Author: Fruit Growers Association of Adams County Title: Proceedings of the. . .annual convention Place of Publication: Bendersville, Pa. Copyright Date: 1912 Master Negative Storage Number: MNS# PSt SNPaAg016.7 •v THE • • Fruit Growers Association tr* ^e. 1 % • of Adams County Pennsylvania ORGANIZED DECEMBER 18, 1903 PROCEEDINGS A OF THE ':^ EIGHTH ANNUAL CONVENTION HELD IN Fruit Growers Hall, Bendersville, Penna. Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, December 18, 19, 20. 1912 •t Get FIRS T Prize For Your Fruit Spray with Bowker's "Pyrox" and secure fruit that is free from insect dam- age and fungus disfigurement. "PYROX" fills the Barrel with the kind they used to put on top. Bowker's Lime Sulphur for all scale insects is made heavy and rich, and for that reason is more effective than lighter mixtures ; and as a rule it costs no more. When you clean up your trees with Lime Sulphur, be sure to use Bowker's for it is the kind you can rely on to do effective work. WE SHIP FROM BALTIMORE WRITE FOR AGENCIES TO nWlCFR INSECTICIDE C V^ T T *V MLt IX 43 Chatham Street, Bo*ton, [ E. C. TYSON, State Agent, Flora Dale, Pa. t' i I! >t r* Officers President, Robert M. Eldon Aspers ^st Vice' President, C.J.Tyson, Flora Dale 2nd Vice President, C. A. Griest Guernsey 3rd Vice President, C. E. Raefenspkkgkr, Arendtsville 4//I Vice President, E. P. Garrettson, Biglerville 5//. Vice President, J- G. Stover, M.D Bendersville Recording Secretary, Chas. A. Wolfe, Aspers Corresponding Secretary Edwin C. Tyson, Flora Dale Treasurer, Wm. S. Adams Aspers Executive Committee Robert M. El don, . . . C. J. Tyson, C. A. Griest, C. E. Raffensperger. E. P. Garrettson, . . J. G. Stover, M.D., . Chas. A. Wolfe, . . . . Edwin C. Tyson. .. . Wm. S. Adams, Aspers Flora Dale . . Guernsey Arendtsville . Biglerville Bendersville Aspers . Flora Dale Aspers 3 "HOW TO GROW AND MARKET fRUrT CThe BOOK that tells ''how" and **why/' It is brand new and thor- oughly up-to-date. Nearly 1 50 pages, 24 pages of pictures. With an order for $5.00 worth of trees or plants, this book is free. The price otherwise is 50 cents— rebated on first $5.00 order. 1913 CATALOGUE- FREE €LThe bluest and best we have ever issued. It's full of fine color plates and information valuable to fruit grow- ers. Edition is limited. Send now for copy. i VALUABLE FARMS FOR SALE Membership Roll Adams, Wm. S., Aspers, Pa., Adams, Mrs. W. S., Aspers, Pa., Asper, D. C, Aspers, Pa., Asper, Chas. F., Aspers, Pa., Anderson, H. W., Stewartstown, Pa. Anderson, Joseph W., Stewartstown, Pa. Anderson, H. M., New Park, Pa. Arnold, J. Raymond, York, Pa. Bream, Samuel, Biglerville, Pa. Br<^am, Dill, Bendersville, Pa. Bream, Wm. E., Biglerville, Pa. Bream, H. J Aspers, Pa. Bream, M. F., York Spnngs, Pa. Boyer, W. W Arendtsville, Pa. y^K Black, Wm. H., Flora Dale, Pa. U Baugher, H. G., Aspers. Pa. Baugher, Ira, Aspers, Pa. Baugher, Martin, Aspers, Pa. Bucher, John, Bendersville, Pa. Belt, J. E., Wellsville, Pa. Butt, J. L., Gettysburg, Pa. Bosler. Frank C ' Carhsle, Pa. Brough, Edward, Biglerville, Pa. Bender, Lee M., Martinsburg, W^ Va. Bassett, Charles E Fennville, Mich. Bingham, W. O St. Thomas, Pa. Boyer, George E., Arendtsville, Pa. Bushman, S. F., Gettysburg, R. F. D., Pa Brame, Edw., Aspers, Pa. Blessing, David H Harrisburg, Pa. Black, Moses, Aspers, Pa. Blair, C. I., Aspers, Pa. Bream, W. A., Gettysburg, Pa. Cocklin, B. F Mechanicsburg, R. F. D., Pa. Cook, Arthur E., Aspers, Pa. Cook, J. W Flora Dale, Pa. Cullison, Robt Tillie, Pa. Crowe, John W., Gettysburg, Pa. Carey, Calvin, Gettysburg, R. F. D. No. 5, Pa. Carson, E. E., ' Bendersville, Pa. Cole. A. W Orrtanna, R. F. D.. Pa. Crouse, E. A. Gettysburg, Pa. Fig. 761 Duplex double acting power Spray pump for connecting by belt to any gasoline engine C You can get better results with a Deming Sprayer be- cause it will require fewer repairs, and is better able to stand the rough usage than any other pump We have had more experience ; we operate a larger factory than any other spray pump manufacturers. C This Duplex pump is only one of 27 Deming spray pumps for all spraying conditions. Our 1913 Catalogue contains full particulars. Write for it. THE DEMING COMPANY, Salem, Ohio Manufacturers of Hand, Windmill^ Power and Spray Pumps ^t- f*'^ \ n « 7 DcardorflF, Anthony, Mummasburg, Pa Deardorff, Henry, ., Arendtsville, Pa. Deardorff. H. W Tillie, Pa. Deardorff, W. B., Gettysburg, R. F D. No. 5, Pa, Dill, Dr. M. T., Biglerville. Pa. Dull, Thomas, Aspers, Pa. Dunlap, James M Walnut Bottom, Pa. Davis, Wm Vork Springs, Pa. Day, T. F Aspers, Pa. Dougherty, Dorsey Gettysburg, Pa. Dickey, vSamuel Oxford, Pa. Deatrick, H. G Hunterstown, Pa. Diller, A., "^o^^ Springs, Pa. Eldon, Robert M Aspers, Pa. Eldon, Mrs. R. M Aspers, Pa. Eppleman. J. W \spers. Pa. Everhart, G. W York, Pa. Eby, Amos Mt. Joy, Pa. Eiholtz, S. Mc Biglerville, Pa. Eppleman, E. E Aspers, Pa. Eppleman, H. C Aspers, Pa. Estabrook, F. L Athens, Pa. Finnef rock. Thomas Bendersville, Pa. Fohl, George E Biglerville, Pa. Fiddler, W. B Aspers, Pa. Felty, G. B. O Millersville, Pa. French, Albert, ^ 545 Mountain Avenue, Mont- clair, N. J. Griest, C. Arthur Guernsey, Pa. Griest, Mrs. C. A Guernsey, Pa. Griest, C. S Guernsey, Pa. Griest, A. W Baltimore, Md. Griest, Frederic E Philadelphia, Pa. Griest, G. G 30 Church St., N. Y. City. Griest, Maurice 105 W. 163d St., N. Y. City Griest, Chas. J Vork Springs. Pa. Garrettson, Frank .\spers. Pa. Garretson, Eli P Biglerville, Pa. Garretson, Harriet Biglerville, Pa. Garrettson, J. B Aspers, Pa. Garretson, Robert Flora Dale, Pa. Garrettson, John Aspers, Pa. Garrettson, Eli Gettysburg, R. F. D. No. 6, Pa. Grove, W. E York Springs. Pa. Gillan, R. J ^"^t. Thomas, Pa. Groupe, Foster C Tdaville, Pa. Gardner, L. M., Jr., York Springs, Pa. 11 8 With a DEYO POWER SPRAYER You arc READY to spray the day conditions arc ripe ^ No delay tinkering the machine. ^ No endless adjusting to make it work right fl No countless parts to buy and wait for until the vital time to spray has passed. Deyo Power Sprayer is always ready, always satisfactory, because it's made right, of best materials, by skilled mechanics, under the personal instruction and direction of Mr. Deyo. C You, as a Fruit Grower, know that the San Jose Scale IS worse this year than ever before. Make your plans early, therefore, to give your orchard the proper care. No investment pays so well as the money put into a Deyo Power Sprayer. €L J^rite us to-day and we will send you at once our illustrated booklet telling all about the Deyo Power Sprayer, and give y^ou some facts, in regard to it that are hard for an^ Grower to get away from, DEYO-MACEY ENGINE CO. BINGHAMPTON, N. Y. We manafactnre notbinc bat DEYO POWER SPRAYERS and DEYO ENGINES- -Eof ine Size. 1^ t» 16 H.P 9 Gochnauer, J. D York Springs, R. F. D., Pa. Gochnauer, Jacob S., Aspers, Pa. Gracey, Robert, - Newville, Pa. Gove, Mary E., Bendersville, Pa. Guise, D. H., Emmittsburg, Md. House, O. P., Aspers, Pa. Harris, Meriam, Bendersville, Pa. Hoffman, Jas. O., Arendtsville, Pa. Hoffman, E. N., Biglerville, Pa. Hoffman, Daniel, Aspers, Pa. Hoffman, George, Arendtsville, Pa. Hoffman, Willis, Biglerville, Pa. Harshman, U. W., Waynesboro, Pa. Huber, Charles H., Gettysburg, Pa. Hartman, Geo. R., Biglerville, Pa. """' ^- ^ Waymart, Pa. Hummel, P. T., Harrisburg, Pa. Hazard, Willis Hatfield, West Chester, Pa. Hershey, C. A., McKnightstown, Pa. Heilman. J. R.. Palmyra, R. F. D. 2, Pa. Hertig, John, Arendtsville, Pa. Hart, H. V., Martinsburg, W. Va. Jacobs, Daniel C Gettysburg, R. F. D. No. 5, Pa. Keller. H. M Gettysburg, R. F. D. No. 5, Pa. Klinefelter, U. S., Biglerville, Pa. K^"^' J- A., Biglerville, Pa. Kane, J. Lewis, Gettysburg, R. F. D. No. 6, Pa. Knouse, J. A \rendtsville, Pa. Knouse, David Arendtsville, Pa. Koser, Rev. D. T Arend,tsville, Pa. Koser, G. W., Arendtsville, Pa. Kunkle, John R Gettysburg, Pa. Longsdorf, C. L. Biglerville, Pa. Lawver, Rufus W Biglerville, Pa. Lawver, J. Edw Biglerville, Pa. Longsdorf, Dr. H. H, Dickinson, Pa. Lady, Hiram C Arendtsville, Pa. Lupp, Reuben Biglerville, Pa. ^^"' ^' B East Berlin, R. F. D. No. 3, Pa. Large, Mrs. E. S., Orrtanna, Pa. Large, Miss Katharine Orrtanna, Pa. Lewis, W. J Pittston, Pa. Lower, Dr. S. E., Pittsburgh, Pa. Michener, Mrs. Chas., Bendersville, Pa. Myers, George P., Biglerville, Pa. ■ ■■■'>J<'V- lO C It is not only the growing of the fruit that demands your atten- tion, but the manner in which it is packed as well. Corrugated Caps White Paper Caps Cushions G.PREAD. 199DUANESt.,NEWY0RK BRANCH ALBION. N.Y. MANUFACTURER AND . DEALER IN SUPPLIES > U5ED BY THt FRUIT i GROWER AND SHIPPER FOR THE PICKING, PACKING AND PROTECTING OF HIS FRUIT. Lace Circles CThe use of my goods at the time of packing increases the value of your fruit 10%. Send for booklet on Fruit Packing Supplies It is FREE. f\ 1 'I » 1 II McIIhenny. Wm. B., Gettysburg, Pa. McKay, Geo. H... puii'j i if- r. Maver Dr T H Philadelphia, Pa. Mayer, Ut.l. H ^j,,^^ Mo nson, Mrs^ W. S ^spers. Pa. Minter,Tho.as\.,...\-:::::::::::::::::::::SSr^^^^^^^^^ Musselman, C. H Biglerville Pa. Musselman, J. Elmer Gettysburg. Pa Minter, Mrs. D. G., .... r„„ . ^ r, \r^ ^ ., Myers, Levi M.. .... ^ddon k'^- V' ^^ ^°- 5' ^^ Miller, Robt. C. S.ddonsburg. Pa. Miller, E. M., Gettysburg^ Pa. Moyer Dr. H B.; : : ^'"T' m r Mickiey, J. w., r ""^Y^'/J- Mickiey I. D ::;: FairfieH R^F. D., Pa. Musser,WillM ^T T' l"' ■., , ' ,, , Lampeter, Pa. Maloney, W. J r. n »r ,, M^r • . ^ T- Dansville, N. Y. McCormick, C. E nt u r, XT . Glenburn, Pa. ^ewcomer, Aaron c,„ituu in-j Naylor, H. A Sm.thburg. Md. M- r Vu • ' ■ V Aspers, Pa. Nissly. Christian L Klorin Pa ^''''^' ^'^'" ^ 558 Abbottst'n St., Hanover. Pa. Syl'er,' G^e^rge C. ■.■.■.■; .' ?llTT'^' I I ^^ ^^"^ '' P"" ^'^""' P- S Arendtsville, Pa. Prickett^ Josiah W.. Biglerville, Pa. \ Peters, Z. J., r^ ' Peters. H. V, i :.::::::: ::::::: i.-.w.Sp^rPa'- Peters. Geo M Aspers, Pa. P?"" ,T\; Biglerville, Pa. PiWr'H r Bendersville. Pa. Pitzer, Harry C ^ p^ Patterson, Jas. A Stewartstown. Pa. ^'^"' ^- ^' New York City. Raffensperger. Chas. E Arendtsville. Pa. Raffensperger. Roy Arendtsville, Pa. Raffensperger Harry ^,,„, ^^ • Rice C K Aspers, Pa. Rce, Waybnght Biglerville, Pa. P ' T.u" "o Arendtsville, Pa. Rice, Luther S., . a j-l •« ^ Arendtsville, Pa. 12 What Does Your Spraying Cost ? Spray Material is not the Greatest Cost C Good labor is becoming more scarce and more expensive each year. €L Would you like to cut your labor bill in half, and insure better, cleaner trees and fruit ? Let us tell you how. COne spray-tank full of "SCALECIDF' will spray as many trees as two spray-tanks full of Lime Sulfur, in each instance spraying until every twig is covered and the trees drip. ^^ €L The N. Y. Experiment Station reports that 9 gallons of SCALECIDE'' spray has the same covering power as 17 gallons of Lime-Sulfur. We know of an orchard that required 25,000 gallons of Lime-Sulfur in 1911 and was sprayed in 1912 with less than^ 11,000 gallons of "SCALECIDE'' with better results. Don't say you don't believe it until you have made a fair and square test of it. C Suppose that it takes 1-50 gallon barrel of **SCALECIDE'' to spray your orchard—what will it cost .? What would it cost to do the same work with Lime-Sulfur ? 1 barrel **SCALECIDE,'' making 800 gallons of spray 1 to 15, will cost delivered in Pennsylvania and vicinity - $25.00 Cost of labor for applying at l>^c per gallon - 12.00 $37 00 It will require 1500 gallons of Lime-Sulfur to spray the same or- chard, which will require 3^3 barrels of the best commercial Lime- Sulfur 1 to 8, at $4.50 per barrel - - $15.00 Labor of applying 1500 gallons of spray at l>^c per gallon - - - . - 22.50 which demonstrates that if you pay over $4.50 per barrel for Lime- Sulfur (you cannot make it at home for that), you are oavinff more than for **SCALECIDE'' at $25.00 per barrel. "Scalecide" Costs More by the Gallon, but Less by the Orchard C No spray is cheap that does not do the work. C The Missouri Experiment Station reports that **SCALECIDE" killed 100% of scale (by count) in five out of seven tests, while Lime-Sulfur tailed to do so once in ten tests in the same orchard. T • ?• J*^^ ^"^^* ^"^ "^^^* productive orchards in the U. S. have never had Lime-Sulfur on them but -SCALECIDE" has been used exclusively as a Winter wash since planting. We will take pleasure in referring you to them. B. G. PRATT CO., 50 Church Street, New York City E. C. TYSON— Pennsylvania Agent— Flora Dale, Pa. i ? > /^ I ^ ^1 -f ^3 Rice, Oscar C, Arendtsville, Pa. Routzahn, George R., Bendersville, Pa. Rinehart, E. S., Mercersburg, Pa. Rinehart, J. J., Smithburg, Md. Roberts, Arthur, Gettysburg, R. F. D. No. 5, Pa. Reist, Henry G., no Avon Road, Schenectady, N. Y. Reist, Eli G., Mt. Joy, Pa. Repp, Albert T., Glassboro, N. J. Riddlemoser, H. E., McKnightstown, Pa. Roth, John, Biglerville, Pa. Rice, Edwin A., Arendtsville, Pa. Rex. Raymond, Idaville, Pa. Rhoads, C. A., Friedens, Pa. Stover, Dr. J. G., Bendersville, Pa. Slaybaugh, E. B Aspers, Pa. Slaybaugh, Elmer Aspers, Pa. Smith, G. Frank Aspers, Pa. Smith, J. H., Biglerville, Pa. Shank, George H Biglerville, Pa. Sheely, Allen Bendersville, Pa. Sheely, Geo. D New Oxford, Pa. Shull, Jno. A Tillie, Pa. Shull, Robt. H Tillie. Pa. Stoner, C. A., Gettysburg, Pa. Schuchman, G. W Carlisle, Pa. Spangler, George E Gettysburg, Pa. Snyder, E. B jack's Mountain, Pa. Snyder, Jacob S Idaville. R. F. D., Pa. Snyder, W. L., Bendersville, Pa. Snyder, L. S York Springs, Pa. Starner, C. S., Aspers. Pa. Stitzel, J. A., Aspers. Pa. Stauffer. Chas. B Gettysburg, Pa. Sachs. Edw Biglerville, Pa. Stock, E. C 3610 Clifton Av. Balto. Md. Strasbaugh. E. F Orrtanna. Pa. Sheffer. E. Kate Boiling Springs, Pa. Sheely. A. D Arendtsville. Pa. Smith, J. Russel, Swarthmore, Pa. Tyson, Edwin C Flora Dale, Pa. Tyson, Mrs. M. W Flora Dale, Pa. Tyson, Chester J piora Dale, Pa. Tyson. Mrs. B. H Aspers, Pa. Tyson, Wm. C, Guernsey, Pa. Tyson, Mrs. M. E. Guernsey, Pa. 14 fl Dempwolf's Spring Special Brand has proven highly effective as a Fertilizer for orchards. Analysis : Ammonia, Formula : 2% Ingredients Used for Ammonia: Nitrate of Soda. Ground Fish. Dried Ground Blood. High Grade Animal Tankage. Dempwolf 's Special Ammonia and Phosphoric Acid Compound. Available Phosphoric Acid, 7% Ingredients Used for Phosph Acid: one Dissolved Phosphate. Ground Fish. High Grade Animal Tankage. Dempwolf 's Special Ammonia and Phosphoric Acid Compound. Potash (Soluble in water) , 1 0 % Ingredients Used for Potash: Muriate of Potash. Ask Your Local Jlgent for this Brand, or write direct to York Chemical Works YORK, PENNA. ] ^ I # ^ I f f 1^ IS Tyson, A. R, Norristown, Pa. Taylor, Hanson W., Biglerville, Pa. Taylor, Henry, Biglerville, Pa. Trostle, Francis, York Springs, R. F. D., Pa. Thomas, Mrs. Dr., Gettysburg, Pa. Taughinbaugh, J. L., Hunterstown, Pa. • Ullrich, L. L., Biglerville, Pa. Weidner, A. I, Arendtsville, Pa. Wolfe, C. A Aspers, Pa. Wolfe, Harry Aspers, Pa. Wolf, Dr. W. E Arendtsville, Pa. Wolf, Charles M., York Springs, Pa Weaver, Mrs. CM., New Oxford, Pa. Weaver, David, Biglerville, Pa. Wilson, B. F., Biglerville, Pa Weaner, Chas. C, Bendersville, Pa. Weaner, W. C, Aspers, Pa. Wertz, D. M., Ouincy, Pa. Wible, R. E., i. Gettysburg, Pa. Wickersham, Ruth A., Bendersville, Pa. Wickersham, Robt. A., Bendersville, Pa. Wagner, Harry Carlisle, Pa. Wright, Ryland Aspers, Pa. Wright, T. F., \spers, Pa. Williams, J. L Gettysburg, Pa Weigle, H. M. ^nrrisburg, Pa. Walter. J. C Biglersville, Pa. ^ 1 r ^ Why Not Get the BEST Spray Pump? Why try to do good spraying — thorough spraying — the only kind worth while— with cheap tools ? Don't waste your money and time on a cheap spray pump — ^get a GOULDS ^t* ^ ^■^vl .^ Reliable SPRAYER Coulds Sprayers are designed and built to give the best service and to last. They develop, with a minimum of effort, the power needed to force the spray into every crack and crevice. All parts are made to resist the action of spray chemicals — one reason they last. You can choose from our Ime to meet every spraying re- quirement. The entire line is fully described and illustrated in our booklet, "How to Spray, When to Spray. Which Sprayer to Use" Send for this free booklet. You will find its authentic spray for- mulas an exceedingly valuable guide to your spray work. The Goulds Mfi{.Co. "Largtst Manufactunra tf Pumps for Evtry Strvic§" 130 West Fall Street Seoeca Falls, New York 17 CONSTITUTION Preamblk. < i > niav m1?ii."ll"^'i^'' '" ^'■"" growing and believing that, by organization we * • ARTTCI.K J.~Name. AdaS^ C^unTy'.'^'^''" '^'^" ^" ^"^^" ^' ^^^ ^^"^^ ^^^^^^^' Association of Article U,— Object. r.f ,u^^f "^^j^"^^ ""^ ^^''% Association shall be to encouraRe the co-ooeration of lhei/rm^„rT„^terLir^"^ ^"""'"^ '"' ''' ''-'-'-" -'^ ^"-'"-m tion asshan n'™f fi""^ disseminating sucli scientific and practical informa- tion as shall promote the general advancement of the fruit growing interests quamJtv T^; pTol^ts^" '''"' '" ^"^^ '-■>->--"* of ^the%^l'i'jrrnd ing fhat wh'ich may"y"dttr!nfS°" " ""'' "^ advantageous, and prevent- fr. J'^L ^^ secunng such improved facilities in transportation as shall tenil to give us more expeditious and economical distribution pacfi and' pa"ctge°""^ '° "™''' " '^"" ^""^ """'' ""'^"^^ ^>^t-" °f 5th. By devising some system of marketing our products which will °ive"r"e?ur" "'''"'' ''" "'"'''''' ^"'^ ^'''' '° '^^^ S^°-^^ a^a?r and'einunera- 6th. And by endeavoring to obtain such improved systems of croo re- porting as shall furnish, through co-operation with other smilar Assoclal f'rTit' or""""'.' -nformation concerning production; thereby enabling the fruit grower to know the exact situation. '"umiK me Articlk UI.— Membership. 1st. Candidates for membership may be elected by a majority vote of the members present, and upon the payment of $1.00 into the treasury sh^l be entitled to membership until the next Annual Meeting "^^^"""y «"»" 2d Any member may renew his membership by the payment of annual lS'sha"ll re^cTuirl^S-^le^^ior '"" ^■'"''''' '•""" '"''"''^ ^''^ Annual Xt' oper^aL^yiTh^Jhe^'^pS ll^^^^^Lf gr^arS"!: °o^ ^Ir Z term of one year after election to membership. Article IV.—Dues. M.V^^u'^T''^ "^"^ °^ ■!'''' Association shall be One Dollar, ($1.00) pay- fni or wh cTfhrT^' *''" "'««i"g.i'""iediately preceding the annua/ m'fel ing, tor which the Treasurer shall issue a rece pt. this receipt to constitute a certificate of membership for the succeeding year. constitute Article Y— Officers. A ^^- 1'^^"^^-^ ^l!?" !^?"*'^' °^ a President, a First, Second, Third Fourth t\rv ,'„ . .^1" President a Recording Secretary, a Correspond ng Secre- tary, and a Treasurer, all of whom shall be elected by ballot at each An- nual Meeting, to serve for the term of one year ot until their successors tte Commit"- "^'"^ "'"' ^"^ '''''''' °«"^^ '""^'^ <=°"«t't"'« -Tx^c" .■■i'V^.CTi I III t t iS I MAY THE NEW YEAR BRING A BUMPER APPLE CROP MUSSELMAN CANNING COMPANY BIGlERVIllE, PA. A |V,»»- ^ ..j» ^ 19 ARTictE yi.~Quorum. ■ busiS ^^^ ™^'nbe'-s shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of Article \'ll.— Amendments. anvTi'.fMr^^"'"*V*'°",^"'^ By-Laws of this Association may be amended at orthe^nronnr/'"^ ''J * t^^-thirds vote of the members present, a notice reg^ar meedng. ^"'"''"^""' "^^^'"^ l'^^" presented in writing at a previous Article VUl.— Fruit Districts. tendh^°/ il^^i'"."'"'!^ °l distributing the work of the Association and ex- W Te^-en r,?'^!)' l""- ."^""PJ-^ ^^ ^^^""^ ^'^^" ''^ ^'^'ded into the follow- M?naltn tI^I ^""n- V -^"i"*^* ^"^V °'" N°"h district, to consist of Townlhrn nl^.^'fV?"*""' I*°V°'' ^"t District, to consist of Franklin L,Wv TnH H ■ J'l!'^^' ^' Southwestern District, to consist of Highland, ron^S .f r Ham. tonban Townships ; District Four, or South District, to of Sfr=,h°.n T,!^^"^"^,- F'-e^dom and Mt. Joy Townships, and that portion frW p1,.= ^°'^"^ "P 'yj,"^ ^"""^ °^ *« Western Maryland Railroad; Dis- Mt mi ' . ^^^'"? District, to consist of Germany, Union, Conowaga, t^irt S V n:^'V°^^'■*'; ^^^^}''^: ^"^'^^ ="d Hamilton Townships ; Dis^ r^lIW No^heastern District, to consist of Latimore, Huntingdon and Tyrone Townships ; District Seven, or Central District, to consist of Butler e'rrMa'r'^ard'Railrord""" "' '*"'^" '""""^'^'P '^'"« """^^ '' ^^e West- Articlk IX.—Committees. n. 1'^'^'^ following five (5) committees shall be appointed annually by the newly-elected Executive Committee and announced at the January meeting as folows: A committee on programs, a committee on membership, a committee on statistics, a committee on exhibits and a committee on crop If^"^ V.l^ committee shall be composed of one or two members from each of the seven (7) districts of Adams County, as designated in Art 8 FrankHn ""' ^'^'^ ^^""^ ""^ ^^^ Counties of York, Cumberland and BYLAWS Article I.— Duties of President. The President shall preside at all meetings of the Association and have a general supervision of its affairs. Articlk U.— Duties of Viee Presidents. The highest designated Vice President present at any meeting shall preside in he absence of the President; all of the five vice presidents shall s^ve on the Executive Committee in conjunction with the other elective otiicers; and, in addition, each vice president shall have special duties as follows : i vo «o The First Vice President shall be chairman of the program committee and be responsible for the preparation of a program for each regular meet- ing, same to be announced at the preceding meeting The Second Vice President shall be chairman of the membership com- mittee and shall use every effort, personally and through members of his committee, to extend the membership and secure renewals The Third Vice President shall be chairman of the committee on sta- tistics, and shall l)e responsible for the preparation of statistics showing number of orchards in Adams County, and, as far as possible, in York Cum],erland and Franklin Counties, with quantity, age, kind and varietv of trees planted therein, for the use of the Association, adding thereto as new orchards are planted or old ones extended 20 No Change in Name, Location or Bank Since 1852 U. Grant Border, Pres. C. H. Evans, Vice Pres. . Evans & Company 218 Light Street Baltimore, Maryland Madi Apples Their Specialty For Sixty Years 21 hibitT''LHZ''"' ^l" President shall be chairman of the committee on ex- s'^ml^as-dlr^cTed ^TthelYsfciaLr "-'"^ *^"'* '"' ^^'''''^ ^^ '''^"'^^-^ reoorts^ .^'i' h.^'" P."""'^^"* shall be chairman of the committee on crop of'the Association. '"'"' ''"^' °' '^""'^'^""^ =*"^ '=°'"1'"'"^ ^^^^ f- "^e ARTICI.E III.— Duties of Recording Secretary. The Recording Secretary shall write the minutes of the meetings of the Association and have charge of its Records and Reports. ""^^""^^ °^ ^"^ Articlk lV.~Dutics of Corresponding Secretary. \.J}^-^''''''^T''u^l^^ Secretary shall conduct the correspondence of the Association and shall receive for so doing his necessary expenses for sta rc^ofK^^Lrr^- ^^ ^'^" ^''^ ^^' - ^--^-^ S^ecretT/t ^^:e at Article V.— Duties of Treasurer. belo JJin/fn^?hrA^ s"^^."' .'•^"i^'e and keep an accurate account of all moneys sfined W he Pr.^rH^nl^"H • "f^ir^ T' '^""^ °" ^" "^'l" °f 'he Association, mfnts at the fnnf'l .^^ '''*" ""^^^ ^ '■^P"''' "^ ^" ^^"'Pts and disburse^ tTof hI i.n ^. ^'"'■^^ °r ?' *"y ""'^ at 'he request of the Associa- tion. He shall mail a notice of dues to all members one week prior to the November meeting, at which time all dues are payable, and shall i°suecer tihcates o membership in exchange for all dues^ received He hall also keep a roll of members who have complied with Article IV of the Con° stitution and embody same in his annual report. Article VL— Duties of the Executive Committee. „f >u^\ Executive Committee shall have general supervision of the affairs of the Association, auditing all bills and accounts and carrying out the pur- poses of the Association. ^ '^ P"*^ Article VU.— Meetings. There shall be a regular meeting of the Association on the second Satur- day-^ of each month at 7 : 30 r. m.. unless otherwise ordered. The meetinK held in December to be regarded as the Annual Meeting. Special meetinef point '^^ ^ ""' Executive Committee at such time as they may "p- Article Wll.— Initiation of Officers. All new officers shall assume the duties of office at the opening of the meeting immediately following the one at which they were elected except hat the newly-elected Executive Committee shall prepare and announce at fied in'r7o"and"fi;e':.L™''"'''"?'P '"°" "^ '^' ^-^'^ O U < Q < 24 "Keystone Farm Right'' Dynamite Should be used by PROGRESSIVE ORCHARDISTS It advances tree growth from one to two years, over old planting methods. Mellows the Soil. Destroys Harmful Insect Life. Conserves Moisture Over Drouth T^erioJs. Loosens up Soil A round Old Trees, afford- ing greater root expansion, thus bringing orchard hack to normal hearing. a Keystone Farm Right" Dynamite is valuahle in Removing Stumps and Boulders, Breaking up Hardpan and Suhsoil, Digging Post Holes and Ditches, Draining Wet and Marsh}) Land, Write for Illustrated Booklet, ** Farming with Dynamite' * Keystone National Powder Co. EMPORIUM, PA. SOLD IN ADAMS COUNTY BY Lower Bros. R. L. Nesbit & Co. Basehoar & Mehring Table Rock DilUburg Littlettown I A INTENTIONAL SECOND EXPOSURE o m X » 71 H w H < It. O in < .ifm?i:- ^i% ■"'t^ 24 'I Hi i I "Keystone Farm Right" Dynamite Should be used by PROGRESSIVE ORCHARDISTS It advances tree growth from one to two years, over old planting methods. Mellows the Soil. Destroys Harmful Insect Life. Conserves Moisture Over Drouth T^eriods. Loosens up Soil Around Old Trees, afford- ing greater root expansion, thus bringing orchard back to normal bearing. a Keystone Farm Right" Dynamite is valuable in Removing Stumps and Boulders, Breaking up Hardpan and Subsoil, Digging Post Holes and Ditches, Draining Wet and Marshy Land. Write for Illustrated Booklet, ''Farming with Dynamite'' Keystone National Powder Co, EMPORIUM, PA. SOLD IN ADAMS COUNTY BY Lower Bros. R. L. Nesbit & Co. Basehoar & Mehring Table Rock Littlestown '* 1 1 » PROCEEDINGS OF THE EIGHTH ANNUAL CONVENTION OP THE FRUIT GROWERS ASSOCIATION OF ADAMS COUNTY, PA. The Eighth Annual Convention was called to order by the President, Robert M. Eldon, at 2:00 p. m., Wednesday, December 18, 1912, in Fruit Growers' Hall, Bendersville, Pa. The convention was opened with prayer by the Rev. D. T. Koser. Following a few well chosen words of welcome by the Presi- dent, the program was proceeded with as follows : PEACHES. Prof. F. N. Fagan, Ass't Professor of Horticulture, Pennsylvania State College, I wish to sound a warning note, not that I believe it myself, but the press and public at large are inclined to believe it — that is that there is, or rather might be an over production of apples. We read nearly every day of some large planting of this fruit and the talk is that when all their young trees come into bearing, the ones just planted and the ones that have been planted within the past five or ten years, that there will not be enough people in the United States to use the fruit. That may hold good if people believe their own township is the whole United States, but the facts are that many families of ordinary means, in our large cities, cannot afford apples at the prices they must pay each year to get them. So please under- stand that I do not take much stock in the over production idea of the apple. But I do know there is, on an average, an under pro- 25 26 duction of peaches. In many localities, we find not enojigh produ^^^ tion of this good fruit to supply the wants of the usual housewife not to mention the wants of the village, borough, town and ^ity. I believe I know what some of you are thinking,- We haven t the soil or location to produce peaches." Am I right Agam, you may say we will let Michigan, West York State, Northeast Pennsylvania and Northern Ohio ship us our late peaches for canning and the South Atlantic States and South Central Mississippi valley ship us our early dessert peaches. Well, let the above sections ship us their products and still you will not have enough You can compete with them and to confirm this statement, talk with your local dealers and grocerymen, and see if they don't tell you that home grown peaches will bring a better price and also that they would rather handle them. ^ w .t, ^ u^c Now, as to soil for peaches, we have been taught that peaches were very exacting as to soils. This teaching is all right but I am of the opinion that it has been carried to the extreme. The very habit and nature of the peach root tends to teach the above. Feach roots are very fibrous, the fibrous roots being more abundant than the stocky heavy ones, indicating as we study tree r(K)ts, that the peach prefers a loose soil, and popular opinion has tied this tact to a light, sandy soil. When I speak of light soil, I mean light soil as we speak of it on the farm. As a matter of fact, our loams and clayey loams and even clays can be made very light to handle and al- so pliable, if we install an abundance of organic matter into it, and on such soils the roots of the peach will be able to develop and obtain plant food, and grow. If one has a clay or loam (a heavy soil) and should desire to grow peaches on it, he should work it well, add manure, and plow under some form of green manuring crops be- fore planting the peaches. Do this before you plant, because it may take you two, three or even four years to fit such soil for peaches. Remember the presence of plenty of organic matter is of great im- portance. . xl. i. • Now, for the exact location for this planting. I learn that in the mountainous sections of southern Pennsylvania, and eastern and central Pennsylvania, that late spring frosts occur very seldom, pro- vided the elevation is above the surrounding neighborhood. This item is as important as organic matter to the soil. Have good air drainage to protect your trees from spring frosts. It is late spring frost that gets the peach crop more than the low temperature in the dormant season. Peaches have stood a 17 degree below zero tem- perature without injuring the buds. A tree must be dormant and should have hardened its wood well and in good season to stand such temperatures. Nevertheless, they have stood it and will stand it again too. . _ The stock you plant, in a general way regardless of variety, 1 will say should be one year old budded stocks, from a nursery com- pany that will be glad to have you visit their blocks of trees, and select at digging time the stock you want. You may have to pay a il" ! \ 27 little extra for this stock, but remember, the first cost is the best money you will ever spend. Get good trees that have made enough growth in one season to convince you that these trees have estab- lished themselves well upon their own roots. Don't