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Cornell University — 


Library 


OF THE 


Mew Work State College of Agriculture 


SB 


Cornell Universit 


The principles of fruit-growing, with ap 


ii 


Cornell University 


Library 


The original of this book is in 
the Cornell University Library. 


There are no known copyright restrictions in 
the United States on the use of the text. 


http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924002834541 


Che Kural Science Series 


Eprrep sy L. H. Barer 


THE PRINCIPLES OF FRUIT. 
GROWING 


THE MACMILLAN COMPANY 
NEW YORK + BOSTON + CHICAGO * DALLAS 
ATLANTA + SAN FRANCISCO 


MACMILLAN & CO., Limrrep 
LONDON + BOMBAY - CALCUTTA 
MELBOURNE 


THE MACMILLAN CO. OF CANADA, Lrp. 
TORONTO 


THE PRINCIPLES 
OF FRUIT-GROWING 


WITH APPLICATIONS 
TO PRACTICE 


BY 
L. H. BAILEY 


WITH 186 {LLUSTRATIONS FROM ORIGINAL DRAWINGS 


dPew Work 


THE MACMILLAN COMPANY 
LONDON: MACMILLAN & CO., Lro. 


1916 


All rights reserved 
Loh. 


G 
D6 355 
Gis 
pis 


@, él. 
Ag. ¥ 6% 


| 
CopYricut, 1897, 1915 
By L. H. BAILEY 


Set up and electrotyped June, 1897 
Reprinted July, 1898; July, 1900; July, 1901; June, 1902; 
February, 1904; January, 1905; January, November, 1906; 
October, 1907; June, 1908: January, July, 1909; January, 1910; 
January, November, 1911; April, 1912; March, 1913; 
February, i914 
Completely 1evisea edition. Published february, 1915 
Reprinted September, 1915; January, August, 1916 


PREFACE 


This book was first published in 1897, seventeen years 
ago. The second edition was called for in 1898, and the 
preface for it was written in the Tyrol, where I was then 
looking into the interesting fruit-growing of certain 
regions. Aside from minor changes in the text, this edition 
included an addition to the appendix of “remarks on 
classifying and describing fruits.”’ The third edition ap- 
peared in 1900, with no change except in details; and the 
fourth in 1901. The present issue of the book, which is the 
twentieth, is a new work, it having been rearranged and 
reset, and largely rewritten. 

In the years since the book first appeared, much new 
knowledge has come to the aid of the fruit-grower. The 
advanced opinions of that day on the merits of tillage 
over hay and sod have now been affirmed by experience 
and experiments, although the sod-mulch method has 
proved itself under certain circumstances. The many 
investigations of insects and fungi, and the means of 
attacking them, have resulted in a new literature and 
more certain means of control. We are beginning a new 
line of approach ‘to the difficult problem of protection 
from frost. We have more rational recommendations 
to make on the fertilizing of fruit-lands. We are begin- 
ning in many ways to adapt practices of caring for the 

(vii) 


viii Preface 


plants to the better understood physiology of the plants 
themselves. The older and traditional opinions and 
notions are gradually giving way to the results of careful 
investigation. 

In this edition I have had the great advantage of the 
advice of many persons. I have freely incorporated the 
work of others, as appears in the text. Particularly am I 
indebted to Prof. C. 8. Wilson and Prof. W. H. Chandler, 
of the Department of Pomology in the New York State 
College of Agriculture at Cornell University. The one 
has read all the proof in galleys and the other has read it 
all in pages. They have helped me over many doubtful 
places, and have thereby made the book more worth the 


‘ while. 
L. H. BAILEY. 


Irnaca, N. Y., December 25, 1914. 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER I 
Pages 
(ue Frevp oF Inquiny ... 2... 2.2... 137 
INVENTORY OF FRUITS ..... 2... 2... ee ee 2 8 
Tur Course or DEvELOPMENT or a Fruit Recion . . 8- 10 
THe D&TERMINANTS IN FRUIT-GROWING e ~ ee » 10 20 
The temperature determinant ........... 11-12 
The moisture determinant .. . at in Datdey 12- 13 
The soil determinant... ............. 13815 
The subsoil. . . ai eae ¥ 2a ee >) 15 16 
The parasite determinant . i ee Me Rae me ee Oe 
Tue OvUTLOOK FOR FRUIT-GROWING ic @ ee we BO Be 
Tue ORGANIZING OF THE BUSINESS .. ..... .. 24 31 
Cost-accounting . 4 roee we ee Se a1 
Tue Two Kinps oF CoMMERCIAL FRUIT-GROWING . . . 31- 34 
GARDEN AND AMATEUR FRUIT-GROWING ....... . 34 36 
Tur GENERAL PRACTICE AND THE SPECIAL PrRAcTIcE. . 36— 37 
CHAPTER II 

Tar Location anp Its CuimaATE .......... 88-63 
Tue Puace . rae ae ah Sew agp Ee Ace 39- 51 

Location with reference to market .......+.-. 40 
Location with reference to weather... ...... 41- 51 
Rain at blossoming time ........-.-.. 41-42 
Wand eo oe en ge Oo eee ee ata gt ie ee a: Pe A 
Low temperature .. 2.2.1 ee eee eee AE 48 
Atmospheric drainage SWS. ROL as ae 49- 51 
Tur SITE FOR THE FRUIT-PLANTATION.. ...... . 52-55 
The aspect ..... eek tee we ew ee 58 55 


(ix) 


x Contents 


Tue Location anp Its Cuimars, Continued Pages 

WINDBREAKS FOR FRUIT-PLANTATIONS. ....... . 55- 63 
Benefits ..... be Gr A Ral Re aw 56 
Mnjuriess! (ye. ke ww ee BO . 56 

Forests and fruit-growing ..........+ee.e 57- 58 

General statement. oe 8 Re BOE | ” 58- 60 

How to make the andbrests St ante 46 sa ee es 60 63 


CHAPTER III 


Tue TILLAGE oF Frurt-Lanps .... oo « » + » « 64-108 


The case of the early apple Stuns sae @ & @ » G7 69 
Sod orchards .. . 6 gt an we! Rate Sah ee, pe DS TZ 
Allowable use of aod. Wise eae Fac calak cages iv ay Sa ap tae See aus 
Tue PuitosopuHy ofr TILLAGE ........... . T5- 84 
The structure of the soil . . ......... 77- 81 
The moisture of the soil ‘ é 81- 84 
Use oF THE Various ToOLs IN be elect TO itanarai 
BAVING «5s 6 ee KR ee Re we ee 84- 91 
Plowing to save moisture... .......... 84— 85 
Harrowing to save moisture. ge Choe? A ee BE ee 85-— 88 
Cultivators and moisture-saving. ......... 88- 89 
The roller, in its relation to aoilanoisiues wee ew es 89 91 
SUGGESTIONS FoR THE TILLING OF FRUIT-LANDS . ... 91-102 
Preparation of theland.........4... . 91- 94 
Subsequent tillage . ............244.4-. 94— 97 
Specific advice on tillage . .... oe + ta ee « BTHRO2 
CropPING THE PLANTATION ...... ss + « » . 102-106 
Qrehard crops «<a @ 8 a ee we A wa Se 104-106 
IRRIGATION OF FRUIT-LANDS .. 1... ee ee eee 106-108 
Irrigation in the East ........... . « « 106-108 
CHAPTER IV 
Tue Enricuine of Fruir-Lanps ........ . .109-152 
The land is to be kept at work . . . ..... . . 109-112 
The lesson of nursery lands ........... . 112-113 
COVER-CROPS.. 6 ee 113-126 
The kinds of cover-crops . ww www en . 116-123 
List and rates of seeding of cover-crop x plants soe » A2e 
Average quantity of seed to the acre... . .. , . 124-125 


Weights of the seeds of cover-plants ........ 125-126 


Contents 


Tue EnricHine or Frurt-Lanps, Continued 
Rotation OF PLANTATIONS 
StsaBLe MANURES .. 


CHEMICAL FERTILIZERS . A 
Apple-orchard experiments 
What to do : 

Individual wlanta A 
Recommendations for apples. 


Other suggestions for apples and pears . 


A test plat for apples . 
Peaches 
Plums, apricots, dhersies 
Quinces. . 
Grapes . . 
Berry bushes 
The cranberry . . 
Strawberries 

How to apply . 


CHAPTER V 


Tue PLANTS AND THE PLANTING 


Tue CuHoicre oF VARIETIES 
Self-sterile varieties . . poe 
Pears. . 
Apples .. 
Plums 
Grapes .. 
Scoring the varieties . . 


How did the varieties of fruits stulnsite : 


Tue SECURING OF THE PLANTS . 
Dwarfs vs. standards . . 
Pedigree plants 
Stocks . 

Stock for top-worldnw. 
Buying the trees . 

Tur SETTING OF THE PLANTS 
When to plant. . 
Distance apart ‘ 
Double-planting; fillers . 
How to plant 
Trimming the trees 


x1 


Pages 


. 126-129 
. 129-131 


. 131-152 


. 134-140 


140-151 


. 142-143 
. 143-144 
. 144-145 
. 145-146 


. 146-147 


. 


- 147 
. 147 
. 147-149 
. 149-150 


150 


. 150-151 
. 152 


. 153-190 
. 153-164 


. 156-160 


. 157-158 
. 158 
. 158 
. 158 


. . 161-162 
. 162-164 


. 164-173 


. . 167-168 
. 168-169 


. 169-171 


. 171-172 


. 172-173 
. 174-190 


. . 174-176 
. . 176-178 
. . 178-181 
. . 181-184 

. 184-190 


Xl ‘Contents 


CHAPTER VI 
Pages 
Tue Layine Out oF THE PLANTATION se ee oe . 191-226 
Conrour PLANTING. ... ....ees fd oe oh B92 
OrcHARD SYSTEMS... .. 1. 0 1 ee ee ew ee 192-194 
Maxine roe Rows SrraicGHt ........-.+.4. 194-206 
To lay out witha plow .. .......+468- 198-201 
Laying out withaline .... .....e.s . 201 
Another line method .......  ...... 201-202 
Staking methods. . beh 6, GE Melee Se 202-206 
Derarts or OrcHaRp Lay-outs . we te 1 a 4 « 206-217 
Lining-in method. . . Gan ee Ses. Seis a ~ » . . 212-213 
Wire-compass method . ............ 213-214 
Tue Famity FRUIT-PLANTATION ....... . 217-221 
Maps anD REcoRDS. .... 6 1) ee ee eee . 221-226 
Labels: 2404064 4 4 2 « = @ % a a ce . 222-226 
CHAPTER VII 
SuBsEQUENT CARE OF THE FRUIT-PLANTATION . . . . . 227-287 
PROMING 2 - ese ae, ee OE RT OR ES ee SS 230-241 
The bearing woud Ga es ge eS a 232-234 
The kind of top 2... 6 8 ee ew . . 2384-236 
What toremove ............ oe « « 236 
Renewing old trees yD pruning; ‘‘dehorning” .. . . 236-237 
Heading-in .... SED eee Abs AMEE by Wye «6 . 238-241 
Tue THINNING OF THE FRUIT ........+.2.2. 241-250 
Thinning the apple. ..... ee a a - + . 2438-248 
Thinning other fruits . . ee Be ak Sak Cae se? a6 oe wv DAB=249) 
Howtothin.. ... ..... To ae eS 249-250 
PROTECTING PLANTATIONS FROM Frost ...... . . 251-273 
How to predict frost .. 2... 2... ae eee » 262-255 
Mulching to enable plants is escape frost... . . . 255-257 
Covering the plants to protect from frost ...... 257-259 
Whitewashing as a protection ........ . . . 259 
Making currents of air... . i Rw es « 260° 
Adding vapor of water to the air; : flooding a a ae 260-261 
Explosives for frost and hail ........... 261-263 


The making of smudges . . . . «1 « so « © « « 263-265 
Heating the plantation ...........+68. 265-273 


Contents 


SUBSEQUENT CARE OF THE FRUIT-PLANTATION, Continued 
SpeciaL CaRE OF THE PLANTS . 

Staking young trees 
Watering oi aa ae a a a a we A 
Bark-bound trees... 2... 2... ee ee 
Scraping trees . . ee ae ie ew Be Sy 
Whitewashing trees ... 1... 1. ee ee eee 
RR GINS: Gee ake: eae Goadehe ss 
Top-grafting licatiine inees ee a ee ee ee” 
Grafting-wax ........-+6+86-. seth dey te 
Bagging fruits Be mide Wes best, op aayae! “a GO Jes Shae ae 


Winter preparations . . ... 1 1 ee ee eee 
RenovaTiInc Otp ORCHARDS . . 1. 1. ee ee ee 
Why are orchards barren? ..... iss Can dane ab Ba 8 


CHAPTER VIII 


ACCIDENTS AND INJURIES ........+ 28-6 


MiscELLANEOUS INJURIES. 
Depredations of live-stock 
Birds . 
Rodents. . 
Girdled trees 
Hail injuries 
Sun-scald . . 
Borers . 
Cankers and bad: spots: wounds eae 
Root-galls . 

WINTER-KILLING . . 
Winter-killing of ie wood. 
Frost cankers . . bona as See ase 
Winter-killing of he feaitebuds 


Insury By FRosts IN THE GRowINnG SEASON 
What is an injurious degree of cold? 


Tue Errect oF Rain oN THE SETTING oF FRUIT 


xiii 


Pages 


. . 273-283 

» . 273-274 
. 274 

. . 274-276 
. 276-277 


277 
277-279 
279-281 


. 281-282 


282 


- 282-283 


. 283-287 
. 286-287 


- 288-318 
. . 289-299 
. 289 
. 289-290 
. 290 
. . 290-292 
. 292 
. 292-294 
. 294-296 
. 296-298 
. 298-299 
. . 299-307 
. . 299-304 
. 304-305 
. 306-307 
. 307-317 
. 313-317 


. 817-318 


xiv Contents 


CHAPTER IX 

Pages 
Tue SpraYING oF Frurt-PLANTATIONS ..... . - .319-363 
Tue Kinps or DIFFICULTIES .......-+ +086: 322-324 
Speciric Remarks ON SPRAYING .......+.2.--. 324-333 
Lists aND ForMuLAS ...... ae « . 833-336 

Synopsis of the principal tirowitleradtans:t in the choice of 
a power sprayer and nozzles. ........ 334-336 
INSECTICIDES AND FUNGICIDES ....... . . . 836-343 

Leapine Fruit Insects anp Diseases Toat ARE Con- 
TROLLED BY SPRAYING . 4 oe « . . . 843-361 
ARSENICAL PorsoniIne oF Fruir TREES. ....... 361-363 

CHAPTER X 
HARVESTING AND MARKETING THE Fruir ..... . .364-422 
Picxine Fruits. . , ‘ é ‘ . . « 865-380 
When to pick .. . oes ee ‘ . . 8365-369 
PENS ou. a aS oe ee P . 366-367 
PRearsive ev a are A ~ ees. . 867-368 
Stone-fruits. ..... “4% ae ee » . 868-369 
Howtopick ........ 2-3 wee ee « 870-874 
Ladders for picking ....... 6 ag . 2. . 874-377 
Fruit-pickers and harvesters. ........ . . . 877-380 
Necessity of hand-picking. = ..... «« «980 

CaRING FoR THE Fruit Arrer PICKING . soe ee  « 880-383 
Keeping records with the pickers ig eo ws > « BROOKS 
THe GRADING AND PackING oF FRUIT. . . 2. . . . 883-407 
What is first-class fruit? ..........00. . 383-384 
The gradings 2: sk ww & & ew a ww & BX . . . 884-385 
The packages... 0 7 1 1 ew ee ee te ee 386-392 
How to‘pack 6. ce es .» . . 392-400 
Box-packing of fruits . er oe ae 400-407 
Farm PAcCKING-HOUSES AND APPLIANCES... .... . . 407-413 
Srorinec Fruits at THE Farm : 2... 4138-422 
Requisites for domestic storage wathont 1C@ a x a 4 s 415-418 


Farm storage buildings. . . . . ce ig Su Bas be « . «418-422 


THE PRINCIPLES OF FRUIT- 
GROWING 


CHAPTER I 


THE FIELD OF INQUIRY 


Ir 1s natural for a fruit-plant to bear. There are cer- 
tain hindrances, however, that must be overcome; and 
the better the conditions under which the plant is placed, 
the better will be the results in the production of accept- 
able fruit. 

The whole subject of producing fruit is known as 
fruit-growing or pomology. This subject comprises the 
art of raising and handling fruits and fruit-plants, and 
the applications of the various sciences thereto. It is 
impossible exactly to define what a fruit is, in the sense 
in which the term is understood in pomological writings. 
It is best delimited by giving a list of the products that 
are commonly known as fruits. If a definition were 
attempted of the pomological use of the word, it would 
be approximately correct to say that a fruit is the edible ~ 
product mostly of a woody or a tree-like plant—as of a: 
tree, bush, or vine—that is intimately associated in its 
development with the flower. This conception of a fruit 
is unlike the botanical idea, for the botanist defines the 
fruit to be the ripened pericarp and attachments. It 
should be said, however, that this confusion in terminology 

A qd) 


2 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


is not the fault of the horticulturist, for the botanists 
have given a special or technical meaning to a common- 
language word. The word belongs primarily to general 
literature and horticulture, and if the botanist desires 
to impress it into other service, he must be prepared to 
accept the confusion that arises. 

The “fruit” of the pomologist is not defined in terms 
of botanical structure. It may be a ripened pericarp (or 
ovary), as in the currant, gooseberry, cranberry, grape, 
plum, peach, orange, olive; an ovary or pericarp im- 
mersed in a receptacle, as the pomes, comprising apples, 
pears, quinces; a greatly enlarged fleshy receptacle bear- 
ing achenes, as the strawberry; an aggregation of peri- 
carps, as in the raspberry, or combined with the recep- 
tacle, as in the blackberry; an aggregation of thickened 
flowers and flower-parts, as in the mulberry and 
pineapple; a nut inclosed in a husk, as in hazel and 
chestnut. 

Among fruit-growers, several large classes of fruits 
are recognized, as stone-fruits, pome-fruits, citrous 
fruits, berries, grapes, and nuts; or the division may be 
orchard- or tree-fruits, grapes, small-fruits or berries. 
None of these classifications is inclusive or exact; and it 
would not be profitable to enlarge on the discussion here. 


INVENTORY OF FRUITS 


Pomological fruits may be roughly classified under 
four heads from the cultural point of view,—tree-fruits, 
vine-fruits, small-fruits, and herb-like fruits. The follow- 
ing is an inventory of the staple fruits of the United States 
and Canada, and of many of those lesser known species 
which, having been tried in this territory, either give 


The Species of Fruits 3 


promise of successful cultivation here or have been more 
or less prominent subjects of discussion or sale: 


CLASS I. Orcuarp* Cuururs, or Tree-Frurr Cutrors. 


Susciass 1. Pomaceous fruits. 

4 Apple, Pyrus Malus. 

* Crab-apple, Pyrus baccata and P. prunifolia. 
Prairie crab, Pyrus ioensis. 
Atlantic crab, Pyrus coronaria. 

y Pear, Pyrus communis. 

v Sand pear, Pyrus serotina. 

‘;Quince, Cydonia oblonga. 
Chinese quince, Chenomeles sinensis. 
Japan quince, Chenomeles japonica. 
Maule’s quince, Chenomeles Maulei. 
Medlar, Mespilus germanica. 
Loquat, EHriobotrya japonica. 


Susciass 2. Drupaceous or stone-fruits. 


¥ Common plum, Prunus domestica. 
- Bullace, mirabelle and damson plum, Prunus insititia. 
~ Cherry and myrobalan plum, Prunus cerasifera. 
~ Japan plum, Prunus triflora. 
? American plum, Prunus americana. 
Canada plum, Prunus nigra. 
/Hortulana plum, Prunus hortulana. 
Chickasaw plum, Prunus angustifolia and P. Munsoniana. 
Sand plum, Prunus Watsont. 
Beach plum, Prunus maritima. 
Pacific plum, Prunus subcordata. 
« Apricot plum, Prunus Simonii. 
ze Sweet cherry, Prunus Avium. 
, Sour cherry, Prunus Cerasus. 
Sand cherry, Prunus Besseyt. 
¢ Peach and nectarine, Prunus Persica. 
_Apricot, Prunus armeniaca. 
Japan apricot, Prunus Mume. 
Purple apricot, Prunus dasycarpa. 
*Orchard, an inclosure, assemblage or plantation of fruit trees. Oranges are 


commonly said to be grown in ‘‘groves.’’ The word orchard is not used in this 
country for the shrub fruits. 


4 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


Suscxass 3. Citrous fruits. 


Common or sweet orange, Citrus sinensis. 

Sour or Seville orange, Citrus Aurantium. 

King orange, mandarin, tangerine, and satsuma orange, Citrus 
nobilis. 

Calamondin orange, Citrus mitis. 

Citron, Citrus Medica. 

Lemon, Citrus Limonia. 

Lime, Citrus aurantifolia. 

Grapefruit, Shaddock or Pomelo, Citrus grandis. 

Kumquat, Citrus japonica. 

Trifoliate orange, Poncirus trifoliata. 

Glycosmis, Glycosmis aurantiaca. 

Lime berry, Triphasia trifoliata. 

White sapote, Casimiroa edulis. 


Susciass 4. Moraceous fruits. 
Fig, Ficus Carica, F. Sycomorus. 
White (and Russian) mulberry, Morus alba. 
Black mulberry, Morus nigra. 
‘Red mulberry, Morus rubra. 
Downing mulberry, Morus multicaulis. 
Japan mulberry, Morus japonica. 
Bread-fruit, Artocarpus incisa. 
Jack-fruit, Artocarpus integrifolia. 


Susciass 5. Annonaceous fruits. 


Sour-sop, Annona muricata. 

Sweet-sop, sugar-apple, Annona squamosa. 
Cherimoya, Annona Cherimola. 
Custard-apple, Annona reticulata. 
Pond-apple, Annona glabra. 

And other annonas. 

Northern papaw, Asimina triloba. 


Susciass 6. Myrtaceous fruits. 


Guava, Psidium Guajava, and others. 
Feijoa, pineapple guava, Feijoa Sellowiana. 
Rose-apple, jamrosade, Eugenia Jambos. 
Surinam cherry, Eugenia uniflora. 
Jambolan, Eugenia jambolana. 

And other eugenias. 


The Species of Fruits 5 


Suscrass 7. Sapotaceous fruits. 
Sapodilla, Achras Sapota. 
Marmalade tree, Lucuma mammosa. 
Star-apple, Chrysophyllum Catnito. 
And others. 


Susciass 8. Anacardiaceous fruits, 
Mango, Mangifera indica. 
Jew plum, Spondias dulcis. 
Cashew, Anacardium occidentale. 


Susciass 9. Ebenaceous fruits. 
Kaki (Japan persimmon), Diospyros Kaki. 
Persimmon, Diospyros virginiana. 


Suscrass 10. Leguminous fruits. 
Tamarind, Tamarindus indica. 
‘St. John’s Bread, or Carob, Ceratonia Siliqua. 


Suscrass 11. Nut-fruits (Nuciculture). 

Walnut, Juglans regia. 
Japan walnut, Juglans Steboldiana. 

v Black walnut, Juglans nigra. 

, Butternut, Juglans cinerea. 
And other species of Juglans. 

- Pecan, Carya Pecan. 

v Shellbark hickory, Carya ovata and C. laciniosa. 
And other species of Carya. 
Beechnut, Fagus grandifo"ia. 
European chestnut, Castanea sativa. 

~ American chestnut, Castanea dentata. 
Japan chestnut, Castanea crenata. 
Chinese chestnut, Castanea mollissima. 
Chinquapin, Castanea pumila. 
Filbert, cobnut, Corylus Avellana, C. Colurna, C. pontica, C. 

maxima. 

Hazelnut, Corylus americana, C. rostrata, and others. 
Japan hazelnut, Corylus Sieboldiana. 
Litchi, Litchi chinensis. 
Longyen, Euphoria Longana. 
Ginkgo, Ginkgo biloba. 

~ Almond, Prunus Amygdalus. 
_ Russian almond, Prunus nana. 


6 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


Tropical almond, Terminalia Catappa. 
Pistacio, Pistacto vera. 

Pili nut, Canariwm ovatum. 
Brazil-nut, Bertholletia excelsa. 
Chile-hazel, Gevuina Avellana. 


Susciass 12. Palmaceous fruits. 


Coconut, Cocos nucifera. 
Date, Phenix dactylifera. 
Peach palm, Bactris Gasipaes. 
And other palms. 


_ Susctass 13. Miscellaneous tree-fruits. 


Olive, Olea europxa. 

Pomegranate, Punica Granatum. 
Papaw, Carica Papaya. 

Hovenia, Hovenia dulcis. 

Jujube, Zizyphus Jujuba, and others. 
Myrica, Myrica Nagi (M. rubra). 
Sea-grape, Coccoloba uvifera. 
Otaheite gooseberry, Phyllanthus disticha. 
Spanish lime, Melicocca bijuga. 
Avocado, Persea gratissima. 
Strawberry tree, Arbutus Unedo. 
Mammee apple, Mammea americana. 
And many others. 


CLASS II. Vine-Frurr Curure. 


Supcrass 1. Viticulture; comprising 
y Wine grape, Vitis vinifera. 
Fox grape, Vitis Labrusca. 
Summer grape, Vitis xstivalis. 
Post-oak grape, turkey grape, Vitis xstivalis var. Lir 


Herbemont grape, Vitis estivalis, var. Bourquiniana. 
Muscadine and scuppernong grapes, Vitis rotundifolia. 
Sand grape, Vitis rupestris. 

River-bank grape, frost grape, Vitis vulpina. 

And other native species of Vitis. 


Susciass 2. Passifloraceous fruits. 


Granadilla, Passiflora edulis. 
And others. 


The Species of Fruits 7 


CLASS III. Smaut-Frurr* Curroure (THe BrErrigs). 


Suscuass 1. Bush-fruits.f : 
Group a. Rubaceous fruits, or (bramble-fruits). 
e’ Raspberry, Rubus ideus. 
vl’ Blackcap raspberry, Rubus occidentalis. 
/“ Red raspberry, Rubus strigosus. 
Wineberry, Rubus phenicolasius. 

Blackberry, Rubus nigrobaccus and other species. 
Thornless blackberry, Rubus canadensis. 
Evergreen blackberry, Himalaya berry, Rubus laciniatus. 

2 Northern dewberry, Rubus villosus, R. invisus. 
Southern dewberry, Rubus trivialis. 

Pacific dewberry, Rubus vitifolius. 


Group b. Ribaceous fruits. 


~ Currant, Ribes vulgare. 
v Black currant, Ribes nigrum. 
Buffalo currant, Ribes aureum. 
Gooseberry, Ribes Grossularia. 
yy American gooseberry, Ribes oxycanthoides (or R. hirtellum). 


Group c. Blueberries. 
Swamp or High-bush blueberry, Vaccinium corymbosum. 
Canada blueberry, Vaccinium canadense. 
Low-bush blueberry, Vaccinium pennsylvanicum. 


Group d. Miscellaneous bush-fruits. 
Juneberry, Amelanchier oblongifolia, A. alnifolia and others. 
Buffalo berry, Shepherdia argentea. 
Goumi, Eleagnus multiflora. 
Caraunda, Carissa Carandas. 
Natal plum, Carissa grandiflora. 
Amatungulu, Carissa bispinosa. 


*Small-fruits. A term applied to all small and berry-like fruits produced 
on bushes or perennial herbaceous plants; as currant, blackberry raspberry, 
strawberry. In Europe the strawberry is classed with garden vegetables, and 
melons are often treated with the fruits. Small-fruits is an American term. 

+Bush-fruits. Fruits borne on bushes, or small woody plants destitute of 
a central stem or axis. It is an English term, and is equivalent to small-fruits, 
except that it does not include the strawberry. 


8 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


Susciass 2. Strawberry-fruits. 


4 Garden strawberry, Fragaria chiloensis. 
Hautbois strawberry, Fragaria moschata. 
Alpine strawberry, Fragaria vesca. 
Virginian strawberry, Fragaria virginiana. 
Everbearing strawberry, Fragaria mexicana. 


Susciass 3. Cranberry-fruits. 


Common cranberry, Vaccinium macrocarpon. 
Cowberry, Vaccinium Vitis-Idxa. . 


CLASS IV. MisceLtLangeous Non-woopy or HERB-LIKE FRUITS. 


Suscuass 1. Musaceous fruits. 


Banana, Musa Sapientum. 
Plantain, Musa paradisiaca. 


Suscuiass 2. Pineapple. 
Common pineapple, Ananas sativus. 


Susciass 3. Cactaceous fruits. 


Prickly pear, Opuntia Tuna, and others. 
Indian fig, Opuntia Ficus-indica. 
Barbadoes gooseberry, Pereskia aculeata. 


Supcuass 4. Other herb-like fruits. 


Cyphomandra, Cyphomandra betacea. 
Cerinam, Monstera deliciosa. 


THE COURSE OF DEVELOPMENT OF A FRUIT REGION 


Fruit-growing has usually been a comparatively late 
development in any region. The epochs that precede 
the agricultural occupation of a country are commonly 
about as follows: Discovery, exploration, hunting, specu- 
lation, lumbering, or mining. The real and permanent 
prosperity of a country begins when the agriculture has 
evolved so far as to be self-sustaining and to leave the soil 
in constantly better condition for the growing of plants. 


From Lumbering to Frutt-growing 9 


Lumbering as now practised, and mining, are simply means 
of utilizing a reserve that nature has laid by, and these 
industries, therefore, are self-limited, and are constantly 
moving on into unrobbed territory. Agriculture, when at 
its best, remains forever in the same place, and gains in 
riches with the years; but in this country it has so far been 
mostly a species of mining for plant-food, and then a rush- 
ing on for virgin lands. . 

The first effort in an agricultural region is usually the 
growing of the staple crops, as the grains or breadstuffs. 
This is both because the capabilities of the country are all 
unknown, and because such regions are far removed from the 
markets, and must, therefore, grow such commodities as 
can be stored or shipped long distances; and it may be 
said, also, that the growing of these crops in a new country 
demands comparatively little special skill. Moreover, the 
new lands are cheap, and the supply of labor is small; 
and grain-raising and cattle-ranging are economically 
possible. The second development is very often a well- 
regulated stock-raising or grazing industry. 

If the country possesses special adaptabilities for fruits, 
a man here and there will be found enlarging his orchards 
or small-fruit plantations, and in time there is a wide- 
spread change from general farm practices to fruit-grow- 
ing. The growing of specialties, or perishable products, 
or those that are essentially luxuries, demands the finer 
skill, the more developed ideals, and the less fluctuating 
employments of an old or at least of a well-settled country; 
and it is in such areas, also, that the best special markets 
are to be found. It has been a frequent experience that 
when any area has fully committed itself to the raising 
of any particular fruit, the business is devoted too exclu- 
sively to one product and the individual farms may not be 


10 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


good economic units. The lesson is that mixed industries 
are best for any community, even though the region make 
a specialty of one or of a few commodities, and that it is 
practically impossible to reduce the agriculture of any 
large region to a dead level of uniformity. The diversity 
_of industries also brings a diversity of population. 

In the present development of the newer parts of North 
America, however, these stages in the evolution of fruit- 
growing may not be marked. Fruit has now come to be 
such a standard commodity that virgin areas in newly 
opened regions may be developed at once as fruit lands; 
but there is a large element of risk in such undertakings 
in virgin regions. 


THE DETERMINANTS IN FRUIT-GROWING 


Fruit-growing, in common with all agricultural pur- 
suits, thrives best in certain geographical areas. That is, 
the business is not capable of equal development in all 
parts of the country. 

Four of the most apparent determinants of the distri- 
bution of fruit-growing may be mentioned briefly. The 
distribution of fruits may also be studied in their relations 
to life-zones, and particularly as determining the adapta- 
bilities of varieties (see for example, Bull. No. 10, Div. of 
Biol. Surv., U. 8. Dept. Agric., 1898, by C. Hart Merriam, 
on “Life Zones and Crop Zones,” as one of the early con- 
tributions to the subject). The leading determinative 
factor in the distribution of fruit-culture is clynate. The 
particular factor of climate that determines the fruit-~ 
zones differs with each type group of fruits; but in gen- 
eral it may be said that the relative annual temperature is 
the most influential factor. 


The Climatal Zones 11 


The temperature determinant. 

It is customary to recognize three general climatal 
fruit-zones,—the temperate (typified by the apple and 
the peach), the semi-tropical (citrous tribes, fig, olive, 
pomegranate), and the tropical (coconut, banana, annona, 
mango). There are no positive limits of temperature to 
mark off or separate these zones; but it is sufficient for our 
purpose to say that the temperate zone is marked by a 
long winter of freezing and by the deciduous types of 
fruits; in the semi-tropical zone the winter is a short sea- 
son of light frosts or only occasional freezes, and the fruit 
trees are evergreen or very nearly so; and the tropical 
zone is frostless, and is marked by evergreen and largely 
ever-growing fruit-plants. 

The limits of these climatal zones‘ are exceedingly 
devious. In eastern North America, the northern limit of 
profitable fruit-growing is not far from the 45th parallel, 
and the limit sinks considerably lower than this in the 
Middle West, and rises much above it on the Pacific slope. 
The northern limit of the subtropical zone in the East is 
northern Florida and a narrow area skirting the Gulf of 
Mexico, and on the western side of the continent it extends 
in the valley climates as high as the 40th parallel. The 
only part of the tropical fruit-zone in the United States is 
in extreme southern Florida, comprising about 2 degrees 
of latitude (reaching northward to about 27°). Beyond 
all these bounds are special localities in which fruits of the 
adjacent zone may thrive for a seriesof years, and the fruits 
of contiguous zones overpass. The strawberry is probably 
the most tractable of all our fruits as respects climate, 
because its stature and habit allow it to be protected from 
extreme cold, and its short period of growth allows it to 
thrive in the cool season of the subtropical regions. 


12 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


The annual temperature of a region is chiefly deter- 
mined by four factors,—the latitude, the altitude, the 
physical configuration, and the proximity or remoteness 
of large bodies of water. 


The motsture determinant. 


The second chief factor of climate in determining the 
fruit-zones is relative humidity. Whilst the isotherms— 
or lines of equal temperatures—run easterly and westerly, 
the isohyetals—or lines of equal rainfall—have no in- 
trinsic direction. They are determined by physiographical 
features. In the United States, we might recognize 
very roughly six general fruit-zones marked by pecu- 
liarities of rainfall. These are the Atlantic zone, a moist 
area bounded westward approximately by the Mississippi 
River; the Plains zone, extending westward to the Rocky 
Mountains, mostly of low rainfall and in some parts semi- 
arid; the inter-mountain region, being mostly arid and 
requiring irrigation; the Sonoran zone of New Mexico 
and Arizona and southward; the California region, mostly 
arid and semi-arid; the upper Pacifig region, comprising 
the humid belt of Oregon, Washington, and British Colum- 
bia. Within all these regions are geographical areas of 
special precipitation conditions. The interior or plains 
region is particularly trying to fruits because of the strong 
and dry winter winds, which evaporate the moisture from 
the trees while the ground is often so deeply frozen that 
the roots cannot supply moisture. There is probably 
always evaporation from tree tops in the winter when the 
air is drier than the wood. The fact that moisture may be 
lost from winter twigs is a most important consideration 

“in the study of the winter injury of trees, and it throws 
light upon the severe damage that often follows the “dry 


Soil Adaptations 13 


freezing”’ of nursery trees in transit and of fall-planted 
trees. 


The soil determinant. 


There are special adaptations of fruits to soils. Pomol- 
ogists have been well aware of this fact as a general truth, 
but only recently has close attention been given, in 
this country, to the minor and detailed applications of it. 
It is well understood that pears flourish best in clay soils 
and peaches best in sandy or at least in open soils, but 
no doubt there are distinct preferences in the varieties 
of pears and peaches themselves. It is possible, in fact, 
that each distinct family or type of varieties of any 
species has preferences of land and location, and it will 
be the business of coming generations to determine what 
these peculiarities are. With the increasing refinements 
and competitions of the future, the special and local 
problems must receive more and more attention. If these 
positions are well taken, it must follow that the promis- 
cuous and wholesale dissemination of a few varieties over 
the country must eventually cease, and that local and 
special sorts must constantly tend to drive out the cos- 
mopolitan and general varieties. | 

These questions of soil adaptations for fruits have been 
made the subject of study over a wide range by Wilder 
of the national Department of Agriculture, and he is able 
to discuss the soil requirements of the Baldwin apple, 
the Wagener, Spy, Hubbardston, Gravenstein, and others, 
with considerable definiteness. He points out that the 
common advice as to “any deep, well-drained soil, on 
hill or slope,” being adapted to apple-growing is not 
sufficiently exact and discriminating. ‘The loss from 
choosing a soil for orchard planting that is not adapted 


14 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


to the purpose is so much more serious than a similar 
mistake with an annual crop that too much care can 
scarcely be taken in selecting the most suitable soils 
located on sites otherwise favorable.” (Tribune Farmer, 
April 3, 1913.) 

Many fruits are very cosmopolitan as to soils, although 
probably none of them is indifferent to even comparatively 
minor variations in land. Of the temperate tree-fruits, the 
apple undoubtedly has the most generalized adaptabilities 
to soils, and this is closely followed by the domestica plum. 
Among semi-tropical fruits, the orange thrives in a wide 
range of soils. The peach and grape are more exacting, 
and the same may be said of the pineapple. 

* Now and then fruits are made to grow in uncongenial 
soils by working them on adaptive stocks. Thus the plum 
is said to thrive best in sandy regions when it is budded on 
the peach, the pear is recorded as sometimes grown on 
very light lands by working it on the mountain-ash, 
and the mahaleb cherry is thought by most persons to be 
a better stock for strong soils than for light soils. We may 
look for the time when certain varieties of the same spe- 
cies may be selected as stocks for given soils. But all this 
forced adaption to soils is a very special matter, and it 
only illustrates the more strongly the great importance of 
giving particular attention to the general subject of the 
adaptabilities of species, varieties, and even of strains, to 
variations in soils. ; 

The grower should give particular attention to the 
character of the land. An experienced fruit-grower com- 
monly determines whether the land is adaptable by its 
“Jooks;’”’ and this suggests that the novice secure the ad- 
vice of an experienced person if he would choose a farm for 
fruit. The success or failure of existing trees or orchards 


Soil Adaptations 15 


in the neighborhood may give some indication of soil 
conditions. If the region is soil-surveyed, the intending 
grower should attempt to recognize the successful orchards 
on the soil-map. In a few cases, special studies by an ex- 
pert have been made of the soil types in relation to fruits, 
and advantage should always be taken of suzh work. 

The subsotl.—In making soil-determinations, the planter 
should not be guided by the character of the surface-soil 
alone. ) With modern methods of soil-examination, the 
subsoil is always taken into account. Booth goes so far 
(Okla. Exp. Sta.) as to say that ‘The character of the sur- 
face-soil appears to have little or nothing to do with mak- 
ing good tree land. Good orchards will be found on all 
kinds of soils, from dense clays to light sands. It is cer- 
tainly not due to the richness of the soil, for many of the 
best orchard sections of the United States have thin soils 
which require constant feeding. In fact, there is only one 
thing which is found constantly associated with good or- 
chard land, and that is an open porgus subsoil. The adap- 
tability of land for tree-growth is shown by the character 
of the soil from 1 to 6 feet below the surface. If the 
land is satisfactory for 4 feet down, usually this is deep 
enough for satisfactory tree-growth, although 6 feet is 
better. The average farmer knows but little about his land 
below the bottom of the furrow made by the plow, so that 
he is frequently but little better fitted to say where his 
trees should be planted than someone who has never seen 
the land. 

“There are many ways of becoming acquainted with 
the subsoil. One of the best is by the use of a spade.— 
The digging of a few holes 5 or 6 feet deep in different parts 
of the farm will reveal an astonishing amount of informa- 
tion as ‘to the character of the subsoil. The number of 


x 


16 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


holes necessary to give satisfactory information as to the 
character of the underlying strata will vary. If it be found 
that half a dozen holes dug in a certain 5- or 10-acre tract 
give practically the same result in each case, it may usually 
be assumed that these indicate the general character of 
the subsoil. If, on the other hand, the verdict is variable, 
more holes will have to be dug until the limits of the differ- 
ent formations are shown. Where neither rocks nor stones 
are present, this work may be done more quickly and quite 
as satisfactorily with a ground-auger as with a spade. A 
home-made auger is usually quite as satisfactory for this 
purpose as the more expensive article purchased on the 
market. Take an old 114- or 2-inch wood-auger and have 
the local blacksmith weld it to the end of a 6-foot length 
of 34-inch pipe or 14-inch wrought iron rod. The welding 
of a short cross-piece at the top completes the device. 

€An open porous subsoil insures drainage and thus pro- 
motes the establishment of deep feeding roots) Trees with 
such root-systems are not subject to the vicissitudes of vary- 
ing seasons to the same extent as those of a shallower root- 
system. . . .. The capacity to penetrate impervious 
subsoils does not depend on the boring power of the root- 
tip. All roots have a boring power which is quite sufficient 
to force their way down in any ordinary subsoil. The rea- 
son for the absence of roots is that they are unable to live 
in the denser soil, owing to the lack of the necessary air. 
Thus it will be found that a soft mucky subsoil is quite as 
efficient a barrier to root-growth as solid rock.” 


The parasite determinant. 


Inasmuch as many of the organisms that seriously in- 
terfere with fruit-growing are more or less restricted in 
their range, it would seem to follow that the zones of profit- 


Bugs and Things 17 


able fruit-culture may be determined more or less by the 
parasite factor. A moment’s reflection will show, however, 
that the geographical distribution of the parasite is deter- 
mined primarily by climate and by the distribution of its 
host-plants; so that, on the one hand, the climatal limit 
of the cultivation of the fruit may be approximately the 
climatal distribution of the pest, and, on the other hand, 
the parasite may be local or cosmopolitan according as the 
fruit is either local or widely grown. 

Many of the common pests are restricted in range 
because they have not yet reached the full limit of their 
distribution. An excellent illustration of this fact is the 
codlin-moth. Once Michigan was represented to be the 
Eutopia of the apple-grower because of the absence of 
this pest, and in our own day similar recommendations 
have been made of far western states. To the naturalist} 
, however, it was evident from the first that the insect was" 
,following closely behind the apple frontier, as a storm' 
follows an area of high pressure. 

In practice, the energetic and intelligent fruit-grower 
will think last of the parasite factor when locating his 
plantation, for this factor is variable and migratory, and, 
moreover, there are means of keeping most fruit pests 
under control. Insects and fungi are of course to be 
reckoned with, and for this reason they are the direct and 
perhaps the most effective means of keeping the farmer in 
a state of mental alertness. There are a few cases, of 
course, to which these remarks will not well apply, but 
they are clearly exceptions. One of these is the dreaded 

. nematode root-knot of the southern states, and one might ~ 
hesitate in planting peaches on certain land where it 
does not freeze deep enough to destroy the pest. The pro- 
fessional experimenters can determine the course of the 

B 


18 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


life-histories of the various pests, and can point out their 
most vulnerable points, and may even devise general means 
for their eradication; but the final application of this knowl- 
edge is a local problem, which each man must work out for 
himself. Laws are only secondary means of keeping in- 
sects and diseases in check on a man’s own farm; they are 
chiefly useful in providing a way of controlling the man 
who is neglectful, ignorant, or devoid of public responsi- 
bility. They are most applicable in those cases in which 
disease is more or less permanent or perennial, and in 
which there is no practicable recourse but to destroy the 
plant or the part affected. Such troubles are peach yek 
lows and black-knot of the plum and cherry.) A law can- 
not be enforced unless public sentiment is behind it, and 
when public sentiment is completely aroused the law may 
not be needed. Yet a good law is one of the best educators, 
and if properly enforced may save an industry, but it 
must be remembered that the final recourse is always 
greater knowledge and enlightenment on the part of the 
individual growers. 

That the grower may not expect so much of the opera- 
tion of laws as to lessen his own activity, let him consider 
the practical difficulties in the enforcement of them. It is 
practically impossible to detect the eggs of insects or, 
spores of fungi on large numbers of plants, and there are 
many natural and uncontrollable ways in which the para- 
sites may spread. A law may very properly require that 
“whenever any trees, plants, or vines, are shipped into this 
state from another state, every package thereof shall be- 
plainly labeled on the outside with the name of the consignor, 
and a certificate showing that the contents had been in- 
spected by a State or Government officer, and that the trees, 
plants, or vines therein contained are free from all San José 


Inspection 19 


scale, yellows, rosette, and other injurious insect or disease;”’ 
yet it would be impossible for any botanist to certify that 
a dormant tree were certainly free of all disease; and even 
in the matter of some insects, an entomologist could not 
give a clean bill of health without giving more time to the 
examination of the tree than it is worth. These difficulties 
are not justification for opposition to statutes or for in- 
difference to them, but they are reasons why the grower 
should be careful to avoid a false security. The grower 
must add his personal endeavor, and watch his plantation 
minutely with his own eyes even if it has passed the 
scrutiny of the inspector. 

A knowledge of the natural history of the pests provides 
the only final security. Most insects and diseases are be- 
yond the reach of legislative fiats. Some of the demands 
for functionary proceedings against the bugs recall the 
laborious efforts of the Middle Ages. ‘At one time,” 
writes Fernald, ‘‘a thoroughgoing procedure, according to 
all the rules of jurisprudence, occurred before the spiritual 
judge. The accused insects were summoned, and in case 
of non-appearance, which always occurred, unless the in- 
sects were moving to new feeding-grounds and the court- 
house happened to be in their way, a proxy was appointed . 
to represent the accused insects, who debated the whole 
subject with the accuser, after which judgment was ren- 
dered, invariably against the accused insect in the form 
of an excommunication, which was carried into effect 
only when the insects disappeared at the time of 
pupation.” 

The most effective legal means are those that endeavor 
to regulate the commerce in diseased and affected plants, 
—to prevent the spread of the difficulty rather than to 
solve the difficulty on a given plantation. In recent years, 


20 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


a useful body of inspection and quarantine laws has arisen 
that puts the power of the people behind the effort to stop 
invasion. It is to be expected that these laws will tend 
toward greater uniformity and therefore toward greater 
effectiveness, between the different political units of the 
country. It is particularly important that ports of entry 
and points of distribution be watched. The grower also 
must recognize that he has no right carelessly or wantonly 
to harbor an insect or a disease that may inflict great 
damage on his neighbors, and that if he violates this 
principle he is morally liable (as he ought to be legally 
liable) to correction. 


THE OUTLOOK FOR FRUIT-GROWING 


Two sets of factors chiefly control or determine the 
outlook of the fruit-grower: the ability of the grower, and 
the prospective conditions of the market. Few persons 
appreciate how personal a thing success is: yet everyone 
knows that any two persons placed in the same physical 
and environmental conditions, and given an equal chance, 
will arrive at very different results in business. The real 
directive forces are matters of character and personality, 
of which the most important requisites seem to be love 
of the occupation, indomitable energy, cool judgment, 
honesty, and ability to handle the details of the business. 

It is not probable that agricultural products are to be 
raised in too large quantities. Both population and rate 
of consumption are increasing. It is a common practice 
to estimate the amount of fruit which will be produced at 
any given time in the future by multiplying the number 
of acres of plantation by the yield of a normal acre 
of that kind of fruit. The fallacy in these calculations 


Competition in the Business 21 


lies in the fact that very many of the orchards that are 
planted in hope and expectation yield only indifferent 
results. 

Not often is there a sufficiency of the best in any com- 
modity. It is in the production and careful marketing of 
the best that the greatest hope lies with any individual; 
and this raises at once the personal qualifications, A 
man cannot make the best unless he has ability for it. 
It is more important, therefore, that the first tillage and 
fertilizing and pruning and spraying be applied to the 
man rather than to the land or the crop; and while the 
man is acquiring discipline for the direct prosecution of 
his business, he is at the same time opening his mind to 
all the satisfactions of living. On the other hand, there is 
commonly a surplus of the ordinary. In fact, it is the ordi- 
nariness that often makes it a surplus. Now, inasmuch as 
most men are ordinary, it follows that most things which 
they make will be ordinary; and it does not matter if we 
raise the standard of all men, the greater part will still be 
ordinary, for we have only raised the ordinariness of the 
mass. This is equivalent to saying that the effort at excel- 
lence must be continuous and must not be satisfied with 
any achievement. 

One cannot expect to escape competition in the fruit 
business. As a rule, the best results are to be anticipated 
when one grows his fruit in a fruit-growing region in com- 
pany and in competition with other fruit-growers. If 
every occupation is already full, then it follows that the 
choice of an occupation resolves itself into what one cares 
for and what he has capital for, provided always that he 
can secure the proper land and location for the prosecu- 
tion of the business. He need have no fear of his success 
if he grows what people want, or puts it up so as to make 


22 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


them think that they want it. In its common levels, fruit- 
growing, like every other business, is undoubtedly over- 
done, and there is only a precarious living in it. This is 
specially illustrated in apple-growing,—to which the least 
skillful attention has been given,—for the years of crop are 
years of low prices. This means that apple-growers allow 
the seasons and other circumstances to dictate the bear- 
ing time of the orchard, and when one man has a crop other 
men may havea crop. Yet there is no fruit that comes so 
near to being a staple commodity as does the apple, and 
none that has a longer market season, or is capable of 
manufacture into a greater number of secondary products. 
The demand for first-class apples, delivered in prime con- 
dition at the proper moment, is seldom fully satisfied. 
The most profitable stock-in-trade of the fruit-grower, 
therefore, is training for his work; and if a good part of 
his training is in business methods, very much will be 
gained, for there are probably ten men who can grow a 
given quality of fruit where there is one who can sell it to 
advantage. All this is proved by the fact that many 
successful farmers were not brought up on the farm, or 
they soon left it for other business. Good business men 
are likely to make a success of farming, if they are not 
too old and if they have learned the occupation. They 
come into the business with trained minds, skilled judg- 
ment, and especially without too much prejudice. They 
are willing to learn, and they quickly assimilate new ideas. 
There are most important non-commercial rewards in 
fruit-growing. A fruit-grower need not set before himself 
the single standard of money-getting. The end of life is 
satisfaction, and it may often be secured just as well on a 
moderate income as on a large one. It is one of the bless- 
ings that agriculture bestows on both the individual and 


Over-Production 23 


the nation that it may make its workers happy and com- 
fortable without making them wealthy. Of all the lead- 
ing occupations, perhaps there is less scramble for big 
money in agriculture than elsewhere; and for this reason 
the farmer should remain a stalwart and conservative 
element in the national structure. Farming on a modest 
scale is capable of yielding a competent income; but the 
larger part of the wealth of the small farmer is of a different 
kind from that of the tradesman or manufacturer. 

All these remarks raise the old inquiry as to whether 
there is an over-production of fruit. The probability is 
that there is not over-production except in special years; 
that is, that there is not more fruit grown than can be con- 
sumed in one way or another. It is very likely, however, 
that there is frequently a relative over-production,—that 
there is more fruit grown than can be consumed in the mar- 
kets that are-ordinarily at the reach of the grower. The 
difficulty is probably rather more of unequal or imperfect 
* distribution than of over-production of the commodity. 
The tendency of the time is to remedy this defect by more 
perfect means of dissemination, but it is too much to hope 
for a perfectly equal distribution of fruits, since the 
fruit areas are more or less limited in their geographical 
position, whereas the fruit-consuming population is 
distributed far and wide; and most fruits are very perish- 
able under shipment. When there are heavy gluts in 
some markets and fruit does not pay for the freight, there 
are often other places, a few hundred miles away, in which 
the commodity is insufficient or even scarce. The intro- 
duction of special fruit and refrigerator cars and the better 
grading and the practice of pre-cooling have lessened the 
difficulties of distribution. But these appliances are of use 
mostly to organizations, or to those growers who have a 


24 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


large quantity of product; or, to those localities in which 
so much fruit is grown that the community of interests 
amounts to an organization. 

Of course, one cannot succeed commercially in the 
growing of fruit if his land, location, and climate are not 
proper, even though he may have all the personal qualifica- 
tions for the business; but if he has these personal quali- 
fications, he will probably not choose unfavorable or im- 
possible conditions. Many orchards reared with the great- 
est care and looking well in photographs are on lands un- 
suited to the production of profitable yields; or they may 
be in frosty localities, or too far from market or shipping 
stations, or be otherwise seriously handicapped. These 
disabilities must all be eliminated in any effective discus- 
sion of the general outlook for the fruit business; and this 
outlook seems to the writer to be good. 


THE ORGANIZING OF THE BUSINESS 


Perhaps the last thing the farmer learns, in respect to 
his own business, is thoroughly to master his local problem. 
He must feel that his problems of soil and exposure, his 
limitations of capital, and his own tastes, are all special 
and possibly unique, and he must then begin to work out 
his results for his particular conditions. From books and 
teachers he can learn principles and truths, he can pick 
up suggestions, and he can, above all, acquire an ability 
to grasp his particular situation; but he must solve his 
problems for himself. This is the secret of that close and 
single-minded attention to business that makes for the 
greatest success. 

A knowledge of the details and the local special require- 
ments should enable the grower to organize all the units 


The Farm Plan 25 


and items into a consistent business procedure, or to sub- 
divide it into its parts. Merely to raise fruit is not the end 
and consummation of fruit-growing. The raising of the 
fruit is a part in an enterprise, and this enterprise should 
make the best use of capital and of labor and equipment, 
and it should secure the greatest results with the least 
expenditure of effort. In other words, the enterprise 
should be economically efficient. 

Fruit-growing is preferably one part—perhaps the 
leading part—of a farm scheme; but usually it should not 
comprise the entire farm scheme. Farm-management 
studies have shown that the most profitable fruit-growing 
is often that which is combined with general farming. 

The general farm, with liberal parts of it devoted to 
crops other than fruit, provides economical use of men, 
teams, and equipment for the larger part of the year, as 
also a stimulating variety in work. It also enables the 
fruit-grower to produce much or all of the feed and bed- 
ding for his work animals, as well as many supplies for 
his family; it insures him against years of failure in the 
fruit crop. 

On the other hand, too much general farming directly 
detracts from the fruit-growing part of the business. Oats 
and potatoes must be planted at a certain time, but the 
orchards may wait. What one gains in the raising of 
feed and other supplies, may be more than lost in the 
neglect of the fruit-plantations. Years may be required 
to repair the damage accruing from one or two seasons of 
neglect to the orchard, with the stunted growth, lack of 
pruning, neglect of spraying, injuries from borers, and 
other disabilities, although this damage may not be im- 
mediately expressed in dollars and cents. Where the happy 
mean shall be drawn between a business devoted too 


26 The Principles of Frutt-growing 


narrowly and exclusively to fruit-growing and one demand- 
ing too much diversion and dividing of one’s energies, only 
the grower himself can determine. 

It is certain that if one is to make a good business of 
fruit-growing, he must devote his best energies to it. Other 
things may wait, but not the fruit-plantations. He must 
have a “feeling” for fruit more than for anything else, and 
the fruit must have first call on men, teams, time, and 
painstaking oversight. If he does not have this feeling, he 
does not possess the essentials of a fruit-grower. The pride 
of a fruit-farm is in the fruit. 

By this it is not meant that the fruit-farm must be a 
“show place.” Nothing is more attractive in a picture 
than a fruit-farm with rows all regular and uniform and 
the trees or bushes all complete and perfect, and with 
tillage faultless; and yet some of the most profitable 
fruit-plantations exhibit little of this beauty of regu- 
larity. Perhaps it would be better if the plantation were 
more comely and attractive, but this condition is not 
necessary to success. In fact, heavy bearing often makes 
the orchard irregular; and if there are many varieties, it is 
impossible to secure stereotyped uniformity. The good 
fruit-farm is told by its performance and not by its looks. 

Caution should be strongly expressed to those who 
would undertake fruit-farming by proxy. Delegated and 
absentee farming is ineffective enough at the best, but 
there are special difficulties in fruit-farming by that 
method or lack of method. One year’s neglect to fight 
borers and other pests may be disastrous. Every tree or 
bush is liable to special injury, from winter-killing or 
otherwise, and much skill may be required to repair or 
overcome the damage. It is alluring to anticipate an 
orchard waiting for one on retirement from active busi- 


Absentee Orcharding 27 


ness and which has been grown and cared for by others; 
but if the plantation has good care, in most cases it will 
be because the owner maintains a complete establishment 
of work animals, tools and men and does not depend on 
the hiring of the work from neighboring farmers. This 
means a general farming business. The costs accumulate 
rapidly, and the risks are heavy. The contingencies and 
difficulties are more than anyone can foresee. It is a com- 
mon opinion that the tilled crops from the orchard land 
will pay for the care of the orchard until it comes into 
bearing, but this is seldom true (if the orchard receives 
good care) and then only when this cropping is part of a 
good farm scheme and does not depend on fugitive hired 
labor. Purchasers should be careful of orchard land-schemes 
in which the work and oversight are all provided for in 
advance. Orcharding by others is rarely profitable. 

The annual cost of the care of an orchard for the first 
five years, including first cost of trees, pruning, fertilizing, 
tilling, cover-cropping, interest on moderate-priced land, 
may be expected to run from $25 to $30 an acre if one has 
his own equipment and does the work well. 


Cost-accounting. 


A well-organized business plan calls for a system of 
keeping account of costs, founded on an annual inventory 
and an analysis of the labor of men and teams and ma- 
chinery on each crop or for each part of the plantation, 
the general outlays, and the receipts. A daily work- 
report is necessary. The elaborate bookkeeping forms 
often devised for farmers’ use should be avoided. It is 
more important to analyze the business than to keep a 
perfect set of books. Most of the bookkeeping blanks do 
not bring out the facts that the farmer needs. Warren 


28 


The Principles of Fruitt-growing 


gives the following example (Standard Cyclopedia of 
Horticulture) of a useful accounting with a 3-acre apple 


orchard: 


Work-Report ror APPLE ORCHARD.—THREE ACRES 


Man Horse 
apis Hrs. Min. Hrs. Min. 
April 1. Manured iG AUREL SSeS ey ss 9 45 18 
May Siu) 0. gua seonku ae caer ene 2. 30 5 
15;  Priitied es anne che eeans ex 3 
25..|Brush hauled and burned..... 1 30 3 
27. (SPTAV EM 6 css wiemecacs sees ee 16 30 13 
28.. He hg ee quam S BEEN REE 4 30 5 
31.. Pe” 9 ssthyugehasaiteasuasy Ane ceeti tals 10 15 10 
June 1.. MCC Tee ey ees 13 45 3 45 
3.. Me, dapeterqtathy abba garni oes 16 30 9 
4.. | cass Nctnche dugeey eto gutyseys i nde 9 30 5 
5.. Oe tte Baan wean deanna ah teem 14 7 
7..|Cleaned and put up sprayer... 1 15 
July 31../Removed borers............. 7 15 
Aug. 19.. Thinned Sher eR wae nae 30 
20.. a 4 
Manured. .. 8 30 17 
Sept. 7..|Picked.............. on 4 15 
Oct. 11..|Hauled barrels............... 8 16 
12..|Picked and packed........... 34 30 2 30 
14.. an sa BR ole ed pit i 7 2 
15.. “ os Te cahgtavhe tk ca 11 30 5 
Hauled to station............ 2 30 a 
17..|Picked and packed........... 15 45 4 
18.. ie ne OE arene a eae 12 30 30 
19.. Rs i Sa ree 28 30 2 
2... g te - Ridhe sai sa yopgase Pacey ese 22 15 
25\e< oe ie a ere 19 30 1 
26.. us as Ss dae og aaa ah 25 30 1 
28.. oe es Seo slave musty (ite 36 
30... a ae 9: Stacavaia aria ua abate 34 30 
Hauled to station............ 5 30 11 
31..{/Picked and packed........... 21 30 1 
Nov. 4... Selling... ...00c0ceeseaees sane 2 1 30 
6..|Packed............. DB rer. taies 7 30 
Picked up drops............. eg 3 
8..|Hauled to station............ 10 15 8 
12../Got ready for shipping....... o 8 30 
13..|Hauled to station............. 4 30 9 
14.. He eS Me SEk oes SERRE 6 9 10 
15.. aap creek er 9 30 14 
Dec. 10..|Hauled manure.............. 2 4 
Total hrs. and mins...... 492 45 196 15 


1 R10], 
an eee sueyoryo 0} sdoip ‘snq GZ 
ee ULApreg “snq 

0% ‘moug "snd ¢ :osn asuT0Y 10J ydeyy 
g “' Bury ‘snq g ‘uoyspieqqny ‘snq ¢ 
i pate cat tonaien eee o seca Dee “BT 9 |" 02 
er |; (Adg "194 T ‘Surweerp “Tq4 T 

UIMAPIPA “S14 & “SUM “144 T) “S19 S|" "8s Gh OFE$ 

7 *paqooT[oo 90U TA” UIMAPIeT “STAI & |° "3S eaearnae: 
gst | «Gummo “s1qq Fe “UEMPTE “s1qq Ce aren 

69 ‘woyspreqqny “s1qq 6 ‘wddrg G6 BACB lee 1210, 

Tel 144 1 ‘souese yy “s[qq 9 ‘Buty aie : 

140 T ‘Binquezydg ‘Iqq 1) “S14 TIT O06. [peer Ere $3809 00 4ser9}UT 
rococo eave teoy sate eed smo ‘snq ¢ |" “Tz 00 OL |°""830 T°¢ @ soqel quatadibe “sry 96T 
sey Tr he Tg ‘reueseM “19d T 20 96 |'° °°" "S20 SET © AOqQep-asioy “sIy 96T 

‘goes ‘Adg “19q T ‘ee'g$ ‘surueeryy co 06 | $79 SI © Joqvl-uvul ‘sIy Eby 

‘S190 F :Og'9¢$ ‘UApred “SIqq ZT |" 0% OOO ee ee te ee re puey fo asf) 

SEM OTE To BIE eS Ages sy[No UIApTeg ‘sng cy 6% Dott teste ester eeessee tgnoqdazad. 
ee Oo Aiea aigte' suaieninues ULApTe “14d Z |° “TT yn {TRS Oj seyddy,, “apy 
Oy |iilete ee GLS ‘Adg “194 T *98'T$ zoe “+ *SUISIZIBAPB 10} Sprvo-jsog 

uTIMpIEg “Taq 1 ieezs ‘Bary aq tle aon low. [tcc tet tee aveysog 
6 ‘you ‘Moug “sq 9 “OD 3» UoOovepyoIy cg *°879 GZ ‘FYBIorf £°S30 QQ ‘s1oUl] PIE, 
Ge fects zydg "Jaq T 00 GL [otters s[az1eq OCT 

‘Adg ‘s[qq p ‘Surmeery “sqq % ‘surly OOO. | ee Se1zeq UO FYSTOLT 

“194 ¢ UIMpreg “staq 2 ‘Urpaerg “Spy }'-ez “990 lez eo foot e aINUBUL SPeoy 34g 
Q  frrttt ee tents sr serra sdorp ‘snq ¢z |*-¢¢- ye a ce aINUeUl SpEoT F 
Ge | er ea uapleg ‘snq 7 ‘Adg ‘snq Z|" "1% 8% 8 ""*890 8Z TYSTOIy + gg ‘nyMs-ouTT] “1qq T 
nn gjarieq Adu 7 ge fee Peo] Jo ayuuasre Uo JYySTOAT 
a +++++gozdde dorp ‘snq zt |* “ZT ols +++ pga] Jo eyeMasre “SqT OOT 
T “‘syo Gy ‘moug “snq T ‘TS ‘sury ‘sng T |" ZT 00 ZIg | °°" **** puey uo serreq—ArozUeAUyT 
ee plos sjeareq Aydune F |* “TT “suv 


SOVq ONVH-LHOIY GOVq ONVH-LiaT 


e 


30 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


Much may be learned from such simple records, for 
the mere keeping of cost-accounts is not the end. The fol- 
lowing are a few of the facts that the farmer used in the 
preceding records and the suggestions derived from them: 


-Total crop: Bus. Total crop: Bus. 
Bald witts.)secaiceaeweeee aoe 421 Brought forward........ 611 
Greening......cccceeceees 93 Wagener sac ccitiageaeenas 21 
Hubbardston.........025- 30 Spitzenburg.........00eees 6 
SDY's cane ceeuguonawew ees 23 Fall Pippin. ..........6-.- 3 
ad ein oo lave odes Adierieiete eos S 641 

earths Poke eee pee Drops and culls...........105 
Carried forward......... 611 


He was able to determine the yields to the tree of dif- 
ferent varieties; 

Yields to the acre good apples, 214 bushels; 

Yields to the acre culls and drops, 33 bushels; 

Percentage of culls and drops, 14; 

Total receipts, good apples, less cost of barrels, $233.07; 

Average price a bushel, good apples, without barrels, 
36 cents; 

Hours of man-labor, to the acre, 164; 

Hours of horse-labor, to the acre, 65; 

Profit, to the acre, $17; 

Profit, by hour of man-labor, 10 cents; 

Cost, by bushel, good apples, without barrels, 28 cents; 

Profit, by bushel, 8 cents. 

It will be seen that the cost of barrels was very high 
owing to buying late in the season. Ten cents a barrel 
extra cost is more than equal to the profit on a bushel of 
apples, or one-third of the entire profit. Usually the profit 
on an enterprise can be greatly changed by small changes 
in cost. 

The profit to the acre is in addition to pay for use of land. 


The Two Markets 31 


If all the profit is expressed in terms of land, the orchard 
paid $27 an acre rent, or gave a profit of $14 an acre. 

If the profit is all expressed in terms of labor, the 
orchard paid 28 cents an hour for time spent on it, or 
gave a profit of 10 cents an hour. 


THE TWO KINDS OF COMMERCIAL FRUIT-GROWING 


With the foregoing points of view in mind, we may ~ 
make a further contrast of the two aims in fruit-raising 
for market. We may classify the business, in respect to 
the objects in view, into the fruit-growing that desires 
the product primarily for home use, and into that which 
desires it primarily for market. 

Of market or commercial fruit-growing there are 
again two types—that which aims at a special or personal 
market, and that which aims at the general or open market. 
The ideals in these two types of fruit-growing are very 
unlike, and the methods and the varieties that succeed 
for the one may not succeed for the other. The man who 
grows fruits for the special market has a definite problem. 
The product is desired for its intrinsic qualities; and special 
products demand special prices. The man who grows fruit 
for the world’s market has no personal customer. The 
product is desired for its extrinsic or market qualities; 
and the world’s products bring the world’s prices. The 
special-market fruit-grower usually works on a small 
base. The world’s market fruit-grower works on a large 
base; or he sells to another who, by combining similar 
products of many persons, is able to command the atten- 
tion of the market. 

It is the large base on which American fruit-growing 
is established that enables it to enter European markets.. 


32 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


In America are thousands of acres of one variety, and the 
conditions under which the fruits are grown are so similar 
as to produce uniformity in the product. We speak one 
language, and, although we are two nations, we live in 
practically the same political environment. We go to 
Europe, and to our own great markets, with wholesale 
quantities. 

In Europe, on the contrary, nearly every fruit-growing 
center is special; it may be unique. The industry is the 
outcome of years, maybe of centuries, of local effort and 
tradition. There is no general uniformity of methods and 
varieties. Community of interests on a continental base 
is impossible. There are insurmountable difficulties of 
physiography, of races, languages and political systems. 
In the staple products, the European grower may not be 
able to compete with Americans in his own markets, so 
long as those markets remain naturally open. 

The American fruit-grower quickly assimilates new 
methods. He is unfettered by tradition; and how much 
this means only those can understand who know the 
European customs and ideals. He is bold and confident. 
He easily buys and sells land. He controls his own efforts 
and destinies. He has much help from teachers and experi- 
ment stations. 

In many parts of Europe, the farmer is a tenant, and 
he therefore has little interest in planting trees. But even 
if he owns land, the area is usually small, notwithstanding 
the fact that there are many very large individual planta- 
tions. The environments of the Old World farmer are 
relatively inflexible. The result is that his methods tend 
to become stereotyped and rigid. He lacks the inspiration 
that comes of conditions which are easily recast and 
modified. His small areas must be so crowded with many 


Specialty Fruit-Growing 33 


kinds of plants that machine-work is often impossible. 
There are few orchards in most parts of Europe, as orchards 
are understood in America, meaning an area devoted 
exclusively to tree-fruits set at regular distances and culti- 
vated systematically with labor-saving machinery. 

For these and other reasons, as well as for the fact 
that our fruits and their manufactured products are 
attractive and of good quality, the American fruit-grower 
should find an increasing market in Europe. But the 
greater the quantity sent abroad, the more discriminating 
will that market become; and it must be true that the 
brands and the varieties of inferior quality tend to supply 
the inferior markets. 

But if American fruit-growing is in advance of the 
European in its general commercial aspects, it is equally 
true that the European is in advance in growing for 
special and personal uses. The narrowness of the enter- 
‘prises, the competition in restricted areas, the respect for 
traditional methods and varieties, conserve the very 
elements that appeal to the discriminating consumer, 
while, at the same time, they develop great skill in the 
fruit-grower. The care bestowed on individual plants, 
the niceties of exposure and of training, the patient hand- 
work, may almost be said to develop special traits in the 
fruits themselves. Such fruits may not find a place in the 
open market, but for that very reason they may have a 
higher commercial value. 

At the head of a little valley, closely shut in by the 
Alps, is a famous apple plantation. The trees are trained 
upright on the opposite sides of a double espalier or trellis, 
the sides of which are less than 2 feet apart. In each of 
these rows, the trees are 2 to 4 feet asunder. These trellises 
are perhaps 10 feet the one from the other, and between 

Cc 


34 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


each two is a row of apples on cordons or single horizontal 
wires; and in the intervals potatoes or other annual crops 
are often planted. Even the wires that brace the end posts 
of the trellises have apple trees trained on them like 
strands of vines. Each tree is trained to a definite number 
of branches or arms, and even the fruit-spurs are carefully 
determined. This plantation is the property of a company 
whose business it is to care for the land and the trees, and 
to find a market for the fruit. It is expensive to grow 
apples in this way; but the best Calvilles often bring a 
gulden (about 41 cents) apiece. 

Perhaps the most important lesson the American 
fruit-grower has yet to learn is the fact that there are two 
types of effort in commercial fruit-growing, and that 
there may be pecuniary reward in fruits that are unknown 
in the market. Failure to distinguish these two categories 
is the result of a confusion of ideas. One grows fruit either 
for a special and personal market, in which case he looks 
for his own customer and is independent of general trade; 
or he grows what the market demands, and allows the 
machinery of trade to handle the product. In the latter 
effort, the American fruit-grower is preéminent; but in 
the former he has made little more than a beginning. 


GARDEN AND AMATEUR FRUIT-GROWING 


The point of view of most current American writing 
on fruits is to give advice for the management of the 
commercial plantation. There is another large realm of 
fruit-growing, however, that must not be overlooked, and 
which is as much worth the while within its sphere or 
place: this is the growing of fruits for home use and for 
the personal satisfaction in the effort. Once the amateur 


The Fruit-Garden 35 


or connoisseur growing was relatively more important, 
even in North America; that time preceded the great 
commercial extension. The prominent American pomo- 
logical writers made their reputation mostly in the ama- 
teur field, as the Downings, Robert Manning, Wilder, 
Thomas, Kendrick, Cox, and others. At one time, a 
pleasant collection or museum of growing fruits was 
_ considered to be a part of a good private estate; but instead 
of the fruit-garden for fancy and for keen enjoyment, it is 
now the custom to grow collections of shrubs, native 
plants, roses or other plants, and to pay great heed to 
lawns, ornamental planting, and landscape designs. 

It is much to be desired that the fruit-garden shall 
return to men’s minds, with its personal appeal and its 
collections of many choice varieties, even the names of 
which are now unknown to the fruit-loving public. The 
discriminating admiration of fruits for odor, good form 
and color, and for choice quality is little known amongst 
us today. Our desire for fruits is mostly uncritical, easily 
contented, and confined within narrow and uninteresting 
limits. Such fruits as the Ben Davis apple, Kieffer pear, 
and Elberta peach have done much to deprave the pub- 
lic taste and to lower the level of appreciation. The 
commercial market ideals have come to be controlling, 
and most fruit-eaters have never eaten a first-class apple 
or pear or peach, and do not know what such fruits 
are; and the names of the choice varieties have mostly 
dropped from the lists of nurserymen. All this is as much 
to be deplored as a loss of standards of excellence in 
literature and music, for it is an expression of a lack of 
resources and a failure of sensitiveness. 

In practically any part of the country, a small collection 
of fruits can be grown in a well-placed plot. In fact, to 


36 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


overcome the difficulties of soil or climate is one of the 
compensations in the effort. The exchange of cions and 
specimens of fruit with connoisseurs and collectors is 
another recompense. A person with a few acres should be 
able to supply himself with choice fruits of his own raising 
as well as with choice flowers. It is easily possible from 
an outdoor plantation to have good fruit every day in the 
year; in fact, this can be accomplished with apples alone. 
The raising of grapes, peaches and other fruits under 
glass may add greatly to the interest, if one is so inclined. 
In the home fruit-plantation, very few of the ordinary 
commercial varieties should be attempted. Collections 
should be built up by exchange, representing only those 
kinds that grade not lower than nine and ten in a decimal 
scale of quality.* A good fruit-cellar should accompany 
it, and this should be readily provided in an unheated 
basement or in a simple separate outdoor construction. 


THE GENERAL PRACTICE AND THE SPECIAL PRACTICE 


The standard methods, that rest on broad underlying 
principles, are general practices. They are the essentials. 
The intending fruit-grower should grasp these practices 
at the outset. 

The methods that meet particular local or personal 
conditions or modifications are the special practices. They 
are naturally in endless dispute. 

The clean tilling of orchards is a general and funda- 
mental practice; the sod-mulch method is a special 
practice, and it must be proved in every case. The grow- 


*For lists of fruits graded on a decimal scale of quality, see Repts. Amer. 
Pomol. Soc., 1901 and previous; and Repts. Mich. Hort. Soc., 1890 and previous. 
For lists of fruits, see Bull. No. 151, Bur. Pl. Ind., U. S. Dept. Agric. (1909). 


Special Practices 37 


ing of standard full-size trees is the general practice; the 
growing of dwarfs is the special practice and must justify 
itself. Leaving the roots on trees when they are trans- 
planted is general practice; cutting them off is special 
practice, and it may work. 

The general practice is always the norm. It is not to be 
discarded except for very good reasons. The burden of 
proof is on the special practitioner. The grower may save 
himself much confusion, as also considerable bad and 
injudicious labor, if he keeps these distinctions in mind. 
He should read every article and analyze every lecture 
with this conscious discrimination. Much needless com- 
bat is waged over special practices. 


CHAPTER II 
THE LOCATION, AND ITS CLIMATE 


Aut the difference between failure and success may 
turn on the particular location or site in which the fruit- 
plantation is placed; and yet it is apparent that any 
advice respecting the proper place for engaging in fruit- 
growing must be of the most general nature, - since 
the species of fruits are so numerous, and the elements 
that enter into a choice of location and soil are so 
various and indefinable. That is to say, the problem 
is local. 

Yet there are certain considerations of general appli- 
cation and to which the reader may profitably give heed. 
These may be found to be suggestive in improving one’s 
practice in his established plantation, as well as useful in 
aiding him in the choice of location and land. 

The intending fruit-grower will usually find it to his 
advantage to locate himself among fruit-growers. In a 
“fruit-region”’ he finds conditions adapted to the growing 
of the product. Such a region attracts buyers, speakers, 
experimenters; it invites association and discussion. The 
constant association with fruit-growers quickens inquiry, 
keeps one informed, and develops the fruit mind. 

Regions that carry a reputation for fruits not only 
attract buyers and sellers, but also encourage many forms 
of codperation. Buying and selling exchanges, shipping 
associations, societies, and other groups are likely to grow 
out of the situation and to be very useful to all active 

(38) 


The Location and the Site 39 


growers. The educational value of such associations is 
likely to be beyond calculation. 


THE PLACE 


The choice of the place in which to grow fruit, leaving 
aside the element of soil, is determined by the location 
and the site. The problems comprised in the selection of 
the proper soil must be determined for each particular 
fruit. They are, therefore, special questions, and must 
be treated in books devoted to the different fruits and 
different regions, and not in a general work on fruit- 
growing. 

The location is the position of the place as fixed by the 
map or the surveyor. It is in such and such a township, 
and lies along such and such a highway. It is a question of 
local geography; it may lie in any one of a thousand 
places in the general fruit-zones that were outlined in 
the preceding chapter. 

The site is the particular or actual place, in the location 
or on the farm, upon which the plantation is set. It 
comprises the aspect as to whether the exposure is toward 
the north or the south, and the consideration of the minor 
elevations and other topographical features of the place. 

To proceed, then, from the general to the specific, we 
may say that a certain fruit-plantation is located at X, in 
the state X, and that it has a high site, with a sharp 
eastward exposure. 

In the choice of a location with reference to its geo- 
graphical position, there are two chief elements to be 
considered, the choice with reference to market and that 
with reference to weather; and to these we may now 
proceed. 


40 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


Location with reference to market. . 

Time has overcome distance. Market facilities are, 
therefore, determined more by transportation facilities 
than by nearness to the market itself. To have the choice 
of two or more means of shipping—as by rail or water, or 
by more than one railroad—is a most desirable feature in 
the location of any fruit-farm. This is not only because 
competitive rates may be secured, but also because more 
and various markets may be reached. The choicer the 
fruits and the greater the desire to reach personal markets, 
the more should the grower prize any means that will 
enable him to reach a number of markets. Such a grower 
will desire to locate within easy reach of a number of 
cities or large towns. He will not care, perhaps, to grow 
what may be called the staple varieties, leaving that effort 
to those persons who are farther removed from points of 
consumption. It would seem to be unwise, therefore, for 
the fruit-grower who has access to several or many unlike 
markets to attempt to copy the methods of those in the 
West or South, who must grow largely of one thing and 
in sufficient quantity to command concessions from trans- 
porters and salesmen. Fruit-growing can never be reduced 
to a dead-level of ideals and practice. In one place great 
specialization may be most profitable, but in another 
place generalization—the extensive growing of general- 
purpose varieties—may be best. 

The cost of haulage to the shipping-point or to the 
market is a most important item, and one that is 
often overlooked. It is expensive to haul peaches or 
berries 5 to 10 miles, particularly if the roads are 
indifferent. This cost alone may forestall any profit in 
the enterprise. 


Temperature and Rain 41 


Location with reference to weather. 

In the preceding chapter, the general influence of cold 
and heat in determining the fruit-zones was discussed. 
At that place, the subject was the average annual tempera- 
ture. But within these various zones there are endless 
minor variations in physiographical features that have 
a direct influence in determining the areas of the incidental 
frosts of late spring and early fall. Moreover, the exposure 
to destructive winds is to be considered, and in some 
regions the liability to rains at blooming time, and to 
drying winds when the fruit is maturing. While these 
dangers are beyond the control of man, nevertheless they 
may be avoided to some extent; and we are beginning 
to construct charts and tables of average local weather 
so that the grower may calculate his risks in advance. 
Herein is one of the greatest services that the science of 
meteorology can render the farmer. 

“The average daily range in temperature,” as found by 
Hedrick, is “an important constituent of blooming-time 
weather. When the daily range is highest the danger to 
blossoms is greatest. The most jeopardizing weather to the 
fruit-crop, from the standpoint of temperature, consists 
of warm, sunny days followed by still, cloudless, cold 
nights. The danger is all the greater in such stresses of 
weather because the heat of the day forces out the blos- 
soms prematurely.” 

Rain at blooming-time——In his study of New York 
conditions for the years 1881 to 1905, Hedrick concludes 
that ‘‘Rain and the cold and wind that usually accompany 
it at blossoming-time cause the loss of more fruit than any 
other climatal agencies. The damage is done in several 
ways. The most obvious injury is the washing of the 
pollen from the anthers. The secretion on the stigmas also 


42 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


is often washed away or becomes so diluted that the pollen 
‘does not germinate. It is probable that the chill of rainy 
weather decreases the vitality of the pollen and an excess 
of moisture often causes pollen-grains to swell and burst. 
Rain also prevents bees and insects from carrying pollen. 

“A temperature low enough to be harmful to blossoms 
is usually associated with frost or rain; but a low tempera- 
ture, even though it does not touch the frost point, nor 
accompany rain, is often disastrous to the setting of fruit. 
The injurious effect is probably due to the prevention of 
the growth of the pollen-tubes.” 

Wind—tThe effects of wind, according to Hedrick, 
who has studied the question, may be summarized as 
follows: ‘‘Winds whip blossoms from the trees and prevent 
insects from working. Long continued, warm, dry winds 
injure blossoms by evaporating the secretion from the 
stigmas, thereby preventing the retention and germination 
of pollen. Damp, warm winds, if long continued, are 
unfavorable to pollination. A cold, dry, north wind in 
blooming-time chills vegetation and stops the normal 
functions of flowers and leaves. On cold, clear nights, 
winds keep off frosts by renewing the heat; or by bringing 
fogs or clouds from lakes or ocean, frosts are prevented 
on the leeward side of the water.’”’ In compiling the records 
of weather in relation to the setting of fruit from 1881 ‘to 
1905 in New York, Hedrick found that ‘‘wind of sufficient 
strength to damage blossoms”’ occurred in the years 1881, 
1882, 1883, and 1895, thus making an element of risk; and 
similar risks must be general. 

‘The disasters from wind often occur in winter when 
trees are laden with ice; and the damage to ripe or matur- 
ing fruit is often very great: Protection from high winds, 
if it can be accomplished without interfering with the 


Effects of Winds 43 


usual movement of air, is much to be desired. A naturally 
protected area is to be preferred; but in default of this, 
windbreaks may be planted, as subsequently advised. 

