in lug-boxes is
carefully emptied out on the tables and sorted into the
various sizes or grades to be packed. Each size is deter-
mined by the diameter of the apple from cheek to cheek.
For the smallest size packed the diameter is 2{/2 inches. In
some sections- it is the custom to have sorters or graders
who have that particular bit of the work to do, and in
other sections the packers must sort their fruit as they
pack. In other sections again the graders must wipe the
dust and spray from each fruit as it is passed to the pack-
ers. Cotton flannel mitts, with the fleecy side turned out,
makes the most satisfactory material. The apples are
given a twist between the gloves, just enough to remove
any spray that may be sticking to the fruit, but not hard
enough to polish. Polishing is detrimental, as it reduces
the keeping qualities.

Grading machines for sizing apples have, up to the
present time, not been altogether satisfactory, as they
bruised the apples to such an extent as to make them unfit
for packing under the Western standard. A machine built
on altogether new principles has recently been patented by
Mr. James M. Hamilton, of Grand Junction, Colo., and
gives promise of proving very satisfactory. This machine
is described in The Fruit-Grower of December, 1910, from
which the following quotation is taken:

Hamilton Grading Machine

"No packer, no matter how expert he may be, can put up
a first-class pack from ungraded fruit. Some growers
object to the grading of fruit, believing the packers should
be able to grade as they pack, but when a packer is putting
up forty or more boxes .of apples a day, the fruit is being
handled so rapidly that small defects, such as punctures in
the skin, will be passed unnoticed and result in defective
packing. Grading ahead of the packers makes it possible,
for the packers to work more rapidly, as by having the
fruit sized, they do not have to "paw" over the fruit on
the table in order to get the size needed to fill the box.

Hamilton Grading Machine 97

"The grading is usually done in the Northwestern fruit
sections by persons who desire to learn packing. The new
person is started into grading with a grading board having
circular holes bored through it the size of the apples in
each grade. One of these holes is 3^ inches in diameter,
one 3 inches and one 2^/4 inches. All apples that will not
go through the 3l/2-inch hole are placed in a bin by them-
selves, and are packed as three and one-half tier. The
3 inch, and up to 3J/2, are placed by themselves, and are
packed as four-tier, while those between 3 and 2^4 inches
are packed as four and one-half tier, and those smaller than
23/4 are packed five tier.

"Some growers who do not put up the very fancy packs
make but two sizes, 8^2 and 4l/2 tiers. The graders size
the fruit so as to go into these two packs. A grader after
using a sizing board for half a day or so, will become so
accustomed to the sizes of the apples in the different
grades that the grading board will not be needed for every
apple, but it is always a good plan to keep the grading
board or ring within convenient reach, and occasionally try
the apples to see that the proper sizes are being kept. A
person's eyes quickly become fatigued, and it is easy to let
the fruit increase so gradually in size as to be unnoticed
by the grader, unless tried several times a day with a siz-
ing board.

"The essential features of the Hamilton grader are two
long parallel troughs, each about six inches wide, slightly
inclined; each trough, or chute, is divided into three sec-
tions, or compartments, the bottom of each of these sec-
tions being formed by a heavy rubber belt. Thus there are
really three of these rubber belts for each trough, and each
belt has a succession of holes; the holes of each section
are one-fourth inch larger in diameter than the preceding
section, to accommodate apples of different sizes.

"Our illustrations show the general appearance of the
grader. One of the troughs is for apples of 'fancy' grade,
the other for 'choice' grade. The troughs have padded
sides, and as the bottom is rubber the apples are not

98 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

bruised at all. Most graders which have been made here-
tofore have rolled the apples down an inclined chute and
as they pass down this chute they drop through holes
which are graduated in size from the smallest to the larg-
est. These graders are bound to bruise the fruit more or
less, and have not been satisfactory.

"The Hamilton grader does not roll the apples; instead,
they are carried along on moving belts and pass from one
section to the next, with a corresponding larger hole, with-
out any bruising. If an apple does not drop through a hole
in the first belt, it is carried to the next section, with a
larger hole; it may drop through there into a bin with a
canvas bottom, or it may be carried to the next section,
with a still larger opening.

Fruit Is Sorted by Hand

"The apples are dumped from the picking boxes into
the two bins at the head of the grader. Since the machine
grades only as to size, men or women stand at each side
of these bins to sort the fruit as to color, freedom from
blemishes, etc. Two sorters can work at each of these
bins. They simply sort the apples as to -color, worm in-
jury, etc., placing the perfect, well colored apples in the
chute marked 'Fancy' and the apples which are a litle off
color into the chute marked 'Choice.' Culls are dropped
into a box at their feet.

"The belt forming the first division of the 'Fancy' chute
is perforated with holes two and one-half inches in diam-
eter; apples of less diameter fall through and are packed
in the lower grades. It will be noted in the illustrations
that curtains hang down at intervals in the troughs; these
are made of heavy ducking and are merely to prevent ap-
ples riding the belt between the holes, and they drag every
apple into an opening.

"Now, it frequently happens that apples are of smaller
diameter one way than another, and may fail to go through
the opening in the belt in one way, whereas if turned they
would go through all right. To insure that all apples have

m$

100

The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

abundant opportunity to go through, Mr. Hamilton has
arranged a series of 'joggers' which are below the belts
and which catch the apples partly through the holes and
turn them over slightly as they pass along. These 'jog-
gers' are set at an angle, slanting with the direction the
belt travels; they are held by slight springs so that if an
apple were firmly caught in one of the openings it could
not be bruised in the slightest in passing these 'joggers;'
the springs would simply permit the latter to drop back

Upper end of the machine with bins of apples on each
side. The sorters work at these bins.

and allow the apples to pass. As there are about three of
these 'joggers' on each division of the belt, every apple is
given three slight turns as it passes, and if it has a smaller
diameter which will permit its passage through the hole, it
is pretty sure to fall 'through before it passes to the belt
with the larger openings.

"The openings in the belt of the second section are two
and three-quarters inches in diameter. We will assume

Fruit Is Sorted By Marrtf- { j< :<: iv \ 401

that the apple we have started on its journey through the
grader has persistently declined to pass through the open-
ings in the first belt; but if it is less than two and three-
quarter inches in diameter it will drop through the open-
ings in the second section into a bin at one side having a
canvas bottom. If this apple should be more than two
and three-quarter inches in diameter, and less than three
inches, it will drop through the third section, for the holes
in this belt are three inches in diameter. If it is larger
than three inches then it passes on out at the end of the
chute.

In sorting-, "fancy" apples are placed in one chute and
"choice" in the other. The machine does the rest.

"The chute for the 'choice' grade is arranged exactly
the same, except that the openings in the first belt are two
and a quarter inches in diameter, the next section has holes
two and a half inches, and the third section has openings
two and three-fourths inches in diameter,

Fruitgrowers Guide-Book
Packers Each Handle One Size Apples

"It will be noted there are three bins on each side of
the grader. On the 'Fancy' side the first bin contains only
perfect apples which are two inches and a half in diam-
eter and less than two and three-quarters; the next bin
contains perfect apples two and three-fourths inches in
diameter, and less than three inches; the last bin contains
perfect apples three inches or more in diameter. On the
'Choice' side the same is true, except that the apples are
one-fourth inch less in diameter, and of course they are off
color in some way, and therefore are of second grade.

"The work of this machine is absolute so far as grading
the apples as to size is concerned; if the sorters at the head
of the machine have done their work well and have culled
out all defective fruit, packers can work from these bins
with their eyes shut. Of course the sorters will occasion-
ally make mistakes, and a bad apple will get by them.
There is this advantage, however, in this method of sort-
ing: Their work can be inspected in the bins before the
apples are packed, whereas under ordinary conditions,
where the packer does both grading and sorting, the fruit
can be inspected only after it is packed, and then it is fre-
quently too late to catch the bad ones.

"The packers working for Mr. Hamilton have never
had any previous experience in packing apples in layers,
but they soon became so expert that they were packing
TOO boxes a«day apiece, and the work was well done, too.
In fact the packers, with the aid of the machine, were so
speedy with their work they were working only every
other day to give the picking force opportunity to catch
up with them. Ordinarily packers are paid by the box, but
since perfecting his grading machine Mr. Hamilton pays
his packers by the day. The usual rate was 5 cents per
box; now the packers are paid $2 per day, and if they pack
100 boxes — and they are doing that right along — the cost
of packing was reduced to 2 cents per box, with an addi-
tional charge for the sorting.

"Scores of experienced fruit men have seen the Hamil-

Packers Each Handle One Size Apples 108

ton grader at work this season, and all pronounce it a suc-
cess. Mr. John F. Moore, manager of the Grand Junction
Fruit Growers' Association, believes that the use of this
machine will solve the problem of the Grand Valley grow-
ers in getting packers who can put up the tier pack. Mr.
Hamilton's experience has been satisfactory, and he be-

Looking- down on the belts. The holes In the upper por-
tion are one-fourth inch larger than in the lower.

lieves that he can layer his apples as cheaply now as he
formerly could pack them with the old "jumble" pack. The
machine certainly looks like a winner, and we believe it
will help to solve the problem of better grading and pack-
ing everywhere."

104 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

Packing the Boxes

Fruit that has the skin punctured should not be packed.
Apples that have lost their stems, provided the skin is not
broken where a stem is pulled out, may be packed, al-
though too many such should not be put in any one box.
First quality fruit must have the stem left in the apple.

Four tier apples in a box packed "straight."

There are three styles of packs used in the apple sec-
tions of the Western states. One of these, the "jumble"
pack, is confined to Colorado and portions of Utah, but
will possibly be displaced in a few years by the tier pack
of the Northwest. In the far Northwest, two other styles,
known as "straight" and "diagonal" tier packs are in use.

Packing the Boxes 105

The straight pack includes the three, four and five -tier
apples, and the rows of fruit run parallel to the sides of the
box.

In the "straight" pack the apples are placed side by side
in rows, so that each apple rests directly on top of another.
In the "jumble" pack the first layer is faced, either straight
or diagonal, and the box then filled with apples in any
position they happen to lay. It is a rapid method of filling
boxes, but does not make a fancy package.

The chief advantage of the diagonal pack is that it ac-
commodates the half tiers, such as the 8^2 and 4^ tier
apples, the rows of which seem to run diagonally to the
sides of the box. The "tier" in each instance not depend-
ing so much on the number of layers deep as the number
of layers wide. The 4 tier running 125 to the box, the 4J^
and 5 tier have five layers. The 3^ and 4 tier have four
layers. The 4^ tier apple is a good example of half-
tier sizes, and consists of a size such that four apples will
not fit tightly in one row, and there is not room in the row
for five apples. So, to make it 4l/>, three apples are placed
in one row and two in the spaces between, so that in the
two rows there are five apples, and in fhe diagonal rows
there are five apples.

This diagonal pack is meeting with much favor in the
sections where it is being used, as it is not so hard on the
apples as the straight pack. In the straight pack each fruit
rests directly upon one below it, while in the diagonal it
rests in the space between three or four.

For fancy fruit it is the general custom to line the box
with white paper. The size of it being 18x24, so that two
sheets will line the box. It will be necessary to make a
double fold in the paper at the corner of box, in order to
prevent its being torn as the pressure causes the bottom to
bulge outward. The object in having this paper is to pro-
tect the fruit from dust and odors that may come through
the cracks in the bottoms and along the sides, and to add
to the appearance <of the package.

In some sections it is the custom to wrap each apple
with paper as it is being placed in the box, and to put a

106 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

layer of paper between each layer of apples to prevent
bruising as much as possible. The paper for wrapping,
apples should be kept in a little tray at the side of the box,
and the paper placed in the tray with the smooth side up,
in order that it will slip through the hands the more easily.
It is most convenient to wear a rubber thumbstall to aid in
picking up the paper, otherwise the packer must moisten
his thumb on his tongue each time he wraps an apple.

In some sections where the layer pack is in use, each
layer is separated by a sheet of heavy paper or cardboard,
and each apple wrapped in tissue paper. This wrapping
paper is so arranged about the fruit that the corners of the
paper fold over the stem of each apple and serves as a
cushion. But since the wrapping of each individual apple is,
at the present time, believed to add nothing to the keeping
quality of the fruit, some of the leading districts of the
West do not wrap.

Just how to put up each style of pack is a difficult mat-
ter to describe, although it is easily learned from experi-
ence. In the fruit districts of the Northwest there are be-
tween thirty and .forty different styles of packing in use,
no two of which are exactly alike. These are due entirely
to the variations in the size and shape of the different va-
rieties of fruit that are grown. Of these numerous styles
of packing, few persons ever use more than two styles in
their own packing house, and these are the less compli-
cated ones.

Packing apples "straight" is comparatively simple, as it
is merely the selection and arrangement of the fruit in
straight rows parallel to the sides of the box. The rows
will be three, four or five apples wide across the end of
the box; from five to nine apples long and from three to
five layers deep. And while this is the easiest system of
packing apples, it is less flexible, accommodating fruits
of fewer- shapes, and is by far the hardest on the apples,
an each apple rests directly on the apple beneath it.

The diagonal style of packing is somewhat less easily
learned, but it accommodates a greater variety of sizes and

Packing the Boxes 107

shapes, and is not so hard on the fruit. Taking the 4^
tier pack as an example, three apples are placed in the
lower end of the box, one being in each corner and the
third exactly half way between. Into each of the hollows
made by these apples other apples are placed, making five
apples in the two rows. In the hollow place directly

The box. on the left shows the beginning of the first
layer of a 4^ -tier pack, the one on the left is the second
layer in the same pack.

over the apple in the left-hand corner another apple is
placed, and likewise in the middle space. The fourth row
is then started by putting an apple between these two and
the fifth row begun with an apple in the space against the
side of the box. This process is repeated until the first
layer is about half in, when the fingers of both hands are
placed against the fruit and drawn down and towards the
packer in such a way as to pull the fruit down snug. Com-
plete the layer and repeat until the box is filled.

One important thing to observe in putting the fruit in

108 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

the box is to so arrange the fruit in each layer that the
layer will be a little higher in the middle than at the ends
in order to make the bulge to the sides and hold the fruit
in tightly to prevent bruising by shaking about. The mat-
ter of obtaining just the right kind of a bulge is one that

The finished box of 4% -tier apples.

must be learned by experience. It is obtained by using a
slightly larger apple in the middle than at the ends. It is
a common practice among professional packers to work
those apples which are slightly irregular In shape at the
ends of the boxes, turning each apple so that its shortest
diameter is up and down. Those fruits which are most
nearly circular will then be put in the middle of the box,

Packing the Boxes 109

and when the pack is finally finished the box will have a
nice bulge of about half or three-quarters of an inch on
each side. The apples for the bulge need to be started
with the first layer, as they cannot be held until the last
layer is in and then get a satisfactory bulge.

As each layer in the box is completed a sheet of layer
paper is put in, and when the box is filled the lining papers
are folded up over the top and the box is then ready for
the nailing press, where the lid is fastened on.

The box on the left shows the beginning of a 4-tier
"straight" pack, and on the right is the same size apples
packed "special diagonal."

A special form of press is in use for this operation, and
consists of an arrangement of clamps which draw down
the ends of the lid boards, leaving space for the cleat to be
nailed on top of the lid, thereby holding them more firmly
and preventing their splitting or pulling loose from the
strain of the bulge.

After the box is nailed up, stamp the name of the va-

110

The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

riety on the end just under the lid and mark just under
it the number of apples in the box. The fruit buyers want
to know how many apples are in a box, and with the tier
pack it is an easy matter to tell exactly how many apples
are in each box. After the number of apples has been
marked, put on the number of tiers and the number given
to the grower by the association to which he may belong.
If a lithographed label is used, paste it on the other end of
the box and mark it with the name of the variety, tier
and number of apples.

When this has been done place the box on its side and
thereafter handle it on the side, as if it is placed so that
the weight comes on the bulge the fruit will be bruised.

The following table gives the size of the apple and the
number in a standard box when packed diagonally in lay-
Table of Apples in Box

STANDARD BOX:

Tier

Pack

No. Apples
in Row

No. Rows
in Width

No. Layers
in Depth

No. Apples
in Box

3

Straight 3

5-5

3

3

45

3/2

Diagonal 2-2

4-4

3/2

4

64

3/>

" 2-2

4-5

3/2

4

72

3/2

" 2-2

5-5

3/>

4

80

3/2

2-2

5-6

3/

4

88

4/2

3-2

6-6

4*4

5

150

4/2

3-2

6-7

4l/2

5

163

4/ .

3-2

7-7

4/2

5

175

SPECIAL BOX:

3

Straight 3

6-6

3

3

;,4

3

3

7-7

3

3

63

3/2

Diagonal 2-2

6-6

3/2

4

96

3/2

" 2-2

6-7

3/

4

104

3/

" 2-^

7-7

3/2

4

112

3/

" 2-2

7-8

3/2

4

120

3

Straight 4

8-8

4

4

128

4

4

9-9

4

4

144

4/

Diagonal 3-2

7-8

4/2

5

185

4/2

3-2

8-8

4/-5

5

200

Spraying 111

CHAPTER V

Spraying

Fruit growing as a commercial proposition met with
its greatest boom with the discovery of effective means of
controlling the insect pests and diseases which affected
the various orchard crops. It was about the. year 1876 that
effective insecticides were discovered, this being through
the discovery of the value of Paris green in controlling
the potato beetle. Le Baron, the state entomologist of
Illinois, made the discovery and suggested at the time that
such means would also prove effective in controlling the
damages of the canker worm. This suggestion was fol-
lowed by an orchardist in New York state, who applied
Paris green to his apple trees in the spring of 1878, and
at the harvest of that crop he found that the damage from
codling moth had also been very materially reduced. In
the same year Prof. J. L. Budd used London purple for the
same purpose in an orchard in Iowa, finding, as did the
New York state orchardist, that there were fewer wormy
apples where the spray had been applied than in other
parts of the orchard. At first the fruit growers were skep-
tical of the value of the means of preventing worminess,
so that up to 1885 the practice had been in a purely ex-
perimental stage, but thereafter became accepted as the
only effective means of preventing the damages of the
codling moth.

The practice of spraying to control fungi had a separate
origin. It was discovered by the vineyardists of Bordeaux,
France, in an attempt to protect their vines from downy

112

The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

mildew, a disease which had been introduced from Amer-
ica. The effectiveness of this means of preventing fungous
troubles was quickly taken up by the United States De-
partment of Agriculture and the state experiment stations.
and these have prosecuted the work up to the present time
with a persistency and efficiency which has won the ad-
miration of the world.

A Barrel Outfit is Suitable for Small Orchards.

The operation of spraying has come to be regarded
as of vital importance to the horticulturist, taking rank
along with each of the other important cultural practices.
Professor L. H. Bailey says that "Spraying is only one of
the several practices which are of fundamental importance
in the care of fruit plantations. Tillage, fertilizing, pruning

Spraying 113

and other cardinal methods in pomology and their impor-
tance is none the less because spraying has proved to be so
essential. Spraying is wholly a secondary operation, and
its importance is the greater as the other care of the plan-
tation is efficient, for the value of the product is thereby
heightened. Many old and neglected orchards are scarcely
worth the trouble and cost of spraying. The operation of
spraying is not always necessary, and it does not, there-
fore, always give beneficial results. Unless insect or fun-
gus troubles are present, there is no occasion for the oper-
ation; but inasmuch as these enemies are nearly always
troublesome, and as no one can definitely prognosticate
their absence, spraying comes to be an insurance. The
risk is too great to allow the practice to be omitted in any
year in apple and some other orchards, and the practice is
efficient only when it anticipates trouble."

On this account and on account of the tact that so
many fruit growers have refused to spray, or spray in an
inefficient manner, the plant diseases have been increasing
in numbers each year in all fruit sections so that it is
highly important that every fruit grower realize the real
insurance value of spraying and prepare to do thorough
and effective work. In fact in some of the more pro-
gressive Western states where the fruit growers strive to
put out nothing but the highest class of products, state
laws have been enacted which make it imperative that an
orchardist spray his orchard for the control of insect
diseases, whether such pests are actually present in the
orchard or not.

Hand and Power Pumps

In commercial orchard practice there are only two types
of spraying machines that need to be considered, one of
these is the pumps that are operated by hand and the other
the pumps which are operated by power derived from
gas, compressed air, gasoline engine or traction power.
There are many different makes of each of these machines
and there are especially desirable features connected with
most all of them. However, it is the universal statement

114 The Fru it-Growers Guide-Book

of all practical orchardists who are making a success of
their spraying work, that the hand power outfits are not
suited to an orchard covering more than four or five acres.
This is because the necessary pressure and speed cannot
be obtained in hand power machines to cover the larger
acreage in the limited amount of time that is available.

In point of time, any application of spray mixture must
be applied when it will do the most good, and with insects
this limits the number of working days to just a few, pos-
sibly ten days, when the insects can be most effectively
reached. The spraying must be done during that time, as
either before or after that period the spray mixture
will not be so effective as the insects will have passed out
of reach. The same thing is true of fungous diseases and the
grower must know something of the life and habits of the
pests he is combatting.

The time has long since passed when it is reasonable
for any orchardist to ask if it pays to spray. That problem
has been so thoroughly proven and so widely advertised
that anyone who asks such a question, especially if he has
been anyway concerned in fruit growing or has read, even
casually, any publication treating on the subject of fruit
growing, cannot help being convinced that spraying does
pay, and pay well, when properly done.

But to make it pay the best the spraying equipment
must be suited to the conditions under which it must be
used. The chief points to be considered in this respect are
the kind of plants to be sprayed — that is, whether they are
strawberries, grapes or tree fruits; the acreage to be cov-
ered, for if there are more than five, or at the most ten
acres, hand power outfits will not proye as effective as
power ma'chines. Then in the make or style of machine
one needs to consider the general construction and ar-
rangement of the outfit; the ease and convenience of han-
dling under actual working conditions; the probable ability
of the machine to handle the required work; the efficiency
and suitability of the accessories.

In localities where spraying has not become established
as one of the important practices in connection with or-

Hand and Power Pumps

115

charding the growers arc likely to expect too much service
from a single machine, whether it be a hand or power out-
fit. Instances in the Middle West are very common where
the growers will try to cover 200 or 300 acres with a single
power machine.

A Power Sprayer in Operation.

There are several different makes of power machines
on the market, such as those deriving their power from
steam, gasoline, compressed air or gas, but up to the pres-

116 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

ent time the gasoline power machines have proven them-
selves the most effective, economical and convenient for
use under all ordinary conditions. On steep hillsides, how-
ever, the gas machine possesses decided advantages on ac-
count of its light weight and the nearness to the ground
at which the load can be carried. But such machines are
objectionable on account of the expense of the gas used
for power, and the usual lack of facilities for keeping the
spraying mixture thoroughly agitated while being applied.
With some kinds of spray mixtures, too, the gas possibly
causes some undesirable chemical changes.

In the selection of a gasoline power outfit one must be
governed to a large extent by the amount of work that is
to be done with the machine and the conditions under
which it is performed. Where the orchard is small and the
interests diversified, it may be easily detached and used
for other purposes than that of spraying.

The height of the wheels of the wagon carrying the
spraying machine needs to be considered in the selection
of a power machine, as well as the width of the tires. High
wheels reduce draft on the team, but increase the danger
of upsetting on steep hillsides. On plowed ground, espe-
cially in the spring when it is more or less muddy, wide
tires are an advantage, but in rocky land the narrow tired
wheels are much more serviceable. In this connection, no
matter which is the height of the wheels, or the width of
the tires, it is highly important that there be no waste
space between the frame and the engines and that the
frame be constructed so as to permit of the shortest pos-
sible turns without cramping or binding the wheels.

The hand pumps are very much more diversified in
shape and construction than the engine power machines,
as they are adapted to a far greater variety of uses. These
will vary from the hand pumps which can be mounted on
the spraying tank, or in a barrel, or attached to a knapsack
and carried on one's back.

All of the working parts should be of hard brass or
iron, as aluminum, which has been used in a small way,

118 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

wears too fast. The nozzles especially need to be of brass,
and their weight, especially for power machines, is of no
serious consequence, as the back pressure from the pump
more than balances the weight. For general orchard spray-
ing the types of nozzles are limited to two. These are the
"bordeaux" and the large chambered nozzle. The bor-
deaux is the nozzle which is most desired for the first
spraying for codling moth, as practiced in the Western
states. The other is the best for use when a mist-like
spray is wanted, as is the case in the Middle Western and
Eastern states for applying bordeaux mixture.

In sections where bordeaux mixture is most extensively
used it will be an advantage to have all of the working
parts of the machinery of brass, which comes in contact
"with the liquid, as this metal is not corroded by the spray
mixture, as is iron. But where lime-sulphur is used most,
then the working parts need to be of iron or steel, as this
mixture corrodes brass. On this account steel tanks are
coming into use in districts where lime-sulphur is used.
Such tanks are especially desirable, as they are lighter and
not liable to dry out, do not become waterlogged and are
far more convenient to handle in the field.

In all machines it is important that there be an effective
agitator for keeping the liquids stirred constantly while
being applied to prevent the heavier part of the material
from settling to the bottom and causing irregularity in the
strength of the material that is applied. The most satis-
factory agitators for power machines are those which are
built on the propeller type, with blades sufficiently long
to cause vigorous circulation throughout the entire tank of
mixture when revolved at the usual rate of 120 revolutions
per minute.

One of the greatest sources of lost time in a large or-
chard is reloading after the load is sprayed out, but this loss
of time can largely be eliminated if there are suitable con-
veniences for reloading. This should consist of a reloading
pump, unless the mixing station is on an elevated platform
above the level of the spray tank. There are two types of
reloading pumps that are available, one being the rotary

Spraying Materials 119

and the other a plunger pump, either of which is capable
of handling 30 to 40 gallons of spray mixture per minute.
Where bordeaux mixture is used, however, there is some
danger from the rotary pump becoming more or less worn
by the friction with, the gritty particles in the lime, and
priming will be necessary in order to get the pump to work-
ing satisfactorily. For use with supply tanks, plunger
pumps are probably the most effective and satisfactory,
since it is necessary in this case, to pump the prepared
mixture with them.

Spraying Materials

Since the discovery of effective means of controlling
insect and fungous diseases of plants a great number of
preparations have been devised for the control of special
diseases on certain crops. Such a formidable list of these
preparations have been published that it would seem at
first glance that one would need an elaborate chemical
laboratory in order to prepare the materials. However,
the years of scientific and practical experimentation along
this line have eliminated many of these spraying materials
so that the plantsman of today needs know how to prepare
less than a dozen different sprays in order to control any
of the diseases for which a remedy is known.

There are two distinct groups of these spraying ma-
terials, one of them, called insecticides, is for the control
of insect diseases, and the other, called fungicides, for the
control of fungous diseases. Of these materials there are
three groups of insecticides, suph as (1) food poisons, (2")
contact poisons, and (3) suffocating poisons. Which of
these poisons to use will depend altogether on the kind of
insect and the plant upon which it is feeding, so that for ef-
fective use of any insecticide, it is important that the
plantsman know something of the habit of the insect, and
just in what stage of its life it is most easily reached with
the poison.

(O Food Poisons. These materials are composed of
substances which must be eaten by the insect as it chews

120

The Fru it-Growers Guide-Book

the foliage or fruits of the plants to be protected, and for
this reason kill the insect by actual poisoning. Of these
materials compounds containing arsenic, such as Paris

A convenient method of making spray mixture. Every
barrel is plainly labeled so no mistakes can be made in
mixing.

green and lead arsenate, are the most common, and arc
applied for such insects as the codling moth, canker worm
or curculio, and applied either in water, as a dry powder
or mixed with some substance which is to serve as a bait.

Resin-Lime Mixture 121

(2) Contact Sprays. These materials are applied for
the purpose of destroying those insects which get their
nourishment by inserting the beak into the plants and
sucking the sap, rather than by chewing the flesh of the
fruit or the leaves. Plant lice and scales belong to this
group of insects, and since they suck their food, they
cannot be reached by those poisons which are to be chewed
up and swallowed. These sprays are more or less caustic
and penetrating, and kill by coming in contact with the
bodies of the insects.

(3) Suffocation Methods. It frequently happens that in
some places, such as greenhouses and hotbeds, destructive
insects get on plants which cannot be sprayed with either
contact or food poisons, and the insects must be disposed
of by some means that suffocate them by filling up their
breathing pores, or cause their death by irritation. Such
means as these are useful only in the greenhouse, and for
insects that may work in the soil, in seeds, or on fruits or
vegetables that are about ready for the market. Of chief
importance among these suffocating poisons are tobacco,
carbon bisulphide, pyrethrum and hydrocyanic acid gas.

Insecticides
Resin-Lime Mixture

Stock Solution.
Pulverized resin, 5 pounds.
Concentrated lye, 1 pound.
Fish oil, 1 pint.
Water, 5 gallons.

Dissolve the 'resin and oil together in a kettle over a
warm fire, and when it has become well dissolved and
somewhat cooled off, add slowly the lye and stir hard.
To the mixture add about two gallons of water and boil
it hard for about an hour, or until the mixture will dissolve
in cold water. When it has reached this condition add
enough water to make five gallons, and use this as the
stock solution for use in the following:

122 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

Stock solution, 1 gallon.
Water, 16 gallons.
Milk of lime whitewash, 3 gallons.
Paris green, 4 ounces.

The object of this preparation is to obtain an adhesive
material which will cause the poison to stick to smooth
leaves. It may also be used with bordeaux mixture in the
proportion of 2 parts of the stock solution to 48 parts of
the bordeaux mixture.

Kerosene Emulsion

Hard soap, l/2 pound.
Hot water (soft), 1 gallon.
Kerosene, 2 gallons.

Cut the soap into small pieces and dissolve it in the
hot water. Add the kerosene immediately and churn it
violently at the same time. Pumping the mixture back
into itself for five or ten minutes with a hand force pump
or syringe is an excellent method of mixing, as the ma-
terials must be mixed until they form a thick creamy com-
bination in which no free oil shows on the surface.

This is a concentrated mixture and must be diluted
before using. For use on apple and pear foliage, one gallon
of the emulsion should be diluted with nine gallons of
water. For cherry, peach or plum foliage, dilute with
twelve gallons, and for house plants dilute with fifteen
gallons.

Tobacco

Tobacco is used extensively in several forms for the
control of insect troubles. It can be obtained in the
market in several forms, either as a liquid, powder or
stems, to be used according to conditions. The fine powder
is used extensively about greenhouses and hotbeds for
green aphis, and in nurseries and orchards for woolly
aphis. It is scattered over the infested parts undiluted.