select the largest tree, not the smallest, but the average sized one. Let us say alx)Ut one-half to five-eighth inch trees. And in regard to this nursery tree, insist that the tree is allowed to ripen its wood well. Planting time I believe should be in the spring before the growth starts in nature around us; use nature as a guide. The tree roots should be pruned to the extent that all broken and mashed or dried-out roots are not put into the ground. Very often together with the pruning, that lifting the tree from the nursery does, and the pruning away of injured roots, one will find that most of the fibrous roots that you were so proud of when you saw the tree lifted, will have disappeared. Don't discard it, for the tree will come along all right. Plant the tree in the ground about the depth or a little lower than it stood in the nursery, which will be indicated by the diflferent color of the bark above the ground and that below. In setting the tree, firm the soil well around the roots — get down on all fours if necessary and firm the soil, by hand, allowing no air pockets to form under the roots. And don't be all day at this planting job either. Roots are not meant to be ex- posed to sunlight and air, so don't try to start something new with nature. She will not stand for such tricks of mankind. Now, as to planting distances, I have noted that at bearing age the trees fill up the surface of an acre very completely when planted twenty feet each way, which will give about one hundred and twenty-four trees per acre, or planted on the corners of a twenty foot square, which will give you one hundred and eight trees to the acre. The pruning of the young peach is very important and should be done at once after planting in the Spring. If the young tree is not too large and has not branched too much, the cutting back to a wisp or single stock, will be about right, since you take away with this cutting all possible chance of the skeleton branches or head of the tree from coming out any higher than this cut which gen- erally is made about eighteen inches to two feet above the surface of the ground. Some cutting-back or pruning is necessary to even up the unbalanced condition of the tree-top with its root system, which has been badly disturbed by the loss of roots in the process of lifting, and then the root pruning. Remember right here that nature balanced the roots with tree tops, and we cannot unbalance nature without something unusual following. In this pruning, plant both feet solid on two sides of the tree so your weight will help hold the tree solid in the ground and make your cuts clean with a good sharp big handled knife. If the tree is large and has made some branch growth below the two foot height save them, at least, the ones you want and cut back the branches to about half their length and to an outside bud. Remember, in selecting skeleton 28 branches to keep them far enough apart (three to four branches are enough) and keep them as far apart as you possibly can, and at the same time, pointing out into the space you expect to have filled with tops and peaches, later on. During the next two years practice cutting back each skeleton branch in early spring while the tree is still dormant, to the extent of taking out a third^or even a half of the growth the tree made the season before, ^ome think this practice retards bearing, but while there are some experiments, I believe being conducted aiming at this point I am unable to say what such pruning will do, other than to cause good stocky skele- ton branches to develop with good diameter and strength enough to hold up the future crops of fruit. I cannot help but believe, when I see such methods followed, producing good strong branches, and at the same time bearing as much fruit as a small tree three vears old can stand under, that it is not such a bad practice after all If that sounds too "fairy-like", I will add two more years and say that under such methods of pruning (and by the way, with no better location and soil than thousands of Pennsylvania farms have) one grower cleared a little over, as he said, "$5,000.00 off of three thousand trees, five years old." Not so bad when we consider that at the age of three or four years, combined, the same trees had paid for the thirty acres, and their own expenses, besides. As to culture, in brief, Til say cultivate the peach orchard, not just once, but cultivate it as a garden and use some form of coyer crop to protect the soil and tree roots in the winter. I am beginning to believe that deep freezing of the soil is as injurious to the tree and future crops as is late frost injury to the bud and currant crop. The cover crop will also give us a chance to return to the soil some organic and humus material. The cover crop may be a non legume, such as barley, even rye or a good crop of weeds. It might also be a legume if one believed that the trees were not re- ceiving enough nitrogen. I do know of clover being used between every other row in the orchard and allowed to stand two years while the alternate rows were cultivated two years. This subject brings up the question of adding plant food to the peach orchard. The addition of plant food to ordinary every-day farm crops is very common, but some how or other, a large number of people believed trees would do all right without plant food and were not demanding food as other crops. I wish, here, to use the idea of Professor Green of Wooster, Ohio, Experiment Station, in one of his reports on the peach section of Ohio. "The grape industry having failed, for no other apparent reason than the lack of plant food to keep the vines alive, grape vines were taken out and immediately replaced by peach trees. During all this time, continued cultivation was given the land without the addition of any form of organic matter. Large crops of peaches were harvested and the trees began to decline the same as did the grapes. During all these years, no plant food had ever been returned to the soil and by the help of the Experiment Sta- 29 tion, the growers began to realize they would have to add some food to the soil or go out of business. So they began adding manure, cover crops and commercial fertilizers and under such treatment, the trees gradually regained their strength and today, it is a highly specialized peach section." I do not wish to go into the varieties of peaches or the details of spraying. This information can be had in bulletin form froni our different State Experiment Stations. I do wish to bring out the point that we should not allow our trees to bear more than they can hold up nicely. In other words, use no props but practice thinning. When the peaches are about the size of blue damson plums, thin them down to about five or six inches apart on the branch. This practice will pay you big. If you are skeptical, try this on a few trees this coming season. Discussion. Mr. Bassett. How about diseases? Prof. Fagan. I have said nothing in regard to disease and disease control, but I want to name the diseases that are apt to be troublesome. In the first place, if peach yellows has entered into your orchard, it will need close attention. Another disease that you will have to fight will be peach leaf curl. Another dis- ease that you are apt to find in nursery stock is crown gall. If you find crown gall in peach trees, do not plant them, for the simple reason that they will never amount to very much. Some nursery- men say that it will not hurt peaches or apples. R, A. Wickersham. Do any nurseries have crown gall in peach trees? Prof. Fagan. Yes, lots of them. R. A. Wickersham. Where? Prof. Fagan. All through Ohio there is lots of crown gall on peaches. Crown gall on the peach does not look quite like it does on the apple. It is not the white slimy knot that is often present at the union of two roots. R. A. Wickersham. Is crown gall found in any other states ? Prof. Fagan. I have thrown out crown gall trees from ad- joining states. Ohio has it, West Virginia has it, Virginia has it, Indiana has it, Michigan has it, and Pennsylvana will have it. If you buy nursery stock infected with crown gall, do not accept it. I would not plant it. Mr. Bassett. How about "Little Peach"? Prof. Fagan. "Little Peach" is a disease that will play havoc if it enters. I understand that there is some little peach in Pennsyl- vania. Little peach and peach yellows are diseases that we do not know much about. A man that will find an absolute cure for peach yellows other than cutting down the tree, would make an immense fortune. The fact that yellows will destroy your trees 'ir^^T/r.^i;: |! 30 means that you must give them accurate care when the yellows shows up. It is improperly named. The first conditions do not show up in any form of a yellow tint, it shows up in the premature ripening of the fruit. It may show up on one limb. If it ripens its fruit in that way, take your knife and cut across the cheek and if you see a streaking of red across the peach, taste that peach and you will think it is the worst peach you ever tasted. And if you do find such things, then look at the root. If you do not find borers there, then examine the bark and see if there are any bark beetles feeding on the bark, if it is not so infested, do away with it The best thing you can do is to cut that tree out and burn it, even though it has a nice crop of peaches on it. I will just tell you what two men I know of have done. There used to be quite a peach section in Columbiana County, O. It was noted for peaches. The yellows entered there and the advice that some of the experienced fruit people in counties further east gave was that whenever you see such signs, cut out the trees and burn them. That was two years ago. One man has followed the practice of cutting out every tree that showed any signs of yellows, and the following year, after he had taken out the stump and hauled in some fresh ground, he planted another peach tree, and at the present time that orchard looks as good as any peach orchard that you will see. On one side of the fence is a perfectly healthy, normal peach orchard. On the other side of the fence is an orchard almost ruined with the yellows. The only way you can account for it is that the one man has cut out the trees as the yellows appeared, taking out the stump and planting another tree, and the other man neglected it. R. A. Wickersham. Is there any certainty that the cutting out does any good ? Prof. Fagan. There is absolutely no certainty at all, but cut- ting out will check the disease. Question. How about crimson clover as a cover crop? Prof. Fagan. Crimson clover lends a good deal of nitrogen and I see no objection to using it. Here in Pennsylvania it might add too much nitrogen for you. R. M. Eldon. How about early Spring cultivation? Could that clover be destroyed without plowing it ? Prof. Fagan. Crimson clover would be pretty hard to destroy without plowing. You might destroy it by plowing it with a heavy disc. Question. Do you think producing too much nitrogen in the soil would be apt to produce yellows ? Prof. Fagan. You can unbalance a tree just as readily with plant food as you can unbalance a steer in the feeding proposition, and you might get too much nitrogen. I do not think so, however. 31 Question. In the way of commercial fertilizers to feed the orchard, what would you use? What kinds, in what proportion and how much? Prof. Fagan. I believe you have Prof. Stewart on the pro- gram, and as he has been working among fertilizers, perhaps he will answer that question. Phosphoric acid 16% pure is all right. I would add actual nitrate of soda to the peach orchard somewhere around 15 lbs. Not over that. W. E. Grove. Do you think it practicable to do all your shipping by express ? Prof. Fagan. It is according to how much the basket is going to cost you to get it into the market. It would probably be 12 cts. to 20 cts. per basket. If 12 cts. I would say that you would make money at that. Mr. Newcomer. Do the little hair-like roots on peach trees indicate crown gall? Prof. Fagan. Not at all. The hair-like roots on peach trees are no indication of crown gall. When you get peach trees some varieties are that way and others have nice, large roots, but some varieties have too many of those fine, fibrous roots. Question. Do you object to that kind, or do you prefer it to others that are a little larger ? Prof. Fagan. Not at all. We would trim off the other roots to a few straight roots, and then plant them. Those small roots will die anyway when they are put in the ground. Question. Professor, do you think extreme cold winters and extremely hot summers have anything to do with bringing on peach yellows ? Prof. Fagan. No, I do not think it has anything to do with it. A weakened condition of the tree subjects it to any form of insect injury or disease injury. That is the only way that a hard winter or a hot summer would have any effect on the presence of such diseases. We generally believed that peach trees were short-lived. Some of them will live to be 25 or 30 years old and still are good. We do not care how old a tree is, so that it brings in the peaches, that is what we are looking for. Question No. 14. Wanted — Experience of a fruit grower who has used barnyard manure freely on peaches? Prof. Fagan. I have known of barnyard manure being used to good advantage in the bearing peach orchard. A winter dressing of about five tons to the acre annually has been followed by con- secutive crops of peaches and I believe it to be a good thing. Question No. 15. How can we prevent rot of peaches? Prof. Fagan. You can prevent rot in peaches, first by good pruning, getting all the benefit from sunlight possible. Th^ spray with self-boiled lime sulphur. (See Pennsylvania Experi- ment Station bulletin, entitled "Peaches for Pennsylvania", by '■v^. ':^M 32 Jno. P. Stewart, or U. S. Department of Agriculture, Farmer's Bulletin No. 440). ^ ,. x • ^u- Question No. 16. Will it pay to use orchard heaters m this county? , , .. Ml i. Prof. Fagan. I am unable to say whether it will pay to use orchard heaters in Adams County or not. All I can say is to experiment if you have losses in crops coming from late spring frosts. . . ,. ^ 1. ^ Question No. 17. Does it impair vitality of young peach trees to store in cellar over winter ? Prof. Fagan. It does not injure the vitality of young peach trees to store them in a good cellar over winter. Question No. 19. Does any grower with personal experience favor planting peach fillers in apple orchard ? Prof. Fagan. I have seen successful crops of peaches for a few years, as fillers in the apple orchard. If a man has the nerve to cut out the filler at the proper time, he will have received something from the orchard in advance of the apple crop. If soil conditions are all right for peaches, I say grow them in the apple orchard. Established 44 Years Grape Vines Largest Stock and Best Varieties €LFor garden and vineyard plant- ing; also Currants, Goose- berries and other small fruit plants. Parties intending to plant are requested to corres- pond with us. Our Catalogue is Free T. S. HUBBARD CO. FREDONIA. N. Y. ESSENTIALS IN SPRAYING. (C. E. Bassett, Fennville, Michigan.) In the first place, the mixing station deserves considerable more attention than most fruit growers give it. If this is not complete and convenient in arrangement, valuable time is lost, the spray may not be mixed properly and various other difficulties arise. I think one of the best mixing stations I ever saw was designed to make Bordeaux for a fifty-five acre vineyard of grapes. A storage tank that held thirty-four barrels was mounted upon a tower eight feet high. A gasoline engine in a little shanty beneath the tank filled it with water. A well built platform upon which were placed the stock solution barrels was about six feet above the ground and five feet below the bottom of the storage tank. A two inch hose was used to transfer the water from the storage tank to the two dilution barrels. Each of these had a one and one-half inch faucet or valve which were caused to empty at the same time into a trough which, in turn, emptied into the strainer, placed in a hole in the top of the spray tank. While the dilute copper sulphate and dilute lime were passing down the trough, the poison was poured in. To my mind, a better arrangement could not possibly be made. With stock solutions of both lime and vitrol handy, and with the poison within easy reach, the owner could prepare and load one hundred gallons of Bordeaux in eight minutes. The only change necessary to adapt this to any sized sprayer would be to change the size of the dilution tanks. In all cases the dilution tanks should have a capacity of, at least, one-half of the spraying tank. For larger orchards perhaps a fifty barrel storage tank would be better, especially if you depend upon a windmill for pumping water. If you make lime and sulphur, this arrangement can be modi- fied so that the boiler which furnishes the steam for boiling the mixture can pump the water into the storage tank. The steam can also be used to dissolve the vitrol, if you prefer to do that way rather than keep a stock solution. I have seen sixteen pounds of vitrol dissolved by steam in three minutes. The gasoline engine has been so much improved of late, is so inexpensive to operate, and requires so little attention, that its use as a power in spraying is greatly increasing. The horizontal air cooled engine is preferred by most orchardists as it is considerably lighter than the water cooled engine, because it dispenses with the cooling tank. Which ever style, — air cooled or water cooled engine is used, I think it is best to have from two to two and one-half horse power. A less powerful engine is more apt to be overloaded, will not do as good work or last so long, and cannot be adapted 33 f 34 to so many other uses about the farm. The f fj^/.^^'^jjfd^^ produce and maintain a pressure of, ^Ueast one hundred s^enty ^ A^ o«ri tf x»rrnilH he better to have it two nunarea pounub. '"'^ The'difficulties that arise in the use of the gasoline engine are ,,«!uallv due to weak batteries or gummed up sparkmg plugs, to the nresence of waS or dirt in the gasoline, or to an improper propor- Son Tak Tnd gas. These parts should be frequently exammed ^"' S whfris the"trmethod of coupling up the pump and .nmn^ whether bv belt drive or piston drive, is a question m my S ' However,'? cannot see any'spedal ff -t-g^° ,^^",7^: over the other. Most all power outfits should be P/ov»ded with a re Slf valve for the return to the tank of some of the liquid when the preslut becomes too high Manufacturers now make these so that iron or steel seats and springs can be put in when spraying w Jh lime and sulphur. One firm, has the spring on the outside, so that the sorav mixture cannot injure it. * The Eozzle that seems to give the greatest satisfaction for general use in orchards, both for lime and sulphur and Bordeaux, fX nozzle inown as the "F"end '^If" J} ^'^^.^^'^^fln makes a fine sorav and carries a considerable distance. JN early an SSns have a nS of this type. The angle nozzle is very handy ; Crits ule ?he operator can throw the spray in several different SL ions by sim?ly turning the extension rod. Any nozzk ^^^^^^^ made into an angle nozzle by the use of an elbow of thirty to forty "^'^'The bamboo extension rod is to be preferred to the iron gas oioe kind as they are lighter and not so tiresome to handle. Other SSssories that all well equipped orchard sprayers include, are kather Slubber drip guards on the extension rods, a good stop cock an5 pl^^^^^^ of gSod three or four ply hose, one-half inch m diameter. spraying outfit for orchard or park use shouSSe equipped wTth a^tower^ This is especially desirable with iS apple and pear trees. Without it one cannot possibly do a thoroueh job In spraying for the scale, if every spot on each Sr twig^ is not cohered with lime and sulphur, or other spray used a flw of them will be left to multiply and re-mf ect the tree and fJ^it They seem to have wonderful enduring and reproduc ?rve Sties. Also in spraying for the first brood of codling moth and for the scab up-to-date growers now consider it an essential Ifgtu^sol^t the spray will be deposited in and ?bout every little calyx cup. That is where most all of the early injury is done to the apple. In the pear, the scab does not seem to be so par- ticular as to the point of attack. 35 Towers should be about six or eight feet above the bed of the wagon. If you can not reach the top of any apple tree you have with such a tower, I advise you to cut off the tree severely. I have seen several instances where such a procedure has given ex- cellent results. The agitator: I want to say just a word about agitators. No one longer uses the jet agitator in which a portion of the spray stream returns to the tank, except in outfits having an abundance of power. We need all the power we can get to keep up the pres- sure in the nozzle, and besides, they do not give satisfactory agi- tation; nor do the bulk-heads in the horizontal half round tanks give the agitation desired for there is not enough movement to the wagon or cart. There are too many hand mechanical agitators in use. They require too much attention which should be given to the spray rod. Some form of automatic mechanical agitator is de- cidedly better. These may receive their power from a sprocket wheel fastened to a wheel of the wagon, or from an eccentric on a movable axle, or from the engine shaft. They are made to pro- duce various different movements, but I believe that the propeller type excels them all. In this, a shaft runs lengthwise and near the bottom of the tank; upon this are fastened propellers or paddles. The shaft revolves and gives the spray liquid a rotary and upward motion and produces ideal agitation. Properly made, strained and agitated spray liquids should leave only a very small amount of sediment in the tank. Another point,' that should be mentioned that contributes consid- erably to the facility of spraying, is the cleaning of the spray tank, hose and nozzles with clear water after each day's work to remove all sediment that may have collected. A large amount of the clog- ging of valves and nozzles can be attributed to the failure to do this. By all means, thoroughly clean out every barrel, tank, valve, or other part of your spraying equipment at the end of the season. Oil the working parts well and put them in a clean place, then when the spraying season opens the next year, everything is ready for business, and no valuable time is lost in scraping, washing, "cuss- ing and discussing." In conclusion, let me emphasize the necessity of keeping the plungers, couplings, the stop cock, and nozzles all well packed so they will not leak and deluge you as well as the tree. Careful at- tention given to many of these details saves time and material, makes the sprayer more efficient, takes away a large part of the dis- agreeableness of spraying and makes it, as I have heard many say, a joy and pleasure, especially when the crop is harvested in the fall. DUTIES OF CITIZENSHIP. Mr. H. W. Colli ngwcx)d, Editor "The Rural New-Yorker. (''The Hope Farm Man.") I assume that it is the highest national ambition of every one here that this country may remain a republic, in fact as well as in name, but if this government is to remain a republic, two things must be understood. There must ever be a class of free men so situated in life that they can and will do independent and fearless thinking and acting. Without such a class a republic is impossible. We cannot have such a class unless we can in some way keep alive the small, independent freeholder of land — the farmer. Thi^' farmer cannot, and will not exercise his independent and fearless freedom unless he can feel that his business is profitable aitd has something of the poetry or sentiment of life in it. I wish to build my argument on these propositions. Frankly, I do not see how the republic can endure when our business and our liberties pass into the hands of great corporations, and vast owners of land and property through their political agents. The hope for it lies in maintaining the home of the smaller freeholder. At the top of a hill in a New England country town lies the village burying ground. It is a bleak and lonely place, yet an honored and hallowed spot. In that graveyard stands a granite stone with this inscription: JACOB MILLER. God gave him new life, therefore we have brought him home. That man was the village pauper ; the one lazy, shiftless wretch who would not work. If you know anything of the New England people and their character, you will understand how they despised a pauper, and hallowed their dead. A prince could hardly have won a place to lie beside them in their graveyard except through some great moral sacrifice. How then did this pauper come to be there ? The war broke out, and Lincoln issued his call for men. This poor, shiftless man felt for the instant something of that thing which leads all men on to some great test of manhood, without which they will not go. That man volunteered and went to the front. He died as a soldier should, and the people at home said that "God had given him new life/* and so they brought him and buried him beside their own. What they meant was that in some miraculous way God had shown that man his sublime duty as a citizen; something out of the ordinary routine of life, that he might do his share to preserve this republic as a free govern- ment. 36 Vi ;^i ^f*/ t o X m o X EC H a, >, < V- V5 C ^ 3 < -o >• < c ^ C o ■* PQ w I w w X I -■' '■■■ '-^^^^aH ^^^^^v;^*'^r,'}^ '^HH sHS* Iff ^^ 1 ■ ■ ■■ ■■ 1 ," DUTIES OF CITIZENSHIP. Mr. H. W. C01.LINGWOOD, Editor ''The Rural New-Yorker, {''The Hope Farm Man/') I assume that it is the highest national ambition of every one here that this country may remain a republic, in fact as well as in name, but if this government is to remain a republic, two things must be understood. There must ever be a class of free men so situated in life that they can and will do independent and fearless thinking and acting. Without such a class a republic is impossible. We cannot have such a class unless we can in some way keep alive the small, independent freeholder of land — the farmer. Thi^- farmer cannot, and will not exercise his independent and fearless freedom unless he can feel that his business is profitable and has something of the poetry or sentiment of life in it. I wish to build my argument on these propositions. Frankly, I do not see how the republic can endure when our business and our liberties pass into the hands of great corporations, and vast owners of land and property through their political agents. The hope for it lies in maintaining the home of the smaller freeholder. At the top of a hill in a New England country town lies the village burying ground. It is a bleak and lonely place, yet an honored and hallowed spot. In that graveyard stands a granite stone with this inscription: JACOB MILLER. God gave him new ufe, therefore we have brought him home. That man was the village pauper; the one lazy, shiftless wretch who would not work. If you know anything of the New England people and their character, you will understand how they despised a pauper, and hallowed their dead. A prince could hardly have won a place to lie beside them in their graveyard except through some great moral sacrifice. How then did this pauper come to be there ? The war broke out, and Lincoln issued his call for men. This poor, shiftless man felt for the instant something of that thing which leads all men on to some great test of manhood, without which they will not go. That man volunteered and went to the front. He died as a soldier should, and the people at home said that "God had given him new life," and so they brought him and buried him beside their own. What they meant was that in some miraculous way God had shown that man his sublime duty as a citizen; something out of the ordinary routine of life, that he might do his share to preserve this republic as a free govern- ment. 36 f '"f ,-r > V o X O X X H a. >, Ml C v. c5 < '^ S< >" < c H •- '^ C if o O ' CO w '^ ■am I > y, w 1 wpfesr INTENTIONAL SECOND EXPOSURE w^~,. ^mmm I I. 1 i ^v 37 I shall claim first no one really does his full duty as a citizen without making some sacrifice, and feeling something of sentiment about his work. In a republic, from the very nature of things, every great public benefit must be made up of a thousand little bits of self-denial or personal loss on the part of individuals. It follows as a natural law that if we would get any great abuse or wrong out of public life, a mighty penalty must be paid for it, and you and I and the rest of us must pay our little share. This was so of slavery, and it will be so of other evils which we are fighting to remove from public life. We must buy them, pay for them out of our own comfort or prejudice before we can kill them. The sentiment I have mentioned may be expressed in various ways. We may show it in packing a superior box of apples for the real joy of doing it, in making a good farm, in pride in a home, in a dozen ways which come into the ordinary life ; in doing things for which we expect only a sentimental or a spiritual reward. For the truth is that no man can do his full duty as a citizen for money value alone, or for the material things which he may hope to get out of life. Duty calls a man or a woman up to higher ground than that, doing things as I have said for the real joy of helping and improving the conditions of life. You may say that this is hard doctrine, but can you think of any real duty which does not involve some sort of a struggle or moral discipline? If that be so of small duties, how can we hope to escape the larger struggle in the greatest of all patriotic duties, that of keeping our republic so that the common man may have a fair chance ? And that is what it amounts to. We owe no patri- otic duty to the rich and great, or to those who have obtained more than their share. They owe a duty to us. Our duty lies rather to the plain common man who is denied the rights which should belong to him under a republic. I am not old enough to know it or prove it, but older men have told me that the ten years from '50 to '60 was the golden age of farming in America. There was little aid from science at that time, and less from invention. We never dreamed that we should be called upon to spray or ferti- lize, or do dozens of things which now seem necessity. It cannot be said that in those days the well-to-do farmer could be as com- fortable upon his farm as now. There were no such markets as now, and nothing to compare with our transportation or national wealth; yet for independence of character, love of home, and real glory in our business, that period