There are the most various and contradictory opinions 
amongst fruit-growers as to the influence of winds on fruit- 
plantations. It is commonly admitted that high or rolling 
lands are best suited to most fruits, and many growers sup- 
pose that the reason of it is that winds there find free 
course. The truth is, however, that several features con- 
spire to render these lands congenial to fruits. Some of 
these characteristics are the following: Good atmospheric 
drainage; the avoidance of still air in frosty weather; good 
water-drainage; earliness or lateness, according as they 
are southward or northward exposures. High or strong 
winds are always to be avoided, if possible. 

As a rule, winds are beneficial to fruit-plantations only 
when they bring warmer air, or when they keep the air 
in motion in frosty weather. If, therefore, high lands 
could be protected from winds without endangering 
atmospheric drainage or exposing the plantation to frost, 
much should be gained. 

In dry regions there is a special reason for desiring to 
abate the winds, from the fact that they subtract so much 
moisture from soil and plants. Even a slight obstruction 
in the path of the wind may give marked results in the 
conservation of moisture. On this point, King writes 
as follows: 

“In arid or semi-arid countries, and in districts where 
the soil is light and leachy, but especially where there 
are large tracts of land whose incoherent soils suffer from 
the drifting action of winds, it is important that the 
velocity of the winds near the ground should be reduced 
to the minimum. We have in Wisconsin extensive areas 


44 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


of light lands which are now being developed for pur- 
poses of potato-culture; but while these lands are giving 
fair yields of potatoes of good quality, they are in many 
places suffering great injury from the destructive effects 
of winds. On these lands, wherever broad, open fields lie 
unprotected by windbreaks of any sort, the clearing west 
and northwest winds after storms often sweep entirely 
away crops of grain after they are 4 inches high, uncovering 
the roots by the removal of from 1 to 3 inches of the surface 
soil. It has been observed, however, that such slight bar- 
riers as fences and even fields of grass afford a marked 
protection against drifting for several hundred feet to the 
leeward of them.” 

Low temperature, however, is the greatest danger in the 
weather environment. The reader must clearly distinguish 
between frosts and freezes. Frosts occur on still, clear 
nights, and are more or less local; freezes are usually accom- 
paniments of storms, often of high winds, and are general 
or even continental in range, and their courses are not 
marked by the whiteness of frost. They were freezes, and 
not frosts, that swept over Florida in the winter of 1894-5, 
and over the northeastern states in May, 1895, and which 
have made much havoc in recent years on the Pacific 
coast and other regions; and most of the serious disasters 
of untimely cold are of this kind. These freezes are mostly 
beyond the reach of man. Particular men may protect 
themselves by means of fires, but in the main the grower 
can only move beyond their limits. But injurious frosts 
may not only be avoided, in many cases, by the choice 
of the location or even of the site, but they may sometimes 
be prevented on the very night when they are expected. 
(For ways and means, consult Chap. VII.) Of course, we 
eliminate from this discussion all consideration of regions 


Bodies of Water 45 


in which the winter temperature is too low for the grow- 
ing of fruits. 

The chief local determinant of immunity from frost 
(aside from latitude and altitude) is proximity to bodies 
of water. These bodies act as equalizers of temperature. 
The water holds latent heat, and it does not respond 
quickly to atmospheric fluctuations. Therefore, it is 
cooler in summer and warmer in winter than the adjacent 
land. The larger and deeper the body of water, the greater 
is this equalizing effect on the temperature of the shores, 
other things being equal. As between the two, great 
depth is more important than great expanse of surface. 
Lakes only a mile or two wide may exert a very profound 
influence over the adjacent land if they are very deep. 
The distance to which the protecting influence of the 
water may extend is determined very largely by the con- 
formation of the shore lands. As a rule, there are distinct 
slopes toward the water, and it is rare that the effect of 
the water on the temperature extends much beyond the 
crest of the elevation. When the elevation is 300 feet or 
more, in the northeastern states, the region of immunity 
from frost ordinarily does not extend more than two- 
thirds of the distance to the summit. Along the central 
New York lakes, when the slopes are steep, the area of 
the tender fruits, as grapes, does not reach more than 
14 mile or one mile. The famous Chautauqua grape-belt 
is confined to a strip about 2 to 3 miles wide lying against 
Lake Erie, and reaching an elevation at its landward mar- 
gin of less than 200 feet. Along the eastern shore of Lake 
Michigan, the peach area extends from 1 or 2 miles to 15 
or 20, depending on the conformation of the surface. Along 
the lower Hudson River the area of the tender fruits does 
not depart, as a rule, more than a mile or two from the 


46 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


stream. In very gradual slopes, the ameliorating influence 
of the water usually extends farther, but it is likely to be 
less marked than on the lower parts of abrupt slopes. In 
all these cases, the limit of the boundary of the area is 
determined largely by two factors,—the distance from 
the water, and the elevation above it. 

Tarr, after studying the local geography of the Chau- 
tauqua grape country, makes the following observations 
on the ameliorating influence of Lake Erie, and the remarks 
will apply to most other bodies of water: “The lake is a 
great modifier of climate. In the spring, by reason of the 
low temperature of its waters, it holds back the vegetation, 
and this tends to keep it behind the ordinary frosts. Its 
very presence checks frosts by moderating the temperature 
of the neighboring air. In the summer, the water tends to 
cool the air of the day and to keep the nocturnal tempera- 
ture fairly high. During the fall, the water has been 
warmed by the summer sun, and the influence of this 
warm body of water lengthens the growing season and 
tends to keep off the early autumn frosts. There are 
many other influences, but nothing of importance can be 
stated, excepting on the basis of a careful study extending 
over several years. The lake breeze of the day must 
moderate the daytime temperature; and the land breeze 
of the night may, in some cases, so keep the air in motion 
as to prevent frosts. That there is a marked influence upon 
climate as a result of the peculiar conditions of topography 
and neighborhood of water, is evident at the very first. 
Sketch maps show that the mean annual rainfall is greater 
on the escarpment than on the lake plain, and that the 
mean annual temperature of-the hills is lower than that 
near the lake.” 

The particular influence exerted by the water over 


Bodies of Water 47 


frost-injury in spring is often due more to the retardation 
of the period of bloom than to the actual prevention of 
frost, although its influence in the latter direction is 
important. The lands adjacent to the water ordinarily 
warm up later in spring, and the trees are not likely, 
therefore, to swell their buds until danger of serious frosts 
is past. The extent of this retardation of bloom is often 
as great as ten to twenty days within a stretch of 10 or 20 
miles from a large body of water. 

It is well known that the danger from frosts is greatest 
in mild climates, in which “warm spells” are likely to 
occur in late winter or early spring. In the central and 
southern states, this frost injury following a period of 
warm weather is commoner than true winterkilling, 
whereas in the northernmost states and Canada serious 
injury to the trees from late spring frosts is comparatively 
infrequent. In the northern states, also, the plant usually 
goes into the winter in a perfectly dormant and ripened 
condition, and is thereby able to withstand great cold. It 
has been said that injury from cold is more frequent in the 
Gulf states than in New York. 

The elevation of any place also stands in close relation 
to frostiness. Perfectly flat lands are nearly always frosty, 
because there is no atmospheric drainage, a subject to 
which we shall soon recur. On the other hand, very high 
lands are also frosty, because the air is drier and rarer 
and therefore allows of rapid radiation of heat from the 
land; and they are exposed to cold, unbroken winds. 
The local altitude to which the fruit-lands may be carried 
can be determined only by actual experiment; but in the 
North the best elevations for the tender fruits are usually 
between 100 and 300 feet above the local rivers or lakes. 

While it is extremely important that the location for 


48 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


the growing of tender or early-blooming fruit should be 
chosen with reference to its immunity from disastrous 
winter temperatures and untimely frosts, it should also 
be said that climate is often held responsible for failures 
that are chargeable to ignorance or neglect. This is 
particularly well illustrated in the perishing peach-grow- 
ing of some parts of the North. 

The date of last ‘killing frost,” however, may mean 
little to the grower of orchard fruits, for fruit-buds or 
even expanding flowers are not destroyed by frosts that 
kill tender plants on the ground. In a subsequent dis- 
cussion (Chap. VIII), the degree of cold that fruit-buds 
may withstand is given in some detail. Growers attribute 
to frost injuries that may have been caused by cold rains 
or to long-continued cold weather at blooming-time. 
Good phenological studies need to be made, whereby 
there shall be complete correlation of weather phenomena 
and vegetation phenomena. 

Frost data need to be worked out for every state and 
province, for the risk is great in every one of them. The 
imminence of this risk enforces the importance of rein- ° 
forcing the fruit business with the raising of other crops 
and products, and also the necessity of choosing one’s 
locality carefully. Frost recordsmust be compiled, to exhibit 
the average last killing frost, or the last freeze, in spring, 
the latest date of such freeze, the average first killing 
depression in autumn, the first killing temperature that 
has occurred in any year, and the length of the crop sea- 
son. (See for example, Bull. No. 5 of the U. 8. Weather 
Bureau on “Frost Data of the United States,” 1911.) 
We shall eventually work out such records minutely for 
small regions, for the farmer will find the information 
of value in proportion as it applies to his farm. 

D oe 


Drainage of Cold Air 49 


Location with reference to weather—Atmospheric drainage. 


The air is rarely, if ever, perfectly still. This is well 
illustrated in the vagaries of light frosts, which touch here 
and there where the air is the stillest or the radiation 
most rapid. This is particularly true in the growing 
months, when the earth becomes very warm in the day 
and loses the heat rapidly at nightfall, and when, also, the 


Fia. 1. Atmospheric drainage. Peach buds on the trees in region of X are 
eranently: destroyed by late frosts, while those on trees in region of O are not 
injure 


‘sky is less overcast by clouds than it is in the winter 
months. 

Much of this unrecognizable movement of the air ig 
due to the draining off or settling away of the cold air, 
which is densest and therefore heaviest. It pours down 
the valleys of hilly and mountainous countries, and as its 
vapor condenses it gives rise to the valley fogs and clouds 
It lies in the low places, and there may cause frost. A 
person riding across an undulating country on a still sum- 


50 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


mer night can scarcely fail to notice the chillier air of the 
depressions. This escape of the cold air is the secret of 
much of the success of fruit-growing on rolling and sloping 
land; and this fact explains the importance of giving 
great attention to the selection of the site and aspect 
when setting a plantation of the tenderer fruits. Barden 
and Eustace (Mich. Bull. No. 63) give a picture (drawn 
in Fig. 1), of a peach-orchard containing a pocket in the 


Fie. 2. The frosty belt on a hillside below a wood. 


region X in which buds are frequently destroyed by late 
frosts, whereas those in the region O escape uninjured. 

Features of such little apparent importance as not 
to appeal to the fruit-grower often exert great influence 
on the quiet movements of air. A frequent case is this: 
A strawberry field is on a gentle slope, and on the upper 
side is a wood. In time of frost, the only injury occurs in 
a belt two or three rods wide just against the wood, in the 
very place where the greatest immunity was expected. 
This is probably because the slight bodily movement of 
the air down the hillside and over the forest strikes 
obliquely downward from the edge of the wood-top, and 
leaves a narrow belt of dead air against the timber (as at 
A in Fig. 2). 

The atmospheric drainage is marked only in still air. 
Winds mix up the air, and bring it all to a comparatively 
uniform condition. The slightest obstacles may sufficiently 
retard the movement to leave their impress in the distribu- 


Atmospheric Drainage 51 


tion of a light frost. A rail fence, a stone wall, a row of 
bushes, a slight elevation of land, the earth thrown out of 
a ditch,—all of these, when they extend across a slope, 
are obstacles to drainage of cold air. In some cases, there 
may be a difference of 10° in temperature in as many feet 
of elevation. A dense row of trees standing diagonally 
across a slope may convey away the cold air that settles 
down against it, and thereby prevent injury to plants on 
the lower levels. 

The range of elevation through which atmospheric 
drainage acts beneficially to the fruit-grower is limited. 
A fall of a few feet in a plantation is often sufficient for 
the very best protection from light frosts; and a fall of 
100 to 200 feet on a farm or large plantation may be 
regarded as the general maximum throughout which the 
benefit may be observed, for very high elevations are, as 
we have seen, bleaker and colder in sum-temperature than 
comparatively low ones. What may be gained by air- 
drainage may be lost by coldness of elevation. The tem- 
perature decreases by 1° F. for each 300 feet elevation, and, 
according to Hann, is independent of latitude. 

“Tt is a common experience,” writes W. M. Wilson, 
“that vegetation at the surface is sometimes killed when 
the temperature of the air 4 feet above the surface remains 
above freezing; but rarely is there an absence of frost or 
of injurious temperature when the air temperature 4 feet 
above the surface falls to 32°. This is due to the fact that 
on clear, quiet nights when frost is likely to occur, the air 
at the surface is nearly always colder than it is a few feet 
above the surface. This difference may amount to as 
much as 10°, or even 15°, in as many feet, but usually it 
is much less. The difference is greater on clear nights 
than on cloudy nights.” 


52 The Principles of Fruit-growing 
THE SITE FOR THE FRUIT-PLANTATION 


The grower is confined to his general region, but he 
may have much choice in the lay of the land, or the par- 
ticular site of his plantation. The preceding discussions 
will enable the reader to approach this subject reasonably. 

As a rule, especially in northern countries, the ideal 
site for a fruit-plantation is somewhat elevated above 
adjoining lands. Such a site presents the two advan- 
tages of atmospheric and soil-drainage. Of these advan- 
tages, the atmospheric drainage is the greater, inasmuch 
as soil-draiflage can be secured by artificial means. In 
speaking of elevated lands, it is not necessarily meant 
that they be rolling. Some entire farms that are almost 
level may be sufficiently elevated above the local streams 
or the general contour of a flat country to answer all 
purposes of an ideal fruit site. 

The pronounced minor elevations often present other 
advantages of temperature than those incident to atmos- 
pheric drainage. They offer various exposures, and they 
may be utilized as windbreaks by placing the plantations 
on the slopes opposite the severest winds. If they are 
near large bodies of water, they are usually more pro- 
foundly influenced by such bodies than flatter lands, 
because more open to the movements of air from them. 

Despite all these remarks, there are certain cases in 
which comparatively low lands are preferable for fruit- 
raising, but this is because such lands are moister, richer, 
leveler, or more sheltered, rather than because they are 
lower than surrounding areas; for all these advantages 
may sometimes be secured on comparatively elevated 
lands, and atmospheric drainage be secured in addition, 
Strawberries are grown on lower lands largely because 


The Exposure 53 


such lands are moist and level. Quinces and blackberries 
demand. a moister land than is usually found on pro- 
nounced slopes. In any event, however, the grower 
should avoid flat lands that are hemmed in on all sides 
by elevations, for these ‘pockets’ are nearly always 
frosty. 


The aspect. 


The aspect or exposure of a fruit-plantation is deter- 
mined by the direction and extent of the slope of the land. 
The exposure exerts great influence on the temperature 
of the soil and on the force of winds, and it therefore 
becomes an emphatic problem in the location of a fruit 
area, especially when the tender and early-blooming 
fruits are under consideration. There is the greatest 
diversity of opinion respecting the proper exposure for 
fruits, some growers contending that the northward slope 
is always the best, and others preferring a southward 
exposure. The truth is that no one exposure is best in all 
cases. Much depends on the location and the particular 
environment of the plantation, and on the kind of fruit 
which it is proposed to grow. The subject may be analyzed 
by discussing it under five generalizations: 

1. In locations adjoining bodies of water, the best 
slope is toward the water. The very reason for the location 
of fruit-farms in such places is that the ameliorating effects 
of the water may be secured, and these effects are most 
marked when the fruit-land is most exposed to the influ- 
ence of the river or lake. In all these cases, therefore, the 
particular direction of the slope in respect to the points of 
the compass is of a very secondary importance. There is 
often great choice between the two sides of the river or 
small lake, particularly when the slopes are sharp and 


54 The Principles of Frutt-growing 


high. The side facing away from strong prevailing 
winds is usually preferable, particularly if the elevation 
back. of it is sufficient to act as a windbreak. 

2. In interior or frosty regions, the best slope for the ' 
tender and early-blooming fruits, as a rule, is one that 
retards the blooming period, thereby causing the plant 
to remain comparatively dormant until the incidental 
spring frosts are passed. In such places, therefore, the 
northward and westward slopes are commonly most 
advisable; although, if these slopes are too pronounced, 
they may be so very cold and backward that what is 
gained by the retardation in spring may be lost by the 
retardation in fall, and the fruits may fail to ripen properly, 
or be caught by early fall frosts. In wholly interior places, 
a somewhat pronounced northward exposure is usually 
preferable for peaches and apricots, since these fruits are 
likely to swell their buds with the first fitful warmth of 
spring. 

3. In regions in which there is much danger of sun- 
scald on the trunk and larger branches,.as in the mid- 
continental country and in hot arid areas, it is well to 
avoid pronounced southwestern exposures if possible; or 
if it is not possible, extra precaution should be exercised 
to train the heads of the trees in such a way as to pro- 
vide the requisite shade. 

4. If one desires to secure particularly early results 
and bright colors of fruits, a warm and sunny exposure, 
to the southward or southeastward, is most advisable. 
This is a matter of considerable moment with the finer 
dessert varieties of fruits. 

5. It is sometimes necessary, also, to study the expo- 
sure with reference to prevailing winds, when these winds 
are more or less constant and strong. The selection of the 


Checking the Wind 55 


aspect may, in a large measure, obviate the necessity of 
establishing elaborate windbreaks. The contour of the 
land should always be carefully considered when the 
planting of shelter-belts is under advisement. 


WINDBREAKS FOR FRUIT-PLANTATIONS 


We are now able to approach the troubled subject of 
windbreaks in a rational way. Although the best writers 
on horticultural topics are nearly unanimous in recom- 
mending windbreaks 
for fruit-plantations, 
there is, nevertheless, 
wide difference in 
opinion and practice 
among good cultiva- 
tors. Fruit - growers Fre. 3. The protected area, A, behind 3 
hold, as a rule, decided 
opinions concerning === = 
windbreaks. In fact, 
they usually hold ex- 
treme opinions, either 
wholly opposing es 
shelter-belts in all yo, 4, The upward deflection of winds by a 
cases, or strongly ad- pick aie 
vocating them. All who are engaged in the growing of 
fruits or who attend fruit-growers’ gatherings, have heard 
the most positive experiences cited in support of both 
opinions. There must be good reasons for these opposing 
views. There appear to be no well-grounded maxims or 
precepts among growers themselves, and statements con- 
cerning the merits of shelter-belts are commonly vague. 

Of course there is no dispute as to the marked effect 


56 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


of breaks in deflecting or checking strong winds. Even 
a fence may have a marked effect. Persons and animals 
instinctively seek shelter. Two simple illustrations will 
suffice. Fig. 3 shows the still area back of the shelter- 
belt’ which stands across the prevailing winds. Fig. 4 
is a diagram of the effect of a high bank on the Great 
Lakes. The strong winds strike the bank and are deflected 
upward and reach the surface at some distance back, 
leaving a relatively dead area at A. 

Benefits—An epitome of the benefits derived from 
windbreaks as reported by growers of fruit may be 
arranged as follows: ‘ 

1. A windbreak may protect from cold. 

2. It reduces evaporation from the surface of the land, tending 
to mitigate drought in summer and root-injury in winter. 

3. Prevents or lessens windfalls. 

4. Lessens breaking of trees laden with fruit or ice. 

5. Retains snow and leaves, thus tending to prevent deep 
freezing and excessive evaporation. 

6. Facilitates labor in the fruit-plantation. 

7. Protects blossoms from severe winds. 

8. Enables trees to grow straighter. 

9. Reduces injury from the drying of small fruits on the plants. 

10. Holds the sand in certain places. 

11. Sometimes causes fruits to ripen earlier. 

12. Encourages birds. 

13. It may be made an ornament to the property. 


Injuries reported from windbreaks: 


1. A windbreak may render a plantation colder at certain times. 

2. Fruit immediately adjoining the windbreak is liable to be much 
injured by insects and diseases, and to be small and 
inferior in color. 

3. Trees immediately against the windbreak are often less 
thrifty than others. 

4, There may be greater damage from late spring frosts in 
sheltered plantations. 


Woods 57 


Forests and fruit-growing—One of the reasons why 
fruit-growing is attended with increasing difficulties is 
because the forests have been destroyed, thereby opening 
the country to the winds. There is no evidence that the 
extremes of temperature or fluctuations in annual means 
have become larger in recent years from the effects of 
forest-removal, or that there are more high winds now than 
formerly, but it is true that winds blow over the farm 
with greater force. Winds sweep the surface and bear 
away the moisture of the soil at the same time that they 
come in contact with the trees and bushes themselves, 
and take away their moisture. The chief effect of the 
forest is to check the force of winds in prescribed areas. 
It has a local influence. Aside from all this, if forests were 
retained about the sources of creeks and on springy 
hillsides, a more continuous supply of water might be 
secured for irrigation, live-stock, spraying and domestic 
uses. It is worth saying, also, that a country dotted here 
and there with forest areas is much more attractive to 
every person who loves variety of landscape and nature. 

While there are thus many advantages to fruit-growing 
of small forest preserves, there are also disadvantages. 
In certain cases they may become the harbors and breed- 
ing-places of insect or fungous invasions. This difficulty 
may be largely avoided by cutting out those trees and 
bushes that breed the fruit-grower’s enemies. The wild 
cherries are much loved of the tent-caterpillars, the elm of 
the canker-worm, and wild roses and their kin of the rose- 
chafer. The cedar-apple fungus thrives on the red cedar, 
and is thence transported to the quince or apple orchard, 
and a form of it affects the wild thorn trees. The red-rust 
flourishes on the wild blackberries, dewberries and black 
raspberries, and the strawberry diseases breed in the 


58 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


patches of wild berries. It is not often, however, that the 
forest areas become a very serious menace to fruit-growers. 

General statement—The advantages derived from 
windbreaks are many, positive, and they appear to warrant 
the strongest recommendations of horticultural writers. 
Yet the injuries occasionally sustained in consequence of 
shelter-belts may be serious, for it is well attested that 
trees sometimes suffer from cold in the immediate vicinity 
of a dense windbreak when they escape injury in other 
places. This fact is easily explained, however. The influ- 
ence of a windbreak on the temperatures of an adjacent 
plantation is governed by its position with reference to 
prevailing or severe winds. Of itself, wind probably exerts 
little or no influence on temperature. It acquires the 
temperature of surfaces over which it passes. If these 
surfaces are colder than the given area, cold winds are the 
result, or if warmer, as a large body of water, the winds are 
warm. But wind often causes great injury to plants 
because of its acceleration of evaporation; and winds that 
are no colder than the given area, if comparatively dry, 
may consequently do great damage to fruit-plantations. 
This is particularly true at certain times in the winter 
season. Land winds, being cold and dry, are at that time 
likely to be dangerous; whereas winds that traverse large 
bodies of water, and are therefore comparatively warm 
and moist, are usually in themselves protectors of tender 
plants. 

The advantage or disadvantage of the windbreak, 
‘ therefore, depends directly on the configuration or topog- 
raphy of the particular place, and the problem is strictly 
local. But it may be said that a windbreak is desirable 
wherever the fruit-plantation is much exposed to strong 
winds. To prevent possible injury from too little circu- 


nhl 
epi 
ORS 
#. 


ha es 


y ee ZZ ite, 
Yer Ly 
BF ZZ Ce 


ass 


BLL Ys Ege 
Ze L/ 


» 


Ne 


V fh & 
YIM Wy 
Fia. 5. A Lombardy poplar break protecting a peach orchard from violent winds 
on the shore of Lake Michigan. The fruit trees are too near the break. 


(59) 


60 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


lation of air in certain localities, particular care should be 
exercised in the construction of the windbreak. The pre- 
vailing winds are the ones chiefly to be avoided. This is 
particularly important in regions in which these winds 
are normally strong, as on the ocean shore. In fact, it is 
usually impossible to grow successful orchards in full 
exposure to the ocean. 

How to make the windbreak—From a general study 
of the subject, it appears that in interior localities dense 
plantings are commonly advisable, tight hedges often being 
recommended. This is because the winds, coming off the 
land, are likely to make the plantation colder. In localities 
influenced by bodies of water, however, it is apparently 
better practice to plant a belt only for the purpose of 
breaking or checking the force of the warmer winds, still 
allowing them to pass in their course. Such a belt gives 
the desired shelter to trees when laden with fruit and ice, 
and may hold the snow, while danger from comparatively 
still air is averted. The damage from still air is usually 
observed in the lee of natural forests, and it is in such 
places that injury is reported by correspondents. The 
writer has found no indisputable evidence to show that 
such injury ever accompanies artificial windbreaks; places 
where such injury was reported have been visited, but the 
loss of trees and fruit was plainly due to age of trees or 
other obvious reasons. Still, it is probable that a hedge- 
like windbreak may sometimes be the cause of mischief; 
and such should never be made in any locality until the 
problems of local atmospheric drainage have been well 
considered. 

The coarser evergreens, planted close together, are 
therefore advisable for interior places, while deciduous 
trees, or evergreens somewhat scattered, are often better 


“HIOX MON W19}60M UT soNIds ABMION pues se[deur Jo HeeIqpuULA poxtu poo y ‘9 ‘DIY 


ve at 
nt Wy a 


62 The Principles of Frutt-growing 


for the lake regions. In these latter cases, however, the 
lay of the land is important, for if atmospheric drainage 
is good there is less danger of injury from tight belts. 
Lower levels, upon which cold air settles, are more in 
need of open belts than higher lands. For interior places, 
a strip of natural forest is the ideal windbreak. A 
Lombardy poplar windbreak alongside a peach orchard 
is shown in Fig. 5. In artificial belts, the kind illus- 


FF E SR NZ Wy 
Fic. 7. Raspberry plantation protected by a windbreak. 


trated in Fig. 6, is undoubtedly one of the best. 
The illustration shows two rows of maples backing up a 
row of Norway spruce. The maples then receive and 
break the force of the wind, and prevent the spruces from 
becoming ragged. Fig. 7 presents a good raspberry 
plantation protected by a windbreak. 

The gist of the matter is to choose those kinds of trees 
that are most thrifty and healthy in the particular locality, 
and that are least infested by fungi and insects common 
to fruit-plants, and then to study the local conditions 
carefully to determine how dense or how open the shelter 


Windbreaks 63 


should be. For California, Wickson recommends species 
of eucalyptus, pepper or schinus, Monterey cypress, 
Monterey pine, osage orange, locust, and maples. ‘Quite 
a number of the larger-growing deciduous fruit trees,’’ he 
continues, “are used to some extent along the exterior 
lines of orchards for the prétection of the inclosure. The 
fig, the walnut, the chestnut, seedling almonds, and apricots 
are especially commended for such use.” 

In Florida it is a common practice to leave strips of the 
original forest to serve as shelter-belts. If this forest is 
hammock land, and therefore well clothed und-rneath, 
the protection of a belt 2 to 4 rods wide will b most 
complete. The cabbage palmetto is often allowed to stand 
promiscuously through the orange plantation, partly to 
serve as a protection from winds, partly for shade and 
ornament. In exposed places, orange groves are sometimes 
protected by very tall open fences. 

The break should not be planted so close to the rows 
of fruit as to deprive them of light, food and moisture. It 
should never be dense enough to force the buds on fruit 
trees in those localities subject to late spring frosts, as it 
may sometimes do when it faces the south and acts like 
a southern exposure for the plantation. Payne makes the 
following observation (Colo. Exp. Sta.) on windbreaks 
in a given dry-land orchard: “Trees used for windbreaks 

- for orchards under dry-farming conditions are expensive 
unless the trees of the windbreak group are planted far 
enough from the fruit trees so that the roots of the wind- 
break group will not compete with the fruit trees for 
moisture. The root-development of the Russian mulberry 
and black locust found at the Plains Substation indicate 
that the windbreak group should be planted 100 feet 
from the fruit trees.” 


CHAPTER III 
THE TILLAGE OF FRUIT-LANDS 


Tue study of the development of the ideas associated 
with the tillage of the land opens one of the most interest- 
ing chapters in history. The subject is all the more 
suggestive because tillage is such a commonplace and 
almost universal labor that no one thinks of it as having 
had a history. Yet the practice of the simple stirring of 
the soil has been slowly evolved, like all other methods 
and institutions, through a long period and as the result 
of many forces that were unobserved or even unknown 
at the time. 

We think of tillage as a custom; and if one considers 
the condition of farming at the present moment, he would 
seem to be warranted in such an association, for a custom 
is a habit that is not suggested by reason and inquiry. 
Perhaps the only reason that most persons could give for 
the tillage of the land is that they are obliged to practice 
it. It would seem to be the simplest and dullest thing to 
till the land. It is merely the driving of the animal and 
the holding of the plow, or taking care that the harrow ~ 
scarifies the entire surface; or it may be only the stubborn 
wielding of the hoe or rake. This view of the matter is 
wholly correct when one thinks of tillage only as labor. 
The work must be done because, somehow, plants thrive 
best when it is done; but the sooner it is done and the less 
there is of it the easier, and what is the easier is the better. 

It was, no doubt, some such mind as this that domi- 


(64) 


The Early Tillage 65 


nated the rude farmers in the early history of the race. 
Throughout all the years until now—and, unfortunately, 
too often even now—tillage has been a mere necessity 
forced upon the husbandman by a most ungenerous 
Nature. The first tillage probably arose from necessity of 
breaking the earth to get the seed into it; and the second 
step was the digging out of other plants that interfered 
with its growth. In many cases, still another hardship was 
imposed, for the earth must be disturbed to get the crop 
out of it. These three necessities served to keep the surface 
of tamed lands in a greater or less state of agitation until 
it finally came to be seen that there is something in the 
practice which causes plants to thrive wholly aside from 
the lessening of the conflict with weeds. But it is only in 
the last century or two that there appears to have been 
any serious attempt to discover why this age-long practice 
of stirring the earth is such a decided benefit to plants. 

One reason why the art of tillage has made such slow 
progress is because it seems to be contrary to the order of 
nature. In recent years it has been proclaimed that the 
proper treatment of an orchard is to plant it thick and 
to allow the leaves and litter to cover the ground, wholly 
omitting the stirring of the soil, for this is the method of 
the forest; and forest lands increase in fertility from year 
to year and the moisture is held in them as in a sponge. 
The reasoning is plausible but not exact. There are two 
ways of testing it,—by experience and by reflection. It 
needs only to be suggested that the experiment has been 
tried, and is now trying, upon an extended scale, as a 
large part of the apple orchards of the country testify. 
The chief beneficiaries of the experiment are the bugs, 
mice and fungi, all of which would vote the method a 
success. The reasons why the forest method is successful 

E 


66 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


for the forest are because the trees stand so thickly that 
the earth is protected from the drying effect of sun 
and winds, the forest cover is so extensive as to produce 
a climate of its own, all the product is returned to the 
soil, and there is no haste. In every one of these essentials 
the orchard is unlike the forest. Those writers who urge 
that the orchard be planted thick enough to imitate the 
forest condition should also make it clear how the insects 
and fungi are to be kept at bay, or how acceptable fruit 
can be secured on trees that are unpruned, unthinned and 
untamed. The objects to be attained in the forest and in 
the orchard are wholly unlike. In one case it is the per- 
petuation of the species, and there results a severe conflict 
for existence, in which more plants die than reach ma- 
turity; in the other it is the securing of an abnormal prod- 
uct of the plant—a product that can be held to its 
abnormal or artificial development only by abnormal con- 
ditions——and the struggle for existence is reduced to its 
lowest terms, for it is desired that not a single plant be 
lost. Because it is impossible to imitate the forest 
conditions, the forest methods cannot be followed in 
fruit-plantations. 

Now that we have come to understand why and how 
it is that the stirring of the surface earth makes plants 
thrive, the old-time drudgery of tillage becomes the most 
important, the most suggestive, and therefore the most 
difficult properly to understand and perform of all farming - 
operations. If we cannot have the protection of the forest 
cover and the forest mulch, we must make a mulch for 
the occasion; and if we wait impatiently for results, we 
must unlock the granaries of the soil more rapidly than 
Nature does. We must till for tillage’s sake, and not wait 
to be forced into the operation—as men have generally 


The Neglected Orchards 67 


been foreed—by the weeds; yet, whilst we have outgrown 
the need of weeds, we should not despise them, but remem- 
ber them kindly for the good they have done the race. 
They have been an inexorable priesthood, holding us to 
duty whilst we did not know what duty was, and they 
stand ready still to extend their holy offices. 


The case of the early apple plantings. 


Orchard trees are capable of sending their roots‘so far 
and deep into the soil in search of food and moisture that 
they are able to live and grow under the most indifferent 
treatment of the surface soil. This fact has obscured the 
importance of tillage and fertilizing, so much so that there 
is a widespread opinion that orchards thrive and bear 
quite as well in sod as in tilled land. The greater part of 
the few apple and pear orchards that are kept in good 
tilth were put under such treatment only after the trees 
had attained some age and all the ill effects of early neglect 
had become established. Even those orchards that have 
been tilled from the first may have been quite as im- 
properly managed as those that are left to sod. There- 
fore, there is no undisputed body of popular experience 
touching the value of thorough tillage of apple orchard 
lands; but there are abundant experiences with the tillage 
of peach and plum orchards, and other fruit-plantations, 
which show unequivocally that such treatment is essential 
to the largest results. It is a significant observation that 
those fruits from which the farmer expects the greatest 
profits—as the stone-fruits—are the ones that everywhere 
receive the best care; whereas the apple, from which less 
is expected, commonly receives no attention until all other 
crops have been. served. The apple-grower has cheapened 
his efforts by conceiving of a low estimate of value. 


68 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


Aside from these related experiences, the theoretical 
considerations in favor of tillage are so clear and forcible 
that they amount to a demonstration of the superiority 
of tillage over sod or grain for apple orchards. 

My older readers will recall that until re¢ent years the 
effort of farmers has been directed to the growing of hay, 
grain and live-stock. Previous to this generation, the grow- 
ing of fruit had been a matter of secondary or even inci- 
dental importance. A bit of rocky or waste land, or an 
odd corner about the buildings, was usually given over to 
the apple orchard, and if the trees received any attention 
whatever it was after all other demands of the farm had 
been satisfied. The apple and standard pear orchards 
of the country still record the old method. It has required 
at least a generation of men in which completely to estab- 
lish any new agricultural system, and the time is not yet 
fully arrived for the passing out of the old orchards and 
the coming in of the new. In other fruits than apples and 
standard pears, the generations of trees are comparatively 
short-lived, and those fruits sooner feel the effect of new 
agricultural teaching. Vineyards, and orchards of plums, 
dwarf pears, apricots, cherries, and quinces, have mostly 
come into existence along with the transition movement 
from the old to the new farming, and they have been 
planted seriously, with the expectation of profit, the same 
as have the grain crops. Peaches had passed out in most 
parts of the East, and they came in again with the new 
agriculture. At the present time, men buy farms for the 
sole purpose of raising fruit, a venture which would 
have been a novelty fifty years ago; but the habit of imi- 
tation is so strong that the apple-planter patterns after the 
old orchards that were grown under another and now a 
declining system of agriculture, and many of which are 


Sod vs. Tillage 69 


still standing on the old farms. The apple orchard, there- 
fore, on the one hand, and the well-tilled vineyard on the 
other, are the object-lessons illustrating the faults of non- 
tillage and the gains of good tillage. The apple country is 
no longer coextensive with the sod country, and new 
methods must prevail. 


(Sod orchards.) 


It is not to be inferred from the foregoing remarks that 
orchards in sod are necessarily failures, or even that they 
must be unsatisfactory. There are notable examples to 
the contrary; but they are special cases, and the success 
is probably in spite of the sod rather than because of it. 
They are cases in which the land is specially good or 
retentive of moisture, in which the other care is painstak- 
ing, and mostly in which the grass is not mown for hay. 
In some cases, the grass is cut and spread under the trees; 
this is the so-called ‘“sod-mulch” method. It probably 
will be found that most very successful sod orchards are 
in regions of heavy rainfall or of light evaporation, or 
that there are local underground supplies of moisture. 

Tests on apples by the New York (Geneva) Experi- 
ment Station show in favor of tillage over sod in yield, 
larger fruit, longer-keeping fruit, better quality, 
uniformity of trees and crops, greater growth of trees, 
better foliage, less dead wood in the tree-tops, deeper 
rooting, a better supply in the soil of humus and nitrogen. 
The fruit in the sod-mulched plat was much more highly 
colored than in the tilled plat and matured one to three 
weeks earlier. At the end of a ten-year test, Hedrick 
concludes as follows: 

“Grass militates against apples growing in sod in 
several ways which act together, as: (1) Lowering the 


70 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


water-supply, (2) decreasing some elements in the food- 
supply, (3) reducing the amount of humus, (4) lowering 
the temperature of the soil, (5) diminishing the supply of 
air, (6) affecting deleteriously the beneficial micro-flora, 
(7) forming a toxic compound that affects the trees. 

“General statements are: Sod is less harmful in deep 
than in shallow soils; there is nothing in this experiment 
to show that apples ever become adapted to grass; sod 
may occasionally be used in making more fruitful an 
orchard growing too luxuriantly; other fruits than the 
apple are probably harmed quite as much or more by sod; 
the effects of grass occur regardless of variety, age of tree, 
or cultural treatment, and are felt whether the trees are on 
dwarf or standard stocks; because of their shallow root- 
systems, dwarf trees are even more liable to injury from 
grass than standards; hogs, sheep or cattle pastured on 
sodded orchards do not overcome the bad effects of the 
grass; owners of sodded orchards often do not discover the 
evil effects of the grass because they have no tilled trees 
with which to make comparisons; it is only under highest 
tillage that apple trees succeed in nurseries, and all the 
evidence shows that they do not behave differently when 
transplanted; grass left as a mulch in an orchard is bad 
enough; grass without the mulch is all but fatal—it makes 
the trees sterile and paralyzes their growth, and it is the 
chief cause of unprofitable orchards in New York.” 

In New Hampshire, Gourley reports (Bull. No. 168) 
that “The five-year average shows all methods of treat- 
ment to be superior to growing trees in sod as regards 
yield and size of fruit, and growth of tree. Cultivation 
annually every two weeks until September 1 has given 
results on yield and growth superior to cultivation every 
other year, including a cover-crop the alternate years of 


Sod vs. Tillage 71 


cultivation. A good system of culture, namely, cultiva- 
ting the orchard every two weeks until midsummer, then 
seeding down with crimson clover, has given practically 
as good results on yield of fruit and growth of tree as that 
obtained by the addition of a complete fertilizer or when 
either phosphoric acid, potash, or nitrogen are used in 
excess in the complete fertilizer.” 

The experiments of Picket in New Hampshire on the 
formation of fruit-buds by different methods of soil- 
treatment (Bull. No. 153) give comparable results as the 
consequence of three years’ test. Some of the deduc- 
tions are that “thorough cultivation throughout the season 
from May 15 to September 1, without the addition of 
cover-crop or fertilizer, resulted in the production of three 
times as many blossoms (fruit-buds) and somewhat more 
than three times as much fruit as no cultivation (sod). 
Clean cultivation throughout the season produced con- 
siderably fewer fruit-buds and a noticeably smaller crop 
of fruit than cultivation till July 10, with a cover-crop of 
crimson clover sown with the last cultivation and plowed 
under the following spring. The results indicate that clean 
cultivation till July 10, followed by a cover-crop of crimson 
clover, alternating every other year with a stand of mixed 
clover and grass sown early in the spring, may produce a 
sufficient number of fruit-buds for a satisfactory crop. 
This cannot be conclusively shown till the experiments 
have progressed at least one more season. Cultivation 
and cover-crop one year in three produced only two-thirds 
as many fruit-buds and one-half as many apples as cultiva- 
tion two years in three. Cultivation and cover-crop one 
year in three doubled the production of fruit-buds and 
increased the crop of apples three times compared with 
no cultivation at all. Cultivation and cover-crop two years 


72 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


in three gave almost as good results as cultivation and 
cover-crop yearly.” 

These results of experiments are confirmed by the 
extensive apple-orchard surveys made by Warren in New 
York, in. which the actual experiences of growers are 
tabulated and compared. 


Allowable use of sod. 


Notwithstanding these authoritative findings, sod may 
hold a very important part in the present management of 
an orchard of apples or pears. In many cases, it is impos- 
sible to secure the time and labor to keep all the orchards 
in a state of good tilth, and it may be better to till one part 
thoroughly and then seed it down for a short time than 
to try to till the whole area indifferently. This is partic- 
ularly true in clay lands, in which the period of useful 
plowing in the spring is very short. In this way, one may 
practise a rotation of tillage in different parts of the plan- 
tation; but care must be taken that no part remains in sod 
so long that the trees become weakened or injured. In 
other cases, it is necessary to hold the orchard in sod 
to prevent serious washing on steep slopes. In hillside 
orchards, strips of sod may be left across the slope alter- 
nating with tilled areas, and the areas may rotate from 
year to year. Some orchard areas are so steep or so stony 
(Fig. 8) that tillage is impossible; in this case, the stones 
provide the surface mulch. 

The results with sod depend largely on the other 
treatment that the orchard receives. The trees should have 
at least as good care in pruning, grubbing, spraying, and 
otherwise as they receive in tilled lands. The grass should 
not be cut for hay; it may be mown and allowed to lie as 
a mulch; or the area may be pastured with hogs or sheep. 


Sod in Orchards 73 


If no animals are pastured, the orchard may need liberal 
fertilizing. The general color, vigor and productiveness 
of the trees afford a good index of the effect of the sod. 

The sod-mulch method, or any acceptable sod treat- 
ment, must not be confused with weeds and neglect. If 
the sod is employed at all, it should be good sod, which 
means that it must be fertilized or top-dressed, bad weeds 
kept out, and bare or thin spots re-seeded. 


a A A 


Fig. 8 Where tillage 


Sod lands are not only drier than cultivated ground, 
but they are favorite breeding-places of insects. Borers 
are particularly bad in grass land. No stone-fruits should 
ever be allowed to stand in sod, and the same may be said 
of dwarf pears. Very thrifty young apple and pear 
orchards may sometimes be thrown into bearing by seed- 
ing them down for a time, but the sod should be broken 
up before the trees become checked in vigor. 

The whole question as to whether sod is hurtful or 
beneficial to an orchard is a local question. The grower 
must determine it for himself. If the orchard is in sod and 


74 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


is not doing well, the best advice in general is to plow and 
till it. Certainly it is better to make tillage the rule and 
sod the exception than to start with the intention of grow- 
ing an orchard in grass and cultivating it only when forced 


to do so. It is better to pasture an orchard than to allow 
the grass to grow at will, but close pasturing can by no 
means take the place of tillage and fertilizing. If a person 
wants to raise hay or grain, it is cheapest to grow it where 
there are no trees to bother. If he wants to grow apples 
or grapes, he would better choose some other place than a 
meadow or grainfield. The use of clover and other tem- 
porary cover-crops as a means of fertilizing the land is 
quite another matter, and is discussed in the next chapter. 

Growers are always asking whether the apple orchard 
shall be plowed up. If the grower of apples is satisfied 
with the crops and growth of the trees, let the orchards 
alone; but if it is thought that better crops are desirable, 


The Reasons Why 75 


do not hesitate to make an effort to secure them. If it is a 
question of varieties, it may be worth while to top-graft 
the trees. If the roots are too near the surface to allow of 
plowing, harrow the land thoroughly when the turf is soft 
in spring, and continue to work it in the growing season. 
If this is not feasible, then pasture it closely with sheep or 
hogs, feeding the stock at the same time. If all this cannot 
be done, and the orchard is unprofitable, cut it down. 


THE PHILOSOPHY OF TILLAGE 


Tillage may be defined as the stirring of the soil for 
the direct purpose of making plants thrive. Its immediate 
effect is to ameliorate and modify the soil itself, but its 
secondary effects are those desired and which are also 
intimately concerned in the welfare of the plant. For ex- 
ample, tillage is capable of lessening the capillarity of the 
surface soil, and from this there may result a saving of 
moisture from evaporation, and it is the moisture that is 
sought. For practical purposes, however, it is unnecessary 


Ht 


Fia. 10. Good tillage and good care.—Loganberries in Oregon, 


76 The Principles of Frutt-growing 


to keep this distinction in mind, and we may classify the 
benefits of tillage under four general heads, arranging 
them approximately in their order of importance to the 
fruit-grower: 


1. Tillage improves the physical condition or structure of the 
land, 

(a) By fining or comminuting the soil, and thereby pre- 
senting greater feeding-surface to the roots; 

(b) By increasing the depth of the soil, and thereby giving 
a greater foraging and root-hold area to the plant; 

(c) By warming and drying the soil in spring; 

(d) By reducing extremes of temperature and moisture; 

(e) By supplying air to the roots. 

2. Tillage may save moisture, 
(f) By increasing the water-holding capacity of the soil; 
(g) By checking evaporation. 

3. Tillage may augment chemical activities, 

(h) By aiding in setting free plant-food; 

(2) By promoting nitrification; 

(j) By hastening the decomposition of organic matter; - 

(k) By extending these agencies (h, 7, 7,) to greater depths 
of the soil. 

4, Tillage indirectly protects the fruit-plantation, 

(l) By destroying weeds; 

(m) By destroying insects and breaking up their breed- 
ing-places; 

(n) By tending to reduce plant diseases, in the removal 
of host-plants, burying of affected leaves and 
fruits, and the like; 

(0) By aiding in the keeping down of mice, rabbits and 
other pests. 


The simple statements of these offices of tillage is 
sufficient for the present occasion, except, perhaps, in 
respect to the improving of the structure of the soil and the 
conservation of the moisture, for if the cultivator is skilled 
- in these latter matters, all the other benefits will follow. 


Condition of the Soil 77 


The methods of tillage are of course endlessly variable. 
The novice should inspect the methods of good growers. 
The pictures accompanying this Chapter (Figs. 9-15) 
show what results have been secured by successful men. 


The structure of the soil. 


The structure or physical state of the soil is com- 
monly more important than its mere richness in plant- 


Fic. 11. The tillage strip in a vineyard. 


food. That is, the productivity of the land is not deter- 
mined wholly, and perhaps not even chiefly, by the amount 
of fertilizing elements it contains. This is particularly true 
of all lands—like the clays—that tend to become and to 
remain hard and unpleasant if left to themselves. Plant- 
food is of no consequence unless the plant can use it. The 
hardest rocks may contain various plant-foodsin abundance, 
and yet plants cannot grow on them. A stick of wood con- 


78 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


tains potassium and phosphorus and nitrogen, and yet 
nothing grows upon it until it begins to decay. A hundred 
pounds of potash in a stone-hard lump is worth less to a 
given plant than an ounce in a state of fine division. Soils 
that the chemists may pronounce rich in plant-foods 
may grow poor crops. In other words, a chemist cannot 
tell what a soil will produce; he can tell only what it 
contains. 


Fie. 12. A fruit-plantation in New Mexico, under tillage. 


Every good farmer knows that a hard and lumpy soil 
will not grow good crops, no matter how much plant-food 
it may contain. A clay soil that has been producing good 
crops for any number of years may be so seriously injured 
by one injudicious plowing in a wet time as to ruin it for 
the growing of heavy crops for two or three years. The 
injury lies in the modification of its physical structure, 
not in the lessening of its natural fertility. A sandy soil 
may also be seriously impaired for the growing of any crop 


Fertilizers on Lumpy Lands 79 


if the humus, or decaying organic matter, is allowed to 
wear out of it. It then becomes leachy, it quickly loses its 
moisture, and is excessively hot in bright, sunny weather. 
Similar remarks may be appled to all soils, although they 
are not equally true of all. 


If these remarks are true, then it follows that it is use- 
less to apply commercial fertilizers to lands not in proper 
physicial condition for the best growth of crops. If 
potash, for example, were applied to hard lumps of clay, 
it could not be expected to aid much in the growth of 
plants, because plants cannot grow on such a place. If the 
same quantity were applied to mellow soil, however, the 
greater part of it would be presented to the roots of plants 
at once, and its effects would no doubt be apparent in the 
season’s crop. The improvement of the structure of the 
soil is not only a means of presenting the plant-foods to 
the roots and of uniformly distributing what fertilizer may 


80 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


be applied, but it is also a direct means of conserving 
moisture and of hastening chemical activities. 

The soil is a vast storehouse of plant-food, and the first 
effort of the husbandman should be to make this store 
available to plants. In “An Essay for Advancement of 
Husbandry-Learning,”’ published in 1651 in London, 
Samuel Hartlib wrote: “Men take him for a foole or a mad 


(dl 
itt 


aM 
ANN 
IRE EUG 


man that, having store of wealth in his trunck, doth yet 
complain of want. What though the key be rusty for want 
of use? ‘tis easier to get that scoured, then to obtaine 
‘such another treasure. And surely I may upon most sure 
grounds say, that our Native Countrey, hath in its bowels 
an (even almost) infinite, and inexhaustible treasure; much 
of which hath long laine hid, and is but new begun to be 
discovered. It may seem a large boast or meer Hyperbole 
to say, we enjoy not, know not, use not, the one-tenth 
part of that plenty or weaith & happinesse, that our 


The Dry Spell 81 


Earth can, and (Ingenuity and Industry well encouraged) 
will (by Gods blessing) yield.” 


The moisture of the soil. 


Lands oftener need moisture in the growing season 
than they need fertilizers. They usually need both, if the 
largest and best crops are to be secured. Drought seems 
to most persons to be one of those calamities in which 


Be ES = 
Fic. 15. The use of the disc-harrow with a spike-tooth follower. 


there are no secondary or incidental blessings, and it must 
be confessed that the lesson of the recurring droughts has 
not yet been learned by the great body of farmers. The 
one remedy that occurs to most persons is irrigation, and 
yet there is sufficient rainfall in most parts of the older 
fruit-growing regions to provide all the needs of large 
crops. The difficulties are that this rainfall comes when 
it seems not to be wanted, and very much of it is allowed 
to escape by evaporation. The truth is, however, that 
the heavy rainfall usually comes ac the best season, 
F 


82 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


for it is the period of inactivity, when the work of the 
farmer and the growth of the plants are least interfered 
with. If farmers in the East and South were certain that 
there would be no rain from June till September, they 
would carefully husband the rainfall of the earlier months, 
and would suffer little loss; but when they expect rain all 
summer, they neglect the saving of the early precipitation, 
and gamble on the chance of having a rain when they need 
it. It often happens that the dry countries suffer least 
for water. 

The water is to be saved by holding it in the earth. If 
the earth is finely divided and yet compact, the numberless 
pores or interstices will hold great quantities of water. 
If, then, the interstices next the atmosphere are broken 
up so that capillarity is reduced, the water is prevented 
from passing off by evaporation. The whole process of 
the saving of moisture, therefore, falls into two means: the 
catching and holding of it (or the making of a reservoir), 
and the preventing of evaporation. It is, therefore, a 
question of plowing and then of surface-tilling. It will thus 
be seen how futile it may be to try to save the water by 
beginning tillage late in the season, when a drought is 
threatened. If the land has not been well prepared, there 
may be no water to save by that time. It may either have 
run through the land into the drains, or it may have 
evaporated long before the farmer saw the need of saving it. 

The hardpan may be so near the surface that little 
water can get into the land; the soil is shallow, and the 
early rains make mud-puddles or pass off over the sur- 
face. In such lands deep plowing is necessary, to break 
up the hardpan and to increase the storage-capacity. 
Breaking up the hardpan by means of dynamite blasting 
may make a useful preparation for fruit-lands. If the 


The Moisture Reservoir 83 


land is open and leachy, shallow plowing may be neces- 
sary, else the soil may be loosened too much. The water- 
storage capacity of most soils may be increased by put- 
ting vegetable matter into them. It will thus be seen 
that the methods of conserving or saving moisture must 
be worked out—or rather thought out—by each farmer 
for his own farm. 

The water of rains and snows is held on the surface for 
the time, and allowed to percolate into the soil, if the land 
is rough and open from recent plowing, if there is a cover of 
herbage, or if the surface is soft and mellow. Fall-plowing 
may be advisable to catch the water of the inactive season, 
and also to expose hard soils to weathering; and it may 
facilitate the work of spring. But clay lands with little 
humus may puddle or cement if fall-plowed, and particu- 
larly if harrowed and fitted in the fall; and in the South 
all rolling lands are exposed to serious gullying by fall- 
plowing. In general, it is not advisable to plow fruit-plan- 
tations in the fall, however, not only because it may too 
greatly expose the roots to the weather, but because it 
prevents the ameliorating of such lands by the use of 
some incidental or catch-crop sown after the summer till- 
ing is past. The winter covering is efficient. in holding 
the precipitated water, and the other advantages of it 
are invaluable (as explained in Chapter IV). 

Any body or substance interposed between the air and 
the moist soil will prevent the evaporation of the moisture 
in that soil. The ground is moist underneath a board, a 
layer of sawdust or ashes; and so it may be underneath a 
layer of 2 or 3 inches of dry earth. It is expensive and 
difficult to haul this dry earth to the land, and, moreover, 
it soon becomes hard and dense, and is no longer a mulch. 
It is better to make the mulch on the spot by shallow til- 


84 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


lage, and to repair the mulch as soon as it becomes hard 
and crusted. The orchardist, therefore, will till as often 
as the land needs it, however frequent that may be; but 
as a general statement it may be said that fruit-lands 
ought to be tilled every ten days and soon after every rain. 


USE OF THE VARIOUS TOOLS IN RELATION TO MOISTURE- 
SAVING (adapted from L. A. Clinton) 


Many special tillage tools have been designed for fruit- 
grounds practice. The primary office of these tools is to 
provide the soil reservoir, to comminute the surface, to 
keep down the weeds; and all this has important relations 
to moisture. Figs. 16 and 17 show some useful forms of 
tools. 


Plowing to save moisture. 


The first step in the saving of moisture must be the 
preparation of the land so that the rain will sink down, and 
not be carried off by surface drainage. In many regions, 
especially in the southern states, the great handicap to 
agriculture is the surface-washing of the land. Owing to 
shallow plowing and shallow tillage, the water is unable to 
settle into the hard soil with sufficient rapidity, and is 
carried along the surface, producing the destructive gullies. 

The improvements in the plow have done much toward 
remedying these defects, but there is still much ignorance 
as to the proper use of this implement. As a tool to be used 
in the preparation of the land for the reception of moisture, 
it stands preéminent. Good plowing does not consist—as 
ordinarily supposed—in merely inverting a strip of earth, 
but in pulverizing and fining it and burying the sod or 
refuse that may be on the surface. The quantity of water 


The Plow and the Harrow 85 


that a soil is capable of holding depends directly on the 
fineness of its particles. Then that plow which will break 
and pulverize the soil most thoroughly is the one best 
adapted to fit the soil for holding moisture. This point is 
well illustrated by King, who says: ‘Since each indepen- 
dent soil-grain of a moist soil is more or less completely 
surrounded by a film of water, it is evident that, other 
conditions being present, the largest aggregate surface 
area may retain the most water per cubic foot. Now, a 
cubic foot of marbles 1 inch in diameter possesses an 
aggregate surface of 27.7 square feet, while if the marbles 
were reduced in diameter to one-thousandth of an inch, 
then the total area per cubic foot is increased to 37,700 
square feet.”” From this it is evident that the total quantity 
of water capable of being absorbed by a soil that is cloddy 
and lumpy is very slight in comparison with the quantity 
when the soil is in a finely divided state; and not only is its 
absorbing power less, but its power of holding moisture is 
also greatly reduced. 


Harrowing to save moisture. 


The harrow, besides pulverizing and fining the soil for 
the seed-bed, is most efficient in making an earth-mulch. 
The spring-tooth harrow is in reality a cultivator. When 
used as an instrument to conserve moisture, the teeth 
should penetrate to the depth of about 3 inches, and to 
produce the best effect the ridges left by it should be 
leveled off by a smoother, which can now be purchased as 
an attachment to the harrow. The tillage of orchards by 
the harrow is now practised extensively, and nothing short 
of irrigation will so nearly meet the demands of trees for 
moisture, particularly in the heavier soils. 

The Acme harrow is a most excellent implement on 


Fig. 16. Various tools adapted to tilling of fruit-plantations. (1) Robert’s 
form of an ideal plow; (2) vineyard and garden plow; (3) swivel plow; (4, 5) 
subsoil plows; (6, 8) spike-tooth cultivators; (7) gang-plow; (9) spring-tooth cul- 
tivator with side-guards; (10) an orchard gang-plow. 


(86) 


Fig. 17. Tools adapted to surface-tilling of fruit-lands. (1) disc-harrow; (2) 
spike-tooth harrow; (3) Acme harrow; (4) spring-tooth harrow with side frames; 
(5) riding cultivator; (6) spring-tooth harrow; (7, 8) grape-hoes. In 8, the handle 
a serves as a rudder or guide. 


(87) 


88 The Principles of Frutt-growing 


lands that are comparatively free from stones and rubbish. 
The plow-like action of its blades serves to pulverize the 
soil, to spread the mulch evenly, and it leaves a most 
excellent seed-bed. 

The cutaway or disc-harrows may be either beneficial 
or positively injurious. If the discs are so set that they 
cover but a part of the surface with the mulch, they leave 
a ridge exposed to the action of the wind and sun, and the 
rate of evaporation is greatly increased. The discs should 
be set at such an angle that the whole surface shall be 
stirred or covered. Their chief value lies in the cutting 
and pulverizing action on clay soils, but as conservers of 
moisture they are inferior to the Acme or the spring- 
tooth. Soils that need the disc-harrow to pulverize them 
should usually be gone over again with some shallower 
tool. 

The mellower the soil, the lighter should be the work 
done by the harrow. On most heavy orchard soils, it will 
be found necessary to use the heavy tools, like the spring- 
tooth and disc-harrows, in the spring, but if the land is 
properly handled it should be in such condition as to 
allow the use of a spike-tooth or smoothing-harrow in 
summer. This light summer harrowing should be sufficient 
to keep down the weeds, and it preserves the soil-mulch in 
most excellent condition. With such a tool and on land 
in good tilth, a man can harrow 10 or more acres a day. 


Cultivators and moisture-saving. 


The action of cultivators. is not materially different 
from that of the spring-tooth harrow. The size of the teeth 
should be regulated by the work to be performed, an imple- 
ment with many small teeth being preferable to one with 
a few large teeth when the object is to conserve moisture. 


Cultivators and Rollers 89 


It must be borne in mind that in a dry time the less surface 
exposed the less will be the evaporation. If a large-toothed 
implement is used to destroy grass and weeds, then it 
should be followed by a smoother to reduce the ridges 
and prevent loss of moisture. 

Ridge culture is allowable only when the object is to 
relieve the soil of moisture on bottom lands where the 
water comes very near the surface, or for some special 
crops with which a high degree of warmth is required 
early in the season; but even then the ridges should be 
slight. Nothing could be better calculated to dry out a 
potato-field or a corn-field than throwing the ground up 
on high ridges, leaving a large surface exposed to the 
action of sun and wind. In fruit-plantations in a proper 
state of tillage, unless very heavy clay, a small-toothed 
or even spike-toothed cultivator will be found sufficient 
to maintain the surface mulch. 


The roller, in its relation to soil-motsture. 


The roller is an implement whose value depends largely 
on special conditions. There is no tool that requires more 
judgment as to proper use. On light, loose, sandy or 
gravelly soils, where every effort must be made to solidify 
and pack the particles closely together, the roller may be 
used repeatedly. The difficulty with such soils is that the 
spaces between the grains are so large that the water is 
permitted to pass through freely, and is lost by percola- 
tion. The capillary openings are so large that there is 
very feeble rise of the water to take the place of that used 
by plants and lost by evaporation. The roller lessens the 
size of these pores in solidifying the soil, and the capillary 
force is then strong enough to draw the water to the sur- 
face. If, now, the soil is left in this condition, it has been 


90 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


put in the best possible form for parting with its moist- 
ure into the atmosphere, unless prevented by a surface 
mulch. In seeding land in a dry time, the soil should be 
rolled in order to bring sufficient moisture to the seeds to 
insure germination. 

When circumstances will permit, the roller should be 
followed by a smoothing-harrow, that the surface mulch 
may be restored and the moisture stopped before reaching 
the atmosphere. On clay lands, the roller must be used with 
much caution. If used immediately after grain is sown and 
if a heavy rain follows, there is danger of the soil becoming 
so compact on the surface that the tender shoots are unable 
to get through, and the most direct connection is estab- 
lished between the soil-moisture and the air. A good 
method of  treat- 
ment for clay is to 
roll before the seed 
is sown, then har- 
row and make a 


good seed-bed, and 
Fia. 18. One form of planker or float. then drill in the 


grain. After the plants are well up, the roller may be 
used again, which will bring the water to the surface, where 
the growing plants can make use of it before it passes 
off by evaporation. 

Various kinds of plankers or floats may be used in the 
place of the roller to smooth and compact recently tilled 
lands. A good tool of this kind is shown in Fig. 18. ‘To 
make this cheap and easily-made adjunct to good culti- 
vation, take two hardwood planks, 2x8 inches and 7 
feet long, and notch them as in the cut, boring a hole at 
the upper end to hitch to; the notches should be 8 inches 
apart and 2 inches deep; now nail cross-planks on the two 


Soul-preparation 91 


notched bed-pieces, using the same-sized pieces, 2x8 and 
6 or 7 feet long; let the cross-planks project 1 foot at each 
end over the bed-pieces. If more weight is needed to fine 
the clay lumps, the driver can ride the float, or weights 
can be placed on it.” 


SUGGESTIONS FOR THE TILLING OF FRUIT-LANDS 


The foregoing discussions should now be put into 
practice. The standards of excellence should be well under- 
stood and be constantly in mind, even though it is not 
possible always to apply them as completely as one would 
desire. 


Preparation of the land. 


Lands that enjoy perfect natural drainage are particu- 
larly desirable for fruit-growing, because they are not only 
warm and give up their fertility easily, but because they 
also allow of very early tillage, which is an important 
requisite in the management of fruits. If this perfect 
natural drainage does not exist, tile-drainage should be 
employed until the land is brought into the best possible 
condition. Many hard and wet soils make excellent pear 
and plum lands when thoroughly tile-drained. It is a 
common opinion that only flat lands need draining, but 
there are rolling lands in which the subsoil is high and hard 
and holds the water like a dishpan. Hillsides are often 
springy and boggy, needing careful attention in under- 
draining. Judicious draining not only carries off the 
superfluous water, but it also loosens the subsoil and allows 
it to retain its moisture better in times of drought. An 
attempt should be made to bring the land in the various 
parts of the orchard into conditions as uniform as possible, 


92 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


so that the same tillage and treatment may be applied 
to the entire area. All hard and ‘‘sour”’ spots should 
receive particular care in drainage and subjugation, or 
they should be left outside the plantation. 

Lands with hard and impervious subsoils should be 
plowed very deep before trees are put on them; and in 
some cases, as for dwarf pears, it may pay well to use the 
subsoil plow. It should be borne in mind, however, that 
the subsoil plow is not always a fundamental corrective of 
hard subsoils, for it does not remove the cause. The sub- 
soil may gradually settle back into its old condition, and 
land cannot be completely subsoiled after it is planted to 
trees. In the case of strawberries, raspberries, and other 
short-rotation fruits, the subsoil plow may be used at 
frequent intervals; but in lands to be planted to orchards, 
the tile drain is a more perfect ameliorator of the subsoil 
than is the subsoil plow. Yet even the one subsoiling may 
serve a useful purpose in sending the roots downward at 
the start, and this advantage will be the greater when 
the superfluous water removes itself rapidly from the 
hardpan. Good tile underdraining may modify the hard- 
pan. 

The land should always be in a thorough state of 
tillage at the time the trees are planted; that is, 
whether in sod or in hoed crops, the land should be in 
good “heart” and physical condition, fertile, and free 
from both very hard and very wet places and pernicious .- 
weeds. There are exceptions to this in the case of certain 
rocky or steep lands on which it is desired to set apples; 
but for all orchards planted directly for commercial results, 
this advice has few, if any, modifications. It is usually 
best to put the land into tilled crops the season before the 
trees are set, as potatoes or corn; although sod land, if 


Preparation of Land 93 


well fitted and naturally in good heart, often gives excellent 
results when turned over and set at once to orchards. Yet 
most soils need the previous tillage to bring them into a 
mellow and uniform condition. Many of the “‘bad places”’ 
in orchards, where trees die out the first two or three years, 
could have been discovered and corrected if the land had 
been devoted to one or several tilled crops. Lands look 
more uniform when in sod than when cultivated, and the 
farmer may be led to overestimate their value for orchard 
purposes. It may also be said that the familiarity with a 
particular piece of land, which comes of frequent tilling, 
enables the careful grower to judge accurately of its 
adaptability to particular fruits or even to particular 
varieties. 

If the land is not in good condition, it may be well to 
prepare it two years or so in advance by careful plowing 
and tilling and the turning under of clover, alfalfa, cow- 
pea, or other humus-maker. Speaking of new land in 
Colorado, to be used for the raspberry industry, Herrick 
and Bennett say that ‘Not infrequently fruits of various 
kinds are set in raw land that has never been plowed except 
in the rows where the plants were set. In such cases the 
plants often grow in a stunted way and never acquire the 
vigor that they should attain. One of the best crops for 
growing on raw land i, alfalfa. If alfalfa has made a good 
growth it may be plcwed under the second fall and if the 
soil is poor in humus it would be well to plow under the 
last cutting. This will do much in bettering the physical 
condition of raw soil. It is well to follow the alfalfa with a 
hoed crop of some kind, such as potatoes, corn, and so 
forth. This will help to do away with the weeds and 
leave the soil in fine condition for planting. 

“Another reason why land should be cropped before 


94 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


setting out raspberries is that when raw land is first 
irrigated it almost always settles more or less in spots. 
As irrigation is necessary year after year, it is important 
that the land has the right slope and has a compara- 
tively smooth surface.” 


Subsequent tillage. 


The best tillage of planted areas is that which begins 
early in the season, and which keeps the surface stirred 
until late summer or early fall; and the best implements 
are those that secure this result with the least expenditure 
of time and labor. For the first few years, it is advisable to 
turn the land rather deep with a plow at the first spring 
working. For the subsequent tillage of the season, there 
are many styles of clod-crushers, spring-tooth harrows, cut- 
aways and smoothing-harrows, which adapt themselves 
readily to the particular soil area in question. 

There is no single style of tool best for all soils or for 
all years. As a general statement, it may be said that for 
all heavy lands the fruit-grower needs four types of har- 
rows,—the cutaway or spading-harrow type for hard land 
and the first spring work; the spring-tooth type; the Acme 
or clod-crusher type; and the smoothing-harrow type. The 
last is to be used only to make aid maintain the surface 
mulch after the land has been ptt in fine tilth. In all 
friable or loose soils, shallow tillag. is always preferable. 
When the land is once in good condition, little effort and 
time are required to run through the orchard. Crust 
should never be allowed to form, and weeds should be 
killed before they become firmly established. The entire 
surface of the orchard should be thoroughly stirred as 
often as once in ten days or two weeks while the tillage 
season lasts. 


Surface Tillage 95 


In general, level culture is best. This is secured by 
plowing one year to the trees and the following year 
away from them; one year north and south, and the next 
year east and west. It is somewhat difficult to plow away 
from large trees, however, and with the cultivators or 
harrows now in use, it is easy to work the soil away, 
allowing the furrow to be thrown toward the tree each 
spring, particularly if the land is in good tilth; but it is 
always advisable, on fairly level ground, to plow the 
orchard in opposite directions in alternate years. Land so 
wet that it needs to be thrown permanently into ridges for 
drainage is not often adapted to fruit. 

The difficulty of working close to the trees has had the 
effect of encouraging too high pruning. There is a tendency 
to start tops too high rather than too low, thereby expos- 
ing great length of trunk to injuries of sun and wind, and 
elevating the top beyond the reach of pickers and of 
sprays. For most trees the ideal length of trunk is under 
5 feet rather than above it, and tillage implements now in 
the market allow of this lower training. Trees with low 
tops, or that hang low with fruit, can be reached by sepa- 
rating the halves of any of the double harrows by means 
of a long doubletree, so that the halves, when adjusted, 
run 3 to 5 feet from each other. A cutaway harrow rigged 
in this way will work the back furrows from under the 
trees during the season. All cultivators or harrows with 
high handles, wheels or levers should be discarded if 
orchards are worked when the limbs bend low with fruit. 
An implement of the grape-hoe type may be used with 
advantage in some cases to loosen the earth about the 
trees. A single-horse plow, with a set-over beam (as in 
Fig. 19), is also most excellent for plowing close to 
trees and bushes. The objection to medium-low heads 


96 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


arises from the use of the old-fashioned implements of 
tillage, and also from a misconception of what the plow- 
ing of an old orchard should be; for if the orchard is 
properly cared for in its earlier years, 
very heavy breaking will not be needed 
in its later life. 

This labor of working about trees is 
greatly facilitated by the use of harnesses 
which have no metal projections. There 
should be no hames with elevated tops, 
and the turrets on the back-pads should 
be simply leather loops. The back-pad 
itself should be reduced to a single wide 
strap devoid of wadding. Harnesses with 
no traces, but drawing by a single chain 
between the horses, have been designed 
for orchards, but they have not become 
popular with workmen. 

The better the plowing and other till- 
age of the orchard in the first few years of 
its life, the easier and more efficient the 
pote 1%, eee subsequent plowing should be. If care is 

* taken to keep the land friable and well- 
filled with humus, it may not be necessary to turn fur- 
rows at the spring plowing after four or five years. 
Persons commonly suppose that an orchard must be 
plowed the same as corn or potato ground, by inverting 
the land and running regular furrows; but inasmuch as 
the object is only to keep the land mellow on top, and 
not to get a crop into it, heavy plowing is not essential. 
Very often some of the heavier harrows or light gang- 
plows may be used to tear up the ground in spring, if 
the land has been put into proper condition when the 


Surface Tillage 97 


plantation was young. This is especially true in light 
lands on which peaches are generally grown. If cover- 
crops are to be plowed under, these remarks may not 
apply. In the first few years, however, it is essential to 
plow moderately deep to break up the earth and to send 
the roots down. A world of trouble with the orchard 
will be saved if the suggestions in this paragraph are 
fully understood. 


Specific advice on tillage. 


1. Begin to till when the orchard is planted, and till 
the entire surface. If trees are properly set, and if tillage 
is begun the first year, the roots will go deep enough to 
escape the plow. The roots of trees spread much farther 
than the tops. The illustrations give examples from trees 
of which the tops and roots have been carefully measured. 
Fig. 20 shows a standard Howell pear seven years after 
planting. It grew on a hard clay knoll, but with tillage. 
The full spread of the top was 7 feet. Two roots were laid 
bare, and they ran off in one direction to a distance of 
21 feet. Assuming that they ran an equal distance in the 
other direction, the spread of roots was 42 feet, or six 
times that of the top; and yet it is commonly said that 
the spread of roots and tops is about equal. These roots 
were long and whip-like. The soil was so poor that they 
were obliged to run far and wide for pasture. Compare 
the upper tree in Fig. 21. This is a Fall Orange apple, 
of equal age, in rich well-tilled soil. Here the roots are in 
good pasture, and they remain at home; yet their spread 
is twice that of the top. The top of this tree had a diameter 
of 8 feet, and the roots were followed 8 feet on one side. 
These object-lessons enforce the importance of tilling all 
the land between trees. 

G 


98 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


But these figures teach another lesson. Even at their 
highest point, the roots of Fig. 20 are 8 inches below 
the surface. They escape the plow. A like remark applies 
to the upper tree in Fig. 21. Compare the lower tree 
in Fig. 21; this tree is the same age as the others, but 
had always stood in sod. The roots ran 10 feet in one 
direction and the total spread of the top was 6 feet; but 

the roots lie just underneath the surface. 

This land could not be plowed without 

great injury to the tree. Let us consider 

\ if the relation of this tree to moisture: the 

a \ i roots are in the driest part of the soil; 

AWA YZ the grass is pumping out the water and 
WF : e 3 o c 

\\ BS; locking it up in its own tissues and 

> WW sending it into the atmosphere with 

great rapidity; the soil is baked, and 

pulls up the water by capillary attrac- 


j 
1 


oe eel eee me 
yy } _ ee - 2-6 


Fie. 20. The en roots of a pear tree in very hard land, extending 21 feet band 

lying 2% feet below the surface at the extremity. 
tion and discharges it into the air; there is no tillage to 
stop this waste by spreading a mulch of loose and dry soil 
over the earth. If one were to sink a well under this tree 
and were to erect a windmill and pump, he could not so 
completely deprive the tree of moisture; and the less 
moisture, the less food. 

In comparing apple trees in sod and in tillage at the 
close of a five-year period, Hedrick found a similar 
condition: “The roots of the trees in the sod-mulch plat 
came to the very surface of the ground. How much these 


# 


Roots and Tillage 99 


trees suffered by the destruction of roots in the heat and 
drought of summer or the cold of winter cannot be said. 
In the tilled land the roots were found in greatest abun- 
dance at a depth of from 3 to 10 inches. The circumfer- 
ence of the root-systems in the tilled trees is approxi- 
mately circular, but the circumference of the roots of the 
trees in sod is very irre- 
gular, indicating a reach- 
ing out of a part of the 
roots in response to a 
demand for more mois- 
ture, food, or air, or to 
escape some evil effect of 
the grass roots.” 

In young orchards, 
then, it is commonly best 
to plow rather 
deep—say 6 
to 8 inches— 
in order to 
send the roots 


down. Of eee, 

course, the Fie. 21. The deep roots (above) in tilled land, and the very 
shallow roots in sod land. 

plow should 


not be run deep close to the trunk of the tree. The 
careful plowman will turn out his plow when he comes 
close to the tree. This deep plowing for a few years 
will ameliorate the land, establish the root-habit of the 
tree, and Obviate much of the necessity of laborious plow- 
ing in after years. 

2. Tillage should be begun early in the season, in 
orchards. Trees complete most of their growth in length 
by the first of July. Early tillage saves the moisture which 


100 The Principles of Frutt-growing 


has accumulated in winter and spring; it is capable of put- 
ting the soil in fine mechanical condition, and this condi- 
tion may be as important as fertility; it warms up the soil 
and sets the plants quickly to work; it turns under the her- 
bage when that herbage is soft and moist and when there 
is moisture in the soil, so that the herbage soon breaks 
down and decays. All catch-crops should be plowed under 
as soon as the ground is dry enough in the spring, for these 
crops soon take the water from the soil and cause it to bake 
- and cement together, and the longer they remain the more 
difficult it is to cause them to rot when turned under. 
Hard and woody herbage, plowed under late in the season, 
may remain as a foreign body in the soil all summer, break- 
ing the connection between the upper and lower soil, and 
thereby preventing the upward movement of the water 
and causing the top-soil to dry out completely. The chief 
value of crimson clover, rye, or other catch-crop in the 
orchard lies in its fall growth and its protection of the soil 
in winter, not in its growth in late spring. 

Few persons are aware that the season of growth in 
most woody plants in cold climates extends scarcely to 
midsummer. This is no doubt one reason why they are 
able to endure the winter. Plants that cease growing 
early, and mature their wood well, are often said to be 
determinate in their growth, while those of opposite habit 
are said to be indeterminate. It is, of course, apparent 
that plants of indeterminate growth are not hardy; as a 
rule most fruit trees are determinate. 

3. Tillage should usually be stopped in late summer or 
very early autumn. The tree has completed its growth. It 
must now ripen and prepare for winter. It can spare some 
of the moisture that comes with the fall rains. We may, 
therefore, sow some catch- or cover-crop. 


How to Till 101 


The above advice follows what is practically the 
universal experience in the North, that the late growth of 
trees in autumn, particularly of the tenderer fruits as 
peaches, is likely to produce a soft or immature condition 
that may render the tree liable to severe injury by winter 
cold. Chandler finds, however, that one of the ways in 
which to avoid injury to fruit-buds by the cold “spells” 
of late winter and early spring in the region of south 
Missouri and in similar climates is to prolong the rest- 
period of the variety so that it will not swell its buds so 
early. He finds that with peaches the different varieties 
have rather definite rest-periods, at the expiration of 
which the buds start very readily. Anything that tends 
to make a strong late growth in the autumn has the 
effect of postponing or delaying this rest-period. This 
prolonging of the growth in fall is accomplished by prun- 
ing the trees severely either that year or the year before, 
and also by the use of nitrogenous fertilizers the preceding 
spring. These statements have reference only to the 
killing of the fruit-buds when they start prematurely, and 
probably does not affect the usual experience in regard to 
the winter-hardiness of’ the wood or tree itself. Frost- 
injury is again considered in Chapter VIII. 

4, Operate in such way that the land shall be in uni- 
formly fine tilth. Orchards plowed late in spring are 
usually in bad condition all the season, especially if the 
soil is clay. Fall-plowing of stiff and bare lands is likely 
to result in the puddling of the soil by the rain and snow, 
as already explained (p. 83); if there is sod on the land, 
this injury is less likely to follow. In general, it is best 
to let orchard lands pass the winter under a cover-crop. 

5. Tillage may be overdone. Trees may be made to 
grow too much wood, and therefore too little fruit, and they 


102 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


may be sent into the winter in soft and unripened condition. 
If land is in good tilth, as it is when in best condition for 
the growing of potatoes or melons, tillage beyond that 
needed to conserve the moisture is useless. It is a common 
practice to head-in trees that are making too vigorous 
growth, but this practice usually aggravates the difficulty 
rather than corrects it. The rational treatment for such 
trees is to check the growth by some means, as by lessen- 
ing the tillage or by withholding stimulating fertilizers. 


CROPPING THE PLANTATION 


It will now be asked what crops may be grown in 
the fruit-plantation: fruit-crops always, grain and hay 
never! 

Any hoed or tilled crop may be used for the first few 
years; but it must be remembered that every crop com- 
petes with the trees for food and moisture, and whatever 
may befall the crop, the trees should not be allowed to 
suffer. As a general statement, it may be said that a space 
3 or 4 feet wide should be left on all sides of the tree the 
first year, and this area should be enlarged a foot or two 
each year; and the space should continue to enlarge until 
the trees occupy the entire surface. Corn and some other 
luxuriant plants appropriate moisture more quickly than 
can the tree. In general, some low-growing crop that 
demands good tillage and comes off the land early is best. 
The notion that young trees should be shaded by a crop is 
probably erroneous for most regions. In orchards set less 
than 20 feet apart, the land should rarely be cropped after 
the third year; but apple orchards, if well cared for, may be 
cropped lightly for seven or eight years. In no case should 
the grower expect to secure as much crop on orchard land 


Cropping 103 


as on other areas; and the drier the land, the less it should 
be cropped. When the orchard comes to bearing age, it 
should have the entire land. Thereafter, the most profit- 
able secondary crop to raise is cultivators. 

In general, only those crops are allowable in a fruit- 
plantation that demand such treatment as to improve the 
land for the fruit-plants. The growing of light crops is a 
means of keeping the land stirred when it might other- 
wise be neglected; and if the grower is careful to see that 
the physical condition of the land is improved, and adds 
enough plant-food to supply the loss, the light cropping 
of orchards for the first few years may be a decided benefit. 
At all events, tilled crops are better than sod. The danger 
is that the fruit-grower will continue the cropping too long, 
and expect too much from it. Strawberries and the bush- 
fruits may be advantageously set in alternate rows with 
beans or potatoes, and the same tillage is required for each 
crop. It is well to fertilize the tilled crop liberally, for the 
trees will receive some of the benefit. When orchards 
begin to bear well, the crops should be discontinued. 

The growing of nursery stock in orchards—a frequent 
practice in parts of the North—should be discouraged. 
This crop makes essentially the same demands on the land 
as the orchard itself, and it does not allow of those varia- 
tions in cultivation and management that may be essential 
to the varying seasons. It may be true that enough fertil- 
izer can be used to replace the loss of plant-food, but it is 
rarely added; and, more than this, the nursery stock con- 
sumes the moisture that should be used by the orchard. 
Nursery stock is known to be particularly hard on land, 
so much so that nurserymen seldom grow two crops of 
fruit-tree stocks in succession on the same area; but this 
injury to the land is an impairment of physical or other 


104 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


condition rather than mere exhaustion of plant-food. (See 
Chapter IV.) 

Young orchards may sometimes be summer-fallowed 
with the very best results if the land is hard and intrac- 
table. This fallowing is clean cultivation. This is often 
the quickest and cheapest way of bringing such lands into 
fit condition for the growing of the fruit, and the longer 
the process is ‘delayed after the plants are set, the more 
difficult and the less efficient the labor will be. This sum- 
mer-fallow should be begun very early in the season and 
continued until midsummer, at which time some cover- 
crop may be sown. It is a way of correcting or overcoming 
the lack of good preparation of the land in the beginning, 
or the results of subsequent neglect. 


Orchard crops. 


It is best to grow only annual crops in the orchard. 
Garden-truck is usually good, because it receives good 
tillage and fertilizing, and usually does not shade the 
fruit plants. If the farm carries live-stock, which of course 
must be fed, the range of crops that can be grown with 
profit is extended. Rowed and tilled peas, beans, roots, 
cabbage, tomatoes, and the like (Fig. 22), may be useful. 
Potatoes are good as a crop, but the digging may come at 
a time when it will interfere with cover-cropping or when 
it may constitute a too late tillage. 

In all corn-growing regions, Indian corn is probably 
the most frequent crop in the young orchards, and it 
appears to give good results if sufficient space is left 
about the trees. Thornber makes the following sum- 
mary on the use of corn in irrigated orchard lands (Lewis- 
ton Orchards Life, June, 1914): “The high price of 
choice fruit-land under irrigation in the Pacific North- 


Corn in Orchards 105 


west, and the cost of bringing an orchard to bearing, have 
compelled the fruit-growers to make a careful study of 
the best methods for reducing the cost of producing an 
orchard. Every opportunity of resource applicable to 
young orchards has been thoroughly tested and the effects 
of the crops noted upon the soil, as well as upon the 
young trees; and while crops have been found that. will 


2 


aia 
cy 


Fia. 22. Cropping a young orchard. 


produce more money value per acre, none with an equal 
amount of labor will give a more uniform tree-growth and 
cause an orchard to come into bearing more satisfactorily 
than corn. Garden and small-fruit crops easily give greater 
financial returns, but require more time and labor to pro- 
duce them. Alfalfa has the advantage of being a more 
sure crop, and one that will give larger returns per acre, 
but is not adapted to very young trees; however, it is more 
satisfactory among older trees.’ Care must be taken not 
to plant corn too close to the trees or bushes, so that they 


106 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


will be shaded; and it is well not to plant the most 
robust varieties. 