Lime-Sulphur 123

The essential poison of tobacco is extracted and ap-
pears on the market in several forms, as "black leaf,"
"nicofume," "tobacine," etc., and are used either as fumi-
gants for greenhouses and hotbeds or as sprays for or-
chard insects such as woolly aphis, green aphis and some
other sucking insects.

Miscible or Soluble Oils

Several brands of soluble oils can be had on the market.
These are mostly petroleum products, so treated that they
mix quite freely with water, and can be used for such in-
sects as scale and aphis. These materials are efficient and
useful, but must be used with caution, as when too strong
they may cause serious injury to the plants. They should
be used at strengths of not less than one part of oil to fif-
teen parts of water.

Lime-Sulphur

Stone lime, 15 pounds.

Sulphur, flour or flowers, 15 pounds.

Water, 50 gallons.

Slake the lime with some water in a large iron kettle.
As it is slaking add the sulphur gradually and mix it with
the slaking lime. Add ten or fifteen gallons of water to
the mass and boil for about one hour, -or until the mixture
becomes an orange red or greenish color. Then add the
remainder of the water to bring it up to a volume of 50
gallons, when it is ready for use.

Instead of boiling this mixture over a fire, it may be
cooked by turning a jet of live steam from an engine boiler
into the liquid, proceeding in the same manner as when
the cooking is done in a kettle, except that the cooking
with steam can be done in a barrel or wooden tank.

This mixture should be used only on dormant trees, as
it is liable to cause serious scalding if used at this strength
on foliage.

This material is put up commercially in concentrated
form by a number of firms, directions for the use of which

124 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

vary with the brand, and they need to be used according
to the directions which accompany each brand. Where
small quantities are needed there is a distinct advantage
in using the commercial brands, but where large quantities
are needed, and especially if a steam boiler is available, the
home mixture may be the cheapest.

Carbon Bisulphide

This is a heavy, volatile liquid used largely for the de-
struction of insects in stored grain. The fumes are very
inflammable and caution must be taken to keep the liquid
away from a flame, or even a lighted pipe. It has a very
unpleasant odor and comes in large tin cans holding va-
rious quantities as desired. It needs to be used at the rate
of 1 pound to every 1,000 cubic feet of space. The fumes
of this liquid are heavier than air, so the liquid should be
placed in shallow pans on the top of the bin of grain, and
the bin should be as tight as possible. It is best to cover
the bin with a canvas to keep the fumes in, and should not
be uncovered or air admitted for 24 hours.

Hydrocyanic Acid Gas

Sulphuric acid, commercial, 1.83 sp. gr., 2 fluid ozs.
Potassium eyanide, 98 to 100 per cent, 1 ounce.
Water, 4 ounces.

Pour the water into an earthen dish and add to it the
sulphuric acid. Do not pour the water into the acid, as it
will' spatter and burn the hands or clothing. Weigh out
the cyanide and put it into a paper sack, being careful to
not inhale any of the fumes that come from it, as they are
highly poisonous. Place the vessel in the position desired,
then drop in the paper sack of cyanide and leave the room
immediately. The gas is liberated very quickly and is
deadly poisonous.

For nursery stock in the dormant condition use the
above quantity for every 100 cubic feet of space. The house
or fumigating box should be as tight as possible, and the

Tanglefoot 125

fumes need to be confined for one hour, after which it
should be thoroughly ventilated. If the fumes are con-
fined in a tight room, means for opening the ventilators
should be provided from the outside, and one should not
attempt to enter until after the place has been well venti-
lated.

In fumigating the greenhouse the above quantities are
sufficient for 1,000 cubic feet of space where plants are
growing. Greenhouse plants vary greatly in their ability
to withstand the effects of hydrocyanic acid gas, and plants
such as tomatoes, roses and ferns are easily injured. In
the greenhouse the fumigation should be done at night
when there is no wind, and the house should be as dry
as possible, and at 60 degrees temperature.

Pyrethrum

This is a very fine, light brown powder made from the
flower heads of a certain species of Pyrethrum. It is prac-
tically harmless to man, but the fumes which it liberates
on exposure to air are suffocating to insects. It appears
on the market in three commercial forms:

Persian insect powder, made from the heads of pyreth-
rum roseum, a plant native to the Caucasus region and
found under cultivation in America. Dalmatian insect
powder, and Buhach, made from Pyrethrum cinerariae-
folium. This is grown in California for this special pur-
pose.

Any of these insect powders, when fresh and pure, are
effective for their purpose, but they quickly lose their ef-
fectiveness on exposure to air. These powders are usually
used by being sprinkled around over the insects, or in
places frequented by insects, -such as house flies and mos-
quitoes. They may be mixed with water and sprinkled
over the plants.

Tanglefoot

This is the material from which sticky fly paper is
made, and is useful for painting a ring around the base of

126 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

tree trunks to keep insects from crawling up from the
soil. This is especially the case with woolly aphis. These
insects when born are inclined to travel, and since the first
brood in spring come from the old ones which have hiber-
nated on the roots, they climb the trees and live on the
branches during the summer. They can be prevented by
tying a ring of paper, underlaid with cotton, around the
trunk and applying the tanglefoot to the paper. If applied
directly to the bark it may cause injury.

Paris Green

This insecticide has been used for a greater number
of years than any other now in use, and when perfectly
pure it is very reliable, but as it is a rather coarse crysta-
line material, it settles rapidly to the bottom of the spray
tank unless the contents are kept t-horqughly stirred. It
is applied in connection with quick lime, the lime being
added to prevent the Paris green from burning the foliage.

It is prepared for use as follows:

Paris green, 1 pound.
Quick lime, 4 to 5 pounds.
Water, 160-200 gallons.

Mix the Paris green with a little water and stir it to a
thin paste; meanwhile slake the lime to a thin paste and
then add the paste of Paris green and mix the two thor-
oughly, after which strain the mixture through a fine seive
into the spray tank containing the requisite amount of
water. If it is desired to use the poison in connection with
a fungicide, bordeaux mixture can take the place of the
water in diluting the above mixture. In applying this mix-
ture to the trees or plants it is necessary to keep it well
stirred all of the time, as the Paris green will settle to the
bottom of the vessel, thereby giving irregular distribution.

Arsenate of Lead

Arsenate of lead is now the leading insecticide, having
taken the place of Paris green for all orchard purposes.

Poisoned Baits 127

There are many brands of this article upon the market and
all are fairly pure and equally effective in controlling insect
pests. The ready made arsenate of lead is all ready to use
by diluting one to three pounds of the paste with fifty gal-
lons of water.

As the commercial brands of arsenate of lead come in
cans or kegs and in the form of a stiff white paste quite
like white lead paint, it is made more difficult to handle
by the paste drying out. For this reason many persons
who have only a small amount of spraying to do prefer to
make up their own arsenate, as it is easily made and is
slightly cheaper than the commercial brands. Arsenate of
lead can be made by the following formula:

Arsenate of soda, 4 ounces.
Acetate of lead, 11 ounces.
Water, 15-20 gallons.

Dissolve the arsenate of soda in two quarts of water
and the acetate of lead in four quarts of water in wooden
vessels. When dissolved pour them into the required
amount of water. A milk white material will result, and
it is ready to use. This material can be used at a greater
strength without injuring the foliage of plants than can
any of the other spray poisons. It can be added to bor-
deaux mixture or to lime-sulphur in the same proportion
as when water is used.

Poisoned Baits

Sow-bugs, grasshoppers, cut worms and some other in-
sects can be destroyed by poisoned baits. There are va-
rious forms of this method of destroying insects. Grass
leaves dipped in Paris green or arsenate of lead is often
an effective means of getting rid of cut worms. As a
means of destroying grasshoppers a bran-arsenic mash is
very successful and is made as follows:

White arsenic, 1 pound.
Brown sugar, 1 to 2 pounds.
Bran, 6 pounds.

128 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

Mix these materials together and then add enough
water to make a thick mash and then scatter around the
plants that are attacked, placing a spoonful in a place.

For cut worms in onion fields a dry bait has been found
very effective when made as follows:

Paris green, 1 pound.
Middlings, 15 pounds.
Bran, 15 pounds.

Mix these materials thoroughly and scatter broadcast
about the borders of the garden or the plants that are at-
tacked. It may be easily scattered along the rows by the
use of the seed drill.

Hellebore

Powdered fresh hellebore is of value in destroying in-
sects on small fruits which are nearly ready to market and
on which it is undesirable to use arsenical poisons. It must
be used while fresh, as it loses its poisonous properties
when exposed to the air, and it can be dusted over the
plants or applied as a spray made thus:

Hellebore, 1 ounce.
Water, 2 gallons.

Resin Wash

Resin wash is used in California for several of the scales
which infest the citrus fruits. It can be used as a summer
spray for San Jose scale, but is not as effective as winter
applications of lime-sulphur. It is made as follows:

Resin, 20 pounds.
Concentrated lye, 4 pounds.
Fish oil, 2^-2 pounds.
Water, 100 gallons.

Place the lye, resin and oil in a kettle and cover well
with water and boil for about two hours, adding water as
needed. Boil for about two hours or until the compound
resembles strong black coffee. Dilute to one-third of the

Fungicides 129

final bulk with hot water, or with cold water added slowly
over the fire, thus making a stock mixture. Dilute to 100
gallons when ready for use.

Fungicides

Fungi constitute a group of plants of a very low order
in 'which the green coloring matter common in all culti-
vated plants is not developed. For this reason these plants
are unable to digest for themselves the crude food ma-
terials available in the soil and air, and must get their food
from the bodies of other plants which may be either dead
or living. When these fungi are found on dead and de-
caying plants, such as rotting wood, they are called sapro-
phites, but where they are found on the bodies of living
plants, either on the root, leaves or fruits, they are called
parasites. On account of this tendency for some of them
to live on living green plants, they cause serious trouble
oftentimes, known as "fungous diseases." Without proper
protection the host plant is often entirely destroyed, or is
unable to mature a satisfactory crop of fruit or seed.

The most common fungous diseases are known as mil-
dews, leaf spots, cankers, fruit rots, scabs, rusts, etc., and
since the most of these fungi live within the host, it is
impossible to reach them after the host has become in-
fected. For this reason preventive measures must be un-
dertaken to keep the plants in a sanitary condition and
reduce. the possibility of their becoming infected with the
fungus parasite. This can be done by spraying the plant
with some fungicide which will prevent the fungus from
gaining entrance either by killing the spores or preventing
their germination.

For the most effective and positive results to be ob-
tained from thorough spraying, it is best to keep the plan-
tation in as clean and sanitary a condition as possible,
through the removal of rubbish which may serve as the
hiding place ever winter of numerous insects, and fungus
spores; to keep the ground cleared of objectionable weeds
and grass; to keep dead limbs out of the trees, and dis-

(5)

130 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

cased leaves and fruit disposed of either by gathering and
burning or turning them under by plowing and cultivating.

Bordeaux Mixture

Copper sulphate (blue-stone or blue vitriol), 4 pounds.
Fresh lump lime, 4 pounds.
Water, 50 gallons.

Dissolve the copper sulphate and slake the lime in a
part of the water. When the lime has all slaked to a fine
powder and the copper sulphate thoroughly dissolved,
dilute each of them with half of the remaining volume of
water, then pour them together, stirring constantly. A
more convenient method is to dilute the materials in suit-
able tanks and run them together and at the same time
into the spray tank.

Stock solutions of either copper sulphate or lime may
be made up in the proportions of one pound of each to a
gallon of water. To make up the spraying mixtures, four
gallons of each can be measured out, diluted and mixed as
before. The solutions of copper sulphate and lime should
never be brought together in strong solutions as they do
not make a satisfactory spraying material when thus
treated.

Soda Bordeaux Mixture

Copper sulphate, 4 pounds.

Caustic soda (soda lye), 1 to V/2 pounds.

Water, 50 gallons.

Dissolve the copper sulphate in water as for the regular
bordeaux mixture, and then add just 'enough of the soda
lye dissolved in water to neutralize the mixture. There
should be no more nor less of the soda lye used than is
necessao' to neutralize the mixture, and one will need a
strip of blue and red litmus paper to do the testing. When
neutral neither of the papers will change color, while if
the mixture is acid the blue paper will turn red, and if too
much of the soda has been used, the red paper will turn

Sulphur , 131

blue. Some persons prefer to add about a pound of the
soda and then neutralize with lime water, as there is not
so much danger of getting it too strongly alkaline and
burning the fruit.

This spraying material is not so easily made up as bor-
deaux mixture, but it has the added advantage of not soil-
ing maturing fruits and ornamental plants. When care-
fully made good results can be expected, but on account of
its scalding the plants unless carefully neutralized, it is
not generally recommended.

Ammoniacal Copper Carbonate

Copper carbonate, 5 ounces.
Ammonia, 26 degrees Baume, 3 pints.
Water, 50 gallons.

Dilute the ammonia with five or six quarts of water
and make a paste of the copper carbonate in water. Pour
the ammonia over the paste, using just enough to dissolve
it Do not apply more than is necessary. If any copper
carbonate remains undissolved after standing in the am-
monia for some few minutes, add a little more ammonia.
Then dilute to fifty gallons.

This makes a deep blue solution that is not as effective
a fungicide as either bordeaux mixture or the soda bor-
deaux, but it has the advantage of containing no sediment
and can be used on ripening fruits and ornamental plants.
It deteriorates after standing exposed to the air for some
time.

Potassium Sulphide

Potassim sulphide, 3 ounces.
Water, 10 gallons.

This material should be dissolved and it is ready for use.
Chiefly used for the control of powdery mildew on goose-
berries.

Sulphur

Dry sulphur is used in a small way for the prevention
of some of the mildews which attack plants in the field,

132 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

and can be mixed dry and sprinkled along the drills with
onion seed for the prevention of onion smut. In green-
house it is mixed with equal parts of lime and painted on
the heating pipes, where it is slowly evaporated for the
control of rose mildew.

Formalin

Formalin (40%), 1 pint.
Water, 30 to 50 gallons.

For the treatment of potato scab the seed potatoes are
soaked for half an hour in the stronger solution. For oat
and wheat smut the weaker solution should be used at the
rate of about one gallon to each bushel of seed. The grain
for treatment should be poured out on a tight floor and
sprinkled with the solution. It should then be shoveled
over into a pile and thoroughly mixed up so that each
grain is coated with the solution.- Then cover it with a
canvas and allow to stand for a couple of hours before
spreading out to dry.

Self-Boiled Lime-Sulphur

This spray mixture is one of the newest fungicides, and
has proven especially effective in the control of peach scab
and brown rot. Prof. W. M. Scott of the United States
Department of Agriculture prepares this mixture as fol-
lows:

Fresh stone lime, 8 pounds.

Sulphur (either flowers or flour), 8 pounds.

Water, 50 gallons.

"In mild cases of peach scab and brown rot a weaker
mixture, containing 6 pounds of each ingredient to 50 gal-
lons of water, may be used with satisfactory results. The
mixture can best be prepared in rather large quantities-
say, enough for 200 gallons at a time, making the formula
32 pounds of lime and 32 pounds of sulphur, to be cooked
with a small quantity of water (8 or 10 gallons) and then
diluted to 200 gallons.

Self-Boiled Lime-Sulphur 133

"The lime should be placed in a barrel and enough
water poured on to almost cover it. As soon as the lime
begins to slake the sulphur should be added after first
running it through a sieve to break up the lumps. The
mixture should be constantly stirred and more water added
as needed to form a thick paste at first and then gradually
a thin paste. The lime will supply enough heat to boil the
mixture several minutes. As soon as it is well slaked,
water should be added to cool the mixture and prevent
further cooking. It is then ready to be strained into the
spray tank, diluted and applied.

"The stage at which the cold water should be poured in«
varies with different limes. Some limes are so sluggish
in slaking that it is difficult to obtain enough heat from
them to cook the mixture at all, while other limes become
intensely hot on slaking and care must be taken not to
allow the boiling to proceed too far. If the mixture is
allowed to remain hot fifteen or twenty minutes after the
slaking is completed, the sulphur gradually goes into solu-
tion, combining with the lime to form sulphids, which are
injurious to peach foliage. It is therefore very important,
especially with hot limes, to cool the mixture quickly by
adding a few buckets of water as soon as the lumps of
lime have slaked down. The intense heat, violent boiling
and constant stirring result in a uniform mixture of finely
divided sulphur and lime, with only a very small percentage
of the sulphur in solution. The mixture should be strained
to take out the coarse particles of lime, but the sulphur
should be carefully worked through the strainer."

134 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

CHAPTER VI

Orchard Pests and Diseases

Green Aphis of the Apple

This is one of the common green Hce that curls the
leaves of the apple tree. It is an extremely common and
troublesome insect in some parts of the country and is
essentially one which feeds on the leaves by sucking the
juice. The female lays eggs on the twigs of the new shoots
in the fall, and these hatch just at the time the buds are
beginning to open in the spring, and are ready to insert
their beaks into the tissues of the unfolding leaves. These
insects that hatch in the spring are all females, and in
about two or three weeks they begin giving birth to living
young, and the numbers then increase very rapidly. Early
in the summer a generation of winged individuals appears,
and fly from tree to tree and from orchard to orchard with
the prevailing winds. In the latter part of summer a gen-
eration of winged males and wingless, egg-laying females
appears and a little later the females begin laying the
greenish black eggs which are to carry through the winter.

Remedy: It is quite difficult to kill the eggs of this in-
sect. Strong applications of lime-sulphur have been help-
ful, but the best methods are with tobacco sprays, such
as "black leaf" or "black leaf 40" at about the time the eggs
have hatched and the insects are working themselves into
the opening buds. Kerosene emulsion is also effective.

Woolly Aphis.

In many places this insect is more troublesome than
the green aphis. It is readily recognized by its reddish

Woolly Aphis

135

purple color and the white, woolly secretions which ap-
pear on the upper surface of its body, and from which
it derives its name. It lives on the roots and on the tops
of apple trees, usually on the smaller roots, and in the
forks, and on the smaller branches of the tops. In winter
it may entirely disappear from sight on the infested por-
tions of the tree above the ground, but on the roots it does
not perish, although its reproduction takes place more

Woolly aphis of the apple. A, winged female; b, wing-
less female, and c, a wingless female bearing the peculiar
"woolly" secretion characteristic of this insect.

slowly. A winged brood appears late in the fall, but it has
not been determined with certainty whether the females of
this brood lay their eggs on the branches or on the soil.
The infestation in the spring comes from the fact that the
newly born young travel up the trunk to where they find
suitable place for lodgment. They cause large smooth
knots to form on both the root and branches wherever
a colony of them may form, and in cases of severe infes-
tation may so seriously injure the roots as to cause them
to rot off.

136

The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

When once established it is practically impossible to
rid an orchard of this pest, and the best means is to guard
against its getting a start in the orchard. One method is
to have the apple trees worked on Northern Spy roots, as
this variety seems to be quite immune from serious attacks.
Nursery stock that has been puddled should have all of
the mud washed off the roots and then be thoroughly ex-
amined for signs of infestation. Fumigation with hydro-
cyanic acid gas will eliminate the insects which may be

m

i

Characteristic galls produced on tree roots by the woolly
aphis.

present. Where present on the tops of trees, they can be
disposed of with kerosene emulsion or black leaf sprays
applied with sufficient force to wash off or penetrate the
woolly covering. Black leaf is considered the most ef-
fective when used in the proportion of one gallon to 65
or 70. When trees are sprayed with lime-sulphur for the
eggs of green aphis, the woolly aphis is kept in check. A
band of sticky fly-paper or "Tanglefoot" wrapped around
the base of the trees will prevent the migrating young
from ascending the tree from the roots.

Brown Mite 137

Bark Louse.

This is a minute insect which is more active in the
spring, feeding on the tender shoots. Later in the season
it secretes a scale under which it lives. It can be controll-
ed with -sprays of kerosene emulsion or lime-sulphur ap-
plied while the trees are dormant.

Bud Moth.

This is a small insect, the larvae of which destroy the
flower buds of apples, pears, plums, etc. It can be con-
trolled with arsenical sprays applied when the buds are be-
ginning to open and again ten days later.

Apple Magot or Railroad Worm

Troublesome in some places where it spoils or destroys
apples by tunneling through the apples, causing the fruit
to fall. Destruction of the infested fruit, together with
keeping the orchard in thoroughly sanitary condition are
the best means of eliminating this pest.

Brown Mite

In some sections of the West this insect has caused
considerable trouble to the foliage of all kinds of fruit
trees, causing the trees to take on the appearance of being
in neecl of water. The mites feed on the leaves, but de-
posit their eggs on the branches and limbs. When very
abundant they give a reddish color to the bark, quite no-
ticeable in the winter. The eggs are deposited in late sum-
mer and do not hatch until after growth has begun in the
spring. Weldon of the Colorado Experiment Station re-
ports that this insect can be most effectively controlled
with sulphur used in water as a spray. Flowers of sulphur,
one pound to three gallons of water and enough soap so
that the sulphur will mix freely with the water, is perfectly
effective as a summer spray. Tobacco preparations will kill
the mites, but not the eggs, and are effective only when
repeated applications are made. Oil sprays seem to pene-

138 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

trate the eggs and destroy them better than the tobacco
extracts, but are unsafe to use with water strongly im-
pregnated with alkali.

Brown Tail Moth

This insect is found at the present time only in the
region of the New England states, but at the rate it is
spreading it may easily occupy the entire country in a
short length of time. The adults, moths, of this insect
expand 1% to 1^4 inches and are white except on the abdo-
men, which is brownish and tipped with a tuft of brown
hairs. This tuft is small and dark in the male, but in the
female is large and of a golden brown color, and on ac-
count of its prominence has won for the insect its name.
They may be found on the wing in July. Both sexes are
strong flyers and are attracted by artificial lights.

Eggs are laid in August on the leaves at the end of a
shoot, and are covered with a few hairs from the body of
the female. The young larvae appear in the course of a
few days and feed on the leaves, spinning a web as they
feed. In the winter this web is thickened and the colony
passes the winter in the nest. These nests are very con-
spicuous, as they are so very different from any other win-
tering places for a colony of insects. Early in the spring
they emerge from the nest and feed on the young leaves
of the trees, and when the insects are numerous they will
completely strip the foliage in a short time. When full
grown they are about \l/2 inches long, of a dark brown
color with a sprinkling of orange, with the body covered
with long fine reddish brown hairs and a row of conspicu-
ous white hairs along each side of the body. There is a
conspicuous red tubercle on the top of the sixth and sev-
enth abdominal segments.

The unpleasant and dangerous character of these in-
sects lays not alone in the harm they do to trees by eating
the foliage, but also to the discomfort they cause to man
when coming in contact with the hairs which cover the
bodies of these caterpillars. These hairs are brittle, very

Codling Moth 139

sharp pointed and barbed, so that they enter the skin easily
where they set up a painful irritation.

On account of its leaf eating habit it can be controlled
with any of the arsenical sprays which are applied as soon
after the leaves open in spring as possible. As many of
the over-winter nests as can be collected should be burned.
Clearing out thickets of plants that are infested and put-
ting old, neglected orchards in sanitary condition will keep
the pest in control.

Canker Worm

These worms appear early in the summer in great num-
bers and are quite commonly known as "loopers" or
"measuring worms." They are voracious feeders, and will
quickly strip the foliage from the infested trees. The
female moths are wingless and late in the fall they climb
up on the trunks and branches of the trees where the eggs
arc* deposited. Spray with arsenate of lead as soon as the
insects appear, and repeat if necessary.

Cigar Case Bearer

The caterpillars of this moth infest the leaves and in
the spring may be on the buds and young fruits. The
mature caterpillars are about one-fifth of an inch long and
a reddish orange color. They build around themselves a
cigar shaped case from, the lower surface of the leaf fast-
ened together with silk. These cases are started in the
fall and are increased considerably in the spring as the
insect develops into maturity. The adults emerge in mid-
summer as a steel grey moth about one-half inch across
the wings. It can be kept in check by applications of ar-
senical sprays, although on badly infested trees two or
three applications may be needed at intervals of three days
to a week apart.

Codling Moth

This insect causes a greater annual loss to fruit grow-
ers than any other single insect except San Jose scale and

140

The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

plum curculio. It does this because it is the insect which
causes the worm in the apple. It can be very effectively
controlled by spraying with lead arsenate or Paris green.
During the past half dozen years this insect has received
a great amount of attention from orchardists and ento-
mologists and very effecient means for its control have
been perfected. There are two broods of this worm in
each season, and the eggs of the first brood are laid on the
leaves or young fruit and the worm enters the apple
through the calyx. Where this brood of worms can be

Codling moth: A, portion of an apple showing tunnels
made by the worm; b, calyx at which the worm entered; d,
pupa; e, larva or worm; f and g, adults.

controlled there will be but little trouble from the second
brood. On account of this habit of entering at the calyx
it is apparent that the calyx should be filled with the
poison. The second brood appears about mid-summer and
enters the apple through the side. It usually selects a
place where two apples touch or where a leaf covers the
side of a fruit.

Curculio 141

In the Western sections an attempt has been made,
and with more or less success, to do this first spraying so
effectually as to make subsequent spraying unnecessary.
It must be done at a pressure of 150 to 200 pounds, with
a coarse nozzle, the bordeaux type being preferred, and the
spray applied just at the time the last petals are falling
from the flowers. Better results can be had by making
two other sprays at intervals of a month apart. The doors
and windows of cellars or houses in which apples are
stored over winter should be screened so as to keep the
moths which may hatch out from the infested fruit from
reaching the orchard.

Clean cultivation and the removal of scales of bark on
the trunks and large limbs of the trees will prevent the
worms from finding suitable places in which to pupate.

Curculio

There are three species of this insect which may do
serious damage to the apple. These are the plum curculio,
apple curculio and apple weevil. Of these the plum cur-
culio causes the greater amount of damage. This insect
is a beetle, the adult of which is about an eighth of an
inch long, and which hibernates over winter in the rub-
bish, weeds, under clods or other convenient places in the
orchard. On the apple this insect causes serious damage
by puncturing the developing fruits for the purpose of
feeding and to deposit eggs. These punctures differ some-
what from each other but either of them causes a dwarfing
and stunting of that portion of the fruit, so that by the
time the fruit reaches maturity it is very much misshapen.

The egg puncture made by this beetle is quite easily
seen on fruits that have been stung. The female makes a
little pocket in the flesh of the apple, and into this she de-
posits one egg. Then, beginning at the puncture thus
made, she cuts a crescent shaped mark through the skin
partly surrounding the puncture. These crescent shaped
marks are very conspicuous on smooth skinned fruits such
;is the plum and apple, and in regions where the curculio

142

The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

abounds may be found usually in great abundance in the
early part of the summer.

These eggs hatch in from three to seven days into a
small grub that feeds on the flesh of the fruit. For some
reason, at present unexplained, if the fruit which is at-
tacked continues to grow and enlarge rapidly, the grub
will' work its way toward the core, but usually dies be-

Plum curculio; enlarged in the upper figure and natural
size in the lower.

fore the larval stage is completed. If, however, the fruit
falls to the ground, then the larva reaches maturity.
When full grown they come out of the fruit and enter the
ground, where they form a little cell a couple of inches
beneath the surface in which they pupate. Towards the
latter part of the summer, sometimes extending over quite
a long period, adults emerge from their pupal cells and

Borers 143

feed on the leaves and maturing fruits, sometimes making
quite large holes in the fruit where they make frequent
visits to feed. With the coming of cold weather these
adults hide under bits of rubbish or in the grass, where
they find protection during their period of hibernation.

This insect is one of the most difficult to combat of the
many that attack fruit. This is so because of its feeding
habits and general life history. One means which is quite
often advised as a means of control is to jar the infested
trees. The insects drop from the trees when disturbed,
and may be caught on sheets and destroyed.

Cultivation during mid-summer is a method of dispos-
ing of large numbers, as when done while the larvae are in
the pupal stage their pupal cells will be destroyed and the
larvae killed by the exposure to the light and attacks of
predaceous insects.

Recent experiments have shown that spraying trees
with arsenate of. lead is a very effective means of con-
trolling this insect. The methods used in combatting the
codling moth are such as to keep the curculio in check,
and it has been the universal experience that sprays applied
at high pressure are much more efficient than those ap-
plied as a mist at low pressure. Even when controlled in
the most efficient manner now known it is not possible to
destroy as great a percentage of these insects as it is of
codling moth.

Apple Curculio

The habits of this insect are quite similar to those of
the plum curculio, and means of controlling the latter will
prove quite as effective.

Borers

Flat headed and round headed borers are both found
in the trunks of apple trees, working under the bark and
into the wood of the trees, usually near the ground. They
cannot be controlled by spraying, although lime-sulphur
solution at high pressure to the trunks will aid in reducing

144

The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

the damage. Various washes containing soap and carbolic
acid have been advised to drive or keep the insects from
the trees, but none have proved to be of much value. The
best and safest treatment is to dig the borers out with a
sharp knife, or to run a wire into the burrow until the in-
sects are reached.

Apple curculio, natural size in the small figure.

Fall Web Worm

This worm is the larva of a moth of pure white color*
with an expanse of wings of about one and one-fourth
inches. The worms attack a great number of different
kinds of plants, usually in mid-summer. The full grown
larvae are about an inch long, with varied markings. They
are thickly covered with hairs of various shades of yellow,
being longer at the extremities of the body, and a dark

Gypsy Moth

145

stripe extends along the back. They spin a web over the
foliage and confine their operations inside the web. As
fast as all of the enclosed foliage is eaten the tent-like
web is extended, so that it may become of very large size
if the insects are left undisturbed.

On account of its foliage eating habits it can be con-
trolled by any of the arsenical sprays which may be ap-
plied. Usually it does not trouble orchards which have
been thoroughly sprayed with lead arsenate, as this spray
sticks, and when applied for the codling moth the foliage
will be so well poisoned that the web worm cannot exist.

Flat headed apple tree borer:
A, adult; b, pupa; c and d, larvae.

Gypsy Moth

This insect at the present time is confined to a terri-
tory quite the same as the brown tail moth, but differs
from that insect in that it passes the winter in the egg
stage. The female does not fly, although provided with
wings. She crawls into any convenient hiding place,
whether it be under a bit of rubbish, under a stone, old
can, fence or fence rail, building or what-not, and deposits
her eggs. These are deposited in July or August and are
covered with the tan colored hairs from the body of the

146 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

female. They do not hatch until the following May. The
full grown larvae are dark in color and covered with dark
hairs. The mature larvae have two rows of red spots and
two rows of blue spots along the back with a yellowish
but dim stripe between them. They usually reach their
full size about the 1st of July, and then transform to pupae.
These pupae are found in locations similar to the egg
masses, but occur in the foliage of trees and shrubs as
well. The male moth is brownish yellow in color, about
an inch and a half across the wings. The female moth is
nearly white, with a body so heavy as to prevent flight.