was, I believe, ahead of this one. I think that on the whole our citizenship was of a higher character. Why? Because at that time our farmers were inspired through their whole daily life by a great moral question regarding labor, and the God-given right of man to labor and to a home of his own. That was what the slavery question meant to most of our farmers. Men could not be free in hand and heart and soul, so long as slave labor or degraded labor was permitted in the same country. These old farmers before the war saw the point quicker than we 38 do that the foundation of all wealth and of real liberty lies at the last analysis in the free human hand. The first practical duty of citizenship was then, as now, to guard the rights of common labor, and this cannot be done successfully through any selfish material movement for personal gain. If you will stop and think for a moment, you will see that every battle in the world's history which has led to a real reform has been started in the country and carried on by plain country workmen. These things come out of the hills and the silent places where men have time for thought, and where they brood over the injustice of society. From Moses to Lincoln the leaders in this movement have been mostly farmers, or else farm bred men, who carried into other work this rankling injustice which would make the labor of the human hand inferior. If you look at him fairly, Moses will rank as a model for good citizenship. I have often tried to picture in my mind that wonderful scene where he stood before the Egyptian king. I can see the listless king upon his throne with the gang of fawning parasites and politicians around him. What a hopeless place ap- parently for a plain man or farmer to enter, yet all at once that crowd of sneering hangers-on parts as though someone had driven a mighty cleaver through it. A plain man strides through the opening and stands before the astonished king. And such a man! He was a farmer, tanned by the sun and wind of the desert, clad in rough skins, staff in hand. Had he been alone he would have been laughed out of the room, if not torn apart. Yet no man dared touch him, and he could look the king in the eye and say with au- thority "Let my people go/' He was not alone, because invisible companions stood there at his side. They had come with him out of the desert, over the mountains and through the rivers, to stand there with him and silence that throng. These companions were the courage and the faith which God puts into the hearts of those who honestly try to do their duty. Perhaps you will say that I pay too much attention to this side of the case. Why do I not spend my time giving specific direction as to what a man may do ? No, for it is the foundation of it all. I watched for three years the erection of a great building in New York. For eighteen months there was nothing but a great hole in the ground, with a high fence around it. It seemed as if the build- ers were making no progress at all, and the public began to sneer and laugh at them. Yet what they were doing was the most im- portant thing of all, and that was to dig down and down until they could lay the foundation of that great building solidly upon a rock. In like manner it will be as I believe hopeless to take up the real duties of citizenship until we can in some way understand and recognize that our work is to be part of a genuine moral crusade. But granting that this is so, what is the need of any such ele- ment in public life? We are told that the country is prospering, and that conditions are as good as they ever have been. Who \\ «%« % iU A h »)' ^ 39 tells you this ? Probably those who have the advantage in some way over what I have called the plain rights of free labor, or else it will be those who have stopped growing, and thus do not care. An old soldier who fought at Gettysburg told me what he was thinking of at the crisis of that battle. Those of you who live here can picture the scene far better than I can. This man told me that he stood with his regiment waiting for the long irregular line of Confederate sol- diers coming across the valley at a charge. Had that great line broken through it would have swept on to Philadelphia. If it were beaten back, the tide could never rise again. The guns above him were roaring, and this man, waiting for the shock, thought out the cause of it all. The night before he started for the war his old father, a* lame man, who could not go to war, back on a New England farm had told him this: "John, this war is at bottom an industrial conflict to see whether this nation is to be ruled by plain hand working people, or by an aristocracy of some sort. Probably not more than ten or fifteen percent, of the Southern people are really slave holders, but this small proportion has created a monopoly of political power. This war is to settle the question, shall the plain working people rule, or shall there be a government of the aristocracy which our ancestors ran away from?" This man said he heard that above the roar of the guns, and when at last the tide went back he felt that his children and his children's children were to have forever the free and fair chance of plain manhood. Well," I said, "you earned it for them." ^No, I was mistaken. All we won that day was the chance to gain true freedom, but not freedom itself, because freedom is a growth; it cannot stand still. It goes up or down and we will go down into the hands of the ruling classes unless those for whom it is designed, and who pray for it, are willing to give a part of their lives in order that it may live. We nearly threw away our chance because we did not watch it, and because we could not make our children understand just what citizenship means. The glory of what we had done overpowered us. We lived in it for years, and while we lived in this fool's paradise, silent, sleepless and strong forces were quietly at work with graft, special privilege and "joker" legislation, gathering the power in their hands. They have bought that most precious thing in life — manhood, until we have an aris- tocracy and power more dangerous to free labor and harder to fight than the old slave holding aristocracy. That was localized, and an entire section could be aroused against it. The new indus- trial aristocracy enters into every township of the country. We let it get by us when we substituted the glory worship of the old flag for our plain hard duty, and we were not able to make our boys understand it as we did." Now at heart this old soldier is right. There is no man here who will deny that gigantic evils have grown up in our country (^^ ((• 40 through graft, special privilege and corrupt legislation. No one can deny that this evil bites down to the very heart of our form of government, because it takes power away from the small free- holder of land. No one can deny that we men of middle age and older have let this thing get past us, while we neglected the real duties of citizenship. No one can deny that in some way we have, up to this year, somehow found ourselves unable to make our young men see as we did just what was coming. The last campaign for the first time in forty years put a real moral issue into public life. That was essentially what it meant, and the response to it justifies what I have claimed about the need of a sentiment in public life. We know that the future of this country, all we have and all that we cherish, lies in the hands of children and younger- men and women. Some of you who are rich and think you are great, may say that the future of Pennsylvania lies in the great vaults of Philadelphia, in the great iron foundries of Pittsburgh, in your coal mines, or even in the orchards on your hillsides. You are wrong. It lies in the hands of little children who are playing to-day on your streets or on your farm, and the childhood which these chil- dren enjoy will determine the future of your republic. For they are the nation, and put into a sentence, the supreme duty of grown up men and women is to see that every child has the God given right to a fair childhood, and that every young man and every young woman has the God given right to labor with self-respect and independence. The first great duty of citizenship therefore is one of understanding. My friend the old soldier said he could not make the next generation following him understand. Let us fairly comprehend why. Emerson remains the great American philosopher, because he fired many short sentences at the truth, and usually hit the bull's eye. He puts our thought into a few words. ''Manual labor is the study of the external world. The advantage of riches remains with him who procured them, and not with the heir." When a man starts with nothing and obtains a competence, he becomes uncon- sciously the master of it. The property may be money, land, exper- ience or reputation, but the man who acquires it knows the value of every dollar or every atom of it, because he has weighed and sampled it drop by drop of his blood and sweat. And thus it be- comes his slave, but when he turns it over to his untrained son, what was the slave of the father becomes the master of the boy! The problem for each generation as one follows another along the avenue of the years is this old problem of taking the slave of the father as a master, conquering it by character and toil, and making It in turn a slave. That is the whole story of historical development. As I read old history, it seems to me one long, monotonous record of building up great cities which prospered for a time only to be pulled down when finally the time came when the son was unable to conquer and dominate the slave of his father. Rome, Carthage, Athens, all rose to power over the dead body of that thing which 41 we still call "personal freedom," and which lies with the small freeholder. These cities conquered country provinces and made them pay tribute. Their entire scheme was one of developing city and town. They never improved the agriculture of any province, but drew the best blood away from it and made the production of food a work for menials. On this false basis the city rose to splen- dor and power, until finally it was always pulled down. And who pulled it down? Men who came out of the star-lit deserts; men who wandered out of the frozen north, where for centuries they had brooded over their wrong and hoarded in their hearts that spirit of home and of freedom which should ever remain as a part of the nature of the small freeholder of land. For in every age, and with every race of men, it is this man with the small parcel of land which he controls who has finally kept alive the world's liberties. It is therefore the great problem of government to keep this class of men prosperous and contented. The men who founded those old cities like the men who founded this republic, and who fought for it during our war, recognize this foundation truth of history, yet each and all of them have somehow failed to make the generation which followed them understand it as they did. As an illustration of what I mean, suppose you sit down with my boy, with your boy, or any group of young men, and try to tell them the true story of your competence or of your political con- victions. Eight chances to ten the boy will get the form of it> but will not get the spirit. You cannot make him understand fully, because you are talking the hard language of experience which is a language he has never learned. It is as if you were talking to him in a foreign tongue. You will not and cannot reach common ground with him on material things, not until you strike that strange and unknown quality which we call sentiment, or the spiritual side of public life. All through these long years men have been handing the slave which they have conquered, over to their boy, not realiz- ing that they have set a master over the young men without giving the true weapon needed to reduce him to a useful servant. For you and I, and all the rest of us have talked to our children and to others too much from the viewpoint of material success. The bright, clean and hopeful minds which are to take the slave of our generation have not understood just what the legacy means. You see it all comes back every time we start to the same point, the life, the essential thing of all freedom is the moral or spiritual side [of it. That is the one universal language of manhood which binds [one generation to another, the great conquering force which makes the slave of the father easier for the son to handle. Granting all this, what can I do; what can you do to help the :ause of the common man? There are certain well defined things which we should stand for always, definitely, openly, everywhere. Let me name a few of them. Legislation against child labor. When tender children are driven to work before their time, you and your children are injured in two ways. Whenever children 42 anywhere are denied the right to a fair childhood, your children and mine must face in the future a moral competition which could not help but sadden them. To work little children or to overwork men and women, means degrading competition for you and me on much the same principle that the slave was the real enemy of free labor. I think farmers, of all men, should support labor laws which prevent what I call degraded hand labor. Fair Credits for Farmers. There is now a movement on foot to establish in this country a system of agricultural credits which will enable a farmer to obtain cash in his business as readily as the merchant or business man. You may not in this neighborhood feel the need of such credits as they do elsewhere, yet that is no reason why you should not support the principle. In the European countries such a sys- tem has been established, and has practically saved the European farmers from bankruptcy. We have in this country for years been trying to teach our farmers how to grow larger or better crops. This education always means an added expense for tools, methods, fertilizers, and also for transportation. That is one reason why so many farmers have been unable or unwilling to take up this science or improvement. It costs too much in cash, and they have not been able to obtain credit, for it would seem as if agricultural development and money march side by side. Thus we have in a way been putting the cart before the horse in our agricultural development, by offering the farmer an education which makes money expenditure necessary ; at the same time we have made it impossible for him to obtain the needed money, after seeing that he could use it to advantage. In Europe and England, as I think wisely, the reverse of this has been worked out. Farmers were given fair credits ,and taught the possibilities of co-operative work before scientific education was put so much before them. That is one trouble, in this country, with scientific education, it has been of most benefit to the rich and the strong who have the needed capital to put the theories in practice. It is a patriotic duty of every farmer to help as he can the extension of this credit system. Parcels Post. For years as you know, our people have been held up and robbed by the Express Companies and Railroads for transporta- tion service. While every other civilized nation has reformed its postal service so as to give fair competition, this government has persisted in charging such high rates of postage that our farmers are denied the direct trade with consumers which European farmers enjoy. On January ist we are to begin in this country a new system of Parcels Post. It is not all we need, or all we deserve, but it is a beginning, and the extension of it to what we need will de- Vv* ^ ^ 4', • 43 pend upon the way our farmers use it. It is, I believe, the duty of every farmer to make the greatest possible use of this service. We c^n make it grow and develop as we did rural free de- livery, if we will patronize it and make it pay from the start. There is more at stake in this thing than you imagine. It means the beginning of a revolution in transportation and business putting both back nearer to the people. I do not see how we can help following the English system of gradually putting railroads, tele- graphs, telephones and similar utilities more or less under govern- ment control. I think that is the universal tendency of the times. In England the result of this has been to give the small freeholder and the tenant a fairer share. While fifteen or twenty years ago it was openly stated that English agriculture was ruined, to-day the English farmer is, on the whole, better off than ever before. This is true even in the face of the fact that imports of food into Eng- land are greater than ever before. It is not due so much to the increased production, or better farming, as to the fact that through fairer transportation and co-operation English farmers get more of the dollar than they did before. I think the same thing is to follow here, and that Parcels Post is the beginning of the use of public utilities for the direct service of the people. We as farmers have it in our power to bring this about, or to make a failure of the system. Pure Food and Honest Packing. I think it is the duty of every citizen to support all laws to prevent deception of any sort. Guaranteed food and packing is the foundation of direct trade to the consumer. He has been deceived so often that he' will gladly give his money to the man who hands him a square deal and a fair bargain. Pure food and package legislation with Parcels Post are the connecting links to bring producer and consumer together. When you can do that you have the whole thing in your hands. I could name other spe- cific things which all good citizens should support, no matter what party they think they belong to. These are not party questions, but patriotic questions, because they get down to the root of things, the rights of the small freeholder to live and prosper. The old soldier I mentioned, and others of us could not make the boys understand because we kept on talking party to them, instead of patriotism. For years you and I voted for the shell of an old party name, while our boys wanted the heart and soul of something which we could not give them. Let me tell you what we have been doing by this illustration. Suppose one party made a wise "resolve'' that fruit diseases are a menace to prosperity. They resolve that lime and sulphur is the remedy, and they pledge themselves to use it. Along comes a sulphur manufacturer and puts up $25,000 to pay campaign expenses. After election that man feels that he has bought and paid for the right to demand that i 44 each member of that party must use Hme-sulphur. Of course every good party man will do it and pay the full price, but now comes the other party. It also denounces plant diseases as a menace and pledges its members to use Bordeaux mixture. Up steps a manu- facturer of sulphate of copper with another $25,000, which carries the same right to demand that all good party men use Bordeaux and also pay full price. You may smile at this, but in a larger way that is just about what we have been doing, and what we have been teaching our boys as their political duty. We want and we need a different plan. We want to all get together on the propo- sition that plant or political disease is a menace, but that we do not care what you use so long as you kill it. Granting this, again the question comes, how can we do our duty? I mention three ways, — organization, courage, steadfastness. You are doing the first right here. I see some of your fruit in New York. People group around it and watch the apples and the labels. You have grown slowly and well. Every man who packs an hon- est box or barrel of apples gets into his heart a little of that pride and joy in his business which means more than dollars in his pocket. For I suppose you realize that through the years few really enduring things are made with the hands. Progress is through heart and character, for as the old hymn puts it, "Not the labor of my hands shall obey my Lord's commands." In learning how to combine over an apple you men are also learning uncon- sciously how to get together for the larger and nobler things of life. These may be packed in a box of apples as well as in a pic- ture, a sermon or a poem. Do you recognize how the cohesive strength of a great army depends upon that little joint in the human arm which we call the elbow? Soldiers tell me that when they march into battle ninety per cent, of the regiment feel that they would gladly run if they could, and if they were alone. But on either side they can touch another man's elbow. He is just as frightened as they are, but all are depending on the light touch of that elbow to hold them in line. You men in Adams County are showing us the way by build- ing a home organization. That is the way it must come, dozens and hundreds of smaller packing societies first of all, and then these welded together into a federation. No one likes to be drilled, and least of all a farmer, yet drill is all there is to it when the battle comes. And the duties of citizenship also involve courage of a rare and patient sort. It requires rare courage for a man of common life to leave his party when he knows it is wrong and give a fair reason for leaving it. No coward could possibly stand for an un- popular cause which he knows is right. There are dozens of things in business, we meet them day by day. They might be profitable right now, yet to do them means taking an unfair advantage of a neighbor or a customer. It requires rare courage to refuse to aid them, or to point them out to others, yet only in this way can th© t'~^ 4l i 45 plain people expect to drive dishonesty out of high places, for the morality of high places comes from that in the lower walks of life. It is not the complacent compromiser, but the clean fighter who can move the world onward. Suppose that right here in this town, or in Adams County there could be organized a body of men who would swear to put patriotic feeling absolutely above party. These men would denounce dishonesty at home or at Harrisburg. This would not be done bitterly with meanness or malice, but on the highest ground of patriotic duty. These men would organize and vote absolutely only for clean and capable men, the best citizens they could find. They would stand by this resolution, and by these men through loss, ridicule or abuse. Do you know what would follow; within a few years the great majority of the people of Adams County would be solidly behind these men, and all over Pennsylvania this county would have a political reputation equal to that it now enjoys and will enjoy for apples. You would attract attention from every political boss in the State, and you can gen- erally measure the efforts of a man for really good citizenship by the abuse he receives from the boss. There would be attempted bribery, bulldozing, bluff, and personal abuse. If the men I speak of would live through it all with courage and patience as Moses did, as Lincoln did, as every great leader has done, Adams County would be famous throughout the world, for it would give the world a model for good citizenship and political life without graft, but with business honor. I do not speak of the impossible. I am telling you just exactly what will be done in some community and some county in the future by just such a body of men as you can find here. And the good citizen must be steadfast. By that I mean patient and enduring. One trouble with us all has been impatience with the slow and the faltering. Those of us who have received the blessing of competence or education or powe^, are like those men who cannot make the younger generation understand, because we have forgotten the language which may go with poverty, depres- sion, lack of hope or of opportunity. I think our trouble is that we ourselves out of our superiority cannot understand the real les- son of growth or the obligation which we owe to society. ^^^^^ynTTTTT^HnTTt^tTHtW^y^^^^^Tff'WtHfWHTWWWWWW^P^^ :^ TEST YOUR LIME-SULPHUB SOLUTIONS. WINTER INJURIES TO FRUIT TREES. Prop. M. a. BI.AKK, Horticulttmst, New Jersey Agricultural Ex- periment Station. Mr. President, Members of the Adams County Fruit Growers' Association: Ever since I have been located in New Jersey I have heard a great deal about the good qualities of Adams County, ana I certainly agree with all the statements I have heard. I have also heard that this is the real home of the York Imperial apple, and you certainly have some very fine ones on the stage this morning. Sometimes we say things that are not presented in such a manner as to mean just what we intended they should, so I have written a paper which I am to present to you this morning on "Winter Injuries to Fruit Trees." . ^u t The winter of 1911-1912 was a most severe one, both irom the standpoint of low temperatures, and in the variety and amount of winter injuries to trees and shrubs of all kinds. , r v The weather during December, 191 1 was so mild that the truit buds of the peach made considerable development throughout the eastern peach districts. These conditions were followed by unu- sually low temperatures in January and February, combined with dry cold winds. . ,,11 The foilage of such hardy trees as white pine and hemlock suffered marked injury, and California privet was severely killed back in numerous instances. Bark splitting and collar injuries were unusually common, es- pecially upon peach trees, although the cherry and the apple re- ceived severe injuries in some instances. The sap wood of peach trees was discolored even in the extreme southern end of New Jersey, yet, very little twig killing occurred even in the northern end of that state. The warm weather of the early winter followed by extremely low temperatures combined with high, dry and cold winds, account for the severity of the damage done. A discussion of the various forms of winter injury to fruit trees would seem to be a matter of considerable interest to fruit growers at this time. The various forms of winter injury to fruit trees can be classi- fied as follows : Root injuries, twig and wood injuries, trunk split- ting, bark splitting, collar injury, sun scald and bud killing. This is rather an imposing list, yet unfortunately, with the possible exception of root killing, I think that all fruit growers of considerable experience can recall an acquaintance with the entire list at one time or another. 46 ^ ♦ 47 Although an extremely low temperature is an important factor in causing winter injuries, yet, extreme variations in temperature, lack of moisture in the soil, high winds, the kind and variety of tree and its condition are all of much consequence. The weather conditions, during the late summer and fall and just preceding winter should never be overlooked in investigating any case of winter injury. It is a commonly stated fact that a late, sappy wood growth is responsible for the severity of winter injuries to our fruit trees. This is undoubtedly true in numerous instances, especially in the extreme northern fruit districts, but it is equally true that a se- vere drought and sudden check in the development of the trees, in the late summer and fall, may result in winter injuries equally se- vere. This latter fact has been generally overlooked in emphasizing the importance of well ripened wood to withstand the winter. Evaporation takes place from the branches and twigs of trees and shrubs throughout the winter, and if one will but examine the twigs of fruit trees following a very cold, dry period, the bark of the twigs will appear to have lost some of its brightness and fullness and may even be slightly shriveled. If the cold, dry period is fol- lowed by rain and high temperatures the bark on these same twigs will become much brighter and more full. The tree has taken up more moisture and it is indicated in the appearance of the bark. Serious injuries are certain to occur to fruit trees whenever the soil freezes to the full depth of the root system, followed by a con- siderable period of dry, cold winds. The twigs and branches of the trees may be actually frozen dry, especially if the soil was dry pre- vious to freezing. Apple trees in full bearing are sometimes killed outright, in a single winter, in the Dakotas and in some of the provinces of Can- ada. Root injuries are caused by low temperatures and by alter- nate freezing and thawing of the roots. Such injuries are quite common in extreme northern fruit districts, and are most severe in those localities when the soil is dry and the ground free from snow, during cold periods. Experiments conducted by the Nebraska Experiment Station are of much interest in this connection. Fruit trees were planted in boxes, containing different amounts of moisture ranging from 15 to 25 per cent, just before winter. Some also received a straw mulch, others were covered with snow whenever snow fell, and some were stored in a cool dry cave. More than sixty per cent, of the trees died in the boxes where the moisture content was 15 per cent. Less than 15 per cent, of the trees died where the moisture content was 19 per cent. Not a single tree died in the boxes mulched with straw, although the moisture content was only 16 per cent. Some trees died in the boxes that were occasionally covered with snow and whose moisture content was 15 per cent., but the injury was much less than in the uncovered boxes containing the same amount of moisture. 48 No root iniury, whatever, occurred to the trees stored in a cool, dry caveTnd it ias inferred that cold and dryness are the im- ^^*Th/?Sha"t ^oot'r^jJSS rsfsevere in dry soil is that the cold d.^ a J comesTn contact with the roots and dry freezmg re- '"'*\rees whose roots are entirely billed or severely injured ^ likelv to die immediately, and before growth begins. Irees less se verdv rnjured may start into growth and then suddenly die with a crop of fmk upon the trees, while still others may contmue a Im- gerSig eStencruntil insects and diseases and further wmter m- ^"" Hrcr^^ereil^o'llssen the dangers of root injuries? We know thit certlfnTcks are more hardy than others and m districts wTeTe much root killing occurs this is a matter of the firs im- Irtancr In general, root injuries to fruit trees in central At- SitS Coast districts are not of the most severe kind and, yet, Snr hSuries in certain forms may finally result in much damage. 