The growing of clover, buckwheat, rye and other 
crops for the purpose of plowing under belongs to another 
line of practice. It is discussed in the succeeding chapter. 


IRRIGATION OF FRUIT-LANDS 


The irrigation of fruit-plantations is of two kinds,— 
that which is necessary to the growing of the plants (as 
in arid and semi-arid regions), and that which is employed 
secondarily in a humid region to hélp make a particular 
crop. The former kind is, in essentials, the same as general 
irrigation, in the countries and regions in which irrigation 
is essential to farming; only the special applications of 
the water may be peculiar. The reader who intends to 
raise fruit in an arid or semi-arid region will perfect him- 
self on this subject before he undertakes the enterprise.* 

Supplemental irrigation for humid regions is often 
feasible and profitable for special crops, mostly for those 
that represent a high investment in capital, equipment 
and labor. 


Irrigation in the East (C. 8. Wilson). 


The systems of irrigation used in humid regions may 
be divided into two classes: (1) surface irrigation; (2) 
overhead sprays. 

The surface system, which is the more widely used, 
distributes the water by means of ditches and furrows. 
A ditch, which is the main, carries the water along the 
side or through the orchard and empties it into the furrows, 
by which it is distributed over the entire area. For such 

*Consult, for example, Paddock & Whipple, ‘‘Fruit-Growing in Arid Regions.” 


Irrigation in Humid Regions 107 


crops as fruit, grain, alfalfa, clover, and the like, the sur- 
face system is employed, and furnishes the best practi- 
cable method of applying the water. 

The overhead system is employed in the humid as well 
as the arid sections of the country, particularly in the 
case of those areas intensively cultivated. It has been 
used mostly on such crops as cucumber, strawberry, 
lettuce, tomato, bean, eggplant, potato, squash, and 
the like—in fact all garden crops. The plan is to lay 
stationary pipes over the whole field, or to provide movable 
sections of pipes mounted on wheels. The advantages of 
this system are: (1) The crops are sprayed naturally when- 
ever desired; (2) there is no waste land; (3) water is applied 
uniformly over the entire surface; (4) it is especially 
adapted to the shallow-rooted crops. The disadvantages, 
on the other hand, are: (1) It necessitates an expensive 
system of piping; (2) it requires a powerful pumping plant 
which gives a pressure of twenty to fifty pounds to the 
square inch; (3) the quantity of water wasted by evaporation 
is excessive; (4) the pipes interfere with tillage operations. 

The so-called Skinner system of irrigation. may be 
cited as an example of the overhead method. It consists 
essentially of pipes supported above the ground 40 to 60 
feet apart, in which are set small nozzles at intervals of 3 
or 4 feet. The pipe is turned by means of a union and 
handle to cover ground very near or more distant from the 
line. The best water-pressure is thirty to forty pounds, 
and a single line throws its rain-like spray about 25 feet. 
In addition to the advantages mentioned above, advocates 
of this system assert that it is a protection against frost, 
and an excellent means of distributing insecticides, fungi- 
cides and commercial fertilizers. 

To what extent irrigation will increase in the East 


108 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


remains to be seen. Thus far, insufficient experimental 
evidence has been collected as to its real value. Probably 
it will never be used commercially to any extent for the. 
tree-fruits, because the annual rainfall in most of the 
fruit-growing districts east of the Mississippi is sufficient 
for the plants, if the farmer practises thorough tillage. It 
is possible that irrigation may be beneficial in the case 
of the small-fruits or in certain localities where the rain- 
fall is insufficient, and it has been so employed in a few 
places in eastern plantations. An abundance of water is 
of particular value to small-fruits at the time of ripening 
and it is often at this time that the dry spells come. 

The grower should remember that irrigation cannot 
take the place of tillage; the two go together. When the 
soil is well tilled, the water of irrigation distributes itself 
better than when tillage is neglected. Moreover, when 
water is applied to lands not tilled, puddling is liable 
to result. Another difficulty connected with the applica- 
tion of water is the collection of alkali at the surface. 
This is a well-known trouble in the arid regions. The 
alkali of the soil, which dissolves in the water, is brought 
up by the moisture, and as the moisture evaporates, it is 
deposited at the surface. Where irrigation is continued 
year after year, the amount of this alkali may increase to 
considerable amounts. 

The value of irrigation to the eastern grower should be 
determined by the experiment stations, and these stations 
are now working on the question. Until more definite 
results are secured, the grower should look to thorough 
tillage as the most economical means of supplying moisture. 
It seems reasonable to predict that the fruit-grower will 
not find it profitable to practise irrigation to any con- 
siderable extent in the East, 


CHAPTER IV 


THE ENRICHING OF FRUIT-LANDS 


Any land that is fit for the growing of crops will main- 
tain a fruit-plantation throughout its existence without 
the addition of plant-food, and enable the trees to produce 
at the same time a normal quantity and quality of fruit. 
But the profit in fruit-growing lies in securing the extra- 
normal or superior quantity and quality, and this result 
demands every good care and often the addition of 
fertilizer. How much plant-food the farmer shall add to 
his land, if any, depends on the amount of increase or 
profit that can be secured. If the fruit-grower applies 
two tons of fertilizer to the acre and secures a profit on 
the investment, the quantity may be none too large; but 
in some cases it is a loss of the material to add anything. 
The successful merchant is the one who is dissatisfied with 
a normal and common trade, and he stimulates the demand 
by attracting and interesting the market beyond the point 
of its usual needs. 


The land is to be kept at work. 


Many causes contribute to the occasional unsatis- , 
factory results of applying fertilizers to orchards, small-: 
fruit plantations, and similar areas, but the commonest. 
one is lack of proper tillage and preparation of the land. 
Poorly tilled land, not only refuses, as we have seen, to 
give up its own stores of wealth, but it will delay and 
even preclude the good results from the plant-foods that 


(109) 


110 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


may be added to it. The first thing to do, then, is to make 
it possible for the plant to grow. If the physical and 
environmental conditions are right, the addition of plant- 
food is capable of being felt. The plant must be made 
comfortable before it will thrive. A cow will not relish 
even the fanciest ration if she is uncomfortable. 

The grower must set himself in line with natural 
methods. He must see that the soil has a good supply of 
humus or organic matter (from crops turned under, 
dressings of stable-manure, muck, and the like), and that 
it usually has some cover. Early in the season, this cover 
is the surface mulch of tilled soil, and later it is the cover- 
crop of rye or crimson clover or something of the kind. 

Bare land becomes unproductive land. Its elements 
must be unlocked and worked over and digested by roots. 
The surface must be covered to catch the rains and to 
hold the snows, to retain moisture, and to prevent the 
baking and cementing of the soil. The plant tissues add 
fiber and richness, and make the land amenable to all the 
revivifying influences of sun and rain and air and warmth. 
The plant is co-partner with the weather in the building 
of the primal soils. The lichen spreads its thin substance 
over the rocks, sending its fibers into the crevices and 
filling the chinks, as they enlarge, with the decay of its 
own structure; and finally the rock is fit for the moss or 
fern or creeping vine, each newcomer leaving its impress 
by which some later newcomer may profit. Finally the 
rock is disintegrated and comminuted, and is ready to be 
still further elaborated by corn and ragweed. Nature 
intends to leave no vacant or bare soils. She providently 
covers the railway embankment with quack-grass or 
willows, and she scatters daisies in the old meadows where 
the land has grown sick and tired of grass. If one pulls up 


The Weeds 111 


a weed, he must quickly fill the hole with some other plant, 
or Nature will tuck another weed into it. Man is yet too 
ignorant or too negligent to care for the land, and Nature 
must still stand at his back and supplement the work 
which he so shabbily performs. She knows no plants as 
weeds. They are all equally useful to her. It is only when 
we come to covet some plant that all those which interfere 
with it become weeds to us. If, therefore, we are compe- 
tent to make a choice of plants in the first place, we 
should also be able to maintain the choice against in- 
truders. It is only a question of which plants we desire 
to grow. 

We must keep the land at work, for it grows richer and 
better for the exercise. A good crop on the land, aided by 
good tillage, will keep down the weeds. The weeds do not 
“run out” the sod, but the sod has grown weak through 
some fault of our own, and thus the dandelions and plan- 
tains find a chance to live. So the best treatment for a 
weedy lawn is more grass. If the farmer occupies only 
half the surface of his field with oats, the other half is 
bound to be occupied with mustard or wild carrot or 
pigweed; but if his land is all taken with oats, few other 
plants can thrive. So, a weedy farm is a poorly farmed 
farm. But if it does get foul and weedy, then use a short 
quick, sharp rotation. Keep the ground moving or keep 
it covered. No Russian thistle or live-forever or jimson- 
weed can ever keep pace with a lively and resourceful 
farmer. 

This attitude is as important in fruit-growing as in 
general farming. The land must be kept active and at 
work, which means that the fruit-grower must be active 
and at work. When this is accomplished and the fruit- 
plantation is still unproductive, other means must be 


112 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


considered; and one of these means is to apply plant-food 
materials. 


The lesson of nursery lands. 


The injurious effects of leaving soils bare, and of 
tilling at untimely seasons, are well illustrated in most 
nursery plantations. The best nursery lands are the 
“strong” lands, or those containing a basis of clay, and 
these are the ones that soonest suffer under unwise treat- 
ment. The nursery land is kept under clean culture, and it 
is, therefore, deeply pulverized. There is practically no 
herbage on the land to protect it in the winter. When 
the crop is removed, even the roots are taken out of the 
earth. For four or five years, the land receives practically 
no vegetation that can rot and pass into humus; and more- 
over, the trees are dug in the fall, often when the soil is 
in unfit condition, and this fall digging amounts to a fall 
plowing. The soil, deeply broken and robbed of its humus, 
runs together and cements before the following summer; 
and it then requires three or four years of ‘‘rest’’ in clover 
or other herbage to bring it back into its rightful condition. 
This resting-period allows Nature—if man grants her the 
privilege—to replace the fiber in the soil, and to make it 
once more so open and warm and kindly that plants may 
find a congenial root-hold in it. 

Chemical analyses of nursery stock show that the 
amounts of potash, phosphoric acid and nitrogen that such 
stock removes are really very small, and less than those 
removed by a similar bulk or weight of corn or wheat. 
Experiments with the addition of concentrated or chemical 
manures to heavy nursery lands seem. not to have shown 
very important results; but there are greater hopes from 
the sowing of crimson clover and other cover-crops in the 


The Cover on the Land 113 


nursery rows, and in the use of stable manures. There 
are examples of excellent results following the addition: 
of stable manure to nursery lands between the trees in 
autumn. One piece of land so treated has grown excellent 
plum trees for twenty consecutive years. 


COVER-CROPS 


The vegetable matter or fiber may be supplied by 
herbage plowed under and by the addition of stable 
manures or similar amendments. We may first consider 
the growing of herbage for the amending of the land. 

A cover-crop is used for the particular purpose of 
securing its mulching and physical effect on the land in the 
intervals between the regular fruit crops or the normal sea- 
sons of tillage. A sowed crop in the orchard may be valua- 
ble in two ways: by affording a cover to the land, and by 
improving the soil when it is plowed in. As a cover, it 
may keep down weeds and protect the land from injurious 
effects of frost. As a green manure, it may add fiber to 
the soil, and thus augment its power of holding fertility 
and moisture, and it may add directly to the plant-food. 
This late crop catches and holds the nitrates which the 
tree-roots utilize earlier in the season. Taken as a whole, 
the cover-crop may be said to improve the soil as follows: 

1. It protects the land and directly improves its physical 

condition: 

Prevents hard soils from cementing or puddling; 

Holds the rains and snows until they have time to soak 
away into the land; 

Holds the leaves from blowing away; 

Dries out the soil in spring, making early tillage possible; 

Sometimes serves as a protection from frost; 

Prevents washing in winter. 


114 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


2. It improves the chemical condition of the soil: 
Catches and holds some of the leaching nitrates; 
Adds humus; 

Renders plant-foods available; 
Appropriates nitrogen, if it is leguminous. 


As a rule, crops grown for cover alone should be sown 
not earlier than midsummer. The most thorough tillage 
can then be given early in the season, and the benefits of 
the cover may be secured for early autumn, winter and 
spring. It is usually advisable to grow a crop that answers 


for both cover and green manure, although it is possible 
to make the soil too nitrogenous for some fruits by the 
extravagant use of the legumes. It will also be observed, 
from the above enumeration of the benefits arising from 
cover-crops, that crops killed by the winter may still be 


Accumulation of Nitrogen 115 


very useful. The reader must also be reminded that much 
of the value of the cover-crop depends on its being plowed 
under very early in spring (Fig. 23). 

It is probably not often that one secures too rapid 
growth of his fruit-plants by the use of leguminous cover- 
crops, and yet it seems to be a common opinion among 
growers that this may occur. The experience of George 
T. Powell, in eastern New York, has been much quoted. 
In a pear orchard he grew three very heavy successive 
crops of crimson clover and plowed them under, with 
the result that the trees grew too heavily and bore 
too little. An analysis of the soil was made by Cava- 
naugh and also of the same character of soil from a 
neighbor’s field just across the fence, with the following 
results: 


Three crops No clover 
crimson clover 
Per cent Per cent 
Water ei: iacess eisiee's aieiwre' se eo ceceece 15.00 8.75 
Nitrogen........eeceee 21 12 
Humus........ecceeeeee 2.94 1.91 
Phosphoric acid (available). 015 -008 


These percentages are calculated to the acre, estimating 
1,500,000 pounds of fine soil to the acre-foot (3,000,000 
pounds is the average weight of an acre-foot, but in this 
case about 50 per cent of the soil was sufficiently fine 
to be included in the analysis); the increase in per- 
centages, as computed to pounds or tons to the acre, 
is as follows: 


Water........0.. 6.25 per cent=46.875 tons to the acre. 
Nitrogen ........ .09 per cent=1,350 pounds to the acre. 
Phosphoric acid.. .007 per cent= 105 pounds to the acre. 


116 The Principles of Frutt-growing 


There is much confusion in the popular mind as to 
the relation of cover-crops to moisture. Some contend 
that any crop which shades the ground will keep the 
surface moist and conserve moisture, whereas others, 
knowing that all plants exhale water, consider that any 
crop tends to make the land dry. Both these opinions 
are in part correct. A crop that occupies the land the 
entire season, and that does not allow of tillage, will make 
the land dry, whereas one sown late in the season on land 
that has been thoroughly tilled durmg May, June and 
July, does not seriously rob the soil of moisture. At all 
events, there need be little fear of drying out the soil by 
sowing a late crop, for the serious injury by drought is 
usually effected before such crops are established, and 
rainfall is then becoming abundant; and the trees may need 
to be checked rather than stimulated, at this season, by the 
transfer of the nitrates and moisture to other plants. 
The most marked way in which such crops conserve 
moisture is by means of the fiber and humus that they 
add to the land when plowed under; but even this 
humus cannot compete with cultivation as a retainer of 
moisture. Both humus and tillage are essential for best 
results. 


The kinds of cover-crops. 


It should be said at the outset that the choice of the 
proper crop for the covering of an orchard is a local 
matter, the same as is the method of tillage or the kind 
of fertilizer. There is also no one best cover-crop for all 
purposes and all circumstances. The grower must study 
the condition of his trees and his land, and then judge as 
best he may what course he shall pursue. Nature’s cover- 
crops, at least on farms, are weeds, and these may be use- 


Clover and Others 117 


ful if allowed to grow in autumn after the tillage is com- 
pleted. The difficulty is that they cannot always be relied 
upon to cover the land at the time when they are wanted, 
most of them do not live through the winter, and they are 
very likely to become a serious nuisance. It is best, there- 
fore, to substitute some other plant for the weeds. Red 
clover is a stand-by, but it often fails to “catch” if sown 
late in the season, and it should stand on the land an 
entire season in order to contribute its full value. On 
good and well-tilled lands and in favorable seasons, con- 
siderable herbage can be secured for turning under in the 
spring if clover is sown the preceding August or September; 
but in general it is unreliable as an annual crop, and is 
not adapted to fruit-lands. Mammoth clover is considered 
to be better than the common red. 

In approaching the question of the choice of cover- 
crops, the grower must understand that there are two 
great classes in respect to their supposed power to gather 
nitrogen. The one class is non-leguminous, comprising 
those plants that take only such nitrogen as has already 
been worked over into available form by plants or animals; 
the other class is the leguminous, comprising those plants 
that have the power of appropriating and utilizing free 
nitrogen through the action of root-nodules. For purposes 
of cover and protection, the non-leguminous crops may be 
just as good as the nitrogen-gatherers, and when the fruit- 
plants are growing very vigorously they may be decidedly 
better than the others because, by not adding nitrogen, 
they do not over-stimulate the growth. 

A rotation of cover-crops will nearly always be found 
to be important. Some of the most useful cover-crops 
will not thrive on hard and intractable land, and in such 
cases a rougher and coarser crop must be used. 


118 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


The golden scale of cover-crops for orchards begins 
with rye and ends with crimson clover. Lands that are 
very sandy and leachy, as well as those that are hard and 
lumpy, are usually not adapted to the growth of crimson 
clover, especially in the North. Such lands must be grad- 
ually ameliorated by the use of other plants, and, as a rule, 
the best plant to begin with is rye. 

Rye thrives’ on a great variety of soils, it demands 
little preparation of the land, the seeds are large and 
germinate at a low temperature, it grows early and 
strongly in spring, it may be sown late in the season after 
tilled crops are removed, and it is exceedingly hardy. 
Rye may be sown at the very moment of the freezing of 
the land, and it will sometimes germinate the following 
spring. It is ordinarily best, however, to sow it about 
a month or six weeks (or even two months) before the 
land is expected to freeze; and for the purpose of securing 
cover, not less than one and one-half busliels should 
be sown to the acre when orchards are young. When the 
trees have begun to shade the ground, a less quantity may 
suffice. - 

Indian corn, is sometimes used to begin the amelio- 
ration of intractable lands, sown broadcast very thickly, 
six weeks or two months before killing frost. Although it 
does not withstand the winter, it nevertheless affords an 
excellent cover and supplies a large quantity of herbage. 

Buckwheat may be used for the same purpose, sown 
so late in the season that it will reach its full height but 
will not go to seed. There is danger, however, of using 
buckwheat too much; only an occasional crop of it should 
be sown and on orchards growing on the hard types of 
land. 

Turnips and rape are also to be recommended in certain 


Kinds of Cover-Crops 119 


cases. Turnips sown late in July in the North make a 
complete cover of the land, and furnish so much bulk and 
moisture as greatly to improve the character of the land 
when they are plowed under the following spring. Turnips 
are especially good to begin the process of improvement 
in certain hard lands that are much inclined to be dry. 
They contain much potash. The large cowhorn turnips 
are usually preferred for cover-crop work, although the 
smaller turnips may be sown with them. Dwarf Essex 
rape furnishes much herbage at little cost. 

Oats, wheat, barley, millet, and various other quick- 
growing crops may be utilized as covers, but they are less 
adapted to the purpose than those that have been men- 
tioned. In order to impress the different qualities on the 
mind, it may be well to say that rye and corn, and the like, 
are to cover-crops what pigs and mules are to domestic 
animals. 

Leguminous crops comprise the various kinds of peas, 
beans, vetches, and the clovers and their kin. If it is 
desired to grow a leguminous crop on hard and dry land, 
it will be necessary to choose those with large and quick- 
germinating seeds, as the beans and the field peas. Com- 
mon field beans may be sown broadcast late in the season, 
and if they can have six weeks of uninterrupted growth, 
will make a good cover before killed by frost. Canada peas 
are not injured by the early frosts of fall, and therefore 
may be sown later. In New York, peas sown as late as the 
20th of September reached a height of about 6 inches, and 
were large enough to afford a fairly good cover, if they 
were sown very thick. But, in general, in the northern 
states, it is advisable to sow not later than the last of 
August or the first of September. 

The cowpea (Vigna sinensis) may often be used to 


120 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


the greatest advantage, especially in the middle and south- 
ern states where the long seasons allow it to make a most 
luxuriant and satisfactory growth. It is probably destined 
to fill the office in the southern states that red clover fills 
in the North, and, if properly used, can no doubt be made 
the means of filling the burned-out soils of the South with 
fresh life and vigor. It is killed by the earliest frost, and 
is, therefore, not advisable at the North, unless sown 
early or on land that is “quick.” 

Vetch or tare (Vicia sativa) as a cover was brought 
forward by the Cornell Station, in 1892. It is a legumi- 
nous plant of strong growth. If sown in the northern states 
in late July, it makes a dense cover that is killed by hard 
frosts and mats down like a carpet before spring. The 
seeds are large and start readily. Its great drawback is the 
cost of the seed, and about thirty to fifty pounds should 
be sown to the acre on open lands. 

Winter or hairy vetch (Vicia villosa) withstands the 
winter and grows in spring. The seed is likely to be expen- 
sive; thirty to fifty pounds are required to the acre. It 
thrives on rather poor as well as on rich soils. 

Sweet clover or melilotus (Bokhara clover) is sometimes 
mentioned as a cover-crop, particularly for hard and dry 
lands and those on which it is difficult to secure a catch 
of clover; but further experience is needed with this plant. 

Crimson or scarlet clover was brought prominently to 
the fore as a’cover-plant for orchards by the Delaware 
Experiment Station in 1892. It is an excellent cover-crop 
in the northern states, and in Nova Scotia (Sears, Rept. 
N.S. Agric. 1904). It will not thrive on hard or poorly 
tilled land. It must be sown in midsummer or a trifle 
after, when the ground is likely to be dry. The seeds are 
small and oily, and the grower is likely to fail in secur- 


Crimson Clover 121 


ing a “catch.”’ On the better tilled lands, however, crimson 
clover may be expected to succeed as often as any other 
plant of its class. Growers have made a mistake in expect- 
ing too heavy growth of herbage in the crimson clover. 
It is an annual plant, normally completing its entire 
growth in a single season. When sown at midseason, 
therefore, it should not be expected to yield a very heavy 
crop. If it should arrive at that stage when it nearly or 
wholly covers the ground with a thin close mat, it will 
have reached its most profitable condition. If the crimson 
clover passes the winter and grows in the spring, much 
will be gained; but if it should not pass the winter, nothing 
will be lost. If it is sown very early (that is, before the 
first of July in New York), it is likely to become too 
large and ripe, and be killed by the winter; if it is sown too 
late (after the middle of August), it will ordinarily not 
attain sufficient foothold to be able to withstand the heav- 
ing by frost. Crimson clover may be sown among Indian 


) NS OOF 
7 MiG EEN 3" of Sa Fi 


Fia. 24. Cover-crop of alfalfa in a western orchard, 


122 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


corn at the last cultivation, but in orchards it is ordinarily 
sown from the middle of July to the middle of August in 
the North, on a well-prepared seed-bed, and is then lightly 
dragged in. In old orchards, six quarts to the acre is 
sufficient seed; in the open lands, about eight quarts is 
the quantity required. 

Other plants are used as cover now and then or in - 
particular regions, as alfalfa, velvet bean and beggarweed 
in the South, soybean, oats (mostly in mixture), cabbage. 
In the North, the soybean should be sown early and tilled 
for atime. Alfalfa is sometimes used as a cover in orchards 
(as in Fig. 24, from the Lewiston-Clarkson region). If 
irrigation is available, it may be an acceptable crop for 
providing abundant herbage to plow under. Under usual 
conditions, it is likely to be kept too long on the land. 

Paddock gives chemical analyses of cover-crop plants, 
showing also date of seeding and taking samples, yields 
of green crops and air-dry roots to the acre: 


Cowhorn Crimson Red 
turnips Rape clover clover 
Seed BOWE cccaeu cy cvaewes July 22 July 22 July 22 July 22 
Sample taken............. Nov. 15 | Nov. 16 | Nov. 22 | Nov. 22 
Pounds green tops........ 11297 26620 18800 6909 
Pounds air-dry roots...... *20522 864 413 1212 
Total yield............. 31819 27484 19213 8121 
Pounds nitrogen— 
DY COPS ev .sisa seule wenn 64.4 116.2 128.2 69.8 
an WO ides cise aeke owe 45.1 13 6.2 33.2 
Gall osstisne rahi atane deb w aeana's 109.5 129.4 134.4 103.0 
Poids potash— Q 
W MTS vevewe xcxauan 80.3 148.2 84.0). 46.5 
Unt TOS ssioseseev's so eles 62.3 13.1 4.2 9.9 
NOGA wsaninsssisg wvarounrens ca choaibcar’ 142.6 161.3 88.2 56.4 
Pounds phosphoric acid— 
WD MPS. rccan ce xongey in 14.3 41.8 59.2 18.9 
In roots............. 11.7 5.1 2,0 10.1 
Potalsaieceeeewsanseee 26.0 46.9 61.2 29.0 


“The turnip roots were weighed in their natural state just after -being dug; 
thio is therefore, not air-dry weight, 


Cover-crop Plants 123 
Alfalfa Peed Cowpeas | Soy-beans 
Seed sown............04. July 22 July 22 July 22 July 22 
Sample taken............. Nov. 20 | Nov. 19 | Nov. 7 | Nov. 11 
Pounds green tops........ 5430 13150 5933 10952 
Pounds air-dry roots....... 1980 600 394 756 
Total yield............. 7410 13750 6327 11708 
Pounds nitrogen— 
DitODS 2s isisiiis ad ordaraivese 54.8 108.0 65.2 130.9 
AME TOUS gsnie- 5s ccsobvecstee 40.4 13.2 4.3 9. 
LOtalissace aden adelante 95.2 121.2 69.5 140.2 
Pounds potash— 
2 TOPS... ead cakes 32.2 78.4 47.4 46.2 
EM TOGtS e254) :aiagsciaieeaens 9.5 7.1 2.4 1.8 
TG tall vsgais ccs dicen s atanaes 41.7 85.5 49.8 48.0 
Pounds phosphoric acid— 
W. COPS e.s.0-sidije esntsvane: 5) 13.1 22.5 16.6 37.8 
In roots...........4. 8.5 4.7 2.3 2.4 
Total siicivss4 kacnoner es 21.6 27.2 18.9 40.2 


In considering this table, the reader will observe that 
rape contains the most nitrogen of any of the plants and 
that turnips are richer in this element than is red clover. 
This excess is due to the greater tonnage, and it is all 
taken from the land. In the case of clover and similar 
plants, some of the nitrogen-content is usually new, since 
a part may be taken from the air. 


Lists, anD Rates or SEEDING, OF CovER-cRoP PLANTS. 


Leguminous— 
Alfalfa. 
Beans of all kinds. 
Beggarweed. 
Clovers of all kinds. 
Cowpea. 
Peas of all kinds. 
Soybean. 
Sweet clover. 
Vetches of all kinds. 


Non-leguminous— 
Barley. 
Buckwheat. 
Cabbage. 
Corn. 

Millet. 
Oats. 
Rape. 
Rye. 
Turnip. 


Weeds of most kinds. 


Wheat. 


124 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


Withstanding the winter (in the North) and growing in spring. 


Alfalfa. Sweet clover. 
Clovers Turnip (more or less). 
Rape. Vetch, winter or hairy. 
Rye. Wheat. 

Average quantity of seed to the open acre (modified from C. S. 

Wilson). 

Barley: 2.ccilin2-0 Mei'e.2 a iiwcacnua em ale kaos 2 to 244 bushels. 
Buckwheat) 2.2. cas ccasascssnaiasnoee ins 1 bushel. 
Glover, red) s.5:.cie se cike s eee eae 10 to15 pounds. 
Clover, mammoth .............-0+000- 10 to15 pounds. 
Clover, crimson ............00 eee ee eee 15 to20 pounds. 
COWDEDY saa dicicrsisd vce tueth ot aiegn Ha he hice 14% to 2 bushels. 
IMAG Gi bch eva. d oealsloce cwaltet: 2a uslog 5 Aad 2 aid 1% bushels. 
Oats: carom ching ee aad Se hae ates 2 to 3 bushels. 
east iccccumaliau'kieis eating aclen oe dGaree a es 2 to 3 _ bushels. 
Rapeacacak ya4quie ba eee Ya BE oe ele ox BS 1144 to 3 pounds. 
RVC ise hip Peace Sa haa CA Dk MO ORR BA BREE 1%to 2 bushels. 
Soybean, broadcast...........0.2000005 1 to 1% bushels. 
Sweet clover........ 2... cscs eee cece eee 10 pounds. 
DUEDIP: 3G heer es bees tee dia 14% to 3 pounds. 
Weta a dd yen uw die eeiiew tog eae Gans 30 to 50 pounds. 
Wheat cceiceswe ned qasicas eaes ye beues 2 to 2% bushels. 


As all the desired features are seldom found in a single crop, com- 
binations are desirable. Thus buckwheat, which makes a quick 
growth, does not live through the winter as does the slower-growing 


rye, so the two combine well. Following are suggestions: 


Clover, red or mammoth,.................. 10 pounds. 

1 Winter Vetch 5. «sis cv cays anh ad-y aw dead aeons 15 pounds. 
7 N OA LS cadet rensatiacs ora anid clint oder kaarecie ic a satpro Y bushel. 
Cowhorn turnips.............000e cece eeeee ¥% pound. 
BIRO see ced lat coors tec fea sera Maos aoa ui ae eR 1 bushel. 

2 Cowhorn turnips...........0cceeeeeeeeeeees 2 pounds. 
“)Crimson clover...........cc cece cece eee e eee 15 pounds. 
Vetchs sassceavasunre ne de eneewe ta detex een wirds 15 pounds 


May be sown in August, in the North. 


Quantity of Seed 125 


Buckwheat: icvicnceseiesewaiee dae vewdeeeeet Y bushel. 
Oe OBS ietniaiuys «coum gue Mata Hare eta aml a aero 1 bushel. 
Riy@recmieedinasrine sacs coda aawnnan eae ued ae 1. bushel. 
4 OBES xs dsp tis net antaecea alates Mumeardlatta 1% bushels. 
} CHOW OR ss isce dice Saves BN Pase agate a ball anna 15 pounds 
5 on ee ee ee ea ree 34 bushel. 
"OBIS: sid hee ee geek lence eich ahem 1 bushel 
6. ae ieee epeeteteeaee Lives peste nk COMME Ne hal ar Asn IO tee 14 bushels. 
RYO ich ark chet a Sime tthe Malet os shee eI beo ea Sondtl 1 bushel. 


Many combinations may be made of the plants listed above, to 
meet special conditions; for rather hard lands that need both humus 
and nitrogen, a suggested combination is buckwheat or cowhorn 
turnip, rye, Canada peas or vetch; or a leguminous crop may be 
added to 3, 5 or 6 above. 


Other successful mixtures are reported in Delaware by Close 
(Bull. No. 60), as follows: 


1 Gaes VEU: cawenaiwiien aa sadtadenelaeasdal 40 pounds. 
® NGI Occ sree eae. Gata: ae aes a aS Gar ea Bereta 30 pounds. 
Hairy. yetehieice xe saeeee xe ee eee ye edalns Ree Yee 20 pounds. 
2. eo or soOybeans............00. cece eee ee 45 pounds. 
Vary? Vet Cinch sans eaten 8 obrd se dokad arse cee 20 pounds 

3. i 
eat RUG sss A eaPaud Solas Huan NNe eGR Hilads Oo 12 ounces. 
4 airy: Vebe hi andthe deta ee ume caes mowers marae wae 20 pounds. 
: ieee Clover: ens sya caida deed eeaancns 8 pounds. 
OR UEDUPS 844: 5.8 eve, ieee nedheosldcae Susen ayeiaverd aude ahaa 8 ounces. 
Bs SURV Cea aie wea cease Slooed anette ad, aan aan mae 20 pounds 
Mammoth clover.............0c eee eeeeeeaes 4 pounds 
Trnipess:s424e2s hee sx eee ned eae eee cae 12 pounds. 
; ace OF COWPEAS..... 0. cece ee ee eee 40 pounds. 
7. eas SaaNad sOnieeamenheninnor okieaun one neee eas 4 pounds. 
RY Credeaw sodas eras duiaiteaghts sy Gganuun.ea sue 1 bushel. 
Rapesasee execs ta seas thee oa aks 4 pounds. 
8. «Soybeans or cowpeas................ cece eee 40 pounds. 
RY Ckaciwae Rat. co euweae oa Se Ga ae dace cea 20 pounds. 


Weights of the seeds of cover-plants. 
Following are the customary seedsmen’s weights to the bushel 
some of the seeds contained in the above lists (Edgar Brown): 


126 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


Clover, alsike, crimson, mammoth red..... ee 60 pounds. 
COW DCB ai 5 Sesenceca teed Saran gress qa qaheaie eed 56 to 60 pounds. 
Millet, barnyard.................0 00. - eee 30 to 60 pounds. 
Millet, common, German, Hungarian......... 48 to 50 pounds. 
Millet, Pearl. .s-9.0300.8) er.deees adver esse ds 48 to 56 pounds. 
Peas fel diss vices Sod) tion ies ais tad say eee ced ee 60 pounds. 
R&pP@sssascnac rer st anand edinealy mame pnans 50 to 60 pounds. 
Soybeans s.au cress tasduee hae eeset dewbaad 58 to 60 pounds. 
Sweet clover, hulled.......... 0.0.0.0... eee 60 pounds. 
Velvet beans sscecyes cs 26 des came ecu aac ee He 60 pounds. 
Vetch, hairy or winter...................00- 50 to 60 pounds. 
Vetch, spring........ 0.0.0 c cece eee eee eee 60 pounds. 


ROTATION OF PLANTATIONS 


It is accepted that the rotation or at least the diver- 
sification of crops in orchards and other fruit-plantations 
is a desirable practice as a means of conserving produc- 
tivity of the land. It is also accepted that strawberries 
would better not follow strawberries or cane-fruits follow 
cane-fruits; but there is little real planning for the rotation 
of plantations of the longer-lived fruits, and yet such 
rotation must be very important. The following discus- 
sion may be suggestive (Bailey, Cyclo. Amer. Agric. II). 

The grower usually does not not lay out a plan of land 
management, one item in which is the growing of orchards. 
In the case of apples, the life of the orchard is so great, 
that the grower feels that he is planting for a lifetime, and 
he leaves succeeding questions to those who may come after 
him. Even apple orchards may be retained too long for 
profit, however; and peaches, plums and some other fruits 
are not too long-lived to form part of a rotation plan. The 
rotation farmer may lay out a course that is not expected 
to mature within twenty years. Small-fruits are well 
adapted to rotationing. In fact, careful rotation is the 
very best means of keeping in check certain difficult dis- 


A Rotation Suggestion 127 


eases and pests of strawberries, raspberries and blackber- 
ries. The rotation may be between different kinds of fruits 
themselves, or between fruits and field-crop courses. The 
point is that fruit-growing practice ought not to be com- 
pletely isolated from general farm-management plans. 

Rotation between the fruit-plantations themselves, 
may be very desirable in some cases. If one has a 100-acre 
farm on which he wishes to make a specialty of peaches, he 
might set aside six fields of 10 acres each, and set them in 
twelve-year rotations or blocks, planting a new orchard 
every three years. In this way there would always be a 
new orchard coming into bearing, the grower could apply 
the experience of one orchard to the succeeding one, and 
he could prepare the land thoroughly in advance of each 
setting, and he would have some land left for other crops. 

On small farms, such a plan could not be applied, 
except for small-fruits. Neither would it be adaptable to 
farms presenting very different or various conditions; for 
many properties are broken into irregular fields by creeks, 
gulches, slopes, forests or hills, and only a part of such 
natural subdivisions might be adapted to fruit. 

The following display shows how this plan would 
work out. The heavy figures show orchards in bearing; 
it will be seen that there are always three orchards in 
bearing after the plan is in full working maturity. It is 
assumed that six years intervene between the plantings 
on the same ground. The letters a, b, c show how the 
elements in a three-course crop-rotation would combine 
with the orchards, if it is assumed that it would be safe 
or desirable to crop the orchard lightly for the first three 
years. The blank or treeless years would be used in gen- 
eral field-crop practice. This plan is not recommended, 
but is given to suggest a line of study: 


128 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


Rotation ScHEME oF PracH ORCHARDS 
Heavy figures represent bearing years 


First Second Third Fourth Fifth Sixth 
orchard orchard orchard orchard. orchard orchard 
1900a 
19016 
1902c 
1903 1903a 
1904 19046 
1905 1905¢ 
1906 1906 1906a 
1907 1907 19076 
1908 1908 1908¢ 
1909 1909 1909 1909a 
1910 1910 1910 1910b 
1911 1911 1911 1911¢ 

1912 1912 1912 1912a 
1913 1913 1913 19136 
1914 1914 1914 1914¢ 
1915 1915 1915 1915a 
1916 1916 1916 19165 
1917 1917 1917 1917¢ 
19184 1918 1918 1918 
1919b 1919 1919 1919 
1920¢ 1920 1920 1920 
1921 1921a 1921 1921 
1922 1922b 1922 1922 
1923 1923¢ 1923 1923 
1924 1924 1924a 1924 
1925 1925 19255 1925 
1926 1926 1926c 1926 
etc. ete. etc 


Aside from a rotation of fields, it is often advisable to 
lay out a rotation of crops in the orchards themselves 
when the trees are young. Such rotation practice would 
reduce the great amount of tillage labor by keeping part 
of the area always in clover or other sod, would correct the 
faults of a continuously recurring treatment, would guard 
against neglect, and would allow of a somewhat definite 
plan of work for some years ahead. The rotation should 
be short and should contain the maximum of tilled crops. 
A three-year course might fit the conditions well, for it 


Rotation Suggestions 129 


would be adapted to the varying early stages of orchards, 
and would correspond with normal strawberry rotations 
and even with the best practice in raspberry-culture. One 
to four three-year courses could be run in orchards before 
the trees are large enough to interfere, depending on the 
land, the kind of fruit and the distance apart. A three- 
year course for young orchards should preferably have two 
tilled crops and one legume or sod crop: as (1) potatoes, 
roots or truck-crops, (2) corn, (3) crimson clover or vetch 
in fall or spring; or, again, as (1) corn, (2) cotton, (3) cow- 
pea or velvet bean. Sometimes it may be allowable to run 
only one tilled crop, in which case the potatoes-wheat-red 
clover may be useful. Care must be taken to see that first 
attention is given the trees, and this should call for manure 
or fertilizers with one or more of the courses. 


STABLE MANURES 


The kinds of fertilizing applications are of two types, 
—stable manures and concentrated or commercial plant- 
foods. The stable manures exercise a most important 
effect on the physical character of the land, and, in fact, 
this is often their greatest value. In this respect, stable 
manures may answer much the same purpose as green- 
or cover-crops, particularly if they are applied in fall 
or early winter. When manure is not sufficient to cover 
the entire plantation, it should be applied to the hardest 
and driest spots only, these spots being observed and 
noted the previous season. Lands so hard or dry that 
even rye will not catch may be got under way for the 
cover-crops by liberal applications of barn manures. Rota- 
tion in the use of fertilizers may be found to be as useful 
as in the case of cover-crops. A soil that has had a liberal 

I 


130 The Principles of Frutt-growing 


application of stable manure one year, may profit more 
by some chemical fertilizer the next year. 

In thoroughly tilled orchards the use of barn manures 
should sometimes be discouraged, for the chief element of 
fertility in them—if they are not leached—is usually 
nitrogen. This advice is particularly applicable to vine- 
yards, and all other fruits that run very strongly to wood. 
In such cases, it is better economy to apply the manures 
to the annual crops of the farm. The old, neglected apple 
orchards of the country, however, may receive barn 
manures with safety; yet, even here it is a question whether 
economy would not dictate tillage and late green manures 
to supply the nitrogen, except, perhaps, for a season or two 
when an attempt is making to rejuvenate. a plantation. 
Mulching a sod orchard with manure, or with hay cut on 
it, often gives fairly good results in cases in which the 
land cannot be tilled; but better results in the way of fer- 
tilizing and in freedom from weeds and insects may be 
secured by pasturing closely with sheep or swine and 
adding chemical manures. , 

All stable and barn manures should be carefully 
protected, saved and utilized: where they should be applied 
—whether on annual crops or on fruit-plantations—only 
the grower himself can determine; it is certain that the 
fruits will profit by them. 

In blackberry, raspberry and strawberry plantations, 
stable manures may be used moderately as a mulch, and 
the leachings will be of service; and if the material finally 
is plowed under, double results will be secured. 

In general, the same principles cover the application 
of manures—as to when and how—to fruit-lands as to 
general farm lands, and this subject may not be discussed 
here at any length. The applications are usually made in 


Feeding the Plantation 131 


the dormant season,—from autumn till early spring. In 
mature plantations, it is best to apply manure to the entire 
area rather than to pile it close to the trees or vines. 
Plowed under in early spring, the barn manures should 
have a marked effect in ameliorating the land and improv- 
ing the thrift and stamina of the plantation. 


CHEMICAL FERTILIZERS 


Presumably, fruits profit by the application of ferti- 
lizer to the land because they use the kinds of materials 
that fertilizers contain. The standard computations of 
Roberts, from analyses, show the following values of 
nitrogen, phosphoric acid and potash taken from an acre 
by apple trees (the trees 35 feet apart) in twenty years, 
counting in ten crops of fruit: 


Value 
Total in fruit for twenty years.............0000eeeee $147 00 
Total in leaves for twenty years........... 0.0 c ee eee 160 51 
Total in wood for life of tree......... 0... eee eee eee 70 00 
Grand total ........ iusdate otauis Make Eee Toe $377 51 


“The value of nitrogen, etc., in any given case is so 
indefinite and variable that stress should not be laid on 
values as given, but on the total amounts of plant-food 
used by the orchard, as follows: 

“The total amount of nitrogen, exclusive of that used 
in the growth of the trees, is 1,336.8 pounds, of phosphoric 
acid 310 pounds, and of potash 1,895.4 pounds. To restore 
the potash alone, as above and that used by the growth 
of the tree, it would require 21.69 tons of high-grade ashes 
containing 5 per cent of potash. To restore the nitrogen 
as above would require 16.19 tons per acre of a commercial 
fertilizer containing 5 per cent of nitrogen. 


132 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


“How much of this plant-food is usually furnished to 
the orchard by leguminous plants and by feeding sup- 
plementary foods to animals which graze upon it, and how 
much by the fallen leaves and apples which are not 
blown or carried off, cannot be told.” 

Another calculation by Roberts shows the amount of 
plant-food that may be expected to be carried away from 
an acre in the fruit, and blown off in the leaves (not com- 
puting the amount in the wood), for the period between 
the ages of thirteen and thirty-three years of apple trees: 


Apples Leaves 
tbs. Lbs. Value 


WGP O os tegen cee B41 GR eee eRe 498 .60 456.75 $143 .30 
Phosphorio #eid...066 05a 4.scee0 c¥een 38.25 126 .00 11.50 
Potash view sisneetirn oon a staan vie ed 728.55 441.00 52.63 

Total value....... ce cae c eee eee $207 .43 


“While the above results are reached. by assuming a 
given amount of apples and leaves a year in a bearing 
orchard, and while the facts in any given case at any 
given time may vary widely, yet it is believed that they 
are valuable as they furnish a means of measuring in any 
given case, with a great degree of accuracy, the amount of 
soil-exhaustion.” 

He also “shows that five bushels of apples remove 
in round numbers eleven pounds of nitrogen, nearly one 
pound of phosphoric acid and sixteen pounds of potash, 
and that the leaves of a tree large enough to produce the 
apples would contain ten pounds of nitrogen, nearly three 
pounds of phosphoric acid and ten pounds of potash, or a 
total of twenty-one pounds nitrogen, three pounds phos- 
phoric acid, twenty-six pounds potash.” 


The Calculations of Roberts 133 


“As a clearer comprehension is had by comparing 
unfamiliar things with familiar things, a table follows 
which gives in brief the soil-exhaustion which is likely to 
occur from a continuous twenty-year wheat-production. 
Here, again, an average yield has been assumed which, 
while approximately correct for New York, may be wide 
of the mark in some states where the average yield of 
wheat falls to eight or ten bushels an acre. 

“The following tables show the amounts and values cf 
the fertilizing ingredients removed by wheat (grain and 
straw) in twenty years’ continuous cropping, assuming 
an average yield of fifteen bushels an acre and seven 
pounds of straw to three pounds of grain: 


“COMPOSITION OF WHEAT AND STRAW 


Water Nitrogen | Phos. acid Potash 
Per cent Per cent Per cent Per cent 


Gr AID 6 esis ss ois Severs. 14.75 2.36 .89 61 
Sra Wiss age dois neesaseed 12.56 -559 -12 61 


“AMOUNTS AND VALUE oF PLANT-FOOD REMOVED IN ONE YEAR 
AND IN TWENTY YEARS 


Nitrogen | Phos. acid Potash Total 
Pounds Pounds Pounds value 
Grain, one year........... 21.24 8.01 5.49 $3 .99 
Grain, twenty years....... 424 .80 160.20 109 .80 79 .86 
Straw, one year........... 11.74 2.52 10.71 2.42 
Straw, twenty years....... 234.78 50.40 214.20 48 .37 


Total value in wheat, grain and straw for 20 years... . $128 .23 
Total value in apple, fruit and leaves for 20 years..... 207 .45 


“The above table shows that the orchard requires, 
if fruitful, plant-food equal in value to about $80 more 


134 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


than the wheat. No one would think for a moment of 
trying to raise wheat, even on our best New York land, 
for twenty consecutive years, even though the soil was 
fitted in the best possible manner yearly.” 


Apple-orchard experiments. 


Yet, as explicit and striking as are these calculations, 
the results of experiments in the fertilizing of apple orch- 
ards are very contradictory. 

This is perhaps to be expected. It probably represents 
undetermined differences in the lands under experiment. 
Inasmuch as we do not possess sufficient knowledge to 
enable us to harmonize the results, some of the most 
prominent findings are given here for such guidance and 
information as the reader may be able to secure from 
them. Hedrick reports the conclusions of a fifteen-year 
experiment on the fertilizing of apples by the New York 
(Geneva) Experiment Station in part as follows (Bull. 
No. 381): 


“Current recommendations for fertilizers in orchards are unreliable 
because there have been few investigations of the subject which have 
furnished trustworthy information. Present practices are largely 
based on the fertilization of field and garden crops, but the needs of 
apples cannot be compared, in the least, with the needs of herba- 
ceous crops because of the great difference in the habits of growth of 
the two kinds of plants. Fertilizing apples is a difficult problem, too, 
for, beside variability of plant and environment. to contend with, as 
with all plants, it is necessary to take thought of the tree and of the 
crop of the future. 

“This experiment has to do with apples—not apples and grass. 
Attention is called to this fact because most of the investigations 
of fertilizers for apples have been carried on with trees in sod. In all 
such experiments the interactions of soil, apples, grass and fertilizers 
are so complicated that a crucial test is impossible. 

“The experiment under discussion was carried on in a station 


Fertilizers on Apples 135 


orchard, the soil of which is a clay loam too heavy for a good orchard 
soil and not better than the average clay soil in the farm lands of 
western New York. The orchard has been given the care it would 
have received in a commercial plantation. 

“There are twelve plats in the experiment. The fertilizers applied 
each year are as follows: 


AVERAGE TO THE TREE 


Pounds 

Plats 1 and 9.—Stable manure...................000% 415.15 
Plats 2 and 8.—Acid phosphate...................... 12.66 
Plats 6 and 10.—Muriate of potash................... 7.26 
Acid phosphate........... 0.0 cece eee eee n canes 12.60 
Plats 4 and 12.—Muriate of potash................... 7.26 
Acid phosphates s aac:gecs alo neres deat esd dak ae 12.60 
Nitrate of 80da...55cc0ccccceeacaaecesaeveswiwes 3.67 
Dried DOO i cigs 2353 Renee Sosa brsoneaned tau Rew 12.84 


“An important consideration is that the fertilizers were put on 
only underneath the branches of the trees so that a tremendous 
excess of each has been used and the experiment, therefore, throws 
light on the question as to whether excessive fertilization is delete- 
rious to trees. 

“The apple in the experiment is the Rome top-worked on Ben 
Davis, the Rome buds all having come from one tree and the stocks 
having been selected carefully. These precautions were taken to 
exclude individual variations. Cross-pollination is provided for, 
there being over a hundred other varieties separating and bounding 
the plats. 

“From the data at hand there seems to be but one interpretation 
of the results of this experiment. An analysis of the soil before the 
experiment was begun shows that at that time there was, in the upper 
foot of soil, enough nitrogen per acre to last mature apples trees 183 
years; of phosphoric acid, 295 years; of potash, 713 years. From this 
well-nigh inexhaustible storehouse, tillage, cover-crops and good 
care have made available all the plant-food these trees needed. It 
may be necessary to fertilize some apple orchards in New York. 
Such cases will be found on sandy and gravelly soils, on lands very 
subject’ to drought, on very shallow soils and on soils quite devoid of 
humus. Some soils may require one of the chief elements of fertility; 
some, though few, indeed, need the three which usually constitute a 
complete fertilizer. 


136 ‘The Principles of Frutt-growing 


“A fruit-grower may assume that his trees do not need fertilizers 
if they are vigorous and making a fair amount of new wood. If the 
trees are not vigorous the drainage, tillage and sanitary condition. 
of the orchard should be looked to first and the fertilization after- 
ward if then found necessary. Lastly, before using fertilizers the 
fruit-grower should obtain positive evidence by experimentation as 
to whether an orchard needs fertilizers, and what ones.” 


Similar results had been previously reported by the 
New York Station in a test to determine the effect of wood- 
ashes and acid phosphate on the yield and color of apples 
(Bull. No. 289). The trees were forty-three years old when 
the experiment was begun. ‘“The results as to color of 
fruit lack uniformity and were not decided enough in a 
sufficient number of the twelve seasons to enable us to 
state that the fertilizers applied improved the color of the 
apples. The influence on color was most marked in the 
seasons when the climatic conditions were unfavorable to 
the development of the fruit. 

“This experiment shows that fifty-seven years of 
orchard cropping has not reduced the soil of the station 
orchard to the condition where it needs a ‘‘complete”’ 
fertilizer. The fact that plowing under leguminous crops 
gives beneficial effects in the orchard shows that the soil 
is having a one-sided wear. It needs nitrogen and humus 
rather than potash and phosphoric acid.” 

These results are practically confirmed in a five-year 
experiment by the New Hampshire Station. Gourley 
reports that ‘“‘Up to the present time (1913) we have not 
received any cash return for the fertilizer that has been 
used in this orchard. The size of fruit has been increased 
by the use of fertilizers, especially by the use of excess 
nitrogen and potash, as shown by the percentage of No. 1 
apples. Both the area and weight of the leaves were 
increased by the use of fertilizers in the year 1913, no 


Fertilizers for Apples 137 


records being taken of these factors previously. Lime had 
no appreciable effect on any of the factors considered. 
Color of fruit has not been increased by any combination 
of fertilizers employed.” 

On the other hand, opposite results have been secured 
by the Massachusetts and Pennsylvania Stations. The 
Massachusetts test had been continued for twenty years 
or more, when it was reported that “The experiment 
shows most decisively that apple trees must be fed to 
grow well and bear well.” 


“No one selection of materials,” the report declares, “can always 
be best. The manure in this experiment is apparently furnishing too 
large a proportion of nitrogen. The combination of bone-meal with 
low-grade sulfate of potash has produced good results. It seems 
probable that, especially in soils poor in lime, basic slag-meal might 
wisely be used in place of the whole or a part of the bone; but should 
this change be made, a legume should be grown as a cover-crop to 
furnish nitrogen. Experiments upon a larger scale to test some of the 
questions raised by the results of this are now in progress. 

“The orchard is divided into five plots, equal in area (about 14 
acre). Each plot contains twelve trees,—three each of Gravenstein, 
Baldwin, Roxbury Russet and Rhode Island Greening. After one 
year’s preparatory cultivation, two-year-old nursery trees were set 
ih 1890. This orchard produced but little fruit previous to 1900. 
The location is a hillside with moderate slope. The soil is a strong 
gravelly loam which naturally produces mostly chestnut and hem- 
lock. 

“Each plot has been continuously fertilized in the same way since 
1889. The actual rates per acre are as follows: 


Plot 1.—Barnyard manure (about 31% cords)........... 20,000 

Plot 2.—Wood-ashes............-0--0005 Puente Reoamls, Syeie 2,000 

Plot 3.—Nothing. 

Plot 4.—Bone-meal......... 000 eee eee cece ee ences 600 
Muriaterof potash ices scien casas s ees cies 200 

Plot 5.—Bone-meal......... 0... cece cece nee eee e eee 600 


Low-grade sulfate of potash (sulfate of potash 
magnesia).....-0-.- 00s 4s SWRA See's GR 400 


138 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


“The orchard was cultivated for the first five years. Since then 
it has been continously kept in grass. The crops were made into 
hay and carried off until the trees began to bear freely in 1903. Since 
then the grass has been cut, usually twice each season, and left on the 
ground. The hay crops each year paid for the manures used from 
1894 to 1902. 

“The fruit was usually ranked in color and general attractiveness 
in the following order: Plots 5, 4, 1, 2 and 3. In size, plots 5, 4, 1, 
2 and 3. 

“One of the most significant results of the experiments is the 
great superiority of plot 5 as compared with plot 4. The trees are 
much larger and they have produced a much greater amount of fruit. 
Both plots have annually received equal amounts of bone-meal and 
equal amounts of actual potash, 100 pounds per year. The plot 
receiving potash in the form of low-grade sulfate has produced much 
better results. This may be due in part to the magnesia which the 
low-grade sulfate supplies, although it is possible that there was a 
natural difference in the soil of the two plots, or that the sulphuric 
acid combination with potash is better suited to the trees than the 
hydrochloric acid of the muriate.” 


Extensive apple-orchard tests have been made by the 
Pennsylvania Station, involving ten soil types, twelve 
locations, upward of 2,600 trees and 34,000 bushels of 
fruit in a period of five years. Some of the conclusions to 
1913 as given by Stewart (Bulli. No. 121) are: 


“The experiments of this station have shown that the fertility 
needs of an orchard may be the most important check on its produc- 
tion. Variations in fertilization alone have resulted in average 
differences ranging from 50 to 460 bushels an acre annually for the 
past four or five years, depending on the experiment. These 
results were accompanied by similar differences in the growth and 
general vigor of the trees. 

“The time required for results to appear has been surprisingly 
short in all cases where fertilization has proved to be really needed. 
In such cases, both the value of fertilization and the kinds needed 
were clearly evident by the middle of the second season, and no 
material changes have occurred since. 

“Lime also has failed in most cases, although it may have some 


Fertilizers for Apples 139 


value in aiding growth. In addition, it may have some indirect 
value in facilitating the growth of leguminous intercrops, and also 
in correcting a possible toxic action possessed by the basic radicals 
of a number of salts, some of which are present in commercial 
nutrients. 

“At present, the high-grade sulphate in our experiments is show- 
ing no superiority over the muriate as a carrier of potash, but the 
reverse is usually true. The lower cost and easier handling of the 
latter therefore give it the preference. It is possible that the low- 
grade sulphate, or the 24 per cent ‘double-manure salt,’ as it is often 
called commercially, may be superior on account of its magnesia- 
content, but this has not yet been fully demonstrated. 

“The influence of proper fertilization is not transient. The gains 
from it have been greater in the sixth and the last year of some of 
our experiments than at any time before. In one case, these gains 
have exceeded 1,100 bushels an acre. Where the crops of the full 
years are not too high, the yields usually have been greatly steadied 
by proper fertilization. 

“In all our experiments, the action of manure has proved to be 
practically identical with that of a commercial fertilizer rich in 
nitrogen and phosphorus. Their successes and failures have coincided 
with but two exceptions, and in those cases moisture rather than 
plant-food was apparently the controlling factor. The commercial 
nitrates and blood have acted more quickly than the manure, and 
the potash in the latter has apparently been less effective than that 
in the commercial forms. i 

“In general, the influences that have materially increased the 
yields have also increased the growth. This is true generally, unless 
either occurs to an abnormal extent. The phosphates seem to be a 
partial exception to this rule, and mild injuries also may stimulate 
yield at the expense of growth. 

“Manure and potash are the only fertilizing materials that have 
shown a consistent benefit on the average size of the fruit. This is’ 
doubtless associated with their favorable relations toward available 
moisture, which is the chief determiner of fruit-size. Above a rather 
indefinite point, however, the size of the crop on the tree becomes the 
dominant influence on fruit-size. Proper’ thinning and moisture 
conservation, therefore, are the most important means of improving 
the average size of fruit. 

“The red colors in apples can not be increased materially by any 


140 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


kind of fertilizer applications, though potash and possibly phos- 
phates may be of some slight assistance. These colors are directly 
dependent upon sunlight and maturity, with the latter occurring 
preferably on the tree. Late picking, open pruning, light soils, sod 
culture and mildly injurious sprays, therefore, tend to increase the 
reds in fruits, while opposite conditions decrease them. 

“The retarding influence of nitrogenous fertilizers or manure on 
color makes it advisable to use them less freely on some of the red 
varieties, especially those in which the color comes on rather tardily, 
such as the York Imperial. On the lighter soils, or in localities with 
the longer growing seasons, this precaution is less important. 

“It has been noted that the fertilizing elements found effective 
in certain experiments were not so in others. In one of our experi- 
ments, no form of fertilization has yet shown a profitable response, 
and in two others such responses have come only from manure and 
mulches. It is evident therefore that the actual fertilization of a 
given orchard is still largely a local problem. 

“Tt is possible, however, to indicate the more prominent char- 
acteristics of orchards that are in need of fertilization, and to form- 
ulate a general fertilizer, based on present experimental results, that 
may be used in such orchards until more definite local data can be 
secured. (See page 143.) 

“Present evidence indicates that the nitrates, or other specially 
soluble plant-foods, are best applied somewhat after the fruit has 
set. In addition to greater effectiveness, this delay enables the 
rate of application to be varied somewhat in accord with the amount 
of fruit set, making the applications heavier when the crop is heavy 
and vice versa. In the long run, this plan should steady the yields and 
get maximum benefits from the fertilization applied.” 


What to do. 


There is every reason to expect, from the nature of the 
case, that orchards profit by liberal fertilizing. Whether 
added plant-food is needed under every set of conditions 
is quite another matter, and it is a problem that must be 
answered by tests made on the place. Whether special 
treatments are needed in fruit-plantations to correct 
toxicity of the soil, or to accomplish other results, is also 


The Practical Problem 141 


as yet undetermined. It should not be difficult to make 
fertilizer tests, for the results on a few trees should soon 
be apparent. In the case of peaches and berries, there is 
evidence enough of the value of fertilizing, and the same 
principles should apply to apples and pears, particularly 
on the less responsive or less retentive lands. If the trees 
are doing well and if the annual crops are also thrifty and 
satisfactory, the plantation may need nothing more than 
good care; but if the results are not satisfactory or if there 
is indication of a let-down, the grower should be alert 
for a remedy. 

Having studied the matter carefully in reliable writ- 
ings, and having observed his plantation from day to day 
and year to year, the grower should be able to discover 
about the treatment needed. An orchard in sod and not 
doing well should be plowed and tilled. One that 
is tilled and is not doing well may be benefited by seeding 
down, or it may not. If the growth is strong and rapid, 
and the trees or vines seem to be going to wood at the 
expense of fruit, then some check may be necessary. 
This check may be given by seeding down for a time, 
by giving somewhat less thorough or prolonged tillage, 
or by the use of rather more mineral fertilizers and less 
nitrogenous materials. In all cases in which the growth 
is not sufficient and the leaves are yellow and drop early, 
it is probable that either more nitrogen or more moisture 
is needed, or both. As a general principle, it may be said 
that nitrogen is to be had in sufficient quantity by thor- 
ough and judicious tillage, by the use of leguminous cover- 
crops, and by stable manures. In some cases, however, 
quicker and cheaper results may be had by the direct 
addition of nitrogenous materials, as nitrate of soda, 
sulfate of ammonia, or some of the animal compounds. 


142 The Principles of Frutt-growing 


The grower should also remember that the plants need 
all the elements of plant-growth, and not one of them 
alone. For example, a heavy application of nitrogen to 
soil deficient in potash and phosphorus cannot be expected 
to give useful results. Similarly, the application of potash 
to soil that is very poor in nitrogen or phosphoric acid 
would be comparatively unavailing. The heavy loamy 
or clay lands usually contain abundance of potash and 
phosphoric acid in a more or less unavailable condition, 
and much of these materials may be liberated to the plant 
by careful tillage and the incorporation of humus. How- 
ever, it is nearly always advisable, in bearing orchards, 
to add these materials in manures or concentrated ferti- 
lizers. The quickest results following the use of fertilizers 
will be seen in the sandier lands. Two or three years often 
elapse after the application of chemical fertilizers to heavy 
lands before any decided results are observed. In other 
words, clay lands ordinarily show quicker results from 
tillage than from fertilizers. 

While all this may seem to be wholly unsatisfactory 
to the man who wants recipes and rule-of-thumb direct- 
tions, nevertheless it is impossible to do more than to 
suggest and to give advice. The uncertainty will seem less 
to the actual practical grower, however, than to one who 
reads about the situation and is not yet hard against the 
problem. The actual grower, if he is acute, arrives at a 
judgment from experience and observation that is not 
far wrong. He talks with his neighbors, visits other planta- 
tions, attends the meetings, hears lectures, reads, and asks 
questions. All good farm practice is guided by such means. 

Individual plants—It may not be necessary to treat 
the plantation as a whole. The soils and other conditions 
may differ widely in different parts. If single trees or 


Formula for Apples 143 


plants are unthrifty, they should be given separate treat- 
ment. The experienced orchardist picks out these trees 
at a distance by the lighter shade of green, the sparser 
leafage, and the lesser growth. The first inquiry should be 
for borers, collar-rot, canker, sun-scald, mice injury, 
or other special attacks or difficulties. If the trouble does 
not lie here, or in the union at the graft or bud, or in 
over-bearing, he may assume that soil conditions are at 
fault. Digging up the soil about the tree or bush, or apply- 
ing a good top-dressing of manure or a liberal supply of 
nitrate of soda, is likely to give positive results. Sometimes 
the difficulty is unusual dryness, on a hard or leachy spot, 
and the application of water may help immediately, 
and the incorporation of vegetable matter and the reshap- 
ing of the surface to catch the rains may help permanently. 


Recommendation for apples—Stewart gives “a general 
fertilizer recommendation for apples” as follows, for 
preliminary use in orchards that are apparently in need of 
fertilization: 

Nitrogen (N) 30 pounds, carried in 100 pounds nitrate and 

150 pounds dried blood, or in 150 pounds ammonium 
sulphate. 

Phosphoric acid (P:0s) 50 pounds, carried in 350 pounds 
acid phosphate, or in 200 pounds bone-meal, or in 300 
pounds basic slag. 

Potash (K20) 25 to 50 pounds, carried in 50 to 100 pounds 
muriate, or in 100 to 200 pounds of low-grade sulphate. ! 


The amounts are for an acre of bearing trees; for 
young orchards, reduce these amounts in proportion to 
the area covered. 

“This formula means that a fertilizer carrying about 
thirty pounds of actual nitrogen, fifty pounds of actual 
phosphoric acid (P205), and twenty-five to fifty pounds 
of actual potash (K,0) should be applied on an acre of 


144 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


bearing trees. Where potash is not known to be lacking, 
the smaller amount may be used, or after a little testing 
it may even be omitted entirely. With the smaller amount 
of potash, the essentials of the present combination are 
carried in 500 pounds of a 6-10-5 fertilizer or its equivalent. 
In the usual ready-mixed fertilizers, the nitrogen is likely 
to be carried in ammonium sulphate, with which some lim- 
ing may be necessary if many applications are made, and 
especially if leguminous cover-crops or permanent covers 
are desired. In special or in home-made mixtures, the 
various elements may be carried in any of the materials 
indicated.” 


Other suggestions for apples and pears—‘‘When the 
stage is passed in which extended cropping between the 
trees is possible, and the burden of fruit becomes great,’ 
Wheeler advises, “‘special care should be taken to apply 
an abundance of potash and phosphoric acid annually, and 
only enough nitrogen from legumes or fertilizers to insure 
adequate foliage, satisfactory wood-growth, and abundant 
fruit-spurs. For this purpose a suitably compounded 
complete fertilizer may be employed. If legumes are 
found to supply enough nitrogen one may employ annually 
from 200 to 600 pounds an acre of acid phosphate or basic 
slag meal, and from 50 to 400 pounds an acre of the muri- 
ate or high-grade sulfate of potash. If the double manure 
salt is used as the source of potash instead of the muriate 
or the high-grade sulfate of potash, the total application 
should amount to approximately twice as much an acre, 
because of the lower potash-content of the latter. 

“The nitrogen for the orchard may be supplied in one, 
or on light, open soils, in two applications of nitrate of soda 
at such a rate that the total application for a season will 
not exceed from 100 to 300 pounds an acre, dependent 


Test Plat for Apples 145 


upon the slowness of the growth of the trees. It is usually 
much simpler to make a single application of a complete 
fertilizer in which the nitrogen is present in nitrates, ammo- 
nium salts, soluble organic compounds and in less quickly 
available organic forms than to apply nitrates at two or 
more different times. When such complete combinations 
are used the danger of loss by leaching is greatly lessened 
and a satisfactorily continuous but properly decreasing 
supply of nitrogen for the trees is assured. The fertilizer 
application should not be made later than just after the 
time the fruit has set. Many good authorities even advise 
waiting until this time in order to gage the application 
according to the probable yield and requirement of the 
trees.” 

As to lime, Wheeler states that ‘‘apple trees, as a rule, 
respond to liming rather better than pear trees; neverthe- 
less, on very acid soils there are several good reasons for 
liming even pear trees. An occasional application of mag- 
nesian lime may be desirable, but if used it should be 
alternated with applications of purer lime.” 


A test plat for apples—Stewart also gives advice for 
“determining the actual needs of an orchard,” or for 
making a test: 

“The general fertilizer formula just indicated (page 143) 
is for use only until the exact needs of the particular 
orchard can be determined. In other words, it is intended 
only to meet the immediate demands. If in the meantime 
one wishes really to answer the question of how to fertilize 
his own orchard, he can do so by following the plan out- 
lined in the following table. This plan is especially adapted 
to the needs of commercial orchardists and to ‘com- 
munity’ tests on the part of the smaller growers.” This may 
require some work, but the results should be worth it. 


J 


146 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


Plat 1.—Check ceenattiese Pounds 
Plat 2: Nitrate ices oh 24 EAGER ONES PKS Be De 2% 
Dred: BlOO dhe wre. cisi a'r decried py we poe Sy eons Bde 34 
Acid phosphate..............0-0-. Senay ae 10 
Plat 3:==Nitrate.. ccccga sctts es inser es eeea scenes yes 2% 
Eiried BWIGE vcain ve vonage aon ee Aue RUE Re o-8 3% 
PUG R sos oa eee 48 HE LRA ERROR LES TRA AAREE DEER 2 
Plat 4.—Acid phosphate............0. 00 0c eee eee eee 10 
Potash... cvscbignre.aqawng geese hen ee eae MIA Ee « 2 
Plat 5.—Check. 
Plat GHSNitrates ccciccee-osoee oe wkade dS Eee ees Tee ey eS 24% 
Diva Weeds 6 sso08 dees 62420 n are eese oe 38% 
Avid phosphate... c.cssciacaeceiovscivecaneevs 10 
POE. cos 35a oon Seer PRA eM EES 2 
Plat 7.—Same as Plat 6, plus lime................ 12 to 25 
Plat: 8 Mianures< <sisnc sec caaa ewan s thease duatewe oa 400 


Plat 9.—Check. 


“The quantities are pounds for a mature tree in bearing. 

“This test should be located in a typical part of the 
orchard, and should include not less than five average trees 
of the same variety and age, in each plat. All the trees 
should be labeled and carefully measured at a fixed point 
on the trunk, and definite records of their growth and 
yields should be kept for at least three years. Frequently 
good indications of the orchard’s needs may be obtained 
in less time than this, but at least this time should be 
allowed and more should be used when necessary.” 


Peaches—Wheeler says that “peach trees are less in 
need of lime than apple trees, yet liming is nevertheless 
often desirable, even for its indirect benefits. The fertilizer 
demands for peaches are much greater than for apples 
for the reason that the trees grow far more rapidly and 
bear early and abundant crops. On poor soils generous 
fertilization must be provided from the outset, but if the 
land is very rich or heavily manured, fertilizer may be 
omitted for the first year or two. If the soil is very poor, 


Fertilizers for Peaches and Others 147 


it should receive at the outset from 300 to 500 pounds an 
acre of a fertilizer containing a moderate amount of nitro- 
gen derived from appropriate materials, a fair quantity of 
available phosphoric acid, and a generous amount of 
potash in muriate of potash. On soils in which potash is 
naturally very abundant, the supply can be greatly 
lassened. 

“When the peach trees come into bearing, more nitro- 
gen will be required than at the outset, and the total 
quantity of fertilizer may then be increased one-half, or 
even more than doubled. In the case of peach trees, con- 
stant watchfulness is required to make sure that neither 
too little nor too much nitrogen is used. An excess of nitro- 
gen will prevent proper ripening of the fruit, and of the 
wood in the autumn, whereas too little will mean abbrevi- 
ated crops, loss of vigor, and at the same time the lack will 
create conditions favorable to disease. In any case, ample 
supplies of phosphoric acid and of potash, as muriate, 
should be provided to meet any possible need. If a little 
extra nitrogen is required in the spring, it may be applied 
in nitrate of soda, or, if the soil is properly limed, sulfate 
of ammonia may be substituted for the nitrate of soda if 
desired.”’ 


Plums, apricots and cherries probably require about 
the same treatment as peaches except perhaps not so 
heavy, although sweet and sour cherries and plums are 
said to need much more liming. 


Quinces are reported as responding to lime in about the 
same degree as cherries and plums. 


Grapes.—Field experiments by the New York (Geneva) 
Experiment Station gave confusing and unsatisfactory 
results not only with commercial fertilizers but with stable 


148 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


and green manures. Hedrick sums up the work thus far 
(Bull. No. 381) as follows: “From the data obtained in 
these experiments it is evident that the fertilization of 
vineyards is so involved with other factors that only long- 
continued work will give reliable results. From the work. 
done, however, several suggestions may be made to grape- 
growers: 

“First, fertilizers cannot be profitably applied in vine- 
yards poorly drained, suffering from winter freezes or 
spring frosts, or in which fungi or insects are uncontrolled, 
or where good care is lacking. 

“Second, it is probable that most vineyards have a 
one-sided wear, there being few plantations indeed where 
more than one or two of the elements of fertility are lack- 
ing. Nitrogen is probably most frequently the element 
needed. Each grape-grower should try to discover which 
of the food elements his particular soil needs, if any. 

“Third, maximum profits cannot be obtained in many 
vineyards of the Chautauqua belt because of the lack of 
uniformity in vineyard conditions. Grape-growers should 
strive by every means possible to secure an equally vigor- 
ous and healthy growth over the entire area cropped. 

“Fourth, the steps to be taken in restoring a failing 
vineyard are, in the usual order of importance, (1) give 
good drainage; (2) control insects and fungi; (8) improve 
the tillage and general care; (4) apply such fertilizers as 
may be found lacking.” 

Wheeler makes the following general statement: 
“Grapes may show some gain from the use of lime under 
certain circumstances, but they do not require it in even 
approximately the same degree as the cherry, plum, cur- 
rant, and gooseberry. The chief need of this crop is avail- 
able phosphoric acid and potash. If nitrogen is used, the 


Fertilizers for Berries 149 


quantity must be carefully regulated, and in Europe slow- 
acting forms of organic nitrogen are in special favor. Basic 
slag meal or bone-meal may be used as sources of phos- 
phoric acid when the grapes are set, but later, superphos- 
phate is to be preferred, especially if it:is not most thor- 
oughly worked into the soil. Sulfate of potash is often 
considered preferable to the muriate of potash for grapes, 
for it is alleged to give a better quality of fruit.” 

Berry bushes respond readily to the fertilizer treat- 
ments applied to general field and garden crops. The roots 
are relatively shallow and therefore submit to. surface 
tillage and applications, and the life of the plantation is 
short enough to allow of definite tests and also of rotation. 
Wheeler writes that ‘“The blackberry is especially at home 
on very acid soils and a very light application of lime will 
meet all possible requirements of the plants, if indeed it 
is needed at all. The blackcap raspberry is more likely 
to be helped by liming than the blackberry, although it is 
well adapted to moderately acid soils. The Cuthbert rasp- 
berry is appreciably helped by liming on quite acid soils, 
and the same is probably true of most or all of the red and 
yellow varieties. The gooseberry and currant, including 
the white and various red varieties, are greatly benefited 
by liming. As much as two to four tons of ground lime- 
stone an acre, or its equivalent of slaked lime, are often 
very helpful to these plants. Raspberries, in particular, 
thrive well on a heavy, freshly rotted sod, as for example, 
on old grass land plowed the autumn before the plants are 
set. In many cases all that is required on such land is to 
supply an adequate mixture of an available phosphate 
and a potash salt, but whenever the cane-growth is weak 
and unsatisfactory, or, when gooseberries and currant 
bushes do not show satisfactory growth, a moderate 


150 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


amount of complete fertilizer containing a fair amount of 
nitrogen in gradually available forms is likely to be bene- 
ficial. The use of heavy applications of nitrogen for rasp- 
berries, currants and gooseberries is not advised, for it 
will induce too great a growth of canes and foliage and 
interfere with the maturing and ripening of the fruit. The 
plants will also be rendered more readily subject to mildew.” 


The cranberry, according to Wheeler, “thrives better 
at the outset, even on certain very acid soils, than after 
the acidity has been lessened by liming. If more nitrogen 
is needed than that naturally available from the humus 
of the bog, it is usually recommended that it be applied 
in small quantities, preferably in nitrate of soda, although 
it is possible that sulfate of ammonia may sometimes 
answer as well; and nitrate of potash may even be pref- 
erable to either. The chief need of the cranberry vine is 
usually phosphoric acid and potash. The phosphoric acid 
for top-dressing may be in superphosphate, but if applied 
just before the plants are set one may employ bone-meal, 
or, if on very acid peat or muck soil, even raw rock phos- 
phate.”’ When the soils are very wet, he warns against 
the use of nitrates, “owing to their ready reduction to 
nitrites, which may be poisonous.” 

“In case spring applications of fertilizer are made, it 
must not be expected that they will always affect the 
cranberry yield of that season so much as the yield of the 
crop which follows. Such applications should ordinarily 
be made after the water is drawn off and the land has dried 
out to a reasonable extent. Some growers advise applying 
the fertilizer just after the crop is harvested, but if nitro- 
genous fertilizers are used spring applications are better. 


Strawberries give quick response to fertilizers, manures, 
mulches and tillage. They may be likened in these regards 


Fertilizer for Strawberries 151 


to annual crops. The special requirements, as given by 
Wheeler, are “moderately acid to very acid soils, and if 
lime is used the application should be light, rarely exceed- 
ing 1,000 to 2,000 pounds of ground limestone an acre. 

“An important point to be recognized by strawberry- 
growers is, that weak plants are not likely to be heavy 
bearers the next year. In consequence, the plants when 
set should be supplied with a fertilizer reasonably rich in 
available nitrogen. This fertilizer should usually be applied 
at the rate of 1,000 to 1,500 pounds an acre at the time of 
setting, and in the later years, just after picking the crop 
of fruit, fertilizer may be scattered in a furrow turned 
away from each side of the bed, after which the furrow may 
be turned back again. Early each spring fertilizer should 
be applied broadcast over the beds. This should contain 
liberal quantities of soluble phosphoric acid and potash 
but only enough nitrogen to promote reasonable growth. 
This ‘nitrogen should, however, be largely in readily soluble 
and available forms. If too much nitrogen is used in the 
spring the fruit will lack color, and it may be soft and 
unsatisfactory, especially for distant shipment. It may 
even be necessary to omit all nitrogen in the spring, if the 
soil is exceptionally rich in humus or has been well manured 
previously. This can be decided only by the observant 
grower. 

“On many soils, superphosphate is preferable to basic 
slag meal as a source of phosphoric acid for strawberries, 
for the reason that too much lime is to be avoided, and, 
furthermore, the phosphoric, acid is largely soluble and 
better adapted to top-dressing. On an exceedingly acid 
soil the use of basic slag meal may be permissible for appli- 
cation at the time of setting, for the action of the soil 
aids in rendering it available to the plants.” 


152 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


How to apply.—In general, fertilizer is broadcasted in 
fruit-plantations. In young orchards, it may be applied 
near the trees if they are to receive the immediate or 
chief benefit, although it should never be placed against 
or very close to the trunk. Sometimes it is applied in 
drills with potatoes or with other catch-crops. Usually it 
is preferable, however, to treat the entire area for the 
benefit of all the crops that are to be produced. 

The fertilizer may be applied in autumn or in spring. 
Old trees do not receive the benefit of surface applications 
at once, and if the roots are deep and the soil retentive 
they may never receive much help from such applications. 
Wheeler states that “in some European countries the fertil- 
izer for orchards is placed from 4 to 5 inches deep in holes 
20 inches apart, at the rate of about an ounce and a quar- 
ter in each hole. This method is, however, probably too 
expensive to employ in this country, although it may be 
especially effective for orchards in sod. If the work were 
capable of being done by machinery or by some suitable 
implement the method might possibly prove of economic 
value.” Materials that are rich in nitrogen should be 
applied cautiously, if at all, in autumn, at least before 
growth ceases, as it promotes late growth. There is likely, 
also, to be considerable loss of nitrogen. 

The general unskilled farmer would better apply ready- 
mixed fertilizers. As the fruit-grower begins to under- 
stand his problem, however, and becomes discriminating, 
he will find himself buying the separate ingredients and 
applying them as he thinks best. 


CHAPTER V 
THE PLANTS AND THE PLANTING 


WE now come to the concrete and interesting work 
ef actually making the fruit-plantation. The subjects that 
one naturally considers when about to begin the planting 
of a fruit-area fall into five categories—the choice of the 
varieties, the securing of the trees or plants, the actual 
setting of the stock, the laying out of the area, and the 
records of the plantation. These matters may now be 
considered, the two last in the succeeding chapter. 


THE CHOICE OF VARIETIES 


The most personal problem connected with the actual 
making of a fruit-farm is the choice of varieties. This is 
the one subject about which most questions are likely to 
be asked, and also one on which little specific advice can 
be given in a book. The choice of varieties depends pri- 
marily on the personal preferences of the grower, the pur- 
pose for which the fruit is to be grown, and the locality. 
Without knowing these three elements, it is impossible 
for any person to give satisfactory direction as to varieties. 
The grower who has no personal preferences for varieties 
has not yet mastered the first essential to successful fruit- 
growing,—the setting for himself of a specific ideal. In the 
greater number of cases one may answer questions on 
what varieties to plant by asking the questioner what he 
wants to plant. He will commonly answer his own ques- 
tion fully. The intelligent question about varieties is that 

(153) 


154 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


which asks for specific information; as, for example: What 
is the best red fall apple for southern Ohio? What is the 
earliest raspberry? What is the hardiest apricot? What 
is the largest plum? What is the best strawberry for can- 
ing? Such questions as these indicate that the questioner 
has classified his own ideas, and that he is driving straight 
to the point for information; and they are usually capable 
of rather definite answer. 

A few general rules or precepts may be stated to aid 
the intending fruit-planter in the choice of varieties: 

1. So far as possible, the planter should follow his 
personal preferences,—the type of fruit he likes best or 
in which he takes most interest. These types or kinds are 
the ones with which he will be most likely to succeed, 
other things being equal. 

2. He should develop a clear and specific conception 
of the purpose for which the fruit is to be grown,—whether 
for dessert, for canning, for a local market, for export, 
for evaporating, and the like. Then the varieties best 
suited to meet these desires may be looked up and 
chosen. 

8. The planter should not covet a variety because it 
is eminently successful in another region. Varieties have 
distinct adaptations to geographical areas. If a given 
variety is a universal success in the plains regions, the 
probabilities are that it will not thrive equally well in New 
England. The farmers of the East have learned that they 
cannot compete with those of the West in the growing of 
wheat, and they should know that one region may not be 
able to compete with another in some particular variety 
of fruit, even though the variety thrive well in both. It is 
a question whether the northeastern states can compete 
with the mid-western states in the growing of the Ben 


Choice of Varieties 155 


Davis apple. The South and mid-South have been planted 
extensively to the Kieffer pear, largely because it thrives 
better over a large area than most other varieties. It is 
doubtful, then, whether it is wise to plant it extensively 
in the North, where other pears will thrive that do not 
succeed in the Kieffer region. Probably in every state or 
province certain varieties are considered to be especially 
adapted to certain regions, as the Rome Beauty apple to 
southern Ohio. Such adaptations should be considered. 
Any region should grow most freely that type of fruit 
which it can grow best and which other regions cannot 
grow so well. The lists of fruits recommended for different 
regions by the American Pomological Society are very 
suggestive in this regard. 

4. The choice should consider the local conditions, as 
the adaptation of the variety to the particular climate, to 
the probable length of season, to distance from market, 
and to the system of husbandry. The adaptation of varie- 
ties to soils is an important consideration, and one that 
demands closer attention as cultivation becomes more 
intense and perfect; but the question is yet imperfectly 
understood, except perhaps with strawberries and few 
outstanding varieties of other fruits. As a rule, the finer 
the variety in quality, the less able it is to thrive equally 
well under diverse and particulariy under careless methods 
of treatment. It is partly for this reason that dessert fruits 
are commonly regarded as unreliable and difficult to grow. 
One can scarcely hope for success in the best horticulture 
unless he gives particular study to the adaptations of 
species and varieties to soils. 