The most effective means of controlling this insect is
to destroy the egg masses. There is an abundance of time
for this as the eggs laid in mid-summer do not hatch until
late next spring, a period of possibly eight months. The
egg masses can be destroyed-when found by soaking them
with creosote mixture applied with a small swab or paint
brush. This material can be obtained from dealers in
farm supplies.

Scale Insects

Oyster Shell Scale. This insect is much larger than the
San Jose scale, and resembles an oyster shell in shape. On
account of there being only one brood in a season, it is
easily controlled. Spraying for the San Jose scale will also
destroy this insect. It may be held in check by spraying
about the second week in June, while the young are hatch-
ing, with kerosene emulsion or self-boiled lime-sulphur.
When numerous, growers should determine when the eggs
are hatching by watching the trees carefully after the
latter part of March, in order to apply the remedy before
the young insects become protected by their hard scale
covering. In general practice it is found best to prune off
the badly infested branches during the fall or winter.

Scurfy Scale. This insect is a native of America found
on the bark of the native crab trees. The scales are some-
what pear shaped in outline with a prominent nipple at the
pointed end. Its color is grayish or whitish, and even
when numerous, it does not cause the trouble that can be

Tent Caterpillar 147

expected from San Jose scale. Treatment for Oyster Shell
or San Jose will keep this scale in check.

San Jose Scale. This is the most destructive scale in-
sect that affects deciduous orchard trees. It lives on near-
ly all kinds of woody plants, and when left alone is capa-
ble of killing a tree in the course of a very few years. The
scales are very small, seldom larger than the head of a
pin, and with a conspicuous nipple in the center. Eggs are
never deposited, but the females give birth to living
3'oung, after reaching maturity at about five weeks of age.
Each female is capable of producing about 400 offspring.
The characteristic thing about San Jose scale is that it
causes the bark to turn red, especially the inner bark and
the shoots of some species of plants. Other kinds of scales
will cause a reddish appearance, especially on the fruit, but
when the reddish color of the inner bark is pronounced,
and the scales are circular in outline, it may quite likely be
San Jose. For certain identification it should be referred
to an experiment station entomologist.

The most effective remedy for this insect is spraying
with full strength lime-sulphur solution during the dormant
period, using either the commercial brands or home-made
mixtures. Miscible oils are also effective, and when the
commercial brands of these are used, the directions ac-
companying them should be followed, as serious injury to
the trees can come from using these in too strong solu-
tions. During the summer an application of self-boiled
lime-sulphur has proven itself to be very effective in de-
stroying all of the young insects with which it comes in
contact, and in coating the branches so as to make it diffi-
cult for the young to find a place to settle.

Other Scale Insects. There are a number of other scale
insects which attack orchard trees and shrubs, some of
which closely resemble the San Jose scale in appearance.
All of them are less destructive than the San Jose, and are
easily controlled when precautionary measures are taken
such as for the control of San Jose scale.

Tent Caterpillar. The eggs of this insect are deposited
in masses in rows around the smaller twigs in mid-summer,

148 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

and do not hatch until the following spring. The cater-
pillars feed on the leaves spinning a web as they go. This
soon becomes of considerable size and makes an unsightly
appearance on the trees. When full grown the caterpillars
are about two inches long, somewhat hairy and have a
white streak running along the back. On their sides are yel-
lowish markings and underneath they are quite black. The
worms mature in about six weeks, and make cocoons in
sheltered places, issuing as moths in about three weeks.
The moths are about three-fourths of an inch long, with
a spread of wings covering about one and three-fourths
inches. It can be controlled by any of the usual arsenical
sprays that are applied for insects, such as the codling
moth.

Insects That Attack the Pear

Pear Leaf Blister Mite. This insect attacks both pear
and apple, although usually more common on the pear,
from which it gets its name. It appears on the leaves in
the spring at about the time they reach their full size, and
cause reddish blisters to appear on the under side of the
leaves.

The eggs are deposited under the outer scales of the
buds and hatch as growth begins in the spring. The little
mites burrow into the leaves, where they cause the char-
acteristic swellings. These swellings in spring are reddish,
in summer they turn green and by the latter part of sum-
mer have become a dark brown.

This insect is not at all difficult to control, as any of
the mixtures used for controlling scale will keep it in
check. Lime-sulphur, kerosene emulsion and miscible oils
have all been effective in preventing injury from this insect
on both apples and pears.

Pear Slug. Pear trees are attacked by this insect in the
summer and again in the late summer or fall. It feeds on
the upper surface of the leaves, leaving only the veins.
Foliage thus eaten falls from the tree and leaves the trees
bare. This insect during its early stages is a slimy slug,

Black Peach Aphis

149

but after its last moult the slimy covering is thrown off
and the skin becomes a light orange color and clean and
dry. It then goes into the ground, and emerges again in
twelve or fifteen days as a fly. It spends the winter in the
pupal stage just under the surface of the soil. Arsenical
poisons, either dusted or sprayed on the foliage will con-
trol it. Because of its slimy nature, even road dust thrown
on it often results in extermination.

The bag-worm: A, caterpillar removed from the bag;
b, male chrysalis; c, wingless and legless female moth; d,
winged male; e, bag cut open showing female chrysalis and
eggs; f, caterpillar in the bag; g, cones made by the little
caterpillars as they are beginning to spin their bags.

Black Peach Aphis. These plant lice are shining black
in color, one form having wings and the other possessing
none. They feed upon the juices of the peach, cherry and
plum trees, working upon the leaves, stem and roots. They
can be controlled on the leaves and twigs by spraying with
the tobacco preparations as for green aphis. If very nu-
merous on roots, scrape the soil away and apply pulverized
tobacco.

150 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

Bagworm. These insects infest nearly all kinds of trees
and shrubs, and will consume a large quantity of foliage
during the summer, frequently defoliating the trees com-
pletely. It is the larva of a moth, that over-winters in
the egg stage within the old female bags. In the late
spring the young hatch from the eggs and crawl out
on the twigs to the nearest leaf, where they begin to feed
and begin the work of spinning the bags for them-
selves. This is a curious and interesting process. Into the
construction of the bags the larvae add fragments of the
foliage and leaf stems, securely fastened together with silk.
It is easily controlled with arsenical sprays.

Red Spiders. These are extremely small insects which
work on the under surface of the leaves of many plants.
They are common in greenhouses, and in the semi-arid sec-
tions of the West they are becoming quite destructive to
orchard and ornamental trees and shrubs. When present
they cause the leaves to become yellowish in spots, and
upon examination the under surfaces will be found covered
with an extremely fine web. The adults will appear as
very small red or brownish specks crawling under the web,
and their eggs as minute glistening beads attached to the
leaf in the meshes of the web. The adults are just large
enough to be seen with the naked eye.

In the greenhouse they can be kept in control by daily
syringing with cold water. In the field such means are
impracticable, but the Colorado experiment station reports
that they were able to keep red spiders controlled by
spraying their plants with sulphur and soapy water as
used for the brown mite.

Strawberry Insects

Leaf Roller. This insect appears early in the spring as
a small brown moth, measuring about half an inch across
the wings. It deposits its eggs on the leaves of the straw-
berry. The larvae are greenish brown, and when full
grown, nearly half an inch in length, but rather slender.
They mature in June, after having spun a web which

Root Louse 151

causes the familiar rolling upward of the leaflets. The
soft tissue of the leaf is eaten and what remains turns
reddish brown, giving the plant a burned appearance.
There are two broods, and the winter is passed in the pupal
condition. Spray the plants in August with an arsenical
spray at the time the second brood appears. On account
of the first brood of the insects pupating in the rolled
leaves, the foliage may be mowed off and burned, thereby
practically exterminating them from the plantation.

Sawfly; Slug. The adult of this insect appears in spring
and deposits its eggs in the tissues of the stem or leaf. The
larvae hatch in a short time and gnaw holes in the leaf,
developing in the course of five or six weeks into pale
green worms about three-fourths of an inch long. The
larvae burrow slightly beneath the surface to pupate,
emerging later as flies. There are two broods in the
Southern states and one in the North. Spray the foliage
with lead arsenate before the plants bloom, and again after
the fruit has been harvested, if necessary.

Strawberry Weevil. This beetle deposits its eggs in
the developing flower bud of a pollen-producing straw-
berry. The insect punctures a bud and turns and deposits
its eggs into the puncture, then shoves it down into the
bud with its beak. It then passes down the stem of the
developing flower, where it punctures the stem, shutting
off the supply of sap, and the bud shrivels and drops to the
ground. There the larva develops to maturity and emerges
as an adult beetle in about a month from the time the egg^
was deposited.

Spraying with arsenicals is recommended, although,
from the feeding habits of the beetle it will hardly get
enough poison to destroy it. Mulch the field with straw
and burn it as soon as the fruit is off. The least amount of
damage will come by planting, pistillate varieties, setting
four rows pistillate with one row of some variety of stam-
inate berry, capable of producing an abundance of pollen.
The weevil attacks only the staminate flowers, and lives on
the pollen cells.

Root Louse. The life of this aphis is similar in general

152 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

to other plant lice. They appear first on the foliage and
tender young leaves in the crown of the plant, and col-
onies of them may even be found on the roots of the
strawberry, where they have been carried by a species of
ant, which places them in specially prepared galleries.

The most effective remedy, perhaps, is to plant the ber-
ries in new ground every third year. Fumigation of the
plants before planting will free them of any living insects,
and spraying with black leaf when the lice are first noticed
in the spring will keep them well in check.

Crown Borer. This is a white grub which works in the
crown of the plants along in mid-summer. This grub is
about one-fifth of an inch long, and develops into a cur-
culio or weevil. To control this insect by spraying is
rather difficult on account of its habits. The best means
of control is to burn over the fields immediately after the
fruit has been picked. Any plants remaining which are in-
fested should be dug up and burned.

Grape Insects

Leaf Folder. This is the larva of a moth having wings
of black, bordered with white, and with white spots on the
upper sides. The adult lays its eggs on the upper side of
the leaves. As soon as hatched the larvae begin to feed on
the tissue of the upper side of the leaves, leaving only
the hard veins and skin of the lower side. As it feeds it
spins a web over itself in such a manner as to bring the
sides of the leaf together, forming a fold in the leaf. It
pupates within the folded leaf. Because of its leaf-eat-
ing habit it can be controlled with any of the usual arsen-
ical sprays.

Flea Beetle. This is a small steel-blue beetle about an
eighth of an inch long, which is readily disturbed on the
vines, and has the habit of dropping to the ground. It
passes the winter in the adult condition, and in early
spring attacks the opening buds and tender young leaves.
Soon after the leaves appear the female commences laying
eggs, which are orange colored, on the under side of the

Leaf Hopper 153

leaves. These quickly hatch and the larvae feed on the
tissues of the leaves, puncturing them full of holes. There
is a second brood of the beetles which appears about the
middle of July. Spraying with arsenical materials will de-
stroy this troublesome little pest.

Rose Chafer. This is a long-legged, awkward-looking
beetle which attacks a great many different kinds of plants
during the summer. It responds very slowly to any poisons,
so that in small areas hand picking of the insects is prob-
ably the best treatment. In commercial plantations spray-
ing with arsenate of lead will keep the insect under con-
trol.

Berry Worm. There are two kinds of insects which
cause worms in the berries of grapes. One of these is the
larva of a moth. This worm is about half an inch long,
of a bluish black color, that spins a web and lets itself to
the ground. The other is the grub of the ctirculio. Some
seasons either or both of these insects may be very numer-
ous, while in others they will be of no consequence. Thor-
ough spraying with arsenate of lead will give quite effec-
tive control of both insects, although the curculio can be
more effectively controlled if the vineyard is kept in clean
cultivation, and the soil stirred quite frequently during the
middle and latter portions of the summer. This will bring
to the surface of the scil the pupal cells of the insect, which
will perish upon exposure to the light. Spraying with
arsenate after the fruit sets and again when the berries are
about half grown will help in controlling these insects.

Leaf Hopper. This is a very small, inconspicuous in-
sect that jumps from the leaves of the vine when disturbed.
It comes in great swarms and does great damage to the
vines by sucking the juice of the foliage frojn the under
side. Thorough spraying with kerosene emulsion at the
rate of one to ten, is the most effective means of con-
trolling it. In applying the spray it needs to be done with
3">od pressure and through a fine nozxle so as to fill the
air with a mist. Those ins 2:: s which are not hit while on
the vine will get more or less upon themselves as they hop
through the mist, and be destroyed.

154 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

Grape-Cane Gall Maker. This is a little hectic of the
curcuiio family, which is very closely related to the grape-
cane girdler, except that the gall maker is of dark brown
color and the girdler is shining black. Thus far its in-
juries have not been of great seriousness, although present
to a greater or less extent over quite a large area of the
eastern portion of the United States. The female makes
a series of holes in the grape canes, usually beyond
the terminal cluster of fruit, in which she deposits her eggs.
These hatch into a small larva which feeds on the tissue
of the cane and causes the formation of a gall of consid-
erable size. It can be controlled by removing these canes
having galls, and arsenical sprays may keep the insects
under control.

Grape-Cane Girdler. This insect, instead of making a
line of holes up and down the canes, makes a ring of holes,
in only one of which an egg is deposited. Then above this
place where the egg is deposited she girdles the cane so
that it breaks off. The larva lives in the stub. Removing
the affected canes and spraying with arsenical sprays, to-
gether with keeping the vineyard in clean cultivation will
keep this insect controlled.

Raspberry Cane Borer. This is the larva of a small
black beetle, which makes two rows of holes about an inch
apart near the tips of the canes in June, and deposits an
egg just above the lower girdle. The larva attains a length
of nearly an inch and bores down into the cane, causing it
to wilt. Cut off the wilted canes below the lower girdle and
burn them.

Vegetable Insects

%

Asparagus Beetle. There are two kinds of beetles known
by this name, one of them is blue in color, and the other
a dark red, with twelve black spots on its wing covers.
Both of them attack asparagus as it is starting into growth
and eat holes in the young tips, also eating the foliage
and seed capsules. Allow a few hills to remain uncut, and
keep them sprayed with arsenical poisons. These hills will

Apples 155

serve as trap plants, drawing the insects away from the
ones that are to be used for cutting.

Bean Weevil. This insect deposits its eggs on the
young pods and the larvae bore into the developing seeds,
where they do not reach maturity until fall. Then they
emerge if the season is warm, otherwise remaining in the
seed until spring. When present the beans should be
fumigated immediately after harvest, using one ounce of
carbon bisulphide for every hundred pounds of beans, and
leaving the bin closed for forty-eight hours.

Fungous Diseases

Apples

Bitter Rot. The conditions most favorable to the de-
velopment of this disease are hot weather, accompanied by
frequent rains and heavy dews at the period when the fruit
is approaching maturity. Dry weather at that time will
not cause a serious outbreak of the disease.

This is the most destructive fungous disease of the
apple, causing a greater actual'loss than does apple scab.
F»ut its virulence varies greatly with local conditions, and
it may not cause serious trouble every year. It occurs
throughout the entire eastern part of the United States.
Tt appears on the fruit, causing it to rot, and is also found
on the branches in the form of cankers. On the fruit it
first appears as a small brown speck at about the time the
fruit is beginning to ripen. As soon as this spot attains a
size slightly smaller than a dime it becomes sunken in the
middle and produces numerous small pustules in concentric
lings, giving rise to the summer spores. The tissue of the
fruit near the rotting areas is decidedly bitter, from which
fact this fungus gets its name. The rotting areas continue
tc increase in size until the entire fruit decays. Many of
these decayed fruits do not drop from the trees, but re-
main hanging to the branches throughout the winter. In
the spring these "mummied" fruits, as they are called, give.

156 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

rise to a new crop of spores that infect the new crop of
fruit.

On the branches this fungus causes the formation of
cankers, or areas of dead bark. The fungus is believed to
live in these cankered areas for two years, giving rise to a
crop of spores which falls onto the fruit, causing the char-
acteristic black, decaying areas.

As a means of preventing damage from bitter rot, one
of the first preventive measures should be a thorough ex-
amination of the trees while in a dormant condition, and
removing all of the branches and limbs which show signs
of infestation. All of the mummied fruit which remains
en the branches should be removed and burned. Then the
trees should be given a thorough spraying with bordeaux
mixture. As many as six applications of this mixture will
be needed, beginning in the spring, and applying the spray
at intervals of two or three weeks until July, and even after
that date if bitter rot should appear. Experiments carried
on by the Illinois Experiment Station go to show that the
early sprayings are more effective in controlling this dis-
ease than if the spraying is not done until after the disease
appears. The work of spraying should be done thoroughly,
so as to coat every fruit and leaf.

Blotch. This disease occurs through the southern and
eastern part of the United States where it causes serious
damage to the fruit on several different varieties of apples.
On the fruits these blotches appear as dark colored, star-
shaped areas, often being so numerous on an apple as to
cover the entire fruit. It attacks only the skin of the
fruit, so that the continued growth of the underlying tissue
frequently causes the fruit to crack. The fungus does not
rot the fruit as in the case of bitter rot, but mars the ap-
pearance so as to make it unsalable.

The fungus also attacks the twigs and branches on
which it causes the formation of small and rather incon-
spicuous cankers. On the rapidly growing shoots and
watersprouts these cankers have the same general appear-
ance as on the fruit. The fungus lives in the cankers for

Brown Spot, Baldwin Fruit Spot- 157

a number of years. On the leaves it appears as minute
specks, scarcely one-sixteenth of an inch in diameter,
of irregular shape, and usually yellowish or whitish, with
one or more small black specks in the center. When very
numerous, they may cause the foliage to fall.

To control this fungus make five or six applications of
bordeaux mixture, as for bitter rot.

Apple blotch on a Maiden Blush apple, natural size.

Brown Spot, Baldwin Fruit Spot. This disease is caused
by a fungus which finds entrance into the apple during
mid-summer, and causes the fruit to deepen in color wher-
ever the fungus may have found entrance. At the time the
fruit is ripening it causes small brownish areas to form,
which become somewhat sunken, and the flesh to become
dry, brown and quite bitterish to the taste. It can be con-
trolled by spraying with bordeaux mixture or even weaker
fungicides.

158 The Fru it-Growers Guide-Book

Twig Blight. (See under Pear.)

Black Rot. This is a fungus causing the decay of ap-
ples, quinces and pears, and has become well known, al-
though it is not a serious disease. Its most objectionable
and serious character is that it causes large cankers to
form on the Hmbs of the affected trees. The fruits that
are attacked rot quickly, but do not show the shrinking of
the tissues as in the case of bitter rot. After the rotting
has become quite well advanced the diseased area will be-
come quite spotted with small black specks from which
the spores issue. It occurs most commonly on neglected
and fallen fruit, and upon fruit in the storage cellar. The
cankers appear as deadened areas of the bark, some-
what shrunken and producing many little pustules from
which the spores arise. Removal of the cankers and thor-
ough spraying with bordeaux mixture gives the most com-
plete satisfaction, although preventive measures have not
been well worked out. Clean orchards are affected the
least.

Crown Gall. This disease is due to an organism that
attacks a number of different kinds of plants, mostly of
the family Rosaceae, causing large swellings to form on
the roots or at the crown of the plant. It is exceedingly
troublesome in nurseries, and appears as large soft galls,
and may also be present as a mass of fine hairy roots.
In the Western states it is very troublesome as the
organism seems to find congenial conditions for its devel-
opment and distribution. The galls increase in size rapidly
and usually last for only one season, after which they
decay, only to reappear again the next season. Trees are
frequently so badly affected as to either die or be of little
value.

No means is known of preventing the spread of the
disease or of destroying it after it has once entered a tree.
Careful inspection of nursery stock and burning all of the
infested trees is all that can be suggested at the present
time.

"Fly Speck, Sooty Blotch. These diseases ordinarily
appear on the fruit from unsprayed trees, in low ground,

Rust 159

and upon the lower limbs of trees in dryer locations. It is
purely a skin disease and causes no injury aside from dis-
figuring the appearance of the fruit. Can be easily con-
trolled with bordeaux mixture or any of the ordinary
fungicides.

Mildew. The powdery mildew often occurs on the
young shoots of nursery stock, making a dense felt-like
growth over the leaves and twigs. It can be controlled
with any of the usual fungicides.

Apple blossoms. On the left, just right for the first ap-
plication of spray to control scab and codling moth. Cluster
on the right is too late for the codling moth.

Rust. The bright orange colored patches of rust that
are to be found on the leaves and fruit of apples, pear and
quince, as well as upon the wild thorn and crab trees, are
caused by the same fungus which makes the "cedar ap-
ples" on cedar trees. It spends a part of Its existence on
the apple trees and the other part on the cedar, so that
the most effective means of controlling this fungus is to

160 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

get rid of the cedar trees. Spraying with bordeaux mix-
ture or self-boiled lime-sulphur aids in checking the dis-
ease, but does not give perfect control.

Root Rot. This trouble is of common occurrence in
several parts of the country. In the Middle West it oc-
curs more frequently on trees which have been planted on
land newly cleared from oak timber. In such cases it
seems to be caused by a fungus which is found on the oak.
Before planting an orchard on newly cleaned land, it is
best to wait for a few years and let the land become freed
of the fungus by natural agencies.

Apple affected by scab.

In the Western states a condition resulting in the death
of the roots and portions of the bark of the trunk has been
laid to poisoning from excessive use of arsenical sprays.
This belief is doubted on good authority, however, as in
some of the Western sections, in orchards which have
never been sprayed, and in soils entirely free from arsenic,
the same trouble is said to exist.

Scab. Apple scab is common to all orchards, except in
some portions of the semi-arid sections of the West. It
attacks the fruit and leaves, on which it causes large black

Scab

161

velvety patches. It not only injures the appearance of the
fruit, but by its attacks on the foliage, it may prevent the
formation of a crop of fruit.

Apple leaves covered with the fungus that causes scab.

It is most serious when the weather is cold and wet.
early in the season. Because of this the dropping of
apples, which is often attributed to improper pollination

(6)

162 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

during such season, is directly due to the ravages of scab
on the young fruits. All varieties of apples are attacked by
scab, but some varieties more so than others. Thorough
spraying with bordeaux mixture just before the buds open
and again after the petals fall, followed by a third appli-
cation two or three weeks later, will keep it under perfect
control. Recent experiments lead to the opinion that lime-
sulphur and arsenate of lead applied as for the codling
moth will give immunity from this disease.

Cherry

Black Knot. This disease occurs on the cherry, apricot,
plum and prune, causing the formation of large black galls
or knots on the limbs and branches. These are frequently
infested with insects which burrow -within the galls. Re-
moval of the galls by cutting out diseased limbs and spray-
ing with any standard fungicide before growth begins in
spring will eliminate the disease.

Leaf Spot. This disease attacks the cherry and plum
upon the foliage of which it causes the formation of small
brown spots, the dead centers of which fall out, causing a
"shot-hole" appearance. When very prevalent it will cause
defoliation of the -trees. Apply bordeaux mixture before
the buds open and keep the orchard clean.

Powdery Mildew. This fungus is found on the sprouts
and young^ shoots of the cherry, although in favorable
seasons it may attack all of the foliage and cause defoli-
ation. It can be controlled by spraying with fungicides.

Currants

Aathracnose. This fungus also occurs on gooseberries,
causing the formation of small brown spots on the leaves
which turn yellow and drop when seriously attacked. On
the stems the fungus makes small circular areas. Cut-
ting out the affected canes and spraying with bordeaux
mixture before the buds open will control the disease.

Cane Blight. This fungus causes serious trouble in
some sections by killing the canes. Upon the dead canes

Orange Rust 163

it will appear as a bright pink mass a short time after the
cane dies. Spraying will help to keep the plantation in
a sanitary condition, but plants which have been attacked
seldom recover and should be dug up and burned.

Dropsy. This disease is possibly due to a physiological
trouble. It causes a considerable enlargement of the
stem. Cutting out the affected canes is most effective.

Blackberries and Raspberries

Anthracnose. This fungus causes small purplish spots
to form on the canes. Later these spots become gray and
sunken, giving somewhat the "bird's eye" effect. The
stems and leaves may also become affected and result in
severe injury to the entire plant. Control measures have
not proven as satisfactory with this disease as with
many 'others. Keeping the plantation in a thoroughly sani-
tary condition by cultivating and spraying, and removing
the affected canes as fast as they show are about the best
means of control.

Cane Blight. In the eastern part of the country this
disease has caused considerable loss to small fruit grow-
ers. It is a wilt disease attacking the young canes and
causing the affected portions to wilt and die. Planting
healthy vines and removing the diseased portions when
they appear are best means of control.

Crown Gall. (See Apple.)

Orange Rust. Among raspberries and blackberries
there is a- noticeable difference in different varieties in re-
sisting this disease. Kittitinny blackberry is about the most
susceptible, although some varieties of dewberries are eas-
ily affected. The fungus causing this disease appears on
the foliage, the under surface of which turns a bright
orange color, and the skin breaks open, liberating the
brightly colored spores. Affected canes are usually much
more spindling than those which are healthy. Spraying
has not proved to be of much service in controlling this
disease. Keeping the plantation clean and removing the

164 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

affected plants as they appear, and before they begin to
shed their spores, is, perhaps, the best means of fighting
the disease.

Grape

Anthracnose. Anthracnose or bird's eye disease of the
grape is well distributed throughout the country. The
fungus causing it may be found on the canes, leaves and
fruit, although by far more commonly on the fruit. It
causes the formation of grayish spots which are bordered
with a purplish or reddish ring. It is difficult to control,
although those vineyards which are thoroughly sprayed
for black rot contain but little of the anthracnose.

Black Rot. The berries are most severely affected by
this fungus, although the leaves are first attacked. On the
berries a circular black spot first appears, gradually en-
larging, and in the center of which small black pustules
appear, from which the spores of the fungus are liberated
It usually attacks the berries at about the time they are
two-thirds grown and will destroy the entire crop before
ripening time unless preventive measures are taken.

The most effective treatment consists in spraying the
vines with bordeaux mixture at the time the buds -are be-
ginning to open, and then another application immediately
after the new shoots appear, but before the flowers open.
After blooming, the vines should have an application of
bordeaux every two weeks until five or six applications
have been made. If the disease appears at about the time
the fruit is beginning to ripen, ammoniacal copper carbon-
ate will be a better spray to use, as it will not soil the
appearance of the fruit.

Downy Mildew. This disease is widely spread through-
out all of the grape producing sections of America and
Europe. The first indication of the disease is the forma-
tion of yellowish spots of irregular shape and size on the
upper surface of the leaf. On the under surface these spots
will be covered with a white downy growth on which the
spores of the fungus are produced. The fungus attacks

Peach Blight 165

the berries when young, causing a mouldy growth to cover
the entire fruit and even an entire bunch of fruit.

This fungus is of distinct historic importance, since it
was the disease which was introduced into Europe and
which later led to the discovery of bordeaux mixture.
This spray, applied before the buds open, and again at
intervals of two weeks until the flowers open, then another
application immediately after the flowers fall, will hold
the disease under control.

Powdery Mildew. In moist seasons, and in low ground,
this fungus frequently causes trouble by its attacks upon
the foliage, and to a small extent the berries of the grapeJ
It appears as a powdery, mouldy growth on both the upper,
and under surface of the leaves, causing them to arch more
or less when the disease is very bad. It can be controlled
by any of the usual spraying operations.

Peach Diseases

Peach Blight

This disease occurs at the present time in the Western
states, where it has become quite common from Colorado
westward to the Pacific coast.

The disease makes its first appearance in the fall and
during the winter, in which the buds are killed and growth
consequently prevented for the next spring. It attacks the
fruit early in the season, on which it produces small cir-
cular spots, some of which may be covered with a drop
of gum. On the twigs it produces spots, which may be
more or less gummy, and some of which may encircle the
twig, causing it to die.

It attacks both the peach and the apricot, and causes a
greater loss to the Western fruit men than any other one
fungous disease. It can be very easily controlled with
either bordeaux mixture or lime-sulphur. Fall applications?
are most effective and should be made as soon after the
late fruit is gathered as possible. If San Jose scale it pres-

166 , The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

ent, lime-sulphur — 1 to 10 or 12 — should be used, otherwise
bordeaux will be best. A second application should be
made in the spring at about the first of May and a third
application in about three weeks, and if the disease is
especially troublesome, or if the weather should be rainy,
a fourth spraying should be made in about ten days after
the third.

Brown rot, altogether too familiar to most peach growers.

Brown Rot

This disease is capable of the most extensive damage
to the peach crop in the states east of the Rocky Moun-
tains, since it attacks the fruit at ripening time, causing
it to rot within a very few hours. It attacks all kinds of
stone fruits, but causes the greatest amount of loss to
peaches and plums. The disease makes itself evident by
the small dark brown decayed spots, which rapidly enlarge
and produce on its surface small tufts of brown spores.
It may attack the flowers, twigs and leaves, but usually
confines its operations to the fruit.

Peach Scab 167

The spread of the disease is materially assisted by the
plum curculio, which punctures the skin of the fruit and
admits the fungus spores. Until recently this disease has
been controlled only with difficulty, but investigations
of the past three years demonstrate that by spraying with
self-boiled lime-sulphur containing 2 pounds of lead arsen-
ate to 50 gallons of the mixture, the disease can be held
well in check. This spray should be applied about three
times, first application at just about the time the "shucks"
are falling from the newly set fruit; two other applications
may be needed at intervals of about two weeks. It is im-
portant that the arsenate of lead be added, as it holds the
curculio in check and seems also to add to the fungicidal
value of the lime-sulphur.

Frosty Mildew

This disease causes a mouldy appearance on the under
surface of the foliage of the peach. It is most common in
the Atlantic Coast States, but is not a serious trouble and
can be controlled by early spraying.

Leaf Curl

Leaf curl is a disease which is more or less common in
all sections where peaches are grown. It is most trouble-
some in spring when the weather is cold and damp. It is
due to a fungus which causes the leaves to curl and become
badly deformed, finally dropping from the tree. The twigs
and even the flowers may be attacked. Thorough spraying
with bordeaux mixture in late winter or early spring, just
before growth begins, will keep this disease in perfect
control.

Peach Scab

This disease is widespread throughout the peach pro-
ducing areas of the eastern portion of the country, where
it occurs to a damaging extent on practically all varieties
of peaches, and particularly those with white flesh. Its
commonest appearance is a black velvety patch on one
side of the peach, or it may occur in many small circular

168

The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

patches, in which condition it is often known as ''freckles."
When very severe it will cause the fruit to be somewhat
dwarfed in size, and make the flesh crack open, thereby
exposing it to attacks of black rot.