1 Xd civer Sop upon the' soil will tend to prevent deep f reezing k will also help to retain snow and moisture, and may be an iSS^rtanrf actor in the prevention of root injuries in winter. "tw5 and wood injuries commonly occur in connection with root injuries, but such' is not always the case. The twigs and branches of trees are sometimes injured when no root injury occurs ^""^ Verv'^bw temperatures are likely to result in considerable kill- m.r hack or twie iniury, especially upon the more tender fruits. This is most sef ere upon strong, rich, moist soils where a late W Growth cicurs or where a sivere drought suddenly stops wood ^rTwth in mid-summer. Varieties of apples, peaches and other frSus- whkh tipen their crop relatively late in the season are often mofe severely injured than varieties which ripen their fruit early. The late ma?uri^ varieties are obliged to keep m a more active Jrowng condition in order to mature their crop, and have a very fhort tfme "n which to give their entire energy to the maturing of rui? bids to Withstand winter conditions. An example of this oc- rurred in New Jersey in the winter of 1910-1911, when the fruit bids of manvTati varieties of peaches failed to pass a comparative y S wiSe? successfully. We undoubtedly have two extremes to ^ard aeainst, a too prolonged wood growth and a too sudden and Sv cS to wood growth The former njay \,e of much greater importance n northern fruit districts, but the atter is of equa or Tore importance in southern New Jersey and districts south of that '°*'^*in*severe winters, injury to the sap wood of the larger branches, .nH the trunk may occur in addition to twig killing. The youn^: sap t^odmly be Sled while the cambrium remains alive and continues wood may DC Kuc ^^^^ ^^^ becomes spongy, ?rm5nl^umrb"oVn' or'black. ani a split trunk or a broken I J A 4^ i.^ 4 4 ^ 4> f^ S ^ ^ 49 branch becomes the open door for various wood destroying fungi to enter. Trunk splitting is perhaps most common upon peaches, cher- ries and plums, but unfortunately, our other tree fruits are not alto- gether free from such trouble. It is believed to be the result of a sudden and severe drop in temperature causing a contraction of the bark and outer layers of wood and that it is most likely to occur to trees that have made a late growth. Bark splitting is much more common than trunk splitting and occurs under conditions similar to those which cause trunk split- ting. A warm, moist, late fall, followed by snow and a sudden and marked drop in temperature are ideal conditions to bring about trunk splitting and bark splitting. The age, variety and actual con- dition of the bark and wood of the tree will, of course, determine the extent of the injury. Sun scald is a term applied to a type'of bark injury in winter. It is most common and severe upon young trees in northern and western fruit districts. It consists of the killing of the bark upon portions of the trunk, and sometimes of the main branches, where most directly exposed to the sun*s rays. This injury, therefore, occurs principally to the south side of trees, and is most likely to occur during the late winter when bright days are followed by cold nights. Where the trunks of the young trees are short and partially shaded by the branches, such injury seldom occurs. However the trunks of rather high-headed trees can be artificially shaded by laths, pieces of corn stalks, veneer, or even sprayed with whitewash if there is much danger of injury of this nature. Collar injury is much more common and serious than sun scald or bark splitting with either apples or peaches. During the past few years extensive injury of this nature has occurred to peaches in nearby districts. The term collar in the vocabulary of the nurseryman and the fruit grower, is a term applied to that portion of the trunk of a tree where the bark of the trunk above ground meets the bark of the root at the soil line. Upon young trees this is readily detected by the difference in color of the bark. But unless the tree has been grafted or budded at this point, there should be no very marked differehce in the bark structure. There generally is, however, a marked difference in the ability of the bark of the trunk and the bark of the root to with- stand exposure to weather. The bark of the root being accustomed to the protection of the soil is likely to be severely injured if such protection is removed by the washing away of the soil or by having it removed in an attempted freeze out of borers. The collar of a fruit tree, in fact, is a very critical point in the whole structure of the tree. It is where the freezing and thawing process is likely to be most severe for within a comparatively short 'II 50 space up and down the trunk the bark above ground may be frozen solid, while just below it may be free from frost and vice versa. During high winds the twist and strain upon a young tree may be severe at the surface of the soil, especially if the ground is frozen. Fruit trees are commonly planted so that the point of bud- ding is at or near the surface of the soil, and even though the union between the top and the root be a most congenial one, never- theless, it is the point where the freezing and thawing process is most likely to find a weakness. It is not so remarkable then that fruit trees suffer considerably from collar injuries, which commonly result in what is termed collar rot. The actual decaying of the bark is secondary and is preceded by winter injuries, which actually damage the bark. Such injuries are quite common in New York State and our more northern fruit sections, especially with varieties of apples, such as the King and Gravenstein. Collar injury to apples is not common in New Jersey, but much damage has occurred to peaches. Collar injury or collar rot, if severe, results in the killing of a section of the bark completely around the tnmk, near the surface of the soil, while above and below this point the bark of trunk and roots may be free from in- jury. The tree is now girdled and will continue to live until the stored up food, in the roots and top, is exhausted, when it will sud- denly die. In less severe cases where only a portion of the bark is killed the tree may continue in fruit bearing for several years. But un- less given attention, the injury is likely to grow more severe each year. Borers, bark beetles and other enemies add to its troubles and the tree dies. Collar injuries which effect the bark, but not severe enough to destroy it at first are quite common upon peach trees. The effect of slight damage is usually first observed in a rolling and early ripening of the leaves in the middle or latter part of the following summer, and if not too severe the fruit will be forced up to a larger size than upon normal trees in the same orchard. Such forced fruit is sometimes slightly bitter, but in any case, it can always be de- tected by its coloring. Minute white dots, even in the highest col- ored specimens tell the story. Trees injured only to this extent are likely to decline rapidly unless cut back and well cared for. The killing of fruit buds is a form of winter injury that is better understood, generally, than some of the other forms of in- jury, already mentioned, but the exact cause of the injury in each case is not as easily determined as is sometimes supposed. Late fall growth with immaturity of buds, low winter tempera- tures or a premature starting into growth during mild periods are common causes widely accepted. Let me add to these above- mentioned factors the poor development of fruit buds due to dry and unfavorable soil and weather conditions, in summer and fall. f^^ P^ n^ 4 w 4^ I . Minor winter injuries to the twigs and wood of fruit trees sometimes occur, which have the effect of a slight check to the vege- tative growth of the tree. This may not be apparent in the color of the foliage, but is shown in the slight forcing effect on the fruit. Sometimes the fruit upon certain twigs of a tree will be forced to a large size, while others will be below normal in size and may even fail to ripen. Even very large and very small fruits may occur on the same twig in cases of minor winter injuries to the wood. What methods of orchard practice can now be followed to prevent or lessen the various winter injuries to fruit trees? All forms of winter injury are most severe upon low and poorly drained land. Peaches especially should be set upon elevated sites in all sec- tions not influenced by large bodies of water. There were prac- tically no peaches in Connecticut or northern New Jersey the past season below 6oo feet elevation, while there were good to full crops upon standard varieties at 6oo to 900 feet elevation. The state experiment orchard at High Bridge had the best crop in its existence, while the peach section of Annandale and Lebanon produced but little fruit. The orchard at High Bridge is at an ele- vation of 650 to 700 feet, while most of the orchards about Lebanon do not exceed an elevation of 400 to 500 feet, and many are not above 200 to 300 feet. The past season clearly demonstrated the im- portance of proper elevation. Very dry soils may be listed with poorly drained soils as a thing to be avoided. Hardy varieties of fruit should be given first consideration. Vigorous and well-grown stock should be purchased. Any weakness of the tree itself makes it more susceptible to winter in- juries. Thorough cultivation and proper fertilization during the grow- ing season is essential to promote vigor. Trees weakened by neglect are more susceptible to winter injuries. A good thick cover crop in the orchard retains moisture, pre- vents deep freezing and may lessen or prevent root injuries. Much collar injury may be prevented by mounding the soil up about the trunks of the trees just before freezing weather in early winter. This applies especially to peach trees. Apple trees which have a portion of the bark killed at the col- lar line should receive prompt treatment. The injured bark should be cut away and the wound coated with a good fungicide such as Bordeaux Mixture. Fungi which cause decay of the bark occur generally in the soil and will quickly attack injured bark, while if the injured part is removed and a fungicide applied the development of the rot and further injury to the tree may be prevented. If the injury is serious annual treatment of the wound is recommended, and a mound of soil should be made about the trunk every year just before winter. r-^:it Neglect of cultivation, especially in a dry season, is likely to add to the severity of winter injuries. The dryer the season the more important it is to keep up cultivation, not only for the bene- fit of the crop on the tree, but for the crops to follow. Good care and close attention to details in the management of an orchard are far reaching in effect. Vigorous, healthy and well- cared for trees are able to successfully battle single-handed against many enemies, but weak, neglected trees are so besieged with trou- bles that both grower and trees become discouraged and give up the fight. Take good care of your trees and they will respond by taking care of themselves. Discussion. Prof. Stewart. I would like to ask Prof. Blake if he has had any experience with June buds. Prof. Blake. In practically all cases I would prefer a one year old tree to a June budded tree. We have found it difficult to find large, vigorous June budded stock. If you can secure June buds from two to two and one-half feet high they might be satisfactory, but we have often had difficulty in securing them from one foot to eighteen inches high. We have found that the better the soil condi- tions the better the smaller grades will do. R. M. Eldon. Would you prefer northern grown trees to Tennessee grown peach trees ? Prof. Blake. I would not make any difference there provided the trees were well grown and free from disease. That is the im- portant point, to have them well grown and free from diseases. Mr. Bassett. What of storing trees in cellars for winter. Prof. Blake. If they are properly stored I think the trees are all right. Mr. Bassett. What do you mean by "properly stored" ? How are you going to handle them so that they will be ? Prof. Blake. They should be stored so that they do not dry out. I should say that if the trees are taken up in the late fall and put in the storage house where the roots are kept moist and the tempera- ture held between 35 and 40 degrees, I should say the trees are properly stored. I have planted a good many stored trees in my experiments and we have taken measurements of the growth of the trees, and I cannot see where there is very much difference between stored trees and freshly dug trees. On the other hand, stored trees in many cases should always be soaked in water for sometime before they are planted. Mr. Bassett. As compared with the practice of heeling in, which is the old common practice, have you had any comparison with trees stored in cellars against trees that were heeled in ? Prof. Blake. Our experience has been with cellar-stored trees against freshly dug trees. If the trees are properly stored, I do not see why they are not just as good as trees left out over winter. fit 4#k i if 0¥ 53 Mr. Newcomer. In a peach orchard three years old that wa$ badly frozen last season but made a good growth this season, is there any possibility that these trees, with treatment, will bear fruit for any length of time? Prof. Blake. If proper attention is given it from now on it ought to be very successful. I had some experience with an orchard three years ago that went through a severe winter. The orchard revived and bore a very heavy crop after that. Member. I have an orchard in that condition. Last winter it froze down and looked as though it had been burned over by fire. We have given it as first-class cultivation as we know how and it made a good growth, but the trees in many instances seem de- cayed at the heart. Prof. Blake. If the trees are well cared for I think the chances are you can get profitable crops. I certainly would not give it up. C. J. Tyson. What would you think about the probability of trees overcoming winter injury to the hard wood? Prof. Blake. If they make a good growth they will overcome that injury, of course, but will be weaker than trees that have not been effected in that way. Some orchards that have been injured in that manner continue to bear good crops. The wood in the centre is not quite so strong. R. A. Wickersham. Have yoa in your observation ever seen trees bearing fruit on one side and the other side not bearing, on account of hard winds ? Prof. Blake. That fact occurs in some instances. The bees and insects that pollinate the fruit will not work in the face of a very cold wind. You will find the bees all on one side of the tree, and if it happens to be a variety that needs cross-pollination, the fruit will set largely on that side of the tree. It has been very clearly shown that the pollen of the apple is not carried by the wind to any extent. Sometimes, of course, the weather might be so cold that the wind itself would injure the blossoms on one side of a tree. A. W. Griest. To go back to injury of peach trees by cold, last spring I planted out a lot of peach trees, and about one-third of them, later in the season, started to grow and send out those shoots from down near the ground. One-third of them did not start at all, but I found later, in pruning the trees, that every tree was injured at the heart. The wood was absolutely dead. What would be the result with those trees if I let them grow? Some of them afterward made a very fine growth, sending up large, healthy shoots. Prof. Blake. The trees that made a good growth I think will overcome it. As the trees are young I do not think the injury is sufficient to permanently injure them. They ought to come out of it all right. C. J. Tyson. Would you give the same answer if they were apple trees ? We had the same experience with some apple trees last spring. I m 1 .- ^ ■ r 54 Prof. Blake. Yes, if they made a good growth I think with good care they will overcome that injury. Mr. Bassett. There is one important matter right here, at least it is important with us, that I want to bring up, and that is the selection of nursery stock. We do not like the average cellar-stored tree. Now the professor is absolutely right if the tree is perfectly stored, but that is the problem. I do not say that they do not store them right, but the results we have had, of late years, from cellar- stored trees have been bad. We compared right side by side trees that were stored by nurserymen and by our own farmers in Mich- igan. They were stored in the fall and came to us in spring de- livery. Spring delivery trees are cellar stored trees. The results in every instance have been three or four times as good from the heeled-in trees as those stored in cellars. In other words, we had four or five times the loss from trees stored in cellars than from the old-fashioned way of heeling them in. If you come to our sec- tion now you will find very few cellar stored trees. The main thing is the vitality of the tree. As I said before, they should be properly stored and not piled up like so much cord-wood. Another thing the professor spoke of is that stored trees are liable to be dried out, and he suggests soaking the trees. When I presented that subject before the Illinois meeting a man objected very strenuously to the idea of soaking the tree. He objected and stated as the basis of his objection the fact that he had compared trees that he applied water to when planting with non-soaked trees, and the result was that the trees that were watered when planted were very poor, as compared with trees that were not watered, which indicated that water should be kept away when planting. I question whether that is the case, but it is worth thinking about. In our section we do not want the ordinary stored tree. We want our trees gathered in the fall, shipped to us, and then heeled in. I think lots of our troubles came from stored trees. Question. How do you heel them in ? Mr. Bassett. In heeling them in you understand we dig a deep trench, open every bundle and very thoroughly pack the soil around the roots so as to cover them. The wind blows the snow over them and in that way they are protected. They come out of the winter in the very best condition and the result is we get the finest, green, elegantly shaped trees. Prof. Blake. Certainly, if you take up fresh trees in the fall and heel them in yourself and take care of them, they will be in good, fresh condition, and nearly all of the stored trees are more dried out than fresh stock, and I find that wetting the roots is an important factor in the way they will start out into growth. Where they are stored, or dried out in transit, if you want to get the best results I certainly would put them in water before they are planted. If a plant has a large quantity of water in it it can stand a good deal of drying out without injury. r ^ > i ) 55 R. M. Eldon. What objection is there to watering the trees as you plant it ? Prof. Blake. If the soil is properly prepared I do not think it is necessary. It seems to me if the ground is plowed as early in the spring as possible and then the trees put in. they certainly should be in fine condition. Question. Does not pouring of water on the tree do away with air spaces ? Prof. Blake. I do not see why there should be any injury from pouring water on the trees. The wet ground should be covered up with dry soil. The soil should be in fine condition early in the spring. U. S. KLINEFELTER MANUFACTURER OF Standard Apple Barrels Of Excellent Quality DEALER IN Fruit Baskets Of Various Kinds BIGL£RVILL£, PENNSYLVANIA United 'Phone 56 First National Bank GETTYSBURG, PA. Capital, $100,000.00; Surplus, $150,000.00 S. M. BUSHMAN. President J. ELMER MUSSELMAN. Cwhier flPays Interest on Certificates for six months or more dX 3%% per annum. SAM'L M. BUSHMAN J. L. BUTT DIRECTORS G. H. TROSTEL W. S. ADAMS C. H. MUSSELMAN JNO. D. BROWN P. A. MILLER Accounts Solicited However Small HILL TOP ORCHARDS WAREHOUSE COMPANY Flour, Feed and General Merchandise LUMBER OF ALL KINDS Lath, Shingles, Etc. Apple Barrels A lot of two year old apple trees, all the leading varieties W. S. ADAMS, Prop. ASPERS, PA. ) ■>!> 1 \^ \ ♦ ^ I THE USE OF FERTILIZATION IN APPLE ORCHARDS. Dr. J. P. Stewart, Experimental Pomologist, State College, Penna. The proper fertilization of an orchard is largely a local prob- lem. It is no less a problem, however, because it is local. The same is true, to a marked extent, of many other orchard operations, not excepting cultural methods. It is true that of late it has become a fashion among horticulturists to assume that the whole truth is known about cultural methods, that there is but one proper method for orchards and that all growers who do not follow it are either shiftless or ignorant. But the fact is, that even with cultural meth- ods, the practice found best for one particular soil or location, or for one age of orchard or fruit effect, is by no means certain to be best for all others or even the best for the adjacent farm. In gen- eral, therefore, it appears that there are at the present time, com- paratively few horticultural principles or practices which are really exact and general in their application. Most of them seem to be quite subject to important exceptions, and hence usually they re- quire some local modification or adjustment, if the best results arc to be secured. So it is with orchard fertilization. We know that it is likely to be important and we can now give approximate general direc- tions for it. But when we come to the actual fertilization of a par- ticular orchard, some local tests and local adjustments are usually desirable. The Amounts of Plant Food Actually Taken up by a Mature Orchard. That there is an important need for fertility in any orchard that is actively producing and growing, there can be no reasonable doubt. The actual extent of this need can be approximated chem- ically by determining the average composition of apple wood, leaves, and fruit, and applying these figures to what may be considered good annual amounts of these three products. This we have done both for apples and for a 25-bushel crop of wheat, with the results shown in Table I. The annual weights for apples are based on a yearly production of 100 pounds each of wood and leaves and 14 bushels of apples per mature tree. All these amounts are distinctly less than those actually observed and reported, but inasmuch as they give an annual yield of 490 bushels per acre of 35 trees, they are considered sufficient for the present purpose. 57 in 58 Table I.— Relative Plant-Food Draft of Wheat and Apples. (In lbs, per acre annually, based on American and German Aver- ages,) Wheat Wheat Wood Lvs. Fruit Apple Grain Total Lb. I,b. I,b. Total Annual weights, 1,500 4,200 3,500 3,500 24,500 31,500 Nitrogen (N), 30.0 43.7 11. 3 25.6 16.2 53.1 Phos. acid (P2O5), . 10. o 15.8 3.6 5.3 6.4 15.3 Potash (K2O), 9.8 26.8 6.6 15.9 41.5 64.0 Lime (CaO), 0.84 8.0 29.1 29.5 3.0 61.6 Magnesia (MgO), .. 3.0 6.1 4.4 8.9 3.4 16.7 Iron (FeO), .... 0.5 1.5 0.8 2.8 In the first place it will be noted, that in total food draft, the apples exceed the 25-bushel wheat crop in every constituent except phosphoric acid, and in it they fall behind only by half of a pound. Notwithstanding this fact the trees are usually able to maintain themselves much better and longer than wheat. This is probably largely because of their much longer season of root-activity, their more natural demands,* the annual return of most of the plant food in their leaves, and their ability to curtail production for one or more seasons when conditions become unfavorable. Without going into details, however, it is quite evident that very important amounts of plant food are annually removed by an apple orchard. Scarcely any soil can furnish all these materials indefinitely in the amounts and times required, and unless proper assistance is ren- dered, there must come a time when production is materially re- duced and oflf-seasons occur. It is also interesting to note the relatively large amounts of nitrogen, potash, and lime, and the comparatively small amount of iron annually taken up by the apples. Nearly all the lime remains in the wood and leaves, while a large proportion of the potash is found in the fruit. This large amount of lime seems to have some significance, so far as the wood is concerned, because, as shown later, in most of our experiments, its application has improved the growth. In view of the small amount of lime required by the fruit, however, its application should not be expected to materially aflfect the yields, and this corresponds with our field results. Moreover the total effect of adding lime alone surprisingly small, in comparison with the relatively large amounts that are taken up. Either these amounts are merely drawn in and deposited mechanically by the transpira- tion stream, and hence are largely without physiological significance, or else the average soil is still able to supply the lime needed. ♦This is especially marked in the case of the fruit as compared with the demands of the grain in wheat. For further discussion, see article by the writer in the Annual Report of the Pennsylvania State College for 1910-11, pages 447 to 449- 59 With iron the case is very similar. This element is almost uni- versally present in agricultural soils and the total amount required is so small that its addition can scarcely be expected to produce any important effect. This also is borne out by such experimental results as are now available. , ^ . - .^ From the large amount of potash carried by the fruit, one might suppose that its addition to the soil would be very important in im- proving yields, and this idea has been widely proclaimed, especially by those considering only the chemical composition of the fruit. As indicated later, however, it seems that most orchard soils are al- ready sufficiently supplied with potash in available forms and that the chief shortages occur in the nitrogen and phoshates. This is the case notwithstanding the fact that the latter materials are actu- ally required in considerably smaller amounts. . , ,. , From these facts it is evident that there is comparatively little relation between response and requirements in the case of plant food and that something more than a knowledge of the chemical composition of the fruit and wood is needed before one can prop- erly fertilize an orchard. Even with the additional knowledge of the composition of the soil, the problem is not much simplified because it is impossible as yet to duplicate sufficiently the conditions existing in any soil. i. , . ^ j A chemist may determine the total amount of plant food pres- ent, but he can not yet determine their actual availability to the trees with sufficient accuracy to be of much value. The practical and proper fertilization of an orchard, therefore, becomes an experi- mental problem, and its solution is dependent primarily upon the pomologist or horticulturist. In other words, the question is not so much what amounts of plant food are annually taken up, nor what amounts are present, but rather it is what responses are made when certain kinds and quantities of plant food are actually added to an orchard soil. . . • -^t. x It is to get light on the latter question in connection with ten different types of soil that we have been working at the Pennsyl- vania Station since 1907. Altogether in the case of apples we have ten experiments on bearing trees, and two on young trees involving a total of more than 2,800 trees, located in different parts of the State, all of which bear more or less directly upon the present ques- tion. For the present, however, we shall call special attention to but three of these experiments, since they bring out most clearly the principal points involved. Effects of Plant-Food Additions to Orchards. Some of the effects of adding plant-food to orchards are shown in Table II. This table gives the yields obtained during the past five years in a lo-plot experiment with Baldwins, now 24 years of age, located on a Volusia silt loam in Lawrence County, north of Pittsburgh. In estimating the influence of the treatments, the ItEBfftt 6o yields of the first year are excluded because they can never be materially affected by the applications of the first season. The yields are given in pounds, and also in bushels per acre annually for the last four years. Table II. — Influence of Fertilization on Yield. (Johnston Orchard.) {Yields in pounds and bushels per acre; 1908- 19 12.) Plot 123456780 10 Check Nit A Nit. & Check Phos. A Comp. Check Manure Lime Check Phos. Potash Potash Ftlsr. Lb. Lb. Lb. Lb. Lb. Lb. Lb. Lb. Lb. Lb. 1908 90 528 237 448 57H 759 211 278 658 108 1909, 675 6,018 5.257 1,932 3.089 6,621 2.008 3.531 1.216 1.266 1910, 2.575 8.265 1,822 3.168 3.552 2,108 1.629 6.149 3.1S5 3.505 1911 283 7.563 7.816 617 1.227 8,209 1.362 4.874 388 106 1912 1,024 1,225 696 1,382 1,385 189 1,226 6,698 741 474 ToUl 4 yrs., . 4,557 18,071 15,591 7,099 9,253 17,127 6,225 21,252 5,530 5,351 Bu. per A. An- nually, 136.7 542.1 467.7 213. 277.6 513.8 186.7 637.5 165.9 160.5 An. Gain over Chk* Bu. per Acre, 377.9 293.6 108.4 339.6 463.8 8.8 *The average check or unfertilized plot produced 174.2 bushels per acre annually during 1909-12. In the first place, it will be noted that the checks, or unfer- tilized plots, have run fairly uniform, producing an average annual yield of 174.2 bushels per acre during the last four years. Lime alone (at the rate of 1,000 pounds per acre annually) has shown no improvement over the average check, and as a matter of fact it has averaged 8.3 bushels per acre less, a deficit that is doubtless largely or wholly due to incidental and natural fluctuations. The phosphate and potash combination has affected the yield here rather distinctly. This may be at least partly due to a possible advantage in location, as indicated by the fact that its adjacent check is the highest pro- ducer among them and is averaging within 64 bushels of the phos- phate-potash treatment. The growth on the latter plot, however, is nearly 3 per cent, less than the normal unfertilized plot, and its general appearance is not appreciably superior to that of the checks. It is evident, however, that these trees are still vitally in need of something, although it should be noted that they are receiving the fertilization commonly advised for orchards, — largely on the basis of chemical analysis This need is being quite thoroughly met on the adjacent plot 6, which differs from number 5 only in the addition of nitrogen. The mere addition of nitrogen in this case has more than tripled the gain. Wherever nitrogen appears in the treatments very large yields are observed, and the foliage and growth of the trees are very satis- factory,— the average gains in trunk-girth ranging from 25 to 90 per cent. Fig. 5. COMMKRCIAL FkRTILIZKRS VS. NoTHlNG. The row on the left has received no fertiHzer. That on the right has re- ceived nitrogen and phosphate. The net increase on the latter was $267.00 per acre X'ariety Baldwin. Treatment identical except as to fertilizer. I Fig. 6. Manurk vs. Nothing. Row on left received stal)le manure third year. Produced 373-8 hushels per acre. Row on right received nothing and produced 27.9 bushels pel acre. Treatment otherwise identical. X'ariety York Imperial. f ,,. : 'A-' •*'. >..