5. One should seek to determine the best varieties for 
a given purpose by experimenting, by diligent inquiry of 
neighbors, pomologists, nurserymen, marketmen, and by 


156 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


keeping in touch with discussions in societies, articles in 
the rural press, and publications of institutions. 

6. To a certain extent, one may improve one’s varieties 
by breeding, particularly in the fruits that bear early or 
young, as the berries, grapes, and even peaches and plums. 
If one does not care to go to the trouble of raising seedlings 
of known parentage, one should at least be on the lookout 
for interesting variations, and should exercise discrimina- 
tion in the taking of cuttings and cions. 


Self-sterile varieties. 


Choice should be made also with reference to inter- 
pollination. It is known that some varieties of fruits are 
self-sterile——that is, they are not fruitful with their own 
pollen and when planted alone. This 
sterility may be due, as in the case of 
the strawberry, to imperfect (or uni- 
sexual) flowers, or, more commonly, 
to pollen that is impotent on the pistils 
of the same flower. This infertility 
or self-sterility is largely a varietal 
characteristic, yet it is no doubt 
modified by seasonal and environ- 
mental conditions. It is probable that 
varieties may sometimes be self-fertile 
and at other times self-sterile. The 


Fia. 25. Strawber e : 
flowers modified by Strawberry flowers in Fig. 25 show the 


weather. 4 
marked influence on pollen-bearing 


that is exerted by different conditions. The flowers are 
of the same variety, and were grown under glass. The 
lower one shows the small development of stamens in a 
long cloudy spell, and the upper .one the profusion of 
stamens that appeared in other flowers after a few 


Self-sterility 157 


days of sunshine. It is probable that pollen is more 
potent in some years than in others. , 

There is yet insufficient positive knowledge of the 
inter-pollination of fruits, and no subject connected with 
pomology is in greater need of further study. We know 
that many of the most productive orchards are of 
many varieties, and that some varieties sometimes refuse 
to fertilize themselves. The most positive knowledge on 
the impotency of pollen amongst our common fruits is in 
connection with the plums of the Wild Goose type, with 
sweet cherries, and with many grapes. The safest practice, 
in all fruits, is to plant only a few rows of any one variety 
together of fruits in which self-sterility is a frequent char- 
acteristic. The chief point to be observed in choosing the 
varieties is that they shall bloom together. 

Strawberries often lack stamens altogether, while 
others have so few and so poor stamens that they are 
practically self-sterile. Ordinarily, there should be a row 
of a perfect-flowered variety for every two rows of a 
pistillate or infertile variety of strawberry. 

Some kinds of red raspberries are only partially self- 
fertile, and should therefore be grown in mixed planta- 
tions. Cuthbert is apparently strongly self-fertile and 
is probably a good pollinizer. 

The early experiments in this subject by Waite and 
others gave the following lists of self-sterile and self-fertile 
fruits: 


Pears.—Varieties more or less self-sterile—Angouleme, Anjou, 
Bartlett, Boussock, Clairgeau, Clapp, Columbia, De la Chéne, 
Doyenne Sieulle, Easter, Gansel Bergamotte, Gray Doyenne, 
Howell, Idaho, Jones, Kieffer, Lawrence, Louise Bonne, Mount 
Vernon, Pound, Sheldon. Souvenir du Congres, Superfin, Wilder, 
Winter Nelis. 

Varieties usually self-fertile—Bosc, Brockworth, Buffum, Diel, 


158 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


Doyenne d’Alencon, Flemish Beauty, Heathcote, Le Conte, Manning 
Elizabeth, Seckel, Tyson, White Doyenne. 

Apples.—Varietics more or less self-sterile—Bellflower, Chenango 
(Strawberry), Gravenstein, Tompkins King, N' orthérn Spy, Norton 
Melon, Primate, Rambo, Red Astrachan, Roxbury (Russet), Spitzen- 
burg, Tolman (Sweet), Willow Twig, Winesap. ps 

Varieties mostly self-fertile—Baldwin, Ben Davis, Codlin, Falla- 
water, Rhode Island Greening, Oldenburg, Rall Janet, Red Astrachan, 
Smith Cider. 

Plums.—Varieties more or less self-sterile—Coe Golden Drop, 
French Prune, Italian Prune, Marianna, Miner, Ogon, Peach, 
Satsuma, Wild Goose and many cther native plums. 

Varieties mostly self-fertile—Burbank, Bradshaw, De Soto, 
Green Gage, Lombard, Robinson, Damsons. 


“The quince seems to fruit nearly as well with its own pollen 
as with that of another variety.” —Waite. 


Grapes (Beach).—Unfruitful (or usually so) when planted by 
themselves.—Black Eagle, Brighton, Eumelan, Massasoit, Wilder, 
Gaertner, Merrimac, Requa, Aminia, Essex, Barry, Herbert, Salem. 

Able to set fruit of themselves.—Concord, Diamond, Niagara, 
Winchell or Green Mountain, Rogers’ Nos. 13, 24, and 32, Agawam, 
Delaware. 


Some of the self-sterile varieties mentioned have fruited 
well when planted with pollinizers as follows: Bartlett 
with Nelis, Flemish, Easter; Kieffer with Le Conte, Garber; 
Coe Goldén Drop with French Prune, Fellenburg; Sat- 
suma with Abundance, Burbank, Red June; Miner with 
De Soto, Forest Rose, Wild Goose; Wild Goose with De 
Soto, Newman, Miner. 

Fletcher finds that self-sterility is the rule in Kieffer and 
Bartlett pears. For planting with Bartlett, the Anjou, 
Lawrence, Duchess and Kieffer were good pollinizers, 
although in some seasons Bartlett and Kieffer do not bloom 
simultaneously. For planting with Kieffer, the LeConte, 
Garber, Lawrence, Bartlett, Duchess, Anjou and Clairgeau 


Self-stertlity 159 


were satisfactory, although in some years the bloom of some 
of these may not be simultaneous although it overlaps. 
Grapes of the muscadine type are strongly self-sterile, 
having imperfect flowers. (Cf. Reimer and Detjen, Bull. 
No. 209, N. C. Exp. Sta.) Beach finds (Bull. No. 223, N.Y. 
Exp. Sta.) that varieties of grapes self-sterile or nearly so 
have shown about as little ability to fertilize other self- 
sterile sorts as they have to fertilize themselves; and 
also they have usually failed to fertilize self-fertile varie- 
ties. Indications were found, however, that the pollen in 
some instances is not altogether impotent, but that its own 
pistils are less congenial than those of some other varieties. 
Further investigation is needed to learn whether this self- 
sterility is because the pollen is deficient in amount, is 
not well developed, or is uncongenial to its own variety. 
For Oregon conditions, Lewis and Vincent have found 
(Bull. No. 104) gains in size of fruit of self-fertile apples 
to result from crossing, as well as marked benefits from 
crossing self-sterile kinds. Of eighty-seven varieties of 
apples under test, fifty-nine varieties were found to be 
self-sterile, fifteen varieties self-fertile, and thirteen varie- 
ties partially self-fertile. ‘Many varieties of apples 
naturally tend to be self-sterile, when limited to their own 
pollen. Results indicate that cross-pollination is the rule 
and self-pollination the exception. In some instances the 
immediate effects of pollen on the color of the fruit were 
perceptible. With an increase in the weight of the crossed 
apple, there was a proportional increase in the weight of 
the seeds. The action of foreign pollen on the Yellow New- 
town, a self-fertile variety, was very pronounced. Many of 
the self-fertile varieties of apples, when self-pollinated, 
were found to be seedless, or devoid of plump seeds. Wind 
is a poor agent in transferring pollen from tree to tree. 


160 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


Bees and insects appear to be the principal pollen 
distributers. Climatic conditions influence, to a certain 
degree, the relative blooming periods of the different kinds 
of fruits. In frosty localities, varieties can be selected with 
reference to their time of blooming, thus partially elimi- 
‘nating the difficulty of a failure of fruit. We found that 
pollen was capable of maintaining its viability for three 
weeks, provided it was not allowed to ferment. The length 
of time different kinds of fruit remain in blossom at this 
station are as follows: Apples thirteen days, pears eleven 
days, and cherries ten days.” 

In a conclusive study, Gardener has found that all 
Oregon varieties of sweet cherries are self-sterile, although 
in all cases the pollen germinates in nutrient solutions. 
He also found that many varieties are inter-sterile; thus, 
Bing, Lambert and Napoleon planted together with no 
other variety are all sterile, although Black Republican 
and Black Tartarian will fertilize each of them. Sour cher- 
ries do not seem to be self-sterile so far as preliminary 
studies in New York indicate. 

It is not yet known how constant in different regions 
or under unlike conditions are the attributes of self- fertility 
and self-sterility in varieties of fruits, or how much of the 
barrenness of orchards may be due to impotency of pollen. 
Some cases of barrenness attributed to this cause may be 
due to other and unrecognized deficiencies. Some of it is 
attributable to frost or wind at blooming time, to neglect 
and other causes. It is certain, however, that impotency 
or inefficiency of pollen is one of the prime factors in fruit 
failures, and it should be taken into account in all orchard 
plans by avoiding solid blocks of varieties. It is safer to 
plant not more than five or six rows of one variety together 
unless the variety is known to be abundantly self-fertile. 


Score-card for Varieties 161 


Scoring the varieties. 


If the grower puts the points of excellence in tabular 
or organized form, he may then scale or score the merits or 
demerits of a given variety; he may need to inquire of 
those who are well acquainted with the variety, if he does 
not have personal knowledge of it, before he is able to 
score or grade it intelligently. Sears has made a useful score- 
card (Agric. of Mass., 1909, p. 44) for commercial apples: 


ScorE-CaRD FOR A COMMERCIAL VARIETY OF APPLES 


PRED joa Ques seine ange paw aa eles 
1. Heavy bearer............ 
2. Early bearer............. 
3. Healthy and vigorous..... 


4 

5. Good color.............. 
6. Good quality ............ 
7. Keeps well.............. 
8. Ships well............... 


General market | Special market 

Rare 40 35 
eo 20 15 
tess 5 10 10 
a hier 10 10 
40 35 

sees 60 65 
pes 10 5 
ave 20 15 
ee 12 30 
aes 10 10 
36 8 5 
100 60 100 65 


Applying score-card points to apples for Massachu- 
setts, Sears makes tables contrasting the desirable and the 
undesirable, four of which are given by way of illustration: 


Good points: 
1. Well known. 
2. Long-lived tree. 
3. Good bearer. 
4. Uniform grade of fruit. 
5. Good color. 


Kk 


BaLpWIN 


Bad points: 


1. Rather slow in coming into 
bearing. 

2. Overbears in alternate years. 

3. Not high quality. 

4. Cankers. 


162 The Principles of Pruit-growing 


Ruove Istanp GREENING 


Good points: Bad points: 
1. Well known. 1. Sometimes scalds in storage. 
2. Productive. 2. Color. 
3. Good quality. 3. Scabs. 
4. Fine cooker. 4. Not so hardy as Baldwin. 
WEALTHY 
Good points: Bad points: 
1. Bears very early. 1. Drops badly. 
2. Hardy tree. 2. Ripens unevenly. 
3. Good quality. 
4. Uniform grade. 
5. Good color. 
GRAVENSTEIN 
Good points: Bad points: 
1. Fine quality, cooking and 1. Shy or biennial bearer. 
eating. 2. Winter-kills. 
2. Handsome appearance. 3. Collar rot, rank grower. 
3. Tree needs little pruning. 4. Fades in storage. 
4. Well known. 5. Sun-scald and canker. 


How did the varieties of fruits originate? 


Systematic breeding has not yet made very extensive 
contributions to fruit-culture, although many interesting 
experiments are now maturing. The importance of being 
on the lookout for choice chance seedlings is as great as 
ever. It may be well to consider how the existing varieties 
of fruits have come into our practice. 

It seems to be next to impossible to enlighten the 
public mind on this question, for whatever detailed 
explanation one may give seems to leave the questioner 
still unsatisfied and perhaps uninformed. The real cause 
of this dissatisfaction is that persons assume that there 
is something mysterious about the process of the origi- 


Origin of Varieties 163 


nation of varieties; and so long as the mind makes a mys- 
tery of a subject it is impossible to elucidate the subject. 
We have also been taught that like produces like, and 
therefore that any unlikeness between two plants—as 
between the parent and its offspring—calls for instant 
explanation. The fact is, that it is not in the nature of 
domestic productions for like to produce like, but rather 
for similar to produce similar. That is, there are certain 
type or family characteristics that pass over to the off- 
spring, but there are normally very many unlikenesses 
in the details. Apples give rise to apples, and sometimes 
there is a closer reproduction of the parent in tribes like 
the Fameuse apples and the Crawford peaches; but there 
is seldom or never an exact duplication of parental fea- 
tures. Considering that this is the rule in nature, the 
wonder is that plants should ever reproduce the variety 
with approximate exactness. In other words, rigidity of 
generation may be the thing to be explained rather than 
the elasticity of it. In kitchen-garden vegetables this 
- rigidity has come about, but it is the direct result of a long 
effort at selection and breeding until the elasticity of the 
type has been largely bred out. In the vegetables, invari- 
ableness has been bred. 

Those persons who are always wondering how the 
varieties of fruits have come should consult the records. 
History is capable of enlightening them. If the origins are 
traced, it will be found that in the greatest number of cases 
the variety was simply discovered, and that some one 
began to propagate it because he thought it to be good. A 
tree springs up along a roadside, in the fence-row, back of 
the barn, in a thicket, and bears acceptable fruit. It is the 
product of a chance seed dropped by a bird or thrown there 
by an urchin. A thousand, perhaps ten thousand, seeds 


164 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


produce trees that bear poor or indifferent products 
when only one bears superior fruit. This one good tree 
is cherished, and all the others are forgotten, or perhaps 
are never seen; and then we wonder why so many more 
good varieties originate in the half-wild places than in the 
garden. It is only because more seeds have been sown 
there, and as we do not covet the ground, the failures pass 
unnoticed. If we should secure the same results in the 
garden by the sowing of only half the number of seeds, we 
should consider the experiment to be a costly. one. It is 
probable that a seed will produce the same character of 
fruit, whether the tree springs up in a fence-row or in the 
garden; and the half-wild areas are, therefore, most useful 
and prolific places in which to allow nature to carry out 
her various kinds of plant-breeding. And if man has 
been willing to be relieved of all effort in the matter, it is 
fair to assume that he will long continue of the same mind, 
and that this exploration for new varieties will be a passion 
of the adventurer until every copse and tangle has been 
razed into cultivated fields. 

It is not the province of the present book to discuss 
the fundamental reasons why plants vary and new forms 
arise. These reasons are obscure at best, but the greater 
part of them are probably not past finding out. It is 
enough for this occasion to say that nearly all the varieties 
of fruits were seedlings found in some waste place, or in a 
nursery row or a garden; and they were propagated. 


THE SECURING OF THE PLANTS 


It is first necessary, in choosing the plants for fruit- 
grounds, to determine what first-class stock is. The nur- 
seryman contends that he grows the varieties that the 


The First-class Tree 165 


planters want—those for which there is a demand. In 
fact, however, he largely forces the demand by magnify- 
ing‘the value of varieties that are good growers in the 
nursery. The nurseryman’s business ends with the grow- 
ing of the young tree, and the tree that makes the straight- 
est, most rapid and cleanest growth is the one that finds 
the readiest sale. But it by no means follows that the 
variety which is the cheapest and best for the nurseryman 
to grow is the best for the fruit-grower to plant. Probably 
every apple-grower is now ready to admit that the Bald- 
win has been too much planted, while Canada Red and 
various other varieties that are poor growers in the 
nursery-row have been too little planted. 

The blame for this condition of things does not rest 
wholly with the nurseryman. The difficulty lies in the 
fact that our conception, and, consequently our definition, 
of what constitutes a first-class tree is at variance with the 
truth. We conceive a first-class nursery tree to be one that 
grows straight and smooth, tall and stocky, whereas we 
know that very many—perhaps half—the varieties of 
apples and pears and plums will not grow that way. In 
order to make our conception true, we grow those varieties 
that satisfy the definition, and, as a result, there is a con- 
stant tendency to eliminate from our lists some of the best 
and most profitable varieties. 

All this could be remedied if growers were to be taught 
that varieties of fruit-trees may be just as different and 
distinct in habit of growth as they are in kind of fruit, and 
that a first-class tree is a well-grown specimen that has the 
characteristics. of the variety. A tree may be first-class 
and yet be crooked and slender, if it is the habit of the 
particular variety to grow that way. The emphasis should 
be placed on health and vigor, and not on mere shape and 


166 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


comeliness. Why may not a nurseryman give a list 
of varieties that are comely growers, and another list of 
those that are wayward growers? 

It is usually best to buy first-class trees,—those of 
medium size for their age, vigorous, shapely in body and 
head, stocky, with clean trunks and abundant roots, not 
stunted, that are free of borers and other injuries, and, in 
the case of budded trees, those in which the union is very 
near the ground; and the tree should show the natural 
characteristics of the variety. It is important, also, that 
trees of apples and pears have several good limbs that do 
not arise close to each other; for the main scaffold limbs 
of a mature tree should be some distance apart to avoid 
splitting. In dwarf pears, especially, it is important that 
the stock, to be first-class, shall be budded very low. It 
is often thought that large size is of itself a great merit in 
a nursery tree, but this is an error. Vigor, cleanness, 
stockiness, firm hard growth, are much more important 
than bigness. The toughest and best trees are usually 
those of medium size. The very small extra expense 
incurred in buying the best trees is commonly a good 
investment. It is often said that second-class trees may 
be chosen with good roots and that the grower can 
form the top to suit himself. This requires more time 
and care, and is very doubtful economy; and, moreover, 
one is likely to lose in uniformity, which is an important 
feature in an orchard. In an acre of apple trees, the differ- 
ence in cost of first-class over second-class trees may not 
be more than a dollar or two, but the difference in results 
is often great. 

The age of plants at purchase must be governed by 
circumstances and by species. The general tendency is 
to buy trees too old rather than too young. When varie- 


Age of Nursery Stock 167 


ties are new and scarce, it may be economy to buy very 
young stock. Some of the freer-growing apples and pears 
are large enough when two years old, if grown from buds; 
but these fruits are usually set at three years from the 
bud or graft. Dwarf pears may be set at two or three 
years, preferably at the former age. Quinces are set at 
two and three years. Peaches are set at one year from 
the bud; plums and cherries at two and three years. 
Strawberries are set only from new plants (that is, those 
that have not borne); gooseberries and currants prefera- 
bly from two-year stock; raspberries and blackberries 
from stock not more than one season old; grapes one and 
two years, preferably the latter. 

One does not save time, in serious orchard work, by 
buying very large and old trees. It is best to depend on 
the standard sizes and ages of good commercial stock. 


Dwarfs vs. standards. 


Whether standard or dwarf trees are the better to 
plant, is a personal problem, and cannot be answered 
for another any more than the question as_ to 
whether peaches are more desirable than plums. Dwarf 
apples and dwarf pears are of a different type of fruit- 
growing from the standards, or free stocks, and the 
intending grower must weigh the evidence for and 
against as best he can. As a general thing, the stan- 
dards are the safer and more reliable; but persons who are 
willing and competent to give the extra care that dwarfs 
need, who have the proper location, and who have access 
to extra-good markets, may often grow the dwarfs with 
profit. 

The growing of dwarfs is a special practice. The only 
fruits that have regular commercial standing in this 


168 The Principles of Frutt-growing 


country as dwarfs are pears. The pear is dwarfed by 
working it on quince stock. Usually, dwarf pears are not 
profitable. The apple is dwarfed by working it on apple 
trees of small stature, as on the doucin and paradise 
races; these races are of themselves bushes or only very 
small trees. There are no other well-recognized dwarf 
fruits, although the cherry is more or less dwarfed by 
working it on the mahaleb, and the plum by working it 
on the peach. 

The general fruit-grower would better avoid the plant- 
ing of dwarfs for commercial purposes. They require 
more care, are subject to more difficulties and hindrances. 
It is only when they receive extra attention in pruning 
and otherwise that they succeed. They may be used as 
fillers in standard orchards, but this is doubtful policy. 
It is better to grow them by themselves, where they 
can receive the care that they need. They may not bear 
profitably much in advance of standards. 

Dwarf apples are interesting and excellent for the 
home garden, where one wants a good range of choice 
varieties in small space. The extra attention that they 
receive in spraying, pruning, thinning and otherwise, 
produces fruit of excellent size and form. The yield to 
the acre is not large for the capital and labor invested. 
One cannot afford to grow barrel apples on dwarfs, but 
only the choice and exceptional varieties. 


Pedigree plants. 


It is probable that trees sometimes fail to bear 
because propagated from unproductive trees. We know 
that no two trees in any orchard are alike, either 
in the amount of fruit they bear or in their vigor 
and habit of growth. Some are uniformly productive, 


The Question of Pedigree 169 


and some are uniformly unproductive. We know, also, 
that cions or buds tend to reproduce the permanent char- 
acters of the tree from which they are taken. A gardener 
would never think of taking cuttings from a rose bush 
or a chrysanthemum or a carnation that does not bear 
flowers. Why should a fruit-grower take cions from a tree 
that he knows to be uniformly unprofitable? 

Much of the variation in fruit plants is associated 
with temporary, local or fortuitous conditions,—as the 
character of the land in the spot where the plant stands, 
the exposure, injuries it may have received; such modi- 
fications are probably not perpetuated in the cions. Trees 
propagated from heavy-bearing parents cannot be expected 
to give good results if they are grown under neglect; and 
undoubtedly trees grafted from unproductive parents 
may be made to outyield their ancestry if given excep- 
tional care. And yet it is reasonable to expect that parent- 
age counts even in bud-propagation. The question is diffi- 
cult of determination because many factors enter into it and 
every generation of plants is grown under its own condi- 
tions. Other things being equal, pedigree stock is to be 
preferred; but there always remains the question as to 
whether the pedigree means anything in any particular 
case. 


Stocks. 


The tree-fruits are multiplied by grafting and budding. 
The tree (or root) on which they are grafted is the stock. 

In most of the fruits, one may have a choice of stocks, 
and this requires some knowledge of them. In the pur- 
chase of nursery trees, however, one does not know the 
particular stock, and the goods are commonly purchased 
without reservation or requirement. In practice, planters 


170 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


concern themselves very little with the kind of stocks on 
which their trees are worked. 

The stock, because of its naturally small stature, 
may dwarf the tree (see page 168); some stocks are par- 
ticularly adapted to given soils; others escape certain 
injuries; others make poor or short-lived union with the 
cion or top. 

The apple is budded or grafted on French crabs, 
which are apple seedlings imported from Europe, or on 
seedlings grown from American cider-mill seeds. The 
American stocks are raised mostly in the Middle West, 
and are often preferred to the foreign stocks, but most 
nurserymen seem to prefer the imported stocks. If it is 
desired that the apple trees shall be dwarf, they are worked 
on stocks that themselves never make large trees, as the 
doucin and paradise types; these stocks are imported 
from Europe. 

In severe northern climates, apples are worked on 
seedlings of Russian apples, and also on Siberian crab. 

Pears are grown on imported French seedlings. The 
supply of pear seed is so limited in this country that 
growing the seedlings on an adequate scale cannot be 
attempted; and the risk from pear-blight is also too great. 

The peach is adapted to a variety of stocks. It is 
preferable to have peach on peach stocks, in most cases; 
but the peach root is specially liable to root-knot far south 
and another stock may be necessary in that case, and plum 
may be used,—the Marianna probably being best for 
light lands. The myrobalan plum is used for peach stock, 
but has a dwarfing effect, and it is not suited to all 
varieties. There is a choice even of peach stocks, it being 
considered that seedlings from southern pits are better 
than those from the northern canneries. 


Stocks for Fruit-trees 171 


Plums may be worked on peach for light soils. There 
are several kinds of plums used as stocks, and there is 
much difference of opinion as to their merits. Seedlings 
of the common orchard plum are probably to be preferred, 
except that the varieties of native plums should be 
grown on native or wild stock. The myrobalan is much 
used, but is probably inferior. French stocks of the St. 
Julien type are also imported to some extent. 

There are two prevailing cherry stocks, the mazzard 
and mahaleb. The latter is much used by nurserymen 
because of its cheapness and ease of working, but it is 
inferior. Sour cherries are likely to be very unsatis- 
factory on mahaleb. The native dwarf or sand cherry is 
used to some extent in the northern plains region as a 
very hardy stock; it also has a dwarfing effect. 

There has been little critical study of the hardiness of 
the different stocks. Chandler, however, reports that 
“roots of the French crab used as a stock seem to be 
more tender than roots which come from cions of an aver- 
age variety of apple. Marianna plum roots are certainly 
more hardy than myrobalan roots, and mahaleb cherry 
roots seem slightly more hardy than mazzard roots.” 


Stock for top-working. 


If one is to plant hardy stocks and then work them 
over with selected cions, he should usually plan to graft 
or bud them after they have stood in the orchard one 
year. Good results sometimes follow grafting in the very 
year in which the stock is set, but this is the exception. 

Some persons have proposed to sow seeds in the very 
spot where the trees are to stand, and thereby to raise 
stocks for top-working without transplanting them; but 
the labor and uncertainty of the method make it imprac- 


172 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


ticable. It is cheaper to grow trees in the nursery-row— 
the same as it is cheaper to buy trees of a nurseryman 
than to attempt to grow them—and the trees also receive 
better care. Again, seedlings vary, and the poor and weak 
ones should be discarded the same as they are discarded 
by the budder in the nursery-row who finds them to be 
too small or too scrawny to bud. Well-grown stock of 
a strong-growing variety usually gives more uniform 
results than a lot of home-grown seedlings. 

Stocks for reworking are sometimes employed for the 
purpose of securing straight and strong bodies for weak 
and poor growers, as for the Canada Red and Jefferis 
apples. Any straight, vigorous, free-growing, hardy stock 
may be chosen. In the northeastern states, Northern 
Spy is much used for this purpose. 


Buying the trees. 


It is best, when it can be done, to order trees late in 
summer or early in autumn. Buy where the best trees 
can be obtained, and where there is good reason to expect 
reliable stock and honest dealing. It is usually advisable 
to buy at the nearest nursery at which the desired stock 
can be secured, for the buyer has more personal knowledge 
of the nurseryman, he can visit the nursery, he saves 
freight, and he may be able to secure his stock in fresher 
condition; but trees of equal excellence thrive equally well 
when transported from long distances, if they arrive at 
their destination in equally good condition. Southern- 
grown stock gives good results in the North if it is strong, 
healthy and well-matured. 

Nursery stock should never be purchased simply be- 
cause it is cheap. Poor stock is dear as a gift. Yet farmers 
who annually plant a few trees and who buy of agents, 


How to Purchase 173 


often pay exorbitant prices. In a certain town, when 
farmers were paying 28 cents each for peach trees in lots 
of a dozen, any reliable nursery would have been glad to 
have supplied the same varieties at $18 a hundred, at the 
nursery. Plums that should have sold for 15 cents to 20 
cents each were selling to farmers for 50 and 60 cents. 
The man who expects to plant an orchard for profit will 
not be led by agents into any glowing scheme or into the 
purchase of wonderful varieties. He will usually buy directly 
of the nearest nurseryman who can supply the desired 
stock and varieties at the prices that suit him. Some nur- 
serymen employ regular and reliable agents, and such 
agents carry a certificate from the firm they represent. 
But while these salesmen may be perfectly straight- 
forward, and may be the best channels through whom small 
orders can be secured by those who are uninformed in 
pomological matters, all persons who expect to go into 
fruit-growing seriously should buy directly of the nurseries. 
Yet we must remember that the tree agent has been one of 
the means of clothing the country with fruit trees, and 
thereby of adding much to the contentment of farm life 

The buyer should make up his mind just what varieties 
he wants, and then find the nursery that has them, and 
order early enough to get them. There is then no occasion 
to consider the vexed question of substitution of. varieties. 
If the varieties are not in market, buy stocks of some . 
strong-growing staple variety, and after these are estab- 
lished—usually the spring or summer of the next year— 
bud or graft the tops to the desired varieties. 

It is better to have the stock delivered in autumn and 
plant it or heel it in over winter than to trust to the un- 
certainties of spring delivery and the disadvantages of 
cellared stock. 


174 The Principles of Fruit-growing 
THE SETTING OF THE PLANTS 


Fruit plants sometimes live and thrive under very 
careless handwork in setting, but these cases are excep- 
tions and due to unusually favorable seasons or soil condi- 
tions, and they are not to serve as guides to practice. The 
only recommendable procedure is one of care-taking at 
every stage of the work. 


When to plant. 


There is much difference of opinion as to the relative 
merits of fall and spring planting. The writer’s opinion is 
that fall planting is generally preferable to spring planting 
on thoroughly drained and settled lands, particularly for 
the hardy tree-fruits, like apples, pears and plums; and if 
the ground is in good condition and the stock well matured, 
peaches may sometimes be set in October, even in the 
northern states, with success. The advantages of fall 
planting are several. The trees become established in the 
open weather of autumn, and they usually make a start in 
spring before the ground is hard enough to allow of spring 
planting. This early start means not only a better growth 
the first season, but, what is more important, trees that get 
a very early hold endure the droughts of midsummer much 
better than trees planted in spring. Planting is nearly 
- always better done in the settled weather and workable soil 
of autumn than in the capricious days and in the hurry of 
springtime; and the orchardist is free to begin cultivation 
at a time when he would otherwise be planting his trees. 
Again, it is commonly better to buy trees in the fall, 
when the stock of varieties is full and when the best 
trees are yet unsold; these trees must be kept until 
planting time, and it is about as cheap and fully as safe 


The Stripping of Trees 175 


to plant them directly in the field as to heel them in until 
spring. 

In fall planting, however, the trees must be thoroughly 
well matured. In order to move stock quickly, it is the 
practice of some nurserymen to “strip” the trees before 
the growth is completed; that is, the leaves are taken off, 
the growth stopped, and the trees are put on the market 
for September deliveries. This process weakens the trees, 
and many failures in young plantations are probably 
attributable to this cause. Such trees may die outright, 
especially if set in the fall and a hard winter follows; or 
they may live to make a dwindling growth for the first 
few years. Like early-weaned calves, they lack vitality 
and push. If one were setting an orchard in autumn, 
one should place the order for trees in August or Septem- 
ber, if possible, with the express stipulation that the trees 
should stand in the nursery-rows until the leaves begin 
to die and fall. In the meantime, the land should be fitted 
and the holes dug, so that when the trees arrive they may 
go directly into their places without delay or without the 
expense of heeling them in. Trees are mature enough to 
dig late in September or early in October in the north- 
ern states, depending on the season, soil and variety. 
When the tree is fully mature, some of the leaves will 
still hold on the vigorous shoots, and these are stripped 
off; but this stripping does no harm, for the young growth 
is then mature and it has a thick, strong, brown appear- 
ance very different from the slender, soft and green 
branches of early-stripped trees. 

There are many good planters who consider fall plant- 
ing hazardous, especially in the North. It is true that 
unless the conditions are right, spring planting is the 
safer course; and farmers who have many fall crops to 


176 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


harvest will also probably find more time for tree-setting 
in the spring. 

If trees are secured in autumn for spring planting, they 
should be heeled-in on well-drained land and preferably 
where the snow will not blow off. They may be stood 
upright in furrows, or laid down (Fig. 26, adapted from 
Blake), the latter preferred. Open the bundles and place 


Fia. 26. Peach trees pruned and heeled-in. 


each tree by itself, so that the earth will lie on all sides of 
the root. Pack the earth. It is well to cover the earth 
with straw or bedding; but watch must be kept that mice 
are not attracted by this material, for they are likely to 
gnaw the trees. 


Distance apart. 


Fruit plants are oftener set too close together than 
too far apart; in fact, the latter error scarcely exists. 
Trees, especially, are wide feeders, and the best results 
are secured when each tree stands far enough from its 
neighbors to allow it to possess an individuality all its 


Distance for Planting 177 


own. An additional reason for sparse planting has lately 
become important,—the necessity of spraying for insect 
and fungous pests; and for this reason, as well as to allow 
of better tillage, the outside rows should not be set close 
to fences. The distance at which trees may be set depends 
much on the system of pruning. If heading-in is followed 
vigorously and systematically, trees may be set a third 
nearer than if allowed to take their natural form. 
Heading-in should always be practised with dwarf trees, 
and many of our best growers pursue it regularly with 
peaches, plums and quinces. Wide planting is the safer rule 
for the generality of cases. The following table may be 
supposed to represent the outside average limit for the 
planting of fruits in the northeastern states, when the 
plants are allowed to take their natural form: 


Apples: s.oc-oss cans scmeiss Gea saaas ew eeu ee 35 to 45 ft. each way. 
Apples, dwarf ........... cece eee eee 10 to 15 ft. 

Pears, standard ..............000 eee eee 20 to 25 ft. 
Pears,.dwarfs..%  ¢ss0g sw eee eas 12 ft. to 1 rod. 
QuINCES «3454 256 keetex sedans donee ds eee 1 rod. 

Peaches and nectarines ................. 20 ft. 

PUI: & 3 tehassde eas iialane qoaeate wads aconincar nes blades bya 20 ft. 

ADTICOUS y.635 ose Pea Rea eae Gast 20 ft. 

Cherries, SOUr......... ccc eee e eee eee 20 ft. 

Cherries, sweet............ eee cece eee 30 ft. 

BIOS pen aiuel aeacaus enc eye Naee arauand Mica eeatt 20 to 25 ft. 

PGCANS so. haneee te eet ees see sees 40 ft 

Gra pesias.:de< caves ea guia cislees' aaa oe nants 6x8 to 8x10 ft. 
Currants sncuurd vaatea wid te ee Year ees we 4x6 to 6x8 ft. 
Blackberries ............ 00. e eee eee e eee 4x7 to 6x9 ft. 
RaspberreéS: 9.4 cccctaccaascnqaeae sae tele + 3x6 to 5x8 ft. 
Strawberries ........0 0c cece cece eee eene 1x3 or4ft.  [way. 
Cranberries ............ 20sec eee aveene 1 or 2 ft. apart each 


These are safe distances. In certain cases, however, 
when the soil is strong and the grower makes thorough 
L 


178 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


work of tilling, pruning and fertilizing, these distances 
may be reduced somewhat with profit, except, perhaps, 
in the case of apples. 


Double-planting; fillers. 


These remarks on the proper distances call for dis- 
cussion of the question as to whether it is good policy to 
plant shorter-lived trees, as peaches, between apples and 
pears. 

The trees will thrive under such planting; but whether 
it is advisable depends on the man and the economic situ- 
ation. In general, it should be discouraged; but if the 
orchardist gives the very best attention to fertilizing and 
cultivating, plantations may be mixed with good results 
(as in Fig. 27). It is usually best to plant each species 


Haldia e ee eR 


Fie, 27. Double-planting.—Bush-fruits between orchard trees. 
by itself, that it may receive its own treatment, as 
peaches in a peach orchard, apples in an apple orchard, 
and quinces in a quince orchard. 
Another form of double-planting, now much in the 
public mind, is to place early-fruiting varieties of the 


The Question of Fillers 179 


same fruit between the regular rows, with the idea of 
securing a quicker return. These “‘fillers’’ are to be removed 
as soon as the regular plantation requires the room. For 
this purpose, Wagener or Ben Davis apples may be planted 
as fillers in an orchard 
of Baldwins, Spys or 
Greenings. This means 
more care and expense 
in tillage and other 
attention, and more 
fertilizing. If the party 
is an intensive fruit- 
grower, the effort may 
pay; but it is a special 
practice and it always 
carries the burden of 
proof. The price of land 
and labor is an impor- 
tant factor. It will 
probably pay best when ; icon 

land is limited or high- growtfinan orchard without illers.” Compare 
priced. It may be better, sek 

in a given case, to cover more land and expect less yield 
to the acre. Only the best cultivators, with sufficient help 
and equipment, should attempt double-planting of fruit 
trees; and these are the persons, also, who will see that 
the fillers are removed at the proper time. 

“Many of the Connecticut fruit-growers,” says Jarvis 
(Bull. No. 62), “have the necessary intelligence and courage 
to handle successfully an orchard on the filler system. But 
there are undoubtedly some who, for the sake of earlier 
returns, are likely to favor the fillers at the expense of the 
permanent trees and for the sake of getting one or two 


180 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


additional crops, are likely to injure seriously the shape 
of the trees of the main planting (Figs. 28 and 29). 
The growers of the latter class are advised to set their 
trees at moderate distances and to grow among them 
some kind of crop 
such as potatoes, 
corn or vegetables 


A, that require culti- 

CONEAE ALY) vation during the 

\ Ye early part of the 

: (SAE J summer. Even 

; \ then, there is danger 


of growing these 
Vf crops too near the 
trees and of not 
supplying the neces- 
sary plant-food to 
make up for that 
removed from the 
soil by the second- 

ee are: ary crop.” 
Fie. 29. A Sahar Hee tree injured Speaking for 
by leaving fillers in the orchard too long. Observe Washington State 

the long, slender, upright branches. bis 

conditions, Thorn- 
ber writes: “Whether or not it is advisable to use fillers in 
an orchard depends entirely upon the ability of the planter 
to remove them before they do serious if not permanent 
injury to the trees. Fillers never do any damage in an 
orchard until they begin to contend with the permanent 
trees for food, moisture, sunlight or space. This being 
true, it is possible to grow fillers in an orchard for several 
years and do no injury, and at the same time harvest 
good crops of fruit that will help maintain the necessary 


Fillers in Orchards 181 


expenses. Many growers have been able to pay for their 
land and all expenses of caring for the orchard by means 
of the fruit from the fillers before the permanent trees 
came into full bearing.”’ Thornber diagrams “a good 
planting plan” (Fig. 30) in which the fillers are placed in 
the rows and also between the rows. 

Of course some of the small-fruits may be planted in 


O ©«§ O + @ » OQ 


Fie. 30. The placing of fillers (represented by dots) between the permanent trees. 


orchards with the very best results. Strawberries are 
practically an annual plant, and are much better for 
orchards than is any kind of a sowed crop. This, however, 
belongs with the cropping-scheme for orchards rather than 
with the subject of fillers. 


How to plant. 


Plow the land and fit it well. As all orchards should 
be put into tilled crops for at least the first two years 
after planting, it will usually be found advisable to plow 
the entire area before the place is set, rather than to plow 
strips where the trees or plants are to go, for the land can 
then be better shaped with reference to surface drainage 
and general- convenience. 


182 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


Trees should be set neither in dead-furrows nor on 
back-furrows. Level culture should be adopted from the 
start, unless it is known to be necessary to displace surface 
water; and in that case it may be questioned whether the 
land is fit for fruit plants. In all ordinary lands, holes 
are dug by hand for the tree-fruits. Plowing out a deep 
furrow in the line of the rows may lessen the digging and 
aid in getting the trees in line. Peaches on light lands are 
often set in furrows made for the purpose. 

The hole should be broad and ample; and the harder 
the soil the larger ought the hole to be, for in that case 
the loose dirt that is filled in must give the tree its start. 
In loose and deep soils, the hole need be no larger than the 
spread of the roots. Chop up the earth in the bottom of 
the hole, or throw in a few shovelfuls of loose surface 
earth. 

No hardpan should be left immediately under the tree. 
It should be broken by heavy tools or blown out with 
dynamite (page 82). 

Trees should be set an inch or two deeper than they 
stood in the nursery, for the loose earth will settle and 
wash away in the course of the season, even if it is well 
packed when the trees are set. Dwarf pears should be set 
3 to 6 inches deeper than the bud. The roots are trimmed, 
as explained farther on. 

Every care must be exercised to get the soil thoroughly 
firmed in about the roots—which are straightened out in 
approximately their natural position—and_ especially 
under the crown or fork of the roots, in order that no air- 
spaces may be left to dry out. This dirt can be best placed 
by fingering it in, moving the tree gently up and down at 
the same time. Once or twice in the progress of filling the 
hole, the earth should be stamped down. Fill.the hole to 


Planting the Tree 183 


a little more than level full if there is danger from surface 
water, but be careful that no hollows are left close about 
the tree into which water can settle, especially when planting 
in autumn. Stamp or pack the earth firmly ‘about the 
tree before leaving it, for the double purpose of ‘securing 
moisture and of holding the tree against winds. Small 
stuff, like nursery stock and small-fruit plants, may 
often be well planted by means of a dibber or spud. All 
this operation of planting can proceed to perfection only 
when the earth is dry enough to crumble. Stock should 
not be planted in wet and sticky soil. 

If trees are set according to these directions, and the 
tops are cut back as explained farther on, there will 
rarely be any necessity for staking and tying the trees to 
keep them plumb. 

Mulches of straw or manure are sometimes advised 
for newly set trees. For trees planted late in spring and 
in droughty lands, a light mulch about the tree may be 
advised; but in other cases it is not necessary. If mulches 
are applied to fall-planted trees, care must be taken to 
tramp them down well, or they may become a nesting- 
place for mice, which may girdle the trees. There are 
those who favor placing a forkful of manure in the bot- 
tom of the hole, but this is a practice of doubtful value; 
and, at all events, the manure should be well mixed with 
the soil to prevent drying out. There is often discussion 
as to whether it is desirable to place the mulch on the 
surface or to place it an inch or two below the surface 
and cover it with earth. No positive assertion can be 
made for either method, although, of the two, the former 
is probably more generally advisable. But a mulch of 
tilled earth is more desirable than one of straw or manure 
in general fruit-planting. 


184 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


Puddling the roots is a good practice when trees are 
to be shipped any distance or when they are likely to be 
unduly exposed, and it is a common practice among 
nurserymen. The operation consists in sousing the roots 
in a thin mud or paste of clay. 


Trimming the trees. 


There is much difference of opinion as to the best way 
of trimming trees when they are planted. So far as the 
root is concerned, it is advisable, in the North, to cut 
away only those roots that are broken or badly torn. 
These should be cut off just back of the injury. It is the 
custom to cut off thé ends of all roots of the size of a 
lead-pencil or larger, for a clean smooth wound is sup- 
posed to heal more quickly than a ragged one, although the 
experiments at the Woburn Experimental Farms (Eng- 
land) showed that bruises and rough ends healed very 
rapidly (Ninth Rept., 1908). When the tree is planted, 
all the roots should be straightened out:to nearly or quite 
their normal position. If it is found that one or two roots 
run off to an inordinate length, they may be cut back to 
correspond somewhat with the main root-system. 

Perhaps half the root-system of the young tree is left 
in the ground when it is dug. It is therefore evident that 
the top should be cut back to a corresponding extent. In 
fact, the top should be more severely shortened-in than 
the root, because the root, in addition to being reduced, 
is also dislodged from the soil, with which it must establish 
a new connection before it can resume the normal activ- 
ities. Trees that carry too much top when planted may 
fail to grow outright; or if they start, they are likely to 
be overtaken by the droughts of summer. Even if they 
live, the growth is usually small and uncertain, and the 


Trimming the Young Tree 185 


tree may fall a prey to borers or a victim to high winds. 

On the other hand, trees may be trimmed too severely 

when set. Except possibly in the case of peaches, it is 

probably unwise to trim the trees to a mere pole; and with 
peaches, it may be better to leave spurs with 

* at least one bud than to trim to a whip. 
There should be a number of fresh bright 
buds left on the top, for these are the points 
where early and active growth 
begins. These buds are on strong 
branches. If they are removed, 
the weaker or half-dormant buds 
on the main trunk or low down in 
the crotches, must take up the 
work, and these start slowly and 
often feebly. 

There are two general methods 
of trimming the tops of young 
trees at planting time. One method 
cuts back all the branches to spurs 
of one to three buds; or some- 
times, particularly with dwarf pears 
set when two years old, the side 

branches may be cut 
entirely away, leaving 
only the buds on the 
Main stem or trunk. +s y 

. é The tree, therefore, re. 32. Peach tree 

ne “feathers out” the soaaries 

first season; that is, it makes many small shoots along 
the main trunk. The following autumn or spring, the top 
is started at the desired height. Fig. 31 shows a peach 
tree as received from the nursery, and Fig. 32 the same 


186 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


tree, trimmed in this way, ready for planting. This method 
is the one usually best adapted to the peach, which is 
always set when one season old from the bud; but for 
other fruits unless the trees are slender and without good 
branchy tops, it is doubtful whether it is the best prac- 
tice. If the bodies are thought not to be stiff enough, this 
way of trimming may be used to good advantage. The 
main shoot should usually be headed 
back in this as in all styles of trim- 
ming, to make the trunk stocky. 

The second method aims to start 
the top at the required height when the 
tree is planted. It is adapted only to 
strong and well-grown stocks that 
have a more or less branching and 
forking top. From three to five of the 
best branches are left, and these are 
headed back to a few buds each. Fig. 
33 shows a pear tree, trimmed in Fig. 
34, and the illustration may be con- 
sidered to represent a good example 
of its class. 

It is, of course, evident that there 
is no one method of pruning young 
trees that is all wrong, nor any other 
that is all right. The method must 
always be modified by the age and 
shape of the trees, by the climate (or 
part of the country) in which the 
plantation is set, by the species of 
plants, and especially by the standard 
== ap that the grower has set for himself. 
Eras i ea In general, it may be said that the 


Trimming the Young Tree 187 


younger the stock the more nearly to a whip it may be 
pruned. 

It may be said, then, that peach trees and other small 
or slender trees should be well headed back and spurred 


a a 


2 
=a 
oe 
SSS SS 
Fie. 34. Pear Fia. 35. Young Fia. 36. Second- Fia. 37. Second- 
tree pruned for plum tree, class apple tree, class tree, with 
planting. pruned. with leader at a. leader at a. 


(Figs. 31, 32); but that strong well-branched trees may 
have the head started at the desired height at thé 
time of planting, all the branches being well headed back 
(Figs. 833 and 34). Fig 35 shows a small plum tree cut 
to spurs, and the roots have also been properly dressed. 
Figs. 36 and 37 show second-class apple trees. In these 
trees, the tops are not well formed, and it might be best to 
trim to a whip, allowing the branches a to become the 


188 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


leaders. Such whips may look very crooked and scrawny, 
but they will straighten as they grow. Fig. 38 shows 
three apple trees before and after shaping (Jarvis, Conn. 
Bull. No. 62). The lines in Fig. 39 show where a grape 
plant should be pruned. The top should be cut at a and b, 


Fia. 38, Tree tops unpruned and pruned. 


the upper roots trimmed off at c and d, and the main roots 
cut in from e to f. 

The trees may be trimmed before they are planted, 
although it is usually better to trim just after they are 
set, especially if the tree is trimmed after the method of 
Fig. 34, for one can then better estimate the proper height, 
the operation is more easily done, and there is no further 
danger of breaking off the limbs by the handling of the 


Trimming the Young Tree 189 


tree. One foot is planted firmly at the base of the tree, 
and then with one hand the branch to be removed is 
bent upwards and with the other hand the knife is 
applied to the under side and the cut is made neatly 
and easily (Fig. 40). Never cut downwards on a limb, 
for a ragged wound nearly always 
follows. 

In fall-set trees it is some- 
times thought to be inadvisable 
to prune before spring because 
the cut surfaces are liable to 
dry out. It has been shown 
by Howard, however,.that the 
evaporation from wounds is not 
so great as from the branches 
of unpruned trees; and fall- 
pruned trees in his investiga- 
tions started to grow better 
the following spring and made 
more growth in the summer than 
unpruned trees. _ 

In shaping or starting the fre. 39. Trimming the grape at 
future top, care should be taken sical 
to avoid crotches or the joining of branches at the same 
level, for the tops are likely to split later on, with ice or 
fruit. The framework branches should alternate on the 
trunk and should start at different levels and preferably 
several inches apart. 

The height at which to start the top is largely a matter 
of personal preference. In the East, apple and other trees 
have undoubtedly been started too high; and the tendency 
is now to start very low. Three to 4 feet of trunk for 
grown trees is the author’s preference for apples east of the 


190 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


Great Lakes. Jarvis (Conn. Bull. No. 62) writes as follows 
on this subject for New England conditions: ‘During 
recent years the difficulty of getting properly shaped trees 
has been greatly lessened, for the nurserymen are now 
heading their trees much lower. The low-headed tree is 
now generally preferred. For 
most varieties the head should 
be formed about 2 feet above 
the ground, but with those 
varieties like. Rhode Island 
Greening and Tolman, that 
are naturally spreading, the 
head may be started higher, 
and with varieties like the 
Yellow Transparent, that are 
naturally upright growers, the 
head may be started much 
lower.” Fig. 41 shows a tree 
that Jarvis considers to be 
started too high. Fig. 42 
shows what has been the pre- 
vailing type of stout long- 
bodied American nursery tree. 

In the country west of the 
Great Lakes, low heads are 
advised. ‘‘For Iowa conditions,” according to Erwin and 
Bliss, ‘‘a low-headed tree is to be desired for a number of 
reasons. The fruit is much easier to pick, the spraying 
can be done more thoroughly, there are less windfalls, and 
the tree is also less liable to sunscald. The first branches 
should be formed 20 to 24 inches above the ground. If the 
tree is headed too high when it comes from the nur- 
sery it can be cut back.” 


Fic. 40. Pruning the newly set tree. 


CHAPTER VI 


THE LAYING OUT OF THE PLANTATION 


ARRANGEMENT of the plants in the plantation may 
now be considered. Berry fruits, grapes, cranberries and 
similar things are set in rows at small distances apart and 
the land is all utilized quickly. Little need be done in the 
placing of the plants except to line out the area accu- 
rately and to set the plants along the lines. The matter is 
not so simple in the case 
of orchards, however, for 
the distances are greater, 
the trees do not occupy 
the land quickly, and 
means must be found of 
utilizing the area to the 
best advantage. Rarely 
can an orchard of any 
size be satisfactorily set 
merely by following lines 
for separate rows; the 
entire area is to be laid out 
geometrically in advance. 
It is much satisfaction to 
have an orchard as well 
laid out as that shown 
in Fig. 48. It is not 
only a matter of looks, 


a Fia. 41. Poorly-shaped young tree, with 
but of easy handling. ‘the head started very high. 


(191) 


192 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


Contour planting. 


On steep lands it may be desirable to plant the trees on 
the contours, following the grades around the hill or along 
the face of the slope. This facilitates tillage, tends to 
prevent disastrous washing, and allows of more easy 
access to the plantation by team and 
wagon. The utility of the geometrical 
systems is most marked on level lands. 


Orchard systems. 


It is possible to plant the trees in 
many geometrical patterns, but the 
main or prevailing systems are three, 
with variations. These (Fig. 44, from 
Martin, Cornell Bull.) are as follows: 

1. Rectangular, the most usual 
and the simplest form, in which the 
trees occupy the four corners of a 
/ rectangle. The rectangle is usually 
equal-sided (i.e., square). 2. Quincunx, 
in which a tree is set in the center of 
the rectangle to economize space. 
This system is particularly well 
adapted to the use of fillers. 3. 
Equilateral triangle, known also as 


sorleteees Fiet-dlass triangular and hexagonal, in which 


Heh trunks, the field is so laid out that all the 


trees stand at equal distances. 

Theoretically, the quincunx and equilateral triangle 
are most to be desired because the land is most uniformly 
and completely utilized. It is a fair question, however, 
whether it may be desirable to utilize all the land in this 
way, or whether, in fact, the practical working out of the 


The Different Systems 193 


business confirms the advantages of the paper plan. The 
roots forage far and wide and the so-called unoccupied places 
may be the very areas in which they forage to best advan- 
tage. It is also well to have broad open spaces of sunshine, 
to facilitate the ripening and coloring of the fruit; and free 
spaces are needed for the easy handling of large spray rigs, 
heavy tillage tools, harvesting apparatus, and for use in 
the packing of fruit and the piling of boxes and barrels. 


CZ. 
ae sie et “GEN BB af. 
Ws SSS ee a goa eee 


bootie 


— ee Z 
Fig. 43. A well-laid-out young orchard. Oregon. 


If land is high-priced or limited in extent, it may be 
desirable to space all the trees at equal distances; but 
such systems demand good land, heavier fertilizing, more 
care in pruning, and they entail extra labor to the tree in 
spraying when the trees begin to cover the ground. For the 
general run of orchards, the rectangular or square form 
of planting is undoubtedly to be recommended. 

Experiments at Woburn, England, with plums grown 
eleven years on the square and hexagonal systems, and 
also on a rectangular arrangement with double the distance 
between the rows as between the trees in the row, the 
same number of trees being grown in a given area, gave 

M 


194 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


an increase in growth of 1.7 per cent in favor of the 
hexagonal planting, all the trees having been lifted and 
weighed. This is a small gain, and probably does not 
offset the cultural advantages of the square planting. 


Making the rows straight. 


It is difficult to make the rows straight in large areas 
and to place the trees at proper intervals, particularly on 


Fic. 44, The diagonal, quincunx and hexagonal systems. 


rolling ground. Persons who have had areas regularly 
surveyed with chain and compass, and a stake set for 
every tree, may have found the orchards to be as crooked 
as others set with much less care. The surveyor sets his 
stakes by sighting across the field from certain fixed points; 
but it is difficult for the planter, when the stake is removed 
and the hole dug, to stand the tree in the exact place of 
the stake. It is better to regard the trees as stakes and to 
set them by sighting. The area can be “run out” on two 
or three of the sides, a conspicuous stake being set at the 
location of each tree on these outside rows. If the field 
is large or rolling, it may be necessary to set one or two 
lines of stakes across the center of the field also. For areas 
of a few acres, a garden-line stretched across the place will 
be a great help and save much time. This line is moved 


Getting the Rows Straight 195 


at either end to the adjoining row, as soon as one row is 
set alongside it. Persons sometimes tie strings on the line 
at the given intervals, expecting to set a tree at every 
knot, but with the stretching of the line, and other errors, 
it is difficult to get the cross-rows straight in this way. 
On comparatively level fields, especially if the land is 
in good tilth, the plantation may be laid out with a corn- 
marker. If the planter keeps his back to the row of trees 
and sights ahead to the marked line or furrow, he will get 
his rows straighter than if he sights by the trees. Two men 


~ 
‘| Sew 
Tat vt 


ot ee 
My iy Re 
Saks 
s 
Sls 
b wim BO Ty 5, - 


ag 


ADU os 
—= = = 


Fic. 45. Planting-board. 


are better than one when setting plants, for one usually 
attends to the sighting while the other puts in the plants. 

There are various devices for locating the position of 
the orginal stake, after the hole has been dug. One of the 
best consists simply of a thin board 3 or 4 inches wide and 
6 or 7 feet long (Fig. 45), with a notch at its center, 
and a stationary leg or pin at one end (a). The other end 
(b) is provided with a hole to receive the top of another 
stake or pin. The notch is set against the stake, the legs 
at each end of the board being thrust into the ground at 
the same time. The end (0) is now raised off the pin or leg, 
and the board is swung around out of the range of the hole. 
When the hole is dug, the end (c) is swung back and 
dropped over the pin, and the tree is set in the notch. On 


196 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


the practical use of this device, Stuart writes as follows 
(Vt. Bull. No. 141): “When each tree stake has been 
located, the setting board is brought into play. This con- 
sists of a board some 6 feet in length and 4 to 5 inches 
wide, having two holes bored some 3 or 4 inches from 
either end and a notch in the center. The notch of the 
setting-board is placed against the tree stake and two 


at 

Fia. 46. The planting-board in ae. 
smaller stakes are set through the end holes, after which 
the board is removed. The central stake is then removed 
and the hole dug. In setting the tree, the setting-board is 
again brought into play by being put over the two smaller 
stakes, the center notch determining the position of the 
tree (Fig. 46). .By being careful always to work in 
the same direction with the setting-board, and observing 
the same precaution while setting the tree, one should 
succeed in planting each tree in perfect alignment, in both 
directions, with every other tree in the row, without the 
necessity of sighting. This method: of course cannot be 
recommended for large operations.” 


Making the Lines Straight 197 


Another form of planting-board, described by J. C. 
Moore, is the equilateral triangle. Three laths or narrow 
pieces of timber are fastened together so that they form 
a triangle with the ends projecting, as shown in Fig. 47. 

Care should be taken to have the 

distance between each two adjoin- 

ing corners equal, as this will 

relieve the necessity of replacing 

the triangle in the same position. 

One projecting end is put over the 

tree stake, and the pins placed 

Oo “y in the others. This marks the 

FIG. ine deme” location of the tree after digging 
the hole. 

The trees may be planted in furrows, as explained 
farther on (page 200). Blake writes (N. J. Cire. No. 14): 
“Tf the land is well furrowed out where the trees are to be 
planted, it will only be necessary to move from two to 
four shovelfuls of soil in order to make a hole of sufficient 
width and depth to receive each tree. One man should 
then hold the tree in place while the other shovels in some 
of the loose, moist surface-soil about the roots. The trees 
should be set at sufficient depth to bring the point where 
the trees were budded just below the surface of the soil. 
The man holding the tree can make the soil firm about 
the roots with his feet and hands, and at the same time 
keep the tree in line both ways. If the line method pre- 
viously described is used he will only be obliged to sight 
one way to make sure that the tree is in place. The last 
one or two shovelfuls of soil should be thrown about the 
tree loosely and not tramped down. If the land has been 
properly and thoroughly prepared, as described, a three- 
man planting gang should be able to set fifty trees an hour 


198 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


without difficulty upon the sandy soils after the outside 
rows have been established. Upon the stony mountain 
soils or upon the red shale, more time will be required to 
set the trees.” Figs. 48, 49, 50, show Blake’s method. 


Sates 


& 


Fia. 48. Furrowing for the planting of peach trees. 


How to get the rows straight may be discussed here 
in more detail. Three ways are quoted from H. E. Van 
Deman: 


“To lay out with the plow—Before doing anything, one must 
decide which style or arrangement of the trees is to be followed and 
the distance apart to plant them. This having been decided, the 
first thing to be done is to establish a base line, which should be 
along a fence, road or some other permanent border of the tract to 
be planted. Prepare enough small split stakes, that may be easily 
seen, to put at each end of every tree-row; that is, enough to go 
entirely around the tract. Then, set a stake firmly at a spot which 
shall be the first established corner of the outside limits of the orchard. 
It must, however, be set at a spot which shall also be the end of 


Making the Rows Straight 199 


iy 
re 
Pity BEA 

bud Nie Why 
a x 


‘i 
vet H 


sy Wy 
n \ Mi 


a 
t 


aq 
Ny He 


Fic. 49. The orchard immediately after trees are set. 


= 
Pte 


200 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


another line running exactly at right angles to the base line. In the 
West, where the farms are nearly all laid out in perfect squares or 
rectangles, the fields are apt to be rectangular. In the absence of a 
surveyor’s transit, a carpenter’s square may be used to establish the 
lines, by sighting along its edges when laid on the tops of three stakes 
at the corner. Set a stake at the farther end of each of these lines. 
From this first corner stake, measure along the base-line 15 feet, or 
as far as it is thought best to have the width of the margin between 
the trees and the fence, and there set a stake. Next, measure along 
the base-line from this second stake the distance that the trees will 
be apart, and set a stake. Measure along the entire length of the base- 
line, setting a stake at every 1614, 20, 25, 33 feet, or whatever dis- 
tance may have been decided upon. This line of stakes being only 
the ends of the transverse rows and not the places for trees, they 
need not be set absolutely in a straight line, but should be nearly so. 
Then, go back to the original corner stake and measure 15 feet at 
right angles to the base-line and set a stake, which determines the 
width of the border next the base-line. Now, measure and set stakes 
along this other side of the orchard site, up to the stake at the farther 
end. The two remaining sides should be measured and staked in the 
same way. 

“Provide several tall stakes with a white rag tied at the top of 
_each, to use as sight poles at each end. If one can run a straight line 
with a plow without intermediate sight poles, that is, with only one 
at each end, these will be enough; but I have found that it pays to 
have an extra line of stakes set a few rods from each end, and a guide 
pole to be set at each in turn, as the laying-out progresses. 

“We are now ready for the plow. Some like one horse, but two 
make the plow run steadier, and it is easier for the plowman to sight 
between two horses than over the head of one. My plan is, first to 
mark out crosswise to the way I intend to plant, and to make but 
a single shallow furrow. This being done, we are ready to make the 
furrows in which to plant. If these run up and down the slope they 
will act as a drain to the trees, in some measure. By plowing two 
rounds and finishing with a dead-furrow or trench on the line, and 
then subsoiling in the bottom of it, there will be very little work for 
the spade in preparing to set the trees. It is by no means difficult to 
set them in the checks, with a little sighting, so straight that no one 
would know but that they were set by a line. After setting the trees, 
hitch one horse to a plow with a very short singletree covered with 


Making the Rows Straight 201 


rags at the ends to prevent injuring the trees, and fill up the trench 
at two rounds. Then plow the space between the rows. One thing 
must be very carefully figured out the very first thing, if the hex- 
agonal style is used, and that is, the distances between the rows at 
right angles, and not diagonally from tree to tree, and then accurately 
measured and staked on the outer lines. The great Wellhouse orch- 
ards, in Kansas, were laid out with the plow. J. H. Hale substituted 
a 60-cent per day darkey and a mule for a $6 surveyor and transit, 
in laying out his rows for planting his 600-acre peach orchard in 
Georgia. 

“Laying out with a line—For small orchards of an acre or two, 
I have often practised a method of laying out in the hexagonal style, 
which is very quickly and easily done. As many stakes are provided 
as there are trees to be set. A wire is prepared of the exact length 
that the trees are to be apart, and a ring or loop twisted in at each 
end, by which to hold it. A base-line is established by setting stakes 
just where each tree will be in the first row. One person (A) slips 
a finger through one ring, and another (B) takes the other end of the 
wire and runs a small stick through the ring. A holds his end exactly 
at stake 1, and B steps to where he supposes the first tree of the 
second row will come, and with the point of his stick marks a small 
segment of a circle on the ground. He remains there while A goes 
to stake 2 and holds his end exactly to it. B describes another arc on 
the ground, and where it crosses the first one he sets a stake, and 
moves to the place for the next stake. There he makes a mark, and 
A then goes to stake 3 of the base-line and holds the wire as before, 
while B finds the crossing of the marks and sets another stake; and 
so on to the end of the row. When the second row is complete it is 
used as a base-line from which to make a third, and soon. If the work 
is done carefully the stakes will be found to be in very straight rows 
every way. I have tried it on some of the roughest hills in northern 
Michigan, where, in newly cleared places the stumps were very thick, 
and planted nice orchards that are now over twenty-five years old, 
that look to-day as if the trees might have been set by a compass 
and chain. On level ground, free from obstructions, it is fun to lay 
out an orchard so. 

“Another line method.—Another cheap and handy method is, to 
mark and set by a wire long enough to reach entirely across the field. 
It should be stretched tightly between two stout stakes that have 
been firmly driven into the ground, and exactly on the line of the 


202 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


first row to be planted. Directly over the place for the first tree or 
vine, wrap a small wire two or three times and twist the ends tightly, 
so it cannot slip. Measure along the wire to the next place and fasten 
another wire coil, and so on to the end. If these little coils were 
soldered fast they could not move. A little piece of bright cloth 
should be tied over them, that the places may be easily seen. Now, 
dig the holes and plant the first row while the wire is in place. Then 
move the wire and stakes to the second row and stretch as before, 
being very careful to have the first mark exactly where the first tree 
should be. Proceed to dig and plant as before. Move the wire to 
the third row, and so on throughout. This obviates all necessity 
for marking off upon the ground, except the distances between the 
rows and a starting-point on each row.” 


Staking methods.—There are so many methods of staking out an 
orchard, that it will interest the reader if one of the best of them is 
described. The Yeomans plan is as follows: “In connection with 
the accompanying diagram, is explained an easy, simple and accurate 
way of marking out the ground and planting the trees without put- 
ting any stakes where trees are to be planted or removing any while 
planting. The stakes not only show where to dig the holes, but when 
the planting is to be done the same stakes indicate the precise place 
where the trees are to placed, always sighting only by the stakes in 
setting, without any regard to the trees planted. Thus all the stakes 
will be standing when the last tree is planted, showing the accuracy 
of the work done. 

“The outside line of the diagram (Fig. 51) represents the 
ground to be planted; the dots are stakes, by means of which the 
location of each tree can readily be found without any measure- 
ments; but none of them stands where trees are to be planted. The 
ground being properly prepared for one hundred trees, provide sixty 
lath as very suitable stakes—light, straight and of proper length— 
lay them on the ground or a board, and whitewash on each side about 
a foot or more at one end, by which they can readily be seen at a 
distance and distinguished from any other stake or object. Let two 
men with a tape-line start at the corner of the ground at D, and 
measure 25 feet along the east side to 1 and then set a stake; thence 
measure 40 feet to 2, setting a stake, and continue to 10, putting a 
stake every 40 feet to C, setting all stakes as perpendicularly as 
possible. ; 


Staking the Area 203 


“Then with ten stakes start at B and measure the same distance 
toward A, sticking a stake first at 25 feet, and after that 40 feet, to 
correspond with those on the east side. And on the same plan and 
in the same manner, stick ten stakes 40 feet apart along the north 
and south bounds of the orchard, and entirely outside of where any 


NORTH 
A e e e e e e e e ° e c 
F 
10), . +/10 
9. ° 2/9 
8. i + Ar 
Te . °|7 
6le ° ° 
& H Py 
g . . ° e ° e e e e . G 4 
B =) 
dle e 05 
de ° ol4 
Ble + e 3 
Qe e 0/2 
lje - « ell 
E 
e es e e e e e e e e 
B SOUTH D 


Fie. 51. Diagram to illustrate the planting of an orchard. 


trees are to be planted, being particular that no trees shall be planted 
nearer than 25 feet to the fences surrounding the orchard, for the 
reason that when the trees become large, as much as 25 feet of space 
will be necessary to allow a spraying wagon and fixtures to pass in 
spraying the trees properly, and to place ladders about the trees for 
gathering the fruit. ; 

“The stakes being set around the orchard ground at proper dis- 
tances, the tape-line is no longer needed, as the cross intermediate 
rows of stakes are to be set by sight. Now let one man take ten of 


204 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


the white-top stakes and go about to E (at bottom of diagram), and 
another man go to the first stake north of D, and sight the man at E 
precisely where to stick a stake in line with the two stakes on opposite 
sides of the ground; then move northward to 2, and stick a stake 
between 2 and 2; and thus continue from south to north and from 
east to west, through and not far from the middle of the field, being 
careful not to place either of these intermediate rows where a row 
of trees is to be planted. These rows need not be straight, but each 
stake must be in line with the corresponding stakes at the right 
and left. 

“With the stakes thus placed, a person moving anywhere about 
the ground to be planted can readily find, by looking in the direction 


4 


Tae LUE ys Oa) ONT aoe era oe . 


ee eee eer em RTS 2 <5 EERE a NOL ee BU LE SDS NOSES F ES 


Fie. 52. Square system. The above plat represents an acre of land with the 
trees 25 feet apart. (Figs. 52-58 from N, O. Booth.) 


Staking the Area 205 


fess ioe cee ae oC ORT Me ee hid > 
£ 
I 2 3 4 
5 6 Zz 8 9 
mG 0 il 12 13 
14 15 16 17 18 
is 0 zi z: 
@3 e4 25 6 
t 
F 8 8 0 ai 
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3 3? 38 39 40 
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46 G 48 49 
1) 60 l ae 3 g 
‘ 3 66 G7 59 
$9 60 6l 3 
6 BD 6 G 
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7 Le, ae ea ea TLE x ae ea 527 


Fia. 53. Hexagonal or triangular system. One acre of land with the 
trees 25 feet apart. 


of two stakes in two directions at right angles, precisely where a tree 
is to be planted. Thus, a person standing at either X is at a point 
where a tree must stand, and at either of those points will see two 
stakes in a line with him in two directions at right angles; and so of 
every point where a tree is to be planted. If men are to be employed 
to dig the holes, who are not capable of setting a stake in line with 
two other stakes already standing (there are such men), let some 
one who can do so go through the field, and with point of stake or 
other thing, mark where the holes are to be dug. 

“With this arrangement no stakes are placed where the trees are 
to be planted. Any number of men can go on with the work of dig- 


206 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


ging the holes and planting in any part of the orchard without 
reference to any other trees in any other part. The,writer has planted 
about 150 acres of apple and 100 acres of peach orchard on this plan, 
and has furnished many persons brief descriptions of same for plant- 
ing; has planted rows 30 to 40 rods long of nice trees, so straight in 


dD) 


43———60) 
o 


Fia. 54. Quincunx system. One acre of land with the trees 25 feet apart in 
the rs but only about 141% feet diagonally across, or from any tree to its nearest 
neighbor. 


5 


Bo eee Stee Se aie ik OBNG NG os 5 og ho Aas ea 


line that a stake 2 inches in diameter set up in the row would hide 
every tree from view, looking from the end thereof.” 


Details of orchard lay-outs. 


A further exact discussion of the systems of orchard-planting, 
with diagrams (Figs. 52-58), will aid the intending planter. Booth 


Planting in Squares 207 


writes as follows on the subject (Okla. Exp. Sta. Cire. No. 20): 
“From the standpoint of the number of trees contained on an acre 
we find: That planted by the square system, with trees 25 feet apart, 
an acre will contain sixty-four trees. This leaves, however, about 
1634 feet around the sides between the last row of trees and the out- 
side line, instead of 1214, as would be intended. When the acre is 
planted by the triangular or hexagonal system it will be found to 


iG) 
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bowen 4 


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i) 
© 
© 


penn a mde eee ed ee ee eee ee 


®: @ 


pw eS i ee eer 


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ee eee 
St 


® 


Seeds tata ted 
' 
’ 
1 
f) 
1 
1 


fe rcccns 2 N25 St. oe em ene enon 


Fia. 55. Twenty-five trees planted according to square system. Dotted 
e lines indicate feeding-area assigned to each tree. 


contain sixty-seven trees. Here again, however, in planting the 
single acre, the trees do not fit the plat, and there is a margin left 
over on two of the sides of 16% feet, instead of 1214. It is difficult to 
say how many trees may be planted on an acre by the quincunx 
system on account of the difference of meaning as to what is intended. 
Usually in comparing this system with others they are compared 
with the trees the same distance apart in the rows. This is not a 
fair comparison, however, for when trees are planted by this 
system the nearest tree to any given tree is not the next tree down 
the row, but the next tree diagonally across. Taking it in the sense 
in which it is generally used, an acre of land planted according to 


208 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


the quihcunx system contains 113 trees. Here, as in the square 
system, a 1634 foot margin is left instead of the intended 12)4 feet. 


“NuMBER oF TREES TO THE ACRE PuanTep 25 Freer APART 


Baiinre Syste sind ceca sis eka aa hee RL Ao oN FOS a eee Rada we ED 64 

Hexagonal or triangular system........... cece eee eee e eee enee 67 

Quincunx system (trees 25 feet apart in the row, but only about 
144% feet from any tree to its nearest neighbor)............. 113 


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Fia. 56. Twenty-five trees planted according to hexagonal system. 
otted lines indicate feeding-area of each tree. 


“Approaching the subject from another standpoint, we find that 
if we desire to plant twenty-five trees 25 feet apart, we have the fol- 
lowing space required for the different methods of arranging: By 
the square system it will require a plat of land 125 feet square, with 
an area of 15,625 square feet. By the triangular system it will require 
a plat of land 13714 feet one way, by 111.62 the other, with an 
area of 15,345 square feet. By the quincunx system, as the meaning 
is usually accepted, that is with the trees 25 feet apart in the rows, 
the twenty-five trees occupy a tract of land 100 feet square, with an 
area of 10,000 square feet. By the quincunx system in the more 
correct sense of having the trees with 25 feet from any tree to its 
nearest neighbor, twenty-five trees require a tract 131 feet each way 
with a total area of 17,161 square feet. 


Planting in Quincunz 


209 


“Lencta BREADTH AND ToraL AREA REQUIRED To PLANT 
Twenty-Five Trees 25 Feet Apart, By Dirrerent Systems 


Length Breadth | Total area 
(feet) (feet) (sq. ft.) 

Square system. ......... 0... cee eee ee 125.0 125.0 15,625.0 

Hexagonal or triangular system....... 137.5 111.6 15,247.7 
Quincunx system (trees 25 feet apart in 

TOW) seas dverze sc, to efit tenia oA tase aeboene 100.0 100.0 10,000.0 
Quincunx system (trees 25 feet apart in 

diagonal. TOW) ses cceu cas eee nersies ss 131.0 131.0 17,161.0 


“Tt will thus be seen that there is a certain gain in the amount of 
land required to plant twenty-five trees, by using the triangular 
rather than the square system of planting. This gain is evident for 


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Fie. 57. Twenty-five trees planted according to quincunx system. 


even so small a tract of land as that required for twenty-five trees; 
and since it is evident that there is a slight loss by the triangular 
system on the outside rows, the gain would be greater, proportion- - 
ately, with a larger area. 


N 


210 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


“It appears to be doubtful if there is any gain in using the quincunx 
system rather than the square system. In the small plat of twenty- 
five trees there is no gain, but a decided loss, when the trees are 
planted the same distance apart. There is, however, an evident and 
great gain when an extra tree is added to the center of each square. 
To any person with the most rudimentary notion of geometry it is 
evident, that there is no essential difference between the quincunx 


Pewee eee et eel SSS cheesy 


Fic. 58. Twenty-iive trees planted according to quincunx system.— 
Trees are 25 feet from nearest neighbor. 


system and the square system. In the first case, the rows run diago- 
nally with the outside boundary, while in the second, they run at 
right angles, or parallel with the outside boundary. In both cases 
the trees are arranged in squares. Any one with an orchard planted 
on the square system can change it to the quincunx system by cut- 
ting off the corners until the outside boundary again becomes a rec- 
tangle with lines diagonal with the original boundary lines. It is 
thus evident that any gain in the number of trees put on a given area, 
by the quincunx rather than the square system, must be made either 
by closer fitting in the margin of the field, or else by putting the trees 
closer together. An examination of Fig, 57, where an equal feed- 


ing-area is assigned 
to each tree, shows 
that there is an 
absolute loss on the 
margin. In other 
words, the whole 
space is not so 
equally divided 
among the different 
trees by the quin- 
cunx system as by 
the square system. 
An examination of 
Fig. 56 shows that 
the same thing is 
true of the hexagonal 
or triangular sys- 
tem.” 
Diagrammatic 
representations of 
the three leading sys- 
tems are given in 
Fig. 59, redrawn 
from Moore, Bull. 
201, Wis. Exp. Sta.; 
and the alternate 
plan is also shown. 
The alternate sys- 
tem, according to 
Moore, is designed 
to correct the diffi- 
culties arising in the 
quincunx plan, these 
difficulties being, 
“that unless the 
rows are more than 
30 feet apart, setting 
a tree in the center 
of the rectangle 
would so reduce the 


Four Orchard Systems 


211 


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212 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


distance between the rows that difficulty would be encountered 
in orchard operations.” The alternate plan differs from the 
quincunx “essentially in widening the distance between the rows, 
maintaining the same distances between the trees in the row, 
and is therefore better adapted to planting under 40 feet. 
The first tree of each of the even rows is midway between the 
first and second trees of the odd rows. The rows are placed far 
enough apart so that the diagonal distance between trees of adjoin- 
ing rows is greater than the distance between trees in the row, 
and the perpendicular distance between rows is more than one-half 
the distance between trees in the row. In the alternate plan, 
with trees 30 feet apart in the row, the rows can be placed much 
closer together without reducing the space between the trees in 
adjoining rows so much as to interfere with orchard operations. By 
this method, the number of trees to the acre may be increased, the 
land better distributed among them, and inconvenience in orchard 
operations avoided. 

“The alternate system is frequently used in close plantings. In 
an orchard with rows 20 feet apart, set by the alternate system, it 
will be found much easier to get between the trees than if the rec- 
tangular system is employed, for the distance between the nearest 
trees of the adjoining row will be approximately 22 feet 4 inches, or 
over 2 feet more than when set by the rectangular. Set at this dis- 

tance the space between 
7 ee ee the trees of adjoining rows 
would be approximately 
the same as when planted 
32 feet apart by the quin- 
cunx.” 
. Moore also describes 
e 4 two good additional 
".* * * © © ©] methods for placing the 
trees, as follows: 

“Lining-in method (Fig. 
60).—A method very com- 
monly used in setting an 
: ] orchard by the rectangular 
p Roeeicics Ciena Sachse eiaiptatatatetteted 4 system is the ‘lining-in’ 


Fic. 60. Staking the orchard, by not placing method. Stakes are set on 
the stakes where the trees are to stand. both sides and ends of the 


| ee 


Methods of Staking the Systems 213 


area to be planted. Laths serve the purpose very well. The first 
stake should be the proper distance from the fence, and the others 
at intervals equal to the distance between the rows. Two rows of 
stakes are run through the center of the area at right angle to 
each other, care being 
taken not to have 
them come on the ' 
line of the row, which “/ 
is easily done by Sg cA 
_ starting between two 7 Be Sd \ 
of the stakes on the Ree own 
end. These stakes eS 
should be in line “we # \ a 
with the stakes run- 2 8 
ning parallel to them. : A < ' oN 
The man setting trees SN OOUAN 
now has two stakes in ag 
each direction by eet ee ‘ 
which to line-in his ae ‘ SS 
trees. By this method Ny, eS 
all intermediate as ae : 
stakes and the plant- ‘S % 
ing-board may be dis- Big 5 4 
pensed with. : 
“Wire-compass ; : 
method (Fig. 61).— Fia. 61. bag ae reese staking out a 
Another method is 
frequently used in staking out the hexagonal orchard. The first row 
is located with reference to the fence and becomes the base-line. 
Beginning at the desired position of the first tree, stakes are set at 
the desired distance between trees, a wire the length of the distance 
between trees is then used for the location of the remaining trees. It 
is convenient to have a ring at each end of the wire as this facilitates 
handling. If the rings are used, the length of the wire should be con- 
sidered as extending from center to center of the rings. One ring 
should be fitted with a marking pin, this end to be used by the man 
locating the position of the trees. 
“Tn locating the trees, A holds the center of his ring over the first 
stake of row 1, while B takes the marking end and strikes an arc at 
what he thinks is the location of the first tree of the next row. A 


214 The Principles of Frutt-growing 


walks to the second stake of the first row, and B again strikes an arc. 
At the intersection of these arcs he sets a stake, locating the position 
of the tree. B then strikes an arc where he thinks the location of the 
second tree will be. When all the trees of row 2 are located, it becomes 
the base-line from which to locate trees of row 3. If the ground be 
uneven, a plumb-bob should be used so that the wire may be kept 


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Fie. 62, A method of ane an irregular field. 


horizontal. In locating the end tree there is frequently but one 
stake from which to strike an arc. The location is easily determined, 
however, by locating the second tree first, and then using it as the 
point from which the arc is struck. After four rows have been located 
by the arcs, others may be lined-in.” 

The method of squaring a field for orchard-planting is described 
again by Jarvis (Conn. Bull. No. 62): ‘Before attempting to lay 
out a field that is irregular in outline, it must first be squared off in 


To Square a Field 215 


such a way that the rows running across the field will be at right- 
angles to the rows running the other direction. A base-line running 
along a straight side of a field is first chosen. If there is not a straight 
side, a straight line running along the longer side of the field may be 
established. At right angles to this straight line and near each end, 
may be projected two other lines. On small areas this may be 
done with two.straight-edges and a carpenter’s square, but on large 
tracts this method is not sufficiently accurate. The best and most 
reliable method is that described in Fig. 62. At the desired 
point (A) on the base-line a stake is set, and exactly 60 feet from 
this on the same line another stake (B) is set. By stretching a string 
80 feet long from the first stake (A) and another string 100 feet 
long from the second stake (B) and by bringing the two ends to- 
gether at (C) the position of the third stake may be determined. 
Then the desired line is drawn from A through C to the other side 
of the field. The same operation is repeated near the other end of 
the field. The distance between the rows, one way, may be marked 
off on the projected lines and the distance between the rows the 
other way, may be indicated on the base-line and also on the line 
parallel to it on the opposite side of the field. The rows in both 
directions can be extended to the margin of the field. 

“On hilly lands it is often very difficult to get the trees lined up 
properly. In such cases, telephone wire is sometimes employed to 
stretch across the field. To indicate the position of the trees a 
smaller wire may be wound around and soldered to the larger one 
at the required distances. The telephone wire is stretched tightly, 
and a stake set at every point indicated by the soldered wire. In 
the hollow places, where the wire is far above the ground, a plumb- 
bob may be necessary to find the exact position where the stake 
should be set. Twine, on account of its stretching character, is 
unsuited to this purpose.” 

Another variation for the laying out of a hexagonal tract is given 
by Fisher (Mont. Bull. No. 77): “A base-line is established along a 
fence or permanent road, running east and west and marked off at 
intervals at which the trees are to be planted. From the stakes thus 
established, lines can be run across the field at an angle of 60° with 
a surveyor’s transit or other instrument that will measure angles. 
These lines are then marked off at intervals at which the trees are 
to be planted. If an instrument for measuring angles is not avail- 
able, a steel tape or wire about 360 feet long should be provided. 


216 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


This tape should be marked off at intervals at which the trees. are 
to be planted. If the trees are to be set 30 feet apart in the rows, 
the tape should be about 370 feet long, with marks at every 30 feet. 
This will leave 5 feet at either end for pulling while stretching the 
tape. 

“A line parallel to the base-line is then established 311.76 feet 
distance either north or south and marked off at intervals of 30 feet, 
the same as the base-line. One end of the tape-line is then held in 


7/2. 345 6 7 8 9 10 WIE (3 1AIS I6'7 


Cc 


3/1. 76 Feet 


A 8B 


fegeg@@atQ oteTé om BPieewGilmit 
Fig. 63. The layout of a hexagonal tract. 


peg No. 1 (see Fig. 63), in line AB, and the other end of the tape is 
held at stake No. 7 in line CD. The tape-line or wire should be pulled 
taut. Stakes are then placed at every 30 feet along the tape-line. 
When this is done the tape-line is stretched between peg No. 2 in 
line AB and peg No. 8 in line CD, and pegs placed at each 30-foot 
mark. This process is repeated until the length of the field has been 
gone over, when there will be a triangular space at each end that is 
not marked off, but which can be easily marked off by sighting the 
stakes in. Two men and a boy can mark off 10 or more acres a day 
by this method.” 