It usually occurs along in the same orchards with
brown rot, and has always been a troublesome disease to
control, although it is well known now that it can be kept in
perfect control by spraying during the summer season with
self-boiled lime-sulphur. This material should be made and
applied in the same manner as for the control of brown rot.
In orchards that are sprayed for brown rot there will be but
little trouble from scab.

/

A well developed case of peach scab. The skin cracked
open, exposing the flesh to infection of brown rot.

Pear
Blight

This disease is very widespread in the United States,
occurring in every pear growing section, and has practical-

Blight

169

ly driven the commercial production of pears out of a num-
ber of localities. It attacks not only the pear, but also the
apple, quince, wild crabs and thorns, and has even been

Branch of pear infected with blight through the flower
clusters.

170

The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

known 1o attack the plum. It is known by a variety of
names, such as twig blight, fire blight, blossom blight, etc.
It is a bacterial disease, the organisms working entirely
within the host, where it cannot be reached by any spray
or wash that may be applied.

Body of pear tree infected with blight through the care-
less removal of a limb. Pruning tools should be sterilized,
likewise the wounds, and then covered with paint, wax or
tanglefoot.

The disease usually appears on trees at just the time
they are in bloom, as the organisms causing the disease
are carried from tree to tree by the bees and other insects
which visit the flowers. They may also be transported by
numerous kinds of leaf feeding insects and thus be carried
to the twigs of many trees which are not in bloom. When

Plum Pockets 171

the leaves and blossoms are attacked by this blight they
are turned a very dark or even black color very quickly.
Where the disease has advanced far enough as to attack
the limbs or even the trunks of the trees, it causes a water
soaked appearance of the wood and bark, followed by
shrinking and cracking of the bark from which drops of a
sticky substance may exude. These drops are masses of
the germs and may be carried by insects to other trees and
the disease extended.

For many years after the cause of this trouble was
known it was believed that it was impossible to stop it
after it had once gained entrance to the tree. However,
it has been found out that the disease can be kept in per-
fect control by pruning. It is highly important that the
orchard be gone over several times during the winter and
every twig and branch that shows signs of this disease be
carefully cut out, the cut being made fully a foot, or in
some instances more below the lowest sign of the disease.
The wounds should then be sterilized with corrosive subli-
mate, and the tools also sterilized with the same fluid before
touching them to any other branch. The germs can be
carried on the pruning tools, and unless thorough sterili-
zation is practiced, the pruning may result in more damage
than good. The orchard should be gone over several times
during the winter and a thorough search made for any
sign of this disease.

Summer pruning may also be done to advantage, but
will require even more care about sterilization of the
wounds and tools, as the germs are then in their most
active and virulent condition.

Plum Pockets

This fungus bears a very close relation to that causing
leaf curl. It attacks the fruit of the domestic plums, caus-
ing abnormal deformities of the fruit, making them really
become large bladder-like structures, in which the
stone is rarely developed. It has been claimed that the
fungus lives from year to year in the twigs of the trees,
so that when once affected it cannot be very easily gotten
rid of. However, this fact has not been entirely proven.

172

The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

as trees which are well sprayed with fungicides, as for
brown rot or black knot, are not attacked by the pocket
fungus, or if they are, to only a slight and insignificant
extent.

Strawberries
Strawberry Leaf Spot

This disease appears upon the leaves of the strawberry
at about the time of flowering. At first these spots are
purplish, later becoming greyish at the center, while the
margins are red, and if the leaf is much affected the entire

Characteristic appearance of strawberry leaf spot.

leaf may become reddened. Control of this disease can
be had by spraying the plants before flowering with bor-
deaux, and if the disease is troublesome later in the season
it may be advisable to cut off the leaves and burn them.

Principles of Pruning 173

CHAPTER VII

Principles of Pruning

Pruning is one of the most interesting and fascinating
operations connected with horticultural work. A plant is
a plastic, responding, changing organism which is affected
by everything we do to it. We cannot remove a single
branch without affecting the parts which remain. The
shortening of any limb modifies to a greater or less extent
the character which will be assumed by the parts which
remain. A plant is capable of being shaped or moulded
by pruning, and he who prunes will surely get results.
However, as to whether these results are what are to be
most desired will have to be learned by experience. One
must prune and watch the results over a series of years
to learn just what effects any particular treatment will
give, as the plant grows.

Pruning cannot be learned from books. It must be
learned by studying the habits of plants and the results of
pruning. Books on pruning can, however, give one ideas
which will enable one more readily to learn how to prune
when he conies to do the work. The reading will be help-
ful only as it guides the operations in the field, and the
horticulturist himself must learn directly from the plants
themselves.

It is an easy matter to learn how to prune where one
has the plants to work upon, and the time to watch their
responses to the operations made upon them; but it is a
difficult matter to tell others how to prune. No two plants

174 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

are alike. No two branches are alike. No definite rules
can be formulated which will apply to every kind of plant
in every locality in which it may be growing. It is a com-
paratively simple matter to prescribe formulae for the
spraying of plants to govern the destruction of insects and
control the damages done by fungi. With pruning, how-
ever, only systems can be defined which are broad enough
to permit of wide modification according to the ideal and
desire of the pruner and the habit and character of the
plant. This means that the operation must be done in a
rational, common sense way, rather than by following pre-
scribed rules.

Since rules cannot be formulated for the pruning of
plants, there are certain systems which can be designed
that will enable the pruner to so modify his plants that they
will all conform to certain well defined types. In grape
pruning, for example, there are certain well defined types
or systems in use, such as the spur system, the drooping
system and the upright system, with several modifications
or combinations of these. In ornamental plants there are
natural forms and topiary forms which are made by train-
ing the plants into formal or fantastic shapes. In Euro-
pean countries fruit trees are trained into formal shapes,
and they are a striking contrast to the shapes of pruning
that are used in this country. Some of these differences
are due primarily to a matter of taste, while others are
employed to suit a certain definite purpose, or to adapt
the plant to given surroundings or environment.

In the United States there is a great amount of differ-
ence in the style of pruning in the Atlantic coast states and
in the Central and far Western states. In the Atlantic
coast states the trees are given a high head, while in the
Central and far Western states the head is placed closer
to the ground. In the Eastern states the trees are trained
with a more open head than in the Central or Western
states. These styles are due mainly to an attempt to adapt
the tree to the climatic conditions in which it is compelled
to grow. In the rainy atmosphere of the coast region it is
necessary to prune the trees with a high open head so as

Principles of Pruning 175

to admit the sunlight and air, while in the brilliant sun-
light and clear dry air of the West it is advisable to have
the trees with a more dense head to prevent the tendency
to sun-scald.

While there is more or less of difference in the style
or system of pruning used in different sections of the
country, there are certain well defined principles which will
apply to all plants in any climate, or under any system of
pruning. Pruning will modify the vigor of plants, and in
some ways will cause them to produce larger and better
fruits. It will keep the plants within bounds and may
change the habit from wood producing to fruit producing.
Pruning allows the removal of superfluous parts and of in-
jured branches or roots. Intelligent pruning will facilitate
the operations of spraying, harvesting and cultivating the
orchard, and will enable the operator to train the plant in
the form most fitting with his ideal.

In a plant growing normally there is a balance in the
relation between the root and top, each supported and
nourished by the other; and when either is mutilated the
relation is upset and the balance disturbed. Heavy prun-
ing of the top in the dormant season tends to increase the
amount of wood growth that will be made the following
season. In a contrary way, heavy pruning of the roots
will result in reducing the amount of wood growth by
shutting off the amount of crude food material that is
gathered from the soil. Heavy pruning of the top, on the
other hand, tends to develop weak portions of the plant
by allowing those parts to receive more food. In heavy
pruning it is always advisable to remove the weakest parts,
as they are usually unable to thrive, even under better con-
ditions. But since heavy pruning stimulates the produc-
tion of wood, suckers will be formed, some of which may
take the place of the weak parts, and develop into strong
branches, restoring the plant to its normal shape and habit.
The most rational system allows the plant to take its nat-
ural form, and this is especially the case with our fruit
producing trees. This will vary somewhat with the age of
a plant, as when trees are young they tend to a more up-

176 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

right habit than after they reach maturity and have pro-
duced several heavy crops of fruit.

One part of a plant may live at the expense of another
part. Very vigorous shoots will outgrow surrounding
branches because they are better supplied with the crude
food material collected by the root and appropriate the
elaborated food formed in the leaves of their slower grow-
ing neighbors. In trees which have just been grafted the
stickers which are formed below the graft will outgrow
.the branches which arise in the scion, and will outgrow the
scion, and cause the starvation and death of the latter.
The scion is, in a way, a parasite upon the branch, and the
plant tends to throw it off.

The tendency of plants, and young plants especially, is
to grow from the uppermost buds. By heading-in this
tendency is overcome, and the plants stimulated into de-
veloping lateral buds. An obstruction just above a branch
or bud tends to produce strong longitudinal growth in that
particular branch, while an obstruction below a bud stops
the downward flow of sap and causes a thickening of the
parts above. This is often resorted to in the manner of
retching or girdling for the purpose of causing the forma-
tion of fruit buds or the enlargement of particular speci-
mens of fruit. But these factors are associated with modes
of training rather than pruning proper.

When plants are making an excessive amount of wood
growth they do not make fruit buds. Checking the growth
of the top by pinching or summer pruning will tend to
produce fruitfulness.

And \vhile fruit bearing may be to a large extent gov-
erned by the methods of pruning, the habitual production
of fruit is better regulated by small amounts of pruning
regularly done, than by heavy pruning at infrequent in-
tervals. In the case of old trees which have been neg-
lected, it may take two or three years after severe pruning
before the balance between top and roots can reach an
equilibrium and the tree become fruitful. Light pruning
every year is much better for the trees than heavy pruning
clone occasionally.

Principles of Pruning 177

Pruning may be made a means of thinning the fruit
by removing the fruit producing wood. In the case of
plants which produce their fruit on the long growths of the
season before, as in peaches, quinces, raspberries, black-
berries and grapes, many fruit producing buds will be re-

L,imbs cut off so as to leave long stubs like this will
never heal. The stubs will rot and finally result in a hollow
tree.

moved with each branch that is pruned off. In the case
of trees that tend to an alternation in the years of fruitful-
ness, as in apples and pears, the tendency to alternation
may be somewhat overcome through pruning.

178 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

Summer Pruning

All of the factors of pruning which have been men-
tioned are governed largely by the time of year at which
the pruning is done. Winter pruning tends to produce
wood, while summer pruning tends to fruitfulness. Sum-
mer pruning, through the removal of the leaves, reduces
the working and elaborating surface, and a consequent
tendency to starvation or weakening of the plant. If this
summer pruning is done in such a manner, and at such a
time as to stop the wood growth in the plant, it will gen-
erally promote the formation of numerous fruit buds, but
if done too early in the season the growth of the tree will
be upset, and it will make a second and late growth that
summer. If done too late, after the tree has stopped mak-
ing wood growth for that summer, it will have much the
same effect as winter pruning. Summer pruning is more
often done by pinching the tips from shoots that are mak-
ing an excessive growth rather than by cutting out any
large amount of wood.

The climate in which a tree is growing determines to a
large extent what the manner of pruning shall be and when
it need be done. In the colder parts of the country winter
pruning, that is, cutting off large limbs during mid-winter,
allows such a large amount of moisture to evaporate from
the wood that the bark may be damaged for some distance
around each wound from the effects of drying out.
Under such circumstances the pruning is best done late in
the spring, so that the wounds can be closed over most
quickly. In the hot, dry sections of the country there may
be a considerable amount of sun-scalding following severe
pruning, and has given rise to the statements in the Cen-
tral Western states that the trees should not be pruned.
This, however, needs to be considered carefully, for, while
it is true that in the states of bright sunshine and dry
air the fruit will color up well even in trees with dense
foliage, the trees will become more or less misshapen un-
less pruned. Under such conditions the pruning needs to
be followed just as regularly as in the humid air of the
coast states, but needs be done less severely.

Healing of Wounds 179

In the Rocky Mountain region, where the rainfall is
often less than eighteen inches annually, the trees have
barely enough moisture to maintain themselves, and they
have the habit of early fruiting. Cherry trees often pro-
duce a heavy crop at five years from the bud. Throughout
all this region fruit trees have such a tendency to overbear
that the system of pruning needs to be heavy every win-
ter. On the western side of the Cascade Mountains,
where the air is thick with humidity most of the year, the
trees make an excessive amount of wood growth and grow
so late into the fall that they are many times not suffi-
ciently matured and suffer more or less from winter kill-
ing. Under such conditions the pruning should be done
-so as to prevent excessive wood growth, such as a gen-
erous amount of summer pruning. It frequently happens
in the irrigated sections that where the trees are heavily
watered, they will make unusually long shoots each season
and set few fruit buds. This trouble can oftentimes be
corrected without resorting to special pruning. By simply
reducing the amount of water that is supplied to the trees,
the vigorous wood growth can be stopped and the trees
made to produce fruit buds.

In fact the styles of pruning that must be adopted by
the irrigation fruit grower must of necessity be governed
by local conditions, and will be to a greater or less extent
different from that in use in the rainy districts.

The direction in which any given branch will grow will
be governed by the position of the bud. In cutting off a
branch it should be done just over a bud or branch that
is on the side of the limb and pointing in the direction
which the new limb is to take. With young trees espe-
cially the selection of a bud pointing in the direction the
new limb is to take will enable the pruner to quickly and
easily get the tree into the most desirabl-e shape.

Healing of Wounds

The healing of large wounds is influenced by the posi-
tion of the wound on the plant, the length of the stump,

180 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

the kind of plant and its vigor, the smoothness of the sur-
face of the wound and the. season at which it is made.
Theoretically the best time to make a large wound is in
the early part of the growing season, as at that time it can
begin to heal over without delay. Such wounds should
be made by making two cuts, the first one being made

In removing large branches, cut them close to the main
limbs, the wounds will then heal quickly.

a foot or so from the junction of the branch to be re-
moved with the limb to which it is attached. This will
remove the strain of the heavy top and prevent the bark
from peeling down on the limb that is to remain. After
the weight of the branch has been removed, cut off the
stump as nearly parallel with the main limb as possible
and close up to it, so as to leave no stub whatever. The

Pruning the Apple 181

callus which will close over the wound cannot extend out
on a stub, but will quickly close over a wound that is
smoothly cut and parallel with the limb.

On large wounds the wood should be coated with some
waterproof covering, such as white lead paint, grafting wax
or tanglefoot. This dressing is not for the purpose of has-
tening the healing, as it will not do so, but it will close up
the pores of the wood against the entry of water and
fungi that cause the wood to rot.

Pruning the Apple

The work of pruning should start at the time the tree
is planted in the orchard. This is a critical time in the
life of the tree and neglect of pruning at that time influ-
ences the tree during its remaining years.

It needs to be borne in mind that there is a physiologi-
cal reason for this early pruning, although it is frequently
neglected or overlooked by the planter, who may later
wonder why his trees died or made such a weak growth.
The roots serve the tree to collect water and mineral ele-
ments from the soil, which is carried through the sap wood
to the leaves, and there elaborated and made over into the
form in which it can be used by the tree in extending its
branches and developing its fruit.

When the tree is dug from the nursery most of its root
system is left in the soil, and unless the top is reduced in
proportion it will constitute too great a drain upon the
small root system. This results in weakening the tree,
frequently extending over a period of three years or more.
It may even result in the death of the tree through its
having used up all of the food material that is stored in the
cells of its body before the roots can draw sufficient from
the soil to supply the needs of the developing branches.

In preparing new trees for planting, all of the bruised
and broken roots need to be cut off smoothly so as to leave
no ragged ends. All of the main roots should be shortened
in to six inches or 1-ess, with a proportionate reduction of
the top.

182 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

In the Western states yearling trees are mostly used
for planting and when such is the case the top consists
of nothing more than a single whip. This is cut off to
within twelve to twenty inches of the ground, depending
on how tall it was before pruning. In the case of two-
year-old trees, there will have been formed three or more
side branches, each of which will be a foot or more long,
and all of which need to be shortened in about one-half at
the time the tree is planted.

The shape of the future tree is determined to some ex-
tent by the shape given to the tree during its first year,
and more especially the height of the head above the
ground. In the Western states the orchardists prefer a
tree with a low head, while in the East the trees are gen-
erally allowed to make a high head. Where one-year-old
trees are used there will be no side branches at the time
the tree is set, and all of its branches will have to form
during the first summer in the premanent plantation. This
gives the orchard man an opportunity to place the head
just where it is desired, but when the head has been formed
in the nursery it frequently happens that it is far too high
above the ground.

In selecting the branches to form the permanent head,
from three to five should be taken that are well distributed
around the stem of the tree, and at some distance apart
up and down the trunk. Where the branches all come out
at about the same height it will result in a head that is
easily split when the tree is loaded with fruit, and unless
the branches are well distributed around the tree it will
make the tree more or less one-sided.

In removing the limbs of a young tree make the cuts
slanting and just above a bud, leaving a stub not more
than an eighth or quarter of an inch long. A stub
of this length will not be so long as to decay before
it can be healed over, and it is not so close to the
bud as to cause injury through drying out. Heavy winter
pruning should be the practice with apple trees during the
first four or five years in order to stimulate them into
making a strong growth and building up a large frame-

The Second Year 183

work for the future fruiting surface. In those regions
where excessive wood growth is a normal or usual condi-
tion the winter pruning will not need to be as heavy as
where the rainfall is light and trees do not make as vig-
orous growth without stimulation.

When planting one-year-old apple trees there is little
likelihood of getting trees that are forked, but in older stock
some of the trees will be forked, with the two leaders of
nearly the same size. If trees of that sort are planted they
will usually result in one of the limbs being split off
when it is loaded with fruit. In planting forked trees the
possibility of future breaking down of one side can be en-
tirely done away with by cutting back one of the branches
of the fork to a strong bud near the base, or by cutting
the limb out entirely. In pruning off the other limbs, cut
them back to a bud that points in the direction it is desired
the new limb shall take.

The Second Year

During the first year in the orchard there is little prun-
ing necessary aside from the shortening in of the tree at
the time it is planted, but beginning with the second year
some definite system needs to be adopted and followed
out. In this respect there are two general systems or
shapes for the commercial apple trees, one of them being
the pyramidal and the other vase. The pyramidal tree
means one in which the central branch or branches have
not been removed, and which of necessity makes a tree
that soon becomes very tail, and unless carefully tended
and pruned in later years will carry the greatest portion
of its crop high above the ground. To shape trees after
this fashion, the main central branch of the young tree
should be allowed to grow; the only pruning that should
ever be given it being just enough to shorten it somewhat
each year, and thin cut the side branches upon it so as to
keep them well distributed. •

The vase shaped tree seems to be of Western origin,
and requires a low head. This shape may be better called

184

The Fru it-Growers Guide-Book

the "open center'' tree, as it means a tree in which the
central branches have been removed and the lateral
branches so trained as to leave the center of the tree open
to sunlight and air. It is a style of training that produces
a larger percentage of highly colored fruit than is possible
with pyramidal trees in the hands of the average man.

Well arranged branches in the head of an open-top apple
tree. Trunk protected from rabbits by a wooden veneer
wrapper.

This vase shape must be started at the begining of the
second year in the orchard by cutting out the central leader
in the little trees, allowing nothing to remain but from

Pruning the Peach 185

three to five side branches that are distributed some inches
apart up and down the stem of the tree. Unless these
branches are distributed several inches apart they are lia-
ble to make a fork that will be easily split, and as this style
of pruning makes trees that are more or less weak in the
fork, all possible care needs to be observed in getting the
crown as strong as possible.

Subsequent pruning will be for the purpose of maintain-
ing the shape of the tree, thinning the fruiting wood, pro-
moting wood growth, promoting fruitfulness, removing
unnecessary or injured parts and facilitating harvesting
and spraying.

No formal rules can be laid down as to how an apple
tree should be pruned after it has passed its second year
in the orchard, as it depends to a large extent upon the
variety, the locality, the age and climate. It needs to be
borne in mind, however, that summer pruning tends to fruit-
fulness, while winter pruning tends to the production of
wood growth, and in the Western states where trees have
the tendency to overbear, winter pruning is by far more im-
portant than summer pruning.

The tops of the trees need to be pruned every year.
If it is not done they soon become a mass of tangled
branches, many of which are long and slender, and when
heavily laden with fruit are easily broken down. When
cutting off a branch or twig, make the cut close to a
lateral branch, so as to not leave a stub. The sap in
passing up the branch will be directed into the lateral, and
in its downward course it will close over the wound made
close to a lateral branch, whereas if a stub is left the heal-
ing callus cannot close over it.

Pruning the Peach

The peach is a fruit that responds very quickly to the
amount of pruning done upon the trees, and in a commer-
cial orchard pruning is one of the most important opera-
tions. Thorough pruning tends toward regular fruitfulness.
It influences the size of the crop, and the size of the fruit,

186

The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

as well as the period of starting into growth in the spring,
the color of the fruit, time of ripening and longevity of
the tree.

Unlike the apple, the peach produces its fruit upon
wood produced during the preceding summer, and since
the tendency is to excessive wood growth, unless the trees
are regularly pruned, they soon become long branched
and high topped, and make it difficult to harvest the fruit.

The foundation of a good framework in a peach tree lays
entirely in the proper arrangement of the limbs during the
first year in the orchard. This tree has its limbs well ar-
ranged.

One-year-old trees direct from the nursery are most
desired for orchard planting and will consist of a single
long straight whip with many side branches. These side
branches should be cut back so as to leave but one bud
at their base, and the main stem cut off, leaving from three
to five side branches. These should be so selected that they

Pruning the Peach

187

are well distributed around the tree. This is for the pur-
pose of making a strong fork at the head. It is always
desirable to get these main limbs to come out as near
to the surface of the soil- as possible, at most not over a

Three branches at the head, each dividing
making a wide spreading tree of ideal shape.

into two,

foot from the soil for the lowest limb. This will give the
tree a low head and facilitate all of the operations in con-
nection with the subsequent orchard.

The tendency of the peach is to make a large amount
of wood growth each year, and it is nothing uncommon to

188

The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

see trees that have made branches six and seve.n feet long
in a single summer. Such limbs generally continue grow-
ing until so late in the summer that they are not properly

The average type of round top found in the peach trees
of the Middle West. The head is too high above the ground.

matured by autumn and go into winter in a soft and sappy
condition and are easily winter injured. Excessive wood

Pruning the Peach 189

growth is not desired, but a good vigorous amount is to
be encouraged at all times.

The style of pruning that is most approved of for
peaches is that which will allow of an open head. This
will permit the sunlight to penetrate down into the center
of the head and cause the branches to set more fruit buds
and to reduce the amount of rot in the fruit. Trees so
pruned will usually make a large number of small twigs
on the bases of the larger branches and increase the num-
ber of buds on the tree. These small branches are usually
the most hardy, and carry through the winter in better
shape.

Pruning in peaches is not done as a rule until rather
late in winter or early in spring, for the reason that it is
best to wait until it can be determined with some cer-
tainty whether there, will be a crop of fruit that season or
not. If the fruit should have all been killed by a severe
winter or a late freeze, then the pruning will have to be
done differently than if there is good prospects for a full
crop. Where the fruit has not been damaged by the cold
weather, then the amount of wood to remove will be only
about half of the longest branches, cutting in all cases so
as to maintain the shape of the tree and to keep the center
open. Any large limbs that have a tendency to crowd up
the center of the tree should be either cut out entirely or
so shortened back that they will not shut out the sunlight
from the middle.

When the fruit has all been killed by the severity of the
weather, advantage can be taken of the circumstance to
cut back more or less severely and renew the top of the
tree. This will have the advantage of lowering the top and
reshaping the tree. It is a method that has its limitations,
but is very useful where the fruit buds have all been killed.

In cases where the injury from the winter has damaged
the wood of the tree to such an extent that it has a brown
color, it is advisable to head-back the tree, cutting often-
times into wood that may be as much as four years old.
This will so reduce the size of the top that the roots can

190

The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

force out a large amount of new wood, and trees so treated
will make a very vigorous growth during the summer fol-
lowing, although they may be somewhat late in start-
ing. On such wood the growing period will usually
be continued late into the fall, and the wood will
not always be well matured by the time cold weather ar-
rives, and under such conditions the buds will not be as
hardy as the buds on slower growing and well matured

The head of this tree is too high above the ground. It is
pruned so as to open it, and let the sunlight down into the
center.

trees. But these buds have an advantage in that they are
slower in starting into growth in the spring and often-
times will escape late frosts that might otherwise damage
the fruit. The hardiest buds are always at the base of the
new wood, and especially of the well matured, plump wood
on the slower growing branches.

Aside from determining the shape of the tree pruning has

Pruning the Cherry

191

another influence in that it results in a thinning of the fruit
by removing some of the fruit buds. The peach always sets
many times more buds than it can possibly mature into
fruit, and there is a distinct necessity for the removal of
some of the fruit by thinning. When this thinning can be
done through the removal of the wood it is a saving of labor,
and results in fruit of a larger size, better shape and higher
color.

Peach tree with open top. Head starts near the ground,
enabling pickers to reach most of the fruit without the use
of ladders.

Pruning the Cherry

With cherry trees, both sweet and sour, most of
the pruning the trees will need must be done during the
first three or four years. This is necessary for the pur-
pose of providing a large framework to furnish the fruiting
wood in future years. In both kinds of cherries this frame-
work needs to be made as broad as possible. Sweet cher-
ries are inclined to be more upright in habit than sour va-

192 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

rieties, and will need to be opened out more by cutting to
buds on the outer sides of the limbs. With sour kinds the
trees will need little pruning after the third or fourth year.
All that may be needed will be to cut out branches which
cross or which are dead.

With sweet cherries there is a tendency to an excessive
amount of wood growth, and it is not unusual for such
kinds of trees to produce five feet of new wood in a sea-
son. This is especially true of young trees. For planting
in the orchard one-year-old trees are most desirable, and
they are cut off at about 24 to 36 inches of the ground. A
number of side branches will be sent out, and only four or
five of these should be retained, providing that many can
be had properly distributed around the stem and widely
separated from each other.- Unless the branches forming
the head of a cherry tree are well distributed it will result
in a tree that is subject to gummosis. Sweet cherries are
especially subject to this trouble and every care needs to
be exercised to prevent it. Where the branches of the
head come out too close together cracking and splitting
will result, not only making them subject to gummosis, but
possibly causing them to break off.

In case the sweet cherries are injured by the winter
cold, let them stand unpruned until about time the buds
start, then prune in the same manner as for peach trees
which have been frozen.

The Bing cherry is especially liable to grow late in the
summer and go into winter carrying its leaves, and pos-
sibly not having formed its terminal bud before frost. The
cambium layer will be so soft and tender that it will be
completely killed, yet the tree will start into growth only
"to die early in the summer. Do not permit the trees to
grow late, but harden them up by a judicious amount of
summer pruning, so that they will shed their leaves early.
In the irrigated sections late growth is often caused by
irrigating too late in the summer. Under irrigation it is
quite easy to regulate the amount of wood that will be pro-
duced on trees by regulating the supply of water. Late
applications will make the trees grow late, but by shutting

Pruning the Pear 193

it off early the trees will stop growing and ripen their
wood before the arrival of cold weather.

Pruning the Apricot

In the East the apricot is headed at a couple or three
feet from the ground, while in the West the head is placed
a little lower. One or two-year-old trees are the best for
planting. Where yearling trees are used they should be cut
off at about eighteen inches from the ground. This will
start out several good strong branches. The lowest one to
be retained should be about a foot from the ground, and
three or four others selected which are well arranged around
the stem, and at a distance of a few inches apart. This ar-
rangement will make a strong head, and one which is not
as apt to be broken down under a load of fruit as if the
branches came out close together. It may be necessary
to go over the trees a few times during the first summer
and pinch out those shoots which are not desired so as to
throw the strength of the plant into those branches that
are to form the permanent framework of the tree.

Apricots come into bearing early, and by the third year
in most places they will produce a crop. All of the pruning
that will be needed after the trees come into bearing will
be just enough to keep the tree in shape and growing
thriftily.

Pruning the Pear

The habit of the pear tree is usually more upright and
compact than with most varieties of apples. On account
of this habit it needs to be pruned in such manner as
to open the head and make it spread out. This can be
done by starting the work early in the life of the tree, and
prune in such way as to direct the new branch outward
rather than upward. Select a bud that points in the desired
direction and cut to it.

One or two-year-old pear trees are most desired for
planting and they will have much the same appearance

(7)

194 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

and shape as have apples of the same age. The pruning
at planting time is done in the same way as for apples.
Start the head low and if the trees make a very strong
growth during the first summer cut back some of the limbs
that are the strongest, cutting to an outer bud always, so
as to open out the head. The fruiting habit of the pear
is quite the same as with apples and just here precau-
tion needs to be taken in selecting the fruiting wood. The
pear is very subject to attacks of the destructive bacillus
causing "fire blight" and as this disease enters the trees
most readily through the blossoms great precautions are
needed to keep the fruit spurs clipped off the main
branches.

These spurs will begin to form at from three to five
years in most varieties of pears. During the first four
or five years prune hard so as to encourage wood growth,
but after the fifth year in the Central and Western states,
and the seventh and eighth year in the East, where pears
do not come into bearing so early, all of the winter prun-
ing should be reduced or stopped, and more summer prun-
ing done. This is necessary for the purpose of making the
pear tree produce a hard wood which is resistant to fire
blight. The best time to do this summer pruning is in
August in the middle and northern sections of the country
and later in the South, where late growth is made. By
pruning late in the summer the trees will have made a
good amount of wood, but the shock of pruning will take
some weeks to overcome, and by that time the climatic
conditions are such as normally stop wood formation
in the tree. If the summer pruning is done too early the
trees may be able to start into growth a second time and
continue growing so late as to go into the winter with
soft wood that is easily injured by the cold.

Pruning Brambles

Brambles are blackberries, raspberries and dewberries,
and these constitute a group of plants that produce their
fruit on the wood that grew the preceding year, and which

Pruning Brambles 195

after having produced one crop of fruit dies. The pruning
of these fruits consists in removing the old canes after
they have ripened their crop and in heading back the
young canes during the early growing period so as to make
them branch out and increase their fruiting surface. The
winter pruning consists in shortening in the laterals that
were formed after the canes were pinched back during the
summer.