> ■.■•^'^f"^■'v■^(^•i,'^■,1c>'4^«'K"i ■ 1. ■■■ .". ■M.-.'ir--'; '*f.-. r- .-V'! AJ3 , , , h-^ 6o yields of the first year are excluded because they can never be materially affected by the applications of the first season. The yields are given in pounds, and also in bushels per acre annually for the last four years. Table II. — Influence of Fertilization on Yield. (Johnston Orchard.) {Yields in pounds and bushels per acre; 1908-1912.) Plot 123456789 10 Check Nit. & Nit. & Check Phos. & Comp. Check Manure Lime Check Phos. Potash Potash Ftlzr. Lb. Lb. Lb. Lb. Lb. Lb. Lb. Lb. Lb. Lb. 1908, 90 528 237 446 57^ 759 211 278 658 106 1909, 675 6,018 5,257 1,932 3,089 6,621 2,008 3,531 1.216 1,266 1910, 2,575 3,265 1,822 3,168 3,552 2,108 1,629 6.149 3,185 3,505 1911 283 7,563 7,816 617 1,227 8,209 1,362 4,874 388 106 1912, 1,024 1,225 696 1,382 1,385 189 1,226 6,698 741 474 Total 4 yrs., . 4,557 18,071 15,591 7,099 9,253 17,127 6,225 21.252 5.530 5.351 Bu. per A. An- nually, 136.7 542.1 467.7 213. 277.6 513.8 186.7 637.5 165.9 160.5 An. Gain over Chk* Bu. per Acre. 377.9 293.5 108.4 339.6 463.3 8.8 *The average check or unfertilized plot produced 174.2 bushels per acre annually during 1909-12. In the first place, it will be noted that the checks, or unfer- tilized plots, have run fairly uniform, producing an average annual yield of 174.2 bushels per acre during the last four years. Lime alone (at the rate of 1,000 pounds per acre annually) has shown no improvement over the average check, and as a matter of fact it has averaged 8.3 bushels per acre less, a deficit that is doubtless largely or wholly due to incidental and natural fluctuations. The phosphate and potash combination has aflfected the yield here rather distinctly. This may be at least partly due to a possible advantage in location, as indicated by the fact that its adjacent check is the highest pro- ducer among them and is averaging within 64 bushels of the phos- phate-potash treatment. The growth on the latter plot, however, is nearly 3 per cent, less than the normal unfertilized plot, and its general appearance is not appreciably superior to that of the checks. It is evident, however, that these trees are still vitally in need of something, although it should be noted that they are receiving the fertilization commonly advised for orchards, — largely on the basis of chemical analysis This need is being quite thoroughly met on the adjacent plot 6, which differs from number 5 only in the addition of nitrogen. The mere addition of nitrogen in this case has more than tripled the gain. Wherever nitrogen appears in the treatments very large yields are observed, and the foliage and growth of the trees are very satis- factory,— the average gains in trunk-girth ranging from 25 to 90 per cent. ^m-^ yfm - ' VV« ' • - ■ ^^ • "^^^.^ ■■'•-., I • ' sv^-'f Vfe >■''' . .*• 1 \ Fig. 5. CoMMKKClAI. KkkTIUZK.KS VS. NoTHlXG. The row on the left has received no fertihzer. That on the right has re- ceived nitrogen and phosphate. The net increase on the latter was $267.00 per acre. X'ariety P.aldwin. Treatment identical except as to fertih/er. ^ t ^.1 •tr5^--;v • 'A 1 •■ . vi. ' * ♦ ,-; ,v*f-' :2#"55iir ' Fig. 6. Maxiki: vs. Xottiixo. Row on left received stahle manure third year. Produced 373-^ hushels per acre. Row on right received nothing and produced -7(; huslieis pe: acre. Treatment otherwise identical. \ ariety N ork imperial. INTENTIONAL SECOND EXPOSURE l?^,-.,-:k-.-r;. './,■■ - . ■5?'!"^-^^;; (>> > r ■♦!► ^ :»^ f m ♦ ^% 6i Plot 2, receiving nitrogen and phosphate only, at the present time shows a better gain than number 6, which receives potash in addition This is directly connected with the almost complete crop- fauire that occurred on the latter plot this past season, and it is a?so doubtless partly attributable again to natural fluctuations in Sitshows: however, that no additional potash is needed m this orchard, so far as yields are concerned. Phosohates are next in importance to nitrogen here, as indi- cated by the 42-bushel average deficit that occurs in plot 3 as com- oared with number 6, when phosphorus is omitted in the former, aSd also by the high yields on number 2. Manure, as a result of the extra iTrgI crop of 191 2, when most of the other plots were having af off sefson fs now in the lead in this experiment with the tre- «!lnL,raveraffe vield of 637 bushels per acre annually for the past ?our years ThTs gSes an annual gain over the check of 463 bushels S? acre which is a very satisfactory exchange for 13 tons of manure This benefit from manure is doubtless largely due to its nitrogen content, the proof of which becomes more evident later. ^ Time Required for Results to Appear.— It is a common im- pressToTthat ?ong times are required to determine the value and kind of fertilizer needed for an orchard. It will be noted here and in the foHowing experiment, however, that both these facts were SorougWy ev^ent^n the season immediately following the one in which the fertilizers were first applied. In other words, both the value of fertilization and the kind of fertilizer ^f^'^'fjU^^^^^y evident in these two cases within a single year after the first appli- S ion and the conclusions formulated then have not been materially Sang;d by the results of the 4 to 5 additional years that we now S^ In most other cases, also, where these facts did not appear in the first two or three seasons of bearing they have not appeared n the five or six years now available. This is of special iniportance irJonn^^tfoVwiL the local tests recommended ater rt^ough in thptn we advise at least 3 years of trial, for the sake 01 a wiacr maSi^of safety and greater stability in the resulting conclusions. Results from the Brown Orchard. This exoeriment is located in Bedford County on DeKalb stony^foU^rSual, foot-hill soil, chiefly of sandstone origi^ which is commonly used for orchard purposes^ JvoVes the same case are York Imperial, now 24 years old. It '"^°\^f *J^_f ^^^ treatments as those in the Johnston orchard andjour ot^^^^^^ Operative years are given in Table 111. I 62 Table III.— Influence of Fertilization on Yield. (Brown Orchard.) {Yields in pounds per plot, 1908-1912.) Benefit An. Gain over over av. Plot Treatment 1908 1909 1910 1911 '^'^ Totals Normal^Check* 1 Check 2,402 25 4,052 i,S88 453 8,520 ••••■■ 2Nitr&Phos 4,i53 5885.9202,2197,28120,161 204.8 376-5 3 Nitr. & Potash .... 3,079 783.8381.5675,40213,964 196.6 259.2 4 Check 754 9 4701,260 3092,8^ ••;••• •••;•• SPhos.&Mur., 1.014 2522.3811,643 665.906 79.9 75.2 6Phos. &Sulf 292 2661.3681.299 3563,581 4-8 10. 1 T rjipck 254 192 1,115 1,568 1,117 4.240 .••• i N Ph. & Poia. ■ . . . i.2?9 4542.4363.2414,93112.281 208.7 253.7 9 Nitrogen, 863 1.575 1203,0821,6147,254 96. "3. 10 Check ... 458 515 787 1,448 222 3,430 ••• nAcifphos.;-::::::: 104 U 787 794 642,641 25.9 .6.2 laRawPhos lOO 124 581 703 1231.631 55-9 35.5 T -J Check 266 257 2,096 498 727 3,044 1^ Manure;:. 6211,947 778 7,334 i,ii7 11, 797 273.9 240.2 i^ Lime 152 160 1,029 1,060 288 2,689 90 14.0 16 Check, *! 246 36 943 387 166 1,778 ♦The annual gains over their "normal production'; are indicated in plots 2 and 3. Their annual yields were 564.5 and 391 bushels per acre respectively The average check, omitting No. i, was 3,220 lb. per plot, or 90.16 bu. per acre annually. In general we have the same types of results here as in the preceding experiment,— large gains from nitrogen, phosphates and manure with relatively small effects from potash, and agam no ad- vantage at all from line. There are greater irregularities in this ex- periment, owing somewhat to its greater size, but chiefly due to the presence of a woods on the mountain side above the hrst check plot, from which the latter is separated by a single row of trees. The leachings from the floor of that woods have acted much like a nitrogenous fertilizer, and as a result the trees nearest the woods, although of the same age as those farther down, are considerably larger, thus accounting for the greater yields of the first 2 or 3 plots This influence practically disappears, however, before the fourth plot is reached, as shown by its low yields,— those of a typical check. The differences observed in the last two columns are due partly to these irregularities, partly to a certain amount of leaching and cross-feeding on the part of some of the checks in spite of separation rows below each treated plot, and partly to a different method of calculation. In one column the benefit is figured on the basis of the normal production of the immediate plot concerned, which method is supposed to eliminate soil irregularities to the greatest possible ex- tent. When the adjacent checks are being benefited by leachings or cross-feeding, however, this method fails to show the full benefit due to the treatment. This failure is especially evident in plot b. '\ i ^1^ J s» *. Ai '^ -^l « 63 which shows an apparent negative influence in the "normal" column rnd a Sve influence of ten bushels per acre annually in the col- umn bS on the average check. The apparent negative influence rduedfrecS to extra yields in the adjacent check plot 7 which is aooareSly receiving some benefit from plot 8 as a result of cross- 3w The same thing appears in the negative figures shown by SotsTi and ^2 though tley are not entirely dimina^d by using the average check as thi basis. The average check, however, is not endrelv free from the cross-feeding influences since it only dis- putes the eX yields and hence it is probable that the negative tributes me cAu a ;r . j- qJ t^g last column merely indicate &?heL^mSerials havfno^de^^^ influence when applied by SeLelvelTnlX further deficits are attributable simply to natural ^"''ReSng now to the results themselves, and especially to those treatment™ ot Lluded in the preceding experiments, we may riote ffrftthTt the muriate of potash in plot 5 has given much better Sns S n'?heTulphate in t^e adjacent plot. This is contrar^^^^^^^ the r^siilts of the Massachusetts Experiment, but similar results are now beinff shown in all of our own experiments wherever this com- SSson of curs Hence the differences in the Massachusetts experr- Kpdseem.bedueto.^^^^^^^^^^ fs1uea?t"r to\'a"^^^^^^^^ in view of the facts that it is cheaper more soluble, and much less subject to "caking" in the mixtu?es wTare now using and recommending it for apples. In pots ii and 12, and other similarly treated plots m our ex- perimenrwe see the Apparent futility of attempting to materiaUy Lnrove vields by applv ng phosphates alone. This is not aue to me „i.r„ge„ in im^ving y^eld. ,„„„.„„._,. i, softer fairly i„ thi res^ee. appUs -" f ^*f .^c. r»' ^ "S^^^^^ as SPrortrtl^'n S aS .£ .ay aCualiy b. .he fin., """on lh€ Other hand, it should be noted here that in plots 2, 3 and g°where"]rfnr.'. plan, .cods are hgng .^PP'"". *%t«r;4 fl' ii i 64 also, are especially notable in plot 8, which shows a distinct gain in every year except 1909, and in that year the yield would have been fully 1,000 pounds greater had there been sufficient moisture avail- able, to properly mature the fruits that were actually present. In plots 2 and 3, the fertilization has not been complete and also the yields have been so large in the even-numbered years that it was impossible to prevent some alternation with lighter crops in the odd years. This same general condition is evident to a considerable extent in the Johnston orchard. In other experiments, however, and especially in one primarily on cultural methods in the Fassett orchard, with proper fertilization and with crops ranging between 300 and 600 bushels per acre, we have had steady increases on Bald- wins and Spies similar to those in plot 8, which extended over a period of five years before any decrease appeared. The unusual size of the 191 2 crops on plots 2 and 3 in the Brown experiment should also be noted. While their adjacent checks, I and 4, were showing an average yield of 73.2 bushels per acre, plots 2 and 3 were producing the tremendous average of 1,217.5 bushels per acre, and 1,006 bushels of this were picked fruit. The terminal twig-growth of the checks, also, would scarcely average half an inch for the season, while that of the fertilized plots, in spite of their enormous crops, averaged from 6 to 8 inches with frequent terminals running up to 2 feet. And all these differences were brought about solely as a result of differences in fertilization. The spraying, pruning, soil management, variety and age of trees, and all other visible features were just the same on the checks as on the fertilized plots. Results in the Tyson Orchard. In the two preceding experiments, we have seen very large an- nual gains resulting from certain fertilization, particularly that rich in nitrogen and phosphorus, regardless of whether these elements were carried in manure or in commercial forms. In these cases also, the gains from potash were relatively small or entirely absent. Thus far in the Tyson experiment, so far as yields are concerned, we have practically the reverse conditions. The trees in the latter experiment are much younger, being now but 14 years of age. The varieties are York Imperial and Stayman Winesap, the latter having been top worked on certain York rows about 6 years after planting. The soil is a relatively heavy, silt loam, and tillage and annual cover crops have been maintained near the trees practically uniformly since the orchard was started. The annual growth and general appearance of all the trees in this experiment are much better than those of the average check trees in the two preceding experiments. Practically no fruit had been borne by these trees, when our experiment was started in 1907, and there has been but one fairly full crop since then, — that of 191 1. The treatments are the same as in the Brown Experiment and the results are shown in Table IV. <^ : ♦ I ) 4 I T 65 Table IV. Influence of Fertilization on Yield and Growth in Experiment 215. (Tyson Orchard.) (Yields in pounds per plot, 1908-1912.) 6 -3 -a i ""< ^ I m .S u. pj z! ****** ^ ^ *** ^ ^ I CVkecV 14 95 346 2,053 549 3.057 •• 3 Nitr. and Potash. .. 43 "5 4i8 3,o43 54^ 4.i6i 50.9 43-0 17-7 i Check 21 54 ^^o 1,555 7^9 2,609 .... •••• •••; 5Phos.'and Mur 26 146 476 2M 495 3.97i 46.1 36.5 8.1 6 Phos. and Sulf.; . . . . 61 I79 4832,352 975 4.050 43-2 36.8 2.3 y Check 18 45 235 1.777 862 2,937 •• ;;•; §cSmp.' Firtilizer. ... 21 74 3002,885 i90 3.470 267 22.9 12.7 9 Nitrogen 17 83 229 1.746 55i 2,626 3-5 4.7 79 10 Check 17 89 150 1,579 504 2,339 ..•• •••• "' ' 1? Acfd Phos ... 3 43 153 1.359 655 2,213 9-8 15.8 4.4 2 rSw p& ::....:: 4 il 16^2,0x0 8423.082 20.0 .1.4 o.s Ii Manure" ?$ 5» 1902.333 2622,852 4.i 4- >4.6 t Ume (ind Ftizr.), . 27 86 .86 .,765 ...U 3..77 13.4 -3.. «•« 16 Check, "0 76 "5 >.9" 739 2,866 As already indicated, the relative youth of these trees make both their yields and differences much less than those m the pre- ceding experiments. With increasing age, it is probable that some of the results may be different, especially in view of the relative growth that is now being made under the different treatments. At present, however, certain facts are of interest. In the first place, the practical failure here of both manure and nitrogen is quite remarkable. The regular annual application of 12 tons of stable manure, in this case, has resulted in an annual gam of less than 4 bushels of apples per acre. During the same time, nitrogen alone has shown no gain at all, and nitrogen and phos- phates, which were so effective in the preceding experiments, here show an annual gain of only 12 bushels per acre,— not enough to pay for the treatment. . -r ^ • ^.u Potash on the other hand, in direct contrast to its effect in the experiments above, here shows a distinct gain in yield wherever it is applied. The best of these gains,— in combination with nitrogen, is only 43 bushels per acre annually, but this is more than a 50 per cent, increase over the normal yield, and it shows a fair profit over the cost of treatment, besides giving over 17 per cent, of an in- crease in growth. Potash applications therefore, have evidently been of value in this orchard, even when those of manure and nitrogen and phosphates were largely failing. 66 The Action of Manure vs. that of Commercial Fertilizers.— The above facts, taken in connection with those shown in the two earlier experiments, indicate that the plant-food action of manure is practically identical with that of a commercial fertilizer rich in nitrogen and phosphates. It also apparently indicates that the pot- ash in the manure may be less readily available than that carried in commercial forms. The old controversy over the relative value of manure and commercial fertilizers therefore, is without any par- ticular significance so far as plant food is concerned Either type of fertilizer may be successful or either may be a failure depending upon the particular conditions involved. „u,^ a„^ tn The manure, however, often has some additional value, due to its mulching effect. This, of course, can not be duplicated by com- mercial fertilizers alone though it may be duplicated by any other kind of a mulch, as has been shown especially in our experiment 339 in Bradford County. The matter of availability also must be often considered and it is for this reason that the relation between manure and nitrogenous fertilizers should be well understood. Besides this, it sometimes happens that large and regular applications of manure result in a distinct increase in the amount of b hght, and also in an undue increase in the size of the fruit and in the amount of punky pitting in the latter. In such cases, a reduction in the applications or the partial or complete substitution of a proper commercial fer- tilizer is desirable. A Summary of Fertilizer Influences on Apples. It is impossible in the present space to consider all our experi- ments singly, to the extent done with the three just considered Before passing to the last stage of our discussion, however, it seems desirable to present a very brief summary of the fertilizer influences shown in six of our experiments, including the three just considered. This summary shows the calculated influences of the various fertilizer elements on the four important characteristics of apples, viz: their yield, color, average size and the amount of wood- growth The relative values of the different elements during a five- 5ear period, in terms of per cents, of benefit over the normal results obtained without fertilization, are shown in Table V, Table V.— Influence of Fertilizer Elements on Apples. {Average Benefits over Normals, 1908-1912.) (a) Expts. 215, 216, and 220 Yield Color Size Growth percent, percent, percent, percent. *^ 1907-12 Nitrates in Combin ^-7 Nitrates alone 32.5 Phos. in Combin. 20.2 II. 0 0.7 12.7 4.3 2.1 0.3 10.43 15. 5X 2.28 \ t '1 ^ tri V •• 67 «. » 10 7 2.7 0.6 2.45 Phos. alone, ]^'7 ^^ g ^^ Potash in Combin ^S- 1 ^-z ^ - ^^ Complete Fertilizer 78-3 ;5.4 SJ J^ J^ S^ion;;-::::::::::::::::::::: ^'^ -3 -o 6.31 (b) Expts. 336, 338 and 339 ^9^'^^ '^''^ '^''^ '^''' »T- . • /-^-.Wn 74. S 12-7 0-4 27.00 Nitrates in Combin.. 74S / ^ Phosphates in Combin 33-5 ^^ '*^ ^.79 Potash in Combm 3° ■'* '■ ^^ Complete Fertilizer 8^-5 5- ^5-^ ^ Sr^^ione;-::::::::::::::::::::: t.s 1^4 X5.9 xs.48 Without going into details it may be noted that in general the same influences that have materially increased the yields have also inSeased the growth. In other words, our best growing plots have as a rule been^our best fruiting plots. On sound, healthy trees this wilt generaUy be the case unless either occurs to an abnormal ex- ten ^n which case the other may be somewhat reduced Mild m- iuries may also stimulate yields at the expense of growth, juries may most marked exception to our rule above ap- nears in the case of the phosphates, especially in the lower section Ef the table This may be connected with the fact that the old wood esoedallv is very low in phosphoric acid, as shown in Table I, and our pre ent definite growth determinations are based upon increase ?n tmnk-Srths alone^ On twig-growth, however f/,,? „'Sar ndirate that ohosphate additions have been very helpful, particular- l^tnfhe B?owrort^ This also tends to bring it in line with our rule ^ °^^^ Average Size—So far as fertilization is con- cerned manure and potash are the only materials that have consist- ^X beSd size ^he manure influence is doubtless very largely d?iC"ts mulching or moisture conserving effect, since moisture makes t^p atout 84 6% of this fruit, on the average.* The potash h^fluence aho so far as it is a definite benefit, is probab y brought atout through the same medium, inasmuch as potash is credited S some ability to increase the cosmotic power of the cells thus rnlblfng them to compete more successfully for whatever water is ^"' There is also a distinct possibility that the apparent benefit of pSsh on any size may be largely due to the fact that it is as- ^ocfated whh much lower yields than the other materials, especially nUmgen Conversely their failures to increase size may likewise Ee due to their assodation with markedly increased yields. Thi« hr^K out the general proposition to which we have called definite atSneleXe,t th'at 'with a normal moisture supply ♦See Table XVIII in the writer's article in the Annual Report of the Penn- sylvania State College for 1910-11, page 435- '^tSee a^»^cle referFed to in foot note 2, pages 500-503. 68 the dominant influence controlling size in apples is the number of fruits on the tree, after this number has passed a certain optimum or "critical point." This point, however, is relatively high, our data showing that even on trees up to 15 years of age, little or no correlation appeared until the number of fruits had reached 1,400 or more per tree. Above this point, proper thinning is the most important means of increasing the size of the fruit. Below it, the size can usually be markedly affected by moisture supply, cul- tural methods, manure and possibly by fertilizers,— especially those rich in potash. The latter factors may also co-operate in such a way as to materially raise the critical point. In general, however, proper thinning and moisture conservation are the most important means of improving fruit size. The Control of Fruit Color.— In Table V, it will be observed that none of the fertilizer treatments has resulted in any marked im- provement in color. Slight and irregular benefits are shown by potash and some of the phosphate applications, but nothing of any importance. The same is true of iron applications so far as ex- perimental evidence is concerned. These facts again lead up to the general propositions that color in apples can not be materially increased by fertilizer applications, and that the red colors of apples are essentially dependent upon maturity and sunlight. Conditions that tend to increase one or both of the latter factors, such as late picking, open pruning, light soils, and sod culture tend to increase the red color. Opposite con- ditions decrease it. These propositions make it clear why the nitrates and manure apparently injure color. It is simply done by retarding maturity and diminishing the available sunlight as a result of the increased density of foliage. To determine the truth of this, in 191 1 we left the fruit on the nitrate plots in the Johnston orchard, until it had reached approximately the same degree of maturity as that at- tained by the checks when their fruit had to be picked on account of dropping. The delay required was fully three weeks,— from September 29th to October 19th,— and even then the latter fruit picked much harder than that on the checks, besides showing a much lower percentage of drops. The amount of color on the nitrate plots at the latter date also was actually greater by 10% than that shown on the checks at their picking time. The occasional marked increase on color as a result of spray- ing is largely explainable on similar grounds. The sprays reduce the worminess and thus enable the fruit to remain longer on the tree. It also may reduce somewhat the amount of foliage as a result of spray-injury thus permitting more light to reach the fruit. In general, however, in improving color, chief reliance must be placed on those methods that tend definitely to secure fuller maturity on the tree and to get the maximum amounts of light to the fruit. «9 Applying Present Data to Individual Orchards. In the three experiments discussed separately above, it was noted that the materials found most valuable m ?>« ^f-f t^^^r^'^^ practical failures in the third, and vice ^ersa. In stiH ^^^^^^ might show cases where no form of fertilization has y« f °^" J profit. These and other cases prove conclusively the local nature Ef the problem. Hence not even the experiments of others can offer more than general advice on fertilization of a particular ""^'^This advice can doubtless be made more exact after a personal examination of the orchard concerned, by one who is familm^^^ orchard fertilization work, or it may be done with a greater cer ?ainty if the owner will give attention to some of he «>ore impor tant characteristics of orchards needing fertilization. These are best observed in late summer and fall. rertainlv In general the characteristics of the orchard that ^ ce^ain y in need of a fertilizer are those of starvation. They are usually sufficiently familiar to need no extended description. They are ?ounTmost commonly in the older oixhards thf ^J^^ °J" ^^-^^ well but no loneer are doing so, tho still fairly free from important biases or improper drainage. The foliage is sparse and pale fnS orchids, Ld the anLal growth^tops^y.l^^LTS Qhort— often no more than half an inch,— and from this it may raS?e w to two or three inches. In such cases one can usually appfy fe'rtmzeTfairly liberally with F-tical conM^g, °^^ profits orchards or°n^ny orchard that is still growing and fruiting wdU the orchard left unfertilized as a check. 5„tprmediate or- ThPse trials are especia ly necessary m the intermediate or orchard. A General Fertilizer Recommendation for Apples. For preliminary use in such cases, and for permanent use on the part of those who are unable to carry «" . f ^jl„^^ 'jf ^ JS^^^ iW- :t-->i 84 THE WICKERSHAM NURSERIES R. A. WICKERSHAM. Proprietor MECHANICSBURG. PA. (^^ Specialties Peach and Apple Trees WE HAVE WHAT YOU OUGHT TO HAVE : : : It will be to your interest to see or write us. If not sure that OUR TREES ARE BEST Come and see and be convinced. Trolley from Harrisburg and Mechanicsburg Every Half Hour ::: Stop at Nursery IL GRAPE GROWING AND ITS POSSIBILITIES ON A GEN- ERAL FRUIT FARM. Mr. Lloyd S. Tknny. Mr, President, Ladies and Gentlemen: I come with a little hesitancy to talk to you on the culture of the grape. It is not one of our large crops. However, as I understand the conditions in this county, you are not contemplating going into the grape industry on a large commercial scale. It is a question of the possibilities of the small vineyard for home use. It is along that line that I am going to give you a sort of a rambling talk this after- noon. First, as to soil : you will need a well drained soil. After that you have said about all that is necessary. Some of the very best vineyards are on soil we would call comparatively heavy. Our vine- yards at home are on a soil of this quality. I have never been able to see that the quality which we have been able to produce is infer- ior on account of the type of soil we have. So I say if you have a soil on which the peach or many varieties of apples will do well, you have a soil which will answer well for grape growing. Varieties. — There is no fruit that offers greater possibilities for one who loves varieties than grapes. It is a fruit that takes but little room, the number and wealth of varieties is immense, and if you desire to encourage the love of classification of fruits in yourself and children, th6re is absolutely no fruit that will surpass the grape. We have difference in color an difference in the type of growth. There are shades and delicacies of flavor, hard to surpass, in the grape. Commercially I would advise just about two varieties of grapes for our locality. I would say 75^0 of the vines should be Concord and the other 25% should be Niagara. I appreciate the fact that some would change that around, and some would put 50% of each and some would add other varieties. I am talking from my own personal knowledge. These two are more easily grown than most of the other varieties and the net returns are decidedly the best. The Concord will bring more money. However, the Niagara crowds it closely, and on some soils you can get larger clusters and a better type of fruit. The Niagara is the leading white grape and the Concord the black one. Here are some other varieties— The Delaware does splendidly in some localities and the Catawba does well in places. It is a late grape and if you have difficulty in ripening the Salway peach you might have difficulty in ripening the Catawba grape. Rogers va- rieties are subject to diseases and are difficult to grow, and I would advise amateurs at least to keep away from most of the Rogers 85 86 varieties. The Hartford Prolific is planted in some localities, but I would not advise it. There are, as I say, a host of other varieties. I would stick to the old time variety— the Concord — adding as I saw fit more or less of the Niagara. The vines should be planted in the spring. We get good strong vines, usually two years of age. A few years ago we secured two- year Concord plants for ic. each, You cannot do that now, but the price is not large. Plant comparatively deep. Have the soil just as you should have it for all sorts of fruit, in a fine condition, so that the plants may readily take root. That means a moist soil. I have seen vineyards put out in a very dry condition, where it was necessary to carry a little moist earth to put around the roots. The hole was then filled with earth that was almost dry. As to distance apart, possibly I will not give what would be the best distances to plant the vineyard commercially, but I should say that the rows in your vineyard should be amply wide to allow a spring-tooth harrow to go through between the rows with two feet to spare. That will give you seven or eight feet distance in the rows. About eight feet is my preference be- tween the rows. Personally, I believe in giving all of our fruit a good deal of space. You will get finer fruit and your yield per acre will be larger if you do not crowd your vines and trees. Some people get along permanently without trellises. For the first two years you can tie the vines to a stake, but by the beginning of the third year you should have a wire and post trellis. You can find many different methods, consequently you will find some people training to one wire, some to three wires, some even using as high as five wires. I have seen quite extensive commercial vineyards where as high as five wires were used. I prefer either the two or the three wire trellis. To persons who desire to grow fancy fruit I should advise the three wire method. Just a word as to how to construct the trellis. The first wire will be two feet from the ground, the second will be 20 inches above, and the third wire about 20 inches above that, that would bring the top wire somewhere in the neighborhood of 5 feet. Some portions of the stem are perennial and from these parts there are grown each year, the canes which will bear the fruit. The perennial parts remain an indefinite time, some times as long as thirty years or even more. We have them as old as this in our own vineyards and I cannot see but that these old portions produce as healthy bearing wood as the young vines. Let me repeat that the fruit is borne on parts of the vines which grew the year preceding. There is a portion of each vine which does not bear the fruit but which produces the wood each year and it is on this wood that the fruit is. With the three wire system, the perernial part of the vine comes to the lower wire and here divides, one old cane going to the right for about four feet and another part going to the left for an equal distance. On the the right hand portion two canes are left I 87 each spring which will produce the fruit on that half of the vine. These canes extend from the perennial part, which runs along the bottom wire, in an upward direction to the top wire. The two bearing branches will be about two feet apart. The perennial por- tion on the left side will also have two bearing canes on it, making four in all for the vine. About half way between these four canes will be four other new growing canes each summer, which m turn will become the bearing wood the following summer. No doubt many of you will wonder if these four canes will produce enough fruit to make it worth the while. As a matter of fact, too much fruit will be produced on them and it will be necessary to thin out some of the clusters in the early part of the summer. Once again 'et me impress this fact upon you. A single vine will need no more than four bearing canes, each cane being about four feet in length. Each summer must see four new canes being grown on each vine to replace the four then producing the fruit. It is a continuous process. . . Pruning.