Hutt describes the following method of planting 
small-fruits in an orchard: “‘The bushes were arranged so 


A Mizxed-Orchard Plan 217 
that cultivation may be given both ways with a minimum 
amount of hand hoeing. The accompanying plan (Fig. 64) 
shows the arrangement of the trees and bushes. The trees 
are planted on the hexagonal plan, the rows being 30 feet 
apart and the trees 35 feet apart in the rows, the trees in 
one row alterna- 

. S A APPLE TREE 
ting with those in ] BERRY BUSHES 
ment, 15 per cent 
more trees can be 
nary method, and 
yet not be any : = 


11 Ft. 8 In. 


the next. By this 
planted to the acre 
APPLE 


method of arrange- . 7 
Pe 
than by the ordi- : ea TREE 
ae 


5 Ft, 
‘10 In. 


5 Ft. 
OI 


‘10 In. 


more crowded. The 4 \ 2] 

bushes are 6 feet ¢ 3 
apart one way by 4 \ ba leace : 
5 feet 10 inches the “tree 

other. At present } a 

no trees are nearer 3], 

than 9 feet to the 1 pee ia 

apple trees. As the [ 

trees increase in xpate 
size, those bushes OF 6F. 6Ft. oF 


says : . 64. Setti -fruits i : 
within the cirel es, Fia. 64. Setting small-fruits in an orchard, 


as shown on the plan, will be the first to be removed.” 


THE FAMILY FRUIT-PLANTATION 


It is impossible to give much specific advice for the 
plan of a family fruit-garden, because tastes are so per- 
sonal, and the amount and character of land at disposal 


218 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


are so various. One can only say that the varieties 
should be chosen for best dessert and culinary ‘quali- 
ties, for succession through the season, and the area so 


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Fig. 65. Suggestion for a fruit-garden of one acre. 


planted that the rows run the long way of the land to 
allow of easy cultivation with a horse. In general, it will 
not be necessary to provide for cultivation both ways. 
The accompanying diagram (Fig. 65) suggests how an 


Plan for Home Grounds 219 


area of 1 acre may be laid out in a fruit-garden for the 
home supply. For a number of years, other plants—as 
vegetables, 


small-fruits, or i ae 

dwarf apples or 3 
dwarf pears— k 
may be grown, ‘i 
not only be- VEGETABLE 

tween the rows, GARDEN ™ 
but between 40xSOFT. , 


the trees in the 
row. 

The dwarf 
apples and 
pears find a 
special and ad- 
vantageous use 
in the home gar- 
den, although, 
if there is room, 
a few trees 
of standards 
should be grown 
to lessen the 
chances of fail- 
ure and to sup- 
ply some of the 
staple varieties 
in larger quan- 
tity. 

The vege- 


table-garden SCALE. r———-—— 20 FEET. 


: Fia, 66, Plan for home grounds that comprise a 
and fruit - gar- fruit-garden, 2 


220 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


den may be combined when the available area is small. 
Corbett says that an area 60 by 80 feet will accomodate 
442 fruit-bearing plants, and that an area 40 by 80 feet 
will be sufficient for a good variety of vegetables. He 
gives a diagram (Fig. 66), and the following key: 


Fruits. 


Thirty-two grape-vines, dispersed at intervals of 10 feet around 
the entire garden. 

Three rows, each containing six trees, dwarf pears, eighteen 
specimens in all (rows Nos. 2, 10, 14). 

One row, six specimens, peaches (row No. 4). 

One row, six specimens, cherries (row No. 8). 

One row, six specimens, dwarf apples (row No. 6). 

One row, six specimens, plums (row No. 12). 

One row, twenty specimens, blackberries (row No. 1). 

Two rows, forty specimens, blackcaps (rows Nos. 3 and 5). 

Two rows, forty specimens, red raspberries (rows Nos. 7 and 9). 

Three rows, 300 specimens, strawberries (rows Nos. 11, 13 and 15). 


Vegetables. 


One row, one-half row rhubarb, one-half row asparagus (occupy- 
ing 4 feet). 

One row, salsify (114 feet). 

One row, parsnips (114 feet). 

Two rows, beets (3 feet). 

One row, eggplants—plants set 18 inches apart—two dozen (3 
feet). 

Two rows, tomatoes—plants set 2 feet apart—two dozen (6 feet). 

One row, summer squash, 12 hills, 3 feet apart (3 feet). 

Two rows, cucumber, 24 hills, 3 feet apart (1 foot). 

Two rows, early cabbage, 4 dozen plants, set 18 inches apart 
(4 feet). 

Two rows, late cabbage, 4 dozen plants, set 18 inches apart 
(4 feet). 

One row, early celery, 6 dozen plants, set 6 inches apart (2 feet). 

Eight rows, peas, plant in double rows, 4 inches apart; follow 
by six rows late celery, thirty-six dozen plants (16 feet). 


Home Fruit-Garden 221 


Two rows, lima beans, four dozen hills, 18 inches apart (4 feet). 

Six rows, bunch beans; in succession sow seeds in drills, placing 
seeds about 6 inches apart in the row; follow by late cabbage, turnips 
or spinach (12 feet). 

Two rows, radishes, four sowings, planted in double rows 6 
inches apart (3 feet). 

Two rows, lettuce, two sorts, adapted for early and late use 
(3 feet). 

One row, parsley and peppergrass (114 feet). 

The space occupied by the last three plants may be given over 
to winter squashes by planting these before other crops are off the 
ground. 


The satisfactions in a home fruit-garden are not to 
be measured by the money costs. It cannot be said that 
fruit can be bought more cheaply than it can be grown in 
the garden, for the market does not supply the varieties 
or the quality that one may secure from his own plantation. 

It is desirable that a fruit-garden be made a part of a 
landscape design of a place, as regularly as the flower- 
garden, vegetable-garden, garage, or recreation areas. 
(Page 34.) 

The condensed fruit-garden requires the best of ferti- 
lizing and of care. 


MAPS AND RECORDS 


One of the most annoying parts of fruit-growing is 
keeping track of the varieties that inevitably accumulate 
in plantations to which the owner gives much loving 
thought, and making a record of the performance of indi- 
vidual trees, vines and bushes. 

The best means is a systematic plat, map or diagram 
of the plantation, in which every tree or every row of 
small-fruits is given a number. It is well to designate the 
rows in orchards by letters, and then to number each 


222 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


tree in the row, beginning with number one; or, some pre- 
fer to number all the trees in the plantation consecutively. 
It is an excellent plan for the grower to devote a large 
blank-book or record to each plantation, entering the plan 
of the area in the earlier pages, and then recording the 
yield of each tree or each row on consecutive pages devoted 
to the different years. Such a book would be to the 
orchard what the Babcock test is to the dairy —a means 
of determining the profitable and unprofitable individuals. 
If such a record were kept, it would not be many years 
before the orchardist would be experimenting with a 
goodly number of his trees in order to determine how to 
make them as productive as are the best ones. 


Labels. 


Of labels there are endless devices, but no label 
can be expected to last in good condition more than 
six or eight years. For temporary or annual plants, where 
little horse work is done, the commercial garden stakes, 
12 by 114 inches, are excellent. These cost, when painted 
and made of soft, clear pine, $5 to $6 a thousand. For a 
more permanent stake label, one cut from clear pine, 2 
feet long, 314 inches wide, 114 inches thick, and sawed to 
a point, is one of the best. These are given two thin coats 
of white lead, care being taken not to pile them on their 
faces until thoroughly dry, to avoid a rough surface for 
the pencil. The record may be made by a large, soft 
pencil, like a carpenter’s pencil, or by a brush and black 
paint; but for all annual crops the pencil will be found 
more serviceable. At the end of the season, or when the 
record becomes dim, a thin shaving is taken off the face 
of the label, it is repainted, and used again. The label is 
thick enough to allow of many annual dressings, while the 


Labels 223 


lower part is not reduced, and it therefore lasts for many 
years and is strong enough to resist the shocks of cultivator 
and whiffletrees. For ornamental bushes, this large label 
is too conspicuous, and for this purpose a pine label 
114 inches wide, 14 inch thick, and 18 or 20 inches long is 
excellent. The lower half is soaked in a strong solution of 
sulfate of iron (copperas), and, after drying, in lime-water, 
to preserve it. 

A great variety of labels has been recommended for 
trees, but it is doubtful whether we have yet found the 
ideal tally, although some of those here described seem 
to satisfy most needs. Many persons like zinc labels (No. 
11, Fig. 67), cut in narrow strips from a sheet of the 
metal. The record is made on the zinc with a soft lead- 
pencil, and the label is then wound about a branch. 
Very often the record is indistinct on the zinc, but the 
chief fault is the inconspicuousness of the label itself. It 
requires much searching to find a zinc label in a large tree, 
and this objection holds with almost. every practicable 
tree label that has been introduced, even with the 3- or 4- 
inch pine labels that are common in the market. Patent 
zine and copper labels, cut from very thin metal, so that 
the record can be made by the impression of a sharp point 
or style, have been tried. These pretty and so-called 
indestructible labels are furnished with an eyelet through 
which the wire passes. They are soon broken by the wind, 
and in a year nothing is likely to remain of them but a 
hole hung on a wire. 

A good label is the device shown at No. 8, in the illus- 
tration (Fig. 67). This is the pine “package label,’ 
used by nurserymen, 6 inches long and 114 inches wide. 
These are wired with stiff, heavy, galvanized wire, much 
like that used for pail bales, and not less than 18 inches 


The Principles of Fruit-growing 


224 


Fia. 67. Various types of tree-labels. 


Labels 225 


is used with each label. Hooks are turned in the ends of 
the wires before the labels are taken to the field. A pail 
of pure white lead, well thinned with oil, is taken to the 
field with the labels. The record is made with a very 
soft pencil, the label is dipped into the paint, the wire is 
placed about a conspicuous limb, and the hooks are joined 
with a pair of pliers. The paint at first almost completely 
obscures the writing, but some of it drips off and the re- 
mainder dries in, so that the record becomes bright, and 
the soft pencil marks are indelibly preserved, while the 
label remains white. If the paint is brushed on, the soft 
writing will be blurred. If in the future the wood becomes 
gray, the label may be brightened by immersing it in a pot 
of white lead, without removing it from the tree. The 
large loop of wire allows of the growth of the branch, and 
the label hangs so-low that it can be seen at a glance. The 
heavy stiff wire insures the safety of the label against boys 
and workmen. It cannot be removed without a pair of 
pincers. The label is large enough to allow of a complete 
record of the name of the variety, the place of purchase, 
age, and other matters; and it is readily found. 

The various labels shown in Fig. 67, are as follows: Nos. 1 
and 2, German labels, made of glazed earthenware, with the name 
colored blue and sunken. Strong copper wire, coiled, to allow of the 
growth of the limb, holds the label to the tree. No. 3, Cornell label, 
described above. No. 4, double wooden label, consisting of two com- 
mon wooden labels fastened together. The name is written on the 
double label, as in any other label, but it is also written on the inside 
to insure permanence. When the outside writing is worn off, the 
label is opened and the inside is still bright. The label is secured 
to the tree by a tack or small nail, as shown in the cut at the right. 
The label is seen opened in the picture at the left. Nos. 5 and 6, zinc 
labels, used at the New York State Experiment Station, Geneva. 


The wire is driven into the tree, and the name is written or 
printed on the zinc with black paint. No. 7, common hand-made 


oO 


226 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


wooden tag, taken from an old tree in the test orchard of the late 
Charles Downing, Newburgh, N. Y. No. 8, thin copper label, with 
the name indented into the metal by the use of a hard-pointed 
instrument. Some metal labels are liable to tear out 


at the hole when exposed to winds. No. 9, common 
painted pine label used by nurserymen, and costing 
(without the copper wire) about 50 cents a thou- 
sand, for the common size, which is 314 inches long. 
No. 10, Lodeman’s label, consists of a tag of sheet 
lead securely fastened to a coiled brass wire. The 
wire is secured to the body of the tree by a staple 


or screw-eye, and it is expected that the 
wire will become imbedded in the trunk 
as the tree grows. No. 11, common zine 
label or tally, described on page 223. 

The Fig. 68 is Paddock’s vineyard label 
(designed by W. Paddock then of the 
State Experiment Station, Geneva, N. Y.). 
The label is a strip of heavy zinc secured 
to a stiff galvanized wire. This wire or 
shank is provided with a hook at the 
lower end and a half-hitch near its middle, 
so that it may be securely adjusted to the 
wires of the trellis, holding the label well 
above the foliage. 

Much is said about the importance of 
giving attention to the behavior of indi- 
vidual trees and bushes in a fruit planta- 


Fic. 68. A good vineyard 
label. 


tion, yet there is seldom any available record of them. With the 
refinements of the fruit-growing business, attention must be given 
to this subject; and maps and labels will then be indispensable. 


CHAPTER VII 
SUBSEQUENT CARE OF THE FRUIT-PLANTATION 


Now that the property is planted, we may consider 
what to do with it. The main general practice is tillage. 
This is to be the basis of the prosperity of the enterprise, 
but it will not be necessary to repeat the discussion in 
Chapter ITI. 

It is a common opinion with fruit-growers that very 
heavy growth is opposed to fruitfulness; and yet the 
plants that are vigorous and strong and make rapid 
growth from the start are usually the most productive. 
They are largest, and should have most bearing surface, 
and the fruit should be large. Just where lies the danger 
to productiveness of too rapid growth, if the danger exists, 
is not easy of statement. Very heavy pruning of old trees 
is reported as not breaking the fruit-bearing habit, but it 
is commonly supposed to have the effect of reducing the 
set of fruit. There are probably many conditions and 
circumstances that modify the results. 

We remember that if the roots are made to strike far 
into the land by deep plowing for the first few years, it 
may not be necessary to plow heavy furrows in the planta- 
tion in later years, except to turn under cover-crops. This 
can be accomplished even with hard clay land. Two 
orchards on very hard clay of uneven surface, in six years 
from the setting of the trees, were in such condition that 
heavy plowing was no longer necessary, and the spring fit- 
ting of the land was done with spading-harrows and spring- 

(227) 


228 The Principles of Frutt-growing 


tooth harrows, and the subsequent tilling partly with a 
light spike-tooth harrow. Of course, this means that there 
must be no delay in the spring work in the orchard, and 
no years of neglect. Weeds are not allowed to appear; 
but if a patch should get a start now and then, it can usu- 
ally be destroyed with the cultivator. Perhaps once or 
twice in the season it may be necessary to send a man 
through the orchard with a hoe to take the weeds away 
from the trees, but the space that needs such hand labor 
will not exceed 2 feet in diameter, and it is usually very 
much less. This has been accomplished by exercising 
great care to plow the clay when it is in such condition 
that it pulverizes when it is worked, and by the incor- 
poration of one or two cover-crops. 

It will be necessary now and then to grow cover-crops, 
and the land will then be regularly plowed in spring to 
turn the crop under; but even so, it may not be the desire 
to secure a heavy growth of cover-crop, and the spring 
plowing need not necessarily: be deep and laborious. If, 
however, it seems to be necessary to plow 5 or 6 inches 
deep, there will be no hesitation in doing so, for the roots 
are deep enough to escape the plow if the plowman is 
ordinarily careful about 
the trees. 

It is not necessarily 
a misfortune to cut the 
smaller roots with the 
plow, providing only a 
few are cut in any year. 
In other words, it is no 
doubt safer to sever a 
good many roots 4 inch, 


Fic. 69. A broken grape-root renewing its 3 
connection with the earth. or sometimes even 1 inch, 


Working the Land 229 


in diameter, than not to plow the orchard at all. The 
severed roots usually send out numerous branches near 
their ends, and these branches increase the foraging power 
of the roots in soil normally laid under small tribute. 
Figs. 69 and 70 are 
drawn from actual speci- = 
mens of roots that were 
broken by the plow. It 
would seem as if the= 
absorbing area of the j 
root had been actually ==2""* 

increased, for the many Fie. 70. The branching of a broken 
small roots present more apple-reot. 

surface than did the main shaft of the root. It must be 
remembered, however, that the real surface of the original 
root extended far beyond the present point, and there is 
no way of telling whether the adventitious roots actually 
present more surface than the whole of the original root. 
This breaking of the small roots is not recommended, but 
it is not necessary to take great pains to avoid it. 

The particular methods of caring for plantations of 
small-fruits can scarcely be discussed in a general work on 
fruit-growing, but it may be said that a deep tillage 
with a spring-tooth cultivator (No. 9, Fig. 16, page 86) 
is usually sufficient for breaking up the ground in spring 
among bush-fruits, if the land is clean and in good con- 
dition. If the land is soddy or infested with bad weeds, 
however, a regular plowing may be necessary. A handy 
plow for such plantations is one of the type shown in Fig. 
19, page 96, managed by a single horse. The manage- 
ment of the land in small-fruit plantations does not differ 
in principle from the management of orchard lands, and 
the tools are of the same general kind, except smaller 


230 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


and usually adapted to a single horse. If the rows are 
far enough apart, however—as they usually are in black- 
berries and black raspberries—it may be necessary in 
hard lands to hitch two horses to such a tool as the 
spring-tooth cultivator. 

It is commonly a matter of a few years thoroughly to 
learn one’s soil and climate, after moving to a new farm. 
The farmer has a local and personal problem to apprehend 
and to solve. He should not be discouraged, therefore, 
if he does not secure the desired results from the treat- 
ment of his land within the first two or three years. He 
must look after the work himself. Even though he have 
a perfect understanding of the subject and the intention 
to do the best by his plantation, he will very likely fail 
of satisfactory results if he leaves the management of the 
work to others. 

Aside from the general practice of tillage, there are 
many special and incidental practices, some of which may 
be discussed briefly, after we have considered such essen- 
tials as pruning, thinning and frost-protection. 


PRUNING 


The subject of pruning cannot be understood until’ 
the essential principles of the practice are clearly appre- 
hended. It is often said that pruning is unnecessary; 
this is true if one desires to grow brush. If he desires to 
grow fruit, and particularly good fruit, he must bring 
about the proper conditions for it; and one of these neces- 
sary conditions is a plant properly thinned and under 
control. 

The only proper pruning is one that is applied in 
something like the same proportion every year, and that 


The Aim in Pruning 231 


begins the very year in which 
the plants are put into the 
ground. Trees alternately 
neglected and heavily pruned 
are kept in a condition of upset 
that is likely to interfere with 
the best satisfaction in fruit- 
growing. 

The aim in pruning 
is to keep the top open, 
to remove superfluous // 
and interfering parts, to 
maintain a size and 
shape that admits of 
easy spraying and fruit- 
gathering and other labor, 
to eliminate diseases and injured branches, to encourage 
the fruit-bearing wood. How to accomplish these results 
is to be determined by practice. A good pruner has “an 
eye” for the work, and 
he undertakes it care- 
fully as an artisan 
skilled in the opera- 
tion. Pruning is not 
carpentering. 

It is easy to overdo 
pruning. It is not 
primarily the removal 
of wood, but the work- 
ing out of a purpose. 
Pruning is mostly for 
Fie. 72. Shoot grown too long for probable training in young 


fruit-bearing. There will be an alternation of cc 
fruit-bearing on this spur. tr ees, and as the 


Wee, 


Y 


LD 


Fie. 71. Fruit-spur forming at the side. 


232 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


twig is bent the tree’s inclined.” ‘‘Pruning for fruit’’ and 
“pruning for wood’ are refinements of the art that find 
little place in the usual commercial plantation. 


The bearing wood. 


Pruners should always under- 
stand how the fruit-bearing wood is 
borne. In the cane-fruits (raspberry, 
blackberry, dewberry), the fruit is 
borne on canes that grew the previ- 


INR BS 
Ah .4 ne Benne 
Sm e244 ie 
Fie. 74. Peach-buds 
forming in the axil of a 
Fia. 738. Terminal fruit-bud forming on an single leaf. The central one 
apple shoot. is a leaf-bud. 


ous year; and when this fruit is being borne, other cancs 
are growing from the crown of the plant to bear the 
fruit the succeeding year: therefore, the fruiting canes are 
removed when the fruit is off, and only a limited number 
of canes is allowed to grow for the next year’s crop. Goose- 
berries and currants also bear on canes, but these canes 
may not bear until the second year and they continue to 
bear profitably for two or three years. Grapes produce 


Fruit-buds 233 


their fruit only from canes that grew the preceding year. 
The tree-fruits may bear on the preceding year’s axial 
growth or on short 
spurs. Most of them 
bear both ways, but 
the larger part of the 
fruitage of apples, 
pears, plums, cherries, 
apricots, is on spurs. 
Peaches bear pro- 
fusely on the last 
year’s axial or straight 
shoots, but they also 
bear on short - lived 
spurs. Figs. 71 to 76 
show fruit-bearing in Fie. 75. Peach-buds forming with three leaves, 
The central bud is a leaf-bud. 
apple and peach. 

In the northern states, the best time for pruning, in 
general, is late winter and very early spring. It is best not 
to prune when the wood is 
frozen hard, although there is 
no physiological injury to a 
dormant tree thereby. The 
wounds should be made close 
to the branch or trunk, and no 
stubs should be left. Large 
wounds—of 2 to 3 inches and 
above—may be painted or 
waxed for protection. Well- 
mixed paint of white lead and 
raw linseed oil (colored, if one 
Fic. 76. A short branch or desires), applied after the 


fruit-spur on peach. Central bud F ‘i 
is probably a leaf-bud. wounds are well dried out, is 


234 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


the standard dressing; on very large wounds, it should 
be renewed from year to year. All wounds should be made 
with clean, regular cute, without hacking or splintering. 


The kind of top. 


When the tree is planted, the grower must decide how 
high the top is to be and also what form; and then all the 
subsequent pruning must 

be directed consistently to 


that end. In the old apple 

\ orchards of the East and 

North, the tops wére often 

too high,—as much as 5 or 

6 feet. It is just as easy to 

make them too low,—1 to 

2 feet (see pages 189, 190). 

In general structure, the 
tree may be open-centered 
with no leader, which is a 
favorite form for peach 
trees; or it may be two- 
storied, with the trunk con- 
tinued beyond the first 
scaffold of branches or at 
least with a second tier 
or scaffold, which is the preferable form for pears and 
apples. 

The illustrations show different commendable ideas 
in pruning. Fig. 77, from Stuart, shows an apple tree 
unpruned and pruned, one year after planting. Figs. 78 
and 79 (Erwin and Bliss, Iowa) show a neglected 
young tree before and after pruning. Spreaders have 
been inserted to encourage a more open top. Jarvis gives 


Examples of Pruning 235 


figures (Figs. 80 and 81) of an apple tree ten years 
old and not pruned since planting, and the same tree after 
pruning to an open center. This is for New England 
conditions. Fig. 82 shows a good old orchard tree; and 
Fig. 83 what Jarvis considers to be “an ideal Baldwin 
apple tree,’”’ properly trained from the beginning, with a 


wwe a sesee eee 


a es 


Fie. 78. A neglected young apple Fia. 79. The tree pruned and 
tree. branches spread. 


low head and broad-conical shape. Fig. 84 shows a 
peach tree at bearing age of good top-form, but possessing 
a crotch that is likely to split; and Fig. 85 shows an unde- 
sirable formation in an apple tree. Many growers are now 
training peaches to lower heads than in Fig. 84. Fig. 86 
represents a good Morello cherry at young bearing age; and 


236 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


Fig. 87 a sweet cherry (in bloom) but with more main 
branches than necessary. Fig. 88 is a successful orchard 
in Wyoming. Fig. 89 shows a Duchess apple orchard 
in bearing at Ottawa, 
Ontario. 


What to remove. 


The pruner should 
remove superfluous and 
unnecessary parts,— 
water-sprouts, weak 
straggly limbs, diseased 

and badly injured limbs, 

Fia. 80. Wise vessel eile dhe apple tree. at least one of the 

Connecticut. limbs when two cross 

and rub, hanging limbs that are much in the way, one 

of badly forking limbs, and some of the limbs in parts 

that are much crowded. Unless it is desired to thin the 

fruit, the fruit-spurs should be protected; and also the 

small healthy stocky shoots along many of the larger 

branches, for care should be exercised not to produce long 
and pole-like parts. 


sh 


Renewing old trees by 
pruning: ‘dehorning.” 


Pruning is one of 
the legitimate means 
of renewing neglected 
orchards; but aside 
from this, it is often 
advised that very old 
and weak trees be 
an open center, rejuvenated by cutting 


the whole top 
off and leaving 
horns or stubs 
1 to 3 feet long. 
This may work, 
but in most cases 
it is not worth 
the while. It 
takes too long, 
the results are 
too uncertain, 


Remaking Old Tops, 237 


Fra. 82, A good apple tree of ‘the. old siatSieA ikind, 
with a trunk 4 to 5 feet high. 


and probably the old tree will not pay for the trouble. 

The remaking of a young or middle-aged tree by such 
operation when it has been broken by ice or overbearing 
or injured by winter or by fire is another matter, and 
may be in every way worth the effort. 


ly A | i spi 


Fa: 83. A low-headed apple tree of eal form a ee 


238 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


Heading-in. 


The question of heading-in of trees is commonly mis- 
understood, and there are likely to be many opinions. It 
is a special practice. Two considerations may help the 
grower think out the problem for himself. 

In the first place, it is largely a question of the type 
of training that the grower prefers; that is, every good 


— 


d crotch, 


fruit-grower will set before himself a certain conception 
as to form of tree, and he will bend all his energies uni- 
formly and consecutively to the working out of this idea 
throughout all the years of the plantation. If his ideal is 
- for trees with round and dense heads, then he will, of 
course, head-in the stock from year to year; if, however, 
he sets for himself the ideal of a tree with the natural 
form and open head, he will not head-in, as a rule. Which- 
ever purpose the grower sets should be worked out sys- 


Heading-in 239 


tematically and logically from first to last. The heading-in 
ideal is always set for dwarf trees. 

The other factor that chiefly determines the question 
of heading-in is the checking of redundant growth while 
the plants are young. 
As a rule, young trees 
grow more thrifty and (3 
upright than do old 
ones, and the grower 
should not be misled 
into thinking that his 
trees will keep up their 
present pace after ieee 
they have come into iia 


: : Fie. 85. A mature apple tree, showing scaf- 
maturity and bearing. fold limbs growing from same plane, and 


Kieffer pears, for ex- lia! to split. 

ample, make a very tall and narrow growth for the first 
two or three years, as if headed for heaven (but they are 
not); and when the bearing time arrives, this enormous 
growth is checked and the tree spreads. However, in 
such cases, it may be advisable to head-in the tree for a 
time, or until the period of maturity begins to arrive. This 
heading-in, how- 
ever, is not the 
fundamental cor- 
rective of the 
difficulty; in fact, 
it rather aug- 
ments the diffi- 
culty. It is a 
question, there- 
Pa fore, whether it is 
"Fria. 86, Morello cherry. better to prevent 


240 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


redundant growth by withholding tillage and fertilizers, 
rather than to produce it and then to take it off. 

If, therefore, the grower wants headed-in trees, he 
should have them. He is then able to plant his trees closer 
together. The habitual heading-in is practised only with 
plums and peaches as a rule in the northern states. The 
fact that relatively 
very few persons 
grow headed-in trees' 
is indication enough 
that it is not a gen- 
eral practice and is 
not essential to suc- 
cess. For general 
purposes, the free- 
growing tree is to be 
- preferred, with only 
such shortening of 
somé of the branches 
as will keep the plant 
in shape. The head- 
ing-in is performed 
at the same time as 
other pruning. If 
the annual growth is 
vigorous, perhaps one-half of it is cut away by being 
headed back. 

Dwarf apples and pears are always kept within bounds 
—that is, kept dwarf—by heading-in. After the plant has 
reached its full height—in five to eight years—it is not 
aliowed to grow any taller, or at least to increase in height 
very slowly. This means that nearly all the annual growths 
in length are to be removed, and the fruit-bearing is to 


Fia. 87. A sweet cherry at pearing age. 


Pruning and Trimming 241 


depend on the spurs. The top should be thinned at the 
same time of weak and soft shoots, to allow the fruit-spurs 
room and light for best. development.. 


THE THINNING OF THE FRUIT 


The thinning of fruit for the purpose of improving 
that which remains is a practice much advised but too little 


"ef 6 paths 2 by m 
pe a a hes Sa 
Fig. 88. A Wyoming apple-orchard, showing form of trees. 


followed. It has been demonstrated time and again that 
no work in fruit-raising is more important than this thin- 
ing, if one desires to realize the most from his fruit.- It 
results not only in a much finer product, but it is also 
a means of destroying the insect-infested and diseased 
specimens, and of saving the energies and vitality of 
the tree. Persons complain that the thinning of fruit is 
expensive and laborious, and this is true; but it is a fair 
question whether there is anything worth the having of 
P 


242 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


which the same may not be said. The fruit must all be 
picked sooner or later, and it does not cost very much 
more to pick it early in the season than to pick it late; in 
fact, much fruit not worth picking in the fall might have 
been eminently worth the labor if the trees had been 


Hi 


2 ae 
oat oe a 
ean TUN Ky y Ls 


oe 
Y 
ui Mf i WY 
Ria. 89. Duchess apple-orchard in nal, 


thinned in the early summer. The practice is now assum- 
ing very special importance because of the rigid and high- 
class systems of grading fruits that are being adopted by 
shipping associations. 

There are two general methods of thinning fruits: 
One is by pruning, by means of which the superfluous 
branches, or even the fruit-spurs themselves, are removed; 
the other is the direct picking of the redundant fruits. 
While pruning may accomplish much, it is not sufficient 
when the best fruit is wanted. 

There is no reason in the nature of things why trees 
should not bear annually; but the formation of the fruit- 


The Thinning of Fruits 243 


spur is usually such as to preclude the production of the 
fruit on the same spur every year. The philosophy of the 
thinning of fruit, therefore, is that one spur shall bear 
one year, and another spur the next. This means that 
when fruit is thinned, it should be the object to remove 
it wholly from some spurs in order that they may produce 
fruit-buds for the following year. In those regions in 
which certain fruits are systematically thinned, the crop 
is obtained with great uniformity every year. This is 
especially true of peaches. There is no reason why the 


Seep 
Fie. 90. Apples in a cluster; to be thinned. 


same should not be said of other kinds of fruits, and foz 
every fruit-region. 


Thinning the apple. 


There is no dispute of the value of thinning for peaches, 
dwarf pears and a few choice fruits, but it has been ques- 
tioned whether the same or similar methods can be profi- 
tably applied to tne apple. The boxing of apples, however, 


244 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


is forcing the question. When choice fruit is to be grown, 
the practice will be necessary if the set of fruit is heavy, 
if some of it tends to grow in clusters, and particularly 
if fertility and 
moisture are not 
well supplied. 
Some varieties 
tend to grow in 
clusters, as the 
Chenango (Fig. 
90), and these 
should always be 
reduced to one 


fruit (Fig. 91). 
. Only one apple should remain of the cluster. There have 


Fia. 


been no long-continued experiments in this country on 
the thinning of apples. One of the standard investigations 
is by the State Experiment Station at Geneva, New York, 
under the direction of 8. A. Beach. He reports as follows 
(Bull. No. 239.): 


Tests are here reported on thinning apples in June and July 
during a period of four years. Mature trees of Baldwin, Rhode 
Island Greening and Hubbardston were included in the tests. 
These trees stood in a good commercial orchard. They were well 
cared for and were all similarly treated except that some had their 
fruit thinned while others did not. The thinning was usually done 
when the fruit had grown to about 114 inches in diameter. Obser- 
vations were made on the effect of thinning upon the color, size 
and market value of the fruit and upon the amount and regularity 
of fruit-production. Some data were obtained for a comparison of 
different amounts of thinning, but the results are not regarded as 
conclusive. 

Color.—When the trees were well filled with fruit, thinning. 
generally improved the color. At harvest-time the various hues 
were heightened and tended to be more brilliant on fruit from thinned 


Thinning the Apple 245 


than from corresponding unthinned trees. Where the fruit set 
sparsely before it was thinned, the thinning had no appreciable 
influence on its color. 

Size.—Whenever the trees bore well, thinning had the effect of 
increasing the size of the fruit. This occurred with Baldwin and 
Hubbardston more often than with Greening, which may be ac- 
counted for by the fact that the Greening trees did not carry any 
crops so heavy as the heaviest crops of Hubbardston and of Baldwin. 

Market value.—The intrinsic value of the apples from the 
consumer’s standpoint was generally increased by thinning, the 
thinned fruit being usually superior in size, color and general quality. 
The thinned fruit, as a rule, was better adapted than the unthinned 
for making fancy grades, for marketing in boxes, etc. Where such 
ways of marketing can be advantageously used, the thinned fruit 
should bring an increase in price. corresponding to its superiority 
in real value. But where it must be put upon the ordinary market 
in barrels there is less chance for the thinned fruit to sell at sufficient 
advance over the unthinned to pay for thinning, especially if the 
thinned fruit cannot be furnished in large quantities. 

Amount and regularity of fruit-production—In these experi- 
ments the practice of thinning the fruit did not appear to cause any 
material change either in the amount or the regularity of fruit- 
production. 

Methods of thinning.—No exact rule for thinning apples should 
be laid down. The requirements vary with the different individual 
trees and with the same tree in different seasons. The amount of 
thinning should be suited to the conditions as shown by the age and 
condition of the tree, by the amount of fruit which has set, and by 
the distribution of the fruit on the tree. In thinning apples, all 
wormy and otherwise inferior specimens should first be removed 
and no more than one fruit from each cluster should be allowed to 
remain. After this is done, if there is a full set of fruit, greater im- 
provement in the grade may be expected from thinning to 6 inches 
than to 4 inches apart. 

Does it pay to thin apples?—The reply of Mr. Wilson, a practical 
fruit-grower, in whose orchard these tests were made, is in effect 
that where there is a general crop of apples, the set full, the chance 
for small apples great. and widespread, it would pay to thin enough 
to insure good-sized fruit; otherwise not, except to protect the tree. 

Methods of removing the fruit.—No way of jarring or raking 


246 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


off the fruit is advised in thinning apples, since by these methods all 
grades are removed indiscriminately. Hand work is best. It per- 
mits selection of superior, and rejection of all inferior, specimens. 

Time to thin.—The experiments in thinning apples and other 
fruits lead to the opinion that early thinning gives best results. 
Begin with apples within three or four weeks after the fruit sets, 
even if the June drop is not yet completed. 

Cost of thinned as compared with unthinned apples.—The cost 
of thinning mature trees which are well loaded should not exceed 
50 cents a tree, and probably would average less than that. Although 
a given number of fruits can be thinned faster than an equal number 
can be picked when ripe, it has required about as much time to thin 
a tree as it has to harvest the ripé fruit. Thinned apples can be 
graded more rapidly than an equal amount of unthinned apples. 
Thinned apples can be handled more economically than unthinned 
apples because they have proportionately less of those grades which 
form the least profitable part of the crop, namely, the No. 2’s, the 
drops and the culls. 


Batchelor makes the following comments on the thin- 
ing of apples in Utah (Cire. No. 12, Utah Exp. Sta.): 


The actual methods to be used in this operation will vary some- 
what with the conditions, such as soil, age of trees, varieties and 
methods of irrigation and pruning. The fruit-grower should experi- 
ment and learn the best methods to follow under his conditions. 
Some people thin to a definite number of boxes on a certain-aged 
tree. This may be determined on one or two trees by actually count- 
ing the apples. These counted trees may then be used as models, so 
to speak, and thin the others accordingly. Other growers have 
learned by experience the proper distance apples should be from 
each other on the tree if they are to reach a marketable size. For 
the past two years, in thinning Jonathans to a minimum distance of 
4 inches, on eight- and nine-year-old trees, there were still too many 
apples remaining for their maximum development. A minimum 
distance of 5 to 6 inches would no doubt have given better results 
under the existing conditions. Gano trees nine years old, thinned 
to one fruit on a spur, with the spurs a minimum distance of about 
6 inches, gave good results. 

The above experience may serve as a guide in helping each 


Thinning the Apple 247 


grower to determine the proper method to follow under each in- 
dividual case. Certain thinning experiments have been carried on 
by the Ohio Experiment Station, in which case the fruit was left 
the minimum distance of 8 inches. This seemed to give the best 
results under the conditions. It is often suggested that pruning 
may be substituted for thinning. To be sure, pruning thins out the 
fruit-buds very materially, but it can hardly take the place of 
thinning. Some relief must be had for the crowded cluster on the 
individual branches, and again, such severe pruning as would prop- 
erly reduce the crop on a bearing apple tree would likely be too 
severe pruning otherwise. 

For the best results, the thinning operation should commence 
immediately after the June drop. The work should be done while 
the apples are 1 to 114 inches in diameter. It is only natural to 
expect that the sooner the remaining apples are accorded the entire 
strength and nourishment of the tree, the better the results. Broken 
limbs may be averted if the thinning is done in August, but the other 
benefits will not be so pronounced as though the work had been 
done at an early stage in the fruit’s development. In other words, 
less of the tree’s energy will be thrown away and more diverted to 
the proper channels if the thinning is done early in the season. 

Concerning tools for this work, some varieties like the Gano and 
Ben Davis are easily thinned by hand, while varieties with short 
fruit-spurs are not so readily handled this way, and the work may 
be hastened by the use of a small shear made especially for this 
purpose. In any case, care should be used not to break or injure 
the fruit-spurs in the operation. Very few fruit-spurs will be broken 
by the careful worker if the spur is grasped firmly in one hand while 
the apples are removed with the other. An upward and backward 
twist of fruit will loosen the stem from the spur without disturbing 
the remaining fruit or breaking the spur. One or two apples are 
often removed from a cluster in this way, leaving the remaining 
apple undisturbed. Careless workers who persist in pulling off the 
fruit should not be tolerated, as this practice loosens much of the 
remaining fruit and breaks off many spurs. A light picking ladder 
will hasten the work with the older trees, and the entire bearing 
surface may be easily reached. 

The cost of this work is only slight, compared with the increased 
returns. The actual time in thinning will be saved at harvest time 
in sorting the crop. If, however, full time is charged to this thinning 


248 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


work, the cost should not exceed 1144 to 2 cents a box of harvested 
fruit. In case of the Gano variety, which is more readily thinned 
than some other sorts, the cost will hardly exceed 1 cent a box, on 
low-headed trees. 


Herrick, in Colorado, also reports marked results with 
the Winesap (Bull. No. 170, Colo. Exp. Sta.): 


Thinning of the mature Winesap tree pays in money returns 
the first year. The more evenly distributed the fruit on the tree, 
the more uniform will be the size and color of the pack, Winesaps 
respond to thinning by increased size and better color when thinned 
as late as July 20. The earlier thinning can be done, the better will 
be the returns from the fruit sold and the greater will be the vitality 
of the tree. The best results are attained in thinning an old Wine- 

é sap tree, by leaving the apples 9 to 
10 inches apart. (Fig. 92.) Proper 
pruning, and keeping the trees a 
proper distance from each other, 
will facilitate thinning. Systematic, 
annual, uniform thinning, done from 
the time the trees come into bear- 
ing, should have much to do in 
securing an annual crop, thereby 
doing away with the so-called 
“off-year” bearing of some of the 
apple varieties. 


Thinning other fruits. 


Maynard reports experi- 
ments in thinning plums, from 
which there were marked 
gains. “A distinct advantage 
gained by thinning is the 
appreciable decrease in the 
~ ravages of fungous diseases 
ie, 92. Three-foot branch of and, to a small extent, of insect 


mamesap before and after thin ests, This is especially notice- 


Thinning the Fruits 249 


able in the case of monilia, or brown fruit-rot, which often 
ruins the peach or plum crop in wet seasons, while the 
specimens of fruit attacked by the curculio were largely 
removed in thining.”’ 

Good results have been reported in thinning of cane- 
fruits. Experiments at the Cornell Station with rasp- 
berries and blackberries failed, however, to give such 
specific results, as reported by Card: “To test the feasi- 
bility of thinning berries, rows of Cuthbert raspberry and 
Early Cluster blackberry were thinned by clipping off 
the tips of most of the clusters, and also by reducing 
the number of clusters, especially in the raspberry. The 
result was not encouraging, for the eye could detect no 
increase of size in the berries on thinned plants, and as 
the principal object was to increase the size and attrac- 
tiveness of the fruit, it seems to have failed of its purpose. 
It should be said, however, that the season was favorable 
for berries, and the crop was very fine. In a very dry 
season, or with varieties much inclined to overbear, the 
result might be different. In general, however, the thin- 
ing can be managed well enough and much more cheaply 
by regulating the amount of bearing wood at the annual 
spring pruning.” 

It is not probable that the thinning of the bush-fruits 
will pay as a rule, inasmuch as they are not closely graded 
or sold by the size of the berry. Nor are cherries thinned. 
Grapes grown for table use may probably be thinned with 
good results. If it pays to thin apples, it ought also to pay 
to thin pears. 


How to thin. 


The thinning of tree-fruits is performed in essentially 
the same way as the fruits are picked; that is, the fruits 


250 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


are taken off by hand, and are then dropped to the ground, 
where they may either be allowed to lie, or, if they are 
infested with insects or disease, may be raked up and 
burned. Methods of thinning apples have been discussed 
(pages 244 to 248). It is customary to thin the fruits as 
soon as the dangers of spring frosts and other early acci- 
dents are past, but before they have become of sufficient 
size to be a tax on the tree. Peaches are usually thinned 
when they are about the size of a small hickorynut (that 
is, about the size of the end of one’s thumb), and apples 
from that size until they are twice or sometimes even 
thrice as large. Various devices have been suggested for 
the thinning of fruit, but they are mostly impracticable, 
because they do not discriminate between good and poor 
fruit, do not leave the fruit well distributed, and are very 
likely to break off the spurs. Some of the implements 
figured on page 377 may be used in special cases. 

It requires more discrimination and judgment ‘to thin 
fruit properly than to pick it. In the thinning of peaches, 
it is a good rule to allow none of the fruits to hang closer 
than 4 to 6 inches of each other. This means that in years 
of very heavy setting, fully two-thirds of all the fruits are 
removed in June. In many parts of the country this 
thinning is systematically done, and it has in all such 
cases come to be regarded as an indispensable element 
in successful fruit-growing. No reliable estimates of the 
cost of thinning fruit can be given, because so much de- 
pends on the form and pruning of the tree and the quantity 
of fruit to be removed. The result is also greatly influ- 
enced by the character of the workmen and the price paid 
for labor. Full-grown peach trees may be thinned for 20 
to 50 cents each. Apple trees twenty-five and thirty 
years old have been well thinned for 40 to 90 cents each. 


Frost-Protection 251 


PROTECTING PLANTATIONS FROM FROST 


Having considered (in Chapter II) the relations of 
location, site and windbreaks to cold and frost, we may 
address ourselves to a discussion of the means by which 
injury from local frosts may be averted, in case they 
threaten to occur. These means are of two types,—those 
that attempt to enable the plant to escape injury from the 
frosts, and those that attempt to prevent the frost from 
occurring. Altogether several general means have been 
proposed for protecting plants from frost, and there are 
also combinations of the methods. The methods are 
mulching, covering the plants, whitewashing the plants, 
adding the vapor of water to the atmosphere, explosives, 
causing currents of air, making artificial clouds, and heat- 
ing the air. 

The temperatures at which the fruit-crop may be 
injured by frost are discussed to some extent in Chapter 
VIII (page 313); but O’Gara summarizes the advice as 
follows: ‘“The temperatures at which the principal orchard 
fruits are liable to be injured cannot be accurately stated, 
since weather conditions previous to a freeze determine 
to a very great extent the ability of plants to withstand 
low temperatures. Not only do the different degrees of 
cold produce different effects on the same plant, but the 
same plant will often behave differently when subjected 
to the same degree of cold. It is well known that plants 
or parts of plants in active growth are more easily killed 
by low temperatures than the same plants or parts of 
plants when dormant. Actively growing plants contain 
large quantities of water; that is to say, the protoplasm 
or cell-sap is watery, and, as a rule, the larger the pro- 
portion of water contained within the plants the more 


252 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


likely they are to be injured by low temperatures. While 
tables giving injurious temperatures to fruit when in 
bud, blossom and so on, have been prepared, it is safe to 
say that these temperatures are not entirely reliable. 
This is because conditions are never the same in any frost 
period. It may be stated that in the practice of orchard- 
heating the safest plan is to keep the temperature just 
above the freezing-point, no matter what the variety of 
fruit. No doubt, this will often be 2° to 3°, or even more, 
higher than necessary, but the practice is on the safe side. 
In orchard-heating practice, the temperature should 
never be allowed to go much below the danger point, as it 
is usually difficult to bring it back without some chance 
of injury to the fruit.” 


How to predict frost. 


There is no certain way of foretelling frost. Careful 
observation of conditions in the locality, long experience, 
and the use of the forecasts of the Weather Bureau are 
the most reliable means. Formerly the evening dew- 
point was considered a reliable guide to the minimum 
temperature of the ensuing night. Hence, if the dew- 
point say at 4 p.m., as determined by the wet-and-dry- 
bulb thermometer, or psychrometer (Fig. 93), should lie 
below the freezing-point, 32° F., frost was considered 
likely to occur. This method of forecasting frost seems 
to hold good for certain localities in the western states, 
but has been shown by Cox and others to be wholly unre- 
liable in the more humid eastern states. W. M. Wilson 
concludes (Cornell Bull. No. 316) as follows, after a 
study of the subject: “For the farmer who is prepared 
to-make practical use of a frost-warning, the forecasts 
issued by the Weather Bureau should receive first con- 


Predicting Frost 253 


sideration, because they may be obtained early in the 
day, before it is possible to secure any reliable indica- 
tions from local observations as to the probability of 
frost. But when the warnings issued by the Weather 
Bureau cannot be obtained, and the farmer must rely on 
‘himself, there are no instrumental 
readings that will take the place of a ° 
a careful observation of the condi- “ 
tion of the sky, the direction and 
force of the wind, and the trend of 
the temperature.” 

“In the day, plants usually 
receive more heat from the sun than ; 
they give off (radiate), and conse- 
quently become warmer; but at 
night the process is reversed, and 
they radiate more heat than they 
receive and thus grow colder. When 
the surface of a plant has lost 
(radiated) sufficient heat to cause 
its temperature to fall to 32° or 
below, frost forms. Any condition 
that causes increased radiation will 
increase the liability of frost, and 
conversely, whatever checks radia- —, WS. 23;_One farm of 
tion er supplies additional heat to = &"°™*"«" 
the air will tend to ward off frost.” Favorable con- 
ditions for frost are a clear night, a quiet or still night, 
a moderately dry atmosphere. The surface air is likely to 
be colder than that above, so that a wind may warm the 
surface air by mixing it with the warmer strata. 

Wilson makes the following observations on weather 
conditions as indicating frost: 


| 
| 


=P 

© 

—— 6 

Peri rPriripriiiniiiier 


; = — 
Mle go os Ee ge hb db a a ed ek be 
© 


254 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


“Preceding weather—The character of the preceding weather is 
important because damaging frosts often follow an abnormally 
warm period. The weather moves over the country from west to 
east in somewhat irregular, but nevertheless well-defined waves. 
Hence, there is a strong tendency for extremes to follow each other, 
and such extremes are often disastrous in their effects. A light 
frost, particularly in spring, following an unusually warm period - 
often will cause more damage than a severer frost preceded by 
cooler weather, because the warm weather forces out the blossoms 
prematurely and renders them more susceptible to injury. While 
an unusually warm period does not mean always that frost will 
follow, yet the fact that most frosts do follow such periods should 
be regarded as sufficient warning that frost is likely to occur. 

“State of the sky.—Frost is not likely to occur when the sky is 
overcast, because the heat given off by the earth at night does not 
penetrate the clouds easily and is practically all retained in the air 
below them, which therefore remains at a comparatively high tem- 
perature. Even a hazy condition of the sky, or the thinnest cirrus 
clouds, have an appreciable effect in retarding the fall of tem- 
perature at the surface. But on clear nights the heat escaping from 
the earth passes away quickly, almost without hindrance, far beyond 
the limits of the atmosphere. Hence, the fall of temperature at 
the surface is rapid and, unless the earth has a vast store of heat, 
frost is likely to occur. 

“Direction and force of the wind.—The direction of the wind is 
a reliable indication of the approach of colder weather. If, after a 
day or two of warm southerly winds and possibly rain, the wind 
changes to the southwest or west, it is an almost unfailing indication 
that the warm spell is over, and it is well to watch closely the con- 
ditions that follow, particularly if there are signs of clearing weather. 
Occasionally, a frost follows when the wind backs from east or north- 
east to north or northwest. In either case, the conditions to be 
looked for as soon as the wind changes are falling temperature, 
decreasing wind, and a clear sky. Frost is not likely to occur unless 
the air becomes quiet and the sky clear, for wind prevents the 
accumulation of the colder air at the surface. 

“Trend of the temperature—The rate of fall in temperature 
during the late afternoon or early evening is a good indication of 
the lowest temperature that will be reached during the night.* For 
example, a temperature of 40° at about 6 p.M., with a clear sky 


Predicting Frost 255 


and light wind, is considered critical; particularly is this the case if 
the rate of fall approximates 1° for each two hours, which, if con- 
tinuous—as would be likely with a clear sky and light wind—would 
bring the temperature close to the freezing-point by early morning. 
A fall in temperature of 2° an hour would indicate frost, even with 
the temperature considerably above 40° in the late afternoon. 

“Atmospheric pressure—The rate of change in the pressure of 
the atmosphere, as indicated by the barometer, is of some assistance 
in forecasting frost. The actual stage of the pressure, whether above 
or below normal, is not important, except that a warm period with 
unusually low pressure is likely to be followed by the opposite 
extreme. The important factor is the rate of change. If the pressure 
is increasing rapidly, as indicated by a rapid rise in the barometer, 
it is a good indication that the cold period or cold wave is approach- 
ing rapidly. The change in pressure usually precedes by a short 
interval the change in direction of the wind, because the wind 
depends on the pressure; but one will have to watch the barometer 
very closely to gain much advantage over the indications afforded 
by the direction and force of the wind.” 


Mulching to enable plants to escape frost. 


It is a general opinion that a mulch or heavy cover 
placed about plants on the earth when it is frozen, will 
retard flowering and the maturing of fruit; yet the practice 
appears to be often unsatisfactory, and there are reasons 
for supposing that the philosophy of the subject is not 
commonly understood. The subject is one of increasing 
importance, for it is essential that every means be used to 
escape late spring frosts. Efforts must also be made to 
reach the market when there is least competition from 
other sources, and, in the North, at least, this competition 
comes chiefly from early products produced in states to 
the southward. 

If the plants are such that they can be entirely covered 
(as the strawberry), mulching will retard them; but the 
mulching of the earth does not greatly affect the blossom- 


256 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


ing of early-blooming woody plants if the tops are left 
exposed. Plants store up starchy matters in their bulbs 
or branches, to be used in the growth of the adjacent parts 
in early spring. The earliest bloom of spring is supported 
by this store of nutriment, rather than by food freshly 
appropriated from the earth. This is well illustrated by 
placing well-matured twigs of apple or willow (or other 
early-flowering plants) in vases of water in winter, when 
the buds will burst and flowers will often appear. On the 
15th of one February, a branch of a nectarine tree that 
stood alongside a horticultural laboratory was drawn into 
the office through a window. This office was maintained 
at the temperature of a living-room. On the 6th of April 
the buds began to swell, and the young leaves had reached 
a length of 34 inch a week later. The leaves finally attained 
their full size on this branch before the buds on the remain- 
ing or outdoor part of the plant had begun to swell. This 
experiment must impress upon the reader the fact that 
much of the bursting vegetation of springtime is supported 
by a local store of nutriment, and is more or less indepen- 
dent of root-action. If the ground could be kept frozen 
for a sufficiently long period after vegetation begins, the 
plant would consume its supply of stored food, and might 
then be checked from inactivity of the root, but this would 
evidently be at the expense of injury to the plant; but, 
in practice, it is fortunately impossible to hold the frost 
in the soil so long. It is evident, too, that the covering 
of strawberries and other low plants for the purpose of 
retarding fruit must be practised with caution, for a mulch 
of sufficient depth measurably to delay vegetation is 
likely to bleach and injure the young growth, and to lessen 
the crop. Yet it can sometimes be used to good effect, 
and fruiting can be delayed a week, perhaps even more. 


Covering for Protection 257 


Some skilful strawberry-growers are able to delay fruiting 
on small patches as much as two weeks by means of 
mulches. While mulching the ground may not retard the 
period of bloom, and thus enable the plant to escape frost, 
it is possible that it may be useful in protection from frost, 
because it holds moisture, and, therefore, tends to raise 
the dew-point. 


Covering the plants to protect from frost. 


Covering for protection is practicable in many cases. 
The discussion of the mulching of strawberries to protect 
them from ¢éold and from frost, as already described, 
really belongs here. Plants may be protected from both 
winter cold and spring frost by this means. 

Many low-growing plants may be covered with earth. 
It is a practice in some places to plow a furrow or two over 
the strawberry rows when a frost is anticipated; fig trees, 
and other low or flexible-stemmed plants, are often planted 
on sloping land, so that they may be bent to the surface 
and covered when occasion requires. In parts of Russia, 
and other cold countries, the trees of orchard fruits are 
often pegged down in a similar way. 

Grapes are regularly removed from the trellises and 
laid down in some places. The vines may be covered 
lightly with earth, or drawn under boards nailed together 
trough-shaped. Sometimes a few sods are placed on the 
vines to hold them in place, and the snow fills in among 
them and affords adequate protection. 

Blackberries and raspberries are extensively laid down 
in cold climates, and it may be well to relate the method 
here, for the benefit of those who occupy bleak locations. 
Late in fall, the bushes are tipped over and covered. 
Usually three men are employed for this labor. One man 


Q ° 


258 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


goes ahead with a long-handled round-pointed shovel 
and digs the earth away 6 inches deep from under the 
roots. The second man has a six-tined or four-tined fork 
which he thrusts against the plant a foot or so above the 
ground, and by pushing on the fork and stamping against 
the roots with the foot, the plant is laid over in the direc- 
tion from which the earth was removed. The third man 
now covers the plant with the earth or marsh hay. Earth 
is mostly used, and if the variety is tender the whole bush 
is covered 2 to 3 inches deep. Hardy varieties may be 
held down by throwing a few shovelfuls of earth on the . 
tops of the canes, thus allowing the snow to fill in amongst 
the tops. If the grower lives in a locality where late spring 
frosts are not feared, the bushes should be raised early 
in the spring; but if frosts are anticipated, they may be 
left under cover until corn-planting time. If the buds 
become large and are bleached while under cover, they 
will suffer when exposed to the atmosphere; and one must 
watch the bushes in spring, and raise them before the 
growth starts. This method of laying down blackberry 
plants costs less than $15 an acre, and the slight breaking 
of the roots is no disadvantage. Some growers dig the 
earth away on both sides of the row, and still others bend 
over the canes without any digging. Whatever method 
is employed, the operator must be careful not to crack 
or split the canes. The method may be varied with dif- 
ferent varieties, for some bear stiffer canes than others. 

The laying down of orchard trees is little practised 
in this country, but it must come to be better understood 
as the country develops and a greater interest arises in 
amateur fruit-growing. A method of training peach 
trees for laying down is as follows (method of J. T. 
Macomber): The trunk is trained in a horizontal position, 


Covering and Whitewashing 259 


and it should be 10 feet or more long to allow of its being 
twisted. The top is trained fan-shaped and is supported 
by a stake, and the bend of the trunk rests upon a block 
of wood. The long, horizontal trunk remains compara- 
tively small and pliable year after year. It should be 
covered with an inverted board trough at all seasons, to 
prevent injury from the sun. The flat top is laid upon the 
ground each winter, by twisting the trunk, and is covered: 
with boards; it is not lifted until all danger of late spring 
frosts is past. A little ingenuity applied to the pruning and 
training of fruit-trees will make it possible to lay them 
down, by one method or another, with every hope of success. 

Some fruits may be advantageously protected by 
covering them with temporary (or even permanent) 
screens. This is extensively done in pineapple-culture, 
in which the better varieties are grown under lath or slat 
sheds, for the purpose of protection from frost, sun and 
drought; and it is now a practice with citrous fruits in 
parts of Florida. Small or amateur plantations of straw- 
berries, or even of bush-fruits, may be easily covered with 
lath screens when frost is feared. 

In the case of the cranberry, the plant may be covered 
with water, as explained on the next page. . 


Whitewashing as a protection. 


The experiments of Whitten have shown that the 
whitewashing of trees may retard the period of bloom in 
early-flowering fruits, and sometimes sufficiently to allow 
them to escape spring frosts. The reason of this is that 
the white covering reduces the absorption of heat rays, 
since these rays are absorbed mostly by surfaces having 
dark colors; the tree is therefore kept cooler. Thorough 
spraying with lime-sulfur has a similar effect. 


260 The Principles of Fruat-growing 


Making currents of air. 


Since frosts occur on still nights, it is sometimes pos- 
sible to prevent them by keeping the air in motion, thereby 
mixing the air and preventing any part of it from lying 
on the plant until it shall have become frost-cold by loss 
of radiated heat. In small areas, as in choice gardens, it 
is often feasible to undertake such means. It has been 
suggested that windmills be set in motion by electric or 
other power, or that mechanical fans be installed. These 
methods appear not to have been applied commercially. 


Adding vapor of water to the air; flooding. 


An abundance of watery vapor in the air tends to 
check the radiation of the earth’s heat, and the addition 
of water-vapor has an influence in raising the dew-point. 

The means of adding vapor to the atmosphere are 
several: Spraying, flooding and irrigating, mulching and 
tilling. The machinery used in spraying for insects and 
fungi may be used for this purpose. Elaborate stand- 
pipe devices, connecting with underground pipes, have 
been used to facilitate the spraying of orchards. How 
much relief may be found from these practices is yet 
doubtful. The soaking of plantations to protect from 
frost is practicable in places where vineyards are arranged 
to be flooded for the destruction of phylloxera. Irrigating 
systems may also be used to add moisture to the soil, and 
therefore to the air, when frost is anticipated. 

“Cranberry bogs, being always lower than the surround- 
ing land, are peculiarly liable to damage by frost, serious 
loss frequently occurring when an ordinary farmer would 
not dream of danger, and a good supply of water is the 
only preventive that has been found efficient. The time 
of starting growth in the spring may be controlled by the 


Coverings and Explosives 261 


time the water is drained off and the earlier spring frosts 
may so be avoided while an ample supply of water permits 
reflooding when a later severe frost threatens. Reflooding 
about the first of June, provided the water has not been 
withdrawn earlier than May 5 to 10, will also furnish pro- 
tection from a number of damaging insects and will not 
injure the crop, provided care is taken that the water does 
not stand on any portion of the bog more than forty-eight 
hours. If a bog should become seriously infested with 
insects later in the season, it is occasionally profitable to 
sacrifice what remains of the year’s crop and clear the bog 
of insects by flooding. This sometimes results in a greatly 
increased yield the following year. Damage from a light 
frost in the fall, before the berries are picked, may be pre- 
vented by raising the water in the ditches and about the 
roots of the vines. Protection from a heavy frost requires 
covering the plants with water, but this will cause imma- 
ture berries to rot and should be done with great caution 
or the damage from water may be greater than it would 
have been from frost.’”’-—Elizabeth C. White, Standard 
Cyclopedia of Horticulture. 


Explosives for frost and hail. : 


Explosives were first used in the vineyard districts of 
Austria, France and Italy, where hailstorms and frost 
were prevalent and were destructive to the grape-crop. 
Many years ago, Albert Stiger, burgomaster, Windisch- 
Briestrits (Lower Steirmark, Austria), we are informed, 
owned extensive vineyards on the lower slopes of the 
Bacher Mountains, a locality persistently visited by des- 
tructive hailstorms. He decided to drive the clouds away 
by the use of explosives and he established six stations 
on six of the surrounding mountains, a locality 2 miles in 
extent. The stations, built of wood, sheltered ten heavy 


262 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


mortars each, and near each station was a cabin in which 
powder was stored. A corps of volunteers consisting of 
neighbors and owners of small vineyards was trained to 
proceed to the stations and handle the mortars whenever 
there was the slightest indication of a storm. Each mortar 
was loaded 
with about 44% 
ounces of pow- 
der; the firing 
was simulta- 
neous and con- 
tinuous until 
the clouds were 
either scattered 
or blown away. 
This also had a 
tendency to 
break up the 
stratum of cold 
air and prevent 
its settling in 
thelowgrounds. 
‘These experiments were practised fer some time, and 
are said to have been successful. (G. B. Brackett, Year- 
book, U.S. Dept. Agric., 1909.) 

This principle of applying explosives in the upper air 
has received considerable attention for the prevention of 
hail from fruit-growers abroad and it has been introduced 
in the United States, but meteorologists do not look on it 
with favor or as being likely to produce the desired results. 
Fig. 94 is an illustration of one of several hail-guns now 
employed in New York. When hail is threatened in the 
vineyard, these guns are fired repeatedly, heavy charges 


Frost-protection by Means of Smudges 263 


of gunpowder being used. The guns are made of heavy 
sheet metal, and are fired from beneath. The vineyardists 
think that the results have been satisfactory. The sub- 
ject needs investigation. 


The making of smudges. 


Frosts occur on clear nights. This is because the earth’s 
heat radiates quickly into space. When clouds or fogs are 
present, this radiation is checked. It is possible, in many 
cases, to supply a blanket of smoke to check radiation; 
and if this cover also contains much vapor of water, its 
efficiency will thereby be greatly increased. 

The use of smoke or smudges to protect plants from 
frost is an old practice. It is necessary, to secure the great- 
est protection, that the smudge be dense and uniform, and 
especially that it be maintained until all danger of frost 
is past. The best results are usually secured on level 
lands, where the smoke will not drain away, and where 
there are no higher lands from which the cold air may 
settle. 

The best smudges are usually made -by burning some 
tar-like substance. In any case, a smouldering fire is much 
better than a blaze. The fire should burn slowly, and 
attendants should keep the smudge going all night. Wet 
leaves, manure, sawdust, brush, grass, crude-oil and a 
variety of materials are in use for smudges. Some grape- 
growers cut the trimmings into short lengths and pile 
them in vineyards, expecting to use them if frost should 
threaten. If frost does not occur, the piles are burned 
before tillage is begun. Crude petroleum stored in barrel- 
like tanks or receptacles is sometimes conducted through 
the plantation in pipes, and kettles are filled (and ignited) 
at intervals. A mixture of one part gas-tar and two 


264 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


parts sawdust is said to make an excellent material for 
a smudge. 

In Europe, particularly in the vineyard regions, smudg- 
ing is an accepted practice, and there are patented com- 
positions in the way of fuels. One of the systems is that 
of M. Lestout, of Bordeaux: It consists of little cubical 
boxes, 20 centimeters (a little less than 8 inches) square, 


Frnt n eames tty eae Tort a Saee 


Fig. 95. Smudging a vineyard in France. 


weighing seven kilos (fifteen pounds four ounces), and cost- 
ing about 75 centimes (15 cents) apiece. These are placed 
around the field to be protected at a distance of 10 meters 
(82 feet 10 inches) apart, and are easily ignited from a 
torch. The fire emits a black smoke, which can be ren- 
dered more dense by pouring water upon the smudges. 
After a while, the columns of smoke fuse into a thick 
cloud, which settles upon the field, and elevates the tem- 
perature by 2° or 3°. The fires can be instantly put out 
by an extinguisher. M. Lestout declared some years ago 
that 300 smudges, costing 225 francs ($45), will protect a 
vineyard 3,000 meters square—. e., one containing 900 


Orchard Heating 265 


hectares (about 2,200 acres)—namely, at a cost of 25 cen- 
times (5 cents) for each 214 acres. The illustration 
(Fig. 95) shows the Lestout method in operation. In 
North America, the direct heating of plantations is now 
gaining the ascendancy over smudging. 

One of the advantages of a smudge is the utilization 
of it very early in the morning to protect the plantation 
from the sun when the night has been very cold and there 
is reason to think that the buds have been injured. All 
frosted plants should be protected from the sun on the 
chance that they may recover. 


Heating the plantation. 


It is possible and in many cases practicable to heat 
the fruit-plantation by means of fires, even raising the 
temperature as much as 10°. Preparation is made in 
advance, and when the indications point to frost, the 
fires are lighted. The smoke arising from the fires may 
combine the effects of a smudge with the heating of the 
air, although little dependence is commonly placed on 
the smoke. In very recent years, the heating of plan- 
tations has assumed commercial importance, particularly 
in Colorado and on the Pacific slope, and many heating 
devices are now on the market. 

Any combustible material may be used, as wood, straw, 
leaves, shavings, manure, prunings from the plantation, 
coal and oil. The manure and straw are more useful for 
smudging, but the use of wood—as cordwood, old rails, 
stumps, and general refuse—is wholly practicable; the 
material to use is largely a matter of cost. The patented 
oil-burners are compact and effective; and it is now gener- 
ally considered that crude-oil or distillate is the best and 
most economical material to use. 


266 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


Some of the methods in orchard-heating are here 
quoted and adapted from O’Gara, who has had much 
experience in Oregon and has written effectively on the 
subject. 


The number of heaps or piles of home material which should be 
distributed in the orchard will vary somewhat, depending upon the 
kind of material used, about forty to fifty piles to the acre being 
usually sufficient. In most cases a heap or pile was placed between 
every four trees—that is to say, a pile every other tree row in each 
direction in the orchard, as Fig. 96, which illustrates the preparation 
in an apple orchard. Usually it will be found that only half of these 
heaps will have to be lighted at one time, which of course allows a 
large amount of reserve material that may be used in case it is 
impossible to keep the temperature up with only half the fires 
lighted. It is also well to place heaps of fuel on the outer edges or 
borders of the orchard, since it is often found that the outside trees 
may suffer where a slight breeze tends to blow the heat away. 
These piles should be distributed outside the last row of the orchard, 
and in case the temperature can not be kept up they should be 
lighted. 

In case the temperature can not be kept up to 28° F., a certain 
quantity of straw or stable manure, which will produce a dense 
smudge, should be placed upon these heaps before the sun rises. 
These smudges should be started on the side or sides from which 
the wind is blowing, and the material should be wet, so as to make 
it burn without any flame. 

Experience has shown that the fires should not be large, since 
large fires tend to produce convective currents that are apt to bring 
in cold air; hence, the quantity of material for each heap need not 
be very great. Large fires also might scorch the blossoms. From 
four to five pieces of cordwood, or its equivalent in any other kind 
of wood or old rails, are sufficient for a single fire; very often when 
the low temperature is of short duration all of this material will not 
be consumed in a single firing. In case stable manure or rubbish was 
used, a larger number of heaps were placed, and the quantity of 
material to each heap averaged about a bushel or a bushel and a 
half. 


Orchard Heating 267 


The cost of the material for firing varied greatly, depending upon 
how it was obtained. In some cases, where good cordwood was used, 
the cost of one firing was given as $2 an acre. However, it may be 
stated that generally the cost to the acre for one night was between 
$2 and $2.50. In some cases the cost was estimated as high as $4, 
but it is quite possible that more material than was necessary was 
burned, and that-a higher price than usual was paid for it. When 
stable manure and rubbish alone were used, the cost for firing an 
acre was from 4 to 10 cents. This was because the material was on 
hand, and the only element of expense was for distributing it. 


Oil-heating, however, is the most dependable means. 
“No matter how remote a fruit-district may be from an 
oil-field,’”’ writes O’Gara, “there is no question but that 
oil is the best fuel to be used, especiaily in large commercial 
orchards when the labor problem is one of more than ordi- 
nary importance. There is a great deal of difference in the 
oils as secured in different parts of the country. For the 
most part, eastern crude-oils have a paraffine base, while 
those on the Pacific slope have an asphaltum base. The 
crude-oil, or petroleum, as it comes from the wells is very 
rich in gases and the lighter oils, such as benzene, gasolene, 
kerosene and others, and therefore, is not used as such 
for orchard-heating. The gases and lighter oils are all 
- removed by fractional distillation, leaving behind the 
heavier oils and the asphaltum or paraffine base, as the 
case may be. The fuel-oils on the market are, therefore, 
residuals, and as such are used for orchard-heating. A 
residual oil with a paraffine base will burn in the common 
smudge-pot without leaving behind anything but a little 
soot; but the oils with an asphaltum base do not. For 
this reason it is found necessary to remove the asphaltum 
base in so far as is practicable. Asphaltum does not 
burn readily in a simple smudge-pot, and therefore, 
remains behind after the lighter oil has burned. Upon 


268 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


cooling, it becomes very hard, and reduces the capacity of 
the pot for future fillings. The best oil for orchard-heat- 
ing purposes is one of approximately 20° Baumé test, con- 
sidering the matter of cost as an item. A lighter oil up 
to 32° Baumé may be used, but being lighter, it will burn 
more rapidly and reduce the effective burning time of the 
orchard-heater.”’ 

The equipment for orchard-heating comprises appara- 
tus for determining weather conditions as well as devices 
for making and regulating the fires. For a large plantation 
-in which heating is likely to be practised, there should be 
thermometers and frost-alarm thermometers (psychrom- 
eters). the heaters themselves, devices for igniting the 
heaters, reservoirs for storing the oil (if oil is used), and 
a wagon-tank for distributing the oil. 

Many types of oil-heaters are now available, some of 
them with reservoirs for holding an extra quantity of oil. 
O’Gara reports, however, that extensive experiments 
have shown “that the plain sheet-iron pot, holding approx- 
imately five quarts of fuel-oil is just as effective as the more 
complicated and expensive types. This pot is inexpensive, 
and, when made of No. 29 or 26 sheet-iron, will cost from 
5 to 8 cents. In using a heater of such small size, the 
number to the acre should not be less than 100, and 
preferably more in districts in which periods of low tem- 
perature continue more than four or five hours. Owing to 
the cheapness of such pots, a very large number may be 
used in preference to using a few expensive heaters of 
the reservoir type. Many small fires give better results 
than a few large ones, as the heat is better distributed 
and convective air-currents are not produced. It must be 
understood that any orchard-heating device which is in 
any way complicated by dampers, cocks, valves and the 


Orchard-Heating 269 


like, must be avoided. At best, an orchard-heater is 
roughly handled and the more expensive and complicated 
types would find a very short existence in actual orchard- 
heating practice. Furthermore, the matter of storage 
must be considered. The simple pot which will nest easily 
and occupy very little space will be more desirable. There 
is no objection to the high-priced reservoir heater provid- 
ing it is not complicated; but the same results may be 
secured by the more simple lard-pail type, holding about 
five quarts, and having a burning time of four and five 
hours, depending upon the quality of fuel-oil used. 

“The cost of orchard-heating is such a variable quan- 
tity that it is almost impossible to make a general estimate 
which will be of any value. Equipment, cost of fuel, 
length and number of firing periods, and so on, will vary 
in different localities and seasons. Orchard-heaters will 
cost all the way from 6 cents to 50 cents each, and from 
fifty to one hundred heaters, depending upon conditions, 
will have to be used to the acre. The quantity of oil will 
vary with the season, and the cost will be all the way from 
1 to 5 or 6 cents a gallon. Usually, no less than 300 gallons 
an acre should be provided. At least one wagon-tank will 
have to be provided for each 10 acres at a cost of $25. 
Lighters and torches will cost from $1 to $2 an acre; 
thermometers 75 cents to $1 an acre. The cost of a storage- 
tank charged to each acre will depend upon its size, but 
will not be far from $10 an acre for large tracts. It is 
possible to get at the actual cost of fuel-oil to the acre in 
the following way: The quantity of fuel-oil necessary to 
raise the temperature 5° F. above the surrounding air in 
an orchard in full bearing, with wide-spreading trees, will 
be approximately twelve and one-half gallons an hour to 
the acre. This will be true if the air remains calm or does 


270 The Principles of Frutt-growing 


not move more than 1 or 2 miles an hour. In young 
orchards, with the fruiting area low, practically double 
the quantity of fuel-oil as given will be necessary. The 
simple lard-pail type of heater, or, for that matter, any 


oe 
be 

en, -_ 

<x wa “he 


Fia. 96. The using of wood for heating an orchard,—fifty fires to the acre. 


% ae i we 
Ree ° 
oer <t ics worreate 


a a 


type of orchard-heater providing a burning area of about 
44 square inches, will burn about one quart of fuel-oil an 
hour. Fifty-one gallon heaters will burn approximately 
twelve and one-half gallons of fuel-oil an hour and if this 
oil costs 4 cents a gallon, the cost an acre-hour will be 
about 50 cents when all the pots are burning. In other 
words, under the above conditions, it will cost approxi- 
mately 1 cent an hour for each heater used, providing this 
heater does not have a burning surface greater than 44 
square inches. It will require less fuel to heat an orchard 
in the square form than one of any other shape. The 


Orchard-Heating 271 


more the orchard-heaters are massed in the form of a 
square, the better the results. In fact, it is almost impos- 
sible to protect an orchard of only a few rows because 
there is no massing of the heat generated on account of 
the lack of braking effect on air-movement.” Figs. 96, 97, 
98 (from Standard Cyclo. Hort.) show some of the methods 
in orchard-heating. 

Experiments in Indiana (Bull. No. 154) lead Wood- 
berry and Wellington to conclude that ‘‘Whether or not 
orchard-heating pays depends on whether spring frost- 
injury is the limiting factor in the production of the crop. 
There are prohably some orchards on sites of such a 
nature, and cared for so well in every other respect, that 
spring frost-injury is the limiting factor in crop-produc- 
tion. In these orchards, heating would be profitable. 


272 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


In the vast majority of Indiana orchards, spraying, prun- 
ing and good management must become the rule instead 
of the exception before heating will pay. Considering the 
necessity of a reserve of extra heaters for emergency, 
supply of fuel for several successive nights, labor of dis- 
tributing and filling heaters, and labor-cost of firing, the 
initial investment to prepare for protecting a 10-acre 
orchard from frost-injury probably is not far from $500.” 


Fic. 98. Smudge in an Oregon orchard. 


They found oil-heaters to give better results than coal- 
heaters, considering the price and the quick response of 
the oil-burners. A maximum rise of temperature of 10.2° 
was secured with 126 heaters to the acre. When using 
80 to 100 oil-heaters to the acre, the usual temperature 
rise was 5° to 7°. 

In Iowa, Greene found heating of orchards to be 
practicable; the estimated cost for a 10-acre orchard, with 
65 oil-heaters to the acre, was about $375 to $675 (Iowa 
Bull. No. 129). Church and Fergusson report gratifying 


Tying up Young Trees 273 


results in Nevada (Bull. No. 79), with a good profit- 
balance. : 

All these results, together with others not here men- 
tioned, indicate that the possibility of heating orchards to 
protect from spring frosts is now well beyond the experi- 
mental stage; whether it will become a generally profitable 
practice with deciduous fruits, however, remains yet to 
be determined. ’ 


SPECIAL CARE OF THE PLANTS 


Many special practices, some of them local, are very 
important to the fruit-grower, and raise many questions. 
Some of these may now be briefly considered, along with 
other problems on which information may be desired. 


Staking young trees. 


If fruit-trees are stocky and well planted, and if the 
land is deep and in good condition, it will rarely be neces- 
sary to stake them. The staking of an orchard is usually 
an indication of poor trees or poor management at some 
point. It occasionally happens, however, that trees must 
be staked to enable them to overcome some accident or 
injury, as breaking by heavy winds or ice. When it 
is necessary to stake trees, it is ordinarily best to 
drive a stout stake on two sides and then to bind the tree 
firmly to each of these stakes, in order to keep it from 
whipping. The best bandage is of burlaps or other strong 
soft cloth, cut in strips 2 or 3 inches wide and firmly tied 
about the tree. Just as soon as the tree has recovered 
from its injury or weakness, the support should be re- 
moved. Trees that have blown over, but have not been 
broken completely off, may be severely headed-in and 
tied up in this way, often with the very best results. The 

R 


274 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


wounded and broken surfaces should be thoroughly covered 
with some antiseptic wash or paint, or with grafting-wax. 


Watering. 


If the young trees or other plants are set in autumn or 
early in the spring and in well-prepared ground, there 
‘should be very little loss from lack of moisture to start 
them off well. In late spring planting, however, and if the 
trees are either shrivelled or have begun to start, the dry 
hot weather may catch them before they are well estab- 
lished. In exceptionally: dry springs, many trees may be 
lost even with the best of care at the beginning. In all 
such cases, one good watering at the critical time may save 
the bushes or trees. If some of them are very slow to 
start, they should receive separate attention. See whether 
the earth has been properly firmed about them, and 
whether they have been sufficiently pruned. If the water- 
ing is undertaken, it should be liberal. A young tree may 
well receive a pail of water, so that the tissues may be 
well plumped up and revived. When the water has settled 
away about the tree, cover the place with loose earth or 
apply a mulch of straw or similar material. It may pay 
to go over a doubtful plantation with a clean spray tank 
and apply water to all trees that give signs of not starting. 

Even bearing trees in dry places, as on thin hillsides, 
may be carried through a dry spell by one or two thor- 
ough soakings. Remove the fruit also, if the tree appears 
to be failing. 


Bark-bound trees. 


When:a tree has been allowed to become stunted for 
two or three or more years, it is very likely to be hide- 
bound, so that growth is impeded, even though the care 


Hide-bound Trees 275 


of the plantation be corrected. The bark becomes very 
thick and dense and tight, and is likely to be dull and 
lifeless in color and sometimes moss-covered. The newer 
and fresher parts of the tree are likely to show a tendency 
to overgrow the lower parts. In all such cases, the bark 
should be softened so as to allow the trunk to expand. 
In general, the best means of loosening up the bark is to 
scrape off the outer hard layer, if it should become mossy 
or entirely dead, and then to wash the tree thoroughly 
with some soapy compound. This washing should be 
done with a broom, or preferably with a strong scrubbing- 
brush, so that the body may be vigorously scrubbed. A 
wash of strong soapsuds is very good. Tar soap, whale-oil 
soap or carbolic soap are also very useful for the purpose. 
These washes have the effect of softening the bark and 
allowing the tree to grow more readily. The effect of a 
good wash on orchard trees is often exceedingly marked. 
It is probable that the potash in the washes eventually 
becomes plant-food by being washed off to the soil, 
although the chief value of the wash is no doubt the soft- 
ening and loosening effect on the bark. The washing also 
has the additional advantage of killing various insects 
and their eggs that may be in or about the bark. Spraying 
with bordeaux mixture, or lime-sulfur, will kill the lichen 
or ‘moss’ on the trunks. 

Another means of releasing the pressure in tight- 
jacket trees is to slit the bark the entire length of the trunk 
or hide-bound part. This is done by thrusting the point 
of a knife through the bark until it strikes the wood, and 
then drawing the blade down the entire length of the area 
to be treated. When the knife is withdrawn, the slit is 
scarcely visible; but after a time the slit widens, as the 
tree begins to expand. This method is to be advised only 


276 The Principles of Frutt-growing 


as an extreme resort, for it is better to keep the bark fresh 
and elastic by good tillage and by the use of washes; but 
the slitting is of no damage to the tree, as a rule. 


Scraping trees. 


The outer layers of bark gradually die and peel off. 
This old rough bark is of no direct use to the plant, but it 
probably affords some protection to the tender tissues 
within. It also affords a lodgment for insects and fungi. 
Trees in good condition of growth and which are watched 
carefully, will need very 
little, if any, attention 
in the removing of the 
bark; but if the shaggy 
bark accumulates to any 

Fie. 99. Scraper for cleaning and repair great extent, it is well 

ing trees, 

to scrape off the loosest 

part. The operation should be performed when the warm 
weather approaches in spring, or, in fact, at almost any 
time in the growing season. A good tool for this purpose 
is an old and thin hoe, the handle of which is cut down to 
about 2 feet in length. This tool is grasped lightly, and is 
raked up and down the tree, and it removes the rough 
bark readily. The best tool for the purpose, however, is 
that shown in Fig. 99, which is a steel plate with sharp- 
ground edges, fastened securely to a bent shank. This 
tool may be had of hardware dealers, to whom it is known 
as a box-scraper. Aside from removing the loose bark 
from the trunks, this tool is useful in cutting out and 
removing diseased spots on the bodies or in the crotches. 
The wounds resulting from the barking of trees may be 
trimmed down to fresh tissue by such a tool and a knife, 
and all spots injured by bark-borers, spots of pear-blight, 


Scraping and Whitewashing 277 


patches of canker, and the like, may be cut away, and the 
wounded surfaces are thereafter covered with bordeaux 
mixture or paint. 

In the scraping of trees, it is advisable to take away 
every particle of wounded and diseased tissue, unless it 
extends deep into the wood. When the object is simply 
to take away the rough and loose bark, the tree should not 
be scraped down to the quick; that is, only the loose 
exterior part should be removed. 

The scraping of trees merely for looks is to be avoided. 
Itinerant quacks are likely to make it appear that all the 
outer bark should be removed from the trunk and branches 
of orchard and shade trees; but, as a general practice, the 
bark should be allowed to remain where it grows. 


Whitewashing trees. 


There is probably no virtue in whitewash, unless to 
retard the budsin bright climates (page 259), and perhaps to 
keep the trunks cool and to act as a protection from sun. 
The whitewashing of tree-trunks is a cleansing process, 
particularly when the material is applied vigorously with 
a brush or broom. Aside from these secondary uses, the 
whitewashing of trees has no particular merit. It is not 
employed by commercial orchardists. If trunks and 
branches are sprayed with lime-sulfur or bordeaux mix- 
ture (as they should be), there will be little occasion for 
resorting to whitewash as a cleansing agent. 


Ringing. 