With blackberries in all of the country east of the Cas-
cade Mountains to the Atlantic Coast, the canes are
headed back by pinching out a couple of inches of the
tips after reaching a height of a couple of feet. This will
make the canes throw out strong lateral branches that
become the fruiting wood for the next year. In the winter
these side branches are to be shortened in, and the amount
of cutting that may be necessary will vary with the va-
riety. Some kinds like Wilson produce their fruit mostly
close to the cane, and consequently the branches can be
shortened in quite close, but with kinds like the Snyder and
Early Harvest, the fruiting portion is near the ends of the
branches, and consequently not so much may be removed.
It is always well to remove plenty of the wood in order to
thin the fruit.

Blackberry bushes that are shaped in this manner -and
where the canes were pinched early, will be strong enough
to stand alone, but in case of tall growing varieties like
the Snyder it may be best to stretch a wire along both
sides of the row to keep the canes from bending over when
loaded with fruit.

Many experienced growers of blackberries prefer to
train the canes on a trellis of some sort. In New York
state, and some parts of the East, a two-wire trellis is ar-
ranged with the wires a couple of feet apart, and fastened
to a strong post at the ends of the rows. The young canes
are pinched just a little above the upper wire and tied to
that wire until after the fruit has ripened. This will
keep them out of the way of the fruit-producing canes,
which are tied to the lower wire.

The canes may remain tied to the wires all winter, or

196 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

if winter killing is liable to happen, they may be laid down
and covered. When they are lifted up they are tied
to the lower wires and the upper wire left for the new
canes as they appear. Where only a few hills are grown,
as for home use, it is always best to tie them to single
stakes. The only objection to this proceeding is that it
is liable to bunch the canes too much and cause more or
less loss from spotting of the leaves. Not more than three
canes should be allowed in a hill, where tied to stakes, and
only five or six in a hill where arranged on a trellis.

In the Northwest a two-wire trellis is used for black-
berries, but the wires are placed at the same level, at-
tached to a strong cross bar firmly nailed to the posts. If
the rows are long, posts are set at intervals of twenty-five
feet in the row. A double wire is run down each side of
the cross arms, and the fruit producing canes are placed
between these wires before growth begins in the spring.
The canes are thus held firmly from bending over under
their weight of fruit, and are out where the fruit can be
most easily picked. The space between the wires is open
and for the exclusive use of the new canes. As soon as
the fruit is harvested the canes which have produced a
crop of fruit are cut out, and any new canes over five in
each hill. The most experienced growers prefer to have
only five canes in a hill, and all others are removed as fast
as they appear after the fruit is harvested.

The Evergreen and Loganberry need to be grown on
trellis, as they make from twenty to forty feet of cane
a season, and it is out of the question to handle them
on the ground. When on trellises, the wires are ar-
ranged at levels of two and four feet, with the fruit bear-
ing canes on the upper wires and the young canes on the
lower. This keeps the canes where they can be reached,
and as these kinds of berries have such villainous thorns,
they must be trained so that they can be handled with the
least amount of punishment from the thorns. As soon as
the fruiting is over, the old canes are cut away and the
young canes are placed on the upper trellis where they will
receive the full sunlight and air.

Pruning Brambles

197

Black raspberries, or back-caps as they are sometimes
called, are pruned quite like the blackberry. The new
canes are pinched at a couple of feet from the ground to
make them branch out, and these laterals are cut back
about half in late winter or before growth begins in the

Dewberry canes trained to a post,
canes in a hill.

From three to five

198 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

spring. Black-caps should be tied up to a trellis where the
variety grows very vigorously and is liable to fall down
under a load of fruit.

Red raspberries are pruned and trained in the same
manner as black raspberries, except that it is not neces-
sary to pinch the canes in the summer.

Dewberries are sometimes trained on stakes or trel-
lises, as they make a great amount of wood and very long
canes. A common method of handling dewberries is to
grow them in hills fifteen feet apart. Let the canes re-
main on the ground without a trellis. Just as soon as the
crop has all been harvested mow all of the canes off close
to the ground, gather them up and haul out of the field.
New ones will quickly appear and make a good growth
during the remainder of the summer and be in good shape
to produce a crop of fruit the next spring. This is rather
vigorous treatment but it serves as a quick and easy means
of getting rid of the tangle of old canes, which, unless re-
moved will so choke up the hills in a few years that the
plants are worthless. Growers who practice this method
of pruning feel that the plantation will be short lived either
way, and that it is an advantage to have the fields clean
and free from dead wood rather than choked up with
weeds and old canes.

Profits in Fruit Growing 199

CHAPTER VIII

Profits in Fruit Growing

There is such a gradually increasing amount of interest
in the matter of fruit growing that thousands of persons
are each year leaving their jobs in the offices, school
rooms, shops and stores to undertake fruit growing for
a livelihood. Some of them succeed in making a living,
some make a failure and return to their former occupa-
tions, while others become wealthy. Many extravagant
statements have been made by enthusiastic promoters of
some certain sections concerning the unbelievable profits
that it is possible to make from given areas of their land.
In many instances these profits are purely visionary, while
in many others they are. entirely reliable.

From reliable data which has been collected in several
states, it is apparent that sums ranging from $1,000 to
$3,000 per year can be obtained from an acre of land under
some conditions. Usually these conditions are beyond the
reach of the amateur, and have been obtained by expert
horticulturists, who have been several years in developing
their product and their market. But it is also possible in
many cases for inexperienced persons to make excellent
incomes from fruit plantations, and it does not matter
what state or section of the country one goes to, splendid
returns can be obtained. There is this one fact to be
learned from the data collected, and that is that some sec-
tions of the country are more favorable for the inexperi-
enced to obtain large returns. These sections are gener-
ally in those regions where there is an abundance of fer-

Profits in Fruit Growing 201

tile, virgin soil, where the climate is mild and where the
fruit or vegetable industry is more or less well developed.
This is particularly true of the far Western and Southern
states. It seems that where a number of persons in one
locality are engaged in the same line of business there is
a stronger spirit of optimism and mutual assistance, which
work greatly to the advantage of the grower.

The following are representative samples of the letters
which have come to the attention of the writer bearing on
the matter of profits that are obtained in fruit growing.

Here is one from Bedford County, Virginia: "On 32
apple trees which are about 60 years old, and occupying
about one acre, the crop in 1909 sold for an even $1,000.
Its yield in some seasons past has brought a return of
$1,500. The land near this orchard is valued at from $20
to $60 per acre. Near this orchard is another one which
produced 240 barrels on one acre, and sold for $2 per bar-
rel, or a valuation of 16 per cent on a valuation of $3,000
per acre."

The profits from growing fruit come not alone from
the harvest of fruit each year, but also from the increased
value of land, which brings good returns. A Virginian
says: "When I came into possession of my property it
sold for $7,500 and was not readily, saleable at. that figure.
Through the planting of orchards I have been able to sell
off land in this tract to the amount of between $25,000 and
$30,000 and retain a property worth two or three times-
the original value."

Apples are the leading fruit crop in some sections of
the far West and have been known to bring fabulous re-
turns in some instances, but not every one can get such
enormous profits. The average profits will run like this
grower in the Yakima Valley of Washington got. He says
that his three and one-half acres of apples have, in five
years, brought a gross return of $20,000. In Parker Bot-
toms of this same valley a pear grower made a net profit
of $26,616 from 618 pear trees planted in 1894. This is an
average yearly net profit of over $1,100 per acre.

202 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

Growers near Wenatchee, Washington, have made good
profits on their orchards, as is shown by the following:
Four acres of six-year-old trees produced a crop in 1907
which sold for $4,451, and in the next year the crop on
these same trees sold for $4,800, and in 1909, $5,400. A
certain grower came to that valley in 1898 and paid $625
for five acres of raw land. In 1909 he sold his apple crop
from this five acres for $3,250 and has refused $15,000 for
his land. In this same valley, on a small orchard of
peaches the grower got a return of $2,596 per acre for the

Tomatoes grown as a catch crop between the tree rows
while the orchard is young.

fruit of one year. Fifty-four D'Anjou pear trees on two-
thirds of an acre produced 952 boxes of pears that sold in
the New York market for a price that would net the owner
at the rate of $3,806 per acre. Another grower got $3,250
from five acres of apples planted in 1897. This is a return
of 10 per cent on a valuation of $6,500 per acre.

D'Anjou pears from a single tree in an orchard near
Central Point, Oregon, in 1907 sold for $204.75 net.

Near this same place another man harvested 3,020 boxes

Profits in Fruit Growing 203

of apples, the fruit from fifty-two trees, which netted
$1,747.62.

This happened in a valley famous for its fruit crops and
its enormous returns. In that valley one grower got $1,050
net from one acre of Spitzenburg apples, and $1,420 front
an acre of Newtowns. Another got $1,620 from an acre of
Spitzenburgs. In another orchard the crop of Bartlett
pears from a single acre brought $1,244 after all expenses
were paid.

Near Phoenix, Ariz., one man got $3,300 in net profit
from the first crop of fruit produced on nineteen acres.

Not far from Mt. Selma, Texas, a fruit grower got a
profit of $500 from five acres of peaches. Another man
gets $2,800 from nineteen acres, ten of which are in peaches
and the rest tomatoes.

In Michigan a fruit man got $900 from three acres of
strawberries, and another man down in Mississippi got
$450 from one acre of strawberries. A farmer in Marien-
ette County, Wisconsin, sold $250 worth of strawberries
from one-fourth acre of land. A neighbor of his got
$922.54 after paying all expenses in harvesting and market-
ing the crop from two and one-fourth acres of strawber-
ries. A man near Superior beat these men a little in 'get-
ting $800 from one acre of strawberries.

From these figures it is evident that the fruit grower
has abundant opportunity to obtain large returns from his
efforts. These returns are not the maximum that is pos-
sible to obtain, but represent incomes received by the aver-
age intelligent grower.

204 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

CHAPTER IX

Small Fruits

Blackberries

The blackberry is a native American fruit, growing wild
over a great portion of the eastern half of the country.
Until about 1840 no attention was given to it under culti-
vation, as the wild patches were abundant and fruitful,
but in 1841 the first cultivated form was introduced and
was followed in a short time by the Lawton, Kittitinny
and Snyder. These varieties are still the leading sorts
under cultivation, and, while they have many desirable
characters, they point to the neglect which horticulturists
have given to the improvement of blackberries.

While the area of succcessful cultivation of the black-
berry does net extend as far north as the raspberry, it
reaches over a great portion of the South, in sections where
the other kinds of bush fruits do not succeed. The kind
of soil which is preferred by blackberry is indicated by the
soil in which the wild sorts are found to do the best. This
is a strong moist loam, in full sunlight. Where the soil
becomes water logged for any portion of the year the ber-
ries do not thrive, and if the situation is one which be-
comes excessively dry during a considerable portion of the
year, the plants do not do well. On this account, low-
ground or very sandy soil is not suitable for blackberries,
although if given very good care in such locations they
will produce some for home use. Where the plants are to
be set in sandy soil they should be placed on a northern
slope, as in such a position they will not be so liable to

Planting 205

suffer from lack of moisture; while in low ground a strong
southern exposure will be better as it will be somewhat
dryer than a similar position on a northern slope.

Soils which are very rich in nitrogen produce plants
with very strong wood, but little fruit, as the energy is
largely spent in making wood growth, at the expense of
fruitfulness. On this account there will be more or less
winter killing of the shoots in the Northern localities.

Preparing the Soil

The land which is to be planted to blackberries should
be given very good preparation, especially if it is for a
commercial or local market plantation. Plow it deeply in
the fall and allow to lay rough all winter. The action of
the frost will break up the lumps and liberate a large
amount of the fertility. Then work it down smooth with
a disk harrow as early in the spring as it is in condition to
work, finishing up with a drag. Lay off the rows with a
diamond plow, about eight feet apart and set the plants
four feet apart in the row.

Propagation

Blackberries are propagated either from root cuttings
or from suckers which come up around the .parent plant.
Either can be used with success in starting the new planta-
tion, although if cuttings are to be used, they should be
grown for one season in the nursery row in order to get
established.

Planting

Spring planting is the best, as the plants start into
growth immediately. The young plants are set in the
furrow made by the diamond plow, and about four inches
below the surface. During the first year or two the cul-
tivation should be very thorough and frequent in order to
induce the roots of the plants to penetrate into the deeper

206

The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

soil, after which time the cultivation may be stopped, ex-
cept for just enough to control the suckers which may
appear in the middle of the rows. Sweeps or square point-
ed shovels on the cultivator make the best tools to keep
the suckers cut out, and this work should not be neglected,
for unless the suckers are cut out as fast as they appear
the plantation will become a brier patch in a couple of
seasons and so badly tangled with the thorny canes as to.

At 13a Is shown the
usual method of mak-
ing- root cuttings of
the blackberry; 13b
shows one of the
same cuttings after it
has started to grow.

1.13 Cl

make it difficult to get through to harvest the fruit. In
fact, the fruit from plantations which are not cultivated
and pruned is smaller and more seedy than from those
which are given good care.

Pruning

The canes of blackberries and other bramble fruits are
biennial; that is, they live but two years. On this account
it is necessary to cut out the old canes as soon as their

Harvesting and Marketing 207

function has been completed and leave the room for the
young canes. The first year after planting two or three
canes will appear, which should have the growing tip
pinched out when the cane becomes about eighteen inches
or two feet high. This will cause the canes to send out
several lateral branches and make stocky plants. This
pinched out when they become about eighteen inches
after for the purpose of inducing the plants to send out
lateral branches, and thereby fncreasing the fruit producing
area of each plant. After the second year the pinching
should be done when the new canes become two or three
feet high, depending on the vigor of the plants. Some
growers practice cutting out the old canes just as soon as
the fruit has been harvested, while others will allow them
to remain until the following spring. Whether they are
cut out in the summer or the following spring seems to
make little difference, but in the spring the lateral branches
should all be cut back about one-third. This will make
the plants stockier and less liable to fall over when carry-
ing their fruit, and it will also thin the fruit, by removing
some of the fruit producing wood.

Harvesting and Marketing

For distant markets the blackberry should be picked
at just the time that it begins to color nicely, and while
the berry is still solid. But for local markets and home
use the fruit should be allowed to become more nearly
fully ripe. The fruit which is picked before it has reached
full maturity will be quite acid, and just as it is picked
from the plants it will not be suitable for use, although it
will soften up and take on a very good flavor in the course
of a few days, while it is going to market. Fruit which
has ripened on the pla'nts is by far the most delicious, but
on account of the very thin and tender skin such fruit will
not bear transportation, as it is very juicy and leaks badly
when even slightly crushed.

Marketing is usually done in quart boxes, although
when the fruit is to be shipped for a considerable distance
the one pint cups will carry the fruit with less injury from

208 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

crushing. In such cups blackberries have been sent with
complete satisfaction from the Puget Sound country of
Washington to Chicago.

Winter Protection

In regions of severe winters, such as from northern
Missouri northward, tender varieties, such as Early Har-
vest, will need to be protected to prevent winter killing.
In northern Iowa and Minnesota it is advisable to protect
all varieties of blackberries in the winter to keep the canes
from being killed. This winter protection is usually done
by bending the canes over and covering them with soil.
Begin at one end of them and bend the canes over to the
north or west, as they will then hold the snow better.
Cover the tips with soil to hold them down. Bend the
next hill over this, shingle fashion, and weight down the
tips. Then when all are bent over, mulch them well with
straw. For such practice better results can be obtained
by growing the plants in hills rather than in solid rows.

Currants

The currant is essentially a Northern fruit as in the
Northern states, where the weather is cool during the sum-
ers, it reaches its best development. In the Middle and
Southern states it produces fair crops of fruit when placed
in a semi-shaded position, as on the northern side of a row
of trees, or a fence. The currant enjoys a cool atmosphere
and thrives in the climate of the northern portion of the
Mississippi valley.

The cultivated varieties have come from a number of
wild forms, mostly natives of Europe, and because of the
diversity of the types from which these varieties have
originated, we have in cultivation several kinds of dif-
ferent colors, such as black, red and white kinds. These
all differ quite markedly in flavor, and the red and white
varieties are most extensively grown. The black forms
have a flavor which does not appeal to many persons and
are grown but little outside of Canada.

Propagating and Planting
Propagation and Planting

209

The currant may be propagated by division of the
parent plant, by layers or by hard wood cuttings. Which-
ever is used, the plants should be set in well prepared soil,
which is rich, fertile and well drained. Two-year-old

Currant cuttings tied in a bundle and buried upside down
to callus.

plants from cuttings are better for setting in the field, as
they are larger and can be handled more rapidly than the
newly rooted cuttings.

210 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

The common distance for setting currants is five feet
apart in the rows with the rows eight feet apart.

Pruning

The best fruit is produced on canes which are not over
four or five years old. For this reason they will not need
as much pruning as other kinds of bush fruit but will need
to be gone over and have the oldest wood cut out, leaving
the hills full of strong fruitful wood. By cutting out a few
of the old canes each year a balance may be kept between
the new and old canes, and the plant kept in a vigorous
and fruitful condition.

On vigorous plants the shoots are inclined to make
very strong growths, often reaching a height of six feet
*in a single season. When such is the case it is best to
keep them pinched back to about three feet as in the case
of the raspberry. It is also an advantage to cut out all
but five or six of the strongest r. nes in each hill. Winter
protection is not necessary with ihe currants and goose-
berries. But on account of the long slender branches
which they produce, in regions where there is a heavy
snowfall, these branches may be bent over to the ground
with the weight of the snow. On this account it is best to
gather the canes into a bundle and tie them with a cord to
prevent their being bent over.

Dewberry

This is a trailing form of the blackberry that has but
recently come into cdltivation. It grows in all parts of
the country and its fruit cannot be distinguished by the
general public from the ordinary varieties of blackberries.
Its chief advantage is that it comes in some two or three
weeks ahead of the ordinary kinds of blackberries, coming
in after the raspberries have passed, and fills the gap when
good prices can be had for the fruit. As a rule they are
not sure croppers in most places, due perhaps to imperfect
pollinization, and when such is the case it can be overcome
by planting several varieties together.

Propagating and Planting 211

Soils

The wild plants are found growing on sandy or other-
wise well drained and rather impoverished soils. This may
be because it is crowded out of the better locations by
other kinds of plants, and can maintain its existence only
on those soils which are too poor to support other kinds
of vegetation. Under cultivation it does well on a great va-
riety of soils, and locations which are suitable for black-
berries do well for the dewberry.

Propagation and Training

Dewberries are propagated from rooted tips, as are the
black raspberries, and also from root cuttings. The plants
are set in rows 4 to 6 feet apart and 2 or 3 feet apart in
the row. The best system of culture is to train the vines
on a trellis or tie them to stakes. Some growers allow the
vines to run over the surface, and are pruned just enough
to Keep them in hills.

Where the winters are so severe as to make it neces-
sary to protect the plants during the winter, they can be
most easily handled when placed on a trellis or tied to
posts.

The trellises are made by running two wires along the
row on posts about two feet high, bearing at the two ends
a cross arm twenty inches wide. The wires are fastened
to the ends of these cross arms and the canes drawn up
over them. About a dozen canes can be allowed to form
in each hill with this style of training. Where single posts
are used there can be no more than half a dozen canes
from each hill, and they are tied to the post and allowed
to fall over the top.

The culture of the dewberry is similar in every detail
to that of the blackberry. When given good care they are
very productive but when neglected the iruitfulness is vari-
able. Young plantations need to be kept in clean culti-
vation until the plants are well established. In cold cli-
mates the canes will need to be covered in the winter to

212 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

prevent their being frozen back. When trained to posts
they can be laid down very easily and covered with
soil. If the canes are pegged down and covered with
leaves or straw, a plow furrow can be run on each side
turning the soil over the plants, and a*n entire row covered
very quickly.

Grapes

The grape is the most widely cultivated of all kinds of
fruits. It is found growing wild on nearly every conti-
nent in the world, and cultivated forms have been in vine-
yards at almost every stage of the world's history. It is
the fruit for the masses since varieties can be had which
are adapted to almost any condition of soil or climate.
Because of the ease with which it can be grown the grape
is especially desirable for the home grounds, as it will
flourish and produce acceptable crops under conditions
where tree fruits could not find room. The grape is one
of the most delicious of fruits, and because of the great
number of varieties, obtained from an almost innumerable
list of ancestors, it can be had in a good many flavors and
shades of color, so that all persons can find among the
varieties some kinds which are to their liking.

There are so many different varieties of grapes that
kinds can be had which are adapted to almost any condi-
tion, and which will succeed in almost any climate where
fruit can be grown. It is easily propagated, easily grown,
bears early, lives much longer than the average bush or
tree and gives a larger amount of fruit under average con-
ditions of the home garden than any other kind of plant.

Soil and Location.

As a rule the grape is not particular as to the soil or
location in which it is grown, although some kinds produce
better when given special locations. But in general the
grape will do well in soils that are rocky, sandy or heavy
clay, rich or poor, and under conditions where other fruits
would fail. For the commercial plantation, however, this

Planting 213

should not indicate that care need not be given to the
selection of a site that is adapted to the growing of the
grape, and especially the kinds which it is intended to
plant. Grapes draw heavily on the available fertility in
the soil, arid the greater the care that is given to building
up a good rich soil before planting grapes the better they
will respond in fruitfulness. Under general conditions, a
clay loam which is well drained will give the best results.
The best location is one which has a southern or east-
ern slope, as in such positions the land is not so likely to
be overly wet, and the dews will pass off more quickly
than on northern slopes. This is of importance in guard-
ing from the attacks of numerous diseases to which the
grapes are liable. Steep hillsides are often made into
profitable vineyards, and likewise are many pieces of flat
land in the river bottoms. But the proper precautions
must be taken under each condition to protect from the
troubles both situations will bring. Steep lands are hard
to cultivate and to get over with the spraying machinery,
while bottom lands are both frosty and disease producing.

Preparation of Soil

As the grape is a strong feeder the soil should be well
prepared before planting, especially if it is not naturally
fertile. It is even best under average conditions to grow
some leguminous crop for a couple of years before plant-
ing the vines in order to fill the soil with organic matter
to improve the texture and nitrogen. When turning under
a crop of green manure it should be turned under as deeply
as possible and then work down smooth with a disk harrow.
It should be remembered in setting a vineyard that it is to
last a lifetime and more, and like building a house the more
solid the foundation the better will be the super structure.
A vineyard which is well planted will be more easily cared
for in future years and be more profitable than one which
is put in in a hurry.

Planting.

On this account the ground should be rich at the time
the vines are planted in order to give the young plants a

214

The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

good start. If manure is available, a generous amount of
it should be worked into the soil a couple of years before
setting the vines, as it will then become thoroughly

At a are shown several single-eye grape cuttings, and at
b the ordinary three-eye grape cuttings as commonly made.

decomposed and be in better shape for the reception of
the young plants. One-year-old vines are the most satis-
factory, unless especially well grown two-year-old vines
can be had. The objection that is made to two-year-old

Planting 215

vines by many experienced vineyardists, is that they are
left-overs which the nurseryman has lined-out and grown
a second, or even a third year before being able to dispose
of them. The planting should be done as early -in the
spring as it is possible to work the soil into good condi-
tion.

The distance apart to set the vines varies to a great
extent with the variety and local conditions, but for the
Eastern and Middle Western conditions 6x8 feet apart is
the usual distance. Where the soil is especially fertile,
and the vines are of very strong growing varieties, the dis-
tance should be even farther apart than this. The oper-
ation of planting the vines goes a little slower than with
planting tree fruits, for as a rule the roots are much
longer and the holes must be made larger.

Before planting, the tops should be cut back so as to
leave only about four buds on the new growth, and the
roots so that they are about ten inches long. This may
take off a very large portion of the root system, but many
small rootlets will quickly be sent out to take their place,
and the vine will start off more quickly than if the roots
and tops are left unpruned. In setting these young vines
in the ground tliey must be set deep. There is little trou-
ble from getting them too deep, as with some other kinds
of fruit, for if the roots should be at a greater depth than
they can grow, new roots are sent out above them, and
the vine goes along in fine shape.

Early spring is the best time to set the vines, although
it is possible to set them at any time when the plants are
dormant and the soil in good condition. In the far North
it is generally best to plant the vines in the spring as they
will then not be subjected to the long period of dormancy
on account of the ground being frozen, and the plants pre-
vented from becoming established. In the Gulf Coast
country it is frequently best to plant the vines in the fall,
for the weather will be sufficiently mild during the winter
for them to make considerable root growth before spring
comes, and will then be well established and ready to start
off in fine shape.

216 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

During the first year the vines are in their permanent
location they will not be in need of a trellis. With many
varieties the only support that will be needed the second
year will be just a post to which the vines can be tied to
keep them off the ground. By the beginning of the third
season there should be some sort of substantial support to
which the vines can be tied. In the home grounds an
arbor can be made which will be very serviceable in sup-
porting the vines and also quite ornamental. In the com-
mercial plantation a trellis of some sort should be con-
structed, as the vines can then be cared for in better shape,
ttnless the variety is one which makes but a small amount
of vine, as is the case with some of vinifera type. There
are several styles of trellises used for grapes, depending
on which of many styles of training are in use. One of
the commonest is a two-wire trellis in which the top wire
is about five feet from the ground, and the other at about
three feet. For training on such a trellis only two canes
are allowed to form and these are cut off at the top wire
and spread out fan-shaped on the trellis wires.

What is known as the Kniffen system has a trellis con-
structed in about the same manner. One cane is drawn up
to the topmost wire, where it is then cut off. At each of
the wires two side branches are permitted to grow, and
one is allowed to run in each direction on both wires to a
distance about half way to the next vine. These are not
cut off but allowed to remain as the stock from which the
fruiting wood is to come. The fruiting wood is then
formed on each one of these arms and drops down, so that
tying is not a necessity.

In the Munson system of training three wires are used,
one wire run through the posts at about six feet from the
ground, and the other two placed at the ends of "T" shaped
arms. The vines are trained up from the ground to this
wire, and two arms allowed to form, one being in each
direction. The new canes which form each season are then
allowed to droop over the outer wires, while the per-
manent arms of the vine are fastened to the middle wire.

Sex in Grapes 217

Cultivation

The grape responds to good cultivation, and it is im-
portant that the vines be given good cultivation during
the first years in the vineyard, and enabled to become well
established, after which time the land can be put into sod
if so desired. However, the best practice is to keep the
vineyard in cultivation for the early portion of the season
at least, after which time it can be sowed down to a cover
crop of some sort.

One of the great advantages of keeping the vineyard in
cultivation is because this will bury many of the diseased
berries which fall from the branches and also many of the
leaves which contain the spores of the mildews and black
rot that sometimes causes such havoc in vineyards. If the
cultivation is continued during the summer it will also assist
in keeping the curculio in check. This is one of the in-
sects which cause the worms in the berries of the grape.
Whatever cultivation is given, it should extend under the
trellis, and work up all of the soil in the row. Some-
times it will necessitate a good thorough going ovei;
with a hand hoe to get this portion of the soil worked up
as thoroughly as it needs to be.

Sex in Grapes

Like the strawberry in some ways, there is a great
amount of difference in the different varieties of grapes as
to their ability of setting fruit when planted by themselves.
Nearly every one who has wandered through the woodland
is familiar with wild grape vines which bloom abundantly
each spring and fill the air with their delicious fragrance,
but which fail to set a single fruit for the fall harvest. This
is nearly always due to the fact that the vine produces
nothing but stamen-bearing flowers, and is totally devoid
of the ovary or fruit-producing portion, and hence unable
to set fruit. Other vines will be found which produce an
abundance of flowers, less conspicuous and fragrant than
the staminate flowers, but which may or may not set fruit,
depending on the proximity of other vines. If the flowers

218

The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

of these are observed they will be found to have a con-
spicuous cone-shaped body in the center surrounding
which is a row of small, withered anthers, usually bent
down and under the cone-shaped portion. This central part
of the flower is the pistil and ovary, from which the fruit is
developed when the flower is properly pollinated. Still
other w.;ld vines will be found to have flowers which pro-

Grapes "bagged" to protect them from birds and insects
and to keep them clean.

duce both ovaries and strong, erect stamens, and which
are therefore called perfect flowers. These vines are able
to set fruit without the intervention of the pollen from
other vines.

In the cultivated varieties the same things are found, in
that some vines are imperfect flowered and must have sta-
men-bearing vines planted near them in order to secure

Pruning 219

proper fruiting of the vines. These facts are usually well
known to the nurserymen and prominent vineyardists. f rom
whom the amateur can obtain the desired information, in
case it is not contained in the books or catalogues to
which he has access. Likewise the information is obtain-
able from the experiment station authorities upon request.
Vines w'hich bear the imperfect flowers need to have
planted with them the vines of other varieties known to
produce an abundance of pollen, and which bloom at about
the same time.

Pruning

The grape responds to the style of pruning and the
manner in which it is done more than any other cultivated
fruit. Good grapes cannot be produced on vines which
are not regularly and systematically pruned. Yet more
vineyards are ruined through improper pruning than in any
other way. Too many growers, especially those who do
not observe the action of their vines closely enough, ex-
pect their vines to do too much. They leave too much
fruit-producing wood. In this way the vines continually
over-bear themselves, and are quickly exhausted.

The manner of pruning will differ with different varie-
ties. Some need to be left with long canes of fruiting
wood, while others need to be cut back to spurs on which
there are only a couple of buds. Some kinds will need to
have short but strong fruiting canes left, while others will
do best when the small, short-jointed canes are used for
fruiting wood.

One thing needs to be borne in mind with the usual
kinds of grapes — that is, to keep the bearing wood close
to the original trunk or head of the vine. The tendency is
for the fruiting wood to get farther and farther away each
year, and on account of this habit it is important that the
fruit-producing canes be renewed from time to time, by
being cut back to the stump. This will cause new shoots
to form on the trunk, thereby renewing the fruiting wood.
With vines which are trained on a trellis this renewal need
not be done until the spurs or canes get out so far they

220 The Fru it-Growers Guide-Book

cannot be easily handled, then it will be necessary to head
them back, and take a fresh start. The usual systems of
training grapes provide for this condition, and, in fact, the
usual systems are dependent on this one thing for their
foundation.

Time to Prune

The grape can be pruned at any time during the dormant
season, although it is important to do it sufficiently early
in the spring to avoid the excessive bleeding which will
sometimes occur. Tender varieties should be pruned in the
fall in order that they can be bent over and covered with
soil to prevent their becoming winter killed. Some definite
system should be followed in the pruning, and if the
grower is outside of a grape-growing community, it will be
advisable to learn some system of pruning that is adapted
to his conditions. This can be obtained from books treat-
ing of the subject of pruning or of grape growing.

In sections where the grape is a commercial crop the
system of pruning which gives the best results will usually
be pretty thoroughly worked out, and will be the best sys-
tem to follow.