— Prune early in the spring before the vine has made any growth. The pruning consists largely in cutting out the por- tion of the vine which produced the fruit the preceding year. In pruning, it is necessary to see that the four new canes are present and in case there have been others growing, these should be cut out when we prune. In cutting off the canes that produced the fruit the year before, it is well to leave one bud, which will furnish the erowine part for the following summer. In the spring, after your trellis has been repaired, your posts reset and wires tightened, you tie those four canes to the horizontal wires. Tie first to the top wire. In former years we used four-ply twine. We tied the cane sufficiently tight with the four-ply twine so that it will not move with the shaking of the wind However, in recent years we have replaced the four-ply twme with a very fine stove-pipe wire. I have not seen that used very much in the com- mercial vineyard, but it has proven satisfactory with us. We hold one end close to the wire and wind it first around the wire and then twice around the vine and wire. We buy the wire m the rolls and have them cut into three sections. This gives us a wire about 6 inches in length. After tying the top, then we go through, ^k'ng a four-ply string and tying tightly around the middle wire sufficiently tight to keep it from swaying with the wind. . Let me give you another system of training your vines. This is a two-wire system. It is a little bit more economical m building the trellis, which instead of having our perennial part horizontally placed, we put it up to the top wire. Now that is perennial and does not bear fruit. We leave that there from year to year, and along the lower wire, running to the right 4 feet, we have a young cane to produce the fruit, and also on the left a young cane comes out to produce fruit. Along the top wire we have a similar cane This is just turning the process around. The bearmg wood is wound loosely around these wires and tied, to keep it from unwind- 88 ing. Now, the objection to this system is this: there is a tendency for all the fruit and the young growth to become tangled around the horizontal wire instead of hanging free where they may be cut easily in the fall without being torn to pieces. In the upright system, you have the fruit hanging over a greater surface, freer and more apart from the other bunches, and it is more easily sprayed, so that in general you are getting a finer type of fruit with that, system than under the old time two wire system. When the growth starts in the spring there is too much growth there, and you have to do a process of summer pruning. The grape is one of the things that we do prune in the summer. Usually two buds, or sometimes three buds are starting to grow, and we do not want but one there. We have a process called rubbing off, whereby all the growing shoots but one are taken off. The grape is peculiar in that the fruit produced next season is on wood that is not yet grown. These upright canes produce the fruit but they do not produce it directly. They will produce it by sending out laterals. After those laterals have grown out a leaf, they put out a fruit bud, then they send out another leaf and another fruit bud. Each bud will put out a good normal shoot, which, under good conditions will produce two, three, or even four clusters of grapes. Now, if you want to produce fancy fruit, all of these clusters ex- cept one or two should be rubbed off. The three and four clusters usually are small ones, and if you allow them to go on to maturity the grapes will not be large. If you want to you can figure how many clusters you are going to have on your vine. You have four canes each about four feet in length. If the nodules are about six inches apart on each one of the canes, you would have about seven or more laterals coming out, and on each of those you will have two clusters, so you would have somewhere from twelve to fourteen or even twenty clusters on a cane, making from sixty to eighty clusters per vine. If those are large clusters you are going to have a pretty large yield. That is the fruit that is usually mark- eted. Let me urge the importance of growing large clusters. Cultivation. — You must have a very thorough clean cultiva- tion; you cannot grow grapes in sod. I have never yet seen a section or a locality where you could grow grapes successfully in sod. They need thorough cultivation. Have all your winter prun- ing done before the buds have pushed out any. The vines are very subject to bleeding. Like the maple the sap flows out very abund- antly. But it does not do that if the trimming is done before the growth starts. Cultivate once a week whether it rains or not. If you should have a light shower after you cultivate, cultivate again, so that you always have a dust mulch over the surface of your soil. The grape needs lots of water in the soil. I do not believe there is anything more I need say with regard to the cultivating methods. A word or two in regard to the diseases and method of spraying. < > ^'1 M 89 We are fortunate in our locality not to have many grape dis- eases, so I can't give you very much information along that line. I remember though as a small boy that it was about the time that the black rot of the grape manifested itself in the country and wrought such havoc, and we knew no method of controlling it for several years. As a youth, I had to go out to pick off the rotten grapes. We would put them in a bag, empty them in a basket at the end, and take them off and burn them. We took every precau- tion we knew how to take without avail. We now know that black rot can be controlled by Bordeaux mixture. Bordeaux mixture will control it absolutely. We cannot use the commercial lime-sul- phur spray in the vineyard as the grape is more susceptible to injury than peach foliage. I have not tried self-boiled lime-sulphur. Do not know with what success it has been tried. I am of the opinion it has never been very successful. There are certain other diseases that occasionally get into the vineyards and are very serious. We do not have them in our lo- cality. I cannot tell you definitely how to control them from my practical experience. Marketing. — If you begin to harvest your York Imperial apples about the first of October, Concord and Niagara would begin to ripen about the first of September. However, the summer weather very materially affects the ripening of the grape. We continue to harvest all through September till frost comes. It is not uncommon for a vineyard with fruit still on to be caught with an early frost. Late spring frosts, in some localities, do a great deal of damage. If the Httle buds are killed in the spring, you are killing in a large measure, the crop for that season. The grape is not so delicate, however, as the peach, with regard to spring frost. You do not pick the grapes all at one time, you pick over the vineyard several times. You pick as to ripeness, and that means when the color has reached the standard for that variety. The grape will not ripen any at all after it is severed from the vine. You must allow it to ripen on the vine in order to produce good quality. It is like the peach in that respect, probably more so. Your method of picking will almost entirely depend upon your marketing facilities. Now, with us, our fruit goes direct on wagons to the Rochester market, consequently we do not do any packing at all. We pick in 18 or 20 lb. market baskets without any gradmg only as we grade when we pick. Our pickers know that the very poor clusters are to be left on the vine. The clusters are simply laid in the market basket, until it is rounding full. That is a simple and cheap method. Some people pack in smaller baskets. Some in two or three pound splint baskets. They take them into market and sell to grocerymen in a basket that is retailed to the consumer. The fruit in the larger baskets is sold to the consumer by the pound. If, on the other hand, you ship by railroad, you must use the Climax basket with a wooden cover. Load it in the car m m^ 90 that way. The basket that is more often used is the small 4 or S lb. A fair yield with us is i8 tons of grapes from about 5 acres. It has not been uncommon in the past for us to run over that and it is not uncommon for us to run down to 15 tons. It you sell m bulk and allow the buyer to pack, as is done m some localities, you cannot afford to grow them for less than $35.00 or $40.00 per ton. However, $30.00 per ton with a big crop, probably will bring a larger return to the farmer than wheat or general fruit crops. When you get above $40.00 your returns, of course, are good, and if you can get $50.00 the profits are splendid. The grape is a fruit that is easily handled as to the fertility of the soil. Thorough cultivation with an occasional cover crop, will maintain the fertility of the soil for 40 or 45 years. Question. What do you fertilize with ? Mr. Tenny. That is a very good question which I neglected to cover. Not a pound of commercial fertilizer and only an occa- sional thin coating of stable manure has been used in our vineyards for over 40 years. . ^ 1 ^ W. H. Black. Whatisthebest variety for early use? Mr. Tenny. I think that the best we have on our place is Moore's Early. ^ . . • ,• 4. uu The Brighton is a very good grape. It is rather delicate with us to market. It is a little subject to cracking and liable to rot. The clusters are very large. The Worden is another fine black grape. If you are going to have a home vineyard the Worden should be in it You cannot ship the Worden by freight successfully. J. W. Prickctt. When is the proper time to spray to prevent Mr. Tenny. Begin soon after the growth starts and keep it up. If you have rot in your vineyard, spray as frequently as once every week or ten days. If you do not have the rot, two or three spray- ings during the season would keep your grapes in good condition. Some advise spraying in the dormant season with lime-sulphur. We have so few diseases that we have not thought it advisable to do J. W. Prickctt. Does it control the rot, do you think, to spray in the dormant season? . . Mr. Tenny. I am afraid not. It might assist in controlling it, but you could not depend on it. If you have the rot bad in your vineyard it is a question of eternal vigilance. M. E. Tyson. How about a little green bug that attacks the vine and eats out the bud? t_ • 1.. t.i • u Mr. Tenny. It is probably the flea beetle. It is a bright bluish green in color. Arsenate of lead will control it at 2 lbs to 50 gallons of water. THE CHESTNUT BLIGHT, ♦ ^1^ r -. 4 Mr. Keller E. RockEy, in charge of Demonstration Work, Penn- sylvania Chestnut Tree Blight Commission, In 1904 the diseased condition of the chestnut trees around New York City was noted, and an examination of them showed that they were being attacked by a fungus disease which was unknown at that time. It has since been found that the disease had been present there and elsewhere for some years before that time, but is impos- sible to determine when it first appeared. The disease was studied and classified during the winter of that year. It was placed in the genus Diaporthe and named Diaporthe Parasitica, making it a new species of a genus which contained only harmless fungi. The dis- ease is commonly called the '^chestnut blight" or the "chestnut canker disease." It is a fungus or a low order of plant life which grows upon the cells of the bark and to some extent the wood of the chestnut tree. The disease advances in each direction, the tissues of the cells are broken down, the flow of sap is cut off, and the tree killed by girdling. The disease is spread to other parts of the tree and to other trees by means of spores. These spores are of two kinds, called for convenience the summer and winter spores, al- though both types are produced to some extent at nearly all seasons of the year. The summer spores may be seen coming out from the pustules in small threads after the manner of paste squeezed from a tube. These threads are yellow, about one-quarter of an inch long, and are forced out shortly after a rain. These spores are readily dissolved in water and wash down the trees, infecting them m other places. They are sticky and carried, to some extent, by in- sects. The winter spores are shot out into the air when the bark is soaked after a rain and are disseminated chiefly by the wind. On display here are specimens and photographs showing the appearance of the blight so that I will not go into that part of the subject in detail. I hope, however, that you will notice: ist. The small, red pustules which bear the spores and appear only m the crevices of rough barked trees. 2d. The peculiar mottled appear- ance of the inner bark of the canker with the fan-shaped mycelium. By either of these characteristics, the disease may be identified. In scouting for the chestnut blight there are danger signals which make the work easier and more accurate. A canker, espe- cially on smooth bark, will very shortly discolor the outer bark, turning it from green to reddish brown tint. On young growth the cankers cause a hypertrophy or swelling which is very evident as vou will see by the specimens. The bark over the cankers usually cracks open and a closer examination will reveal the pustules grow- 91 92 ing in the crevices, or the characteristic inner bark. The most evi- dent danger signal, however, is the wilting of the leaves upon branches which have been girdled by the blight. As soon as the branch or tree is girdled the passage of water from the roots of the tree is shut off and the leaves begin to droop and soon take on their autumnal coloring. While a branch bearing withered leaves is not conclusive evidence that a tree is infected with the blight, such branches demand a closer inspection, and in the vicinity where the blight is working are nearly always caused by the disease. In the winter the same signal is observed in the withered leaves and un- developed burrs which persist on certain trees or branches. It has been found by our men that they can cover more ground and do bet- ter work after the leaves fall than in the summer, because the light shows up the cankers along the trunk, and the unusual branches, leaves and burrs are seen more clearly. Under a canker usually appear sprouts which are caused by the daming of the sap which is deflected to the growth of such sprouts. A small cluster of sprouts along the trunk of a tree is unusual unless the blight is at work im- mediately above. Further investigation will show whether or not this is the case. All of these features can be seen in the display and a careful examination of them will make any man competent to look over his timber and determine very closely the amount of infection on the trees. The Bureau of Plant Industry in Washington has been inves- tigating this disease since 1908. In the spring of 191 1, a bill for the investigation and control of the chestnut tree blight disease in Penn- sylvania was passed and the work began in August, 191 1. The method upon which the commission is working consists briefly in determining the area of blight infection and in removing diseased trees west of a certain line with the purpose of preventing the western spread of the blight. The commission has obtained as ac- curately as possible the amount of infection in the various parts of the State and the results are given in a map on display here. The State is divided into two districts by a line along the western edge of Susquehanna, Wyoming, Columbia, Union, Snyder, Juniata and Franklin Counties, which is approximately the western line of seri- ous blight infection. West of this line a large portion of the State has been scouted and the remainder will be finished early in 191 3. Blight infections have been found in counties adjacent to this line, also in Fayette County, near Connellsville, Warren County, near Warren, and in Elk County, near St. Mary's. These three infec- tions were directly traceable to infected nursery stock and in one case the blight had spread to adjacent trees. A large area of dis- eased chestnut in Somerset County illustrates the harm done by shipping infected nursery stock. The center of this infection is a chestnut orchard, where about 100 scions from an infected eastern orchard were grafted to native sprouts in 1908. Evidently these scions brought the disease into this region for the grafts have all Am> i%^ V 1^ 4|^ <-f*^ -a a> b£ u I- u M o > B - B u. C '^ 5 <^ C/3 < 3 . o 4 93 been killed by the blight and every tree in the orchard is killed or affected by the disease. On adjoining tracts over 5,400 infected trees have been cut and there are a number of others in process of removal, radiating in all directions from the orchard as a center to a distance of three miles. In other words, since 1908, the few cases of infection brought into this orchard have spread three miles at least and more than 6,000 trees have become infected. Another infection of 143 trees was found in Elk County. These infections are interesting in showing the rate at which the blight may travel in healthy timber. It is thought that three trees at the center of infection were diseased in 1909, although it is pos- sible that one of these trees was already infected in 1908. In 1910, 27 additional trees were infected; in 191 1, 50 additional trees, and in 191 2, 228 additional trees. The disease spread in all directions from the center of infection to a distance of 700 feet. The same rapid spread has marked the progress of the blight everywhere. A few infected trees upon a tract will mean more infected trees in each successive year until the stand is completely destroyed. In many stands around Philadelphia it is hard to find a healthy tree. Unless some action is taken that will be the condition in this locality. These infections have all been removed and it is the expecta- tion that by the end of January, 191 3, all scattered spot infections will be removed from the territory west of the line previously mentioned, and that, to the best of our knowledge, these western counties will be free from blight. In 1913 the field force will be concentrated on the advance line and the work will be carried east- ward. The commission has the power to compel the removal of infected trees. In the western part of the State this was used in the few cases where it was necessary. As a rule, however, the owners are not only willing but anxious to get rid of the infected trees, and our field men are given hearty support by individuals, granges and other organizations. The timber owners of Elk County had printed and posted an announcement that the chestnut blight had been found in the locality and warned the people to be on the lookout for it. On the other hand, the commission has deemed that it was only just to place agents in the eastern part of the State >yhere the ravages of the blight are most seriously felt. The commission has had an agent for a short time at least in each of the eastern counties of the State but their time has been taken up principally by those who requested an inspection of their timber with the view of de- termining the amount of blight infection and the best method to be pursued in combating it and realizing on the timber. This display is a part of the educational work which is being carried on for the purpose of acquainting the timber owners with the appearance of the blight disease. A similar exhibit was made in about thirty of the county fairs of the State and the appreciation of the public was so clearly shown that next year it is the intention of the commission to continue and perhaps increase this phase of the work. Many of the Teachers' Institutes now going on were 94 reached by a display and lecture, among them the Adams County Institute. We have arranged to have a speaker at fully one hundred of the Farmers' Institutes this winter, among them New Oxford and Biglerville. We are arranging also to have a public display at niany of the public schools and colleges, where instruction in the blight is ^""^ Publications which go into the subject more fully than is pos- sible in this paper can be obtained free of charge upon request. The commission advises the cutting of mfected timber for the fol- lowing reasons: ist. Infected trees will be rapidly killed and the wood of such trees deteriorates very rapidly. 2d. Infected trees a - lowed to stand means the certain spread of the disease to surround- ing trees, resulting in the death of the whole stand in a few years 3d It will mean the loss of valuable material through decay and If the owner of chestnut timber land in this county does nothing he may expect to lose every chestnut tree and he will most likely find that after this time the timber is in such bad condition that it will not pay to take it out. , , , , Every man who owns a chestnut tree should learn to recognize the blight and then look over his trees. Upon request we vfiW try to send a man to help determine how much blight there is, and help mark the infected trees. , The infected trees can be made up into whatever is most profit- able; every farmer can use a certain amount of chestnut in posts^ and cordwood each year, and probably manufacture some ties and poles at a profit. In this way he can utilize the infected trees that should be cut, and get rid of them, which is the chief consideration. Beyond this he must bark the stumps to the ground and burn the bark over the stumps. By cutting a low stump this is not an ex- pensive undertaking and the sprouts will be healthier and more vig- orous. If it is not done the sprouts will eventually all become in- fected and unless other species come in to take the place of the chestnut no revenue will be received from the land for the next fifty years. . It should not be understood that one cutting will be enough to eradicate the blight entirely unless all chestnut trees are cut. On the other hand, it will probably be necessary to go into the stand the following year and cut out more trees, but if the work is prop- erly done, the second year the number of trees will be fewer and after several years the blight should be completely cleared out. This means an effort on the part of timber owners, yet in this way he is utilizing his material and he is encouraging the growth of the trees that are left. Thinnings are often made for this purpose alone. In many places in various parts of the State timber owners go to- gether, each promising to take care of his own timber, and as a con- sequence the whole district is being cleared of the blight. Such an organization for mutual protection will be given every encourage- >> fU I 4 fir r N 4 i 95 ment and all the help possible by the Pennsylvania Chestnut Tree Blight Commission. Where the blight percentage is high it would often be wise to make a clear cutting of chestnut and if there are other species in the mixture perhaps the chestnut could be eliminated, and the land stocked to other species. In many cases the chestnut is being clear cut and the ground planted to pine, spruce or hardwood trees. The commission has established a Department of Utilization, which is collecting information on the various industries which use or might use chestnut, listing the buyers and owners of chestnut, and assisting the owners of blighted chestnut in marketing the timber to their best advantage. The department is trying to increase the demand of chestnut by calling attention to its many good qualities, and thus utilize a large quantity that must necessarily be thrown upon the market. In spite of the large amount of blighted chestnut much of which is being cut the market price of chestnut lumber in many places throughout the State looked for a drop in price, but in- stead are confronted with an increase of from $i.oo to $3.00 per 1,000 feet within the past three months. There is at present a very good market for first and seconds. No. i common and sound wormy, in inch boards and all sorts of dimension material. Chestnut owners need not be afraid to cut their timber into different grades of lumber because there is a ready sale for material of this kind. There is a good market, also, in almost every locality, for poles and ties. Cordwood presents a difficult problem of disposal. The best market for this is in the central part of the State at the extract plants the nearest one being at Newport, Perry County. The com- mission has secured from the Pennsylvania Railroad a special tariff on blighted chestnut cordwood so that this product may be profitably shipped from greater distances than before. Although the chestnut wood has only about 65 per cent, of the heating value of good oak, it makes a good summer fuel, since it makes good kindling, burns rather quickly, and does not produce the lasting intense heat that oak does. A good argument for using chestnut instead of oak or hickory for fuel is that the small chestnut might in a few years be killed off by the blight while the oak, hickory, etc., will grow in value. There has been more or less discrimination against blighted chestnut. This has been in many cases unjust since the blight does not appear to injure the value of the wood for most purposes for which it is used. However, the owners sometimes fail to realize that blight cankers are favorable places for the entrance of wood borers and that where a large number of trees are being considered a percentage of them may be materially injured by insects. This is a secondary result of blight infection. When telephone poles are barked it is often seen that borers have attacked the wood under blight cankers and have not touched any other part of the tree, and these cankers are attractive spots for wood destroying fungi. Tele- 96 phone poles cut from trees which have been dead for some time are very apt to be rejected. The question of quarantine is often brought up. The com- mission has inspected all chestnut nursery stock shipped from nur- series within the State and has provided for inspection of all such stock entering the State. This should prevent a repetition of in- fections in the western part of Pennsylvania which might destroy millions of dollars worth of timber. It has also prohibited the shipping of unbarked chestnut cordwood from the eastern part of the State across the advance line. There is no other quarantine on poles, ties or other barked material across this line, nor a quarantine of any kind upon any material shipped from place to place east of this line. The State Foresters are cutting the blighted trees over the neighboring State reserve, of 20,000 acres. The Reading Railroad owns several thousand acres of timberland adjoining the Adams County line and the State Reserve, which is in the same condition as so much of the timberland around this vicinity. Repeated fires have occurred after the first cutting and no revenue has been re- ceived from the land for the last 10 years. The growth is of very poor quality and the stand in a bad condition. Some of the trees have become blighted and the railroad saw that unless they did something the whole tract would become a waste. They have seen that their agent became familiar with the blight, have had him in- spect the timber and remove the infected trees. They have done more than this. They have seen that such work would not be fully justified unless they expected to realize something on their timber, so they are now making an effort to prevent fire, which is the other big enemy to timber land. In such a way the blight will be beneficial in forestry just as the San Jose scale has proven itself beneficial in the fruit industry. Taking care of the blight will neces- sitate better methods and more attention to the growing timber and help the State prepare for the timber famine which is coming within the next 50 years. The chestnut in Pennsylvania is the most valuable timber in the State, when all things are considered. It is the most abundant, grows most rapidly, sprouts well and will grow in very poor soils. Seventy million dollars is a conservative estimate of the value of the standing chestnut in the State. Adams County has its share of valu- able chestnut land. Can you afford to lose the chestnut timber? From the studies made in Adams County it appears that there is an average infec- tion of only 4 per cent. In York County the infection runs about 50 per cent. What I wish to emphasize is that this county has a good chance to entirely eradicate the blight. The amount of in- fection is not high. There are numerous portable mills all over the chestnut area and even the market for cordwood, the only product difficult to dispose of, is good. 1 » i i 4» K*#^ *♦ V f ;. I . C. l')Lir.HTKi) Trkk Partially Killkd. fijr. 2.