Observation of girdled branches shows that there is 
likely to be congestion of the parts immediately above the 
girdle, indicating that those parts are then overfed; 
that is, they receive nutriment at the expense of the parts 


278 The Principles of Frutt-growing 


below the girdle. It would seem, therefore, that inten- 
tional girdling might be made to increase the size and 
hasten the maturity of fruit borne beyond the girdle; and 
such is known to be the case. The girdling of grapes is 
a common practice in some regions. The girdled parts 
are entirely removed in the next annual pruning, and 
enough of the growing part is left below the girdle to 
maintain the roots and trunk. It will be seen, therefore, 
that the liability of injury to the vine is all a question of 
how much is left below the girdle and how much above it. 
Careful vineyardists are able to continue the practice 
year after year without apparent injury to the vine. The 
girdling or “ringing”’ is done when the grapes are about 
the size of peas, and a section of bark about an inch wide 
is entirely removed from the cane. A gain in earliness of a 
week to ten days may be secured by the process, but it is 
commonly thought that the quality of the better grapes 
is injured. In practice, only the very earliest varieties of 
grapes are girdled or ringed for commercial purposes; and 
it is doubtful whether the practice is to be commended. 
Apples and other fruit-trees are sometimes ringed to 
set them into bearing. Many orchards develop a habit of 
redundant wood-bearing, and these are often thrown into 
fruiting by some check to the trees, as seeding down, 
girdling, and the like. Probably every orchardist has ob- 
served that the attacks of borers sometimes cause trees 
to bear. It is an old maxim that checking growth induces 
fcuitfulness. This may be the explanation of the fact that 
driving nails into plum and peach trees sometimes sets 
the trees to bearing, and also of the similar influence 
exerted by a label wire that has cut into the bark, or of a 
partial break in a branch. Ringing to set trees into 
bearing is an old and well-known practice, but it is not to 


Girdling for a Purpose 279 


be advised as a general resort, although it may be allow- 
able to employ it on one or two of the minor branches of 
an unprofitable tree for the purpose of determining 
whether the tree needs a check. One sometimes sees a tree 
on which one or two large limbs have been girdled, and 
these limbs may be bending with fruit when the remaining 
branches and the adjacent trees are barren. 

Ringing may usually be performed with safety in 
spring, when the leaves are putting out. A ring of bark 
2 or 3 inches wide may be removed to the wood, and en- 
tirely encircling the limb. One hears of excellent results 
following the simple severing of the bark—but removing 
none of it—completely around the tree with a sharp 
knife, in spring. These, of course, are only incidental 
operations, to be employed with caution. The treat- 
ment of trees that have been damaged by girdling 
is quite another subject; this is discussed on page 
290. 

The regulations of societies and exhibitions usually 
prohibit the competition of fruits produced on girdled 
branches with those produced normally. 


Top-grafting bearing trees. 


One of the important factors in the secondary care of 
an apple orchard is the grafting over of old trees or of 
worthless varieties. Whether it will pay to graft trees 
after they are fifteen or twenty years old depends on 
how profitable the trees are in their present condition. If 
they are bringing in no return, then nothing can be lost if 
they are grafted; and if the trees are strong and healthy, 
and not too old to make vigorous growth, there is reason 
to expect that much may be gained. If the operation 
of top-grafting is properly done, the trees ought to be 


i I Wie Chay 
Alii ee NAM 


Fic. 100. Top- ae young. apple 
tree, after wu years. 


The Principles of Fruit-growing 


completely changed over to 
a new variety in three or four 
years (Fig. 100). It should 
be said, however, that the 
careful fruit-grower will find 
out whether his trees are to 
be profitable or not long 
before they reach the age of 


- fifteen or twenty years. If 


there are strong indications 
that the varieties are un- 
suited to his needs, the sooner 
they are grafted the better. 
In grafting the top of an 
old apple tree, it should be 


borne in mind that the operation at best is harsh, and that 


the top should be replaced 


as quickly aspossible. Effort \ 


should be made to graft 
only limbs of comparatively 
small size (say not more 
than 1144 to 2 inches in 
diameter, and preferably 
less), and to set very many 
cions, even if some of them 
need to be cut out after 
two or three years. The 
setting of so many cions is 
somewhat expensive, but 
the orchardist should be 
able to do the work himself. 
Finally, it should not be 
expected that a remodeled 


Fia.101. Undesirable form of 
top-grafted tree. 


Top-grafting 281 


old tree shall be of as good and handy shape as one that 
has been grown properly from the start. 

In forming the new top, care should be taken to 
avoid bad crotches, such as are represented in Fig. 101 
(from G. H. Powell, Del. Bull., as is also Fig. 100). 
The new scaffold branches should alternate and should 
spread widely. Sometimes the trunk is grafted midway, 
and the top taken out farther up; in such cases, the union 
usually remains apparent throughout the life of the tree 
(Fig. 102). 


Grafteng-waz. 


The waxes 
used in grafting 
are of two gen- 
eral kinds,—the 
resin- beeswax 
preparations, 
and the alcoholic 


waxes. The 


7 Fia. 102, ‘The pide of the erate on he trunk of 
former kinds are Ey ald dachcen 


hard waxes that 

must be worked up and warmed in the hands when they 
are applied, or sometimes they are melted and run on in 
a liquid state; the latter kinds are liquid or paste plastics 
that harden on exposure (on evaporation of the alcohol). 


Standard wax.—Resin, 4 parts by weight; beeswax, 2 parts by 
weight; rendered tallow, 1 part by weight. Melt all together in a 
kettle over a stove, avoiding boiling; then pour the liquid into 
a pail or tub of water to harden; then work with the hands, pulling 
it to a grain; make up into convenient balls or skeins. It will keep 
for years. 

Softer wax.—Resin, 4 parts by weight; beeswax, 2 parts by weight; 
linseed oil, 1 part or more, according as the material must be hard or 


282 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


soft. Adaptable for use in cold weather. On account of the impurities 
in linseed oil, this wax is now likely to be unreliable; and it may be 
better to use a greater quantity of tallow in the Standard wax given 
above. 

Alcoholic wax.—White resin, 1 pound; beef tallow, 1 ounce; tur- 
pentine, 1 tablespoonful; alcohol, 5 ounces (more or less). Melt the 
resin; add the tallow; remove from fire and gradually stir in the tur- 
pentine and alcohol. Keep closed. Apply with brush. 


Bagging fruits. 


When it is desired to secure extra-fine fruit, it is a 
good plan to tie up the fruits in paper bags. This keeps 
away the insects and fungi, and protects the fruit from 
birds (although the whiteness of the bags is likely to 
attract thieves at night), and the fruit is likely to ripen 
later or at least to hang later, and to be of higher quality 
because of the warmth that the bag affords. The bag- 
ging of grapes is a frequent practice when exhibition or test 
specimens are desired; it is also employed in commercial 
work with grapes. It is customary to pin the bags on the 
clusters when the grapes are a third to a half grown. Bags 
made of mosquito netting are very useful later in the sea- 
son when it is desired to secure the full color of highly 
colored fruit. 

If it is desired to bring out the blossoms of a tree very 
early in the spring, it may be done by tying grocers’ bags 
on the spurs when the buds first begin to swell. 


Winter preparations. 


Tn winter, plants are exposed to injuries of wind, snow, 
water, ice, mice, rabbits, and the like. Before the season 
closes, the farmer should see that young trees stand stiff 
and straight, and in order to keep them rigid and to afford 
good surface drainage, it is sometimes well (especially 


To Prepare for Winter 283 


with newly set trees in cold climates) to bank up the trees 
with earth to the height of 6 or 8 inches. In making the 
bank, the workman should be cautioned not to leave 
holes, from which the earth is taken, close about the tree, 
for the water is likely to stand in them, and it may do 
harm. In small-fruit, grape and nursery plantations, it is 
often advisable to plow a furrow toward the plants, on 
either side, in the autumn. Care should be taken to pro- 
vide for top-drainage if the conformation of the land is 
such as to hold surface water. 

The protecting of bush-fruits, grapes and even trees 
from winter cold has been discussed on pages 257-259. 


RENOVATING OLD ORCHARDS 


It is impossible to give any specific method of pro- 
cedure when it is desired to renovate an old and profitless 
orchard. The first question is, whether the orchard is 
worth renovating,—whether it is too old, too few trees 
remaining, trees too much weakened by borers and 
rotten hearts and other injuries, or trees so very tall and 
sprawly as to promise little return for the effort that must 
be expended on them. 

If the orchard is thought to be worth it, then the next 
requisite is a change of heart on the part of the owner. 
It is then necessary to discover the causes of its unprofit- 
ableness—to diagnose the difficulty—and forthwith to go 
straight at the root of the evil. It must be remembered, 
also, that a long-neglected orchard cannot be expected to 
arrive at the profitable condition which trees enjoy that 
have received proper care from the beginning, no matter 
how thorough the means of recuperating it may be. At 
the best, one can make only an apology for long years of 


284 The Principles of Frutt-growing 


carelessness and mistakes. If the grower once arrives at a 
clear conception of the agencies that make for productive- 
ness, he will readily perceive what the trouble with his 
orchard may be. Most neglected apple orchards need a 
general overhauling,—tillage, fertilizing, pruning, spray- 
ing, sometimes top-grafting, and often removal of part of 
the trees. 

The land must be tilled. This may demand a heavy 
trimming up of the trees to allow a team to work; and in 
many of the forest-like 
old orchards it may be 
economy to cut out a 
third or half the trees 
at the start. Perhaps 
the roots are so high 
that the land cannot 
be plowed. In such 
case, the land may be 
broken up in the spring, 
before the earth be- 
comes hard, by means 
of spading-harrows, disc-harrows, spring-tooth harrows 
and similar vigorous tools. Or corn and other grain may 
be dropped freely in holes made with a crow-bar, and the 
hogs then turned in to root for it. 

The earth-mulch once secured to save the moisture, 
it may next be necessary to apply plant-food, either in 
the form of stable manures, green crops or concentrated 
fertilizers, or in all these forms together. 

It is probable that the trees will need heavy pruning 
(Figs. 103, 104, from Jarvis). But this pruning is for 
the purpose of correcting the results of years of neglect, 
not for the purpose, directly, of making the trees to 


Neglected Orchards 285 


bear. In fact, the effect of heavy pruning is likely to be 
the very opposite of fruit-bearing; but it must be done in 
most old orchards to bring the trees back into manageable 
shape, to produce new and fresh wood for fruit-bearing, 
and to thin the top sufficiently to allow the fruit to 
develop to something like perfection of size and quality. 
Weak trees may sometimes be re-invigorated by this 
heavy pruning alone. Severe heading-in of decrepit peach 
trees often accomplishes this. Tall long-armed apple 
trees may sometimes be 
headed-back severely 
for the purpose of estab- 
lishing a new top, if 
the trees still retain 
much vigor. When the 
new wood is once 
formed and the tree has 
re-established its equi- wt 

librium, fruit-bearing jo, 104. The same tree as Fig. 103, after the 
may be expected to aieauai 

begin, if soil is good and other conditions are right. 

It will next be necessary to begin hunting for borers 
and other squatters and campers. The trees will very 
likely need to be thoroughly sprayed to dislodge the 
army of hangers-on that has held undisputed possession 
of the territory perhaps for a score of years. Cut out dis- 
eased spots, fill the holes with wax or cement, remove dis- 
eased limbs, take off the shaggy hanging bark. In other 
words, it may be necessary to give the trees a general 
cleaning up. 

If the trees are of the wrong varieties and are still 
vigorous, it will probably pay to top-graft them, as 
already explained (page 279), if they are apples, pears, 


Sa a rad 


286 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


oranges or cherries. Old and poor peach, apricot, plum 
and quince trees would better be pulled out. 

Much good work has been done in the renovation of 
neglected orchards, particularly apple orchards, and 
results have been published widely in bulletin and press. 
These tests constitute some of the best applications of 
investigation to horticulture; and they also demonstrate 
that in existing profitless plantations the country has a 
latent asset as responsive to development as local mines, 
quarries and streams. 


Why are orchards barren? 


It may aid the grower to analyze the difficulty if he 
asks himself the above question, and then tries to answer 
it. The commonest reason why old orchards are barren is 
because they are in sod,—that is, because they are untilled. 
and unfed. There are men enough in the country who 
have taught that sodded orchards are wrongly managed 
orchards. They have been combatted by citations of 
orchards that are in sod but are still productive. They 
have replied that, in some cases, for a combination of 
reasons, orchards may do well in continuous sod, but they 
have still fallen back on the rationale of land management, 
and have said that the system is wrong, nevertheless. 
Time is rapidly demonstrating the accuracy of their 
teaching. It is a case in which a handful of philosophy 
is worth more than a forkful of facts. 

If one asks why orchards are barren, let him fill out 
the following synopsis by way of review of some of the 
principles enunciated in this book: 

The nature of the problem: Each case must be investigated by 


itself; teaching must be along the line of essentials, not statements 
of rules. The eight general factors that determine productiveness are: 


Factors of Productiveness 287 


. Tae Location Factor. 

Improper climate, aspect, land; insufficient drainage. 

. Tae PuantaTion Factor. 

(a) Age of trees, (b) the “stand,’””—whether too thick. 

. Tae Tittace Factor. 

Soil-structure. Fertility as influenced by (a) fineness, (b) 
conditions of root-hold, (c) life processes, (d) air-hold- 
ing capacity, (e) water-holding capacity. 

Sod in orchards. 

Cover-crops. 

. Tue Fertiviry Factor. 

Conceptions of the uses of nitrogen, potash, phosphoric 
acid, lime, in fruit-production. 

. Tae Pronine Facror. 

(a) The relation of pruning to wood-growth and fruit- 
growth, (b) reshaping of the top to bring it within reach 
and to make it amenable to treatment, (c) reinvigorating 
the tree. 

. Tae Variety Factor. 

(a) Unproductive varieties, (6) unadapted varieties, (c) 
impotent varieties, (d) top-working. 

. Tae PropaGaTIOoN Factor. 

(a) The individuality of the tree, and its power to perpetu- 
ate its characteristics, (6) poor physical union of cion 
and stock. 

. THe Parasite Factor. 

(a) Fungi, (6) insects. Spraying. 


CHAPTER VIII 
ACCIDENTS AND INJURIES 


Wuat may happen to a fruit-plantation is beyond the 
wisdom of any man to foresee. One may be sure of having 
difficulties that are not set down in the books. Hail, 
wind, frost, drought, roaming live-stock, bad places in 
the land, trees not true to name, are among the proba- 
bilities. Some of the prevailing injuries that may be 
more or less remedied are mentioned in this separate 
chapter. 

Probably the greatest menace to the fruit-plantation 
is the hired man. Some men have no feeling for a tree. 
They will run over young trees, bark and scratch old ones, 
and break the limbs with no blush of conscience and 
with no care to bind up and mend the wounds. They are 
likeiy to work special evil in grubbing for borers, cutting 
more than is necessary, covering up shiftless work, and 
perhaps leaving the borer for bait. Discrimination in the 
choice of help is a prime consideration on a fruit-farm, not 
only in the care of the trees but also in the handling of the 
fruit after it is mature. Herein is one of the advantages 
of living in a fruit’ country, where most of the hired help 
has had some training in the business. Green and in- 
experienced hands should not be left alone in a fruit- 
plantation. The-only safe man for such a plantation is 
one who feels that the welfare of the fruit-trees or plants 
is his first consideration; he must like the fruit-growing 
business and be proud of his connection with it. 

(288) 


Depredations 289 
MISCELLANEOUS INJURIES 


The fruit-grower will not expect to find all his troubles 
explained in a book. There are some difficulties that he 
must solve alone and for himself. Yet some of the acci- 
dents that his trees are almost sure to meet sooner or 
later may be discussed briefly. 


Depredations of live-stock. 


Injuries of trees can be prevented in sheep pastures 
and hog pastures by giving the animals plenty to eat and 
especially plenty to drink. They are very likely to gnaw 
the trees for the moisture. If, however, the animals begin 
to injure the trees, the only recourse is either to take them 
out or to build wide racks about the trunks; but any sort 
of rack or fence prevents the proper care of the tree. Cer- 
tain animals in a herd of swine may be specially vicious 
about trees, and they should be removed. Horned cattle 
(or cattle of any kind) are not in place in an orchard. If 
the orchard adjoins a pasture, the fences should be kept 
in good repair. 


Birds. 


The incursions of birds in cherries and small-fruits 
may sometimes be overlooked by planting in such quantity 
that the birds may get their fill without ruining the 
plantation. Cherry orchards may sometimes be pro- 
tected by planting a number of trees of very early sweet 
varieties around the outside of the field. Some persons 
advise the free planting of mulberries to feed the birds; 
but they might increase the difficulty by attracting more 
birds to the place. In some cases, it is impossible to save 
the fruit unless fire-arms are used; but it is usually suffi- 

Ss 


290 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


cient to fire blank cartridges a few times to scare the birds 
away, and thereby obviate the necessity of killing them. 

Small trees and garden-plats of small-fruits may be 
protected from birds by means of netting manufactured 
for that purpose. 


Rodents. 


Mice and other vermin injure trees mostly in cold 
winters, when green food is scarce. They are likely to be 
especially bad in new countries. The best preventive of 
injuries from mice is to see that there is no material, as 
dead grass or weeds, close to the base of the tree, in which 
the rodents can nest. If the litter is not taken away, it 
should at least be tramped down tightly before winter 
sets in. The best preventive of injury by rabbits is not to 
have the rabbits. If the brush-piles and old fence-rows, 
in which the animals harbor, are cleaned away, there will 
commonly be little trouble; and, at all events, a smart boy 
who is fond of hunting will ordinarily solve the question 
without help, so far as the game laws allow. 

If mice are very damaging, it may be advisable to put 
cylinders of wire netting about the trees, as elsewhere 
recommended (page 293). Rolls of birch bark are some- 
times used in regions where the paper-birch grows. It 
should be considered, however, that such covers for the- 
bodies of trees interfere with clean culture about the base 
of the tree, and they are likely to afford a most excellent 
place for the lodgment of insects. 


Girdled trees. 


Trees that have been girdled by rabbits, mice or 
otherwise should have the injured parts pared down to 
live tissue and the wounded surface then covered with an 


Treating Girdled Trees 291 


antiseptic dressing. It is also advisable to bind up the 
girdle with some material like grafting-wax, that will 
keep the wood moist and thereby allow the ascent of the 
sap-water; for the water rises in the tree through the 
young soft wood, and not between the wood and the bark. 
The bark is formed over the wound by material that is 
redistributed through the tree after it has been elaborated 
in the leaves; that is, the reparative tissue on the trunk 
is formed by elaborated sap that is on its downward 
course. If the woody tissue is kept soft and fresh, the 
tree may continue to live for years, but there will be a 
deposition of woody matter above the girdle, while the 
part below will not increase in diameter. This is well 
known to all observing fruit-growers. After a while the 
younger wood is likely to become hard and dry, prevent- 
ing the upward passage of root-water, and the tree then 
starves to death; or, the top may become so heavy that 
the plant breaks off at the point of constriction. It is, 
therefore, necessary that the orchardist give careful atten- 
tion to his label wires, to prevent them from doing great 
injury. It is always best to take the nursery labels from 
young trees when they are set, and to depend on a map 
record for the names of the varieties; or, if the label is 
left on the tree, it is best to hang it on one of the minor 
limbs, rather than on the trunk; or a less dangerous 
label may be substituted. In adjusting the label wire to 
the tree, it is important that only the ends of the wire be 
twisted together, thereby providing a large loop in which 
the limb may expand. The label may be held tightly to 
the limb by pinching the wires together with the fingers. 

Trees freshly girdled in the growing time of spring may 
be expected to heal over before the season is past, if the 
girdled zone is not more than 4 or 5 inches wide, and if the 


292 The Principles of Frutt-growing 


surface of the wood, as already explained, is kept fresh. 
It is usually best, however, if no connection of bark 
remains, to bridge over the girdle by cions. These cions 
are of the same kind as those used for ordinary grafting. 
The edges of the girdle are pared down to fresh wood, and 
the cions are cut 2 or 3 inches longer than the width of 
the girdle. They are whittled to a wedge shape on either 
end, and these ends are inserted between the bark and 
the wood on the upper and lower rims of the girdle. They 
should be so numerous as almost to touch each other en- 
tirely around the tree. After they are inserted, a strip of 
cloth should be bound tightly upon the bark over their 
ends, and the whole girdle should 
then be waxed over. It is a good plan 
to pour alcoholic wax over the work, 
allowing it to run in between the 
cions and cover the edges of the 
bark and the exposed wood surface. 


Hail injuries. 

The injuries caused by hail are 
very often confounded with those 
wrought by borers and other pests, 
and it is the delight of many persons 
to endeavor to puzzle the experi- 
Fic, 105. Injuries by hail Menters and teachers with specimens 

oon of such work. Plum limbs injured by 


hail-stones are shown natural size in Fig. 105. Nothing 
special can be done for such injuries. They soon heal. 


Sun-scald. 


Often it is necessary to shade the trunks of young trees 
to prevent sun-scald, particularly in the hot plains region. 


Injuries by Sun Scald 293 


In the nursery-rows, the bodies of the trees are ordinarily 
well shaded. There are various means of providing this 
shade, but the best results may be expected to follow 
some protection that breaks 
the force of the sun and does 
not entirely obstruct it; for 
in the latter case, the bark 
does not so readily become 
inured to exposure to sunshine. = 
Finely woven wire netting 
rolled around the tree (in more 
than one thickness, if neces-* 
sary), is said to afford very 
good protection for this pur- 
pose, as shown in Fig. 106 
(but preferably extending 
higher up the trunk). The 
upper part of the trunk is 
likely to be shaded sufficiently 
by the branches, although this 
is not always the case. These 
rolis of wire netting also serve 
a purpose in keeping away : 
mice and other vermin. A box Fic. 106. Tree protected from sun 
of boards (Fig. 107, from S. B. and rabbits by a roll of netting. 
Green) is sometimes used to protect from sun and other 
injuries. 

Hansen writes as follows on this subject for Dakota 
conditions: ‘Trees planted and kept with stem leaning 
toward the southwest until the branches shade the trunk, 
are free from it. Some fruit-growers set a board, or two 
boards nailed together trough-fashion, on the southwest 
side; others use corn-stalks, wire netting or lath. Low- 


294 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


headed trees are best for severe locations; in more favor- 
able sections trees may be headed 21% to 3 feet high. Tall 
trunks suffer more from sun-scald and severe winds.” 

Trees are liable to injury from sun-scald after a heavy 
pruning, especially if they have been allowed to grow too 
thick in the first place. 
Cutting out heavily 
from the center of the 
tree exposes the oblique 
and horizontal limbs to 
the intense heat of the 
sun, and the bark is 
liable to blister and be 
killed, after which borers 
are very likely to finish 
the work of destruction. 
In all interior hot re- 
gions, therefore, it is 
well to exercise caution 
in the pruning of the 
tops of trees. It is better to keep the top somewhat thin 
and open from the start, rather than to allow it to- 
become overgrown and then to make a sudden correction. 

Perhaps sun-scald is a form of winter injury due to the 
rapid fall of temperature when the sun leaves the south- 
western side of the tree; but the above treatment applies 
in any case. 


oi 


Fia. 107. A boxed apple tree. 


Borers. 


The best treatment for borers and similar insect 
pests is to watch the plants carefully, and to dig the 
insects out at least twice every year. In grounds kept in 
clean tillage, such insects are rarely so troublesome as 


Hunting Borers 295 


in neglected areas. This is both because the insects find 
places of lodgment in neglected orchards, and because the 
fruit-grower is so seldom present that he does not discover 
them in season. Orchards should be gone over every 
spring and autumn for borers; this is patient hand-and- 
knee work, but it is the only sure way. The grower is 
certain of the borer when he has him under the knife. 

Borers in the stalks of currants and raspberries are 
despatched by cutting the canes and burning them. The 
affected canes usually show lack of vigor, yellowing or 
wilting leaves, and are sometimes limp. 

Peach trees are attacked by two very destructive 
borers,—the regular large borer larva, 34 inch long when 
mature, and the very small borer beetle known as the 
bark-beetle or pine-hole borer. The treatment for the 
former is to dig out in spring and autumn, and at the 
same time to apply gas-tar or coal-tar from the roots to 
1 foot or so from the ground. The bark-beetle usually 
attacks trees that are not in full vigor, as those that have 
been shattered by winter cold or lessened in vitality by 
other borers, lack of tillage, overbearing and general 
neglect. The first thing to do is to put the trees in vig- 
orous condition; then whitewash the trunk and branches 
late in March, in July and in October (in the North).. 

Some of the protective devices or materials are more 
or less effective against borers in orchard trees; but the 
grower should not lessen his vigilance. Wire screen is 
good if made tight about the top and where the edges 
come together and if it stands far enough from the tree 
to prevent the beetle from ovipositing through it. Tarred 
paper is sometimes used, but it often injures trees if 
allowed to remain in warm weather. Gas-tar may be 
applied about the crown of peach and other trees, extend- 


296 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


ing a foot or so above the ground. Coal-tar is used with 
safety. Soap and carbolic washes in early summer are 
effective against the flat-headed borer (this borer is likely 
to work on the sun-scalded or injured parts of the trunk 
and larger limbs); probably ifthe trunks are well drenched 
with the lime-sulfur spray, the injury will be lessened. 
The use of axle-grease is not advisable. It is possible that 
no injury would result, but on the other hand if the grease 
should contain any of the oils, which soak into the trunk, 
or any turpentine, it might kill the trees. The addition 
of sulfur will do no harm, and also no good. 

In short-generation plants, as the small-fruits, rotation 
of plantations is a very important means of circumventing 
borers and some other pests. This is specially true of the 
strawberry, in preventing depredations of the root-borer, 
root-louse and white grub. Short, sharp rotations, clean 
tillage, burning of rubbish about the plantation, vigorous 
plants, are very effective means of getting ahead of many 
pests. 


Cankers and bad spots; wounds. 


Rough and sunken places in the bark on apple trees 
may be cankers, produced by a parasitic fungus (the canker 
of the peach is produced by the same fungus that causes 
the fruit-rot); smooth, dead, more or less sunken spots on 
apples, pears and quinces may be due to pear-blight. 
There are other kinds of bad spots in the bark, the cause 
perhaps unknown. In some cases they may be due to the 
work of the flat-headed borer or to sun-scald (page 292). 

The treatment of cankers is described as follows by 
Jehle (Cornell Circ. 26): “Whatever the origin of cankers, 
their treatment is essentially the same except that in the 
case of an infectious disease, such as the brown-rot canker, 


Treating Cankers “297 


the work must be done with great care in order to insure 
that all trace of the fungus is eliminated. Whenever the 
cankers occur on limbs that can be removed without 
detriment to the tree, it is best to remove them while 
pruning; care being taken to cut several inches below any 
visible injury, as the living fungus in the brown-rot canker 
extends back beyond any external evidence of the dis- 
ease, and if allowed to remain will continue to infect 
healthy wood. If the cankers occur on limbs that it is 
desirable to save, they should be cleaned out by removing 
all the diseased wood a short distance back of any visible 
evidence of the disease. The diseased wood and bark can 
be readily detected by its brown color. In the brown-rot 
cankers it is very important to remove all this discolored 
tissue, as it is in this tissue that the fungus lives and if it is 
not removed the disease will spread. The amount of bark 
that it is necessary to remove depends on the extent of 
the diseased part. Sometimes the fungus has extended so 
far beyond the healthy callus that it is necessary to remove 
it entirely; while at other times the fungus may have 
extended but slightly into the upper and lower extremities 
of the callus and it is necessary only to remove a small 
part. It is always well to leave as much of the callus as 
possible, to facilitate healing. All the dead bark and twigs 
should be removed. It is not necessary to remove any of 
the solid wood except to smooth the treated part. The 
wound should be pointed at the upper and lower extremi- 
ties and the bark should be cut at right angles to the 
wood. As soon as the wound has dried out it should be 
coated with gas-tar. The gas-tar acts as a disinfectant 
and preservative, and no other treatment is necessary. 
Trials have been made in order to determine this point, 
and it is now evident that the use of corrosive sub- 


298 The Principles of Frutt-growing 


limate or lime-sulfur solution in addition to the gas-tar is 
unnecessary.” 

The collar-rots are infections, or winter injuries, about 
the base of the tree. Often they girdle the trunk. Some 
varieties seem to be particularly liable, as the Tomp- 
kins King among apples. Whether there are specific 
organisms for these collar-rots seems not to be known. 
Sometimes they may be cankers, or general infections 
following the “barking” of trees, or in windshakes. In 
any case, the remedy is to cut away the infected parts 
and to paint the area as for cankers. Very bad wounds 
should be bound up, to prevent evaporation and to afford 
protection. If the rot is discovered before it has made 
great headway, it may sometimes be stopped. Badly 
infested trees show yellowing and general loss of vigor. 

Similar treatment may be given to “barked” trees, 
where they have been hit by the whiffletree or plow; but 
as these places are not infected if the wound is fresh, no 
other treatment may be required than to pare down the 
ragged bark and to bind up the wound in any material 
that will prevent drying out and protect it from weather. 
The best material is soft adhesive grafting-wax, wound 
over tightly with a cloth. Clay and cow manure are 
sometimes used. See that the codlin-moth does not pupate 
in the bandages, and that the strips do not become a 
harbor for other insects. 

Rotten places in limbs and trunks may be gouged out 
to fresh wood, the interior painted, and the cavity filled 
tight with cement. 


Root-galls. 


‘The roots of many fruit trees and brambles are very 
likely to be affected with large tuber-like swellings 


The Winter Injuries 299 


or galls, that have been the subject of much uneasiness 
with fruit-growers; these galls are contagious, being 
produced by a soil bacterium. The “hairy root” of apples 
and pears is a form of the same disease. The organism 
attacks many kinds of plants. It is now thought they do 
not often produce great injury in the orchard, but they 
are always to be avoided, and trees with galls would better 
not be planted. 

The root-knot of the southern states and of greenhouses 
is a wholly different trouble, and is the work of a nematode 
worm. There is also a root-swelling or gall on raspberries, 
due to the work of an insect. The nematode galls are 
commonly smaller and softer swellings, and occur on the 
younger or smaller roots, and appear not to be found in 
the open in regions where the ground freezes deep. 


WINTER-KILLING 


There are two distinct types of injuries to fruit-plants 
by cold—true winter-killing (or the injury of the tree or 
buds when perfectly dormant, by the low temperature of 
winter), and the killing of the growing or swelling 
parts by the “cold snaps” or frosts of late spring and 
early fall. 


Winter-killing of the wood. 


Three factors chiefly appeal to the fruit-grower in the 
winter-killing of trees,—positive cold, very dry or very wet 
soil, and heaving of the land by frost. The subject of “dry 
freezing” has already been mentioned in Chapter I as a 
danger in the mid-continental country. The heaving of 
the land is prevented by drainage, by proper methods of 
tillage, and by the judicious use of cover-crops. The 


300 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


degree of cold may: be somewhat averted, as we have 
already found, by exercising judgment in the selection of 
site and exposure, and by the careful employment of 
windbreaks; and the danger of winter-killing is much 
enhanced when the plants make a late autumn growth and 
go into the winter with immature wood. Yet, winter- 
killing must always be one of the gravest risks of the 
fruit-grower. 

Winter-injury to the trees or plants usually appears 
in the form of splits or long checks in the trunks, or in 
the outright death of the ends of the branches or even of 
the entire plant, or in discoloration of the wood. For 
the splits lengthwise the trunk, the proper 
treatment is to pare off the dead and 
loosened bark to the ‘‘quick”’ as soon as the 
bark begins to spread, and to cover the 
surface of the wound (and the cleft) with 
bordeaux mixture or paint or gas-tar. 

The proper treatment for frozen-back 
trees must be determined for each particular 
case; but the injured part is no longer of 
any use to the plant, while it may be a 
positive detriment by accelerating the 
evaporation of moisture. The best treat- 
ment for plants seriously injured at the 
extremities is to cut them back to fresh 
wood. This heading-in—sometimes 
to the extent of 3 or 4 feet—removes 
the driest and weakest parts, and 
concentrates the energy of the tree 
into a comparatively small area of 
Fia. 108. The new wood top. Heavy pruning always tends 


formed around the core of a a 
winter-injured stem. toward the production of wood, and 


Treating Winter Injuries 301 


this wood-production is probably never more needed than 
in winter-injured trees, for it tends to renew the vitality 
of the tree. 

Often the winter-injury does not appear at once on 
the surface, but the wood and interior bark are discolored, 
often so much so as 
to lead the observer 
to think that the 
tree is dead. But 
such trees may 
fully recover. Very 
much depends on 
the subsequent 
treatment of the 
trees. Fig. 108 
shows the body of 
a young plum tree 
(in longitudinal and 
cross-wise sections) oe teglee hoe, --tie. 
that was frozen Fie..109. Recuperation of a winter-injured tree, 
ask Sa- a, severe moderately pruned in April. 
winter. It was heavily pruned the following spring and 
in the fall had made a ring of bright new wood, amply 
sufficient to maintain the tree in perfect health for a long 
life. This appearance is common in nursery stock the 
year following a very hard winter, but such trees may not 
be permanently injured. They are to be pruned mode- 
rately, and if they are young and have much reserve 
vitality, they may be headed-back heavily. Sometimes 
heavy heading-back does more harm than good. These 
are cases in which the entire tree is old or otherwise weak, 
and when the plant seems to need the stimulus of all its 
buds to bring out the feeble life still left to it. Fig. 109 


302 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


(after Hedrick) shows good results from moderate pruning. 
It is probable that a large number of reported instances 
of death due to heavy pruning of winter-injured trees are 
of such trees as would have died or not fully recovered 
under any treatment. 

Winter-killed plants often retain sufficient vitality to 
leaf out or to bloom, and sometimes even to begin growth, 
but when the stored vitality of the tissues is exhausted 
the plant perishes. This explains the phenomenon which, 
after a bad winter, nearly always puzzles the inobservant 
fruit-grower, of trees starting into feeble growth and then 
suddenly dying when warm and dry weather approaches. 
Winter-injured trees should not be allowed to bloom or to 
bear until they are fully recovered. Such trees are very 
liable to attack by the flat-headed borer, pine-hole borer 
and other things. 

The physiological character of winter-injury is obscure, 
but it is probably in the nature of desiccation or the with- 
drawal of moisture from the cells. The greater the quan- 
tity of moisture in the tissue, the greater will be its loss 
under conditions of cold and the greater the injury; and 
this is probably the reason why a late growth of twig is 
likely to be so disastrous if the winter is severe. There is 
much that the grower can do to prevent winter-killing, as 
well stated by Reddick: “It is certainly advisable to 
recommend (1) that orchards be plowed early in the 
spring (not in June as is frequently the case) and receive 
thorough cultivation early in the season, in order to give 
the trees every advantage of conserved moisture. (2) 
That cultivation cease not later than August 1, in order 
to start the trees into maturation. (3) That a cover- 
crop, or robber-crop, be planted to take care of excess 
moisture in the autumn. Such a crop would seem to 


Character of Winter-Killing 303 


be particularly essential following an unusually dry sum- 
mer. (4) That low, wet places be tile-drained, and air- 
drained if such a thing is possible.” 

It should be added that the trees are less liable to 
injury if they go into the winter strong and undepleted. 
Plants weakened by drought, lack of tillage, over-bearing, 
borers, San José scale and diseases, are specially liable to 
winter-injury. 

The recent careful studies of Chandler, ‘“The Killing of 
Plant Tissues by Low Temperature” (Mo. Research Bull. 
No. 8), have thrown much light on winter-killing. ‘There 
are several forms of injury from cold,” he states, ‘‘some of 
them purely mechanical, such as tearing of tissue due to 
tension developed at low temperature, or evaporation 
from the surface when the conducting tissue is frozen so 
as to prevent the movement of water to that tissue, and 
killing as a result of long-continued exposure to low 
temperature. 

“With all plant-tissues, when a certain temperature is 
reached very shortly after thawing, it will be found that 
the tissue has taken on a brown, water-soaked appearance, 
and evaporation from that tissue is much more rapid than 
from living tissue. These are characteristics of plant- 
tissue frozen to death. 

“Results of many investigations have shown that 
during freezing (which may or may not result in freezing 
to death), ice forms in the tissue, generally not in the 
cells but in the intercellular spaces, the water moving out 
of the cells to form crystals in these spaces. The most 
commonly accepted theory is that killing from cold results 
from the withdrawal of water from the protoplasm. The 
amount of water-loss necessary to result in death varies 
with the different plants and different tissues.”’ 


“304 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


As to treatment, he remarks: ‘‘The killing of wood of 
peach trees from freezing is one of the most important 
determining factors in peach-growing. Little can be done 
to influence the amount of killing except to have the trees 
start into winter in proper condition of maturity. The 
weakest-growing trees, however, do not generally reach 
this condition of maturity in the most satisfactory manner. 
Trees one or two years in the orchard, or old weak trees, 
are most liable to succumb to effects of low temperature. 
Pruning the trees severely following a winter when the 
wood has been killed, although apparently in the best 
condition of maturity, seems to reduce the amount of 
killing. However, such pruning following winters when 
the wood has been killed on account of its not having 
reached the proper condition of maturity in the fall, 
generally due to the presence of wet weather following a 
drought the season before, is liable to result in greater 
loss than if no pruning were done. 

“In the peach-growing district of south Missouri and 
Arkansas, and probably other similar climates, the most 
important factor influencing the loss of peaches from low 
temperatures in winter is keeping the buds from starting 
into growth during warm periods in winter. In that 
section the best means of accomplishing this end is pro- 
longing the growth of the trees in autumn, either by 
heavy pruning or by fertilizing with nitrogen the spring 
before. Some varieties of peaches have a much longer rest- 
period than other varieties, and therefore are started into 
growth moreslowly by warm periodsin winter.” (Page 101.) 


Frost cankers. 


The effect of winter injury may appear in the form of 
sunken dead patches that sometimes exude gum. On 


Cankers Due to Frost 305 


peaches, frost cankers, according to Jehle, “‘are oftenest 
found on the main trunk of the tree, usually near the sur- 
face of the ground or at the snow line of the previous 
winter; in the crotches of the larger branches; or about 
pruned stubs. They appear after a hard winter, particu- 
larly one of extreme changes in temperature and more 
particularly when such a winter follows a very late grow- 
ing season. The cankers appear in the spring as slight 
depressions. These are made more apparent as the tree 
puts on new growth of wood over the area not affected. 
Gum pockets usually form under the flattened areas and 
the gum often oozes out during periods of wet weather. 
The injured area is usually rather indefinite about the 
margin, and the formation of a healthy roll. of callus is 
thereby much retarded. Fermentation of the dead tissue 
occurs and various fungi and insects quickly follow. One 
fungus, Valsa leucostoma, comes in so commonly that some- 
times it has been regarded as the cause of the trouble.” 

As to prevention: “It is impossible to predict the char- 
acter of the winters, but one can judge by the growth and 
maturation of the wood what the probabilities are that a 
tree is in good condition to withstand a severe winter. 
Soft, poorly matured wood is easily injured. The use of 
highly nitrogenous fertilizers, particularly their use too 
late in the season, is to be avoided. In seasons of drought | 
followed by abundant autumn rains a second growth is 
not uncommon. This may be prevented or held to a suita- 
ble minimum by the use of cover-crops.” 

The treatment for frost cankers is the same as that for 
other similar wounds, as advised on a preceding page 
(page 296). It is difficult for the grower in some cases to 
distinguish between frost cankers and those produced by 
infection, and the subject also requires further investigation. 

T 


306 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


Winter-killing of the fruit-buds. 

In severe winters, the entire fruit-spur (in the spur- 
fruits, as apples, pears, plums and apricots) may be killed 
outright, but the commoner case is the death of the bud 
only. The bud may be entirely 
killed, in which case it soon turns 
brown throughout its entire diam- 
eter and the flower never opens; 
or only the pistil (the central organ, 
that ripens into the fruit) may be 
killed, in which case the flower may 
open and appear to be perfectly 

normal to the uncritical observer. 
flows G@t i) snd one tats) ‘The latter case is common in peaches 
injured by cold of winter. = and apricots. Fig. 110 illustrates 
the condition. The flower at the right was uninjured by 
the winter, and the pistil is seen, grown full length, at 1. 
In the other flower, the pistil, at 2, is dead. We know 


Fig. 111, Live and Fig. 112. Peach buds in section, to 
killed pistils. show the pistil (in the center) and the 
stamens. Enlarged. 


that this pistil was killed before the bud began to swell, 
because it retains about the size it must have had in the 
dormant bud. If it had been killed after the bud had 
swollen, it would have appeared as a much larger and a 
more or less crumpled or withered organ, as in b, Fig. 111. 


Winter-Killing of Buds 307 


Fig. 112 shows the structure of the peach-bud (after 
Halsted); at a is shown a longitudinal section (enlarged) 
in winter, the pistil, or fruit-bearing organ, being in the 
center; at 6b is shown a section of a partially opened bud. 

A true fruit-bud is one in which the flower, or cluster 
of flowers, is present in miniature. This flower occupies 
the very center of the bud, and is surrounded by dense 
layers of scales. A healthy bud is normally green in the 
central part in cross-section. When the bud has been 
killed by the winter, in the 
usual way, this central part 
of the flower becomes promi- 
nently discolored or almost 
black. Fig. 113 shows a fresh 
or live bud at a, and a killed 
bud at b and c. When only Fie. 118. Aprico-bude a, alive. b 
the pistil is killed, untrained  °"2S2e¢ by winter Balarged, 
eyes may not detect the injury. The general run of 
examinations made of buds by farmers, to determine 
whether there is winter-injury, are of little consequence. 
Except in pronounced cases, the only reliable examination 
is made under a dissecting microscope. 

There are no remedies for winter-injured buds. 


INJURY BY FROSTS IN THE GROWING SEASON 


Much mischief is done by “cold snaps” after the buds 
have begun to swell, and yet the disaster is not so easily 
wrought,—at least not in the North—as is commonly 
supposed. Even the buds of the tenderer fruits may 
endure very sharp freezes after they have begun to show 
color. Observations were made at Cornell on buds of 
apricots, peaches, plums and pears (as shown in Fig. 


308 The Principles of Frutt-growing 


114) that had swollen to three or four times their 
normal size. The pink color of the apricot buds was 
distinctly visible, and the tips of the anthers could be 
seen in the Japan plums by looking down squarely on 
the buds. In this condition, the buds endured with no 


‘eN , 
Fia. 114. Swollen buds that withstood 14° of frost: a, apricot; 
b, peach; c, Japan plum; d, pear. 


injury the following temperatures, as taken by self- 
registering thermometers hung in the trees (very light 
snow on the ground and a wind blowing all night): 
Lowest temperature 
April 20, Apricot, peach, Japan plum, pear.............. 18° 
April 21, Apricot, peach, pear............... Tina eee ewe. 19° 
April.21, Japan plums 3s sn, 5 ses Paiewiede wets elewseeinaareee's 18° 
These buds endured 14° of frost without injury. On 
the coldest morning, the buds were stiff from freezing, and 


in some instances the backs and tips of some of the petals 


Frost-Killing of Bulbs 309 


were permanently discolored. The buds swelled with the 
freezing, but returned to their previous size when thawed 
out, and they looked as if withered for several days,—or 
until active expansion began. 

When the flowers have fully expanded, a comparatively 
light frost will destroy them. This is shown in the fact 
that a very slight elevation in a black- 
berry or strawberry patch is often suffi- 
cient to avert injury. The pistils seem 
to suffer first. A strawberry nubbin is 
shown in Fig. 115. The top of the my.115. A strawberry 
berry (or the bottom, as it hangs) ig 7UPP™ ‘ue te frost 
flattened and deformed. This is usually due to the freezing 
of the upper pistils in the flower, as it stood erect. Nubbins 
are sometimes the result of imperfect pollination, but in 
such cases the deformity is more likely to be on the sides 
than on the top, for the top pistils are the ones that are 
very likely to be pollinated by insects. 

A similar case is reported on blackberries at Cornell. 
The only serious accident known to injure the blackberry 
crop in New York (aside from hail) is frost; and in most 
cases the injury is unavoidable, even 
though the grower has warning of 
its approach. In six crops grown 
in a certain patch, only one was 
injured by frost, and even this one, 
when the cold wave was unusually 
late and severe, suffered seriously 
only in the lowest places. Drawings 
of blackberry flowers were made on 
the spot, two or three days after the 
frost, and they are here reproduced, 


: oe Fie. 116. Normal blackberry 
natural size. A normal, uninjured flower; full size. 


310 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


flower is shown in Fig. 116. Inside the five white petals 
are seen the numerous sprawling stamens, each one bear- 
ing an enlargement or anther on the 
end, inside which the pollen is borne. 
In the center of the flower is the head 
or cluster of pistils, each of which 
ripens into one of the little grains 
that go to make up the blackberry. 
The frost killed these pistils, so that 
the center of the flower bore only a 
small, black, dead column (see Fig. 
by et lower muined 117). Now and then, one or more of 
berry part wanting. these pistils in the head escaped, and 
developed into a fruit-grain, so that the berry became a 
nubbin. Fig. 118 shows the dead and aborted fruits at 
picking time. At the top of the picture are some fruits 
(n, n,) in which one or two 
grains or drupes are full 
grown, when the remainder 
of the drupelets making the 
berry failed to develop. 

On the 8th of one May, ag 
temperature of 27° (5° of frost) was 
recorded by self-registering ther- 
mometers hung in fruit-trees at 
Cornell, but no injury resulted. 
At this time, all the petals had 
dropped from apricot flowers, but 
the calyx-ring had not yet fallen 
from the young fruits; peach flow- 
ers were in full bloom, but their 
fertilization had mostly taken 
place; Japan plum flowers were just 


Fia. 118. 
Blackberry fruits 
ruined by frost. 


Frost-Marked Fruits 311 


dropping; pear flowers were open, but not yet fully 
fertilized. 

Young fruits of apples and pears may sometimes re- 
cover from a severe freeze and make perfect specimens. 
It is even insisted by some careful observers that they 
sometimes recover even if frozen solid shortly after they 


Fie. 119. Frost injuries on young apples, 


they are “set,” the fruits failing to develop perfect seeds 
thereafter.* 

Fruits simply frost-bitten—that is, injured by a 
deposit of white frost—~are very likely to persist, but 
to show blemishes or deformities even at maturity. 
A common effect of very late frosts is a distinct russet 
zone on the fruit. This zone marks the position of the 
frost on the young fruit. Apples and pears are usually 
still erect when these frosts occur, and the dew,—which, 

*“The freeze of May, 1895, froze the fruit solid. The center of each 
pear turned black, and yet they persisted in growing. There were 
eighty barrels. I doubt if there was a seed or core in the whole lot. The 


quality was the best that I have ever seen.’’—Extract from letter from 
Benj. F. Hawes, Oakfield, N. Y. 


312 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


when frozen, is frost,—probably settles in a ring or belt 
near the top of the fruit or midway down it. The exact 
position and conformation of this deposit of dew are, of 
course, determined 
by the shape, posi- 
tion and exposure 
of thefruit. Fig. 119 
shows the frost- 
zones on young 
apples. This in- 
jured, corky tissue 
has the power of 
increasing itself by 
the extension of the 
abnormal cells, so 
that the zone is 
likely to widen with 


the growth of the 
Fia. 120. Rusty frost-zone on a full-grown apple. fruit Mature 


fruits, with the rusty frost marks still conspicuous, are 
seen in Figs. 120 and 121. In some cases, the growth of 
tissue in the injured zone seems to be slow, resulting in a 
constriction of the fruit at that point. 

Among the most serious results of very late frosts in 
the North are injuries to vineyards. Fig. 122 shows the 
shoots of a grape-vine as injured by a freeze in the middle 
of May. In treating frozen vines, like that shown in the 
illustration, it must first be remembered that the injured 
parts are of no further use to the plants, and they are very 
likely to weaken the plant by causing it to lose much of its 
moisture. The rational procedure, therefore, is to strip 
off all the frozen shoots soon after the disaster, allowing 
the energies of the plant to divert themselves to the pro- 


Late Frost Injuries 


duction of new shoots. When the injured parts are soft 
and small, it is customary to remove them by pulling 
them off, rather than by cutting them off. In well-pruned 
vineyards the cost of stripping ought not to exceed $1 


an acre. 


Early autumn freezing is one of the most damaging of 
all forms of frost-injury, because the plant has no time in 
which to recuperate, and a hard winter may add to the 
destruction. Fortunately, such freezes before the foliage 
falls are very infrequent. Probably little can be done 
except to await the condition as it 
presents itself in very early spring. 

It is not often that special treat- 
ment needs to be given to plants 
injured by late frosts; but the re- 


moval of the killed 
parts, or sometimes 
even a further head- 
ing-back, is the 
rational procedure. 
This should be sup- 
plemented by good 
tillage and other 
care. 


What is an injurious 
degree of cold? 


To this question 
there is no specific 
answer, because so 
much depends on the 
latitude, the time of 
year and the con- 


Fic. 121. Frost-blotch on a Flemish 
Beauty pear. 


314 The Principles of Frutt-growing 


dition of the plants. We have already seen (page 308) 
that at Ithaca, New York, fruits were able to endure 
the temperature at 18°, even when the buds were well 
swollen. Hammon gives the following figures at which 
plants are liable to injury from frosts, compiled from 
information received from horticulturists throughout the 
entire Pacific coast. Probably some of them are too high. 
The temperatures are as nearly as possible those in con- 
tact with the plant itself: 


Plants or fruits An blossom: ee hee 

Brees Degrees Degrees 
AlmOndS's... 0 :22068000cee bene ae aves 30 30 28 
POS Slaves waa he earn eed 29 30 26 
PUGS os ov-ou ay eae ES eae ere 31 32 30 
CABOS yuh eae ha a eee 8 Bee ek ES 31 30 28 
Grapefruit ........ 0... cece eee 31 31 28 
MEOMOUS) syisscsud ecg cu athine recess Baveed dukon hvinae 31 31 28 
Mandarins and tangerines............ 31 Ee 28 

OUV. C8) e. sd ttasaoek, axgiosaa Ss S amce avean Pane 31 31 *18-24 

Oranges (injured at 2° higher if con- 

tinued four to six hours)........... BN 31 26-29 
Peaches: tosis 42444 skeaeaseeseeeeue 30 30 29 
Reais des wears casi Ge waned one RS 29 29 28 
CAB acess essed Gtuendea ceaudedced a de Dek nia hielpions 30 30 25. 
PIWMS 3c 30:00¢05.auetaneyaaiaad aqme 31 31 29 
Prunesiirecrsatarene taneancannn Sawn ees 31 31 29 
Strawberries: ai: asunder se) bela 28 28 30 
Walnuts, English .................... Bi 4 | 28 


*18 ripe, 24 green. 126 ripe, 29 green. 


Howard (Cire. No. 35, Mo. Exp. Sta.) gives the follow- 
ing temperatures injurious to peaches: “Fully dormant 
peach buds can stand 8° or 9° below zero. When they are 
appreciably swollen, zero is the danger-point. When the 
buds are showing pink they can stand 15° above zero. 
When the buds are almost open, 25° is the danger-point. 


What are Killing Frosts? 315 


When they are newly opened, about 26° would be the point 
of danger. When the petals are beginning to fall, 28° 
above zero is cold enough to cause uneasiness. When the 
petals are off, they can stand 30° above zero. When the 
shucks (calyx-tubes) are 
beginning to fall off, 32° 
above zero is the danger- 
point. The above figures 
will serve as a guide to the 
fruit-grower as showing 
the proper time to light 
the fires in the orchard.” 

Chandler finds that 
“The killing temperature 
of peach blossoms, when 
the tree is just coming 
into full bloom, under 
Missouri conditions, seems 
to vary from about 22°F, 
to 25° or 26°F. After the 
blossoms are old enough Fic. 122. Grape-shoots killed by 
that they are probably oe 
pollinated, and from that time on until the peaches are 
as large as 14 inch in diameter, at least, they continue to 
become more tender until they will withstand but very 
few degrees below the freezing-point, the seeds of young 
peaches killing at a higher temperature than other peach 
tissue.” 

In New Mexico, Garcia and Rigney secured somewhat 
different results (Bull. No. 89): 


“The data recorded at the New Mexico Station show that the 
fruit-buds, particularly those of the peach, at their different stages 
of development,—at least, in the experiment station orchard,— 


316 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


are somewhat more resistant to cold than has been reported by 
observers from other parts of the United States. The data further 
show that the degree of resistibility to frost varies with different 
stages of growth. The peach is least resistant when it is about the 
size of a pea, when the calices are falling off. Contrary to the findings 
of other observers, the bloom is not the most tender stage of growth. In 
other words, the data indicate that the newly set peach is more deli- 
cate than the newly opened blossom. In the majority of cases, a 
temperature of 26°, lasting only a short time, did little or no injury 
to the opening bud, newly opened blossom or newly set fruit of the 
peach, native plum, pear and apple; while one-half a degree below 
this, or 254°, although lasting only a few minutes, killed a large 
percentage of the opening buds, newly set blossoms and young 
fruits of the peach, in a number of cases. In other words, 26° was 
the danger-point and any temperature below this is liable to do 
more or less injury, depending on how low it gets and how long it 
remains at that temperature. In some cases, however, a temperature 
of 24°, lasting only a short time, left about 25 per cent of the blooms 
and 9 per cent of the newly set fruits uninjured. 

“Three important factors that influence the amount of damage 
done by spring frosts are: The degree of killing temperature, the 
time of day at which it occurs, and the length of time the temperature 
remains below the danger-point. . . . As the young fruit develops, it 
seems to get more tender, until it grows beyond a certain size, when 
it seems to get hardier again; so that the later frosts which come after 
the young fruits have made quite a growth are liable to do more 
injury than the same degree of cold in the earlier part of the season, 
when the fruits are less developed. At this stage of growth, 2614° to 
27° would probably be dangerous to peaches. The very late frost 
of 25° on May 4, 1912, killed practically all the peaches in the 
experimental orchard, while 2434° on April 17, 1910, left about 
30 per cent of the Elbertas. 

“On the whole, apples and pears seem to be more resistant than 
peaches and plums.” 


All the studies of this subject indicate that local con- 
ditions greatly modify the effect of cold, and probably no 
generalizations can be made that will warrant a grower in 
withholding smudging or fires when the mercury indicates 


Injuries by Weather 317 


a temperature at or below freezing. See the discussion in 
Chapter VII (page 265). 

Harm may come to fruit-setting even though the tem- 
perature does not touch the frost-point. Hedrick states 
that “A temperature low enough to be harmful to blossoms 
is usually associated with frost or rain; but a low tempera- 
ture, even though it does not touch the frost-point, nor 
accompany rain, is often disastrous to the setting of fruit. 
The injurious effect is probably due to the prevention of 
the growth of the pollen-tubes.” 


THE EFFECT OF RAIN ON THE SETTING OF FRUIT 


It is well known that the weather conditions may pro- 
foundly affect the fecundity of the flowers. In the forcing 
of winter vegetables, for example, it is of the greatest 
importance to keep the house dry and warm when polli- 
nation is to be effected, and better results—both in the 
amount of pollen produced, and in the ease with which it 
is discharged from the anthers—are commonly secured in 
bright sunshine. (See, also, page 156.) It is probable that 
if the flowers of fruit plants were to be kept constantly 
wet, very little pollination would take place. It is likely 
also, that dashing rains at blossoming time wash away 
much of the pollen, but it is doubtful whether enough of 
it is lost in such passing storms seriously to reduce the 
crop. The most disastrous storms are probably those 
milder ones of long duration, and which are accompanied 
by a low temperature. Not only may such weather tend 
to prevent the discharge of pollen, but it prohibits the 
work of insects. 

It must be admitted that the above remarks are 
largely inferences or results of general experience. We 


318 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


have little exact knowledge as to the effect of rain- 
storms and other weather conditions on the setting of 
fruit. See the discussion of this subject in Chapter II 
(page 41). Hedrick thinks it “is probable that the chill 
of rainy weather decreases the vitality of the pollen, and 
an excess of moisture often causes pollen-grains to swell 
and burst.” 

Many of the injuries detailed in this chapter are 
beyond the reach or rescue of the fruit-grower, but, even 
so, he will want to understand them. 


CHAPTER IX 
THE SPRAYING OF FRUIT-PLANTATIONS 


In 1886, the present author wrote in a book that 
“A remedy proposed of late is to syringe the trees with 
a mixture of paris green and water, very early in the 
season, while the young apples stand erect. The poison 
lodges in the ‘blossom end’ and destroys the first brood 
of worms. Later, when the apples turn downward, the 
poison is washed out by the rains. This remedy was 
proposed, and its entire success demonstrated, by Prof. 
A. J. Cook, of the Michigan Agricultural College. A 
tablespoonful of poison to a gallon of water is sufficient.” 

This statement represented nearly the sum of knowl- 
edge respecting the spraying of orchards at that time. 
Ten years later, the writer had part in putting before 
the public Lodeman’s ‘The Spraying of Plants,’ which 
made a closely printed book of some four hundred pages. 
Today, the spraying of fruit-plantations is a stand- 
ard practice, conducted in a large way with much skill, 
and involving the use of highly specialized equipment. 
These contrasts show how rapid has been the develop- 
ment of the spraying of plants to combat insects and 
diseages. Sometimes its importance may have been magni- 
fied out of proportion to other essential operations of fruit- 
growing. Spraying has been hailed as a positive means of 
making orchards fruitful. In practice, however, it makes 
orchards fruitful only when the cause of unfruitfulness is 
incursions of insects and fungi. It will not correct the 


(319) 


320 The Principles of Frutt-growing 


faults of poor tillage, nor of insufficient plant-food, nor of 
unprofitable varieties, nor of neglect in pruning. It is 
only one of the various elements that enter into success- 
ful fruit-growing. There is a tendency in fruit writings 
to give relatively too much space to spraying. 

Aside from its direct and immediate importance, spray- 
ing has had a very marked secondary effect in waking up 
the horticulturist. It has raised the standard of intelli- 
gence. Any movement that sets a man to thinking very 
strongly along one line is likely to awaken his interest in 
related subjects. So it happens that spraying has been one 
of the means of rapidly diffusing a better knowledge of 
horticultural operations. Some of the ways in which this’ 
secondary influence of spraying has enlarged the horti- 
cultural horizon may be stated as follows: 

1. The necessity of spraying calls attention to the 
reasons for the recent incursions of pests. Spraying was 
unknown in his boyhood days: why is it so imperative 
now? This opens a world of suggestion, and leads the 
questioner to consider the fact that insects and fungi are 
constantly changing their habits from one plant to another, 
as the native plants are destroyed and as the area of culti- 
vated plants is increased, and that the continuing com- 
merce with all parts of the world constantly exposes us to 
new dangers. Pests that suddenly overwhelm the planta- 
tion may have been breeding in unobserved numbers in 
the neglected places for many years. The ideals of the 
fruit-grower are also higher now. Competition has 
increased, demands have been refined, and the smallest 
blemish on a fruit is enough to throw it out of a first-class 
article, whereas years ago it might have passed with- 
out comment. 

.2, The necessity of spraying is forcing a new discern- 


Spraying as an Educator 321 


ment of varieties. Those persons who ‘grow in a large 
way for the general and more or less staple markets find 
themselves inquiring for those varieties that are least 
susceptible to disease- and insect-injury and which, there- 
fore, need the smallest attention in the way of protection. 
On the other hand, the protection that spraying affords 
tends to bring back many of those good old varieties that 
have almost disappeared from cultivation because of dis- 
ease. Those persons who are growing special kinds of 
fruit for particular or personal markets, or for home use, 
will choose the varieties of ideal qualities in spite of the 
liability to insect or fungous attacks. 

3. Spraying demands closer study of the companion- 
ships and inter-relations of crops, fungi and insects. Cer- 
tain pests follow the round of certain crops, and when the 
planter breaks such a rotation he also lessens the liability 
of attack. It also forces the use of shorter rotations, for 
it is a very nimble insect or fungus that can keep pace 
with a lively and resourceful farmer. He learns that the 
best treatment of the red-rust on raspberries is a short 
rotation rather than spraying. The best treatment with 
many diseases may be a combination of both; but he will 
find that if he reduces the number of crops to two or at 
most to three, and then has plantations coming on in 
other places, he will suffer comparatively little. The same 
suggestion is applicable to the cultivation of strawberries, 
and other short-generation fruits. 

4, Spraying emphasizes the importance of better care, 
that the crop may repay the cost of the extra treatment. 
The potato bug has no doubt exercised a very pronounced 
influence in improving the cultivation of the potato, and it 
is already apparent that the San José scale is increasing 
the alertness in fruit-growing. 

U 


322 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


5. The necessity of spraying must develop a greater 
watchfulness on the part of the fruit-grower for new 
pests, for they are all the time appearing from foreign 
countries, from adjacent states or geographical regions, or 
from the wild. 

6. Inasmuch as every new necessity or new subject of 
inquiry awakens new thoughts and expands the person’s 
relationships, so it becomes a means of enlarging and 
educating the man. A concentrated invasion of the army- 
worm is one of the very best means of waking up any 
farming community and of setting every man, woman 
and child to asking questions of every passer-by, every 
agricultural editor and teacher, and experiment station. 
The good effects of such an invasion are likely to last for 
a number of years. It is surprising, as one thinks of it, 
how easily people are scared by a bug! A strange insect, 
which perhaps does not weigh a grain, will set a whole 
community of able-bodied men agog, and may cause 
as much downright fear and discussion as a political 
revolution. 


The kinds of difficulties. 


There are three general types of difficulties or dis- 
orders within the view of the discussion in this chapter: 
1. Attacks by insects. 

(a) The injuries of those insects that eat or 
chew the parts of the plant, and which, therefore, 
are killed by the application of arsenical and 
similar poisons. Such insects are the whole tribe 
of caterpillars, worms and beetles. 

(b) Attacks of insects that suck their food, 
and which, therefore, are destroyed by caustic 
applications that injure their bodies. All the 


The Kinds of Diseases 323 


tribes of plant-lice and scale insects belong here, 
and for these the kerosene emulsion, lime-sulfur 
washes and the like, are the specifics. 

2. Parasitic fungous diseases, such as the apple-scab, 
black-rot and mildew of the grape, fruit-rot of the » 
peach, leaf-blight of the plum and pear, black-knot 
of the plum. These diseases are characterized by 
definite spots, discolorations or excrescences 
more or less scattered over the surface of the 
leaf, fruit or branch. As arule, the attacked leaves 
and fruits have a tendency to drop from the, 
tree. The general treatment for these diseases 
is to spray with some fungicidal mixture, as 
lime-sulfur or bordeaux mixture. The treatment 
is useful in proportion as it is applied early and 
thoroughly. After the fungus once gets into the 
tissues of the host-plant, it is difficult, if not 
impossible, to kill it. If, however, the fungicide 
is on the plant before the fungus is, the parasite 
may not be able to gain a foothold. Even after 
it does secure a foothold, however, the spray may 
check its spread by preventing the development 
of its external parts and the formation of spores. 

3. The physiological and bacterial diseases, or the 
so-called constitutional troubles. In these cases, 
there are rarely any definite spots, as in the 
attacks of parasitic fungi, but the entire leaf, 
or even the entire plant, or a large part of it, 
shows a general weakening and wilting, as if 
there were some cutting-off of the accustomed 
source of nourishment. Such diseases are a 
general yellowing and death of the leaf, the 
dying of the leaf along the main veins and 


324 The Principles of Fruat-growing 


around the edges, showing that the difficulty 
probably affects the entire leaf and not any one 
part of it. In general, there is a tendency for 
foliage in plants so attacked to wither and hang 
on the tree for a time. The peach yellows and 
pear blight are diseases of this kind. There are 
no specific treatments for these troubles. They 
must be approached by what physicians call 
prophylaxis—that is, by methods of sanitation 
and prevention, and by eradication of the parts. 
The diseased plants or parts are cut away and 
burned. All conditions that seem to favor the 
development of the disease are removed. Varie- 
ties particularly susceptible are discarded. Care- 
ful management is often much more important 
than any attempt at specific treatment. 


SPECIFIC REMARKS ON SPRAYING 


1. Spraying is only one of the requisites to success in 
fruit-raising—Trees must grow before they can bear, 
and this growth depends on food and proper conditions 
of soil, more than it does: on the accident of im- 
munity from insects and fungi. It is one of the cardinal 
operations for which the grower must plan in the 
beginning. — 

2. Spraying is insurance-——There are many elements 
of risk in the growing of fruit. It is impossible to foretell 
by any considerable length of time whether any or all of 
the difficulties liable to harass the fruit-raiser will 
actually appear. The owner does not know whether his 
buildings will burn, yet he insures them. We know that, in 
four years out of five, some damaging injury of insects or 


Rules for Spraying 325 


fungi may be confidently expected, and it is the part of 
wisdom to insure against it. 

3. Spraying is of some value every year, on apples, 
pears, plums, quinces, grapes and various other fruits.— 
Even in years of great immunity, nearly all sprayed 
orchards carry a better foliage than those untreated. So, 
wholly aside from the idea of insuring against risk, it is 
advisable to spray for those insects that are more or less 
abundant every year. Some insects and diseases appear 
late in the season, so that the spray may be needed at 
some epoch in the season. 

4. Spray thoroughly, or not at all—Much of the 
spraying is little more than a waste of time and material. 
Squirting a few quarts of water at a tree as one hurries 
past it, is not spraying. A tree is thoroughly and honestly 
sprayed when it is wet all over, on all the branches and on 
both sides of all the leaves. An insect or a fungus is not 
killed until the poison is placed where the pest is. It is 
not frightened. Bugs do not search for the poison, in 
order that they may accommodate the orchardist. The 
one spot not sprayed may be the very place where a bud- 
moth is established. 

5. Prepare in winter for neat year’s work.—Secure 
nozzles and pumps, and repair the tanks and wagons. It 
is especially important that the wagons be handy, and 
that the equipment be large enough and strong enough to 
do the work quickly. A break-down in spraying time is 
likely to be a serious matter. Pumps should be cleaned 
inside and out, repacked if necessary, oiled and com- 
pletely repaired.- If power is used, the engine should be 
tested, and it may need to be overhauled. All repair 
parts and all insecticides and fungicides should be ordered 
well in advance of the spraying season. 


326 The Principles of Fruiting-growing 


6. The style or “make” of pump and nozzle to be used 
depends on the particular kind of work to be done-——The 
reader will now see that the advice as to machinery must 

‘ depend on the specific purpose for which the appliances 
are to be used and the extent of operations. Apparatus 
devised a few years ago for the distribution of paris green 
may be of no value for the application of such a thick 
compound as the bordeaux mixture or the lime-sulfur. 

Whatever the outfit chosen, the pump should be strong 
and powerful, with hard brass working parts, and capable 
of throwing much liquid with great force. In respect to 
nozzles, it may be said that there is no one kind which is 
best for all purposes. It is desirable that the liquid should 
reach the plant in the form of a very fine mist; but it is 
just as important that the nozzle should have the power 
of throwing the liquid to the desired point. In other words, 
there are two elements to be considered,—the nozzle must 
have carrying power and delivering power. A fine mist 
at the orifice of the nozzle is of no use when the nozzle is 
30 feet short of the bug. With many of the modern devices, 
the man who holds the hose in spraying rigs may stand 
8 or 9 feet above the ground, and he may .use a pole 12 
to 15 feet in length, which will elevate the nozzle something 
like 25 feet from the ground; but many apple trees are 
50 to 60 feet high. It will therefore be seen that the 
liquid must carry itself 25 to 30 feet beyond the nozzle. 
For such purposes, a nozzle that distributes the liquid 
in a spray directly from its orifice is of small use; it must 
throw a more or less solid stream, and the stream should 
break up when it reaches its destination. Such nozzles 
require very strong power behind them. 

For the spraying of fruits, the various disc nozzles are 
now most in use. They are provided with a chamber in 


Pumps and Nozzles 327 


which the liquid is whirled, and it is then projected through 
a disc with openings of different sizes. The bordeaux 
nozzle is also used for the codlin-moth and some other 
purposes. The spray liquid should penetrate the top of the 
tree and drench all the leaves; this requires not only a 
good nozzle but much force—more than the usual hand- 
pump develops. 

Remarks similar to the above may be made for pumps; 
that is, there is no one best pump. We might divide all 
pumps into two general classes——those that deliver the 
liquid by force of gravity, as some of 
the potato sprayers, and those that 
deliver it by the force of pressure. The 
force of gravity’is not 
sufficient to do the work 
well, especially when bor- 
deaux mixture is to be 
used. Of the pressure 
machines, there are sev- 
eral kinds, as those that 
derive their force from the 
suction of a piston and 
valves, and those that work from the force of compressed 
gas or air. Knapsack pumps are very efficient, not only be- 
cause they are powerful for their size, but also because they 
enable the operator to stand very close to his work; but 
they are not adapted to work on trees nor, in fact, on large 
areas in this country, because labor is too high-priced. 
For small areas, for experiment purposes and the like, they 
are exceedingly useful and handy. The syringe and bucket 
pumps are very efficient for work in a small way in yards, 
and especially when it is desired to be extra thorough. 

The force or power to drive a pump may be the arm 


Fig. 123, Platform above a tank outfit. 


328 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


of the operator, the geared wagon wheel, or an engine. 
The geared sprayers may be useful for small-fruits and 
grapes, inasmuch as they work while the team walks; 
but, as a rule, they are not adapted to large orchard trees, 
because enough liquid 
cannot be thrown 
while the machine 
is passing a tree 
thoroughly to spray it. 
In recent years, very 
effective power spray- 
ers have come into 
use, mostly employing 
gasolene or com- 
pressed air. In plan- 
tations of four to five 
acres and more, the 
power_sprayer will 
probably pay, partic- 
ularly if the farm 
Fie. 124. Platform above a barrel outfit, now grows other crops, as 
becoming obsolete for large orchards. 

potatoes, that need 
spraying. The engine may be used at other times to drive 
a wood-saw, dairy machinery, silage-cutters, well-pumps 
and other apparatus. 

In low orchards, a low truck may be needed, and in 
some cases a stone-boat is best; but most orchards will 
need some kind of high rig, to enable the operator to reach 
the tops of the trees. Fig. 123 is a standard rig for hand- 
power work. The tank holds 300 gallons. The pump is 
placed on the front of the rig (in the seat-rack), and one 
man drives and pumps. The rig is stopped at every tree. 
Two leads of hose are used. Another good rig for hand 


Pumps and Rigs 329 


power is shown in Fig. 124. In Fig. 125 is shown a power 
outfit, the machinery being covered for protection. Many 
other efficient spraying outfits are in use, but these 
three will serve to illustrate the kind of work that is 
needed. Until ten or fifteen years ago, the greater number 
of fruit-growers used an ordinary wagon, with box or 
rack, and a single fifty-gallon barrel, and this outfit may 
still be seen; but this is found to be both uneconomical 
and ineffective for large operations. 

The use of long pieces of 14-inch gas-pipe, with the 
nozzle attached to the end, is advisable when one is work- 
ing in the tops of the trees, but they are likely to be a 
nuisance if one works from the ground. Thy are awkward 
if more than 10 feet 
long. Growers usu- 
ally prefer to use a 
bamboo fishing-pole, 
and to secure the 
hose near its upper 
end, letting the lower 
part of the pole re- 
main free. Most 
operators use insuffi- 
cient hose. For work 
in old orchards, the 
run should be at 
least 15 feet long. 

For yards and 
ornamental plants, a 
cart-like rig, like that 
shown in Fig 126, is 
handy and efficient. 


: Fie. 125. Elevated platform above a power 
A home-made r 1g for sprayer, as used on the Pacific coast. 


330 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


spraying strawberries and potatoes is seen in Fig. 127. It 
is a barrel-pump, mounted on wheels, with three nozzles 
rigged on the tail- 
board, so as to cover 
as many rows of 
plants. 

There are dust- 
sprayers on the mar- 
ket, that apply the 
material in a dry powder 
rather than in water; but, 
while they have given satis- 
faction for particular pur- 
poses, they have not become 
126. Ricoty eset spraying equipment popular for orchard work. 

or home grounds. 

Blodgett found (Cornell 
Bull. No. 340, 1914) that dust-spraying needs to be 
further tried as a means of controlling apple diseases. 
(Fig. 128.) “The use of finely ground sulfur as the 
fungicide in a dust mixture has given very encouraging 
results, and warrants further trials on a more exten- 
sive scale. The application of arsenate of lead in powdered 
form in the quantities applied is more effective against 
the common orchard insects that chew - 
than is the same substance applied iu 
wet. The time required for dusting 
an orchard is much less 
than that required for 
spraying it.” The cost 
of controlling insectsand Jl» 
fungi is not lessened. * 
Melander and Beattie ee , 
(Wash, Bull, No. 06) ""heatame ad pisos 


The Substances for Spraying 331 


think that dust-spraying does not have sufficient pene- 
trating power for orchard work. 

7. The farmer should know what he wants to kill before 
he begins to spray—lIt is still common to find a man who 
is going at spraying with enthusiasm, but who cannot 
explain a single definite object in view. He merely knows, 
on general principles, that spraying is useful. To such a 
man, spraying is spraying, 
whether he uses arsenicals, 
or bordeaux, or both, or 
neither one; and his results 
are about equal to his 
knowledge. There is no 
longer an excuse for such 
practice, for all the leading 
insects and fungi have re- 
ceived treatment in the ae 
publications of the govern- SATIN ae 
ment and experiment sta- Fre, 128. Dust-sprayer. 
tions. Of course, the real fruit-growers are well and exactly 
informed, even to details; but there are some persons who 
need to know that: 

The arsenicals are used to kill all larvee or worms, 
and all those insects that chew the leaves or shoots, 
such as the codlin-moth, bud-moth, canker-worm, 
potato-beetle, tent-caterpillar, and the like. Lime- 
sulfur and kerosene emulsion are used for scale-insects 
and plant-lice. 

Lime-sulfur and bordeaux mixture are used to 
prevent the attacks of fungous parasites, as apple-scab, 
leaf-blight of the pear, quince and plum, potato-blight 
and such like. 

The leading poisonous insecticide is now arsenate 


832 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


of lead, although arsenate of lime is much used; the 

leading fungicide for most fruits is lime-sulfur, and it 

is also a good scalecide. 

8. The time to spray must be determined for each particu- 
lar case—The grower himself must decide when and how 
often to spray, because he should know what enemies hé 
desires to reach. If he has the bud-moth, he should spray 
with the first swelling of the buds, and if he has the plum- 
scale he should spray in the winter. But, leaving the 
special insects aside, it is safe to say that for the two 
staple enemies—the apple-scab and the codlin-moth—at 
least two sprayings should be given. Spraying when the 
tree is dormant has an 
important effect in de- 
stroying the apple-scab 
fungus. As a general 
statement, one may 
spray apples and pears 
two or three times,— 
once when dormant, 
with lime-sulfur; once 
just as the fruit-buds 
break but before the 
Fie. 129. Showing when apple trees are flowers expand (Fig. 

ney eS eee 129) with weak lime- 
sulfur and arsenical, and again just as the last blossoms 
fall, with the same combination. The first spraying is 
for the scab fungus in particular. The second spraying 
(which is often omitted) is for the scab and bud-moth. 
The third is particularly for the codlin-moth. If scab is 
very bad, other sprayings may be necessary. Whether or 
not it is necessary to spray again will depend largely 
on the season, The operator must watch matters 


When to Spray 333, 


closely, and spray when he needs to do so, or when he is . 
in doubt. Two sprayings are sufficient for the codlin/ 
moth, and three are usually sufficient for the apple-scab. 
These two sprayings constitute the insurance that has 
been mentioned; thereafter, the grower will be able to see 
more definitely what is needed. These remarks illustrate 
the nature of the questions that the fruit-grower must 
consider. 

9. Keep posted—Every year, read the new bulletins, 
note the articles in the agricultural papers, keep in touch 
with the discussions before societies, secure the publica- 
tions of manufacturers. The practice in spraying is mov- 
ing rapidly, and new studies of insects and diseases are 
constantly being made. The practices are now well stan- 
dardized, but modifications are often made and new pests 
appear. The grower must be vigilant. 


¥ 
LISTS AND FORMULAS 


The marked departures in spraying im recent years 
have been not only in the perfecting of the mechanical 
devices, but in the character of the spray materials. Lon- 
don purple and paris green are now little used, and arsen- 
ate of lead and arsenate of lime have taken their places. 
Bordeaux mixture is still the standard fungicide for plants 
in a growing condition, although lime-sulfur is now mostly 
used for summer spraying of apples and pears, as well as 
for the winter spraying. On most plants, lime-sulfur 
has a serious dwarfing effect on foliage. Bordeaux is used 
for grapes, small-fruits, potatoes and many other things. 
Arsenate of lead may be combined with lime-sulfur as 
well as with bordeaux. 


334 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


Synopsis of the principal considerations in the choice of 
a power sprayer and nozzles (Melander and Beattie, Wash. 
Bull. No. 106): 


1. General operation and efficiency. 
Capacity. 
Engine— 
Type of motor. 
Operating with distillate or denatured alcohol. 
Average horse-power. 
Maximum brake horse-power. 
Cubic feet of piston displacement per horse-power hour. 
Revolutions per minute. 
Capacity of fuel-tank. 
Cooling device: 
Efficiency. 
Amount of heating. 
Ignition. 
Detachability from pump for other uses. 
Pump— 
Belt- or gear-drive. 
Number and style of cylinders. 
Diameter of pump cylinder. 
Length of stroke. 
Strokes per minute. 
Discharge per minute at 250 pounds pressure. 
Maximum operating pressure. 
Capacity of air-dome. 
Outfit— 
Tank capacity. 
Filling pump: piston or rotary. 
Weight. 
Economy of operation. 
Engine— 
Time lost due to engine. 
Horse-power hours per gallon of gasolene used. 
Gallons of gasolene per 100 gallons pumped. 
Gallons of lubricating oil per 100 gallons pumped. 
Percentage of fuel-tank capacity used an hour for operation. 


‘Points of a Spraying Outfit 335 


Pump, etc.— 
Slippage (rated capacity less actual delivery). 
Uniformity of pressure. 
Efficiency of pressure regulator in maintaining uniform 
pressure when hose is cut off or is on. 
Drop in pressure between pump and nozzle. 
Amount of overflow from pump to tank when working at 
normal capacity. 
Outfit— 
Efficiency of agitator. 
Time required for refilling tank. 
Ratio of weight to capacity. 
Accessibility and convenience. 
Accessibilty of working parts— 
Valves: Ease of replacing valve-seats. 
Drains: Engine, pump and tank. 
Plunger-cups or packing; repacking stuffing-boxes (if any). 
Screws; bolts; oil-cups; pressure-regulator. 
Method of taking in slack between pump and engine. 
Cleaning strainer on suction hose; cleaning tank of debris. 
Adaptability to field conditions— 
Cramping of wheels in turning. 
Radius of circle required in turning. 
Possibility of miring in irrigation ditches or loose soil. 
Draft. 
Repairs— 
Possibility of securing duplicate parts. 
Ease of making repairs. 
2. Construction. 
Engine— 
General construction: 
Durability; simplicity of design. 
Exposure of working parts: 
Freedom from danger of breaking cogs, cranks, etc. 
Freedom from danger on part of operator. 
Proportions of working parts; quality of materials; 
workmanship. 
Provision for drainage. 
Method of feeding gasolene. 


336 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


Pump— 
General construction: as above. 
Valves: composition and design. 
Cylinder lining. 
Provision for drainage. 
Provision for supplying air to air-dome. 
Reliability of pressure gauge. 
Type of pressure regulator. 
Outfit— 
Tank: Wood or metal; location; design suited to agitator. 
Trucks: Steel or wood; rigidity; strength; weight. 
Wheels: Diameter; width of tires; metal or wood. 
Tower: 
Weight; detachability; position. 
With railing or straddle. 
Hose— 
Quality; diameter; length; number of ply. 
End couplings set in rubber and bound in place, without 
sharp projections to catch in operator’s hands. 
Extension rods— 
Length; Bamboo or not; aluminum, brass or iron. 
Character of end ferrules (whether they slip through the 
hand easily, and thoroughly grip the core). 
Nozzles— 
Kind; quality. 
Cut-offs— 
Globe or ball or quarter-turn. 
Anti-leak; rapidity of action. 
3. Cost. 
Accessories supplied: e. g., filling pump and suction hose; 
magneto; hose; rods; nozzles; tools; crooks; tower. 
Ratio of cost to capacity and efficiency. 


INSECTICIDES AND FUNGICIDES 
(Adapted from Crosby and Matheson, and from Reddick.) 


Of poisoning insecticides, the most widely used and 
effective substance is arsenic in its various forms. Arsenic 
is never used pure, but only when chemically combined 


Arsenicals 337 


with lead, lime or other substance that produces a com- 
pound insoluble in water. 


White arsenic is the cheapest form in which arsenic can be 
obtained. It is a white powder, soluble in water, and very injurious 
to foliage. A cheap and efficient insecticide may be prepared from 
it as follows: , 

For use with bordeaux mixture only.—Sal-soda, two pounds; 
water, one gallon; arsenic, one pound. Mix the white arsenic into 
a paste and then add the sal-soda and water, and boil until dis- 
solved. Add water to replace any that has boiled away, so that 
one gallon of stock solution is the result. Use one quart of this 
stock solution to fifty gallons of bordeaux mixture for fruit trees. 
Make sure that there is enough lime in the mixture to prevent the 
caustic action of the arsenic. 

For use without bordeaux mixture.—Sal-soda, one pound; water, 
one gallon; white arsenic, one pound; quicklime, two pounds. Dis- 
solve the white arsenic with the water and sal-soda as above, and 
use this solution while hot to slake the two pounds of lime. Add 
enough water to make two gallons. Use two quarts of this stock 
solution in fifty gallons of water. 

As there is always some danger of foliage-injury from the use 
of these home-made arsenic compounds, and as they cannot be 
safely combined with the dilute lime-sulfur when used as a summer 
spray, they are now rarely employed in commercial orchard spraying. 