Raspberries

The raspberry is one of the most popular small fruits,
although its area of successful commercial production is
limited to the northern half of the United States and the
Pacific Coast. Over this area, however, it is one of the
most popular of the bush fruits, the blackcap being the
most extensively grown for the commercial market. This
is on account of the soft fruits which are produced by the
red varieties, and the ease with which such kinds are dam-
aged in transit.

Soils

Soils such as are adapted to the blackberry are best for
the raspberries. Red raspberries do better on a light soil
than do the blackcap varieties. Soils which are very heavy,

Propagation and Planting

221

or which contain large amounts of available nitrogen are
not desirable. The latter kinds will produce an excessive
amount of wood at the expense of the fruit. Good, strong
loams are the most desirable.

- Propagation and Planting

Blackcap raspberries are propagated from the rooted
tips of the branches which form the previous summer.

A cane from a black raspberry showing how the lateral
branches take root at the tips, where they touch the ground.

When these are well rooted they may be cut from the
mother plant and used in setting the new plantation.
Spring planting is most desirable, as the plants can start
immediately into growth, attach their roots to the soil and
not suffer from drying out as frequently happens when

222 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

they are set in the fall and must remain dormant through-
out the winter.

Red varieties are usually propagated from stickers
thrown up from the roots, but root cuttings may also be
made the same as with blackberries and dewberries. Some
varieties of the red raspberry do not make suckers very
readily and so must be propagated from root cuttings.

The rows need to be about six feet apart and the plants
set four or five feet apart in the rows, if they are to be
grown in hills. If solid rows are to be made, then the
plants can go as close as two feet in the rows. The hill
system is the most desirable where the canes must be bent
over for winter protection.

Pinching and Pruning

With the red varieties there will be no need of summer
pinching after the first summer. The blackcaps will need
to be pinched in the same manner as the blackberries. This
will make them throw out strong side branches, which may
grow out to a considerable length and take root at the tip.
These tips can be used in enlarging the plantation, or may
be dug cut and thrown away as, if left, they will interfere
with cultivation. The canes of both the red and black va-
rieties are biennial, so that all old canes should be removed
when done fruiting. It is best to remove them as soon as
the fruit has all been harvested, as then the entire space
can be given over to the new canes.

Winter Protection

In the Northern States, where the weather becomes se-
vere during the winter, the canes of both kinds of rasp-
berries are killed to the ground. On this account it is
advisable to bend the canes over and cover them with soil
as in the case of the blackberries. This work should be
done at a time when the canes are not frozen, as when the
wood is frozen it is very brittle, and the canes will break
instead of bending.

Strawberries - 223

Strawberries

The strawberry is the most important of all of the small
fruits, and it readily finds a place in the garden of the
farmer, in the dooryard of the. city man and in great plan-
tations of the specialist. It is the one fruit used more ex-
tensively than any other to plant among trees in the young
orchards, and which the grower can depend on to make a
profit while the young trees are coming into bearing.

The strawberry is a cosmopolitan fruit, and is found
under cultivation in great plantations from the Gulf of
Mexico to northern Canada and from the Atlantic ocean to
the Pacific coast. So widely distributed, in fact, are the
commercial plantations of this delicious fruit that it cannot
be said to be confined to certain "belts" of profitable com-
mercial production, as can the apple, peach or prune. This
character, which permits this wide adaptation, comes pos-
sibly from the fact that its parentage is among almost a
dozen wild species, coming from all parts of the world.
This fact, too, has made it possible to have varieties which
are adapted to widely differing conditions and filling a va-
riety of needs. One may find varieties producing firm ber-
ries that will stand shipments of some thousands of miles;
others will be sweet and melting, and suited only to home
markets. Other varieties will come early, and still others
that come late. New forms are being created at the pres-
ent time which give good promise of producing fruit
throughout the entire summer, while still other kinds are
being developed for forcing in the greenhouse for the mid-
winter markets.

As a commercial fruit the strawberry is rapidly growing
in importance, and in practically every state there are now
large districts where this fruit is the leading horticultural
crop, and from which train loads of the fruit are shipped
each season. This is a development of recent years, and
has been increased by the perfection of methods of ship-
ping fruits under refrigeration, and by the development of
the large commercial orcharding operations. While many
thousands of acres are now devoted to strawberry produc-
tion the industry dates no farther back than about 1835,

224

The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

when Hovey's Seedling was placed on the market as a
variety that would thrive under cultivation. Up to that
time the strawberry was known only as a wild fruit, and
was considered to thrive only in its haunts in the wood-
land. But with the introduction of this cultivated form
other varieties began to appear and each year now sees
many new varieties placed on the market for the use and
consideration of the cultivator.

Propagation

The strawberry reproduces itself with considerable
vigor, in all but a few choice varieties. This manner of
reproducing differs from the habit of most fruit producing
plants, in that each vigorous plant sends out a number of

Diagram showing- the manner in
sends out runners to reproduce itself.

which a strawberry

runners, which form new plants at intervals of a few
inches. These new plants that form on the runners quickly
attach themselves to the soil and develop root systems of
their own. The slender straw-like runner which nurses
them until their own roots are formed then dies, and the
new plant in turn sends out other runners, so that from a
small beginning a very large number of plants can be ob-
tained in the course of one season.

In starting a new plantation the young plants give
greater satisfaction than do those which have produced

Propagation 225

a crop of fruit. It is easy to distinguish these young,
virgin plants from old ones by the simple fact that their
roots are numerous, come out from the crown and are pure
white, or slightly tinged with yellow. After the plant has
lived through one season and produced a crop of fruit these
roots become dark brown or black, and underneath them a
new set of roots is produced, which appear very early in
the season as tender white roots, but which soon become
wiry and yellowish.

In selecting plants for propagation, such as starting a
new plantation, care must be exercised to secure only
those plants with the light colored roots close to the crown
and from which there are no tough, wiry, dark colored
roots. In this connection it is a distinct advantage to
secure plants from those which are known to produce good
crops of fruits. There is strong tendency on the part of
plants to inherit more or less of the fruiting habit of their
ancestors, and plants secured from fields which have been
given thorough care and which have produced large crops
of fruit, are far better to use than those from plantations
which have been neglected and which, as a consequence,
have produced small crops of fruit.

In preparing to plant out a strawberry bed, it pays well
to obtain the plants direct from the field of some grower
who maintains a breeding bed, where the plants are grown
primarily for the production of new plants, and from which
the fruiting habit is well known. In case such cannot be
done, it will pay to maintain such a patch in your own
field where the plants can be given thorough care, and
where each mother plant can be watched in its fruit pro-
duction. There will be found a marked difference in the
fruitfulness of each individual plant in a field. Some will
make a large crop of large fruits, some will make a large
crop of small fruits, and others may be entirely barren.
Those plants which are least desirable in their fruiting
habits should be chopped out of the propagation bed, so
that their offspring will be eliminated in the future plan-
tations.

(8)

226 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

Soils and Locations

The strawberry will thvive in almost any soil and in
almost any location. It grows thriftily in the sandy loams
of the South and extreme North, it grows equally well in
the rocky clays of the Ozark Mountains, it thrives in the
heavy clays of the Middle West, and equally as well in the
volcanic ash of the inter-mountain valleys of the far West.
It might be safe to say that the strawberry will thrive in
.any soil that is not a clean dry sand or water-logged peat
or clay, and any soil that will produce good crops of any
of the ordinary garden vegetables will be adapted to the
strawberry. It is likewise adapted to any location as re-
gards the exposure to the sun and prevailing winds. And
there are varieties and strains of varieties which are
adapted to locations in the Southern states or Northern
states, and to the Atlantic coast sections as well as Cali-
'fornia and the Puget Sound country.

But whatever the soil or location the strawberry will do
its best in proportion to the amount of available fertility
in the soil upon which it is growing. The soil need not be
especially deep, as the strawberry is a shallow rooting crop,
but it does need to be abundantly fertile. Any additional
care that is taken to enrich the soil before planting out a
strawberry bed will be well repaid with the increased
amount of fruit which it will produce. On this account it
is frequently advised that the plants are .most productive'
on new lands. Lands from which the native timber has
just been removed, and in which there is an abundant sup-
ply of leaf mould to be turned under, is usually considered
the best for strawberries. But this is no doubt only be-
cause the natural fertility of such soils has not been ex-
hausted by over cropping. It is a well known fact that old
fields which have been in cultivation for many years can,
with proper care in fertilizing and preparing the ground,
be made to produce as large and fine crops of berries as
the virgin fields.

The choice of slope on which a plantation is to be made
depends upon the objects to be sought. A southern slope
is usually warmer and produces earlier berries, while one

Preparing the Land 227

sloping to the north will be later and the berries will be
slightly less highly colored. In those sections where the
summers are hot and dry it will be an advantage to use
the northern slopes for the strawberry plantation, on ac-
count of the greater moisture which will be retained in the
soils of such locations. But if means are at hand for irri-
gating the plantations such differences are of little value.
The strawberry needs an abundant supply of moisture
throughout the entire growing season. This is because of
its shallow rooting habit. In dry summers it is 'not infre-
quent to find the strawberry plants in a dormant condi-
tion and most of the foliage dead by midsummer, only to
revive and possibly produce a second crop of fruit after
the late summer rains soak up the soil.

In the fall of 1910 this character prevailed over the
greater portion of the country east of the Rocky Moun-
tains. The early portion of the summer was dry and in
August an abundance of rain came, soaking up the soil and
putting new life into the strawberry fields, with the result
that in September and October many persons were har-^
vesting a second crcp of berries, which were practically as
good as the early spring crop. In the irrigated sections
of the West many berry growers make a specialty of ob-
taining a second crop of berries, which they can do with
ease when they understand how to handle the irrigation
water and throw the plants into a dormant condition early
in the summer. Then by applying the water again after
the plants have had a short rest, they will immediately
come into bloom and produce a second crop. In the mild
climate of California, where strawberries can be kept in
growing condition throughout the entire year, crops of
fruit can be had almost every day.

Preparing the Land

Because of the adaptability of the strawberry to a va-
riety of conditions it will grow and produce remarkably
good crops in soils which have been given very poor prep-
aration. But like every other cultivated crop it responds to
good cultivation, and when the soil is put in the best pos-

228 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

sible condition the strawberry will produce its best and
most profitable crops.

In the preparation of the land the drainage of the soil
needs to be considered, for if not naturally well drained
tile should be put in so as to prevent water standing on the
land and to promote the aeration of the soil. But if drain-
ing is not a necessity, the question of fertility of the soil
will be of first importance. Barnyard manure is by far
the best fertilizer to apply to land which is to be planted
to strawberries. This is so because it not only adds to
the elements of fertility, but it also adds organic matter
that will be converted into humus to improve the tilth of
the soil, and promote a better general physical condition.
This manure should be applied as fast as it is made, as
then it contains the maximum of fertility and will be more
nearly free from the white grub, which causes such serious
damage to strawberry beds by eating off the roots of the
plants.

The amount of manure which needs to be applied to
the soil will depend on the general fertility, but ten or fif-
teen big wagon loads to each acre will not be too much for
the average land. Distribute the manure with a manure
spreader, as then it will be applied in a thin, even coat over
the land, and can be applied more quickly than by any
other means. But in cases where an abundance of stable
manure is not available, soil improving crops handled in
the best manner for improving the fertility and texture of
soils will be most suitable, and in connection with them it
may be necessary to add small amounts of potash and
phosphorous as the local conditions may warrant.

The manure or cover crops should be plowed under as
earl}'- in the spring as the soil can be worked, care being
exercised to secure a uniform depth throughout. On this
account a riding plow will serve a better purpose in most
localities than the usual walking plow, and especially in
the hands of an inexperienced plowman. The depth to
which the land should be plowed will depend on the gen-
eral nature of the soil. In soils which are naturally deep,
the plowing can be done deeper than in shallow soils,

Time to Plant 229

running as much as eight inches. But where the soils are
shallow, it may be necessary to plow only half that deep.
In this plowing, when manure has been added or crops
turned under, the land needs to be turned completely over
and then disced and harrowed so as to thoroughly incor-
porate the manure with the plowed ground. This will
make the soil spongy, light and friable, so that the plant
roots can penetrate to all parts of it and it will maintain
a more even temperature around the roots than in a com-
pact soil.

Rolling the land is sometimes a necessity and espe-
cially on soils which are naturally very heavy. On light
soils such as sandy-loam clays, rolling may not be a neces-
sity, although if it is lumpy rolling may be an advantage.
The purpose of the rolling is to not only break the lumps,
but to compact the soil so that the roots can quickly attach
themselves. Rolling compacts the soil and prevents exces-
sive aeration, which is possible in very light soils. Aeration
not only dries out the roots, but it has a decided influence
on the development and action of the soil bacteria and the
liberation of fertility.

Time to Plant

The time to plant the berries depends a great deal on
where one is located. In the South planting may be done
to best, advantage in the fall or early winter months. In
the Middle West it can be done at any time when the soil
is not too dry or frozen, while in the North spring plant-
ing will give the best results. The time to plant will de-
pend on the season of the year at which the plants will
most quickly take hold of the soil and become established.
A strawberry plant is somewhat like a potato. In the fall
it has stored up in its roots and crown a considerable quan-
tity of food material that can -be drawn upon to maintain
itself when conditions otherwise may make it impossible to
obtain such material from the soil.

Because of this one may ask why it is not just as well
tc set the plants as soon as they become dormant in the
fall. As a matter of fact, plants do not become dormant

230 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

until the ground freezes so hard that it is impossible for the
plant to obtain any nourishment on account of its having
frozen solid. For this reason fall set plants in the North
may not have time to form new roots before the ground
freezes and may as a consequence dry out and perish
during the winter.

A fine bunch of strawberry plants for setting out.

Planting

Just before one is ready to plant, the soil should be
gone over and worked down as smooth as can be with a
harrow and this, followed with a drag, that will leave it
perfectly smooth. Across this then mark off the row either
with a cord or by drawing a board having pegs driven
through in the position each row is to occupy, and so as to

Systems in Planting 231

scratch lines across the field in which the berries are to
be set.

Where transplanting machines, such as are used in some
of the trucking districts, can be had, they may be used for
transplanting strawberries and are a decided advantage
in many respects. But the one great fault with the ma-
chines is that one cannot always set the plants at the
proper depth. The strawberry needs to be set at the depth
which will allow the crown of the plant to be flush with
the surface of the land, neither too deep or too high. If
set too deep, the crown will fill with soil and rot if the
weather is wet. If set too high, the roots will be exposed
to the sun and air, drying out or weakening the plant.

The best way to set strawberries is to get right down
on one's hands and knees and "go to it." If one pads the
knees with a good bunch of old sacking the work can be
done with greater convenience. Where a machine carrying
two men is used it is possible to set 8,000 plants in a day,
and where setting by hand a good workman can set as
many as 1,500 or even 2,000 plants in ten hours.

A dibble is necessary for making the holes in hand-
setting, and one which is flat is better than a round one.
With it a hole can be made that will allow the roots to be
spread out flat, in a fan shape, and all of them come in
contact with the soil. The dibble should be grasped in the
right hand, thrust into the soil, and given an outward shove
so as to make an opening behind it. The left hand then
grasps the plant, shakes the roots out loosely and shoves
them carefully into the hole so that the crown comes ex-
actly at the surface. The dibble is then withdrawn and
inserted again a couple of inches away from the plant and
the soil pulled up against the roots. A little experience
soon teaches one to know how to do the work quickly.

Systems in Planting

There are three systems of planting or training, the hill,
hedge row and matted row. Each has its advantages and

232

The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

disadvantages, and the method to adopt will depend on the
conditions under which one must work.

The hill system consists in growing the plants in indi-
vidual hills or stools, only one plant in a place. Such a
practice makes a lot of hand work necessary and limits
the size of the field. There are several ways of growing

Characteristic appearance of an old strawberry plant, not
suitable for planting. Black, wiry roots at the bottom and
new roots above them.

Winter Protection 233

berries in hills, but they all resolve into the matter of keep-
ing all of the runners off the plants and making all of the
strength of the plant go into the development of one big
fruit producing plant.

The hedge row is more popular than the hill system, as
it entails a smaller amount of labor and enables one to set
the rows closer together. In this system each mother plant
is allowed to make two runners and these are trained in
the row, one going on one side and the second on the other
side. When the plants are set from three to three and one-
half feet apart and two feet in the row, they should stand
about six inches apart in the rows after the runners are
layered.

This system can be elaborated upon a little by what is
sometimes called the "double" hedge row. This is essen-
tially the same as the hedge row except that the rows are
wider, although there should be fully six inches of space
around each plant in the rows. This system is believed
by careful observers to produce the maximum amount of
large fruit that it is possible to get from a field. But the
system entails a great amount of hand work, a greater
amount, in fact, than the average man can give his fields
where a large area is in berries.

The matted rows are most popular among the general
commercial producers. The plants are set in rows about
three or three and one-half feet apart and about two and
one-half feet apart in the row. The plants are then al-
lowed to grow and make as many runners as they can to
fill up a row about a foot and a. half wide. Beyond this
the runners are kept cut off by a little attachment that is
placed on the sides of the cultivator.

Winter .Protection

Whether winter protection, or mulching, is used will
depend largely on one's location. When a mulch is. applied
it may be done for any one or all of three reasons; first,
to keep the soil cool and moist during the season; second,
to keep the berries free from dirt during the spring rains,
and third, to afford winter protection.. In the Northern

234 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

sections the mulch is applied in the fall as soon as the
ground freezes, in which case it serves all three purposes,
but in the South, where winter protection is not needed, it
may not be applied until in the spring, for the purpose of
keeping the berries clean. In the most of the Western
sections a mulch is not used at all, as it-is not needed dur-
ing the winter. Since rains seldom interfere at the time
the crop is ripening a straw mulch is not necessary to keep
the berries from becoming spattered.

Where a mulch is needed, straw serves the best pur-
pose, although it is open to the objection of introducing
seeds of the grain and various kinds of weeds, which may
cause serious trouble in the field.

Where the mulch is applied for a winter protection it
need not go on until the grpund has frozen, as it is not
the object of the mulch to keep the ground from freezing
but to prevent the alternation1 of freezing and thawing sev-
eral times during the winter. The dressing should be ap-
plied at the rate of a couple' or three tons of good straw
spread evenly over the rows of plants. In the spring
this mulch will be so well water soaked from the effects
of the winter snows and rains that it will rest heavily on
the plants. When the plants give signs of renewing their
activities it is necessary to draw the mulch from over the
berries, leaving it close up to the sides of the rows where
it will keep the rains from spattering dirt on the ripening
fruit.

Renewing

Strawberry fields will not be profitable producers after
they have made two crops. This is because the land will
be more or less choked with the plants and new plants
cannot obtain a place to grow and develop, so that the field
needs to be renewed. There are a number of ways in
which this can be done but one of the simplest and most
effective means is to plow out the spaces between the
rows, leaving a strip in the middle about six inches wide.
Turn the soil away from the rows, back-furrowing
towards the middle. Then make a liberal application
pf manure, throwing the most of it into the fur-

Sex in Strawberries 235

row on each side of the row of plants. Work the soil back
into the furrow with a one-horse cultivator or with a disc
from which the inner discs have been removed. Then go
over the field with a hoe and cut out the old plants, work
under the old foliage and leave the remaining plants stand-
ing about six inches apart. With such treatment as this
the field will be in fair condition to produce at least one
more profitable crop and possibly two crops. By the time
the field has been in strawberries long enough to produce
three or four crops of berries it will have exhausted the
fertility of the soil or it will have become so toxic to the
roots that the successful cultivation can not be continued
without putting the land into other crops for at least two
years. Should it be the intention of returning the same
field to strawberry production, these crops should be of
such kinds as will increase the fertility of the -land rather
than to produce a large immediate cash return. For this
reason crops of some legume, such as clover, cow peas,
vetch or crimson clover are the best, and the tops should
not be mowed but turned under to add to the humus sup-
ply.

Another method is to plow a furrow down each side of
the row turning the soil into the middle and then work
it back with a spike tooth harrow with the teeth
thrown slightly back. This will drag out some of the
plants in the rows, pull out the old matted foliage and
bury most of the crowns of the plants. The object of this
is to encourage the plants to send out a new secondary
crown and a new lot of roots all above the old crown. As
soon as the new plants have begun to appear the field
should be worked over with a hoe and the plants thinned
out and culled, leaving only the most vigorous. This work
is or should be done immediately after the fruit crop has
been gathered, as the plants will then have the remainder
of the summer to build up new plants to produce the crop
of fruit for the next summer.

Sex in Strawberries

Many persons who are inexperienced in the growing of
strawberries find that when their first planting comes into

236

The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

producing age that it may blossom very freely but fail to
produce a single fruit. The reason for it is that the flow-
ers were not "fertilized" or pollinated. Some varieties of
strawberries do not produce pollen; they are provided only
with pistils, or the female organs of reproduction and must
be pollinated by the pollen from varieties which have per-
fect or pollen-producing flowers. Varieties like Excelsior,
Klondike or Aroma have perfect flowers and are capable
of setting fruit when planted alone, but other varieties

Strawberry flowers; one on the left is "staminate" or
pollen producing-; one on the right is imperfect and bears no
stamens. It must be planted with a staminate variety before
it will be fruitful.

such as Warfield, Bubach, Haverland or Sample are pis-
tillate, or have imperfect flowers and cannot set fruit them-
selves. If one obtains plants from any of the reliable deal-
ers the sex of the plants will be marked in the catalogue,
and one can thereby guard against getting all pistillate
plants. Otherwise one will have to inquire from persons
who know whether their plants produce perfect flowers.

Varieties 237

It is when the plants come into bloom that anyone can
tell whether the flowers of a given variety of strawberry
are perfect or imperfect. The "staminate," "male" or per-
fect flowered kinds will be found to have a number of yel-
low or greenish yellow bodies on little short stems sur-
rounding a central green, cone-shaped body, which can be
readily recognized as an immature strawberry. These yel-
low bodies are the "anthers" or pollen producing organs,
and such flowers are able to produce fruit without the ne-
cessity of mating them with other kinds. But those flow-
ers from which the anthers are missing must be planted
close to pollen-producing kinds before there will be any
fruit produced.

Many of the most desirable varieties of strawberries
produce these imperfect flowers, so that to get a crop of
fruit they must be mated with some kind which will pro-
duce an ample supply of pollen for itself and for the im-
perfect flowered kind. In setting out such a plantation it
is found satisfactory to plant one row of the perfect flow-
ered kind and two rows of the imperfect. In this way
there will be one row of staminate plants between two rows
of imperfect flowered varieties. The pollen which is pro-
duced by the stamen bearing flowers will be carried to
the non-staminate kind by insects which visit the flowers.
The common honey bee is the most industrious in perform-
ing this valuable work, although a number of flies and
other kinds of insects no doubt help out. On warm days
the wind may also help out in carrying the pollen, as some
of it is undoubtedly blown from plant to plant and row to
row, but in order to obtain the best results with pistillate
varieties it is essential that the pollen-producing sort be
one that blossoms at the same time as the staminate kind.

Varieties

The question as to what kind of strawberries to plant
is not easily answered, so far as the home garden is con-
cerned, although it is somewhat easier for the commer-
cial plantation. In the catalogue of every dealer in straw-
berry plants there is a long list of varieties with tempting

238

The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

descriptions of the delicious fruits that makes one want to
plant every kind listed. In the home grounds it is well
worth while having a list of several varieties, so selected
that one can have strawberries from the beginning of the

Wide, matted rows, in a productive field.

season until its very close, and when the everbearing va-
rieties have been well enough developed so that one can
with certainty get a second crop each year, then those
kinds should be included. It is well worth the while to

Canning Fruits and Vegetables at Home 239

have several varieties in the home ground and to try some
of the newer varieties which are being introduced from
time to time, as they add to the interest of growing the
fruit, even though that particular variety may not do so
very well.

For the commercial grower, and particularly the grower
in sections where there are successful strawberry planta-
tions, it is best to adopt those kinds which are known to
be a success in that particular section, and on the same
kind of soil. In all of the large berry growing districts
some one or two berries are grown more extensively than
other kinds. For example, in the Southern states Klon-
dike and Texas are the leading varieties. In the Ozark
region of Missouii and Arkansas Aroma is most exten-
sively used, while in the Pacific Northwest Clark's Seedling
is the leading commercial variety. In every section, how-
ever, there are a great number of other kinds, although
there will usually be one or possibly two leading sorts.

Every commercial berry grower should have a trial
grounds on which he can test new varieties. Some kind
quite different from what he is growing may produce great-
er quantities of fruit, or be otherwise more desirable. It
is not necessary that such grounds be very large, for a
little bed a rod or so square may be ample for trying out
two or three new sorts each year, and once a start is ob-
tained it is easily possible to increase the number of plants
if one is so inclined.

Canning Fruits and Vegetables at Home
Saving a Waste

Canning fruits and vegetables on the farm is one way
of saving what might otherwise be a large and extrava-
gant waste. In nearly every fruit and truck growing sec-
tion there is always some fruit or vegetable, in large or
small amounts, which cannot be sold at a profit while fresh.
When this is placed in cans and properly sterilized, sealed
and labeled, it can be sold in the market at a profit above
what it would have had it been sold fresh.

240 The Fru it-Growers Guide-Book

On the average farm zn abundance of fruits and vege-
tables can be had during the summer season, but when
winter comes these delicious and wholesome products are
absent from the family table. If they are present it too
often happens that they have been obtained from a store
in the nearest town. These goods are often very poor sub-
stitutes for the products which can be canned at home,
and especially when the cheaper grades are purchased.
The average farmer frequently dries fruits, and possibly
also some kinds of vegetables for winter use, but aside
from these there is little for the home table and nothing
for the market. This is largely for the reason that they
believe it is impossible or difficult to can fruits and vege-
tables in such a way that they will keep in perfect condi-
tion without the use of mysterious chemicals or elaborate
and expensive canning machinery. This is a mistake, for
it is just as easy to can vegetables such as corn, peas and
beans as it is to can peaches, plums or cherries.

Every fruit and vegetable grower has had the experience
of trying to sell produce at a profit when the market was
so glutted that a price sufficient to pay for hauling to town
could hardly be obtained. This is especially the case when
the produce was being placed on the local markets. It is
under such conditions as this that it pays and pays well to
have a little canning outfit and put up the produce in tin or
glass cans to be sold during the winter months. Outfits can
be had which will fit the needs of anyone who wants to can
either vegetables or fruits, and in any capacity from a
dozen cans to several hundred cans a day. The process
is simple, and one which can be done by any farmer or
farmer's wife.

There is only one secret to the commercial canning pro-
cess. It is nothing mysterious or difficult, as so many per-
sons believe. It is simply the careful observance of clean-
liness and thorough sterilization of every can. Nothing
more enters into the secret of canning. It takes no chem-
icals whatever, and the process is so simple that it can be
done with success in any kitchen, or even out of doors
under the shade of a tree. On account of the simplicity

Canning Fruits and Vegetables at Home

241

of the process there is no reason for a farmer hauling his
vegetables or fruit to the railroad and shipping to a dis-
tant canning factory, as then the farmer does most of the,
work and the cannery gets the money. By canning the
vegetables at home the farmer can sell his finished product
at the same price as the large canner and make a profit on
his goods. If shipped to a cannery this profit would have
been divided between the transportation company, the
canner, the jobber and sometimes even the retailer.

A portable canning outfit is handy for home use.

Cleanliness is of first importance in canning, as filth of
all kinds is full of germs of disease and organisms which
render it difficult to make the product "keep" after it is
canned. It is essential and almost indispensable that an
abundance of clean, pure water be available in the kitchen
or building in which the canning is being done, and so
much more convenient if this water is under pressure and

242 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

obtained by simply opening a valve. All of the produce
can then be washed free from any dust that may be cling-
ing to it and can also be more readily cleaned of any spots
of rot which may be on it. To have the fruit perfectly
clean and to handle it with clean tools and put it in clean
cans and sterilize in clean vessels makes the operation of
canning very much easier and safer than if the cleanliness
is neglected. Perfectly clean products will sell for a better
price than that which is put up in a shiftless, "don't care"
fashion.

Sterilization

The reason for so much fruit spoiling after it is canned
is due entirely to the lack of perfect sterilization of the
cans after being filled. Some products can be placed in
cans and- sterilized by cooking for just a few minutes while
others may require prolonged cooking. This cooking is
done for the purpose of destroying the organisms which
cause the products to "spoil." These organisms are of
various kinds. Some of them are the common moulds,
some are yeasts quite similar to the yeast which causes
bread to "rise," while still others are of the minute forms
of life called "bacteria." All of these organisms are present
everywhere all of the time, and when fruits and vegetables
are harvested and prepared for market, or canning, they
are completely covered with these extremely minute forms
of life.

These organisms can be killed by heat. On this prin-
ciple rests the foundation of the canning business. As
soon as one learns how to cook their produce in air tight
vessels so that all of these organisms are killed, then the.
contents of the can will keep in perfect condition until air
containing the spores of these organisms is admitted. Per-
fect sterilization can be had by enclosing the produce in
clean jars or cans and then submitting them to heat of
sufficient temperature for a long enough time to destroy
all of these organisms. Sterilization is readily accom-
plished by the use of boiling water. In localities where
water boils at nearly 212 degrees Fahrenheit most of the

Processing 243

ordinary forms of ferment organisms are killed at the boil-
ing point of water. But the spores or resting stage of
these organisms will not be killed at that temperature, so
that it is necessary to do one or all of three things: in-
crease the length of time of the cooking process, increase
the boiling point by increasing the steam pressure, or by
repeated cooking and cooling. In the ordinary process of
boiling some kinds of organisms may not be killed by be-
ing subjected to that temperature for just a few minutes,
whereas if the temperature is maintained for some time
they are killed.

Boiling Repeatedly

By boiling, all of the living organisms will be killed and
then by allowing the product to cool, any of the spores
which remain will germinate, so that a second boiling in
the course of twenty-four hours will kill the second crop
and leave the contents in practically a sterile condition, al-
though a third boiling may be necessary to make absolutely
certain. Repeated boilings in this manner are hardly nec-
essary with the usual forms of garden produce when the
boiling point of water is nearly 212 degrees. But when
the boiling point falls as low as 205 degrees or less, as it
does at high altitudes, then the repeated boiling is neces-
sary unless the cooking can be done in a steam tight vessel
where the steam pressure can be increased, or else by
keeping the produce at the boiling point a number of hours.

Processing

This cooking through which the produce must go in
order to make it keep is known among canners as "pro-
cessing," although its only meaning is thorough cooking
in order to destroy all germs of fermentation and decay.