— C. T. P.. C. A Stand or Chi'.stntt Kxtirkuv Kimj:i) hv I^ijcht. INTENTIONAL SECOND EXPOSURE m- '^^m ^^^■1/'^" ^^^^'-"i; V"-' ""-''^^^^H ^^^^P')-. ' ^-.>','-'r'->r '>:^^^H ^^Hr^V.%>,^ ' "^M ;■y'^^0^^^ ^^^^Bft'" ^:u^"^''::i-^!^^^^H ^^^^^^^^^^^^K *' 97 M I « Every tree which has the infection at any place should be cut because that tree will eventually be killed and by being left it is afforded an opportunity to throw out spores continually. Valuable orchard or ornamental trees may be treated by cutting out the canker, disinfecting and painting the wound. A bulletin, which goes into this subject in detail, may be secured free of charge upon request. In southern Europe chestnut orcharding is a well-established and profitable industry. In the United States chestnuts have been considered a marketable commodity ever since the Indians carried them to the settlements and traded them for knives and trinkets. The demand has always exceeded the supply, and at the present time about two million dollars worth of nuts are imported from Europe annually. With the development of the better varieties of the nut has come an increased activity in American orcharding. The chestnut orchard industry promises to become one of very large importance, especially upon the poorer types of soil. At the present time there are in what is known as the Blight area of Pennsylvania, which includes about one-half of the State, about IOC orchards from 12 trees up to 400 acres in extent. These orchards are in varying stages of blight infection, some of them being entirely free, due to the attention which has been given them. The blight came as a very serious blow to this industry. Some of the orchards have been completely annihilated and the income re- duced from several thousands or more dollars per year to nothing. Whether or not the blight will completely wipe out the orcharding industry is a subject of considerable discussion. Personally, I be- lieve that chestnuts will be raised commercially in Pennsylvania in increased abundance, and as the various phases of the blight subject are brought to light, the work of keeping the blight under control will be more easily and accurately done. At the present time tnc blight is being kept under control in some orchards by examining the trees often and by treating an infection as soon as it appears, or cut- ting out the tree. If this policy is successfully pursued for several more years it will be demonstrated conclusively that chestnut can be grown in spite of the blight and this will mean an opportunity to use vast areas of waste land in Pennsylvania in a highly profitable manner. The results which have been attained in other fruits by selection and hybridization in recent years have been noteworthy. Certain pure strains of Japanese and Korean chestnut seem to be resistant to the blight and it is not unreasonable to suppose that we may eventually see an immune hybrid chestnut of good size and quality. Discussion. W. H. Black. How general is the infection in Adams County? Mr. Rockcy. I understand it runs about 4 per cent, as an 98 average. In some districts it will run as high as 25 per cent. It jus: depends on how bad a start it happens to get. ^ Mr. Tcnny. Does this bark fungus gain entrance to a healthy tree or must it come through a wound ? Mr. Rockey. It has been said that the infection can enter with- out a wound of any kind, but such instances are very rare. If the tree has healthy bark all the way through, it would stand a much better chance of remaining healthy. The natural cracks in the bark are not so susceptible as those made by outside means. I might say that downstairs we have several cards, and if any of your peo- ple would like to have an inspection of your timber, and if you will write your name and address on the card, the agent will come around and see you. If you have only three or four trees on your property that are infected you can see that it will pay you to remove them so that next summer you will not be confronted with fifty more. Mr. Williams. Is there any cost to have this done ? Mr. Rockey. That is absolutely free of charge. In the eastern part of the State is where the timber owners are losing the most money. The commission thought it was only right to do what they could for these people. For that reason there is no charge at all. None of the work is compulsory in this locality. 'I'I^1717C ^^*^* Shade, Ornamental Trcct, Shrubbery, Jl IxJElilliO Hedges, Small Fruit, Asparagus, Strawberries, ^=^==^==^ California Privet, Locust and Gitalpa Speciosa for timber. Hoot to offer FIRST-LASS NURSERY STOCK ^^s::^^^ AImo Largm and SmtiB Spray Pamp9 and Fittings Cdl. Witte or Phone C. A. Stoner, Propr. BATTLEFIELD NURSERIES Gettysburg, Pa. Office and Packiat Grouadt : 42 Wott Hick St««t \^ f \ i^ ') COVER CROPS AND THEIR EFFECT ON THE SOIL. Dr. Lipman. In discussing cover crops this morning I shall attempt to answer four general questions. In the first place, what are cover crops? Second, what advantages may result from the use of cover crops? Third, what disadvantages may result from the use of cover crops ? Fourth, how may cover crops be used for the improvement of the soil and the crop? As to the first of these questions, there is more or less mis- understanding or confusion as to the meaning of the term or terms "cover crops", "green manure crops" and "catch crops". Logically, a cover crop is any crop that will prevent leaching or erosion. That was the main purpose in the growing of cover crops. It was intended to have a crop on the soil during a certain portion of the year to prevent the washing out of soluble plant food or the erosion of the surface soil if the topography be rolling. A green manure crop, most of us understand, is a crop that will take the place of animal manure to some extent. It will increase the con- tent of vegetable matter, and also it might add to the plant food content of the soil. Green manure crops will, in other words, increase the content of vegetable matter out of which humus is made. And finally, a catch crop is a crop that may be used as a cover crop. The catch crop may be harvested or plowed under. The green manure crop is intended to be turned under, so that there are really important differences in the character of each crop. Recently we have come to understand cover crops to mean green manure crops, sown not merely to protect the soil but to add some- thing to the soil. As to the next question: what advantages might result from the use of cover crops ? In studying the history of cultivated land we find that there is a tendency for such cultivated land to deter- iorate in quality. Stating it briefly, any soil that is placed under cultivation, produces, in its new state, large crops which gradually decline. Then after a time if the markets, population and other conditions justify it, that land will be improved again and will be made to produce more than the virgin soil ever produced. Some of you may have read a little book, "The Farmers of Forty Centuries," that was published by the late Prof. King, of the University of Wisconsin, regarding his travels in China and Japan. It shows in a very striking way what the soils which have been cultivated for thousands of years have done in supporting a very large population. We know that our soils must deteriorate under prevailing practices, and it must come to pass in the develop- 99 mMaaaaai r i»in i ■ i.»nii-iiw 100 ment of any agricultural territory that there will be a decline from a higher to a lower state of production. There must come a time when the fruit grower, dairyman or any other type of farmer will have to think of ways and means to maintain the fer- tility of the soil and to improve the fertility of the soil, and when he reaches this point he will be confronted with certain questions he must answer if he is to accomplish the purpose which is before him. He must answer the question as why soils deteriorate. They deteriorate because they lose a larger or smaller portion of their available plant food, and therefore, cannot furnish the grow- ing crop with building material as fast as the crop may need it for profitable production. Soils may also deteriorate not because they lose too much plant food for profitable production, but because the texture of the soil itself has deteriorated. Instead of being open and mellow, permitting conditions that would favor the circulation of air and moisture, the soil has become compact and the moisture does not penetrate as it should. The farmer who is able to answer these questions is also able to find the causes that lead to soil deteriora- tion, and he is ready to seek then for remedies that will enable him to counteract these tendencies. If you examine one hundred soils from any territory that has been under cultivation for a generation or more, and try to inquire into the deficiencies of these soils, you will find most of them deficient in the element nitrogen. The next largest proportion will be deficient in phosphoric acid, some will be deficient in potash and there might be many deficient in lime. In a soil deficient in nitrogen, a cover crop could be used to restore the nitrogen, hence it behooves the fruit grower to use cover crops that will restore this element. If the soil has deterior- ated in texture because it has lost too much of its vegetable matter, he must use cover crops to restore the vegetable matter that has been lost. These points are recognized well enough in the use of cover crops, but there are two or three other facts that are not as readily recognized. Why is it that a soil left to itself tends to grow more pro- ductive? It has been the impression in farming districts in Europe and elsewhere, that soils must rest, that soils that are allowed to rest will regain a portion of their fertility. Indeed, there are still localities in Europe where the land is allowed to grow up with weeds for a few years so as to recover some of its lost fertility. Why is it that some of our best soils are prairie soils? The vegetable matter accumulating, plants growing and dying, and growing again, produce in time a deep layer of vegetable mold. Why is it that some of our best soils are forest soils? These for- est soils when cleared of their timber growth, are able to pro- duce large and profitable crops for some years, as shown in Penn- sylvania. Why is it that when we analyze any cultivated soil, we find certain forms of plant food concentrated in the surface soil? f» lOI We find that the surface soil contains more phosphoric acid than the sub-soil. We can understand why there should be more nitrogen in the surface soil, for it is all of atmospheric origin, but we know that the phosphoric acid or the lime or potash are derived from the rock out of which the soil is made. The answer to this question may be found evidently in the explanation that the roots of plants go down into the sub-soil and bring up certain parts of the plant foods found in the sub-soil. In other words, we must recognize the fact that there is constant loss from all cultivated land or even from land that is not cultivated, as well as gain. That is true of all soils, but when land is placed under cultivation the losses exceed the gains. When land is allowed to rest, allowed to be occupied by vegetation, then the gains are greater than the losses and the soil has time to become richer. We cannot maintain a satisfactory texture and likewise satis- factory plant food conditions unless we provide for the mainten- ance of a sufficient i>upply of vegetable matter in the soil. This can- not be done unless animal manures are used or green manures are employed. Commercial fertilizers are not sufficient. Hence the significance of cover crops. First, cover crops will prevent the washing out of soluble plant food. Second, cover crops will in- crease the content of plant food in the surface soil, particularly nitrogen. Third, cover crops will increase the content of vegetable matter in the soil and will improve the water-holding power of the soil. Fourth, cover crops will provide for a larger store of mois- ture in all sections where snow falls and is likely to drift, and in the case of orcharding cover crops have certain advantages which they have not under other conditions of providing for the susten- ance and growth of the fruit trees when that may seem desirable to the fruit grower. I will discuss that at greater length presently, because it is an important feature from the fruit grower's stand- point. We need not discuss the loss of plant food at this time, per- haps, nor need we discuss the moisture relations as modified by the holding of snow. In the purchase of plant food we recognize that nitrogen is an expensive constituent of commercial fertilizers. We also rec- ognize that cultivated land, whether in orchards, fields or meadows, may lose a considerable amount of nitrogen. That is, where soil is cultivated, the loss may amount to 30, 40 or 60 lbs. a year. If we are to restore that amount of nitrogen at a cost of 25c, there is a value of $10.00 per acre that must be replaced. In cropping methods or types of farming where the crop is worth a great deal, $10.00 per acre would not mean very much, but even at that it is likely to be an important item. We know from experiments that have been carried on in most states, that the addition of nitro- gen in cover crops may amount to as much as 100, 125 or 150 lbs. per acre. By selecting a cover crop of the right quality we can dis- I02 pense with the need of purchasing nitrogen in commercial ferti- lizers. This, therefore, is one of the strong features in the use of cover crops, provided we use cover crops that will add nitrogen to the soil. The deterioration of cultivated land which I mentioned a few moments ago, is due more to the lessening of the supply of avail- able plant food rather than to the lessening of the supply of the total plant food. Now, there is a point which most of us are likely to overlook. The soil of this portion of Pennsylvania contains, I should say, at least 2% of potash. You see that you have a very great accumula- tion of potash in these soils, and yet it often happens that the pro- gressive fruit grower will use commercial fertilizers containing potash, and by adding 50 or 60 or 100 lbs. of potash will often get a return from this small amount of fertilizer. There are differ- ences in the quality of the potash in commercial fertilizers and in the soil, but if we found means for making that potash in the soil available, is there any objection to our dispensing with the use of potash in commercial fertilizers? None at all. So far as the soil is concerned, the supply .of potash is practically inexhaustible. There is no claim that could be made as to the possible deter- ioration of the soil because of the removal of potash. When we come to study the methods of "Farmers of Fcfrty Centuries" that Prof. King refers to in his book, we are surprised at the cheapness of human effort. Farmers in China will take the soil off an acre of land to the depth of two or thret inches, and grow a rice crop on the sub-soil. They will then return the surface soil which they had meanwhile comforted and will grow something else on it. In the addition of nitrogen and vegetable matter to the soil, the two great functions of cover crops are before us, of adding and transforming plant food, aside from the function of conserving plant food in so far as the cover crop prevents leaching of soluble plant food during the Fall or early Spring. I will refer presently to the kind of cover crops we use and how they accomplish the pur- poses that we are considering, but I want to point out, before I pass on, that there are certain purposes in the use of cover crops in fruit growing that are a disadvantage rather than an advantage in other types of farming. In looking at the apples on the stage this morning my attention was called to some spots on the apples which are supposed to be due not to any fungous, but to the physical condition in the tissue of the fruit itself caused by something in the soil on which that fruit was produced. The statement was made, by someone that there was too much nitrogen in the soil. It is an old belief that when too much nitrogen is present in the soil the tissues will be more tender and the vegetation will be more rank and very much more subject to the attack of fungous diseases, and furthermore, that there may be a breaking down of the tissues. The fruit grow- ft> u Fig. I. A S1NC1.K Plant of Crimson Clovkr. ♦-*>.*--*.^/ .-S.,, 11-..., ■!.,..,,. *,,>■•.,■ = I02 pense with the need of purchasing nitrogen in commercial ferti- lizers. This, therefore, is one of the strong features in the use of cover crops, provided we use cover crops that will add nitrogen to the soil. The deterioration of cultivated land which I mentioned a few moments ago, is due more to the lessening of the supply of avail- able plant food rather than to the lessening of the supply of the total plant food. Now, there is a point which most of us are likely to overlook. The soil of this portion of Pennsylvania contains, I should say, at least 2% of potash. You see that you have a very great accumula- tion of potash in these soils, and yet it often happens that the pro- gressive fruit grower will use commercial fertilizers containing potash, and by adding 50 or 60 or 100 lbs. of potash will often get a return from this small amount of fertilizer. There are differ- ences in the quality of the potash in commercial fertilizers and in the soil, but if we found means for making that potash in the soil available, is there any objection to our dispensing with the use of potash in commercial fertilizers? None at all. So far as the soil is concerned, the supply .of potash is practically inexhaustible. There is no claim that could be made as to the possible deter- ioration of the soil because of the removal of potash. When we come to study the methods of "Farmers of Fcfrty Centuries" that Prof. King refers to in his book, we are surprised at the cheapness of human effort. Farmers in China will take the soil off an acre of land to the depth of two or threS inches, and grow a rice crop on the sub-soil. They will then return the surface soil which they had meanwhile comforted and will grow something else on it. In the addition of nitrogen and vegetable matter to the soil, the two great functions of cover crops are before us, of adding and transforming plant food, aside from the function of conserving plant food in so far as the cover crop prevents leaching of soluble plant food during the Fall or early Spring. I will refer presently to the kind of cover crops we use and how they accomplish the pur- poses that we are considering, but I want to point out, before I pass on, that there are certain purposes in the use of cover crops in fruit growing that are a disadvantage rather than an advantage in other types of farming. In looking at the apples on the stage this morning my attention was called to some spots on the apples which are supposed to be due not to any fungous, but to the physical condition in the tissue of the fruit itself caused by something in the soil on which that fruit was produced. The statement was made, by someone that there was too much nitrogen in the soil. It is an old belief that when too much nitrogen is present in the soil the tissues will be more tender and the vegetation will be rnore rank and very much more subject to the attack of fungous diseases, and furthermore, that there may be a breaking down of the tissues. The fruit grow- / 'J « \ Fis. I. A Sixc.i.i- Plant oi' Crimson Clovkk. • f INTENTIONAL SECOND EXPOSURE ■i'^Mf "1-^. ^\r- 'i • y-' 103 er recognizes also, as every farmer recognizes it, that too much nitrogen in the soil is inimical to the production of a large crop of fruit. I know a market gardener who used animal manure year after year. He finally reached a point where he could produce the crops that were formerly produced. He has been forced to learn that a large amount of nitrogen tends to force large growth rather than to encourage seed production, and when there is too much nitro- gen in the soil it effects the wood and the fruit buds are not set as they should be. If we use alfalfa or vetch or crimson clover as cover crops, we are apt to reach a point when the cover crops are likely to do more harm than good, because of the excessive wood growth, which is a disadvantage in the case of fruit. For this reason : the fruit grower will often resort to the use of cover crops for the special purpose of stopping the further development of tissue in the tree in late summer, and when he has that purpose in mind he will prefer to use barley or oats perhaps, rather than crimson clover, vetch, etc. In this particular case he wants to get out of the soil as large an amount of nitrogen as he can to prevent the soil from mak- ing that nitrogen and the trees from getting it, so as ripen and mature earlier in the season. C. J. Tyson. Dr. Lipman, will you allow a question? In the case of cover crops of cowpeas, are the nitrates available to the tree and tree roots in the same season in which the growth has taken place, or is it necessary for the plants to decay? Dr. Lipman. It may to some extent. This question happens to bear on investigations that I have been making for several years on the influence of what we call "associated" growth of legumes and non-legumes. To answer your question directly, I should say that there is a gain even in the same season, but it will depend on other factors. In the case of cowpeas and soy beans grown with corn, in our ex- perience the yield of corn was decreased rather than increased, be- cause it happened that the season was exceptionally dry and mois- ture was the limiting factor. Before the trees could be stopped from lack of nitrogen they were stopped by lack of moisture m the soil. The corn had enough nitrogen but did not have enough mois- ture. I think that Hedrick has come to that conclusion that trees can benefit from legume cover crops. So much for the advantages of growing cover crops. As to the disadvantages, I have already referred to one. That is the excess- ive forcing of wood growth. The soil is itself inclined to be de- ficient in phosphoric acid and potash unless provisions were made for using enough fertilizer during the season when the cover crop IS being produced. 1. , 1 j As to moisture, I think I have already referred to that and need not say anything more about it. We might pass on to the ques- tion, what could the farmer do to utilize cover crops in a practical ■MttMrkHMMMMM way, to increase his crop yields? It is for the farmer to decide whether his soil is deficient in nitrogen or not. If the trees are mak- ing all the growth he thinks they ought to make, then it would not be wise for him to grow leguminous cover crops. He might better depend on barley, oats, or winter wheat and not grow legumes. There is danger of excessive wood growth. I remember an ex- perience of ours in one of our experimental peach orchards at Vine- land. This particular area of land of gravelly loam had been re- duced to the point where it would not grow corn. It was soil that would be regarded as exhausted. We planted our peach trees there, and Prof. Blake, after watching them the first season said "I do not believe I would care to have more wood growth than the trees are making, and I should not care to apply any leguminous cover crop." I told him that, looking at it from the standpoint of the soil chemist, it was true perhaps, but it does not follow that next year or the next after you will not want to grow a cover crop. Now, we find that the trees that gave us the best returns were those that had received applications of nitrate of soda. They had too much nitrogen, or enough of it, earlier in their history. So when it comes to the practical application of the teachings on the value of cover crop, we must use our judgment in deciding what is best to use; whether they will make enough wood growth or not. But on the other hand, he would be quite safe in using more legumes, and if he prefers his vegetable matter to die down and leave the winter cover dead, he might use barley. If you prefer something early in the Spring, he might use winter rye. If he feels that the soil is deficient in nitrogen, he has a number of legumes from which to choose. What legumes could the fruit growers of Adams County, Penn- sylvania use with any dependence, for increasing the supply of nitrogen as well as of vegetable matter in his soil? Winter vetch, clover or alfalfa. Alfalfa in this connection may be new to you, but I believe that with proper inoculation, alfalfa may be a very good cover crop. And of course cow peas, and soy beans should be included in the list. So we have not many legumes available for our purpose. Of all those that I mentioned, perhaps alfalfa and winter vetch are the most promising. For soils that are not well drained or inoculated, winter vetch would be the most satisfactory cover crop. Winter vetch has the advantage of being very resis- tant. In Michigan peach orchards winter vetch is regarded as the best cover crop. Winter vetch is hardy and does not depend on inoculation as much as does alfalfa, and will add considerable quantities of nitrogen and vegetable matter to the soil. It makes a very good cover and under favorable conditions, will form a solid mat. The amount of nitrogen added by winter vetch will range from 50 to 100 pounds per acre. Alfalfa is a promising cover crop, where the soil is deep and well drained, and properly inoculated, it will make enough growth in the early fall and spring to furnish 105 a large amount of nitrogen. It will have the advantage of growing down deeper in the sub-soil than will vetch. Cow peas or soy beans might be used to advantage. I should prefer soy beans for this section of the country ; they are more hardy, richer in nitrogen, and are not subject to blight to the same extent as cow peas. Cow peas will not require inoculation to the same extent but they will do much better in soil that is inoculated, than will soy beans. These can be used to advantage wherever conditions would permit. In order to be able to utilize the cover crop to best advantage we must see that they make their growth. To make this point clear let me tell you of a personal experience of mine. I happened to be down in Monmouth County, N. J., in the potato section of that county. One of the potato growers showed me a field of crimson clover that was sown after the potatoes had been removed, on the 26th day of August. I was there on the loth or 12th day of Novem- ber, and there was a mat of crimson clover on the soil five or six inches high. The farmer said to me, "I am not at all concerned about winter killing. I have all the nitrogen and all the humus I need for next year, and if it is killed it matters little to me." Yet under the same conditions, crimson clover sown at the end of August might have made a growth of an inch or two. Why was there, in this case, so much growth ? Evidently that potato grower had been using large quantities of fertilizer. He had a good soil and that crimson clover made more growth in three or four weeks than it would have made in another soil in two months. It is not a practice in this country to fertilize the cover crop. We expect the cover crop to shift for itself. In Germany they recognize that they can profitably stimulate the growth of the cover crop. If we are to utilize a cover crop particularly its vegetable matter in the fall or early spring, as the case may be, we have to see that the cover crop finds the best condi- tions for its growth, and these conditions are particularly important to provide for when we are growing legumes. Legumes require a large amount of lime. The amount of lime might be enough for the apple trees themselves, but not enough for the cover crop. You might have enough phosphoric acid for the slow growing trees but not enough for the quick growing ones. So that in the prac- tical utilization of cover crops you must make proper provision for the presence of lime, and for the proper inoculation of the land. These are the more important points in the use of cover crops and because of the great length at which I have discussed these points, I do not feel that it would be proper for me to discuss the matter any longer, except in so far as you may wish me to answer specific questions. C. J. Tyson. Do you think it practical for us to try to save seed of winter vetch ? Dr. Lipman. Yes, if you could grow winter vetch with rye, or preferably winter wheat. Rye matures a little early for vetch. I 4 io6 think it is quite feasible to grow your own seed. Of course you will have to have rye or wheat with it to hold up the vetch and to get the seed. The only difficulty arises in the fact that when the wheat and vetch are grown together it is hard to separate them. FOR SPRA YING USE COOPER'S GROUND SULPHUR '^"'"'^Esr 99'A TO 100% PURE — S= — CHAS. COOPER & COMPANY ESTABUSHED 1857 1 94 Worth Street NEW YORK CITY WORKS: NEWARK, NEW JERSEY Monthly Price List Issued SOME PROBLEMS CONFRONTING THE APPLE GROW- ER OF TO-DAY. Lloyd S. Tenny, Hilton, New York. Mr, President and Fruit Growers of Adams County: The great aim of the apple grower of to-day is the same as that of most other lines of industry, namely, to make money. His prob- lems, therefore, have to do with those things which make it impos- sible or difficult for him to make his living. We may divide these broadly into two classes; first those problems which have to do with the size and character of his crop and in the second place, those problems connected with the turning of his product into money, namely the marketing problems. During the past years we have heard much about increasing the productiveness of our orchards. Our experiment stations have de- voted most of their time in studying orchard management and the control of insect pests and plant diseases, or those phases of farm- ing which tend to produce larger and better crops of fruit. It would not do to say that too much time has been spent in studying these phases of the subject but it is certainly true that 'too little attention has been given to the other side of fruit growing, namely the marketing problems. Even so there are certain problems still con- fronting the grower which have not been solved to the satisfaction of all. Of these I shall speak first. With regard to the young orchard, there is still the problem of varieties. This is one, however, that has been cleared up con- siderably in very recent years. A few years ago, there was a feel- ing on the part of many of our best growers that it was better to try some new varieties and what these should be was a real problem. This idea fortunately has been pretty generally done away with and now we recognize that the safest rule to follow in selecting varieties for a new orchard is to choose only those varieties which have been well tested out for the section in which we wish to plant This does not mean of course that one should never try out new varieties, but these untried ones should be set with the idea that it is an experimental orchard and should not be selected for large commercial orchards. So we fruit men in Western New York have gone back to planting such varieties as the Baldwin, the Rhode Island Greening, the Northern Spy and others of these old- time varieties. We know what these will do under our soil con- ditions and with our orchard management. Many other varieties will do well under different conditions but it is still a question whether they will do as well with us as they do in other places and it is a pretty safe rule to follow to plant only those varieties which cannot be surpassed by the growers in another section. 