Arsenate of lead was first used as an insecticide in 1893, in Massa- 
chusetts. For orchard work throughout the country, it has now 
almost entirely replaced paris green. It adheres better to the leaves, 
may be used at considerably greater strength without injuring 
the foliage, and may be combined with a dilute lime-sulfur solu- 
tion or with the self-boiled lime-sulfur. Chemically, arsenate of 
lead may be either triplumbic arsenate or plumbic-hydrogen arsenate. 
The commercial product usually consists of a mixture of these two 
forms, the proportion depending on the method of manufacture 
employed. It is usually sold in the form of a thick paste, but for 
some purposes the powdered form is preferred. Under the National 
Insecticide Law of 1910, arsenate of lead paste must not contain 
more than 50 per cent water and must contain the arsenic equivalent 
of at least 121% per cent arsenious oxid. The water-soluble arsenic 
must not exceed an equivalent of three-fourths of 1 per cent of 


V ¥ 


338 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


arsenic oxid. In the best grades of arsenate of lead paste the chemi- 
cal is in a finely divided condition, and thus when diluted for use 
remains in suspension for a considerable time. Arsenate of lead is 
used at various strengths, depending upon the insect to be killed and 
on the susceptibility of the foliage to injury. Four pounds in one 
hundred gallons can be used on the peach if combined with the self- 
boiled lime-sulfur; on apple, four to five pounds in one hundred gal- 
lons is usually sufficient; on grapes for killing the grape root-worm 
beetles and the rose-chafer, eight to ten pounds in one hundred 
gallons have been found necessary. The poison is more readily eaten 
by these beetles if sweetened by two gallons of molasses in one hun- 
dred gallons; but, unfortunately, the addition of molasses greatly 
decreases the adhesiveness of the poison. Some species of fruit flies 
may be controlled by the use of sweetened arsenate of lead sprayed 
on the foliage of the plants at the first appearance of the flies. They 
lap up the poison with their fleshy tongue-like mouth-parts and suc- 
cumb before ovipositing. 

Hellebore is a poisoning insecticide of recognized standing. It is 
a light brown powder made from the roots of the white hellebore 
plant (Veratrum album), one of the lily family. It is applied both 
dry and in water. In the dry state, it is usually applied without dilu- 
tion, although the addition of a little flour will render it more adhe- 
sive. In water, four ounces of the poison is mixed with two or three 
gallons, and an ounce of glue, or thin flour paste, is sometimes added 
to make it adhere. A decoction is made by using boiling water in 
the same proportions. Hellebore soon loses its strength, and a fresh 
article should always be demanded. It is much less poisonous than 
the arsenicals, and should be used in place of them upon ripening 
fruit. It is used for various leaf-eating insects, particularly for the 
currant-worm and rose-slug. 

Of the contact insecticides, the most important for the fruit- 
grower are soaps, kerosene emulsion, lime-sulfur solution and 
tobacco preparations. 

Soaps.—The most commonly used soap solution is that pre- 
pared from fish-oil soap. The commercial brands of this soap are 
usually by-products and contain many impurities; further, many of 
them contain an excess of free or uncombined alkali, and are thus 
likely to injure young and tender foliage. A good fish-oil soap may 
be prepared by the following formula: Caustic soda, six pounds; 
water, one and one-half gallons; fish-oil, twenty-two pounds. Dissolve 


Contact Insecticides 339 


the caustic soda in the water and then add the fish-oil gradually under 
constant and vigorous stirring. The combination occurs readily at 
ordinary summer temperatures, and boiling is unnecessary. Stir 
briskly for about twenty minutes after the last of the oil has been 
added. There is now on the market a good brand of insecticide 
soap prepared from cotton-seed oil soap-stock, or from an impure 
grade known as pancoline. 

Kerosene emulsion is the oldest of our contact insecticides. It is 
especially valuable for use against plant-lice and other small, soft- 
bodied insects. It is prepared by the following formula: Soap, one- 
half pound; water, one gallon; kerosene, two gallons. Dissolve the 
soap in hot water; remove from the fire and, while still hot, add the 
kerosene. Pump the liquid back into itself for five or ten minutes 
or until it becomes a creamy mass. If properly made, the oil will not 
separate on cooling. For use on dormant trees, dilute with five to 
seven parts of water. For killing plant-lice on foliage, dilute with 
ten to fifteen parts of water. Crude-oil emulsion is made in the 
same way by substituting crude-oil in place of kerosene. The strength 
of oil emulsions is frequently indicated by the percentage of oil in 
the diluted liquid; for a 10 per cent emulsion,'add seventeen gallons 
of water to three gallons of stock emulsion; for a 15 per cent emulsion, 
add ten and one-half gallons of water to three gallons of stock emul- 
sion; for a 20 per cent emulsion, add seven gallons of water to three 
gallons of stock emulsion; for a 25 per cent emulsion, add five gal- 
lons of water to three gallons of stock emulsion. 

Lime-sulfur solution is both insecticide and fungicide. A solution 
of lime-sulfur was first used as an insecticide in California in 1886. 
It is now the standard remedy for blister-mite, San José scale and 
similar scales, as well as an efficient fungicide. The lime-sulfur solu- 
tion may be purchased in the concentrated form, or may be prepared 
as follows: Lump lime (95 per cent calcium oxid), thirty-eight 
pounds, or lump lime (90 per cent calcium oxid), forty pounds; sulfur, 
eighty pounds; water, fifty gallons. Make a paste of the sulfur with 
about ten gallons of hot water. Add the lime. As the lime slakes, 
add hot water as necessary to prevent caking. When the lime has 
slaked, add hot water to make fifty gallons and boil one hour, stirring 
constantly. Water should be added from time to time to keep the 
liquid up to fifty gallons. Store in air-tight hardwood barrels. Test 
the strength of the solution with a Baumé hydrometer, and dilute 
for use according to the following table: 


340 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


Dinutions ror Dormant anp SummMEeR SprayING witH Lime- 
Sutrur Mixtures 


Amount of dilution. 
Number of gallons of water to one 
gallon of lime-sulfur solution. 
Reading on hydrometer. =r es bik i 
‘or San ‘or blister-|For summer 
(Degrees Baumé) José scale. mite. spraying of 
Dormant. | Dormant. apples. 

SO avahar ies pescGea weer ee ee sees Mas 9 12% 45 
DAE Lasers) suena tartke th tvnleialetend descava aye iehsrishe 834 12 4314 
Bop eipeasherenscdineeuasaug aba iasanenay avelaxe aauecsias 814 114% 414% 
Ooh: senate on sels FRAME RE LE TSS ROD 8 11 40 
DIL A eeatereniaces se A Ie eesste Naiveradece se oasal th wtead ees aes 7% 104% 3734 
BOs segig. ts 5 Sea SY Gina wnew Renee tine scape 714 10 3614 
Os sasiorsitavarls eatavecengrs Symi Sain y aap enue nE ea 634 9% 34 
De see cidis cI be Then KARR Oe 6% 9 3234 
QE xy wl ale hE OAAANAC MELT EERE A ETS 6 84 31 
QO iets doAanaca ai de sechsei tarnaeseecs hearcrnel aos 534 8 291% 
SB svaseccicaseat Swiss ai esby Guaeeneennsse wb Gis uiededoaleeee 54% 7% 2734 
S Lisewind cad slg Ped aaa an kn baa 6 Xe 5 7 26 
OU, cadigayad itso ands oes tae wees 44% 6% 2414 
REGRESS CR RAEE ERE RRA LEE ene 444 6 2234 
SikcconaeeX ons ek POORER GRO Eee 334 5% 214% 
secede tess Orme. leven pemase hse rk ave oases 3% 5 1934 
AD imeniter 202 ang MOMaat eee ee Beh 34 434 184% 
LS as arc chcadtesvn's dh ss vaiesx nrc sesgcareh are sPasiere Shane 3 4\Yy 17 
DE eakips asst (eit dais ey cguyecte gsuenien du alae de aa\le lavela 234 4 16 
LO ass careield fancies peewee Paes = nk ome 2% 334 15 
AL Diese duoreateriss cnn send ' opine chadhusce aaa See 2144 3% 14 
La ncdepaieiie SSeS. Sie Re we 3 1234 


Commercial concentrated lime-sulfur, as manufactured and 
placed on the market, is a clear amber liquid, and should test 32° 
to 35° Baumé. It costs about 20 cents « gallon retail, and comes 
ready to pour into the spray tank. For apple and pear diseases 
arsenate of lead can be used with this solution, and increases its 
fungicidal value. 

Scott’s self-boiled lime-sulfur is a mechanical mixture of the two 
substances, and is really not boiled, the heat being supplied by the 
slaking lime. In a small barrel or keg place eight pounds of good 
quicklime. Add water from time to time in just sufficient amounts 
to prevent burning. As soon as the lime begins to slake well, add 
slowly (preferably through a sieve) eight pounds of sulfur flour. Stir 
constantly, and add water as needed. As soon as all bubbling has 
ceased, check further action by adding a quantity of cold water, or 


Tobacco Insecticides 341 


pour into a barrel or tank and make up to fifty gallons. Keep well 
agitated. Very effective against peach-scab and brown-rot. Several 
other formulas have been used: 10-10-50 and 5-5-50. Arsenate of 
lead can be used with this mixture. By using boiling water and allow- 
ing the hot mixture to stand for half an hour, a stronger spray mix- 
ture than the above can be secured. It cannot be used safely on 
peaches, but has been used successfully on grapes for surface mildew. 
The addition of sulfate of iron or sulfate of copper, one to two pounds 
to fifty gallons, has been used for apple-rust. 

Tobacco is one of our most useful insecticides. The poisonous 
principle in tobacco is an alkaloid nicotine, which, in the pure state, 
is a colorless fluid, slightly heavier than water, of little smell when 
cold and with an exceedingly acrid burning taste even when largely 
diluted. It is soluble in water and entirely volatile. It is one of the 
most virulent poisons known; a single drop is sufficient to kill a dog. 
Commercial tobacco preparations have been on the market for many 
years. The most important of these are black leaf, “black leaf 40,” 
and nicofume. . 

“Black leaf” was formerly the most widely used tobacco extract. 
It contains only 2.7 per cent nicotine and has now been replaced by 
the more concentrated extracts. It is used for plant-lice at the rate 
of one gallon to sixty-five gallons of water. : 

“Black leaf 40” is a concentrate tobacco extract containing 40 
per cent nicotine sulfate. Its specific gravity is about 1.25. In this 
preparation the nicotine is in a non-volatile form, it having been 
treated with sulfuric acid to form the sulfate. “Black leaf 40” is 
used at strengths varying from one part in 800 parts of water to one 
part in 1,600 parts. It can be satisfactorily combined with other 
sprays, as for example, lime-sulfur solution, arsenate of lead, and 
the various soap solutions. When used with water, about four pounds 
of soap should be added to make the mixture spread and stick better. 

“Nicofume”’ is a tobacco extract containing 40 per cent of nicotine 
in the volatile form. Strips of paper soaked in this preparation are 
smudged in greenhouses to destroy aphids. 

Tobacco is also used in the form of dust for the same purpose. It 
is especially valuable against root-lice on asters and other plants. 
Tobacco extracts can be made at home by steeping tobacco stems 
in water, but as they vary greatly in nicotine content and are some- 
times likely to injure tender foliage, it is better to buy the stand- 
ardized extracts. 


342 The Principles of Frutt-growing 


The standard fungicides for spraying purposes are bordeaux 
mixture and lime-sulfur. The lime-sulfur has already been dis- 
cussed; we may now take up the preparation of bordeaux. 

Bordeaux mixture is a bluish green copper compound that settles 
out when freshly slaked lime and a solution of copper sulfate (blue- 
stone) are mixed. Many formulas have been recommended and used. 
The 5-5-50 formula may be regarded as standard. In such a formula 
the first figure refers to the number of pounds of copper sulfate, the 
second to the stone or hydrated lime, and the third to the number of 
gallons of water. Bordeaux must often be used as weak as 2-2-50, 
on account of injury to some plants. 

To make fifty gallons of bordeaux mixture, proceed as follows: 

(1) Pulverize five pounds of copper sulfate (blue-stone), place 
in a glass, wooden or brass vessel, and add two or three gallons of 
hot water. In another vessel slake five pounds of quicklime in a 
small amount of water. When the copper sulfate is all dissolved, 
pour into a barrel and add water to make forty to forty-five gallons. 
Now strain the lime into this, using a sieve fifty meshes to the inch 
or a piece of cheese-cloth supported by ordinary screening. Stir 
thoroughly, and add water to the fifty-gallon mark. The flocculent 
substance which settles is the effective fungicide. Always stir 
vigorously before filling the sprayer. Never add the strong lime 
to strong vitriol. Always add a large amount of water to one or 
the other first. Copper sulfate used alone would not only wash off 
quickly in a rain, but cause a severe burning of fruit and foliage. 
Lime is added to neutralize this burning effect of the copper. If the 
lime were absolutely pure, only slightly more than one pound would 
be required to neutralize this burning effect. For many purposes 
an excess of lime is not objectionable and may be desirable. For 
nearly ripe fruit and ornamentals.an excess of lime augments spotting. 
In such cases the least amount of lime possible should be used. 
Determine this by applying the cyanide test (2). 

(2) Secure from the druggist 10 cents’ worth of potassium 
ferrocyanide (yellow prussiate of potash) and dissolve it in water 
in an eight-ounce bottle. Cut a V-shaped slit in one side of the cork, 
so that a few drops of the liquid can be obtained. Now proceed as 
before. Add lime with constant stirring until a drop of the ferro- 
cyanide ceases to give a reddish brown color. 

(3) When bordeaux mixture is desired in large quantities, stock 
solutions should be made. Place one hundred pounds of copper 


The List of Pests 343 


sulfate in a bag of coffee-sacking, and suspend in the top cf a: fifty- 
gallon barrel, and add water to the fifty-gallon mark. In twelve 
to fifteen hours the vitriol will be dissolved, and each gallon of 
solution will contain two pounds of copper sulfate. Slake a barrel 
of lime, and store in a tight barrel, keeping it covered with water. 
Lime so treated will keep all summer. It is really hydrated lime. 
This is often dried, pulverized, and offered on the market in paper 
bags of forty pounds each, under such names as ground lime, pre- 
pared lime, hydrated lime, and the like. If the paper is not broken, 
the lime does not air-slake for a long time. One and one-third pounds 
of hydrated lime equals in value one pound of quicklime. Air-slaked 
lime cannot be used in preparing bordeaux mixture. 
Arsenical poisons can be combined with bordeaux mixture. 


LEADING FRUIT INSECTS AND DISEASES THAT ARE 
CONTROLLED BY SPRAYING 


The insects, mites, parasitic fungi, bacteria and other 
organisms that attack fruit plants of one kind or another 
are legion; but there are several prominent pests and dis- 
eases of each of the temperate-climate fruits that should 
be recognized by every fruit-grower. The following notes, 
assembled from the statements of Reddick, and of Crosby 
and Matheson, represent the best advice that is available 
at the present writing. The grower should keep himself 
well informed on the new practices. Only such insects 
and diseases are included as yield to treatment by spray- 
ing or similar practices; borers, cankers and similar 
troubles are discussed in Chapter VIII. 


ép,12.— APHIDS, or Prant-Lice.—Three species commonly attack 

the opening buds and leaves of apple—the leaf aphis (Aphis 

pomi), rosy aphis (Aphis sorbi) and bud aphis (Siphocoryne 
avenz). 

These small, soft-bodied insects may be controlled by thor- 

ough spraying with “black leaf 40” tobacco extract, three- 


344 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


fourths of a pint in one-hundred gallons of water, adding four 
pounds of soap. Make the application before the leaves curl. 

AppLe-Scas (Venturia inequalis)—Olive-green, brownish or black- 
ish scab-like spots on leaves and fruit. Scab is one of the most 
prevalent, as well as one of the most damaging, of the apple 
diseases. It appears on the leaves (Fig. 130) and also in the 
fruit (Fig. 131). Whetzel. 
The definite lesions are 
readily distinguished 
from the rusty, irregular 
injuries often caused by 
bordeaux mixture (Fig. 
132, N. Y. Exp. Sta.). 

Rake and burn or 
plow under old leaves 
very early in spring. 
Spray with lime-sulfur 
32° Baumé, 1-40, or 
bordeaux, 3-3-50: (1) 
when blossom buds show 
pink; (2) when majority 
of petals have fallen; (3) 
three weeks after 2, de- 
pending upon the 
weather; (4) if a late 
attack is feared, spray 
before fall rains begin. 

APPLE-CurcuLio (Anthono- 
mus quadrigibbus).— A 
soft, white grub, about 
Jin. long, in the fruit. 

Clean cultivation. Rake the small, early-dropped apples 
out into the sun where they will dry up. 

AppLte Lear-Horrer (Empoasca mali) —A slender, pale yellow- 
ish green bug; the nymphs are pale greenish and usually found 
on the under side of the leaves. The winter eggs are laid in 
blisters under the bark of the smaller branches; summer eggs, 
in the leaf veins and petioles. Four generations annually. The 
insect feeds by extracting the juices from the leaves, causing them 
to turn pale and curl. It is most injurious to nursery stock. 


of apple-scab. 


Apple Insects 345 


The young nymphs may be killed by spraying with “black 
leaf 40” tobacco extract, three-fourths of a pint in one hundred 
gallons of water, adding 
three to four pounds of 
soap. Nurserymen often 
catch the adults by the 
use of sticky shields. 

Appte Lerar-Rouuer 
(Archips argyrospila).— 
A green caterpillar with 
a black head, 1 inch or 
less in length when 
mature, attacks the 
opening buds, rolling 
and webbing together 
the leaves, flowers and 
young fruit into a nest. 
Holes are eaten in the 
young apples, deforming 
them. Eggs are laid in 
June in small, flat masses on the bark, and are covered with a 
smooth, varnish-like coating. They do not hatch till the follow- 
ing spring. 

To kill eggs, spray with miscible oil, one gallon in fifteen gal- 
lons of water, making the application as late as possible before 
the buds open. If the 
eggs have been neg- 
lected, recourse must be 
had to arsenate of lead, 
six pounds .in one hun- 
dred gallons water. 
Apply before the blos- 
soms open. 

AppLe-Maccor (Rhagoletis 
pomonella)—_A white 
maggot that tunnels 
apples through and 
through, causing decay 
and falling of the fruit. 
The parent flies appear 


Fig. 131. Apple-scab. 


Fia. 132, Bordeaux injury. 


346 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


the latter part of June and early July, and insert the eggs under 
the skin of the fruit. Hibernation takes place in small puparia 
just below the surface of the soil. Sweet and subacid varieties 
are most susceptible, but others are sometimes attacked. 

Clean cultivation. Spray when flies appear with arsenate of 
lead, four pounds in one hundred gallons of water. The addition 
of two or three gallons of molasses is supposed to render the 
poison more attractive to the flies. 

Brown-Tait Mors (Euphroctis chrysorrhea).—This highly destruc- 
tive European insect was introduced near Boston a number of 
years ago, and is now rapidly spreading over New England. The 
snow-white moths, with a large tuft of brown hairs at the tip of 
the abdomen, appear in July, and deposit eggs on the leaves in 
elongate masses covered with brown hairs from the body of the 
female. The caterpillars become only partly grown the first 
season, and hibernate in conspicuous nests, 3 to 4 inches long, 
at the tips of the branches. The black-bodied caterpillars, clothed 
with rather long, brownish, stinging hairs, complete their growth 
the next spring, feeding ravenously on the tender foliage and 
causing great damage in orchards, parks and forests. 

Cut out and burn all winter nests before the buds start. In 
the spring, spray with arsenate of lead, as recommended for the 
gipsy-moth. Prevent the ascent of caterpillars from other trees 
by banding the trunks with tanglefoot. Keep the bands fresh 
by combing the surface every few days. 

Buv-Motsa (Tmetocera ocellana)—The small brown caterpillars 
with black heads burrow into the buds, feeding on the opening 
leaves and flowers and web them together. 

Spray with arsenate of lead, four pounds in one hundred 
gallons of water, just as the blossoms show pink, and again as the 
last of the petals are falling. 

Canxer-Worm, Fatu (Alsophila pometaria)—Wingless female 
moths usually emerge from the ground in late autumn, crawl 
up the trees and deposit their eggs on the smaller branches. 
The eggs hatch in April or May, and the blackish, yellow-striped, 
looping caterpillars defoliate the trees. 

Band tree trunks in the fall with tanglefoot or cotton batting 
to prevent ascent of moths. The young canker-worms may be 
killed by spraying with arsenate of lead, six pounds to one hun- 
dred gallons of water. 


Apple Insects 347 


CanKer-Worm, Sprine (Paleacrita vernata)—Habits similar to 
the fall canker-worm, but the moths emerge in March and April. 
Caterpillars are distinguished by having only two pairs of prolegs. 

Same as for fall canker-worm except the bands should be 
applied in early spring. 

Casn-Brarers.—The pistol-case-bearer (Coleophora malivorella) 
and the cigar-case-bearer (C. fletcherella)—The small cater- 
pillars live in pistol- or cigar-shaped cases, about 14 inch long, 
that they carry around with them. They appear in spring on 
the opening buds at the same time as the bud-moth, and may be 
controlled by the same means. 

Copiin-Mors (Carpocapsa pomonella).—This is the pinkish cater- 
pillar which causes a large proportion of wormy apples. The 
eggs are laid by a small moth on the leaves and the skin of the 
fruit. Most of the caterpillars enter the apple at the blossom end. 
When the petals fall, the calyx is open and this is the time for 
spraying. The calyx soon closes, and keeps the poison inside 
ready for the young caterpillars’ first meal. After the calyx has 
closed, it is too late to spray effectively. The caterpillars become 
full grown in July and August, leave the fruit, crawl down on 
the trunk, and there most of them spin cocoons under the loose 
bark. In most parts of the country there are two broods annually. 

As the last of petals are falling, spray with four pounds 
arsenate of lead in one hundred gallons of water, using a stiff 
spray to force it into the blossom end of the apple. Repeat the 
application three weeks later. 

Fatt Wes-Worm (Hyphantria cunea).—Hairy larva, about an inch 
long, varying from gray to pale yellow or bluish black, feeding 
upon the leaves of many trees, in tents or webs. 

Destroy by burning the webs, or removing them and crush- 
ing the larve. Spray with arsenicals. 

Green Fruit-Worms (Xylina sp.).—Yellowish or apple-green 
caterpillars, striped with cream-color, 1 to 114 inches in length 
when mature, attack the opening leaves and blossoms and 
eat holes in the developing fruit. The parent moths emerge 
from hibernation in early spring and lay their eggs on the smaller 
branches. One brood annually. 

Thorough and repeated spraying with arsenate of lead, six 
pounds in one hundred gallons of water, will kill many of the young 
caterpillars. Make the application when blossom clusters appear. 


348 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


Gypsy-Mota (Porthetria dispar) —The full-grown caterpillar is 
about 2 inches long, dark gray in ground-color, with eleven pairs 
of prominent tubercles on the back, the first five pairs blue, the 
last six dark red. They become full grown about the first of 
July. They pupate in slight cocoons. The moths emerge in 
seven to seventeen days. The male has a light brown body, 
wings yellowish brown, and each front wing is crossed by four 
wavy, dark brown lines. In the female the body is light buff and 
the wings grayish white. The dark markings on the front wings 
are similar to those of the male. The females do not fly, but each 
lays its eggs in a mass about an inch in length covered with hairs 
from its body. Hibernation takes place in the egg-stage. The 
eggs hatch just as the buds are bursting. 

Kill the eggs by saturating the masses with crude coal-tar 
creosote, to which a little lamp-black has been aded as a marker. 
When the young caterpillars hatch, spray the trees with arsenate 
of lead, ten pounds in one hundred gallons of water. When the 
caterpillars are half grown, use thirteen to fifteen pounds of lead 
arsenate. Full-grown caterpillars are very resistant to poisons. 
Band the tree trunks with tanglefoot to prevent the ascent of 
wandering caterpillars. 

OysTER-SHELL ScaLE (Lepidosaphes ulmi).—This is an elongate 
scale (sometimes called bark-louse), 4% inch in length, resem- 
bling an oyster-shell in shape, and often incrusting the bark. 
It hibernates as minute white eggs under the old scales. The 
eggs hatch during the latter part of May or in June, the date 
depending on the season. After they hatch, the young may be 
seen as tiny whitish lice crawling about on the bark. When 
these young appear, spray with kerosene emulsion, diluted with 
six parts of water, or whale-oil or any good soap, one pound 
in four or five gallons of water. When trees are regularly sprayed 
with lime-sulfur, as for the San José scale or blister-mite, the 
oyster-shell scale is usually controlled. This is a very prevalent 
pest, and should be kept under complete control. 

PatmMeR Worm (Ypsolophus pometellus)—The brownish green, 
white-striped caterpillars, 14 inch in length when mature, 
skeletonize the tender foliage in June and eat holes in the young 
apples. There is only one brood a year. 

Spray with arsenate of lead, four pounds in one hundred gal- 
lons of water, when the caterpillars first appear. 


Apple Insects 349 


Prium-Curcutio (Conotrachelus nenuphar)—A snout-beetle that 
deforms the fruit by its characteristic feeding and egg-laying 
punctures. The grubs develop in the fruit and cause it to fall. 

Spraying with arsenate of lead, as for codlin-moth, whenever 
it can be applied with a fungicide so as not to increase expense, 
will help to control the trouble. Thorough superficial tillage of 
the surface of soil during July and August will kill many of the 
pupz, and is recommended. For treatment on plum, see under 
Plum. 

Rep Bues (Heterocordylus malinus and Lygidea mendar).—The win- 
ter is passed as eggs inserted in the smaller branches. The bril- 
liant red nymphs appear as the buds open and feed on the foliage 
for a time. Then they puncture the newly set apples, causing one 
of three things: Some drop, some dry up and remain on trees 
till next spring, and others mature as knotty, misshapen, worth- 
less fruit. One generation a year. 

The young nymphs may be killed by thorough spraying with 
“black leaf 40’ tobacco extract, one pint in one hundred gal- 
lons water, adding four pounds of soap, (1) when blossoms show 
pink, (2) when the last of the petals are falling. 

Rose-CHAFER.—See Grape. 

San Jose Scare (Aspidiotus perniciosus)—This scale is nearly 
circular in outline and about the size of a pinhead. When abun- 
dant it forms a crust on the branches, and causes small red spots 
on the fruit. It multiplies with marvelous rapidity, there being 
three or four broods annually, and each mother scale may give 
birth to several hundred young. The young are born alive, and 
breeding continues until late autumn, when all stages are killed 
by the cold weather, except the tiny, half-grown, black scales, 
many of which hibernate safely. 

Spray thoroughly in the fall after the leaves drop, or early 
in the spring before growth begins, with lime-sulfur wash, one gal- 
lon in eight gallons of water, or miscible oil, one gallon in fifteen 
gallons of water. When badly infested, make two applications, 
one in the fall and another in the spring. In case of large, old 
trees, 25 per cent crude-oil emulsion should be applied just as 
the buds are swelling. 

Tent-CaTerPILLaRS (Malacosoma americana and M. disstria).— 
Larvee nearly 2 inches long, spotted and striped with yellow, white 
and black; feeding upon the leaves. They congregate in tents or 


350 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


in clusters on the bark at night and in cool weather, and forage 
out upon the branches during the day. 

Arsenicals, as for codlin-moth. Burn out nests with torch, or 
cut them out and crush the larve. Pick off egg-masses from twigs 
‘during winter and spring. 

Tussocx-Mota (Hemerocampa leucostigma)——A handsome, red- 
headed, yellow-and-black tufted caterpillar, about an inch long, 
which devours the leaves and sometimes eats into the fruit. 

Collect the frothy egg-masses in fall and winter and band the 
trees to prevent a reinfestation by migrating caterpillars. Spray 
with arsenicals as for codling-moth, taking care to cover the under 
side of the leaves. 

Wootty Apuis (Schizoneura lanigera).—Small, reddish brown plant- 
lice covered with a conspicuous mass of white, waxy fibers, 
found on the branches, sprouts, trunks and roots. 

For the form above ground drench the infested parts with 15 
per cent kerosene emulsion; for the underground form remove the 
earth beneath the tree to a depth of 3 inches, and apply 10 per 
cent kerosene emulsion liberally, and replace the earth. In the 
case of nursery stock the emulsion may be applied in a shallow 
furrow close to the row. Do not set infested trees. 


Apricot. Diseases and insects require treatment similar to those of 
peach and plum. 

Bramble Fruits. Buackperry Crown-GAui or Root-Gatu (Bac- 
terium tumefaciens)—Swellings, hard or soft, on roots and 
stem below ground. 

Plow up and burn all bushes in a diseased patch. Plant 
clean roots in a new place. 

BuackBerry Lear-Miner (Metellus rubi)—Greenish white 
larve, with brown markings, 4 inch in length when full- 
grown, causing blotch mines in the leaves. 

No satisfactory treatment is known. 

Dewserry Lear-Spot (Septoria rubi)—Small pale spots of 

dead leaf-tissue finally becoming dotted with black specks. 
No successful method of treatment is known. 

RaspBerRy ANTHRACNOSE (Glexosporium venetum).—Circular or 
elliptical, gray, scab-like spots on the canes. 

Remove diseased canes as soon as fruit is picked. Avoid 
taking young plants from diseased plantings. 


Brambles and Cherries 351 


Rep or Orance Rust (Gymnoconia interstitialis) Dense, red, 
powdery growth on under side of leaves of black raspberries 
and blackberries. e 

Dig up and destroy affected plants. 

RaspBeRRY Root-sorer (Bembecia marginata)—Larva about 
1 inch long, boring in the roots and the lower parts of the cane, 
remaining in the root over winter. 

Dig out the borers. Destroy wild berry bushes. 

Raspserry Saw-Fiy (Monophadnus rubi)—Larva about 34 
inch long, green, feeding upon the leaves. 

Hellebore; arsenicals, after fruiting. 

Rep-Spiper.—See Peach. Do not use lime-sulfur on raspberry 
foliage. 

Tren-Cricket (Ccanthus nigricornis)—Small and whitish 
cricket-like insect, puncturing canes for 2 to 3 inches, and 
depositing eggs in the punctures. 

Burn all infested canes in winter or very early spring. 

Cherry. Brown-Rot (Sclerotinia fructigena)—The flowers decay, 

the leaves become discolored with irregular brown spots, 
and the fruit rots on the tree. 

Spray with bordeaux mixture, 44-50, or lime-sulfur, 
1—40 (1) just before the blossom buds open; (2) just after 
the blossoms fall; (3) one or two more applications at inter- 
vals of ten days. 

Apuis (Myzus cerasi).—Blackish plant-lice infesting the leaves 
and tips of new growth. 

Spray as soon as the first lice appear, with whale-oil soap 
or tobacco extract. 

Buack-KNnot.—See under Plum; same disease. 

Cuerry Fruit-Furrs (Rhagoletis cingulata and R. fausta).— 
Small maggots infesting ripening fruit. Adults are flies with 
banded wings and insert their eggs under the skin of the fruit. 

Spray with arsenate of lead, five pounds in one hundred 
gallons, sweetened with three gallons of molasses to kill flies 
before egg-laying. Should be done when flies first. appear,— 
last of June in New York. 

Cuerry TREE TorTRIX (Archips cerasivorana).—Tips of branches 
are frequently webbed into nests by colonies of lemon-yellow 
caterpillars. 

Wipe out nests and destroy the caterpillars. 


352 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


Powpery Mitprw (Podosphzra oxycanthe)—Leaves and twigs 
affected, often causing defoliation. 

Spray with lime-sylfur, 1-40, or dust. heavily with pow- 
dered sulfur. 

S.ue (Eriocampoides limacina).—Larva 1 inch long, blackish 
and slimy, feeding upon the leaves; two broods. 

Arsenicals, hellebore, tobacco extract. 

Chestnut. Canker, or Bark Diszase (Endothia parasitica).— 
Sunken or swollen cankers on limbs or trunk. Limbs die and 
leaves and burs cling in winter. 

Control Remove diseased parts and burn. Paint all 
wounds. Little chance of saving trees in infested locality. 
WeEvILtsS (Balaninus proboscideus and B. rectus).— Brownish 
beetles with extremely long, slender snouts with which 
they bore holes into the nuts for deposition of eggs. The 

grubs feed on the kernel, producing wormy nuts. 

Treatment.—No satisfactory control measures known. 

Two-LineD CHESTNUT-BORER (Agrilus bilineatus).—Slender, 
flattened grubs, 34 inch long, when mature, burrowing under 
the bark and girdling the trees. 

Treatment.—Cut and burn infested trees to prevent spread. 

Cranberry. Buast, or Scatp (Guignardia vaccinit)—Young flower 
and fruits blasted, older fruits appear scalded or watery. 

Spray five or six times with bordeaux mixture, 5-5-50, to 
which has been added four pounds of resin fish-oil soap. 
Begin just before the blossoms open. 

CraNnBERRY Futcorip (Phylloscelis atra).—Small, broad-bodied, 
black, jumping insect punctures the vines, causing the leaves 
to turn brown and the fruit to shrivel. 

“Black leaf 40” tobacco extract, one pint to one hundred 
gallons of water, adding four to five pounds of soap to kill 
young nymphs. 

CRANBERRY-GIRDLER (Crambus hortuellus)—Small caterpillar, 
feeding on the stems just beneath the surface of the sand. 

Reflow just after picking, for a week or ten days, or reflow 
for a day or two about June 10. 

Fatse Army-Worm (Calocampa nupera).—Green to blackish 
caterpillars devouring the leaves and buds. 

Reflow for from twenty-four to thirty-six hours soon 
after the middle of May. It may be necessary to reflow a 


Cranberry and Currant 353 


second time. Destroy all caterpillars washed ashore while the 
water is on. In dry bogs, spray early in May with arsenate 
of lead. 

Fire-Worm, CRANBERRY-WoRM, or BLACK-HEADED CRANBERRY- 
Worm (EHudemis vacciniana)—Small larva, green, black- 
headed, feeding upon the shoots and young leaves, drawing 
them together by silken threads; two broods. 

Flooding for two or three days when the worms come 
down to pupate. Arsenicals. 

Fruit-Worm (Mineola vaccinit)—Small caterpillar working in 
the fruits, eating out the insides. 

For bogs with abundant water, reflow for ten days immedi- 
ately after picking. Let the foliage ripen, and then turn on 
water for winter. Draw off water early in April, and every 
third or fourth year hold it on until the middle of May. For 
dry bogs spray three times with arsenate of lead during July. 
Burn all screenings. 

YELLOW-HEADED CRAaNBERRY-WoRmM (Acleris minuta).—Stout, 
yellowish green, small caterpillar, with a yellow head, webbing 
up the leaves as it works. 

Hold the water late on the bog in spring to prevent egg- 
laying. Arsenicals from the middle of May till July 1. 


Currant. Wit, or Cane-BuicHT (Botryospheria ribis)—Canes die 
suddenly, the leaves wilting. 
No satisfactory method of control is known. Cut out and 
burn affected plants. 

Rust (Cronartium ribicola)—Brown rust pustules and brown 
felt-like growth on under side of leaf. Black currants espe- 
ially susceptible. 

Grow at least 500 feet from white pine trees. 

Currant Apuis (Myzus ribis)—Small, yellowish green lice 
attacking the under side of the leaves, distorting the leaves 
and causing them to turn red. 

Contact insecticides when leaves first appear. 

Currant Merasurine- or Span-Worm (Cymatophora ribearia).— 
Larva somewhat over an inch long, with stripes and dotted 
with yellow or black, feeding upon the leaves. 

Hellebore, applied stronger than for currant-worm. 
Arsenicals; hand-picking. 
WwW 


354 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


Currant-Worm, or Currant and Goospperry Saw-FLy 
(Pteronus ribesii)—Larva, about 34 inch long, yellowish 
green, feeding on leaves of red and white varieties; two to 
four broods. 

Hellebore, applied early; arsenicals for the early brood. 
Treatment should begin while the larve are on the lower- 
most leaves of the bushes. Before the leaves are fully grown, 
the holes made by the worms may be seen. The second 
brood is best destroyed by killing the first brood. 

Four-strirep Puant-Bue (Pecilocapsus lineatus)—A bright 
yellow, black-striped bug about 14 inch long, puncturing the 
young leaves and shoots of many plants. 

Jar into a dish of kerosene. Kerosene emulsion when 
the nymphs are young. Cut off the tips of the shoots in early 
spring to destroy the eggs. 

Dewberry. See Bramble Fruits. 
Gooseberry. Mitprw (Sphezrotheca mors-uve).—A powdery mildew 
of the fruit and young growth of English varieties. 

Spray with potassium sulfid, one ounce to two gallons of 
water, at intervals after leaves begin to unfold. 

GoosEBERRY Fruit-Worm (Dakruma convolutella) —Larva about 
34 inch long, greenish or yellowish, feeding in the berry, caus- 
ing it to ripen. prematurely. 

Destroy affected berries. Clean cultivation. Poultry. 

Grape. Buackx-Rot (Guignardia bidwellii)—Brown circular spots 
on leaves, black, elongated, sunken pits on petioles, canes, etc., 
and on the berry a brown rot, with shriveling and wrinkling. 

Spray with bordeaux mixture, 4~-4-50, before rains. 
Spray (1) when the third or fourth leaf unfolds; (2) as soon 
as the blossoms have fallen; (3) when berries are size of a pea; 
(4) about two weeks later. Two or more applications if wet 
season. 

Downy Mitpew, or Lear-Bricut (Plasmopara viticola).—White 
frost-like patches on the under side of the leaf. 

Same as for black-rot. 

GrapPe-CurcuLio (Craponius ‘inequalis)—Larva small, 
white, with a brownish head. Infests the grape in June and 
July, causing a little black hole in the skin and a discolora- 
tion of the berry immediately around it. The adult is a gray- 
ish brown snout-beetle, about one-tenth inch long. 


Grape Insects and Diseases 355 


Spray with arsenate of lead while the beetles are feeding 
on the leaves. The beetles may be jarred down on sheets, as 
with the plum-curculio. Bag the clusters. 

Grape Root-Worm (Fidia viticida)—The small white grubs 
feed upon the roots, often killing the vines in a few years. 
The adults are small, grayish brown beetles that eat peculiar 
chain-like holes in the leaves during July and August. 

Cultivate thoroughly in June, especially close around the 
vines to kill the pups in the soil. At the first appearance of 
the beetles, spray the plants with arsenate of lead at the rate 
of eight or ten pounds in one hundred gallons of water, to 
which should be added one gallon of molasses. 

GrRaPE-SLuG or Saw-Fiy (Selandria vitis)—Larva, about 14 
inch long, yellowish green with black points, feeding upon the 
leaves; two broods. 

Arsenicals; hellebore. 

GRAPEBERRY-WorM (Polychrosis viteana)—Larva, about 14 
inch long, feeding on the berry, often securing three or four 
together by a web; two broods. 

Spray with arsenate of lead before blossoms open. Repeat 
after blooming and again in early July. Destroy wormy 
berries in August. 

Grare-VINE FLEs-BrEEtLe (Graptodera chalybea).—Beetle, of a 
blue metallic color, about 14 inch long, feeding upon the buds 
and tender shoots in early spring. 

Arsenicals to kill the grubs on leaves during May and June. 
The beetle can be caught by jarring on bright days. 

Grape-ViInE SpHinx (Ampelophaga myron).—A large larva, 2 
inches long when mature, green with yellow spots and stripes, 
bearing a horn at the posterior extremity, feeding upon the 
leaves and nipping off the young clusters of grapes; two 
broods. 

Hand-picking. Arsenicals early in the season. 

Lear-Horrer (Typhlocyba comes).—These small yellowish leaf- 
hoppers, erroneously called “thrips,” suck the sap from the 
under side of the leaves, causing them to turn brown and 
dry up. ; 

Spray the under side of the leaves very thoroughly with 
one gallon “black leaf 40” in 1,000 gallons of water about 
July 1, to kill the young leaf-hoppers. When using tobacco 


356 The Principles of Fruat-growing 


extract, add about two pounds soap to each fifty gallons to 
make it spread and stick better. Repeat the application in a 
week or ten days. In houses, tobacco:smoke, pyrethrum 
poured upon coals held under the vines, syringing with 
tobacco-water or soapsuds. 

Ross-Cuarer (Macrodactylus subspinosus)—The ungainly, 
long-legged grayish beetles occur in sandy regions, and often 
swarm into vineyards and destroy the blossoms and foliage. 

At the first appearance of the beetles, spray with arsenate 
of lead at the rate of eight to ten pounds in one hundred gal- 
lons of water, to which should be added one gallon of molasses. 

Hickory. Lzar-Spot (Marsonia juglandis).—Large leaf-spot, caus- 
ing premature dying of leaves. 

Spraying with bordeaux mixture may be of value. 

Gaut Aputs (Phylloxera sp.).—Yellowish green plant-lice causing 
hollow galls on the leaves, petioles and small twigs. 

Spray with contact insecticides as buds are opening in 
the spring. 

Peach. Buiicur (Coryneum beyerinkit)—A spotting, gumming and 
death of the buds and twigs, particularly in the lower parts 
of the tree. The fruit drops. 

For California conditions, two applications bordeaux 
mixture, 5-5-50, or lime-sulfur, 1-10, (1) in November or 
December, and (2) in February or March. 

Lear-Curu (Ezoascus deformans).—Leaves curl and wrinkle. 

Spray with lime-sulfur, 1-11, before buds swell. 

Brown-Ror (Sclerotinia fructigena)—Rot on fruit and cankers 
on limbs. 

Spray with self-boiled lime-sulfur, 8-8-50, adding two 
pounds arsenate of lead. Spray (1) about time shucks are 
shedding from young fruit; (2) two or three weeks later; 
(3) one month before fruit ripens. 

Scan, or Buacx-Spot (Cladosporium carpophilum).—Black scab- 
like spots on fruit. 

Self-boiled lime-sulfur applied as under Brown-Rot. 

Buack Apuis (Aphis persice-niger)—A small black or brown 
plant-louse, which attacks the tops and roots of peach trees. 
When upon the roots it is a very serious enemy, stunting the 
tree and perhaps killing it. Thrives in sandy lands. 

Kerosene emulsion; tobacco decoction and extracts. 


Peach Insects and Diseases 357 


Ciover Mites (Bryobia pratensis).—Small reddish mites attack- 
ing the leaves, causing them to turn yellow. 

Lime-sulfur while trees are dormant. In summer, use 
self-boiled lime-sulfur as a dust, or sulfur paste. 

Green Peacu-Lovuse, or ApHis (Myzus persice)—A small 
insect feeding upon the young leaves, causing them to curl 
and die. 

Lime-sulfur, kerosene emulsion or tobacco extract. After 
the buds open, either of the last two. 

Praca Twic-Morn (Anarsia lineatella)—The larva of a moth, 
4 inch long, boring in the ends of the shoots, and later.in the 
season attacking the fruit. Several broods. 

Spray with lime-sulfur just after the buds swell. Spray 
trunk and larger branches in late spring to kill first brood 
of pup in the curls of bark. 

Prium-Curcutio (Conotrachelus nenuphar)—This insect may be 
successfully controlled on peach by spraying with arsenate of 
lead, four pounds to one hundred gallons of self-boiled lime- 
sulfur. Spray, first, when the “husks” drop from the fruit; 
second, ten days or two weeks later. It is unsafe to spray 
peaches more than twice with arsenate of lead. 

Rep Spiwer, or Mire (Tetrancyhus bimaculatus).—A small mite 
infesting many plants, both in the greenhouse and out-of- 
doors. It flourishes in dry atmospheres, occurring on the 
under sides of the leaves. In some forms it is reddish, but 
usually light-colored and two-spotted. Common. 

Persistent syringing with water will generally destroy 
them, if the spray is applied to the under surface. Use lots of 
force and little water to avoid drenching the beds. Sulfur 
and water. Dry sulfur. On orchard trees, flour paste. 

Wuirts Praca Scate (Diaspis pentagona).—Circular gray scales 
with the exuvie at one side of the center. 

Same as for San José Scale. See Apple. 

Pear. Buicut (Bacillus amylovorus).—Flowers, young fruit, twigs and 
leaves turn black and die. Limbs die back, and sunken cankers 
form in bark. This is a widespread and very damaging disease. 
Some varieties appear to be more susceptible than others. 

Not amenable to spraying. Eradicate all wild hawthorns, 
pears and apples. Inspect and remove all blighted parts of 
tree. Paint wounds with coal-tar. 


358 


The Principles of Fruit-growing 


Scas.—Very similar to apple-scab and demanding similar 


treatment. 


Mines (Diplosis pyrivira)——A minute mosquito-like fly; lays 


eggs in flower-buds when they begin to show white. These 
hatch into minute grubs which distort and discolor the fruit. 
New York and eastward. Prefers the Lawrence. Introduced 
in 1877 from France. 

Not controlled by spraying. Destroy the infested pears. 
Cultivate and plow in late summer and fall to destroy the 
pupze then in the ground. 


Pear-LeaF Buister-Mite (Hriophyes pyri)—A minute mite 


which causes black blisters to appear upon the leaves. The 
mites collect under the bud-scales in winter. 
Lime-sulfur or miscible oil as a dormant spray. 


Pear Psyuua (Psylla pyricola)—These minute, yellowish, flat- 


bodied, sucking insects are often found working in the axils of 
the leaves and fruit early in the season. They develop into 
minute, cicada-like jumping lice. The young psyllas secrete 
a large quantity of honey-dew, in which a peculiar black 
fungus grows, giving the bark a characteristic sooty appear- 
ance. There may be four broods annually, and the trees are 
often seriously injured. 

Clean culture; remove rough bark from trunks and larger 
branches to discourage adults from hibernating; spray with 
“black leaf 40” tobacco extract, one pint in one hundred 
gallons of water, adding four pounds soap, on warm days in 
November or April, to kill hibernating adults. Spray with 
lime-sulfur, winter strength, when the blossom clusters 
appear, to destroy eggs. 

In summer, spray with “black leaf 40” tobacco extract 
just as the last of the petals are falling, to kill young. Repeat 
if necessary. 


Pear Turies (Huthrips pyri)—Minute insects one-twentieth 


inch in length, dark brown when adult, white with red eyes 
when young, that attack the opening buds and young fruits in’ 
early spring. They suck the sap from the tender growth, and 
the females lay eggs in the fruit-stems, causing a loss of the 
crop. The nymphs hibernate in the ground a few inches 
from the surface. A serious pest in California, and recently 
introduced into New York, 


Pecan, Pear, and Plum Pests 359 


Thorough cultivation during October, November, and 
December (in California). Make two applications of “black 
leaf” tobacco extract, one gallon in sixty gallons of 2 per 
cent distillate oil emulsion, the first just as the fruit-buds 
begin to open, the second just after the petals fall. In the 
East it may be controlled by timely applications of tobacco 
extract and whale-oil soap. 


Pecan. Bup-Morts (Proteopteryx deludana)—A brownish cater- 


pillar about 1% inch in length, feeding on the opening buds 
in early spring and on the under side of the leaves in summer. 

Arsenate of lead in summer to kill larve of second brood. 
Lime-sulfur and arsenate of lead in dormant season just 
before buds open, to destroy hibernating larve. 


CaSE-BEARER (Acrobasis nebulella)——A small caterpillar living 


Plum. 


inside a case which it carries with it. It attacks the opening 
buds. 

Arsenate of lead as soon as the buds begin to open. Repeat 
if necessary. 

Buiack-Knot (Plowrightia morbosa).— Black tumorous 
swellings from 1 to several inches in length, on limbs and 
twigs. 

Orchards thoroughly sprayed with bordeaux are not 
likely to be attacked. Burn all affected parts in the fall. 
Burn whole tree if badly affected. 


Curcutio (Conotrachelus nenuphar)—Larva, a whitish grub, 


feeding in the fruit. 

Arsenate of lead, six pounds to one hundred gallons of 
water; apply as soon as the calyx falls, and repeat two or 
three times at intervals of about ten days. Jarring the beetles 
on sheets very early in the morning, beginning when trees 
are in flower, and continuing from four to six weeks, is proba- 
bly the most certain procedure. There are various styles of 
sheets or receptacles for catching the insects as they fall from 
the tree. Clean culture. 


San Jose Scatn.—See Apple. 
European Fruit Scare (Lecanium corni).—A large circular 


scale occurring on plum; occasionally very destructive. 
Thorough spraying with kerosene emulsion, one part to 

five of water, in the winter. More dilute emulsion or tobacco 

extracts in midsummer, when the young insects are on the 


360 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


leaves and young shoots. Miscible oils when trees are 
dormant. 

Quince. BuigHr.—See under Pear. 

Rust (Gymnosporangium globosum).—Orange rust of fruit. 

Destroy red cedars in the neighborhood, also wild apples 
and hawthorns. Spray as for apple-scab. 

Green Apuips.—As for apple-aphids. 

Quince Curcuiio (Contrachelus crategi)—-This curculio is 
somewhat larger than that infesting the plum, and differs in 
its life-history. The grubs leave the fruits in the fall, and 
enter the ground, where they hibernate and transform to 
adults the next May, June or July, depending on the season. 

When the adults appear, jar them from the tree on sheets 
or curculio-catchers, and destroy them. To determine when 
they appear, jar a few trees daily, beginning the latter part 
of May. Spray with arsenicals. Pick and burn all infested 
fruits a month before harvesting. 

Raspberry.—See Bramble Fruits. 

Strawberry. Lxear-Spot, or Lear-Buicut (Mycospherella fra- 
gariz)—Small purple or red spots appearing on leaves. Leaf 
appears blotched. 

Spray with bordeaux mixture, 44-50, soon after growth 
begins and make three or four additional sprayings during 
season. 

Lear-Roiisr (Ancylis comptana).—Larva less than 4% inch 
long, feeding on the leaves, and rolling them up in threads 
of silk; two broods. 

Turn under in the fall all old beds that have become worth- 
less. Spray with arsenate of lead, four pounds in one hundred 
gallons of water, after the eggs are laid but before the leaves 
are folded—the first half of May in the latitude of New Jersey. 

Root-BorER (Typophorus canellus)—A whitish| grub ¥ inch in 
length feeding on the roots. The parent beetle is brownish, 
and appears in great numbers in May. 

Arsenicals to kill the beetles. Plant new beds at a dis- 
tance from old ones. 

Root-Lovuse (Aphis forbesii)—From July to the close of the 
season the lice appear in great numbers on the crowns and on 
the roots of the plants. 

Rotation in planting. Disinfect plants coming from 


Conclusion of the List of Pestc 361 


infested patches by dipping the crowns and roots in kerosene 
emulsion, or tobacco extract. Fumigation. 
Saw-Fiy (Emphytus maculatus)—Larva nearly 34 in long, 
greenish, feeding upon the leaves; two broods. 
Hellebore; arsenicals for second brood. 

Walnut. Bucur (Pseudomonas juglandis).—Appears as a black 
spotting of the fruit and as black cankers on the stems. The 
twigs and fruit-spurs are killed. 

Control.—None, except those ways mentioned under pear- 
blight (page 357); grow immune varieties. 
ANTHRACNOSE or LEAF-BuicHt (Marsonia juglandis).—The 
same disease that attacks hickory (see page 356). 


ARSENICAL POISONING OF FRUIT TREES 


In the first edition of this work, the question was 
asked as to what becomes of the arsenic that finally 
reaches the soil from the sprays. From the few studies 
that had then been made of the subject (Cornell Bull. No. 
101) it was concluded that the arsenites do not leach 
from the soil, but “remain where they fall, the same as 
sand does, and are carried down only when there are 
crevices or other openings in the soil, and they go down as 
insoluble compounds, and, to a slight extent, by the mere 
mechanical action of the water.” In the early days of 
spraying, the question of the effect of the materials on the 
soil and on live-stock feeding on the grass beneath the 
sprayed trees (as also on persons eating sprayed fruit) 
was much discussed. The subject of soil injury was gone 
over carefully by Lodeman in his “Spraying of Plants,” 
1896, and the experiments at that time had shown no 
danger following the customary use of the arsenic and the 
copper salts in spraying. “The only conclusion to be drawn 
from these extracts,” he says, “is that proper applications 
of insecticides and fungicides will apparently never cause 


362 The Principles of Frutt-growing 


an appreciable injury either to the roots of plants or to 
the soil.” 

Recent studies lead Headden to conclude, in conditions 
in Colorado, that the plant may take up the arsenic, that 
the arsenical preparations used in spraying are water- 
soluble to some extent, and that the tree may be injured 
and killed by the action of arsenic collected about the 
crown or collar (Colo. Bull. Nos. 131, 157). Arsenic was 
found in plant tissue and soluble arsenic was detected in 
the soil. “Three forms of this trouble were recognized, — 
corrosive arsenical poisoning, systemic arsenical poisoning, 
and arsenic-lime poisoning. The last form is considered 
as being produced by the joint action of lime and arsenic, 
because we do not find this trouble present on limestone 
soils in general, nor is it characteristic of arsenical poison- 
ing produced by soluble arsenic preparations—sodic 
arsenite, for example.” 

The subject of soil-poisoning by arsenical materials 
used in spraying is now again under discussion. It needs 
to be worked over under many conditions. Similar in- 
juries are those of crown-rot due, perhaps, to winter injury, 
and there may be confusion between these injuries and 
those attributed to arsenic poisoning. Ball and Titus have 
found (Journ. Econ. Ent. III, pp. 187-197, 1910) that 
arsenic can be packed about the roots or trunks without 
injury. The subject will have increasing importance, as 
the arsenical materials are used more liberally and as they 
accumulate in the soil. Whether there is danger of injury 
to trees in humid regions is to be determined by investi- 
gations in many places. 


It is a good commentary on the certainty and regu- 
larity of spraying, and the control of the processes, that 


Spraying Ideals 363 


practically no accidents occur to persons or to live-stock, 
notwithstanding the immense quantities of poisons used, 
the continental range of the work, and the great number of 
persons employed in spraying, not only of fruit trees but 
of street and shade trees; and yet we must look to the day 
when effective materials of a less poisonous nature shall 
be discovered for this important work and also when 
greater reliance than now shall be placed on securing the 
proper balance in nature. 


CHAPTER X 
HARVESTING AND MARKETING THE FRUIT 


THE crop is now grown, and the grower is confronted 
with the problem of disposing of it. If he is growing the 
fruit for profit, he must give attention to the business 
situation involved in the: picking, packing, storing and 
shipping. The actual selling of the product is an enter- 
prise belonging to the merchantman rather than to the 
fruit-grower ; but the grower must understand the demands 
of the market, and the conditions under which the sales- 
man is obliged to work. 

Marketing is rapidly coming to be recognized as a 
semi-public function. It is being regulated by legislation 
on packages and inspection, transportation, ordinances on 
marketing and licensing of middlemen. The producer as 
well as the seller must work within the law; and it is to 
be expected that the laws will be more specific and con- 
trolling in the future. This will impose a special obliga- 
tion on the grower of fruits to raise a good product, and 
to grade and pack with care, for fruits are mostly shipped 
in separate gift packages. 

Associations and exchanges for the handling of fruits 
have been productive of much good and have stimulated 
the business in many parts of the country. They are to 
be encouraged when the growers are ready for co-action 
and when the volume of business in any definite geographi- 
cal region is large. 

This book is devoted primarily to the growing of 

(364) 


The Gathering of the Fruit 365 


fruits; but the questions of marketing may be given brief 
consideration, particularly in their bearing on the work of 
the grower himself and on farm practices. It is not in- 
tended here to take up the larger questions of commercial 
pre-cooling, refrigeration, cold-storage, transportation and 
salesmanship. 


PICKING FRUITS 


If it is worth while to exercise care and ingenuity to 
grow the fruit, it is equally important to take pains with 
the finished product. It is a pity to miss the best rewards of 
one’s labor by carelessness or inattention at the harvest. 


When to pick. 


Just when and how the fruit should be picked for best 
market results depends very largely on the species or 
variety of fruit, and greatly also on the distance to which it 
is to be shipped. The closer and better the market, the riper 
the fruit should be when taken from the plant. If one is 
fortunate enough to have a special or personal market, 
delivering the fruit to the consumer direct, then one may 
hope to retain this market only by delivering the products 
in the very best dessert condition. Such consumers are 
willing to pay a sufficient extra price for the advantage of 
having the fruit taken from the plant when it is in its 
highest state of edible quality. Most serious mistakes are 
constantly made in the picking of blackberries, for 
example. It is ordinarily considered that when the berries 
are black they are ripe, but such is not the case. They 
are fully ripe only when they shake from the bushes 
readily, and when they are soft and free from sharp acidity. 
In this condition, blackberries can be handled direct to 
the consumers in a local market that is only a few miles 


366 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


away; but they could not be shipped by rail. The straw- 
berry is ordinarily picked for market when only a part of 
the berry is really ripe, and when the organic acids are 
still too sharp and austere for the dessert. A strawberry 
with a green or white tip is not yet in fit condition to 
pick, if one is expecting to reach a really good market. 

With the tree-fruits in general, the samples keep longest 
when they are picked greenest, but they suffer thereby in 
point of quality. There are no well-marked lines between 
greenness or immaturity, ripeness or full maturity, and over- 
maturity and decay. The one stage passes into the other 
insensibly, and it is a part of the normal chemical history 
of the fruit that it should begin an incipient breaking down 
and disorganization of tissue as soon as the ripening pro- 
cess is complete. It will be seen, therefore, that the 
riper the fruit, the more nearly does it approach this period 
of disorganization and the sooner the breaking down of 
the tissues may be expected to begin. When the fruit is 
picked very green, however, this period of natural dis- 
organization is comparatively remote. On the other hand, 
fruits picked very green are not yet arrived at their most 
edible stage, and unless they are kept in the most favor- 
able conditions, they are very likely to shrivel and to 
become unmarketable. 

Apples—In the case of winter apples, it is best to 
pick them, if they are to be stored or exported, just as 
they have arrived at their full size and when they have 
attained only a part of their full color. Over-ripe or fully 
ripe fruits must be sent to the market at once, or else they 
must be kept in artificial cold storage in order to halt the 
chemical processes, and when they are taken from storage 
they are very likely to decay quickly. Apples picked 
slightly green, however, usually continue to keep well 


Picking Apples and Pears 367 


after being taken from cold storage. This was demon- 
strated at the World’s Fair at Chicago, at which New 
York apples taken from cold storage remained on the 
shelves in good condition for several weeks. 

Pears, on the other hand, nearly always lose quality 
by ripening fully upon the tree. The cells of the fruit fill 
with gritty mineral matter, much to the detriment of 
texture. It is ordinarily considered that the best time to 
pick a pear of any variety is just as soon as it reaches its 
full size and before it has begun to color. In most varie- 
ties, this stage is well indicated by the facility with which 
the fruit-stem parts from the spur. The pear is taken in 
the hollow of the hand and turned up; if the stem snaps 
off the spur at its point of articulation, the fruit is con- 
sidered to be ripe enough to pick. 

The pears are then ripened under cover. The best 
place in which to ripen them is a rather cool but dry room, 
like a loft or a chamber. Here they are piled on the floor or 
on racks, and they should not lie, for the best results, more 
than three or four pears deep. If they are piled too deep, 
the lower ones are likely to be indented by the weight of 
those above them. The room should be kept fairly close. 
If there is too much circulation of air, and if the tempera- 
ture is high, the pears ripen too quickly, and often shrivel. 
A Bartlett pear, when properly picked and handled, 
ordinarily requires a full week in which to ripen to its best 
quality, and the ripening process may often be continued 
considerably longer than this by picking the fruit early and 
keeping it cool. Kieffers, especially if grown in the North, 
seem to ripen best if they are stored in bulk, like beans, 
two to three feet deep, or even in barrels, and the ripening 
process is ordinarily two to three weeks long. If they are 
given this long time in which to mature, the quality may 


368 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


be expected to be very much better than in the general 
run of samples. 

Stone-fruits—A peach is fit to pick ‘when it is full 
grown and has begun to develop its characteristic color. 
Peaches and apricots do not ordinarily color up well 
after they are picked, although plums usually will do so, 
especially the Japanese plums, which may be picked very 
green and yet develop a high color. It is very difficult to 
describe that period of maturity at which a peach is ready 
for picking. An experienced picker will take the fruit 
softly in his hand and press the ball of his thumb very 
lightly on the side, and if the fruit has a somewhat springy 
feeling, it is ready to take from the tree. This pressure 
is never sufficient to leave any mark on the fruit. Pinching 
a peach will usually spoil it. If the peach is too green, it 
will feel hard and stone-like. If it is too soft, it will simply 
indent, and will not have the characteristic elastic feeling. 

In the case of cherries and plums, it is very important 
that the fruits be picked just before they have reached 
their condition of most edible quality. This is largely 
because the fruit-rot fungus is likely to destroy the fruits 
at the time of their ripening, especially on those varieties 
particularly subject to the disorder. Amongst plums, the 
Lombard is one of the most seriously attacked; and 
amongst cherries, nearly all the white-fleshed varieties, like 
Governor Wood and Napoleon, are greatly subject to 
injury. If the weather at picking time gives promise of 
being close and warm or “muggy,” then it is exceedingly 
important that the fruit should be picked early. In 
sweet cherries, a delay of a few hours will sometimes 
result in the loss of an entire crop from the fruit-rot 
fungus. Cherries and plums should always be picked, if 
possible, when they are perfectly dry. This is especially 


Decay of Cherries 369 


true of the sweet cherries; if they are picked when they 
are wet, and put into boxes or baskets in this condition, 
they will be almost certain to decay before reaching the 
market, unless the weather remains very cool. 

This fruit-rot fungus is very damaging on many stone- 
fruits. In sweet cherries, writes G. H. Powell, ‘the losses 
from this disease which have come under my observation 
are invariably the result of letting the fruit hang on the 
trees till ripe, and then the rot is very active; but cherries 
should be picked a few days before ripe, before they soften, 
and then the rot does not seriously affect them. An illus- 
tration of this point, which is a most important one, was 
brought to my notice the present season. The last week of 
June, in eastern New York, was very hot and close, with 
showers every day or two. The cherries were then ripen- 
ing, and the conditions were favorable for the rot to spread. 
In one orchard, from which several tons of cherries were 
shipped that week, there was not more than one hundred 
and fifty pounds destroyed by the rot, while in another 
orchard a few miles distant at least ten tons of the same 
varieties were ruined on the trees. In the first orchard the 
fruit was picked before it had ripened, and all that was fit 
was taken off as soon as the trees dried off after a shcwer; 
in the other orchard it was left till nearly ripe, and one- 
half to two-thirds of the crop was lost before the fruit 
could be picked. So rapid is the work of this fungus at 
this period, that the owner of the orchard told me that he 
lost three tons of one variety in one night. It might be 
added that the orchard first mentioned was a much 
stronger one, as it was in cultivation, while the last had 
been in sod for years, and the general debility and neglect 
of the trees made them good subjects for the attacks of 
rot or any other disease.” 

x 


370 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


How to pick. 

In picking the soft fruits, like cherries and plums, the 
operator grasps the stem and not the fruit itself. In this 
way he does not remove 
the delicate bloom, and 
4 does not injure the fruit 
when pulling it from 
the spur. In the case of 
grapes, itis likewise very 
important, especially in 
those with a heavy bloom, that the picker should not 
grasp the bunch itself, but should take the cluster by the 
stem and snip it off with shears (which are made for the 
purpose). In the case of peaches and apricots, this pre- 
caution, of course, need not be taken, because the stem does 
not naturally adhere to the fruit; but the operator must 
be very careful, when picking these fruits, not to grasp 
them too tightly, otherwise he will bruise them and cause 
them to become discolored. Strawberries should always 
be picked with the stems on. A berry that has the hull 
pulled out is not fit for the market. The picker should 
grasp the stem itself and pinch it off between the thumb 
and finger. Every evidence of fruits having been touched 
by the hands detracts from their market value. 

On all fruits that grow on a distinct pedicel or stem, 
this stem should be allowed 
to remain. Pears with the 
stems pulled out or broken 
in two are never first-class 
fruits, no matter how good 
and uniform the specimens 
otherwise may be. This is 
even true of apples when they ¥'*! Berrytray made. of, sheet- 


How to Gather the Fruit 371 


are put up for the finest dessert trade; but as they are 
ordinarily handled, very little attention is paid to leaving 
the stems on. Leaving the stems on is vital to the hand- 
ling of plums and cherries, not 
only because the market demands 
it, but because the fruit will be 
very likely to rot if the stems are 
pulled out, and they will not pack 
so snugly and will not stand the 
transportation so well. The stems 
of cherries, plums and currants, and the hulls of straw- 
berries, serve a most useful purpose in holding the fruits 
in place in the box or basket, and in taking up the slack 
from settling or shrinkage. 

It is only in rare cases that 
fruit should be sent to the market 
in the packages in which the pick- 
ers place it; it will need to be 
sorted from these packages into 
others, and this sorting should be 
done in a cool shed or packing- 
room. In the picking of small-fruits, various kinds of trays 
or stands are used. In strawberries, it is important that 
these stands should have legs, so that when the package 
is set down it will not crush berries on the vines, and 
neither will it be so likely to tip over. Such 
stands are handy for grapes, or for any kind 
of berry fruits as well. Fig. 133 shows a type 
of berry-stand largely used for the picking } 
of raspberries and blackberries. This stand 
holds six one-quart boxes, and a tier is easily ' 
stacked upon another, one tier or layer of wy. 137. a halt 


stands breaking joints with those above and _Pushel picking- 


Fia, 135. Tray for berry-boxes. 


Fic. 136. Berry-stand on legs. 


372 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


below. Other types of berry-stands are shown in Figs. 
134-136. 

In the picking of tender or ripe tree-fruits, it is best to 
use a basket (Fig. 137) and not a bag, for in spite of 
all one can do, the fruit is bruised when it is thrown into a 
bag slung over the shoulder. Winter apples, however, are 
sometimes picked in bags (Fig. 138). In the picking 


M) 


AN Al 
i 
Fic. 138. The apple harvest. 


of peaches and other soft fruits, it is customary to pick 
in something like a Climax basket or, better still, in the 
old-fashioned, tall, round-top, peck baskets, such as 
are standards in New Jersey and other places. These 
baskets may be held at about one’s middle by dropping 
them into a hoop held on the person by a strap running 
over the shoulder and under one arm (Fig. 139). This 
allows the picker the free use of both arms, and obviates 
the necessity of his being obliged to stretch or stoop to 


Picking-Baskets 373 


deposit the fruit after he has picked it. The baskets are 
filled about level full, all the fruits that are ripe enough for 
picking being saved indiscriminately. The basket is then 
set in the shade alongside the tree from which the fruit 
was taken, and at intervals a wagon or cart collects the 
baskets and takes them to the packing-room, where 
the fruit is sorted, graded and packed. 

In the picking 
of apples, the best 
method is ordi- 
narily to use a 
half-bushel, round- 
bottomed, splint 
(not woven) bas- 
ket with a swing- 
ing handle (as in 
Fig. 137). If the 
basket is lined on 
the inside with 
thick cloth or bur- 
lap, it will answer 
the purpose all the 
better. This bas- 
ket is provided 
with a strong wire hook that can be hung over a limb, allow- 
ing the picker to have both hands free. There are special 
conveniences for apple-picking, which are not proper 
subjects for discussion in a general fruit-book. 

There are various appliances to facilitate the picking 
of fruit, some of which may be briefly mentioned. The 
fruit-picker should provide himself with an ample supply 
of crates or baskets, or whatever other receptacle may be 
used in the field. The receptacles should be strong and 


Fia. 139. Picking stone-fruits. 


874 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


durable, so that they may be used year after year; this is 
especially true of the baskets and crates used for the 
picking of the heavier fruits, as pears, apples and grapes. 
It is usually advisable to take the fruits to the packing- 
house in the very baskets or boxes in which they are 
placed from the tree, thereby avoiding unnecessary hand- 
ling of the fruit. In the case of winter apples, however, 
it is sometimes admissible carefully to pour the apples from 
the round-bottomed baskets, into which they are picked, 
into bushel baskets, or sometimes into crates such as are 
used for potatoes. In any case it is always advisable, in 
the best quality of fruit, to have all these baskets or crates 
lined with burlap or padded. 

The best wagons for use in orchards are those of the 
platform style, with low and very broad-tired wheels, and 
the platform extending over the wheels. Such wagons are 
not only capable of carrying a very large load, but do not 
cut up the ground; they are easily drawn and managed, 
and they escape the limbs in low orchards. It is desirable 
that the front wheels move under the platform, in order 
that the wagon may be turned at sharp angles. The prac- 
tice of loading apples and other fruits into a wagon box 
in bulk cannot be too strongly deprecated. It is admissible 
only when the apples are of low quality, and are fit for 
sale as second and third grades, or for manufacture into 
cider, evaporated stock or other products. 


Ladders for picking. 


The styles of ladders to be used must depend directly 
on the height of the trees. In old apple orchards, it is 
necessary to have long and light ladders, with a sharp or 
peaked top, which can be run directly up into the top of 
the tree and find lodgment against the branches, Exten- 


Kinds of Ladders 375 


sion ladders are also used, but they are usually more 
cumbersome and more difficult to manage than the light 
pointed-top pattern. In most other orchards, however, 
a step-ladder of the ordinary pattern, but perhaps some- 
what taller (run- 
ning from 10 to 
even 12 feet high), 
is all that will be 
required. This 
ladder should have 
a flat top, and also 
a movable shelf on 
its back, where 
baskets may be 
placed. The facility 
of picking fruit is 
very much in- 
creased if the trees 
have been well 
trained and pruned. 
Dwarf pears should 
rarely reach a 
height of more than 
12 to 15 feet; and 
if pear and apple 
trees are planted 
sufficiently far 
apart, and are kept 
open at the base, the pickers can reach most of the fruit 
by climbing. In the picking of apples and pears, nothing 
answers the purpose so well as a strong, nimble boy who is 
not afraid to climb. In many orchards the long and 
cumbersome ladders may be almost entirely dispensed 


Fie. 140. Various types of ladder arrangements. 


376 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


with if this requisite is at hand. In a fruit country, good 
workmen may usually be secured. 

For getting into the tops of 
fruit trees, a short and very 
light ladder with three or four 
rungs is exceedingly useful. This 
little ladder will also aid greatly 
in the gathering of fruit that 
hangs on the lower limbs just 
out of the reach of the picker. 
The ladder is stood upright and 
the picker mounts it quickly, 
crossing his legs over the top 
one or two rungs, and holds 
himself erect by grasping a limb 
Fae, 1441, Two types of tinea above his head, as shown in the 

ee illustration (Fig. 140, 2). This 
type of ladder is used by professional top-grafters. 

The pictures show various forms of fruit ladders. In 
Fig. 140, the items are as follows: No. 1 is a light ladder 
with a wheel, allowing it to be wheeled 
like a barrow when it is shut, as at 4; 2 
is the short ladder, not requiring sup- 
port, described in the text; 3, a German 
device for securing a support to the 
ladder, allowing the two supporting legs 
to be shut together; 5 is a pointed ladder 
with support; 6, a similar ladder, with- 
out support, very useful in tall trees; 7 
is a platform ladder; 8 is a wagon rigged 
for picking, the planks, y, y, upon which 
the picker stands, being swung length- 
wise the box when driving from tree to 


Fia. 142. The Japanese 
ladder. 


The Picking of Fruits 377 


tree. The so-called tripod ladders are shown in Fig. 141, 
and the Japanese ladder in Fig. 142 (both adapted from 
Ore. Bull. No. 118). The picking scene in Fig. 138 shows 
ladders in actual use in tall apple trees. 


Frutt-pickers and harvesters. 


The various kinds of fruit-picking devices on the 
market are useful only for gathering the few outlying 
fruits on the tall and far-reaching limbs. In Fig. 143 are 
shown some of the fruit-picking implements, as follows: 
No. 1, picker com- 
posed of two 
pincer -like jaws, 
with wire guards to 
“ receive the fruits, 
the jaws being 
closed by means of 
a cord, which is 
worked below (2 
and 3) by a catch; 
4, hook used for 
cutting off the 
fruits (the curved 
edge being sharp); 
5, V-picker with 
delivery sack; 6, 
bag-picker, hung on 
a wire frame (as 
shown in 7); 8, a 
wire finger-picker; 
9, cranberry picker 
(now probably little =< uN 
used) ; 10, 6-quart Fig. 143, Different implements for picking fruits. 


378 The Principles of Fruiting-growing 


cranberry measure; 11, 12, 13, forms of wire-pickers. 
There are many other forms. 

It is never practicable to use picking implements for 
the gathering of the entire crop, except in those very rare 
cases in which the crop is small and all the fruits are fit 
for the dessert trade. The labor of picking with these 
devices is slow and onerous. One of the best types of 
fruit-pickers is shown at 5 in Fig. 148 which may be 
made by any handy man. The fruits are hooked off by the 
V-shaped trigger at the top, and are delivered to the picker 
through the canvas or burlap bag that extends along 
the handle. Of course, only one fruit should be allowed 
to go through the bag at a time. Another very handy 
device is the finger-picker, illustrated at 13. This may be 
made by any handy tinsmith, who, however, should be ° 
cautioned against making it too heavy and cumbersome. 
In this instance, the apple is delivered to the picker by 
taking down the instrument. The disadvantage of this 
tool is that the fingers are likely to spring with use, and 
the apple will pull through between them rather than be 
pulled off. There are also devices in use for catching the 
fruit when it is shaken 
from the tree or bush. 
These are usually on 
the principle of a soft 
cloth hopper (see Fig. 
144). Such machines 
are often very useful in 
the gathering of black 
currants and goose- 
berries. For these pur- 
vast al poses, inverted um- 

Fia. 144. Gack’s paulepieker: brellas are sometimes 


Harvesting Machines 379 


used. Cherries were formerly sometimes gathered by 
being shaken into the machines used for the catching of 
curculios. It is needless to say that these means of 
gathering fruit are advisable only when the fruit 
is to be manu- factured intosomecommercial prod- 
uct, or when 
the price of fruit 
is extremely 
small. 

To lessen 
the cost of har- 
vesting and to 
overcome the 
difficulty of 
securing pick- 
ers in remote 
places, a har- 
vester for rasp- 


Fig. 145. Harvesting rasp- 
berries has berries by batting; and the 
é batter’s hook. 
come into use. 


This is a canvas 

tray, made by stretching the cloth over a light wooden 
frame about 3 feet wide and 4 to 5 feet long. At the bottom, 
the frame projects upward at right angle to the body of 
the frame to a distance of 5 or 6 inches, to catch the berries 
as they fall upon the canvas. A wooden shoe or runner 
is placed on the bottom of the apparatus, to allow the 
operator to slide it along from bush to bush, as shown in 
Fig. 145. A long wire hook is used to pull the bushes 
over the tray, or to lift up the fallen canes, while with 
the other hand the operator deftly cuffs off the berries 
with a paddle of wood, or of wire covered with canvas, 
and about the size of a butter-ladle. This harvester 


380 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


is used only for the gathering of berries that are to be 
evaporated. The berries are allowed to become fully 
ripe, so that they fall easily, and the patch is gone over 
about three times. Much litter falls with the berries, but 
this is readily removed by running the dried fruit through 
a fanning mill. There are few growers who use this har- 
vester exclusively. It is often brought into requisition for 
the last picking, or in seasons of low prices, and it also has 
a stimulating effect on a lot of disaffected berry-pickers. 


Necessity of hand-picking. 


It would seem to be unnecessary to say that all fruits 
intended for a good market should be hand-picked, and 
yet it is a fact that a great quantity of the apples, and 
even of the pears and plums, that go into our common 
markets are shaken from the trees. It is impracticable 
to grade or assort such fruits, because the proportion of 
jammed or bruised specimens is so great that the samples 
of first quality are found to be very few. It is an axiom in 
fruit-marketing that only the best fruit pays for careful 
packing, and that the poor fruit is rarely worth the trouble 
of grading. The better the fruit, therefore, and the more 
carefully it is picked, the more profitable may be the 
attention given to sorting and packing. 


CARING FOR THE FRUIT AFTER PICKING 


After fruit is picked, it is very important that it be 
kept cool and away from the direct sun. This is particu- 
larly true with the soft and berry-like fruits, as grapes, 
strawberries, cherries and peaches. The fruits not only 
ripen rapidly after they are picked if the sun strikes them, 
but they may also become so warm that they will not with- 


Handling Fruit in the Field 381 


stand shipment. It is ordinarily best to pick the perish- 
able fruits early in the morning, if they are dry, and then 
to pack them up tight and send them directly to the rail- 
way station; or, if they have become too warm, or if it 
is desired to delay the shipment, they should be put 
in the cellar or a cold storage to reduce them to a low tem- 
perature. If the soft fruits, as strawberries and raspberries, 
are treated in this way, they will ordinarily endure ship- 
ment best if they are sent in tight, unventilated crates. 

Apples ripen very rapidly in the pile if they are exposed 
directly to the rays of the sun. It is always well, therefore, 
if they are piled in the field, to 
place them on the shady side of 
the tree, if possible; but, no 
doubt, the very best results in 
long-keeping qualities are secured 
when the apples are taken directly 
from the trees to a cool room and 
there kept in storage, where the 
ripening process is wholly or parti- 
ally checked. This is especially 
important if they are to be shipped long distances, and 
particularly if they are to be exported. If the weather is 
cool and somewhat dull at the picking time, this precau- 
tion is not so essential as in autumns that are dry, bright 
and warm. 


C. H. Gould. 


Fia. 146. Picker’s ticket. 


Keeping records with the pickers. 


There are various ways of keeping accounts with 
berry-pickers. Perhaps the commonest way in large 
patches is to use a simple ticket, like Fig. 146, given to 
the picker in exchange for the berries delivered. There 
are tickets of various denominations, the figures repre- 


382 The Principles of Frutt-growing 


senting quarts, so that any number of quarts can be 
represented by combinations of tickets. These tickets are 
so often lost that they may soon come to be a nuisance, 
although some growers may not object to them for this 
reason, for all that are lost do not have to be redeemed. 
Some growers, therefore, have designed tickets that can 
be tied to the person by a string, bearing the picker’s 
name, and in which the numbers are cancelled by a punch. 


aN 

@ 
al 
s 


A » 
“oiqer0 ULE, ON 


we wo § 


Borvirvitinivivic 


rn Fangs aan 


TP arnnrnnrannan a 


A ee SCE 


iii in 
wm Dp pe ew we Pw wv 


ee a) ee Be ee 


Fic. 147. Picker’s tag. Fig. 148. Picker’s tag. 


Two good styles are shown, half-size, in Figs. 147 and 148. 
In the latter are two styles of punch marks, representing 
different foremen. 

Other growers disregard all ticket systems outright, and 
keep a book account with each picker; and, what is better, 
they pay by the pound. A small, flat-topped grocers’ 
scale may be taken to the shed in the berry field. Each 
picker is numbered, and he picks in an eight-pound or 
ten-pound Climax basket. As he comes to the shed, he 


Handling and Grading 383 


slips his number into the basket on a bit of card or splint, 
and he sees the basket weighed and the credit given; or, 
if the picker has no suspicions, the foreman may gather 
the baskets from the field. 

It is always essential that each picker finish the particu- 
lar job to which he is assigned. This is specially impor- 
tant in the small-fruits, for the picker must follow a cer- 
tain row, and not be wandering over the plantation in 
search of the best picking. 


THE GRADING AND PACKING OF FRUIT 


One never grades fruit accurately until he establishes 
the grades in the mind. One must first visualize certain 
standards, from which departures may be made. 


What ts first-class fruit? 


The first thing to be considered in the grading and 
packing of fruit is to determine what first-class fruit is. 
Even amongst those persons who sell apples for the 
export trade, there is very little exact practice in the 
sorting of the apples. It seems to be ordinarily considered 
that any fruit sound enough to reach its destination is 
good enough to be called first-class; but such standard is a 
grievous error. The fruit should not only reach its destina- 
tion in approximately the same condition in which it 
leaves the orchard, but it should also be attractive and 
uniform in quality, and capable of being held for some 
time when it reaches the wholesaler. Mere soundness or 
perfectness of form, and freedom from all bruises and 
blemishes, do not constitute a first-class sample. All the 
specimens should grade up to a more or less uniform stand- 
ard of size and shape; and any fruit ever so perfect in 


384 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


itself would not be considered to be first class if placed 
amongst fruits either very much larger or very much 
smaller. In. other words, there is a great difference 
between a perfect specimen and a first-class parcel. 

Perhaps it will answer all requirements to define first- 
class fruit as a quantity of sufficient amount to be quoted 
in the market (as one box, basket or barrel), that is thor- 
oughly well packed and of one variety, and in which the 
individual specimens are very nearly uniform in size, 
shape and degree of ripeness, are possessed of full-length 
stems (in stem-bearing fruits), are free from bruises and 
injuries and all insect and fungous blemishes, are fully 
characteristic of the variety, and are in that stage of 
maturity that the market demands at the time of their 
exposure for sale. 


The grading. 


The more personal and local the market, the more 
exacting that market is; and therefore the greater the atten- 
tion to be paid to the details of sorting and grading. 

The proper grading of fruit is greatly facilitated by 
thinning the fruits on the trees, a subject that has received 
specific treatment in Chapter VII. Recently, useful 
mechanical graders have been devised, and used even 
for the softer tree fruits. They are to be considered 
when different sizes are to be made in the same grade. 
The recent laws to regulate grades and packages will 
necessarily demand more attention to the sizes in the 
pack. 

It is evident, therefore, that if fruit is sorted, two 
grades will result,—the first-class grade and the remainder. 
In small-fruits, these two grades—known as the firsts 
and the seconds—usually comprise the entire crop, and 


Grading the Fruit 385 


the same may be true of tree-fruits that have been well 
grown and rigorously thinned. In most cases, however, 
tree-fruits are made into three grades, the third grade 
being known as 
culls. Persons who 
sort their fruit as 
carefully as our 
definition requires 
will do well to desig- 
nate the first 
grade by some spe- 
cial name or mark, 
as ‘‘Selected,’’ 
“First Choice,” and |, 
the like, to distin- ™ 
guish it from the 
common type of so- ¢ 
called first-class 
fruit. In sucht 
thorough sorting, 
four grades are _., 
often necessary \j 
properly to present 
the fruit to the 
various types of con- 
sumers. It should 
be remarked, how- 
ever, that the better the fruit as it hangs on the tree or 
vine, the fewer will be the grades in the packing-house. 
The packing of fruit, therefore, comprises two rather 
distinct elements,—the sorting or grading (which has now 
been considered), and the placing of the fruits in the final 
receptacles, or packing proper, to which we now proceed. 