This work can be very effectually done in open kettles
in the home pr small factory, although for rapid work and
in large establishments it is an advantage for some kinds
of produce to have steam tight compartments in which the
sterilization can be done at a temperature higher than the
boiling point of water in an open vessel.

244 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

Home Outfits Are Simple

The canning machinery which is'on the market for the
use of farmers and persons who expect to pack only a
small amount of produce are very simple. They consist
of a heating device, usually a sheet iron stove or furnace,
on which is a tank of water. Into this tank is immersed
a frame-like affair holding the filled cans during the cook-
ing process. Such simple outfits as these can be purchased
for amounts as low as $10, while twice that amount will
buy a very good outfit for canning on a small commercial
basis.

Accessories

In addition to a means of cooking, or processing the
produce, there are a few small tools which will be needed,
especially if the canning is done in ordinary tins. These
are a capping iron, which is a curved piece of iron for
soldering the cap on the cans; and a tipping copper for
soldering up the hole in the cap which is left for the escape
of the air while the cans are being exhausted. There will
need to be a supply of sal amoniac and soldering fluid, to
make it possible to solder the cans. The sal amoniac can
be bought of the druggist, while the soldering fluid can be
made at home by dissolving in muriatic acid all of the zinc
it will take.

Definitions

Capping is a term applied to the operation of soldering
the cap onto the can. The cap is a little circular piece of
tin rimmed with solder which fits over the hole in the top^
of the can. In capping, the rim of the can into which the
cap fits must be absolutely clean and dry. The contents
of the can must not be closer than a quarter of an inch of
the top, as the cap must not be soldered on if the contents
touch the lid. Put the cap in place and brush a little of
the soldering fluid around the edge. When the capping
copper is passed around the cap the solder around its edge
will be melted and secure it to the can.

Tipping consists in closing the little hole in the center
of the cap. This is done with the tipping copper, and the

Directions for Processing Asparagus 245

lid must be wiped perfectly dry and clean and then wet
with a little of the acid flux. Touch the hot copper to a
bit of solder and then place the melted drop over the hole
and the job is done. Tipping is not done until after the
air in the cans has been exhausted by a preliminary boil-
ing.

As soon as the cans are filled with the produce they are
to contain they are capped and placed in the upper part of
the process tank submerged two-thirds their depth in
water. Here they are maintained for a sufficient length of
time to thoroughly heat the contents to near the boil-
ing point and expel most of the air in the can. There
should be an air space of a quarter or half an inch
in each of the cans to allow for the expansion of the
produce as it is being processed and to prevent the con-
tents touching the top and making trouble with the solder-
ing that must be done. As soon as the cans are removed
from the exhaust they are tipped and are ready for the pro-
cessing operation. In this the cans are immersed com-
pletely in the boiling water, and if the tipping or capping
has not been thoroughly done, there will be a little stream
of bubbles rise through the lid. Those cans which leak
must be removed immediately and the hole effectually
closed before the processing can be done satisfactorily.
If the cans are perfectly air-tight the ends will be some-
what bulged after the processing is finished, on account of
the expansion of the contents, but as soon as cooled down
the ends will be flat.

Blanching is necessary in the canning of some kinds oi
vegetables and consists in doing what the housewife calls
"par boiling." Where this is necessary the blanching should
be done in a separate tank from that used for processing.
In a small factory or the home canning plant a large new
wash boiler makes the best sort of vessel for this purpose.

Directions for Processing Asparagus

This is the first vegetable of the season to be canned.
Cut it as for the market, having the stalks just a little

246 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

shorter than will fill the cans. Wash it perfectly clean
and pack firmly in the cans, placing the tips all one way.
Asparagus cans are usually made square instead of round
and open on the side. This is for convenience in filling.
Exhaust 10 or 15 minutes and process for 20 or 30 minutes.

Beets

Small sized beets are the best. Young, tender ones an
inch or less in diameter, with the tops removed, should be
par boiled until the skin slips off. Remove all of the skin
and pack firmly in cans. Cover with water, exhaust and
process for an hour.

Lima Beans

These must be carefully hulled by hand and all dam-
aged beans should be culled out. -Pack only those which
are perfect in shape and not too ripe. They loose their
flavor quickly after being shelled and on that account need
to be packed immediately after shelling. Pack the cans
within a half or three-fourths of an inch of the top as the
beans swell some; cover with water, exhaust ten minutes
and process for forty-five minutes.

Green or Wax Beans

String beans will need to have the strings removed.
All kinds must have the tips and stems cut off and the
pods broken into halves or smaller pieces. Gather the
beans while they are quite young so that they will be ten-
der. String beans must be blanched for ten or fifteen
minutes. Pack them tightly into the cans within half or
three-fourths of an inch of the top, cover with water and
exhaust. The processing will need to cover a period of an
hour of hard boiling. It must be done very thoroughly as
beans spoil very easily unless perfectly sterilized.

Corn

Most persons have difficulty in canning corn so that
it will keep. When perfectly sterilized it keeps as well as

Pumpkin and Squash 247

any vegetable. The most certain way to make a success of
canning corn is to process three times, letting the cans
stand and cool for twenty-four hours between each cook-
ing. The corn must be in a milky stage. Cut the grains
off the cob, scrape the cob lightly with the back of the
knife so as to get all of the milky portion. Pack into cans
within three-fourths of an inch of the top and fill nearly
full of water. Exhaust for fifteen minutes. Let cool for
twenty-four hours and process again. Let cool over night
and give a third boiling of half an hour, and it will keep
perfectly.

Blackberries

Fruit should be ripe, but not so soft that it will mash
when handled. Remove all stems. Pack firmly without
crushing. Cover the berries with water, add sugar if de-
sired; exhaust for three minutes, process for ten minutes.

Cherries

These fruits can be quickly pitted with a machine. Pack
solidly in syrup or water as desired, in two-pound cans.
Exhaust seven minutes and process for twenty minutes.

Peas

Shell tender young peas and screen so as to grade into
different sizes before packing. Blanch for five minutes,
pouring them into boiling water. Remove and pack firmly
into cans. Cover with water; exhaust for fifteen minutes
and process for one hour. Greatest success may be had
by allowing to cool for twenty-four hours and then repeat
the processing.

Pumpkin and Squash

Prepare as for immediate use. Cook until nearly done
in an open vessel, then pack in cans. Exhaust for ten
minutes and process for forty minutes.

248 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

Peaches

Use firm, solid fruit that is not too ripe. Peel, cnt into
halves and remove the stones. Pack firmly in the caiib <£iid
cover with syrup or water as desired. Exhaust for five
minutes, process for fifteen minutes. The best grade of
fruit must be unbroken halves. They may be packed in
two, three or ten-pound cans. Pie peaches are usually
packed in the larger sizes of cans.

Raspberries

These are handled in the same manner as blackberries.

Tomatoes

These have become the most popular of all kinds of
canned vegetables and afford an excellent means of bring-
ing in an income while the orchard is maturing. Stone
is the best variety, as the fruit retains its deep red color
during the processing better than most any other variety.
The fruit needs to be clean, firm and well colored. Scald
with boiling water until the skin will slip easily. Remove
the skins and cut out the hard stem end, being careful to
not mash the fruit in handling.. Save all of the juice that
runs out of the cans. Cover with juice or water if neces-
sary. Exhaust eight minutes and sterilize for half an hour.
Do not allow the fruit to stand after being scalded, as it
spoils very quickly.

Varieties of Apples, Peaches, Pears, Grapes to Plant

The following list of varieties of fruits are from data
collected by the horticulturists of the states named and
are varieties which are considered as the best for com-
mercial plantings in the states named:

Alabama

Apples — Red June, Red Astrachan. Early Harvest, Fam-
ily, Winesap, Yellow Transparent, Horse, Yates, Terry.

Best Commercial Varieties 249

Grapes — Bunch: Delaware, Niagara, Concord; Musca-
dine type: Eden, Memory, Scuppernong.

Peaches — Greensboro, Carman, Hiley, Family Favorite,
Belle, Elberta, Salway, White Heath.

Pear — Kieffer.

Arkansas

Peaches — Sneed Triumph, Carman, Family Favorite,
Early Crawford, Champion, Gen'l Lee, Elberta, Mixon,
Late Crawford Emma, Matthews, Beauty, Picquet's Late,
Heath Cling, Salway, Slappy, Early Elberta.

California

Apples — Newtown, Bellflower, Gravenstein, R. I. Green-
ing, E. Spitzenburg, Mo. Pippin, Astrachan, Red June.

Grapes — Muscat, Tokay, Cornichon, Thompson, Em-
peror, Malaga, Rose of Peru, Zinfandel, Sweet Water,
Verdal, Carignane, Black Prince, Alicante, Sultina.

Peaches — Muir, Phillips, Salway, Lovell, E. Crawford,
Tuskena, Foster, Elberta, Nichols, Sellers, Lemon, St.
Johns, Henrietta, Mary's Choice, Hale, Alexander.

Pears — Winter Nelis, Seckel, Easter, Du Cornice, Doy-
enne, D'Ete, Clapp's Favorite, Glout Morceau, Barry
Comet.

Colorado

Apples — Jonathan, Gano, Stayman, Winesap, Grimes,
Colorado Orange, Wealthy, Duchess, Hass, Rome Beauty,
Mamomth Black Twig, White Winter Pearmain, Black
Ben.

Grapes — Concord, Moore's Early, Niagara.

Pears — Bartlett, Kieffer, Seckel.

Peaches — Crawford, Elberta.

Iowa

Apples — Yellow Transparent, Liveland Raspberry,
Charlamoff, Wealthy, Anisim, Hutchins Red, Salome,

Best Commercial Varieties 251

Windsor, Iowa Blush, Tolman Sweet, Allen Choice, Stay-
man, Delicious, Ben Davis, Gano, Grimes, Jonathan, Wine-
sap, York Imperial.

Pears — Fluke, Bloodgood, Flemish Beauty, Seckel,
Warner, Anjou, Kieffer, Longworth.

Peaches — Sneed, Champion, Crosby, Hill Chilli, Russel,
Lone Tree, Greensboro.

Michigan

Apples — Red Astrachan, Duchess, Wealthy, Baldwin,
Golden Russet, Red Canada, Wagener, Grimes, Hubbard-
ston, Jonathan, Maiden's Blush.

Grapes — Brighton, Diamond, Niagara, Delaware, Wor-
den, Concord, Moore.

Pears — Lawrence, Kieffer, Anjou, Seckel, Howell, Bart-
let, Clapp's.

Peaches — Triumph, Kalamazoo, Elberta, Engle, Dewey.

Minnesota

Apples — Duchess, Hibernal, Charlamoff, Patten's Green-
ing, Wealthy, Longfield, Tetofsky, Malinda, Okabena,
Peerless, Wolf River, McMahon, Yellow Transparent.

Grapes — Beta, Janesville, Moore's Early, Brighton, Del-
aware, Worden, Agawam, Concord, Diamond.

Missouri

Apples — Ben Davis, Jonathan, Grimes, Huntsman, York,
Winesap, Rome Beauty, Delicious, Wealthy, Early Har-
vest, Yellow Transparent, Ingram, Delicious, Black Ben,
Gano, Stayman.

Peaches — Champion, Carman, Family Favorite, Elberta,
Crosby, Salway.

Pears — Kieffer, Garber, Duchess, Anjou, Clapp's Favor-
ite.

New York

Apples — Gravenstein, Oldenburg, Mclntosh, Boiken,
Northern Spy, Spitzenburg.

252 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

Pears — Washington, Lawrence, Anjou, Bartlett.
Peaches — Carman, Mountain Rose, Crawford, Mamie
Ross, Elberta, Salway, Greensboro.

Northern New England

Apples — Oldenburg, Gravenstein, Baldwin Spy, Hub-
bardston, Stark, Tolman, Fameuse, Wealthy, Dudley.

Pears — Angouleme, Anjou, Bartlett, Clapp's, Lawrence,
Sheldon, Vermont Beauty.

New Jersey

Apples — Early Harvest, Early Ripe, Red Astrachan,
William's, Starr, Rambo, Wealthy, Maiden's Blush, Fall
Pippin, Jonathan, Stayman, York Imperial, Northern Spy,
Baldwin, Mclntosh.

Grapes — Green Mountain, Niagara, Brighton, Worden,
Diamond, Delaware.

Peaches — Greensboro, Hiley, Carman, Waddel, Moun-
tain Rose, Early Crawford, Niagara, Elberta, Salway, Rare
Ripe, Belle of Georgia.

Pears — Kieffer, La Conte, Bartlett, Clairgeau.

North Carolina

Apples — Red June, York, Stayman, Winesap, Grimes,
Shockley, Ben Davis, Delicious, Newtown.

Grapes — Niagara, Concord, Delaware, Scuppernong,
James.

Peaches — Greensboro, Carman, Salway.

Pears — Kieffer, Le Conte, Seckel, Early Harvest.

Ohio

Apples — Yellow Transparent, Oldenburg, Sweet Bough,
Maiden's Blush, Grime-s, Jonathan, Northern Spy, Rome
Beauty, York, Hubbardston.

Grapes — Worden, Green Mountain, Niagara, Brighton.

Rules for Naming Fruits 253

Pears — Wilder, Bartlett, Angouleme, Seckel.
Peaches — Mountain Rose, Greensboro, Champion, El-
berta, Smock.

Oregon

Apples — E. Spitzenburg, Yellow Newtown, Jonathan,
Baldwin, Yellow Imperial, 'Gravenstein.

Grapes — Concord, Niagara, Tokay, Malaga, Muscat.

Peaches — Alexander, Crawford, Foster, Muir, Salway,
Hales' Early, Cliny.

Pears — Bartlett, Anjou, Bosc, Howell, W. Nelis, Corn-
ice, E. Beurre.

Washington, Idaho and Montana

Apples — Spitzenburg, Jonathan, Baldwin, Wealthy,
Wagener, Rome Beauty, Winesap, Delicious, King David,
Winter Banana, Gravenstein, Mclntosh, Grimes Golden,
Arkansas Black, White Winter Pearmain, Stayman Wine-
sap, Belleflower.

Plums — Bradshaw, Columbia, Prince de Agen, Italian
Prince, Imperial Gage.

Peaches — Alexander, Mountain Rose, Foster, Muir, Sus-
quehanna, Lemon Cling.

Cherries — (Sweet) Napoleon, Lambert, Black Republi-
can; (sour) Late Duke, May Duke, Morello.

Rules for Naming Fruits

To avoid the confusion which arises in naming new
varieties of fruits the American Pomological Society
adopted the following rules, which are to be applied to all
new varieties of fruits as they are introduced, and to the
renaming of old varieties:

Rule I. No two varieties of the same kind of fruit shall
bear the same name. The name first published shall be
the accepted and recognized name, except in cases where
it has been applied in violation of this code.

254 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

(a) The term "kind" as herein used shall be understood
to apply to those general classes of fruits that are grouped
together in common usage without regard to their exact
botanical relationship; as apple, cherry, grape, peach, plum,
raspberry, etc.

(b) The paramount right of the originator, discoverer
or introducer of a new variety to name it, within the limi-
tations of this code, is recognized and emphasized.

(c) Where a variety name, through long usage, has be-
come thoroughly established in American pomological lit-
erature for two or more varieties, it should not be dis-
placed nor radically modified for either sort, except in
cases where a well known synonym can be advanced to the
position of the leading name. The several varieties bear-
ing identical names should soon be distinguished by adding,
the name of the author who first described each sort, or by
adding some other suitable distinguishing term that will
insure their identity in catalogues or discussions.

(d) Existing American names of varieties which con-
flict with earlier published foreign names of the same or
other varieties, but which have become thoroughly estab-
lished through long usage, shall not be displaced.

Rule II. The name of a variety shall consist of a
single word.

(a) No variety shall be named unless distinctly superior
to existing varieties in some important characteristic nor
until it has become determined to perpetuate it by bud
propagation.

(b) In selecting names for varieties the following points
should be emphasized: Distinctiveness, simplicity, ease of
pronunciation and spelling, indication of origin or parent-
age.

(c) The spelling and pronunciation of a varietal name
derived from a personal or geographical name should be
governed by the rules that control the spelling and pro-
nunciation of the name from which it was derived.

(d) A variety imported from a foreign country should
retain its foreign name subject only to such modification

Publication 255

as is necessary to conform to this code or to render it in-
telligible in English.

(e) The name of a person should not be applied to a
variety during his life without his expressed consent. The
name of a deceased horticulturist should not be so applied
except through formal action by some competent horti-
cultural body, preferably that with which he was most
closely connected.

(f) The use of such general terms as seedling, hybrid,
pippin, pearmain, beurre, rare-ripe, damson, etc., is not ad-
missable.

(g) The use of a possessive noun as a name is not ad-
missable.

(h) The use of a number, either singly or attached to a
word, should be considered only as a temporary expedient
while the variety is undergoing a preliminary test.

(i) In applying the provisions of this rule to an existing
varietal name, that has, through long usage, become firmly
imbedded in American pomological literature, no change
shall be made which will involve loss of identity.

Rule ITI. In the full and formal citation of a variety
name, the name of the author who first published it shall
be given.

Publication

Rule IV. Publication consists (1) in the distribution
of a printed description of the variety named, giving the
distinguishing characters of fruit, tree, etc., or (2) in the
publication of a new name for a variety that is properly
described elsewhere; such publication to be made in any
book, bulletin, report, trade catalogue or periodical, pro-
viding the issue bears the date of its publication and is
generally distributed among nurserymen, fruit growers and
horticulturists; or (3) in certain cases the general recog-
nition of a name for a propagated variety in a community
for a number of years shall constitute publication of that
name.

(a) In determining the name of a variety to which two

256 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

or more names have been given in the same publication,
that which stands first shall have precedence.

Revision

Rule V. No properly published variety name shall be
changed for any reason, except conflict with this code, nor
shall another variety be substituted for that originally de-
scribed thereunder.

Grafting and Budding

Apples, pears and some other fruit and ornamental trees
are propagated by means of grafting. This is done in
many instances largely for the reason that the kind to be
increased does not come true from seed; and when done on,
large trees, it is for the purpose of changing the kind of
fruit produced by the top or to change the shape of the
top. Where young stock is grafted, it is generally done
by what is known as the "whip or tongue," and as this is
the most common style of grafting and most applicable to
the widest range of uses, it will be described. Where large
trees are to be worked over, the work is done by what is
known as "cleft grafting" and will be described under that
head.

In grafting two things are necessary, first a lot of small
roots of the apple. The roots most commonly used are
from the one-year-old seedling trees. Next is a quan-
tity of "scions" or twigs of the current year's growth from
the trees that it is desired to increase. These scions
should be free from the old wood and taken from the trees
after the leaves have fallen, but before the wood freezes.
They may be kept for any length of time till ready to use
by packing them in damp sand or green sawdust in a cool
cellar, or even packed in the soil out of doors and covered
so as not to freeze.

The grafting is best done in a cool living room or in a
cellar where the air is moist. It can be done at any time
during the winter, but best at sometime after January and

Making the Grafts 257

at least a month before planting time. February is gen-
erally the most convenient time to do the work.

Making the Grafts

If the twigs are long enough make the scions about six
inches long, but they may be made shorter if necessary.
On the butt end of the scion make a sloping cut an inch
or an inch and a half long. Use a sharp knife and make
the cut smooth and uniform. On the cut surface, about
one-third of the way from the end of the twig, make a
slit or tongue by a downward cut, from one-half to an inch
deep along the grain of the wood; then cut off at the
desired length.

Next take one of the long seedling roots and follow the
same process. Begin at the crown (the part of the root
that was just at the surface of the ground) and form a
sloping cut, being careful that it is of the same slope as
that of the scion; and make the tongue in the same way
the same distance from the end of the root as in the scion.
This done, cut the root off, having the piece about three
inches long and repeating the process until the entire root
has been used. If the seedlings have made a good growth
and the soil has been porous enough to let them go down,
each root will usually make two and sometimes three
pieces.

Join the root and scion by pressing the two sloping
surfaces together and forcing the tongues to interlock.
At this point the main thing to be observed is to watch one
side and to see that the bark line of the scion, comes in
contact with the bark line of the root. This is highly im-
portant, for here is where the two are to grow together.
The scion and root may not be of the same thickness; in
fact, seldom are, but this makes no difference if the above
instructions are followed. After pressing the two pieces
together, it will be necessary to wrap the graft at the
point of union with No. 18 or 20 knitting cotton. Lay the
thread on the wood near the end of the cut, wind two or

(9)

258

The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

three times around at this place, at the same time pressing
the parts together with thumb and finger. Next, work the

No. 2

No. 1. Apple stock for graft-
ing; a is a No. 1 apple root of
one season's growth from seed.
This is cut into several sec-
tions as at b, c and d; c is the
seedling- top and d the tip of
the root, both of which are to
be discarded. The sections at
b are the best for grafting.

No. 2. The apple graft; a is
the scion; b is the stock; c
how they are put together; d is the finished graft,

No. 1

shows

ready for planting.

thread up to the other end of the cut by winding it two or
three times around the graft during the distance, then two

Making the Grafts 259

or three times around the other end of the cut as in the be-
ginning. Fasten the end of the thread by drawing it

Long and short twigs of apple before being made into
scions; a, short twigs from an old tree will make only one
scion each as at b; c, long twigs from thrifty trees; d, the
same twigs made into scions.

260

The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

down in the cut and, by a sharp jerk, break it off. This
completes the process. The finished graft should be from
seven to nine inches long. The old way was to wax the
point of union or wrap with waxed thread or strips of cloth
but this is not necessary.

The right and wrong way to plant a graft. Holes are
made with a dibber and grafts dropped in. If soil is packed
down with the heel it is liable to leave an open space around
the root, as at b. The better way is to close the hole with
the dibber, as at c. Soil then packed tight against the root,
as at d.

Pack the grafts in bundles of fifty to a hundred each
and store in green sawdust or moist sand where they are
to remain until planting time. While packed in the saw-
dust the cut surfaces which have been joined together will
actually begin to heal over and partially unite, and on this
account the grafts should not be disturbed until they are
taken out to plant. Keep the box of grafts in a moderately
cool room or a cellar, or bury them in the soil out of doors

Planting

261

where they will not freeze. If the grafts are buried in
sand it may have to be sprinkled and moistened several
times before spring, and will need to be watched.

• I /
No. 4

No. 3. A pear graft; a shows
the seedling root and scion; b
is the two pieces fastened to-
gether, and c shows the waxed
graft ready for planting.

No. 4. This figure shows the
right way to shape the scions
for cleft grafting.

Planting

As soon as the ground will do to work in the spring
select a place where the soil is moderately rich, but not

262 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

extremely so, on which to plant the grafts. Plow the land
deeply and otherwise prepare as for a garden spot. The
rows need not be long but should be perfectly straight.
To get them straight stretch a string across the plot. The
rows are to be four feet apart, laid off with a single shovel
plow. With an old hoe handle which has been sharpened
to a point, with a long slope, go along and punch holes
in the ground about eight inches or a foot apart, withdraw-
ing the pole carefully and with many side movements so the
soil will not fall in. Plant the grafts deeply. After plac-
ing them in the holes, see that only one or two buds of the
scion are left above the ground. This will make it neces-
sary to have the ground plowed deeply. Be sure to press
the soil up closely against the roots of the grafts. This is
best done with a dibber or short stick which is forced into
the soil beside the grafts and crowds the soil up against
them. The grafts cannot grow if air spaces are left around
the roots. Give the little trees good culture, including
two or three hoeings during the summer, and they will
reward their owner with a vigorous growth.

At the end of the summer the trees will be "one-year-
old" trees of the nurseryman, and can be dug as soon as
the leaves have fallen and ready to be transplanted to the
orchard. If it is desired to use two-year-old trees, they
can be left in the nursery for another summer;

There are special implements on the market for wrap-
ping the grafts, planting the grafts and digging the trees.
These are of great assistance in saving time and labor
where large quantities of trees are grown.

Cleft Graft

Cleft grafting can be done on any sort of fruit tree and
is used mostly for the purpose of working over old
trees which are beyond the condition in which they can
be worked by the ordinary whip or tongue graft. It is the
style of grafting that is especially useful where one has a
few trees that have reached the bearing age and are found
to be unsatisfactory either in kind or in quality of fruit.
It is the style of grafting that will allow one to work two

Cleft Graft

263

This shows a good way to top work a tree. Only about
half the branches are grafted at one time.

264 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

or more varieties of apples on one tree. In fact as many
varieties as there are branches may be top-grafted on a
single tree. It is a matter of great curiosity to see apples
of different colors and sizes growing on the same limbs,
but it is easily done by grafting scions of the desired va-
rieties on bearing trees. New varieties may be oftentimes
hurried into bearing by working them on the branches of
trees that have reached bearing age.

It will be necessary to collect the scions for top-grafting
early in the winter before freezing weather and store them
in the manner described above. The grafting is done early
in the spring at the time the leaf buds are beginning to
open. At this time the sap in the tree to be top-worked
will be flowing freely, but the scion to be inserted upon it
should be perfectly dormant in a cellar.

To do the work, saw off the old branch, if as much as
an inch in diameter, or even the body of the tree if not
over four inches thick, and split down through the center
with a hatchet or knife. The scion (which is the same
kind of, wood as described for other scions) should be only
four or five 'inches long, and at the butt end whittle oil
both sides to a wedge shape. In making the wedge the
slope must be long and uniform, care being taken to whit-
tle about the same amount of wood from each side. Pry
open the split in the trunk or branch to be grafted and
carefully insert 'the scion so that the bark on one side will
be exactly in. contact with the inner part of the growing
bark of the old stub or stump. This is extremely import-
ant, for here is the place where they are to grow together,
and they cannot do so if the bark of one piece is not in
line with the bark of the other. If the old branch or trunk
of the tree is large enough, that is, thick enough, it is ad-
visable to use two scions, one on either side of the stump,
as this will double the chances for success. If the grafted
stump be as much as three inches thick, a wedge for the
purpose should be made and driven down in the center of
the cleft just far enough to prevent too great pressure on
the scions and yet not far enough to cause them to be
loose. After driving down to the proper point, the wedge

Budding , 265

may be broken off. When the scions and wedges are in
place it will be necessary to cover all of the cut surfaces
with soft grafting wax.

The wax may be melted in a tin pan at the house and
carried to the orchard if not too far away, or the pan may
be set on a hot stone and will then stay melted for a con-
siderable time. The melted wax can be most easily
spread over the cut surfaces of the graft by means of a
little paddle, and needs to be spread all over the cut
surfaces of the s'cion and stub, although it is not necessary
that the bark be also waxed. This waxing is done to pre-
vent the cut surfaces from drying out and thereby prevent-
ing the scion and stub from uniting. The wax need not be
disturbed at any time thereafter.

If both or all the scions inserted on a stub should grow,
cut all of them off but one. Only one scion should be
allowed to grow, as more than one at a place will cause a
bad fork that will split easily.

Budding

Budding is an operation done upon any woody plant
for the purpose of increasing some desirable variety that
cannot be obtained from seed. Its object is identical with
grafting", and differs from it in that in grafting a scion
bearing several buds is used, while in budding the scion
consists of but one bud, with a small bit of the bark to
which it is attached. All of our tree fruits can be repro-
duced with more or less ease by budding, while the peach
is propagated in this manner exclusively, as it does not
unite very readily when grafted.

This operation will be described as generally practiced
on the peach, although the practice will differ not at all
for propagating apples, pears, or any of the stone fruits.

Stock for budding is generally the one-year seedlings
obtained by stratifying the seeds over winter and planting
out the following spring. The seedlings will be large
enough by June in the South for budding, and by August

26G

The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

in the Northern states. When budded in June, the tops of
the seedlings are cut away as soon as the buds have united,
and the growth from the buds is very rapid, so that by late
autumn it is large enough for planting in the orchard.

b

Budding sticks. At a the leaf blades have been cut away,
and at b the buds to be used are partially cut off and made
ready to take to the field. Sticks prepared in this way must
be wrapped in a wet cloth to keep the buds from drying out.

Budding 267

While June budded trees are usually smaller than those
budded in late summer, one year's time has been saved,
which is often a matter of great importance to the grower,
whether he is growing them for his own use or to sell.

For summer budding, which is the most common prac-
tice, the buds should be inserted about the last week in
August or first week in September. In general the bud-
ding should JL>Q done at the time when the bark will peel
the best. When the work is ready to be done the buds are
to be selected from the desired varieties. Buds are always
procured from the young branches that have grown the
same season the budding is done. On these young
branches there will always be a few inches toward the tip
which is soft and immature, and therefore this part should
be cut away. Peach tree twigs contain both flower buds
and leaf buds. If flower buds only were present and were
used for budding, they would do nothing but blossom and
die, while the leaf buds (also called wood buds) will grow
and make a top to the tree. The best wood buds are found
towards the middle of the twig.

The wood buds may be distinguished from the flower
buds (also called fruit buds) by remembering that they are
smaller, flatter and never so plump. A fruit bud can do no
particular harm if there is also a wood bud. It is desir-
able to remember this as a wood bud will frequently have
a fruit bud on either side of it. When this is the case the
outside buds may be broken off, as they are of no use.
Where there is only one bud at the base of the leaf, it is
usually a wood bud, and where there are two or three in
a row across the twig, it is almost certain that the middle
one is a wood bud and the outside ones are fruit buds.
After a little observation and practice it will not be hard to
distinguish between the two kinds, and to select the proper
one to use.

The weather is usually very warm at budding time, so
it will be necessary to wrap the twigs from which the
buds are to be taken in wet paper or a damp cloth to pre-
vent their drying out. As soon as a twig is cut from the
tree, trim off the leaves, leaving a piece of the stem about

268

The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

half an inch long to hold to when the buds are being in^
serted.

The manner of cutting the bud from the twig, which is
known as the budding stick, is to hold the stick in the left
hand upside down and with the other hand force the knife
blade down through the bark and into the wood, making a
downward cut. Next withdraw the knife and, at a point
down near to where the cut stopped, make a cross cut just

Budding peaches. A is a seedling showing the T-shaped
cut; at b the flaps have been lifted, at c the bud has been
inserted., and d shows how it is tied with raffia. At e the
bud has united and the raffia removed.

through the bark and no deeper. If the bark peels easily,
and it should at budding time, the bud may be lifted up and
will part from the wood very readily. While many
prefer to have no wood adhering to the bud, there are
some others who slice the buds off from the twig, leaving
a portion of the wood attached to them.

The little seedling peaches should be budded as near the
ground as is convenient to work, which will be within two
or three inches of the surface of the soil. The first step
in preparing the seedling to receive the bud is to make a

Budding 269

slit in the bark lengthwise, and at the upper end of this
slit a cross cut, thus forming a T-shaped figure on the
bark of the seedling. The bark should peel readily and is
gently raised and turned back. Now the bud should be
cut from the budding stick as directed and inserted be-
neath the bark of the sprout by holding with thumb and
finger the short stein left for the purpose and forcing it
downward sharp end first, until the square end of the bud
gets down to where it will fit against the cross cut in the
bark itself. The bud is then ready for wrapping.

In order that the bud may form a union with the grow-
ing seedling it is necessary to press it closely against the
tree by binding with some sort of string. Nurserymen com-
monly use a kind of material called "raffia," which is wet
before applying and adjusts itself to the parts to be covered
and makes an excellent wrapper. A good substitute for
raffia easily obtained by everyone is strips a quarter or half
an inch wide torn from old soft cotton cloths. Buds are
sometimes tied with strips of wet corn shucks. Whatever
is used is to be bound around newly inserted buds in such a
manner as to leave only the stem of the leaf sticking out.
This leaf stem will serve as an indicator to show whether
the bud has united or not. If the stem remains green the
bud is living; otherwise it will turn brown in a day or two.
Do not wait longer than ten days before examining the
buds to see if they are living. If they have united with
the trees, release the bandage by cutting it on the opposite
side from the bud in order to not disturb the healing
wound. This early examination and cutting of the string
must not be forgotten, as it is very important. At this
time the tree will be making a very rapid growth in thick-
ness and in a remarkably short time will grow over the
string and choke the tree to death, or what is more to the
point, will make a deep ring in the tree and cause it to
break off where the bud is inserted. During the autumn
in which the bud is inserted in the tree it will make no
growth other than to make a firm union with the stock,
the bud itself remaining dormant.

The following spring the bud will begin to grow along

270 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

with the other buds on the tree, and then the seedling top
must be cut off at from one-half an inch to an inch above
the bud. This will throw all of the growth into the new
bud, which will shoot up rapidly. A large number of little
sprouts will spring up around the stump, and it will be
necessary to rub them off two or three times during the
summer in order to keep the growth where it is wanted.

It is best to plant peach seeds in rows running north
and south, which will make it possible to bud all of the
trees on the north side. This is believed to be desirable,
because it is thought that the sun may injure the buds
when they are first inserted. One season's growth from
the bud makes trees of the proper age for planting in the
orchard.

"Springing the Bud"

In very early budding, or at any time during a dry sea-
son when it is difficult to obtain mature buds, pinching the
little points of the shoots from which the buds are to be
taken ten days or so before they are required will have the
result of perfecting them. This is called "springing the
bud" and is the proper practice when the embryonic twig
seems to be loitering. We have a great deal to learn yet
about budding and it is a science which every horticulturist
should acquire for the time is coming when we will be
producing the most of our planting and renewal stock in
this way.

How to Make Grafting Wax

Gratfing waxes may be prepared in a great variety of
ways, nearly all of them using resin and beeswax for the
foundation. Some grafting waxes need to be melted over
a fire and applied hot, others are soft and pliable when
cold. The latter can be used in cool climates, but where
the summers are very warm, the thin waxes when used on
wounds or top-grafts are liable to melt and run.

The hard waxes can easily be kept in a working condi-
tion in the field by placing the vessel containing the wax

Evaporating Apples 271

over a lighted kerosene lamp. If the lamp is placed inside
a box that has a hole cut in the top large enough to let the
wax pot set in, the lamp can then be protected from blow-
ing out in the wind.

Common Grafting Waxes

1 — 4 pounds resin, 2 pounds beeswax, 1 pound tallow.
2 — 6 pounds resin, 2 pounds beeswax, 1 pound tallow.
3 — 6 pounds resin, 2 pounds beeswax, 1 pint linseed oil.
4 — 4 pounds resin, 1 pound beeswax, 1 pint raw linseed
oil.

Waxed String for Grafting

Common knitting cotton, No. 18, dropped into any of
the waxes made from beeswax and resin while the wax is
melted. The ball should be turned over frequently and
allowed to remain in the hot wax for several minutes to be-
come thoroughly saturated.

This string is useful in wrapping grafts and does not
need to be tied. Waxed cloth can be made in the same
way, and is used in making top grafts.

Evaporating Apples

It frequently happens that a portion of the fruit crop
cannot be profitably marketed at harvest time, and unless
used in some other form it becomes waste on the hands
of the grower. Such fruit may be dried or evaporated and
be thus converted into a marketable or usable product.

There is a distinction between "dried" and "evaporated"
fruit, the former term usually being applied to sun dried
fruit and the latter to fruit that is dried in an evaporator.
For home use, where only small quantities are needed, sun-
drying is the easiest means of handling such fruit. The
fruit to be sun-dried is first pared and quartered or sliced
and placed on a suitable surface in the sunlight, where it
will have the advantage of free circulation of air. It is

272 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

always advisable in sun-drying to have the fruit cov-
ered with a thin screen that is raised an inch or so above
the fruit to protect it from being spoiled by insects. It is
impossible, or at least difficult, to protect sun-dried fruit
from dust. This is one of the most serious objections to
this manner of drying fruit, as the dust is always full of
germs of many kinds.

Artificial evaporators of convenient size may be had
for home use, and are simple to construct and operate. A
kitchen cook stove is serviceable for small quantities, and
there are some evaporators on the market for use in this
way. However, the principle of these evaporators is to
support the fruit over a vessel containing hot water in such
manner that the fruit will not be cooked nor bathed by the
steam, but dried by a continuous flow of dry air. A wire
screen supported over a bake pan that is covered will an-
swer the purpose.

Portable evaporators for use in the orchard and capable
of handling five or ten bushels of fruit a day are easily
constructed, or may be bought ready for use. They con-
sist of a sheet iron stove over which is a box holding sev-
eral trays on which the sliced fruit is spread. These trays
are made of slats of wood, or galvanized iron screens. The
top and bottom of the box is provided with openings that
will allow of free passage of air over the fruit.

For market it is often customary to bleach the fruit
with the fumes of sulphur in order to keep it white and
produce what is sometimes believed to be a more pleasing
appearance. However, as the bleaching causes the fruit
to absorb more or less of sulphurous acid, it is rendered
deleterious to the health. For home use bleaching should
not be done.

Where considerable quantities of fruit are to be evap-
orated some of the simple paring and slicing machines that
are operated by hand will facilitate preparing the fruit.
But where large quantities are to be handled a power ma-
chine will give better service. There are such machines
on the market that are capable of paring as much as 400
bushels of apples a day.

By-Laws of Grand Junction Fruit-Growers' Ass'n 273

After the fruit is pared it will have to be trimmed of
any little scraps of skin or worm holes and other blem-
ishes. This is possible only by hand work, and must be
done with an ordinary paring knife. Where the fruit is to
be bleached, it is treated as soon after the paring and trim-
ming as possible. The fruit is enclosed in a tight box in
shallow layers, over which the fumes of burning sulphur
are passing. It will take an exposure of half an hour to
an hour and a half to sufficiently bleach the fruit. If a
long delay occurs between the paring and bleaching it is
impossible to make the fruit regain its original whiteness.

The time required for drying will depend entirely on
local conditions, and to a small extent on the weather,
taking a longer time in rainy weather than in dry. To de-
termine when the fruit is dry is dependent largely on the
experience of the dryer. The fruit should be so dry that
when a handful is pressed into a ball it will be "springy"
enough to separate at once upon being released. It should
not be possible to press any juice from any of the slices,
and the fruit should have a soft, velvety, leathery texture.

In large fruit sections it is often a very remunerative
business to operate a large evaporator which can use all
of the unsaleable fruit from the vicinity, this being espe-
cially the case when the evaporator can be used in connec-
tion with a vinegar or canning plant.

By-Laws of Grand Junction Fruit-Growers' Ass'n.

I

The name of the said association shall be the Grand
Junction Fruit Growers' Association.

II

The objects for which the said association is created
are to buy and sell fruit, vegetables, hogs, meat stock, and
all of the products of Mesa County, both fresh and manu-
factured; to erect, operate and maintain canning and pack-
ing factories and commission houses; to manufacture and

274 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

sell all products of Mesa County; to lease, mortgage and
sell said business, and to borrow money for carrying on
same, and to pledge their property and franchise for such
purpose. To acquire by purchase and own real estate,
buildings, machinery and all the necessary power and pow-
er plants for carrying on said premises, and to lease, mort-
gage and sell the same.

Ill

The term of existence of said association shall be twen-
ty years.

IV

The capital stock of the said association shall be twenty-
five thousand dollars, divided into five thousand shares of
five dollars each.

V

The number of directors of said association shall be
seven, and the names of those who shall manage the af-
fairs of the association for the first year of its existence
are C. W. Steele, A. A. Miller, J. W. Rose, R. W. Shrop-
shire, J. H. Smith, P. A. Rice and A. B. Hoyt.

VI

The principal office of said association shall be kept at
Grand Junction in the said county, and the principal busi-
ness of said association shall be carried on in the county
of Mesa.

VII

The stock of the association shall be non-assessable.
VIII

The directors shall have the power to make such pru-
dential by-laws as they may deem proper for the manage-
ment of the affairs of the association not inconsistent with
the laws of this state, for the purpose of carrying on all
kinds of business within the objects and purposes of the
association.

By-Laws of Grand Junction Fruit Growers' Ass'n 275
BY-LAWS
Article I

Section 1. The board of directors provided for in the
articles of incorporation of this association shall be elected
annually at the regular annual meeting of the stockholders,
as hereinafter provided, and shall hold their office until
their successors are elected and qualified.

Section 2. Said directors shall be stockholders in said
association and shall be fruit growers in Grand Valley and
shall be residents of Mesa County, Colorado.

Section 3. Any vacancy occurring in the board of di-
rectors shall be filled by the remaining members of the
board.

Article II

Section 1. The board of directors shall, as soon as
may be after their election, elect a president and vice-presi-
dent from among their number, who shall hold their of-
fices for one year, and at said meeting the said board shall
appoint a secretary-treasurer and manager, who shall be
subject to removal at any time.

Section 2. The secretary, treasurer and manager shall
each, when required by the board, give bond in such sum
and with such security as the directors may require, con-
ditioned on the faithful performance of their duties, and to
turn over to their successors in office all books, papers,
vouchers, money, funds and property of whatsoever kind
or nature belonging to the association upon expiration of
their respective terms of office, or upon their being re-
moved therefrom, or with other conditions as may be
proper.

Section 3. The president shall preside at all meetings
of the directors or stockholders. He shall sign as presi-
dent all certificates of stock and all other contracts and
other instruments in writing, which may have been ordered
by the board of directors.

Section 4. The vice-president shall in the absence of
or disability of the president, perform his duties.

276 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

Section 5. The manager shall have full charge of the
commercial and shipping^ department of the association.
He shall receive all money arising from the sale of fruit
and other commodities handled by the association, and pay
the same to the parties entitled thereto, and render a true
account thereof; and he shall also be the treasurer of the
association and disburse same under the direction of the
board of directors, except as hereinabove set forth.

Section 6. The secretary shall keep a record of the
proceedings of the board of directors and also of the meet-
ings of the stockholders. He shall also keep a book of
blank certificates of stock, fill up and countersign all cer-
tificates issued, and make the corresponding entries upon
the marginal stub of each certificate issued. He shall keep
a stock ledger in due form, showing the number of shares
issued to and transferred by any stockholder and da.te of
issuance and transfer. He shall -have charge of the cor-
porate seal and affix the same to all instruments requiring
a seal. He shall keep in the manner prescribed by the
board of directors all accounts of the association with its
stockholders, in books provided for such purpose. He shall
discharge such other duties as pertain to his office and as
may be prescribed by the board of directors.

Section 7. These by-laws may be amended by the board
of directors at any special meeting thereof called for that
purpose, a notice of such proposed amendment being given
in the call for such special meeting.

Article III

Section 1. The regular meeting of the board of direc-
tors shall be held at the office of the company on the first
(1st) day of each month, except when the first day comes
on Sunday or legal holiday, then on the following day.

Special meetings of the board of directors may be called
by tHe president when he may deem it expedient or neces-
sary, or by the secretary upon the request of any three
members of said board.

Section 2. A majority of the board of directors shall

278 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

constitute a quorum for the transaction of business, but a
less number may adjourn from day to day upon giving
notice to absent members of the said board of said ad-
journment.

Section 3. The board of directors shall have power:

First. To call special meetings of the stockholders
whenever they deem it necessary, by publishing a notice
of such meeting once a week for two weeks preceding such
meeting in some newspaper published in Grand Junction,
Colorado.

Second. To appoint and remove at pleasure all em-
ployes and agents of the association, prescribe their duties,
where the same have not been prescribed by the by-laws
of the association, fix their compensation, and when they
deem it necessary, to require security for the faithful per-
formance of their duties.

Third. To make such rules and regulations not incon-
sistent with the laws of the state of Colorado, and articles
of incorporation, or the by-laws of the association, for the
guidance of the officers and the management of the affairs
of the association.

Fourth. To incur such indebtedness as they may deem
necessary for carrying out the objects and purposes of the
association and to authorize the president and secretary to
make the note of the association with which to raise money
to pay such indebtedness.

Section 4. It shall be the duty of the board of directors:

First. To be caused to be kept a complete record of all
of their meetings and acts, and also the proceedings of the
stockholders, present full statements at the regular meet-
ings of the stockholders, showing in detail the assets and
liabilities of the association, and the condition of the af-
fairs in general.

Second. To supervise all acts of the officers and em-
ployes, require the secretary, treasurer and manager to
keep full and accurate books of account of their respective
business.

By-Laws of Grand Junction Fruit Growers' Ass'n 279

Article IV

Section 1. At the regular meeting in the month of Jan-
uary of each year the directors shall declare such dividends
upon the capital stock, to all the stockholders then appear-
ing of record, as may be warranted by the net earnings of
the association for the preceding year.

Article V

Section 1. The board of directors may, whenever they
shall deem it necessary, place on sale so much of the cap-
ital stock of the association as may be necessary to raise
funds for the- purpose of carrying out the objects and pur-
poses of the organization of the association, such stock to
be sold only upon the following conditions:

First. That not more than three hundred (300) shares
thereof be sold to any one person, firm or association of
persons.

Second. That such stock be sold to fruit growers in
Grand Valley.

Third. That such stock be sold at not less than par
value of five dollars ($5) per share.

Article VI

Section 1. The annual meeting of the stockholders for
the election of directors shall be held on the third (3rd)
Saturday in January each year, but if, for any reason, it
should not be held on such day, it may then be held on any
day subsequent thereto as hereinafter provided.

Section 2. The board of directors shall be elected by
the stockholders at the regular annual meeting. Public
notice of the time and place of holding such meeting and
election shall be published not less than ten (10) days
prior thereto, in some newspaper of general circulation
printed in Grand Junction and the said election shall be
made by such of the stockholders as shall attend for that
purpose, either in person or by proxy, providing the ma-
jority of the outstanding stock is represented. If a ma-

280 The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book

jority of the outstanding stock shall not be represented,
such meeting may be adjourned by the stockholders pres-
ent for a period not exceeding sixty (60) days. All elec-
tions shall be by ballot, and each stockholder shall be en-
titled to as many votes as he or she owns shares of stock
in said association; provided, however, that no person who
is not himself a stockholder shall be allowed to represent
by proxy any stockholder in the said association.

The persons receiving the greatest number of votes shall
be the directors for the ensuing year, and until their suc-
cessors are elected and qualified.

Article VII

Section 1. Certificates of stock may be transferred af:
any time by the holders thereof, or by attorneys in fact or
legal representatives. Such transfers shall be made by in-
dorsement on the certificate of stock and surrender of
same; provided, such transfer shall not be valid until same
shall have been noted in the proper form on the books of
the association. The surrendered certificates shall be can-
celed before a new certificate in lieu thereof shall be is-
sued, and no transfer of any share of stock shall be valid
or allowed upon the books of the association upon which
any deferred payments are due and unpaid, or which has
not been sold and transferred in accordance with the pro-
visions of the by-laws of the association.

Section 2. Any stockholder desiring to dispose of his
stock in the said association shall deposit the same with the
secretary of the association, and the same shall be sold by
the secretary at not less than par for the account of such
stockholder within sixty (60) days from date of such de-
posit, under the restrictions of section 1, article V, of these
by-laws: provided, that if the secretary shall not have sold
such stock at the expiration of sixty days, then such stock
may be returned to the stockholder and disposed of by
him, without restriction or limitation by the association.

Article VIII
Section 1. All members of the association are required

By-Laws of Grand Junction Fruit-Growers' Ass'n 281

to market all of their fruit through the association and
bear their proportionate share of the expenses of handling
same.

Section 2. Any member may have the privilege of sell-
ing his own fruit at the orchard, but no sales of fruit shall
be made to a dealer in fruit, or to any person why buys
to ship outside the county. In case of sale of the entire
crop of any particular fruit or fruits, by reporting the same
to the association, one-half (J/>) only of the regular com-
mission will be charged.

Section 3. Any member having any grievance or cause
for complaint as to treatment of his fruit by the associa-
tion can appeal to the board of directors, whose decision
shall be final.

Section 4. All members must pack their fruit for ship-
ping in a neat and workman-like manner, and pack in
standard sized packages, as adopted and in general use by
the association, having placed their name thereon.

Article IX

Section 1. A purchaser of stock of this, the Grand Junc-
tion Fruit Growers' Association, shall hereafter receive of
the profits of the association in proportion to the money
he has invested.

Index

283

INDEX

Page

Altitude 22

Ammoniacal Copper Car-
bonate 131

Anthracnose, Currant 162

Anthracnose, Grape 164

Anthracnose, Raspberry.... 163

Apple Curculio 143

Apple Maggot 137

Apples, Packing 92

Apples, Picking 68

Apples, Quick Maturing... 40

Apples, Thinning 65

Asparagus Beetle 154

Bagworm 150

Baits, Poisoned 127

Baldwin Fruit Spot 157

Bark Louse 137

Barrels, Packing Apples in 92

Beans, Packing 80

Bean Weevil 155

Beets, Packing 82

Berry Worm 153

Bitter Rot 155

Blackberries 204

Blackberry Diseases 163

Black Knot 162

Black Peach Aphis 149

Black Rot 164

Black Rot 158

Blight 168

Blister Mite 148

Blotch 156

Borers 143

Bordeaux Mixture 130

Boxes, Packing Apples in 94

Boxes, Size of 95

Brown Mite 137

Brown Rot 166

Brown Spot 157

Brown-Tail Moth 138

Buckets 70

Buckwheat 46

Budding 256

Budding 264

Bud Moth .137

Cabbage, Packing 79

Cane Blight, Currant 162

Cane Blight, Raspberry.. ..163

Page

Canker Worm 139

Canning Fruits and Vege-
tables ...239

Carbon Bisulphide 124

Celery, Packing 82

Cheap Trees 36

Cherry Diseases 162

Cigar Case Bearer 139

Clearing Sage Brush 33

Cleft Graft 262

Clover, Crimson 46

Clover, Red 47

Clover Sweet 47

Codling Moth 139

Cover Crops 45

Cover Crop and Tillage.... 40

Cowpea 47

Crops for Tilled Orchard.. 42

Crown Borer 152

Crown Gall 158

Crown Gall, Raspberry 163

Cucumbers, Packing 81

Cultivation, Excessive 40

Curculio, Plum 141

Currants 208

Currant Diseases 162

Danger Points _. 61

Dewberry 210

Directions for Processing 245

Downy Mildew 164

Dropsy 163

Environment, Influence of 49
Evaporating Apples 271

Fall Web Worm.... ....144

Fall Plowing ... 26

Fillers 39

Fillers, Small Fruits 40

Flea Beetle 152

Fly Speck 158

Formalin 132

Fungous Diseases 155

Fungicides 129

Frost Fighting, Develop-
ment of 52

Frosty Mildew 167

Fruit-Growers' Ass'ns, By-
Laws, Grand Junction....273

Index

Page

Grafting 256

Grafting Wax 270

Grapes 212

Grape-Cane Gall Maker.. ..154

Grape-Cane Girdler ....154

Grape Insects 152

Grapes, Packing 86

Grapes, Sex in 217

Grading 77

Grading Machines 96

Green Aphis of the Apple 134

Green Manures 45

Green Manuring Crops...... 18

Gypsy Moth 145

Hamilton Grading Ma-
chine 96

Hard and Power Pumps.. ..113

Harvesting 67

Harvesting Blackberries 207

Healing of Wounds ..179

Hellebore 128

How to Plant.... 37

Hydrocyanic Acid Gas 124

Insecticides ....121

Irrigated Land, Preparing 26
Irrigation, Preventing

Frost By :..... 52

Kerosene Emulsion ..122

Ladders 70

Land, Clearing Sage Brush 33

Land, New ....: 17

Land, Old Pasture 18

Land, Preparing Irrigated 26

Laying Out Orchards 26

Laying Out Orchard on

Rough Land 31

Lead Arsenate 126

Leaf Curl 167

Leaf Folder 152

Leaf Hopper ., 153

Leaf Roller 150

* Leaf Spot 162

Leaf Spot, .Strawberry .172

Lettuce, Packing 80

Lime-Sulphur, Self-Boiled 132

l Lime-Sulphur 123

Location for Commercial

Orchards 20

Manure 18

Mechanical Pickers ..,., , 69

Meecham's "A" Level . 32

Mildew ,.. 159

Miscible Oils ...123

New Land ..17-23

Nursery Stock •.

Page

Oak, Scrub 17

One-Year-Old Trees 35

Orchard Heating 48

Orchards, Laying Out 26

Orchard Soils 15

Oil and Coal 55

Orchard Heaters, Distri-
bution .....;.... 57

Orchard Heaters, Number

to Use 56-58

Orchard Heating, Cost of 59

Orange Rust 163

Oyster Shell Scale 146

Packages, Modern 76

Packers Handle But One

Size 102

Packing ..- 76

Packing Apples in Barrels 92
Packing Apples in Boxes 94

Packing the Boxes 104

Paris Green 126

Peach Blight ; 165

Peach Diseases ...165

Peaches, Grading 89

Peaches, in Boxes 91

Peaches, Limitations 22

Peaches, Packing 87

Peach Scab 167

Peaches, Thinning 66

Pear Diseases ...168

Pear Leaf Blister Mite 148

Pear Slug .....148

Pears, Thinning 66

Peas, Canada Field 46

Peas, Packing 80

Planting Blackberries 205

Planting Grapes 213

Planting Systems ....27-29-31

Planting Time 36

Plum Pockets 171

Plowing Bearing Orchard 44

Plowing, Effect of , 44

Plowing Orchard Land 24

Plowing Sage Brush 35

Plowing Young Orchard.. 43

Picking Bags .. 70

Picking Peaches 73

Picking Pears '. 74

Potatoes, Packing 78

Powdery Mildew 162

Powdery Mildew, Grape.. ..165
Preparing Irrigated Land 26
Preparing Land for Or-
chard ..... .7 23

Preparing Land for Straw-
berries 227

Preparing Soil for Black-
berries 205

Index

285

Page
Pruning —

Apple 181

Two-Year-Old Apple 183

Peach 185

Cherry 191

Apricots 193

Blackberries 206

Grapes 219

Brambles 194

Pears 193

Principles of 173

Processing 243

Processing, Directions for 245
Profits in Fruit-Growing 199
Propagation, Blackberries 205
Pyrethrum 125

Radishes, Packing 82

Rail Drag 34

Railroad Worm 137

Raspberries - 220

Raspberry Cane Borer 154

Raspberry Diseases 163

Red Spiders 150

Resin-Lime Mixture 121

Resin Wash 128

Renewing Strawberry

Field 234

Rose Chafer 153

Root Louse 151

Root Rot 160

Rules for Naming Fruits 253

Rust ;.-.. 159

Rye, Winter 46

Sage Brush 33

San Jose Scale 147

Sawfly 151

Scab 160

Scale Insects 146

Scurfy Scale , 146

Sex in Strawberries 235

Shade Crops 44-45

Shallow Rooting 24

Shed Packing Strawberries 86

Site for Orchards 18

Slug 151

Small Fruits, Packing 83

Smudges 54

Soils for Orchard 15

Soils, Plowing 18

Soils. Stony 17

Soil, Virgin 17

Page
Soda Bordeaux Mixture.. ..130

Sod Mulch 40

Soluble Oils 123

Sooty Blotch 158

Spraying Ill

Spraying Materials 119

Spring Planting 36

Step Ladders and Picking

Bags 71

Sterilization .242

Stony Land 17

Strawberries 223

Strawberries Between

Trees 43

Strawberry Diseases 172

Strawberry Insects 150

Strawberries, Packing 83

Strawberries, Planting 230

Strawberry Soils *.226

Strawberries, Time to

Plant 229

Strawberry Weevil 151

Summer Pruning 178

Sun Scalding 44

Sweet Potatoes, Packing.... 79

Tanglefoot 125

Transportation 21

Temperature, Freezing 61

Tent Caterpillar 147

Thinning Fruit 64

Tillage 40

Time to Plant * 36

Tobacco 122

Tomatoes, Packing 81

Twig Blight 158

Two-Year-Old Trees 35

Varieties to Plant ... ....248

Vegetable Insects 154

Vegetables in Orchard 43

Vetch, Winter.... 46

Virgin Soil 17

Water, Preventing Frosts 52
Winter Protection, Black-
berries 208

Winter Protection, Rasp-
berries 222

Winter Protection, Straw-
berries 233

Wiping Apples 96

Woolly Aphis 134

Wounds, Healing of 179

Books on Agriculture

GENERAL FARMING

American Farm Book Allen .....$2.00

Animal Breeding Shaw 1.50

Book of Alfalfa Coburn 2.00

Cereals in America Hunt 1.75

Clovers, How to Grow Them Shaw 1.00

Cyclopedia of Agriculture (4 vols.) Bailey 20.00

Elements of Agriculture Welborn 75

Farm Appliances 50

Farm Buildings 2.00

Farm Conveniences 1 .00

Farm Grasses Spill man 1.00

Farm Machinery and Farm Motors Davidson-Chase 2.00

Forage Crops Voorhees 1 .50

Ginseng Kains 50

How Crops Feed Johnson 1.50

How Crops Grow Johnson 1.50

Principles of Agriculture Bailey 1 .25

SOIL

Fertilizers Voorhees $1.25

Fertility of the Land Roberts 1.50

First Principle of Soil Fertility Vivian 1.00

Irrigation Farming Wilcox 2.00

Irrigation Institutions Mead 1.25

Soil and Crops of the Farm Morrow- Hunt 1.00

Soils • Hilgard 4.00

The Soil King (.50

FRUIT-GROWING

American Apple Orchard Waugh $(.00

American Fruit Culturist Thomas 2.50

American Horticultural Manual (vol. I) Budd-Hansen 1.50

American Horticultural Manual (vol. 2) Budd-Hansen 1.50

Citrus Fruits and Their Culture Hume 2.50

Conquest of Arid America Smythe 1.50

Dwarf Fruit Trees Waugh 50

Forcing Book Bailey 1.25

Fruit Garden Barry 1.50

Fruit-Growing in Arid Regions Paddock-Whipple 1.50

Fruit Harvesting, Storing and Marketing Waugh 1.00

Horticulturist'? Rule Book Bailey 75

Books on Agriculture — Continued

Nursery Book Bailey $1 50

Nut Culturist Fuller 1.50

Peach Culture Fulton 1.00

Pear Culture for Profits Quinn 1.00

Plums and Plum Culture Waugh 1.50

Popular Fruit-Growing Greene 1.00

Principles of Fruit-Growing Bailey 1.50

Propagation of Plants Fuller 1.50

Pruning Book Bailey 1.50

Quince Culture Meech 1.00

Successful Fruit Culture Maynard 1.00

Systematic Pomology Waugh 1 .00

DISEASES OF PLANTS AND TREES

Bacteria in Relation to Country Life Lipman $1.50

Disease in Plants Ward 1.60

Fumigation Methods Johnson 1.00

Fungous Diseases of Plants Duggar 2.50

Plant Diseases Massee 1.60

Spraying of Plants Lodeman 1.25

Text Book on Entomology Packard 4.50

Insects and Insecticides Weed 1.50

SMALL FRUITS

American Grape Growing and Wine Making Husman $1.50

Bush Fruits Card 1.50

Cape Cod Cranberries Webb 40

Cranberry Culture White 1.00

Grape Culturist Fuller 1.50

Small Fruit Culturist Fuller 1 .00

Strawberry Culturist Fuller 25

GARDENING

Asparagus Hexamer $0.50

Bean Culture Sevey 50

Book of Vegetables French 1.75

Cabbage-Cauliflower " Allen 50

Celery Culture Beattie .50

Mushrooms, How to Grow Them Falconer 1.00

New Onion Culture Greiner 50

New Rhubarb Morse 50

Onions 20

Potato, The Fraser 75

Practical Garden Book Bailey 1.00

Sweet Potato Culture Fitz 50

Tomato Culture Tracy 50

Truck Farming in South Davis 1.00

Vegetable Gardening Bailey .. 1.50

Books on Agriculture — Continued
POULTRY

Ducks and Geese $0.75

Eggs and Egg Farms 50

Plymouth Rocks 1 .25

Poultry Doctor Robinson 50

Poultry Houses and Fixtures 50

Reliable Poultry Remedies 25

Turkeys Myrick 1. 00

Wyandottes 1.25

MISCELLANEOUS

A B C & X Y Z of Bee Culture Root $1.50

American Sugar Industry Myrick 1.50

Cement Worker's Hand Boek 50

Chemistry of Plant and Animal Life Snyder , 1.25

Cider Maker's Hand Book Trowbridge 1. 00

Cyclopedia of American Horticulture (4 vols.) Bailey 20.00

Evolution of Our Native Fruits Bailey 2.00

Farmer's Business Hand Book Roberts 1.25

How to Cheose a Farm Hunt 1.75

Landscape Gardening Waugh....' 50

New Creations in Plant Life Harwood 1.75

Plant Breeding ....Bailey 1.25

Rural Wealth and Welfare Fairchild 1.25

Survival of the Unlike Bailey 2.00

The Farmstead Roberts 1.50

Any of the books listed on the preceding pages can be
obtained at the price named, from

THE FRUIT-GROWER,

ST. JOSEPH, MISSOURI

THIS BOOK IS DUE ON THE LAST DATE
STAMPED BELOW

AN INITIAL FINE OF 25 CENTS

WILL BE ASSESSED FOR FAILURE TO RETURN
THIS BOOK ON THE DATE DUE. THE PENALTY
WILL INCREASE TO SO CENTS ON THE FOURTH
DAY AND TO $I.OO ON THE SEVENTH DAY
OVERDUE.

APR 5 1934

407702

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LIBRARY