Fig. 149. Various types of fruit packages. 


386 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


The packages. 

Some of the many forms of packages for fruits are 
shown in the pictures. These are: 

Fig. 149.—No. 1, common quart berry box; 2, the 
bottom, in flat; 3, the sides, in flat; 4, 5, 7, till baskets; 6, 
paper basket, set up; 8, oblong quart boxes; 9, 10, metal- 
topped baskets; 11, bushel basket with slat cover; 12, 
common splint peach basket; 13, same, with cover. 

Fig. 150.—No. 1, veneer peach basket; 2, standard 
peach basket; 3, veneer straight-sided basket; 4, vege- 
table basket; 5, 
California peaches, 
wrapped in paper; 
6, a frequent result 
in the market;7-11, 
various styles of 
Climax baskets; 12, 
13,basketsforapple- 
picking (the illustra- 
tion also shows same 
number of apples in 
each basket or pile, 
but those in 13 
from sprayed trees, 
those in 12 from 
untreated trees). 

Fig. 151.—No. 
1, Diamond market 
basket; 2, 16-pint 
basket -tray; 3-9, 
various styles of 
erates for berry 
Fia. 150. Various types of baskets. boxes. 


The Packages for Fruits 387 


Fig. 152.—No. 1, crate for Leslie boxes; 2, 4-quart hand- 
tray; 3, 24-quart crate; 4, till-basket crate; 5, 6, fruit boxes 
(holding from 1 to 1 bus.); 7, the bushel handling box; 8, 
patent fruit barrel; 9, High- 
cliffe patent barrel for export 
apples (arranged to be sawn 
in two without disturbing ~ 
the fruit). 

Of the peach-basket type 
there are many varieties. Fig. 
153 shows two of them, the 
upper one being the “New 
York” basket and. the lower 
one the “Jersey” basket. 
Covers or hoods are shown 
in Fig. 154. The shipper’s 
half-bushel, a very handy 
package for firm fruits 
handled loose, is shown in 
Fig. 155. Other forms of 
carriers are displayed in Fig. 
156. The bushel box (Fig. 157) is standard, and is used 
for a great variety of purposes. In Fig. 158 is seen the 
crate used in Hawaii for shipping papayas (Higgins and 
Holt), each fruit being in a separate carton. 

It is well nigh useless to try to make specific remarks 
about the packages used for fruits, because so much 
depends on the particular grade of the fruit and the way 
in which it is shipped and handled; very much also depends 
on the demands of the given market. It is an excellent 
plan for the fruit-grower to visit markets in advance of 
the ripening of his crop, and to determine just what style 
of package his market will most appreciate. When fruits 


Fig. 151. Baskets and crates. 


388 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


are pooled, or shipped through exchanges or unions, it 
is imperative that a uniform style of package be 
used; but when a man handles fruit solely on his own 
account, and has a superior quality, he may often adver- 
tise his product by a unique package, or at least by one 
that is unlike those in most common use. Such a package 
singles him out from 
his neighbors, and 
answers as a trade- 
mark for his product. 
The writer has known 
profitable returns to 
be secured from fruit 
shipped in colored 
baskets. A dye was 
made of aniline, and 
the baskets were 
dipped into the kettle 
(being handled with a 
pitchfork), and fruit 
no better than the 
ordinary run brought 
several cents a basket 
more than that packed 
in the ordinary white package. This will not often suc- 
ceed, however, but this example is given to show that a 
package somewhat out of the ordinary may be desirable 
for a person to use for special trade. 

In all the finest fruits the grower should use nothing 
but a gift package, one that is given away with the fruit. 
This insures a clean and dainty parcel, and the pur- 
chaser is not bothered with the thought of returning it. In 
a good market, a package that has been previously used 


Fie. 152. Crates and barrels. 


The Packages 389 


is a detriment. In many cases, it is the packing and the 
package that sells the fruit, as much as the fruit itself. 

When fruits are sold by the definite quantity, as by the 
quart, the peck or the bushel, the packages should be full 
measure. It sometimes happens that for a time a man 
secures as much for a short or “snide” package as for 
one of full measure; but such person 
can scarcely expect to hold a superior 
trade for a great length of time. The 
laws are now en- 
forcing full-measure 
packages. 


Fic. 153. Peach- Fie. 154. Peach- Fia.155. The half-bushel 
basket forms. basket covers. shipping-basket. 
One of the standard packages for grapes, peaches and 
apricots is the Climax basket, made in various styles and 
sizes. Some of the common forms are shown in Fig. 150, 
Nos. 7-11. These are made in sizes holding five to ten or 
twelve pounds of fruit. They are handy, cheap, nest well 
in the shipment, and are durable. A good basket of any 
kind should be neatly made, with no splinters or tag-ends 
hanging from it, which is firm and symmetrical in shape, 
well nailed, and perfectly clean or white in appearance. 
Baskets become yellow and discolored if they are left in 
the sun; therefore, when they are stored, they should be 
placed in a clean and dark dry loft or room. If packages 
left over from the last year are somewhat dingy, it is some- 
times possible to bleach them by burning a little sulfur 
in the room. 


390 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


The grower, then, will begin some months in advance 
to look up the packages, for he will thereby not only suit 
himself and the market, 
but he will likely be able 
to secure his packages at 
a lower cost; and he will, 
in any event, be sure of 
his packages in case 
there should be a large 
demand for them at 
marketing time. It is 
well to secure the illus- 
trated price-lists of the 
manufacturers, and to 
canvass the subjects of 
styles and prices. 

All packages smaller 

than a half-peck should 
pin crate nal ounbesker savicrer be shipped in crates. It 
crate; bottom, sixteen-quart crate. is customary to use crates 
with slat sides and many openings, to insure complete 
ventilation; but, if the fruits are firm and dry when they 
are picked and are then reduced to a lower temperature, 
they may be shipped in unventilated crates, usually with 
better results. The 
shriveling and shrink- 
age of the fruits will be 
less in the tight crates, 
and decay will ordina- 
rily be less also. These 
crates may be gift pack- 
ages, and made of light : 
split stuff. Fie. 157. The bushel box. 


The Gift Package 391 


Crates designed to be returned to the grower are usually 
heavy, are commonly made of sawed stuff, and are pro- 
vided with hinges and clasps. In shipping long distances 
by rail, large crates (holding as many as sixty baskets or 
cups) are usually preferable, as there is less “side shake,” 
because of the greater 
bulk; and such heavy 
packages may not be so 
carelessly handled as are 
the small ones. 

The time is coming 
when all the better 
grades and higher quali- 
ties of fruits will be put 
up in special gift pack- 
ages, and the time can- 
not be far distant when eee 
pasteboard boxes will be 
used to some extent. 
One of the most marked 
results of the recent ad- 
vancement and competi- 
tion in the manufacture 
of products is the pack- 
ing of single articles in tasty boxes. Boots and shoes, for 
example, were once shipped loose in large cases, while now, 
in all the better grades, every pair is boxed by itself. In 
other words, not only is the product itself a finished article, 
but it is packed in a dainty and finished way; and the 
same must ceme to be true of many of the better 
kinds of agricultural products. 

In the fanciest fruits, as the best dessert pears, and 
even some of the largest and finest strawberries, it is often 


392 The Principles of Frutt-growing 


profitable to ship in cases something like those used for 
eggs, in which each individual fruit has a compartment or 
receptacle of its own. If, in addition, the fruit is carefully 
wrapped in these compartments, the very finest type of 
packing will result. 


How to pack. 


The method of packing must depend very greatly on 
the market to be reached, on the quality of the fruit, and 
the package to be used. Ordinarily, women are better 
fruit-packers than men, especially for the delicate fruits, 
as peaches, the berries and grapes. Each individual fruit 
or cluster should be placed in the package separately and 
by hand. This is emphatically true of all the tender and 
perishable dessert fruits. The specimens are ordinarily 
laid in concentric rows, the first row being placed on the 
outside of the bottom of the basket, and other circles 
filling in the layer until it is full. Other tiers are then 
placed in the same way. The top layer is placed with 
special care, the stems of the fruits being all laid one way, 
and the same side of the fruit (ordinarily the cheek) show- 
ing uppermost. The top of the basket should present a 
uniform and finished appearance, and should be slightly 
rounding or oval in shape. There will ordinarily be a 
difference of 10 to 30 cents a basket between good plums 
or peaches sent to the market as they are picked from the 
tree, and those properly packed and finished up. Whether 
the extra sale price pays will depend, of course, on the 
extra cost of the careful packing; and this cost will be 
determined not only by the price of labor but also by the 
care with which the fruit is grown, the quantity, the train- 
ing of the packers and the facilities at their disposal. One 
gains reputation as well as extra sales-price from carefully 
packed fruits. 


The Packing 393 


When packing apples and pears in kegs or barrels, it 
is not always necessary to place every individual; and yet, 
if the packages are to go abroad, it is ordinarily best to 
take this pains, laying all the fruits in tiers, for thereby 
there is tight packing and little shrinkage; and when one 
handles his fruit so carefully he is constantly throwing 
out the inferior samples. As apples are ordinarily handled 
for our domestic trade, however, they are faced only 
on the two ends. They ought always to be faced on one 


Siac, 159. Well-packed espa Fie. 160. “Slack”-packed North- 
Spitzenburg apples, removed from ern Spy apples removed from stor- 
storage in March. age in March. 

end. This facing is done by choosing apples of uniform 

grade and placing them in concentric rows on the lower 

head or end of the barrel. About two or three tiers should 
be faced, the rings of one tier breaking joints with those 
of another. The stem-end should point toward the head 
of the barrel. The apples in the middle of the barrel may 
be turned in from a round-bottomed swing-handle basket, 
that can be let directly into the barrel (or from a smaller 
basket that will turn in the barrel), and after every basket 
is emptied the barrel should be lightly shaken to settle the 
fruits. It is advisable to face the upper end of the barrel 
before the head is placed in, but this is not always done. 


394 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


The barrel is ordinarily headed up, then ended over, and 
the opposite or originally faced end is stenciled, and this is 
the end that the dealer is supposed to open. It fre- 
quently happens, however, that the dealer, in order to 
test the packing, opens the other or unintended end of 
the barrel; and in selling large lots of apples, two or three 
barrels are sometimes used as samples, and the entire 
contents are rolled out on the packing-house or auction- 
room floor. A barrel of winter apples properly faced and 
packed is shown in Fig. 159, just as it was opened in 
cold storage in March; a barrel of ‘slacks’ is shown in 
Fig. 160. 

The greatest care should be taken in the packing of 
apples for export, because they are subjected to long and 
trying transportation, the freight and incidental rates are 
high, and only the best fruits will pay transportation 
and other expenses. One reason why the foreign market 
has sometimes been so poor for American apples is because 
a great quantity of poorly sorted and poorly packed fruit 
has been exported. The following suggestions for the 
exporting of apples are condensed from a report made by 
George T. Powell, to the New York Commissioner of 
Agriculture, and will be found to be very useful: 


Kind of fruit wanted—Only good fruit is wanted abroad. 
The fruit-grower should begin months in advance to secure good 
quality, by practicing good tillage, efficient fertilizing and thorough 
spraying. Apples grown on trees which have imperfect (insect-eaten 
and fungus-infested) foliage generally fail to carry in good condi- 

tion to Europe. Standard fall and winter varieties are most in 
demand in the export trade. Duchess and Twenty Ounce generally 
sell well if picked while hard. Alexander is too soft. Baldwin, 
Greening, Spy, King, Spitzenburg, Hubbardston (Nonsuch), New- 
town (Pippin), Peck’s Pleasant and late Russets are popular varie- 
ties. Jonathan and other medium-sized apples are especially desired. 


The Packing of Fruat 395 


Red apples sell better than solid green ones, as a rule. Soft summer 
varieties do not ship well. 

Picking the fruit——Apples intended for export should be picked 
earlier than for the home trade, but not when green and immature. 
It is largely the beauty of the American apple which sells it; there- 
fore, the color should be well advanced before the apple is picked. 
Hand-pick the finest very carefully. It is advisable to barrel and 
ship as soon as picked, rather than to store the fruit for some days 
in piles in the orchard. 

Packing.—Sort carefully. Very fine fruit should be marked 
“Fancy” or “Selected,” with four X’s (XXXX), and with the 
grower’s or shipper’s name or initials. The second grade should be 
good, and marked with three X’s. Nothing lower than this should 
be exported. The English law requires that the package be plainly 
marked ‘‘American Produce.” Use only standard-size barrels. Put 
in a double row of facers. Apples somewhat soft in texture, like 
Greenings, may be pressed down a full inch in barreling, but hard 
apples should not be squeezed so much. Nail the barrels securely. 
If the apples become loose in transit, they will be very much injured. 

Methods of sale—Apples are sold in the English markets by 
sample. Two barrels of a lot are selected, one opened to show the 
packing, the other turned out so that every apple can be seen. The 
lot is then sold at auction. The first day of sale they are sold as 
“sound.” These are delivered within twenty-four hours. Any loose 
barrels, known as “slacks” or “slack-packed,” and any from which 
the juice is running, called ‘wets,” are closed out at the succeed- 
ing sale. 


Fruits intended for the dessert may often be put into 
the consumer’s hands in superior condition by wrapping 
them in soft grocer’s paper, of the kind ordinarily called 
tea-paper, or, when the product is especially choice, and 
the grower has a large quantity, it may pay him to use a 
grade of tissue-paper. There are many middlemen who prac- 
tise this careful packing, and growers may often imitate 
them with profit. With pears or apples, the inside of the 
keg or barrel is lined with newspapers or other grades, and 
each fruit is individually wrapped in soft manila paper. Such 


396 The Principles of Frutt-growing 


fruits may be expected to carry thousands of miles without 
perceptible injury. When opened, their aroma is such that 
no well-bred consumer can resist the temptation of a 


a 


Bortrom Tier Magdle Tree Tor Tier 
Fic. 161. The three tiers or layers of the 2 x 2 diamond pack. 


good price. Ordinary fruits, however, are not worth 
this care. 

It is important that all fruit should be packed very 
snug, especially that which is to be shipped any distance 
in barrels or other large packages. Fruit that is “slack’’ 
when it reaches the market is nearly always injured, and 
sells as second- or third-quality product. This slacking or 
shaking in barrels may be prevented by using fruits not 
over-ripe, by careful attention to grading, so that all the 
specimens are of uniform maturity, by keeping the product 
cool after it is packed, and especially by placing the fruits 
in the package by hand. Barrels of 
apples and pears should ordinarily be 
filled about an inch above the chine, 
and the fruit should be pressed in with 
a screw- or lever-press until the head 

: comes into place. If the fruits are 
Fic. 162. End view of js F ‘ 
Fig. 161. wrapped in paper, or if the package is 


Packing the Fruit 397 


lined with several thicknesses of paper, the spring of the 
paper itself will take up the slack and will keep the fruit 
in place; and in such cases it is not necessary to apply 
heavy pressure in the heading up of the barrel. 


NS 


Bottom Tier Nyadle Ther Top Tres 
Fig. 163. The three tiers of the 3 x 2 diamond pack. 


On the best brands of fruit, a trade-mark is often 
important. Some neat pictorial design, with the name 
of the grower and a statement to the effect that the fruit 
is guaranteed to be as represented, attracts the eye of the 
purchaser and gives him confidence in the article; but to 
put a trade-mark on fruit of indifferent or even of ordinary 
quality is little more than a travesty. If a man uses 
a trade-mark, he must expect, of course, to handle his 
own produce, or at least to see that it reaches the market 
under his own name. The fruit-buyers who travel through 


the country for apples and other pro- 
o\Ce\TQ 
Sou 
(15 
Zn 


duce ordinarily pay little attention to (, \ 
the trade-mark of the grower, but put we 
Oo 


their own mark on the package. If 
one really grows a good quality of 

fruit, it will commonly pay him to : 

, P . Fie. 164. End view of 
give his farm an attractive name, Fig. 163. 


398 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


~ 


Bottom Tier Vor Tee Ena View 
Fia. 165. The two tiers of the 2 x 1 diamond pack. 


which can go on the labels. Every effort should be made 
to put up the article as a finished product. 

Very much of the success of any fruit in the market 
depends on how it is grown as well as how it is handled. 
There may even be a difference in the salableness of sam- 
ples of fruit that are to all appearances alike. It is now 


Fig, 166. The square peach pack. 


The Pack 399 


common opinion, for example, that apples from trees 
that have been thoroughly sprayed and well tilled are 
better keepers than those of similar size and appearance 


CANVAS 
CANVAS i 


a 


J 


Ul 


i U 


oY 


l 


Fig. 167, Packing-table for fruit. 


grown on neglected trees. When fruits are to be shipped 
to any distance, it is important that the tillage and gen- 
eral care of the fruit-plantation should have been the best. 


Several forms of fancy 


pack are shown in the illus- 
trations. For the 


East, Close and 
Ballard have given 
good directions 
(Md. Bull. No. 
159): Fig. 161 is the 
2x2 diamond pack 
in three tiers packed 
in the baskets of 
the Georgia carrier, 
and Fig. 162 is the 
end view; Fig. 163 
is the 3x2 dia- 


Fic. 168. The straight and diagonal packs of 


Oregon cherries. 


mond pack in three 
tiers, in baskets of 


400 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


the Georgia carrier, and Fig. 164 is the end view of it; 
Fig. 165 is the 2x1 two-tier diamond pack in the same 
carrier; Fig. 166 is 
the square pack in 
one of the Georgia 
baskets; Fig. 167 
is a packing-table. 
The straight and 
diagonal packs of 
Oregon cherries are 
shown in Fig. 168 
(Lewis and Brown). 
Wrapped and un- 

wrapped apples 
Fro, 160, spoles unvrepped sndin time, hox-packed are dis- 

played in Fig. 169. 


Box-packing of fruits. 


Western apples and pears are packed in boxes of about 
one bushel in capacity (Fig. 170), and much interest 
has recently been aroused in this subject in the East. It 
seems to be the prevailing opinion in the eastern apple 
regions that the boxing of apples pays only for special 
markets and special varieties, and that the barrel is still 
the most profitable package for the main commercial trade. 
Varieties grown for a home- 
market trade may be 
packed in boxes with good 
financial results, particu- 
larly when the fruit is un- 
usually good and uniform. 
The uniformity of the crop, 
as to size, shape and color, = 
is very important. Fia. 170. The apple-box. 


Boxing Apples 401 


The methods of box-packing have been well described 
by C. 8. Wilson (Cornell Bull. No. 298), from a study of 
both western and eastern conditions. He writes as follows: 


Two sizes of boxes are used in the West, the standard and the 
special. These differ slightly in width and height (14 inch) as well as 
in length, which adapts them to the different sizes of apples. If, 
therefore, an apple, because of its size, will not pack well in one size 
of box, it certainly will pack in the other. Most of the western 
growers have a supply of both sizes on hand. 

The dimensions of these boxes are: 

(a) Standard, 1014 by 1114 by 18 inches, inside measurement. 

(b) Special, 10 by 11 by 20 inches, inside measurement. 

The ends 34 inch; sides, 34 inch; top and bottoms, two pieces 
each, 14 inch thick. There should be four cleats for each box, two 
at the top and two at the bottom. The sides of the box should be 
nailed with four nails at each end of each side. The cleats should be 
put neatly on the box and four nails driven through them and 
through the top or bottom into the ends. Cement-coated or rosined 
nails are preferable, either six-penny or five-penny. A few other sizes 
differing from those mentioned above are sold by manufacturers in 
the East. Odd sizes, however, should be avoided. The boxes are 
delivered in the shooks and nailed up by the growers themselves. 

Lining—The box is lined on the bottom, sides and top with a 
white paper called “lining paper.’’ No lining is placed at the ends. 
Lining paper is made from “‘white news” in different sizes, accord- 
ing to the box—for the standard, 1734 by 26 inches, and for the 
special, 1934 by 26 inches. This paper can be purchased of any whole- 
sale paper dealer, and should cost approximately 314 cents per 
pound, or about $1.20 per thousand sheets. 

One piece of lining paper is put into the box in such a way as to 
cover a little more than one-half of the bottom and all of one side, 
enough still being left to fold over a little beyond the center when the 
box is packed. Another piece is put into the box in a similar way on 
the other side. In order to prevent the tearing of the lining paper 
along the sides at the bottom, when the top is nailed on and the 
bottom bulges, a plait or crease is made in the lining paper at this 
place. The plaits lie across the corners and provide plenty of slack. 
In the West some growers plait the lining in this manner; others do 


Z 


402 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


not. Layer papers are also used, commonly one sheet on the bottom 
and one on the top, inside the lining paper. 

Wrapping.—Most growers in the West wrap every apple. To 
wrap the fruit, the packer stands at the table so that he can pick up 
an apple with one hand and place it in the box with the other. The 
wrapping paper is held in a hod which hangs on the side of the box. 
(Shown in Fig. 172). To 
pick up a sheet of wrap- 
ping paper easily, the 
packer wears a rubber stall 
on the thumb or middle 
finger. These rubber stalls 
can be purchased at 
almost any drug-store. 
With the left hand the 
packer reaches for a sheet 
of paper; at the same 
time with the right hand 
he picks up an apple. The 
apple is thrown gently 
"into the center of the 
paper, which is held in 
the palm of the left hand. 
With the right hand the 
packer draws in the corners 
of the paper, and then, 
with a slight rolling 
motion, completes the 
wrapping, and in so doing 

' : . leaves the apple in the 

Fie. 171. Succes ee the wrapping left hand in the proper 

position to pack in the 

box. The illustrations (Fig. 171) show successive steps in the 

operation. The operation, however, being an individual matter, 

will differ somewhat with each packer. In every case the object 
should be to make a neat and attractive wrap, and do it quickly. 

Packing-table—A convenient packing-table can be easily built 
by any grower. A good type is shown in Fig. 172. The bed of the 
table is 3 by 4 feet, covered by a double layer of canvas. In order 
to enable the packer to shake off quickly any dirt or leaves which 


Boxing Apples 403 


may gather, the top layer is fastened at one end only. Each end of 
the table is extended about 1 foot on which to rest one end of the 
box. As a rest for the other end a board projecting about 1 foot at 
the side is fastened to the bottom of the bed. These supports for 
the boxes are built at alternate corners of the table. Shelves on 
which to place wrapping paper, lining paper, or layer paper are often 
built beneath the table. 


#] aft yA insx2ins. 


) 


Fie. 172. Packing-table. 


A box-press may be devised in various ways, the essential points 
of construction being: (a) to rest the box on the ends so that when 
the top is nailed down the bottom is free to bulge also; (b) to catch 
and press down the top pieces from the ends so that a minimum 
bruising will result. A convenient press is shown in diagram Fig. 
173. The box lies across the open space in the center, the pieces 
being caught and clamped at the end by the arms. This press is 
built for boxes of different lengths. Many other types of box-presses 
have been made, and are equally efficient and convenient. 

Following is the description of the box-press shown in Fig. 173. 

1. Cover boards to table. Length of table, 64 inches; 2. Side 


404 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


board to table; 3. Uprights for attachment of levers (5 and 9); 4. 
Legs of table 2814 inches long, 14% inches square. (All the arms, 
legs and levers of the press may be made of 114 by 114-inch material) ; 
5. Levers, 27 inches long; 6. Upright arms, 32 inches long; 7. Steel 
springs. Small screen-door springs may be used; 8. Spring attached 
to upright arm (6) and support (3); 9. Foot lever, bolted to uprights 
(3) at back, and working with catch plate and ratchet in front. It is 
fastened to plate (13); 10. Brace for legs and lower support for 
uprights, 3 inches from ground; 11. Horseshoe plate for gripping 


“, 
‘ ean 
Patient eee 
ar 
; ven 
: oi 3 
ieee se eeene.. : 
: H 
‘ 
: 
eae 
aia 
3 
5 
4S 


box cleats and cover; 12. Iron plates bolted to levers (5), with large 
holes in projecting ends, allowing the bolts (16) to slide freely; 13. 
Lower plate under lever (9), to which it is bolted loosely, with large 
holes in each end for free play for bolts (16); 14. Side plate joining 
lever (5) and arm (6). Loose joint; 15. Iron ratchet to engage plate 
on the front lever (9); 16. Half-inch bolts, 214 inches long, working 
loosely in the holes in the plates (12 and 13); 17. Three small pulleys 
for rope attached to arms (6); 18. Strong 14-inch cord that will not 
stretch; 19. Spanner running parallel with side; 20. Cross-pieces, 
providing support for box; 21. Grooves for holding box in place. 
They are a trifle over 18 inches apart. : 


Boxing Apples 405 


Packing.—Before placing the apples on the packing-table they 
are usually graded into different sizes. The grading is done by men 
who are trained for the work. They take the fruit from the boxes 
as it comes to the packing-house from the orchard and grade it into 
different sizes. It is then placed on a table, where it is ready for the 
packer. For growers in the East who are beginners it may be help- 
ful to use a sizer or “grader” at first. This consists of a thin board 
through which holes of the correct diameter have been made. Begin- 
ning with the smallest, the diameter of the holes should be: 234 
inches for the 5-tier pack, 254 inches for the 414-tier pack, 274 inches 
for the 4-tier pack, 31% inches for the 314-tier pack, and 33¢ inches 
for the 3-tier pack. The sizer should be placed in a convenient posi- 
tion so that an apple can be quickly dropped through it if the man, 
who is grading, is in doubt as to the size of any apple. The eye 
of the attentive operator is soon trained, however, to distinguish the 
different sizes. 

The packer adapts the pack to the size of the apple and the box. 
Two kinds of packs are commonly used in the West, the diagonal 
and the straight. They are the 314- and 414-tier, the 314-tier being 
the more common. The apples for this pack are too large for four 
straight across and too small for three straight across. They are 
packed, therefore, as shown in the illustration, and the pack is 
called a ‘314-tier.” To start this, one apple is placed in the corner 
and another against the end in the middle of the remaining width. 
The next two apples, alternating with the first two, are set firmly 
down into the intervening spaces, and so on until the layer is packed. 
The number of apples in the rows will vary according to the size 
and shape. The number in the different layers, however, should be 
the same. The straight packs are the 3-, 4-, and 5-tier, according 
to the size of the apples. This pack is made by placing the apples 
in straight rows across the box. 

The diagonal pack is preferable to the straight. In the first 
place, it permits of a wider variation in the size of the apples; with 
the straight pack the apples must be more uniform in order to fit 
exactly. In the second place, it permits of more or less pressing 
without bruising. In the diagonal pack an apple rests in the center 
of the space between two or four others. In the straight pack every 
apple rests against the center of every other. Hence, when the top 
is pulled down, a certain amount of pressing could take place in the 
diagonal pack, without bruising, whereas in the straight pack only 


406 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


a slight pressing would bruise the fruit. For a few sizes of apples one 
is forced to use the straight pack. 

The following table, used at Hood River, Oregon, in the fall of 
1910, gives the pack, number of rows, number of apples in the row, 
box to use, and number of apples in the box. The table is taken 
from an article written by Professor Claude I. Lewis, and published 
in “Better Fruit,” September, 1910: 


TaBLE oF CommMeERcIAL Box Packs 


Size, ex- 
pressed in Number of | Number of 
number of Tier Pack apples in layers in Box used. 
apples per row depth 
box 
45 3 3 Str. 5-5 3 Standard 
54 3 3 Str. 6-6 3 Special 
63 3 3 Str. 7-7 3 Special 
64 3% 2-2 Diag. 4-4 4 Standard 
72 3% 2-2 Diag. 4-5 4 Standard 
80 3% 2-2 Diag. 5-5 4 Standard 
88 381% 2-2 Diag. 5-6 4 Standard 
96 34% 2-2 Diag. 6-6 4 Special 
104 3% 2-2 Diag. 6-7 4 Special 
112 3% 2-2 Diag. 7-7 4 Special 
120 3% 2-2 Diag. 7-8 4 Special 
128 4 4 Str. 8-8 4 Special 
144 4 4 Str. 9-9 4 Special 
150 444 3-2 Diag. 6-6 5 Standard 
163 44% 3-? Diag. 6-7 S Standard 
175 4% 3-2 Diag. 7-7 5 Standard 
188 44 3-2 Diag. 7-8 5 Special 
200 4 3-2 Diag. 8-8 5 Special 


In packing it is not difficult to come out even on top at the ends. 
The height of the box is planned for this, and one need pay very little 
attention to it. The packer, however, must plan to secure the proper 
bulge, which should be about 11% inches at the center. He should 
begin the buige with the first or second layer, and may proceed in 
several ways. A natural and common way is to choose for the center 
of the box apples which are a little larger or thicker than the apples 
at the ends. Or, in case of flat apples, the packer may pack them on 
end at the ends of the box and on the side at the center. With prac- 
tice the proper bulge seems to come naturally, and the packers have 
very little difficulty with it. 

Whether the apples are packed on the end or the side will depend 


Boxing Apples 407 


on their shape. They may be placed either way, or even both ways, 
in the same box, in order to secure the bulge described above. Flat 
apples usually pack more easily on the end than the side, whereas 
long apples pack better on the side. 

When the box has been packed, it is taken from the table to the 
press and the top nailed on. When the top is nailed, a bulge of 114 
inches at the center gives 34 inch on both top and bottom. The 
bulging of the top and bottom in this manner acts as a spring to 
take up any slack or shrinkage during transportation. When the 


Fia. 174. Field-packing of apples in Missouri. 


boxes are piled up they are placed on the side, where there is no bulge. 
When they are stored in this way no bruising can result from the 
weight of one box above another. 


FARM PACKING-HOUSES AND APPLIANCES 


Many fruits are packed in the field, as exhibited in 
Fig. 174; particularly is this true of apples. But if one 
has any quantity of fruit and is to reach the best market, 
he must consider the making of a packing-house or shed. 


408 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


The subject of packing-houses cannot be treated spe- 
cifically for each grower. Among the best types of packing- 
houses are those used by the.grape men, and there are two 
distinct types of such houses in use in the grape regions. 
One type is a combined packing- and storage-house, and 
is used very largely where Catawbas are grown, and where 
the grapes are often stored for some time before they are 
marketed. The other type of house is that used in the 
Concord regions, and which is a half-way station between 
the field and the railway station,—a shelter place for the 
packing of the grapes, and is not used for the storage of 
the fruit. 

One of the best of the storage type of packing-houses 
(used for holding the fruit until winter or later) may be 
described as follows: 

It is built on a side hill, and the basement or cellar is used for 
the storage of grapes, the first floor is used for packing, and the 
second floor or attic for the storage of baskets, crates and the like. 
This building measures 25 by 60 feet over all. The foundation 
walls are 24 inches thick, and the cellar is provided with ample 
means of ventila- 
tion by outside win- 
dows, and also by 
means of a chimney 
that runs from near 
the middle of the 
cellar up through 
the roof. The floor 
is of earth. By 
means of careful 
attention to ventila- 
tion, this cellar can 


Tl 
UI 
A 
CL} Oo 
be kept to 50° or 
below in September 


a nm Mend ong October, and is 


frost-proof in win- 
Fie. 175. A convenient packing-house. ter. The windows 


Packing-houses 409 


are provided with close-fitting screens, to keep out rats and squirrels. 
This cellar will hold easily fifty tons of grapes in the picking-trays. 
The first floor is divided into two rooms, the front one being a packing- 
room 25 feet square, 
and the back room 
being a storage and 
shipping department 25 
by 35 feet. This pack- 
ing-room is provided fo =| 
with heat, and is lighted 
by seven large win- 
dows. The floor above 
the cellar is double, 
and made of 114-inch 
matched pine, with an 
abundant air-space be- 
tween the two layers. 
This, therefore, protects 
the cellar from sudden IZ K2F 
fluctuations of tempera- \ 

ture. The building is W NW 

also shaded, especially ‘“- 
from the afternoon sun, 

by large trees. It has 18-foot posts, a tin roof, the two rooms in 
the first floor ceiled with pine, but the top floor not ceiled. 


LEX Fe 


N&R 


Fic. 176. Ground-plan of Fig. 175. 


The other type of packing-house (used only for pur- 
poses of packing and of storing packages) is illustrated by 
Figs. 175 and 176. In this case there is no cellar, for 
the grapes are not to remain in the house more than 
a day or two at the longest, and they ordinarily pass 
directly through it on their way to the railway station. 
The main floor of the building is 24 by 40 feet, and, aside 
from ‘this, there is a driveway, W, under the same roof, 
and which measures 11 by 30 feet. This driveway con- 
nects with the main floor by two doors. The front room, 
N, which is lighted by four windows in the front and one 
on the side, and is 12 by 24 feet in size, is the packing- 


410 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


room. In the rear of this is a store-room, EF, for the grapes. 
The half-story above is used for baskets and crates, and 
these are delivered into the packing-room by a shute. 
This building will accommodate ten packers, and will 
easily handle the grapes from fifty acres. 

In the packing of grapes, the greatest care is required 
to keep the fruit clean and fresh, to prevent the bunches 
from being broken, 
and to preserve the 
bloom. It is essen- 
tial that the house 
should be kept 
thoroughly clean 
and sweet at all 
times. It is impor- 
tant that thestorage- 
room for the baskets 
and crates be dry 
and airy, so that the 
baskets may not 
become moldy or 
musty, and also well darkened to prevent the baskets 
from coloring. 

In Fig. 177 is shown a grape packing-room. The 
picking-trays are set before the packers upon an inclined 
table, and the packer handles the grapes from this tray 
into a basket that she places at her left. When the basket 
is filled, it is placed upon a flat ledge in front of her 
and is taken off by an attendant, who places the baskets on 
a truck and rolls them into the back room, from which they 
are delivered to the wagon. Empty baskets are stored 
upon the high shelf, and these are replenished by an 
attendant, as necessary. When the tray is empty, it is 


Fig. 177. Sorting and packing grapes. 


Packing Grapes 411 


slid through an opening just in front of the packer and 
underneath the flat ledge upon which she places her 
finished baskets. Fig. 178 shows another form of 
packing-stand. This is a circular revolving table, about 
which the packers sit. The packer holds the basket in 
her lap, and takes the grapes from the table, which is 


Fria. 178. A revolving packing-table for grapes. 


turned as fresh fruit is put upon it. This device allows the 
packer to choose from a large quantity of fruit. 

The packing-house of a large commercial orchard 
is shown in Fig. 179, and an interior view in Fig. 180. 
The latter picture is a peach-packing scene. 

The suggestions in the last few pages cover most of 
the points that it is necessary to consider in the construc- 
tion of a packing-house. The grower will be able to apply 
them to his own conditions. A simple temporary shed 


412 The Principles of Fruat-growing 


erected in the orchard is often made to serve all the pur- 
poses of a packing-house. A cloth tent is often used. 

The appliances 
needed in packing- 
houses, aside from 
packages and crates, 
are trucks, sorting- 
tables, barrel 
presses, and an 
abundance of bas- 
kets,cratesor barrels 
for the refuse fruit. 

Sorting -tables 
are of various pat- 
terns, but those used for apples, cranberries and other 
firm fruits, consist of a table or tray about twice as long 
as broad, narrowed at one end, at which it is open to 
allow the good fruit to roll off into a basket or barrel. 
The fruits are placed from the picking-baskets on the 
table, and a number of persons standing on either side 
remove the litter and the inferior fruit, while they work 
the good fruit on into the outlet. Compare Figs. 167 
and 172. 

Of barrel presses there are several styles. The most 
expeditious is some 
kind of lever press 
(like No. 3 in Fig. 
181), but more pres- 
sure can be secured 
with a screw press 
(7), and such an 
implement holds 
itself in place when 


large business. 


Va i 
Fig. 180. Interior scene in Fig. 17 


Barrel-Presses 413 


the head is being adjusted. Fig. 181 presents types of 
barrel presses in common use. They are: 1, home-made 
lever press; 2, Climax lever press; 3, improved lever 
press; 4, stand-up barrel header; 5, packing press (for 
packing and baling 
goods); 6, stirrup press; 
7, iron screw press. Fig. 
182 is another form. 


STORING FRUITS AT 
THE FARM 


It is impossible to 
draw the line between 
a packing-house and a 
storage-house. In fact, 
the same structure may 
be used for both pur- 
poses, as is the grape- 
house that has been 
described in the preced- 
ing pages (page 408). 
There is increasing 
necessity that the fruit- 
grower provide the 
means of storing fruits, 
when prices are low 
and competition is very sharp. 

As a rule, it will not pay the separate fruit-grower to 
build iced storage or chemical store-houses for his fruit, 
unless he has a very large acreage. This cold storage of 
fruit is really a business by itself, and requires much care 
and skill to carry it through successfully, and a discussion 


Fic. 181. Barrel-presses. 


414 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


of it is foreign to the purpose of this book. If the grower 
desires to keep his produce until late winter or spring, and 
has no cellars or natural storage place, it will ordinarily 
pay him best to put it into some commercial cold-storage 
house, and to pay a package rate for the storing of it. 
For temporary storage, however, these remarks will 
not apply. Every person who grows fruits, especially 
perishable kinds, should have some kind of building in 
which he may place the fruits over night, or for two or 
three days, when waiting for the market to im- 
prove, or for the purpose of cooling them down 
before shipment. These houses are ordinarily 
cooled merely by cold air. They are often 
known as “chill rooms.” A room well fitted for 
the keeping of butter in warm weather may 
also be used to advantage for fruit. In some 
Fig. 182. cases, arrangements can be made for the 
barrel-press: use of ice to reduce the temperature for 
the time being. If one has a considerable quantity of 
fruit, and has a large cellar that is well adapted to the 
keeping of apples, he can often store his crop to advantage 
when the autumn price is low; but the grower must bear 
in mind that the risks in the storing of fruit are great. 
The markets may not improve, or the fruit may not 
keep well. Even when the fruit does keep well, there 
is frequently a large shrinkage, and the expense of re-pack- 
ing and handling is a large item. The fruit designed to be 
kept for the late winter or spring trade should be care- 
fully sorted when it is put in storage, and especial care 
should be taken that none of it is over-ripe. Fruit in proper 
condition for storing when it is picked may be ruined for 
long-keeping quality by allowing it to lie in the sun or ina 
warm place for a day or two. 


Fruit Storage 41E 


Requisites for domestic storage without ice. 

The home storage establishment is commonly either a 
cellar or a half-cellar, although, by taking particular 
pains in the construction of air-spaces, a building entirely 
above ground may be made to serve the purpose. A build- 
ing wholly on the surface, however, is more likely to give 
variable temperatures than one partially submerged. An 
ordinary house cellar, if it has good ventilation and is not 
too dry or too warm, may answer very well for the storage 
of fruit; but it is ordinarily best, both for purposes of 
storage and for health, that the fruit cellar should be a 
separate structure, if products are to be stored in any 
quantity. The requisites of a good storage cellar for fruit 
are chiefly five: Protection from frost; the ability to secure 
a uniform or unvarying temperature of 40° or below; 
facilities for ventilation; air that is moist enough to pre- 
vent evaporation; complete safety from rats and other 
vermin. 

The protection from frost is secured either by sinking 
the building below the surface of the ground, or by making 
two to four air-spaces in the walls in that part standing 
above ground. The ventilation should include facilities 
for removing the warm and impure air from somewhere 
near the top of the structure. Some kind of shaft or chim- 
ney construction, with a valve or shutter that can be 
opened or closed as necessary, will answer this purpose. In 
buildings above ground, it will often be necessary to pro- 
vide some means of taking in the cold air near the bottom 
of the structure, especially before the cold weather of 
winter sets in and after the warm weather of spring begins. 
Cold air being heavier than warm air, it settles on the 
surface of the ground in still nights, and if the floor of the 
storage structure is 2 or 3 feet below the top of the ground, 


416 The Principles of Frutt-growing 


this cold air may be drained into the building by means of 
flues laid through the walls, the outer ends standing just 
above the earth. Six-inch sewer pipes, at intervals about 
the building, answer this purpose. In a building 30 feet 
wide and 70 feet long, three of these valves along either 
side, and one on either end, are probably sufficient for 
all ordinary requirements. 

Sub-ventilation is sometimes recommended, and may 
often work to good advantage. This is secured by running 
a long pipe from near the bottom of a cellar storage ovt 
to the surface of the ground 6 or more rods away. This 
pipe has a valve at the outer end, or at least some pro- 
tecting structure to prevent the leaves and litter from 
blowing into it, and it is ordinarily best, also, to have a 
valve at the inner end. Inasmuch as the earth about this 
subterranean passage is not frozen during the winter, 
cold air may be drawn in from the outside and be warmed 
up above the freezing point in its passage through the 
tube. This type of ventilation has been used with success 
in cellars designed for the wintering of bees. It should 
always be remembered that cold air contains less moisture 
than does warm air. When very cold air is admitted, 
moisture is rapidly taken up when its temperature rises, 
and the cellar may be made too dry. It is advisable, 
therefore, to raise the temperature of such air nearly to 
its ultimate or required degree before it enters the stor- 
age-room. 

Very dry cellars cause the fruit to shrivel. Some varie- 
ties of apples are very difficult to hold without shriveling, 
as the Spitzenburg and the russets. Those rooms in which 
there is a natural sand or gravel bottom ordinarily keep 
fruit in the best condition. Cement bottoms are very 
likely to be too dry. Running water is very often desirable 


Storing Fruits 417 


in a fruit cellar, not only because it furnishes moisture to 
the air, but also because it is an equalizer of the tempera- 
ture. One must be cautioned, however, that a cellar not 
properly ventilated wiil cause the fruit to mold and decay, 
if it is wet. In general, it is best to have means for supply- 
ing fresh air, and then keep the cellar simply moist, not 
wet. One should avoid drafts in the storage cellar, for 
currents of air are very likely to cause the fruit to lose 
moisture and to shrivel. 
- Much is said about the keeping of fruit on trays rather 
than in barrels or crates, but this must be determined by 
the character of the cellar as to temperature and moisture. 
In cellars that are too dry, the fruit should be left in the 
closed packages; but if the air is moist and the temperature 
very low, the fruit may be placed upon racks or trays to 
good advantage. But, in any case, it should be remem- 
bered that fruit in storage for a month or more should be 
re-sorted and re-packed before it is put on the market. 
It has been said (page 414) that the best results in the 
storing of fruit are had when the product is carefully 
sorted before it is put into the cellar, for even if the 
cellar is very nearly perfect for the keeping of the fruit, 
any over-ripe or decayed specimens will very likely break 
down, and spread the contamination to the entire sample. 
The fruit should be cooled down somewhat before it 
is placed in cold storage, especially if there is much of it, 
otherwise it raises the temperature of the compartment. 
The requisites for keeping grapes during the winter 
are given as follows by George C. Snow: “Any good build- 
ing in which the temperature can be held even at about 
35°, with ventilation as may be required, this to be deter- 
mined by noting how the fruit is keeping, will be found 
available for grapes. No positive rules can be laid down. 
AA 


418 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


A cooling-room, in which the fruit can be first cooled, is a 
necessity. If placed directly in cold storage, the tempera- 
ture will be found to be raised rapidly by placing a quan- 
tity of warm fruit in the room. As even a temperature as 
possible is much the best. Grapes should not be packed in 
baskets for shipping before being stored. They should be 


eee 


Fic. 183. Charles Downing’s fruit-house. 


ripe, as grapes do not mature after picking. Niagara or 
any other variety can be held only for a limited time, some 
varieties longer than others.” 


Farm storage-buildings. 


There are many forms in which storage-houses may 
be built for home use. Fig. 183 is a fruit-house of 
Charles Downing, of pomological fame, used probably for 


An Apple Store-house 419 


temporary storage. It is not intended to discuss the con- 
struction of storage buildings, but only to give examples 
of the way in which two or three growers have met the 
problem. 


The Kinney apple-storage house, in northern Vermont, shown 
in Fig. 184, is described by the owner as follows: The fruit-house 
is built on high and dry ground. ‘The cellar was 3 feet deep, and dirt 
taken from this was used to bank up around the wall. The wall is 
solid stone and mortar, is 5 feet high, 214 feet wide at the bottom, 
and 2 feet at the top; 
2-inch plank for sills on 
this, bedded in mortar, 
doubled so as to break 
joints; 2 by 4 stud- 
ding above this; out- 
side of studding 
matched pine, then 
paper, and then clap- 
boards, painted; in 
middle of studding, 
lath and plaster; inside 
of studding, matched 

ine, then paper, and = 
then 14-inch sheathing, as ee ee 
painted. This gives 
two hollow walls, or dead-air spaces. For ventilating, there is one 
ventilator from cellar to the observatory on the top of the building, 
which has four large window frames, with blinds, but no tight win- 
dows. The ventilator opens into both storage rooms. We have 
three 18-inch windows on the east and west sides of the building in 
the cellar, and three large windows in the west side, next to the store- 
room. Both floors are double, with paper between, and the second 
room is ceiled overhead with matched spruce, and painted. The 
two windows on the east side show in cut, with the outside doors. 

About picking time, we begin to cool off the building by keeping 
open during westerly winds or cold waves, and closed as much as 
possible when it is warm. We try not to put in any fruit when the 
fruit is warm, but have it cool, if possible. In this way the air in 
the building is cool all the time. 


420 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


A ‘“medium-priced packing- and storage-house” in 
the Hood River country is illustrated in Fig. 185 (from 
Lewis and Brown, Ore. Bull. No. 118). It is provided with 
ventilator and a 
chute from the 
upper floors. 

The Alwood 
storage cellar, 
in Virginia, is 
shown in Fig. 
186: 

Fae y Vash ee ADAM a3 
Si 4 The essential 
Fie. 185. Combing packing-house and storage-house features involved in 
in the Hood River Valley. this storage-build- 
ing are: First, a cellar excavated into a gently sloping hillside, carried 
into the bank far enough to place the cellar-room entirely below the 
surface of the earth, and yet give opportunity to enter the cellar easily 
by an inclined way from the lower side of the slope; secondly, a flue 
leading out from near the center of the floor of the cellar-room, along 
the bank of the hillside for a considerable distance, with sufficient 
fall to make it act both as a drain-pipe and a fresh-air flue; thirdly, 
ventilating flues placed at each end of the cellar-room or elsewhere, 
as desired, and rising to the height necessary to give a sufficient 
draft to carry off rapidly the air from the cellar-room whenever 
ventilation is desired. 

If the air in the cellar becomes warmer than the air in the under- 
ground flue, it will rise through the ventilating flues, and the colder 
air will flow in from the supply flue, as desired. The temperature of 
the cellar-room can thus be approximately controlled to at least the 
neighborhood of 55° to 60° F. The two ventilators aa rise through 
the store-room, and are 6 inches in diameter by 15 feet long, thus 
insuring good draft. The air-flue b enters under the foundation and 
discharges fresh air into the cellar-room near the center. This flue 
is 6 inches in diameter, and theoretically should be extended far 
enough along the hillside to admit of tempering the air to the tem- 
perature of the surrounding earth while passing through it. The 
cellar built here has an air-flue only 150 feet long, and we have never 


A Virginia Store-house 421 


been able to cool the air down below 60° F. when the temperature of 
the outside air is above 70° F. 

The dotted line hh shows the contour of the hillside, and the 
line 7 shows the entry-way into the cellar. The entry-way should 
preferably be on the north side of the structure, and should be closed 
in by a vestibule, so as to protect the cellarway from storm, and to 
prevent influence of outside temperature upon the atmosphere in 
the cellar. 

The roof structure of vestibule is shown at d, and one of the side 
walls of the entry-way at e. The floor of the cellar f f pitches slightly 
to the mouth of the air-flue b, which serves as a drain-pipe when one 
is needed. The cellar floor is made of broken stone and cement, and 
successfully checks the upward rise of ground water. The bins cc 
and c’ on one side of the cellar-room are shown, with dimensions. 
They are constructed of 2 by 4 scantling and 1-inch oak boards. At 


fle 
i 
te 
in 
i 
feo fbe d 
1 
ta oe ee 
4 y : 
ck: ' i, 
! tecProtliac, a 
c eae 
a ed on 
a 
2 J 
» ri 


rs 
Fia. 186. Longitudinal section of Virginia storage-house. 


c’ the facing on lower bin is shown in position. When we desire to 
fill the bins, additional facing boards. are used. The letters kk at 
lower ends of ventilating flues indicate position of sliding dampers, 
by means of which the flow of air from the cellar is effectually con- 
trolled. With the short flue used in the cellar here, we find that 


422 The Principles of Fruit-growing 


when the mercury remains below 20° F. for any length of time, the 
cellar will be reduced below freezing, unless the ventilators are closed. 


We have now completed the fruit-book, having sur- 
veyed the field. It is a field of great variety, demanding 
many qualities on the part of the successful grower. 
This grower should first apprehend the principles and the 
underlying reasons, and to teach this is the prime purpose 
of the book, while still everywhere discussing the prac- 
tice. If the grower knows why, he will teach himself how. 

The author hopes that the grower will meet with much 
success, and that his enjoyment in the work will be abid- 
ing and real. 


INDEX 


Accidents, 288, 
Accounts of fruit-pickers, 381. 
Achras Sapota, 5. 
Acid phosphate, for apples, 136, 143. 
Acleris minuta, 353. 
Acme harrow, 85. 
Acrobasis nebulella, 359. 
Agrilus bilineatus, 352. 
Alfalfa, as cover-crop, 122, 123, 124. 
Almond, species of, 5. 
temperatures injurious to, 314. 
Alsophila pometaria, 346. 
Alternate system, 211. 
Alwood storage cellar, 420. 
Amatungulu, 7. 
Amelanchier, species of, 7. 
Ammonium sulfate, for apples, 143. 
Ampelophaga myron, 355. 
Anacardium occidentale, 5. 
Ananas sativus, 8. 
Anarsia lineatella, 357. 
Ancylis comptana, 360. 
Annona, species of, 4. 
Anthonomus quadrigibbus, 344. 
Anthracnose, 350, 361. 
Aphids, 343. 
Aphis, 351, 353, 356, 357. 
species, 343, 356, 360. 
Apple, adaptability to soils, 13. 
diseases of, 343. 
early plantings, 67. 
-growing, status of, 22. 
insects, 343. 
Mammee, 6. 
orchard experiments, 134. 
roots, 97. 
species of, 3. 
Apples, distance for, 177. 
exporting, 394. 
fertilizers in, 131, 132. 
fertilizers for, 143, 144. 
fertilizing of, 134. 
picking, 366, 373. 
score-card for, 161. 
sterile and fertile, 158, 159. 
stock for, 170. 
temperatures injurious to, 314. 


Apples, test of fertilizer needs, 145. 
thinning of, 248. 
trimming, 187. 
Apricot, diseases and insects of, 350. 
species of, 3. 
Apricots, distance for, 177. 
exposure for, 54. 
fertilizers for, 147. 
picking, 368. 
temperatures injurious to, 314. 
Arbutus Unedo, 6. 
Archips argyrospila, 345. 
Archips cerasivorana, 351. 
Army-worm, false, 352. 
Arsenate of lead, 337. 
Arsenic, as insecticide, 336. 
Arsenical poisoning, 361. 
Arsenicals for spreying, 331. 
Artocarpus, species of, 4. 
Asimina triloba, 4. 
Aspect of a fruit-plantation, 53. 
Aspidiotus perniciosus, 349. 
Atmospheric drainage, 49. 
Avocado, 6. 


Bacillus amylovorus, 357. 

Bacterial diseases, 323. 

Bacterium tumefaciens, 350. 

Bactris Gasipaes, 6. 

Bad spots, treatment for, 296. 

Bagging fruits, 282. 

Balaninus species, 352. 

Baldwin apple, table of points, 161. 

Ballard, mentioned, 399, 

Banana, 8. 

Banking up trees, 283. 

Barbadoes gooseberry, 8. 

Barden, on frost, 50. 

Bark-beetle borer, 295. 

Bark-bound trees, 274. 

Bark disease, 352. 

Barked trees, treatment for, 298. 

Barley, as cover-crop, 119, 123. 
seed to the acre, 124. 

Barnyard manure, 129. 

Barrel-presses, 412. 

Barrenness of orchards, 286. 


(423) 


424 


Basic slag-meal, for apples, 137, 143. 
Baskets for fruits, 386. 
Batchelor, on thinning apples, 246. 
Beach, on sterility of grapes, 158, 159. 
on thinning apples, 244. 
Bean, as cover-crop, 122, 123. 
Bean, velvet, weight of seeds, 126. 
Bearing wood, 232. 
Beattie, on spraying, 330, 334. 
Beechnut, 5. 
Beetles, attacks by, 322. 
Beggarweed, as cover-crop, 122, 123. 
Bembecia marginata, 351. 
Bennett, quoted, 93. 
Berry bushes, fertilizers for, 149. 
Berry-stands, 371. 
Bertholletia excelsa, 6. 
“Better Fruit,’ quoted, 406. 
Birds, protection from, 289. 
Blackberry, diseases of, 350. 
insects, 350. 
species of, 7. 
Blackberries, distance for, 177. 
fertilizers for, 149. 
injury from frosts, 309. 
laying down, 257. 
on low lands, 53. 
picking, 365. 
thinning of, 249. 
Black-knot, 18, 359. 
Black leaf, as insecticide, 341. 
Black-rot, 354. 
Black-spot, 356. 
Blake, quoted, 176, 197. 
Blast, 352. 
Blight, 356, 357, 361. 
Bliss, on pruning, 190, 234. 
Blister-mite, 358. 
Blodgett, on spraying, 330. 
Blossoms, effect of rain on, 41. 
effect of wind on, 42. 
Blueberry, species of, 7. 
Bone-meal, for apples, 137, 143. 
Booth, on lay-out of orchards, 207. 
on subsoil, 115. 
Bordeaux mixture for spraying, 331, 342. 
Borers, 73, 294. 
Botryospheria ribis, 353. 
Box-packing fruits, 400. 
Box-press, 403. 
Bread-fruit, 4. 
Breadstuffs, raising of, 9. 
Brackett, G. B., quoted, 262. 
Bramble fruits, diseases and insects 
of, 350 
Brazil-nut, 6. 
Brown, storage, 420; packing, 400. 


Index 


Brown, Edgar, seedman’s weights, 125. 
Brown-rot, 351, 356. 
Brown-tail moth, 346. 
Bryobia pratensis, 357. 
Buckwheat, as cover-crop, 118. 

seed to the acre, 124, 125. 
Bud-moth, 346, 359. 
Buffalo berry, 7. 
Busbh-fruits, definition of, 7. 
Butternut, 5. 


Cabbage, as cover-crop, 122, 123. 
Cabbage palmetto as windbreak, 63. 
Calocampa nupera, 352. 
Canarium ovatum, 6. 
Cane-blight, 353. 
Cane-fruits, thinning of, 249. 
Canker, 352. 
Cankers, frost, 304. 
treatment for, 296. 
Canker-worm, 57, 346, 347. 
Caraunda, 7. 
Card, on thinning cane-fruits, 249. 
Carica Papaya, 6. 
Carissa, species of, 7. 
Carob, 5. 
Carpocapsa pomonella, 347. 
Carya, species of, 5. 
Case-bearers, 347, 359. 
Cashew, 5. 
Casimiroa edulis, 4. 
Castanea, species of, 5. 
Catch-crops, 100. 
Caterpillars, attacks by, 322. 
Cavanaugh, soil analysis, 115. 
Cedar-apple fungus, 57. 
Ceratonia Siliqua, 5. 
Cerinam, 8. 
Chenomeles, species of, 3. 
Chandler, on frost injury, 315. 
on injury to fruit-buds, 101. 
on stocks, 171. ‘ 
on winter-killing, 303. 
Chemical fertilizers, 131. 
Cherimoya, 4. 
Cherries, distance for, 177. 
fertilizers for, 147. 
picking, 368. 
sterility of, 160. 
Cherry, diseases of, 351. 
insects, 351. 
Mahaleb, as stock, 14. 
species of, 3. 
stocks for, 171. 
Surinam, 4. 
Chestnut, diseases and insects, 352. 
species of, 5. 


Index 425 


Chile-hazel, 6. 

Chinquapin, 5. 

Chrysophyllum Cainito, 5. 

Church, on orchard-heating, 272. 

Citron, 4. 

Citrus, species of, 4. 

Cladosporium carpophilum, 356. 

Climate, influence of, 10, 11. 

Climax basket, 389. 

Clinton, L. A., quoted, 84. 

Close, cover-crops, 125; packages, 399. 

Clover, as cover-crop, 117, 120, 122, 

123, 124. 
seed to the acre, 124, 125. 
weight of seeds, 126. 

Clover Mite, 357. 

Cobnut, 5. 

Coccoloba uvifera, 6. 

Coconut, 6. 

Cocos nucifera, 6. 

Codlin-moth, 347. 
distribution of, 17. 

Coleophora species, 347. 

Collar-rots, treatment for, 298. 

Conotrachelus species, 349, 357, 359, 

360. 

Contour planting, 192. 4 

Cook, A. J., mentioned, 319. 

Corbett, on home fruit-garden, 220. 

Corn, as cover-crop, 118, 123. 
in orchards, 104. 

Corylus, specics of, 5. 

Coryneum beyerinkii, 356. 

Cost-accounting, 27. 

Cover-crops, 113. 

Covering for protection, 257. 

Cowberry, 8. 

Cowpea, as cover-crop, 119, 123. 
seed to the acre, 124, 125. 
weight of seeds, 126. 

Cox, on frost, 252. 

Crab-apple, species of, 3. 

Crambus hortuellus, 352. 

Cranberry, 8. 
diseases and insects, 352. 
distance for, 177. 
fertilizers for, 150. 
flooding, 260. 

Craponius inzqualis, 354. 

Cricket, tree, 351. 

Cronartium ribicola, 353. 

Cropping the plantation, 102. 

Crosby, on insecticides, 336. 
on insects, 343. 

Crown-gall, 350. 

Cultivators and moisture-saving, 88. 

Curculio, 344, 349, 354, 357, 359, 360. 


Currant, diseases and insects, 353. 
distance for, 177. 
fertilizers for, 149. 
species of, 7. 
treatment for borers, 295. 
Currents of air vs. frost, 260 
Custard-apple, 4. 
Cydonia oblonga, 3. 
Cymatophora ribearia, 353. 
Cyphomanara betacea, 8. 


Dakruma convolutella, 354. 

Date, 6. 

Dehorning, 236. 

Determinate growth, 100. 

Dewberry, diseases and insects, 350 
species of, 7. 

Diaspis pentagona, 357. 

Diospyros, species of, 5. 

Diplosis pyrivira, 358. 

Discovery, 8. 

Diseases, 323, 343. 

Distance for planting, 176. 

Double-planting, 178. 

Drainage, atmospheric, 49. 

Dried blood, for apples, 143. 

Dry freezing, 12. 

Dust-sprayers, 330. 

Dwarfs vs. standards, 167. 


Elzxagnus multiflora, 7. 
Emphytus maculatus, 361. 
Empoasca mali, 344. 

Endothia parasitica, 352. 
Enriching of fruit-lands, 109. 
Equilateral triangle system, 192. 
Eriobotrya japonica, 3. 
Eriocampoides limacina, 352. 
Eriophyes pyri, 358. 

Erwin, on pruning, 190, 234. 
Eudemis vacciniana, 353. 
Eugenia, species of, 4. 

Euphoria Longana, 5. 
Euphroctis chrysorrhxa, 346. 
Europe, fruit-growing in, 32. 
Eustace, on frost, 50. 

Euthrips pyri, 358. 

Exoascus deformans, 356. 
Exploration, 8. 

Explosives for frost and hail, 261. 
Exposure of a fruit-plantation, 53. 


Fagus grandtfolia, 5. 

Fall web-worm, 347. 
Fallowing, 104. 

Family fruit-plantation, 217, 
Feijoa Sellowiana, 4 


426 Index 


Fergusson, on orchard-heating, 272. 
Fernald, quoted, 19. 
Fertility and productiveness, 287. 
Fertilizers, 131. 
application of, 140, 152. 
Ficus, species of, 4. 
Fidia viticida, 355. 
Fig, 4. 
Fig, Indian, 8. 
Figs, distance for, 177. 
Filbert, 5. 
Fillers, 178. 
Fire-worm, 353. 
Fires for frost, 265. 
Fisher, on orchard lay-out, 215. 
Flea-beetle, 355. 
Fletcher, on self-sterility, 158. 
Floats, 90. 
Flooding for frost, 260. 
Forests and fruit-growing, 57. 
Formulas for spraying, 333. 
Fragaria, species of, 8. 
Freezes, definition of, 44. 
Frost, cankers, 304. 
definition of, 44. 
injuries from, 307. 
and location, 45. 
prediction of, 252. 
protection from, 251. 
Fruit, definition of, 1, 2. 
Fruit-flies, 351. 
Fruit-pickers, 377. 
Fruit-rot fungus, 369. 
Fruit scale, 359. 
Fruit-worm, 353, 354. 
Fruit-zones, 11, 12. 
Fulgorid, 352. 
Fungi, attacks by, 323. 
Fungicides, 336. 


Garcia, on frost injury, 315. 


Gardener, on sterility of cherries, 160. 


Gevuina Avellana, 6. 

Ginkgo biloba, 5. 

Girdled trees, remedies for, 290. 

Girdling trees, 277. 

Glzosporium venetum, 350. 

Glycosmis aurantiaca, 4. 

Gooseberry, diseases and insects, 354. 
fertilizers for, 149. 
species of, 7. 

Gooseberry, Barbadoes, 8. 

Gooseberry, Otaheite, 6. 

Goumiy, 7. ' 

Gourley, on fertilizing apples, 136. 
on sod in orchards, 70. 

Grading fruit, 384. 


Grafting-wax, 281. 
Grains, raising of, 9. 
Granadilla, 6. 
Grapeberry-worm, 355. 
Grapefruit, 4. 

temperatures injurious to, 314. 
Grapes, diseases of, 354. 

distance for, 177. 

fertilizers for, 147. 

injury from frost, 312. 

insects, 354. 

laying down, 257. 

packing of, 410. 

soil-adaptation, 13. 

species of, 6. 

sterile and fertile, 158, 159. 

storing of, 417. 

temperatures injurious to, 314. 
Graptodera chalybea, 355. 
Gravenstein apple, table of points, 162. 
Green fruit-worms, 347. 
Green, 8. B., on sun-scald, 293. 
Greene, on orchard-heating, 272. 
Guava, 4. 
Guava, pineapple, 4. 
Guignardia bidwellii, 354. 
Guignardia vaccinii, 352. 
Gymnoconia interstitialis, 351. 
Gymnosporangium globosum, 360. 
Gypsy-moth, 348. 


Hail-gun, 262. 
Hail injuries, 292. 
Hairy root, treatment for, 299. 
Hale, J. H., mentioned, 201. 
Halsted, quoted, 307. 
Hammon, on temperatures for fruits, 
314. 
Hand-picking, 380. 
Hann, on frosts, 51. 
Hansen, on sun-scald, 293. 
Hardpan, 82. 
Harrowing to save moisture, 85. 
Harrows, 85, 94. 
Hartlib, Samuel, quoted, 80. 
Harvesting, 364. 
Hawes, Benj. F., quoted, 311. 
Hazelnut, 5. 
Headden, on arsenic, 362. 
Heading-in, 283. 
Heating for frosts, 265. 
Hedrick, on apple roots, 98. 
on effects of rain, 41, 318. 
on effects of wind, 42. 
on fertilizers for grapes, 148. 
on fertilizing apples, 134. 
on low temperature, 317. 


Index 


Hedrick, on sod. in orchards, 69. 
on temperature, 41, 
on winter-killing, 302. 
Hellebore as insecticide, 338. 
Hemerocampa leucostigma, 350. 
Herrick, quoted, 93, 248. 
Heterocordylus malinus, 349. 
Hexagonal system, 192. 
Hickory, diseases and insects, 356. 
Hickory, shellbark, 5. 
Hide-bound trees, 274. 
Higgins, mentioned, 387. 
Himalaya berry, 7. 
Holt, mentioned, 387. 
Home fruit-garden, 217. 
Home grounds, plan for, 219. 
Hovenia dulcis, 6. 
Howard, on frost-injury, 314. 
on pruning, 189. 
Humidity, influence of, 12. 
Hunting, 8. 
Hutt, quoted, 216. 
Hyphantria cunea, 347. 


Indeterminate growth, 100. 
Indian fig, 8. 
Injuries, 288. 
Insecticides, 336. 
Insects, 343. 

attacks by, 322. 
Irrigating for frost, 260. 
Irrigation of fruit-lands, 106. 
Isohyetals, 12. 
Isotherms, 12. 


Jack-fruit, 4. 
Jambolan, 4. 
Jamrosade, 4. 
Jarvis, on fillers, 179. 
on pruning, 190, 234. 
on renovating, 284. 
on squaring a field, 214. 
on trimming apples, 188. 
Jehle, on cankers, 296, 305. 
Jew plum, 5. 
Juglans, species of, 5. 
Jujube, 6. 
Juneberry, 7. 


Kaki, 5. 

Kerosene emulsion for spraying, 331, 
King, quoted, 43, 85. [339. 
Kinney storage house, 419, 

Kumquat, 4. 


Labels, 222. 
Ladders for picking, 374. 


427 


Laws for pests, 18. 
Laying out the plantation, 191. 
Leaf-blight, 354, 360, 361. 
Leaf-curl, 356. 
Leaf-hopper, 344, 355. 
Leaf-miner, 350. 
Leaf-roller, 345, 360. 
Leaf-spot, 350, 356, 360. 
Lecanium corni, 359. 
Leguminous crops, 119. 
Lemon, 4. 
Lemons, temperatures injurious to, 314. 
Lepidosaphes ulmi, 348. 
Lestout, M., on frosts, 264. 
Lewis, on crossing apples, 159. 
on packing, 400, 406. 
on storage, 420. 
‘Lewiston Orchards Life,” quoted, 104. 
Lime, 4. 
berry, 4 
Spanish, 6. 
Lime for apples and pears, 138, 145. 
Lime-sulfur for spraying, 331, 339. 
Line, laying-out with, 201. . 
Lining fruit-boxes, 401. 
Lining-in method, 212. 
LIttchi chinensis, 5. 
Live-stock, protection from, 289. 
Location and productiveness, 287. 
for fruit-growing, 38. 
Lodeman, on soil injury, 361. 
Lodeman’s label, 226. 
Lombardy poplars as windbreak, 62. 
Longyen, 5. 
Loquat, 3. 
Lucuma mammosa, 5. 
Lumbering, 8. 9. 
Lygidea mendaz, 349. 


Macomber, J. T., quoted, 258. 

Macrodactylus subspinosus, 356. 

Mahaleb cherry, as stock, 14. 

Making the rows straight, 194. 

Malacosoma species, 349. 

Mammea americana, 6. 

Mammee apple, 6. 

Mandarin, 4. 

Mandarines, temperatures injurious to, 
314. 

Mangifera indica, 5. 

Mango, 5. 

Manure, 129. 

Maples as windbreak, 62. 

Maps for orchards, 221. 

Market and location, 40. 

Marketing, 364. 

Marmalade tree, 5. 


428 


Marsonia juglandis, 356, 361. 
Martin, on orchard systems, 192. 
Mathewson, on insecticides, 336. 
on insects, 343. 
Maynard, on thinning plums, 248. 
Measuring-worm, 353. 
Medlar, 3 
Melander, on spraying, 330, 334. 
Melicocca bijuga, 6. 
Melilotus, as cover-crop, 120. 
Merriam, C. H., reference, 10. 
Mespilus germanica, 3. 
Metellus rubi, 350. 
Mice, protection from, 290. 
Midge, 358. 
Mildew, 354. 
powdery, 352. 
Millet, as cover-crop, 119, 123. 
seed to the acre, 124. 
weight of seeds, 126. 
Mineola vaccinit, 353. 
Mining, 8. 9. 
Mite, 357. 
Moisture determinant, 12. 
harrowing to save, 85. 
plowing to save, 84. 
of soil, 81. 
Monophadnus rubi, 351. 
Monstera deliciosa, 8. 
Moore, J. C., quoted, 197. 
Moore, on orchard lay-out, 211. 
Morus, species of, 4, 
Mulberry, species of, 4. 
Mulching as frost-protection, 255s 260. 
Mulching trees, 183. 
Muriate of potash, for agpiee: 143. 
Musa, species of, 8. 
Mycosphezrella fragariz, 360. 
Myrica Nagi, 6. 
Myzus species, 351, 353, 357. 


Natal plum, 7. 

Nectarine, 3. 

Nectarines, distance for, 177. 

Nematode root-knot, 17. 

Nicofume, as insecticide, 341. 

Nitrate, for apples, 143. 

Nitrogen, amount of, 131; for apples, 
143. 

Nozzles for spraying, 326, 334. 

Nursery lands, 112. 

Nursery stock, growing in orchards, 103, 


Oats, as cover-crop, 119, 123. 
seed to the acre, 124, 125. 

Ccanthus nigricornis, 351. 

Q’Gara, on frost-protection, 251, 


Index 


O'Gara, on orchard-heating, 266. 
Oil-heating for frost, 267. 
Olea europea, 6. 
Olive, 6 

temperatures injurious to, 314. 
Opuntia, species of, 8. 
Orange, soil-adaptation, 13. 

species of, 4. 

temperatures injurious to, 314. 
Orchard crops, 104. 

definition of, 3. 

-heating, 265. 

lay-out, 206. 

renovating, 283. 

systems, 192. 
Organizing the business, 24. 
Otaheite gooseberry, 6. 
Outlook for fruit-growing, 20. 
Over-production of fruit, 23. 
Oyster-shell scale, 348. 


Package label, 223. 
Packages for fruits, 386. 
Packing fruit, 383. 
-houses, 407. 
-table, 402. 
Paddock, chemical analysis of cover- 
crops, 122. 
Paddock’s vineyard label, 226. 
Pezcilocapsus lineatus, 354. 
Paleacrita vernata, 347. 
Palm, peach, 6. 
Palmer worm, 348, 
Palmetto, cabbage, as windbreak, 63. 
Papaw, 6. 
northern, 4. 
Parasite determinant, 16. 
Parasites and productiveness, 287. 
Passiflora edulis, 6. 
Payne, on windbreaks, 63. 
Peach, 3. 
palm, 6. 
tree borers, 295. 
trees, laying down, 258. 
yellows, 18. 
Peaches, diseases of, 356. 
distance for, 177. 
exposures for, 54. 
fertilizers for, 146. 
insects, 356. 
picking, 368. 
soil-adaptation, 13. 
stock for, 170. 
temperatures injurious to, 314, 315. 
trimming, 185. 
Pear buds, on mountain-ash, 14. 
prickly, 8, 


Index 429 


Pear roots, 97. Plum, species of, 3. 
species of, 3. Plums, diseases of, 359. 

Pears, diseases of, 357. distance for, 177. 
distance for, 177. fertilizers for, 147. 
fertilizers for, 144. insects, 359. 
insects, 357. picking, 368. 
picking, 367. sterile and fertile, 158. 
sterile and fertile, 157. stock for, 171. 
stock for, 170. temperatures injurious to, 314. 
temperatures injurious to, 314. thinning of, 248. 
trimming, 186. trimming, 187. 

Peas, as cover-crop, 123 Podosphera orycanthe, 352. 
seed to the acre, 124, 125. Poisoning, arsenical, 361. 
temperatures injurious to, 314. Polychrosis viteana, 355. 
weight of seeds, 126. Pome, 2. 

Pecan, 5. Pomegranate, 6. 
diseases and insects, 359. Pomelo, 4. 
distance for, 177. Pomology, definition of, 1. 

Pedigree plants, 168. Poncirus trifoliata, 4. 

Pereskia aculeata, 8. Pond-apple, 4. 

Persea gratissima, 6. Porthetria dispar, 348. 

Persimmon, 5. Potash, amount of, 131. 

Pheniz dactylifera, 6. for apples, 139, 143. 

Phosphoric acid, amount of, 131. Powell, G. H., quoted, 281, 369. 
for apples, 143. Powell, George T., cover-crops, 115. 

Phyllanthus disticha, 6. on exporting apples, 394. 

Phylloscelis atra, 352. Power sprayer, 334. 

Phylloxera species; 386. Prediction of frost, 252. 

Physiological diseases, 323. Prickly pear, 8. 

Pickett, on results of tillage, 71. Propagation and productiveness, 287. 

Picking fruits, 365. Protection from frost, 251. 

Pili nut, 6. Proteopteryx deludana, 359. 

Pineapple, 8. Prunes, temperatures injurious to, 314. 
screening, 259. Pruning, 184, 230. 
soil-adaptation, 13. and productiveness, 287. 

Pine-hole borer, 295. Prunus, species of, 3, 5. 

Pistacio vera, 6. Pseudomonas juglandis, 361. 

Place for fruit-growing, 39. Psidium Guajava, 4. 

Planker, 90. ‘ Psylla pyricola, 358. 

Plantain, 8. Pteronus ribesii, 354. 

Plantation and productiveness, 287. Puddling, 184. 

Plant-bug, four-striped, 354. Pumps for spraying, 326. 

-lice, 343. Punica Granatum, 6. 
-lice, attacks by, 323. Pyrus, species of, 3. 

Planting-board, 195. 
plan, 181. Quince, diseases and insects, 360. 

Plants, securing of, 164. distance for, 177. 
setting of, 174. fertilizers for, 147. 

Plasmopara viticola, 354. on low lands, 53. 

Plat of orchards, 221. species of, 3. 

Plowing to save moisture, 84. sterility of, 158. 

Plow, laying out with, 198. Quincunx system, 192. 

Plowrightia morbosa, 359. 

Plum buds, on peach, 14. Rabbits, protection from, 290. 
domestica, soil-adaptation, 13. Rain at blooming-time, 41. 

Jew, 5. effect on setting of fruit, 317. 


Natal, 7. Rape, as cover-crop 118, 122, 123, 124, 


430 Index 


Rape, seed to the acre, 124, 125. 
weight of seeds, 126. 
Raspberries, diseases of, 350. 
distance for, 177. 
fertilizers for, 149. 
insects, 350. 
laying down, 257. 
picking, 379. 
species <f, 7. 
sterile and fertile, 457. 
thinning of, 249. 
treatment for borers, 295, 
Records of orchards, 221. 
for picking, 381. 
Rectangular system, 192. 
Red bugs, 349. 
Reddick, on diseases, 343. 
on fungicides, 336. 
on winter-killing, 302. 
Red-rust, 57. 
Red-spider, 357. 
Renovating orchards, 283. 
Rest-periods in relation to frost, 101. 
Rhagoletis species, 345, 351. 
Rhode Island Greening apple, table of 
points, 162. 
Ribes, species of, 7. 
Rigney, on frost-injury, 315. - 
Ringing trees, 277. 
Roberts, on fertilizers, 131. 
Rodents, protection from, 289. 
Rollers and moisture-saving, 89. 
Root-borer, 351, 360. 
gall, 350. 
treatment for, 298. 
knot, 17, 299. 
louse, 360. 
worm, 355. 
Roots, broken, 228. 
Rose-apple, 4. 
Rose-chafer, 57, 356. 
Rotation of plantations, 126. 
Rows, making straight, 194. 
Rubus, species of, 7. 
Rusts, 351, 353, 360. 
Rye, as cover-crop, 118, 123, 124. 
seed to the acre, 124, 125. 


San Jose scale, 349. 

Sapodilla, 5. 

Sapote, white, 4. 

Saw-fly, 351, 354, 355, 361. 
Scab, 356, 358. 

Scald, 352. 

Scale insects, attacks by, 323. 
Schizoneura lanigera, 350. 
Sclerotinia fructigena, 351, 356. 


Scraping trees, 276. 

Sea-grape, 6. 

Sears, clover as cover-crop, 120. 
on scoring apples, 161. 

Selandria vitis, 355. 

Self-sterile fruits, 156. 

Septoria rubi, 350. 

Setting-board, 196. 
of fruit, effect of rain on, 317. 
the plants, 174. 

Shaddock, 4. 

Shellbark hickory, 5. 

Shepherdia argentea, 7. 

Siphocoryne avenx, 343. 

Site for fruit-growing, 39, 52. 

Skinner irrigation system, 107. 

Slug, 352, 355. 

Small-fruits, care of, 229. 
definition of, 7. 
setting in an orchard, 216. 

Smoke for frost, 263. 

Smudges for frost, 263. 

Snow, G. C., on storing grapes, 417. 

Soaps, as insecticides, 338. 

Sod-mulch in orchards, 69. 
orchards, 69. 

Soil determinant, 13. 
moisture of, 81. 
-poisoning, 361. 
structure of, 77. 

Sorting-tables, 412. 

Sour-sop, 4. 

Soybean, as cover-crop, 122, 123. 
seed to the acre, 124, 125. 
weight of seeds, 126. 

Spanish lime, 6. 

Span-worm, 353. 

Speculation, 8. 

Sphzrotheca mors-uve, 354. 

Sphinx, 355. 

Spondias dulcis, 5. 

Spraying, 319. 
for frost, 260. 

Spray pumps, 326. 

Square system, 192. 

Squaring a field, 214. 

Stable manure, 129. 

Staking out orchards, 202. 
young trees, 273. 

Standards vs. dwarfs, 167. 

Star-apple, 5. 


Stewart, on fertilizing apples, 138, 142. 


Stiger, Albert, mentioned, 261. 
St. John’s Bread, 5. 

Stocks, 169. 

Stone-fruits, picking, 368. 
Storage, 413. 


Index 


Storing fruits, 413. 
Strawberries, diseases and insects, 360. 
distance for, 177. 
fertilizers for, 150. 
unjury from frosts, 309. 
on low lands, 52. 
picking, 366. 
sterile and fertile, 157. 
temperatures injurious to, 314. 
Strawberry, species of, 8. 
tree, 6. 
Stripping trees, 175. 
Stuart, on pruning, 234. 
on setting-board, 196. 
Subsoil, as soil determinant, 15. 
Sugar-apple, 4. 
Sulfate, low-grade, for apples, 143. 
of potash, for apples, 137. 
Summer-fallow, 104. 
Sun-scald, protection from, 292. 
Surinam cherry, 4. 
Sweet-sop, 4. 


Tamarind, 5. 
Tamarindus indica, 5. 
Tangerine, 4. 

temperatures injurious to, 314. 
Tare, as cover-crop, 120. 
Tarr, quoted, 46. 
Temperature, dangers of, 44. 

determinant, 11. 

injurious to fruits, 314. 
Tent-caterpillars, 57, 349. 
Terminalia Catappa, 6. 
Tetrancyhus bimaculatus, 357. 
Thinning the fruit, 241, 249. 
Thornber, on fillers, 180. 

on use of corn in orchards, 104. 
Thrips, 358. 
Tight-jacket trees, 275. 
Tillage, 64, 91. 

and productiveness, 287. 

benefits of, 76. 

philosophy of, 75. 
Tilling for frost, 260. 
Tmetocera ocellana, 346. 
Tobacco, as insecticide, 341. 
Tools in relation to moisture-saving, 84. 
Top-grafting trees, 279. 
Top-working stocks, 171. 
Tortrix, 351. 
Tree-cricket, 351. 
Tree tortrix, 351. 
Triangular system, 192. 
‘Tribune Farmer,” quoted, 13. 
Trimming, 184. 
Triphasia trifoliata, 4. 


431 


Turnips, as cover-crop, 118, 123, 124. 
seed to the acre, 124, 12 

Tussock-moth, 350. 

Twig-moth, 357. 

Typhlocyba comes, 355. 

Typophrus canellus, 360. 


Vaccinium, species of, 7, 8. 

Valsa leucostoma, 305. 

Van Deman, H. E., on planting, 1¢¢ 

Vapor vs. frost, 260. 

Varieties and productiveness, 287. 
choice of, 153. 
scoring of, 161. 

Vegetables for home fruit-garden, © 

Venturia inequalis, 344. 

Veratrum album, 338. 

Vetch, as cover-crop, 120, 122, 121 
seed to the acre, 124, 125. 
weight of seeds, 126. 

Vicia species, as cover-crop, 120. 

Vigna sinensis, as cover-crop, 11°. 

Vincent, on crossing apples, 159. 

Vitis, species of, 6. 


Wagons for picking, 374. 

Waite, quoted, 157. 

Walnut, diseases and insects, 301. 
English,temperatures injurious to,31 4 
species of, 5. 

Warner, on cost-accounting, 27. 

Water in air, 260. 

Watering young trees, 274. 

Wax, grafting, 281. 

Wealthy apple, table of points, 162. 

Weather and location, 41, 49. 

Weeds, as cover-crops, 123. - 

Weevils, 352. 

Wellhouse orchards, 201. 

Wellington, on orchard-heating, 271. 

Wheat, as cover-crop, 119, 123, 124. 
constituents of, 133. 
seed to the acre, 124. 

Wheeler, on fertilizers, 144, 146, 148, 

149, 150, 151, 152, 

Whetzel, 344. 

White, Elizabeth C., quoted, 260. 

Whitewashing as protection, 259. 
treei, 2/.. 

Whitten, on whitewt shing, 259. 

Wickson, on windbreaks, 63. 

Wilder, H. J, on soil-adaptations,13. 

Wilson, C. S., on irrigation in the East, 

106. 

on packing, 401. 

quantity of seed for cover-crops, 
124, z 


432 Index 


Wilson, W. M., on frosts, 51, 252. 

Wilt, 353. 

Windbreaks, 55. 

Wind, effects of, 41. 

Wineberry, 7. 

Winter-killing of fruit-buds, 306. 
of wood, 299. 

Winter preparations, 282, 

Wire-compass, method, 213. 

Wood-ashes, effects on apples, 136. 

Woodberry, on orchard-heating, 271. 

Woolly aphis, 350. 


Worms, attacks by, 322. 

Wounds, dressing of, 233. 
treatment for, 296. 

Wrapping fruit, 402. 


Xylina species, 347. 


Yeomans, staking plan, 202. 
Ypsolophus pometellus, 348. 


Zizyphus Jujuba, 6. 
Zones, 11, 12. 


Printed in the United States of America 


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