107 io8 Then we also have the problem of laying out the orchard and determining the distance apart to plant. This too has been pretty generally solved in recent years. We are realizmg that human nature is weak and that it is best to plant our trees the full distance apart without fillers of the same kind of fruit for it is very doubtful if one person in ten will cut out the fillers as soon as they should come out. Thus a few years ago we were setting our trees 20 by 25 feet or thereabouts, with the idea of taking out every other tree ; now the tendency is to put them at least 40 feet in each direc- tion. In the peach sections, many growers are using peach fillers and finding the practice is an excellent one for the peach trees will of themselves come out before there is much crowding. Notwith- standing the advice of many of our scientific men, this practice has increased rather than decreased, and nearly every fruit grower who has tried the system, likes it very well. Many of our growers are setting permanent trees farther apart than they did a few years ago and it is not uncommon to find an orchard set with such va- rieties as Northern Spy, Baldwin, or R. I. Greening, where the trees are 45 feet apart or even 50 feet. Where apple fillers are still being used, such varieties as Wagener, Wealthy, Alexander, Twen- ty-Ounce, and Yellow Transparent are being used. Another problem connected with the growing of the apple which is still unsolved in the mind of the average fruit man is the one of pruning or shaping the young tree. Our old orchards have leaders in the center. The western orchards from which we are getting our finest looking fruit to-day have open centers. Of these two methods of pruning a young tree, which is the better? The majority of us must confess that we do not know. A few things are very evident, however, as one visits the younger apple orchards in the various parts of the East. In the first place, the growers are heading their trees much lower than they did years ago. It is doubt- ful if the average head is placed much over two feet above the ground at the present time. Formerly it was four feet or even more. I believe that almost without exception, the best growers are not shaping their trees with distinct leaders in the center. A great many men, however, do not want the true vase-shaped form. They are rather leaving from three to five main branches, no one of them being of greater weight or importance than any of the others. The center of the tree is being filled more or less, as the grower may wish, with lateral branches coming out from these first main branches. Under this system it is possible to thin out the center of the tree whenever it is desired, as the branches which make up the center are comparatively small and unimportant and so may be cut out without detriment to the health and general make-up of the tree. ^. , , , , , Now for a few words regarding the cultural problems in our orchards. Dr. Lipman has given us an excellent paper on the cover crops for our orchards. We all admit that cover crops are neces- sary, at least if we practice thorough tillage. For us in most sec- 4V 109 tions of New York we have settled the matter that tillage is neces- sary, for without it we can neither get the crop of fruit nor can we secure the size of apple that will bring the most money. This much therefore is settled; we must cultivate our orchards and we must grow cover crops. Unfortunately, however, there are certain dis- advantages that follow from these practices, chief among which is that the grower is not securing the high color on his fruit that he would like to get. This is a real problem and one of vital import- ance, for it is still true that the average buyer buys with his eyes and unless a fruit be attractive in color it will not find a ready market at a good price. Our problem is, therefore, how may we still till and grow cover crops and yet increase the color of our fruit. Possibly this may be done by the addition of some commer- cial fertilizer. Those who have done the most work on the subject, however, rather doubt this. The common practice in tilling an orchard and putting in the cover crop is so well known that it is not necessary for me to des- cribe it to you. I do, however, want to give you the outline of a system which is used by a few of our best growers and which may possibly help in solving this question of better color. The orchards are plowed very early in the spring. It is possible to use the disk instead of the plow if the owner prefers this method of getting his orchard under cultivation. The cultivation is very thorough all during the early part of the summer but it is not carried on to as late a date as is generally done. Just as soon as the leaves on the trees are very dark in color showing a good rank growth and a healthy state, then the owner stops his cultivation and puts in his cover crop ; this may be as early as the first of July or even before that date. When the cover crop is sown as early as this, it generally gives good results and a good stand of clover is obtained. This in turn tends to stop the growth and to ripen the wood, which is a fundamental condition for good color. Frequently the cover crop reaches such a stage that it is necessary to mow the orchard once in the fall. The following spring the orchard is again plowed and the same process is repeated. The great objection to this method as I see it is that it will tend to give us an over supply of nitrogen from the annual growth of the leguminous cover crop. I doubt too whether it would be possible to use any non-leguminous cover crop when it is sowed as early in the summer as this is. At any rate, this paper does not try to solve this problem ; it aims only to point out some of the greater problems which confront the apple gro>yer of to-day. A broader view of this same problem is the production of a higher grade of fruit. This does not apply to color alone but includes also the finish of the apple as well as freeness form blem- ishes of all kinds and description. As competition becomes keener, that section will live where the greatest proportion of the fruit is of a strictly fancy grade, other things being equal. ,. . , After all I cannot believe that our greatest problem lies in the field of growing more or better fruit ; rather is it connected with the I no twmng of this fruit into more money. In other words it is a mar- keting problem, rather than one of culture. We are begmnmg to realize that the marketing of our fruits is a complex problem and one that but few of our fanners can solve. It is because of this that so many middlemen have become connected with our fruit business. Granting that they are all honest, which we know is not the case, even then the system of marketing through several middle- men is an expensive system and one not favorable for the grower to get the roost out of his fruit. Some better system must be intro- duced. This is a problem which confronts the fruit growers in nearly every part of the country. The system that has solved the problem for the agricultural folk in several sections of the country is that of co-operative selling. The citrus growers of California con- trol their own marketing system through the California Fruit Growers' Association. In this way proper distribution is obtained and top prices may be maintained. Before co-operation can succeed, however, we must have developed a better system of packing, for without uniform grading of a high character it is not possible for the growers to market their own fruit. These are only some of the many problems that confront us as fruit growers. We can never hope to have all our problems solved ; it is doubtful if we ever want to have them all solved, for a business without problems would scarcely oflfer the attractions for the intel- ligent young man whom we hope to have associated with us in this great industry of fruit growing. it ALFALFA. DX. LiPMAN. Mr. President and Friends : The Arabs came to Spain to destroy and occupy the territory that belonged to the natives. They brought with them a plant which by most of us is now called alfalfa. The Spaniards, when they went to the new world to look for silver and gold, brought seeds of alfalfa with them and left it along the western coast of South America to become acclimated and to find its way up the coast to the North. We find, therefore, that the spread of alfalfa in this country was from the west to the east, rather than from the east to the west, even though attempts to grow alfalfa were made in the east before the end of the i8th century. The spread from the west to the east presents to us a very in- teresting story. For instance, in 1891 Kansas had 35,000 acres of alfalfa. Now Kansas has perhaps ij4 millions of acres of alfalfa. In view of the soil enriching qualities of this crop, we can under- stand what alfalfa has done and even now is doing for Kansas, Col- orado, Nebraska and California. But it is not only in the West and Middle West that alfalfa is doing great things for the improvement and enriching of soils, for near our own doors alfalfa has been becoming more and more prominent. , „ ,. , ^, «r:. Only the other day I saw it stated in a bulletin from the Wis- consin Experiment Station that twenty years ago the crop was practically unknown in that State. But Wisconsin has now 25.000 acres and in the next three years will have 50,000 acres m alfalfa. In our own State, New Jersey, there were probably less than 200 acres of alfalfa ten or eleven years ago. Now we have between three and four thousand acres of alfalfa. Its spread m New York and Pennsylvania has been no less significant. Indeed, it is safe to predict that alfalfa growing in the Eastern States has passed the experimental stage. From now on we may expect to see the rap^d spread of alfalfa and the enhancing of its reputation as a soil enriching crop. Its ability to restore worn out soils will be appre- ciated as fully as it was appreciated by the Romans who praised it for its health-restoring as well as its soil-restonng qua it.es They referred to it as "Herba medica," the medicinal plant and fed it to animals that had lost their appetite, I".So"th Amenca^too alfalfa has come to be a potent factor in ^"'^^^Zf .^Z^^^^' Thanks to it the wild prairie is converted into arable land and «•««- dered fit to grow profitable crops of wheat. In a word, then, al- falfa eains an enviable reputation wherever it is given an opportu- Sytf demonstrate its value. Hence I shall attempt to point out III ^ 112 this afternoon why alfalfa is a desirable crop and to outline the methods that must be followed in order to assure its success. Alfalfa is a soil enriching crop because it has the power to in- crease the content of nitrogen in the soil. For example, we have raised seven tons of alfalfa per acre at New Brunswick. We had one ten acre field of alfalfa that gave us an average yield of six tons of field cured hay per acre. We expect to average at the College Farm, five tons per acre of field cured alfalfa hay. The average lOO lbs of alfalfa hay will contain 2j4 to 3 lbs. of nitrogen, equivalent to 15 or 18% of protein. After the removal of the crop there are left in the soil very large quantities of roots and stubble, which increase the content of nitrogen. Alfalfa is, therefore, a soil enriching crop because it adds nitrogen to the soil. Moreover it has another feature that is not recognized as widely. It has the ability to improve the soil be- cause of its deep rooting habits, and because of its ability to open up channels which are followed by the roots of succeeding crops. Further arguments are hardly needed to convince us that wherever possible we should grow alfalfa, and should make it a part of our crop rotations. It should be grown wherever farm, dairy or beef animals are kept. A ton of alfalfa is worth as much for feeding purposes as a ton of wheat bran. But while we recognize the value of the crop, and admit the desirability of growing it, we cannot but admit also that there are certain difficulties to overcome in the growing of alfalfa that cause many people to fail and to become discouraged. I think though that people who have had some experience in alfalfa growing con- sider the difficulties not at all impossible to overcome. That is, when the demands of the crop and of the soil are recognized, the growing of alfalfa is no more difficult than the growing of clover. We learn, as we begin to grow alfalfa, that while there are soil types better adapted to this crop than other soil types, we also learn that practically every type of soil will grow alfalfa provided cer- tain conditions are met. Whatever the soil type may be, it must of all things be well aerated. A soil compact enough to prevent the proper circulation of air is not well suited for the growing of al- falfa. We must have a soil that is deep and one that is well aerated. We must have a soil that is not acid. We learn a great deal about lime when we come to study alfalfa growing. Crops differ in their lime requirements. There are those that will grow by preference on sour soil, and there are even legumes that will prefer a sour soil. We have a wide range, in other words, in the needs of different crops for lime, but of alfalfa it may be said safely that there is hardly any other crop that will make as great a demand on the soil for lime. Therefore for the growing of alfalfa successfully we must provide not only a well drained soil, but one abundantly supplied with lime. Some years ago we were carrying on experiments in southern New Jersey on a very light, sandy soil, whose owner had previously i0M 112 this afternoon why alfalfa is a desirable crop and to outline the methods that must be followed in order to assure its success. Alfalfa is a soil enriching crop because it has the power to in- crease the content of nitrogen in the soil. For example, we have raised seven tons of alfalfa per acre at New Brunswick. We had one ten acre field of alfalfa that gave us an average yield of six tons of field cured hay per acre. We expect to average at the College Farm, five tons per acre of field cured alfalfa hay. The average lOO lbs of alfalfa hay will contain 2j4 to 3 lbs. of nitrogen, equivalent to 15 or 18% of protein. After the removal of the crop there are left in the soil very large quantities of roots and stubble, which increase the content of nitrogen. Alfalfa is, therefore, a soil enriching crop because it adds nitrogen to the soil. Moreover it has another feature that is not recognized as widely. It has the ability to improve the soil be- cause of its deep rooting habits, and because of its ability to open up channels which are followed by the roots of succeeding crops. Further arguments are hardly needed to convince us that wherever possible we should grow alfalfa, and should make it a part of our crop rotations. It should be grown wherever farm, dairy or beef animals are kept. A ton of alfalfa is worth as much for feeding purposes as a ton of wheat bran. But while we recognize the value of the crop, and admit the desirability of growing it, we cannot but admit also that there are certain difficulties to overcome in the growing of alfalfa that cause many people to fail and to become discouraged. I think though that people who have had some experience in alfalfa growing con- sider the difficulties not at all impossible to overcome. That is, when the demands of the crop and of the soil are recognized, the growing of alfalfa is no more difficult than the growing of clover. We learn, as we begin to grow alfalfa, that while there are soil types better adapted to this crop than other soil types, we also learn that practically every type of soil will grow alfalfa provided cer- tain conditions are met. Whatever the soil type may be, it must of all things be well aerated. A soil compact enough to prevent the proper circulation of air is not well suited for the growing of al- falfa. We must have a soil that is deep and one that is well aerated. We must have a soil that is not acid. We learn a great deal about lime when we come to study alfalfa growing. Crops differ in their lime requirements. There are those that will grow by preference on sour soil, and there are even legumes that will prefer a sour soil. We have a wide range, in other words, in the needs of different crops for lime, but of alfalfa it may be said safely that there is hardly any other crop that will make as great a demand on the soil for lime. Therefore for the growing of alfalfa successfully we must provide not only a well drained soil, but one abundantly supplied with lime. Some years ago we were carrying on experiments in southern New Jersey on a very light, sandy soil, whose owner had previously 4^ < ►4 < INTENTIONAL SECOND EXPOSURE I i' V5 113 seeded one of the fields with alfalfa. When we started with our work there that field was, I think, probably seven or eight years old, alfalfa had disappeared but for a few isolated plants here and there, with the exception of one corner where it still was very good. I asked the owner if he could explain why that particular corner of the field still had a fine set of alfalfa. He said: "I have no ex- planation to offer except possibly this : Just prior to the seeding of alfalfa we limed our land at the rate of one or one and one-half tons per acre. We had a load or two left over and I told the boys to dump it in one corner. Probably that may explain why that alfalfa is growing so vigorously." I want to emphasize the importance of using enough lime not only to secure a successful stand, but also enough to keep the plants in full vigor. There is a field of alfalfa in California that is fifty years old and the plants are still there. We also know that alfalfa grows al- most naturally in the irrigated sections of the United States. When we stop to examine the character of these soils we will find they are all rich in lime. In our own State, New Jersey, the people who have grown alfalfa without any particular effort are mostly located on limestone soil. The lime permits the alfalfa to hold its own against other crops, weeds, and particularly grasses. Unless the environment is agreeable to alfalfa it will be crowded out. Too much cannot be said, therefore, of the importance of adding an abundant supply of lime to the soil, not only to secure the growth at the beginning but to maintain it for some years. Now, in the course of years, there has come to be an adjust- ment between the plants and the bacteria. We do not understand this adjustment, but we know that clover and alfalfa are not normal plants when not inoculated. They are abnormal plants and in order to become normal plants they must have nodules on the roots. I do not mean to say that we cannot grow alfalfa without bacteria. In fact alfalfa plants are grown in old gardens without any sign of nodules. Thus we have plants which derive their nitrogen from the soil rather than from the air, making the soil poorer rather than richer. When we study successful alfalfa production we recognize the three important attributes — proper soil drainage, the presence of lime and of inoculation. The third is as important as any and is as likely to be absent as any. We must therefore provide for the inoculation of the soil. I To begin with, the successive steps in the process, as it is followed by most successful alfalfa growers, what are the important stages in the growing of alfalfa ? In the first place, the alfalfa grower will provide for a clean seed bed. In other words, in the competition with weeds or grasses the young alfalfa plants are more likely to win out in the struggle when a clean seed bed is provided. Therefore alfalfa is seldom grown after timothy or sod of any sort, but preferably after the land has been covered by some cultivated 1X4 crop. The rota:iion may De corn, oats and peas or potatoes and alfalfa. But whatever the rotation, successful alfalfa growers will provide for a clean seed bed. In the next place the alfalfa grower will supply a generous amount of lime. You will at once ask how much lime should be used and what kind of lime should be used. These questbns are often raised by men who are confronted with them. The amount of lime will vary with the soil. The heavier, the more ; the lighter, the less lime. But for light, sandy soils we should need at least a ton of lime to the acre, on the basis of burned lime. I have seen splendid alfalfa grown with not more than a ton to the acre. On soils that are not lime-stone soils it would be safer to apply possibly one and one-half tons. Heavy clay soils that have not been limed for sev- eral years should have fifty bushels to the acre. Some of it applied before plowing and some after plowing would give the best results. As to the form of lime, that is whether it be ground limestone, or slaked lime it is immaterial, provided enough be used, except that for very heavy day soils, I should prefer to use slaked lime. For medium soils it does not make a great deal of difference. One ton of freshly burned lime, properly slaked, will go practically twice as far as one ton of ground limestone. As to chemical composition, magnesian lime is, for practical pur- poses, as good as non-magnesian lime. It will give just as good re- sults, except on light sandy soils. Having applied the lime the alfalfa grower is confronted with the next questton as to the plant food to use. Should he use stable manure, or commercial fertilizer, or both ; and how much is he to use? In our earlier experiments we used barnyard manure. We secured beneficial results wherever barnyard manure was used, but we also found that the growth of grass and other plants was stimu- lated and the crowding out of the alfalfa proceeded in a more rapid way. In our work now we prefer not to use any manure at all except for the preceding crop. We find that a direct application of barnyard manure is not desirable. We now depend entirely on commercial fertilizer. We used to employ a mixture composed of equal parts of bone meal, acid phosphate, and muriate of potash. Because of the increased cost of bone meal we find that it is very much cheaper to use a mixture of acid phosphate and muriate of potash. You will find that for almost every soil this mixture is cheaper and quite as effective. It consists of 300 pounds of acid phosphate and 100 pounds muriate, applied at the rate of 400 pounds per acre. In the case of light, sandy soil it would be better to use 150 pounds instead of 100 pounds muriate. We make prac^ tically the same application every year. The material is not costly. Acid phosphate may be bought for $12.00 or $13.00 per ton and muriate for about $40.00 or $41.00 per ton. The fertilizer cost for the alfalfa crop, considering the bene- fits derived, is therefore a minor matter. The crop gets its nitrogen from the air and we do not need to supply it. I might say, though, 1 I I i ■4 <«•.-> f Fig. 2. Alfalfa Plants Showing Nodules on Their Roots. i tJ'i.. ■ ! ,■■ ■ P-;< i64K 114 crop. The rotation may De corn, oats and peas or potatoes and alfalfa. But whatever the rotation, successful alfalfa growers will provide for a clean seed bed. In the next place the alfalfa grower will supply a generous amount of lime. You will at once ask how much lime should be used and what kind of lime should be used. These questions are often raised by men who are confronted with them. The amount of lime will vary with the soil. The heavier, the more ; the lighter, the less lime. But for light, sandy soils we should need at least a ton of lime to the acre, on the basis of burned lime. I have seen splendid alfalfa grown with not more than a ton to the acre. On soils that are not lime-stone soils it would be safer to apply possibly one and one-half tons. Heavy clay soils that have not been limed for sev- eral years should have fifty bushels to the acre. Some of it applied before plowing and some after plowing would give the best results. As to the form of lime, that is whether it be ground limestone, or slaked lime it is immaterial, provided enough be used, except that for very heavy clay soils, I should prefer to use slaked lime. For medium soils it does not make a great deal of difference. One ton of freshly burned lime, properly slaked, will go practically twice as far as one ton of ground limestone. As to chemical composition, magnesian lime is, for practical pur- poses, as good as non-magnesian lime. It will give just as good re- sults, except on light sandy soils. Having applied the lime the alfalfa grower is confronted with the next questk)n as to the plant food to use. Should he use stable manure, or commercial fertilizer, or both ; and how much is he to use? In our earlier experiments we used barnyard manure. We secured beneficial results wherever barnyard manure was used, but we also found that the growth of grass and other plants was stimu- lated and the crowding out of the alfalfa proceeded in a more rapid way. In our work now we prefer not to use any manure at all except for the preceding crop. We find that a direct application of barnyard manure is not desirable. We now depend entirely on commercial fertilizer. We used to employ a mixture composed of equal parts of bone meal, acid phosphate, and muriate of potash. Because of the increased cost of bone meal we find that it is very much cheaper to use a mixture of acid phosphate and muriate of potash. You will find that for almost every soil this mixture is cheaper and quite as effective. It consists of 300 pounds of acid phosphate and 100 pounds muriate, applied at the rate of 400 pounds per acre. In the case of light, sandy soil it would be better to use 150 pounds instead of 100 pounds muriate. We make prac- tically the same application every year. The material is not costly. Acid phosphate may be bought for $12.00 or $13.00 per ton and muriate for about $40.00 or $41.00 per ton. The fertilizer cost for the alfalfa crop, considering the bene- fits derived, is therefore a minor matter. The crop gets its nitrogen from the air and we do not need fo supply it. I might say, though, t I 4- t I ^^ I I i */ ,1 Kig. 2. Alfalfa Plants Showing Xoiulks on Thkir Roots. ^•/^ .ij f,-' INTENTIONAL SECOND EXPOSURE t^' '..•''»' 11 a; ft a ei b A c. f< ir. oi St th m U! se w lai W: of CO B( tnt po ch ph po to tic At tm fit! fn "5 in this connection, that some of our agricultural papers recommend the use of nitrate of soda at the time of seeding. The reason given for this is that the young plants do not develop the ability to get nitrogen out of the air at once. To tide them over the period of scarcity it might be well to use nitrate of soda. In my own opinion this is not necessary except where the soil is very poor, but after all it is not advisable to attempt the growing of alfalfa on the poorest land. It is better to improve it with fertilizers and manure, for alfalfa does not do well on land that lacks fertility. The next step that we have to consider after we have applied the lime and fertilizer is the question of inoculation. We must decide how to introduce those bacteria that are to form a partnership with the plants, and developing on their roots, will enable them to draw nitrogen from the atmosphere. The farmer has at his dis- posal several methods of inoculating the soil or "vaccinating'' the soil, as some one has put it. He might take soil from a field where alfalfa has grown, or he might use what is called an artificial cul- ture of bacteria. Such cultures may be secured free of charge from the Department of Agriculture at Washington. The process of pre- paring cultures is rather simple. The bacteriologist will go out into a field and will dig up a quantity of plants. He will wash off the roots in clean water, break off one of those little nodules, which contains many thousands of bacteria, and will immerse it into a so- lution of corrosive sublimate or strong alcohol, to kill the bacteria adhering to the outside of the nodule. He will then cut that little nodule open, and with a sterile needle will transfer some of the con- tents into a solution made up of several salts that can be bought at any drug store. This solution is for the bacteria a culture medium, just as flour and water make a culture medium for yeast in bread [making. In any favorable culture medium the bacteria multiply very rapidly. Some of the commercial cultures, instead of coming in liquid form, are sold as a jelly similar to that bought for making mdding. I cannot emphasize too much the importance of inoculation, IS well as of liming and of proper preparation of the seed bed. Something should be said about the seed. Failures in alfalfa [growing occur in spite of proper liming, inoculation and fertili- zation, and these failures are almost always attributable to poor seed. The Colorado Experiment Station has been carrying on some very interesting experiments for the last two years on alfalfa seed from different sources. A great deal of the seed that comes from southern Europe is not hardy enough for our climate. Unfortunately, however, many of us do not inform ourselves as to the source of the seed. We should make certain that it is derived from a proper source. So Imany of us fail to make proper inquiries concerning the origin of [the seed, and for this reason fail in the growing of alfalfa. If time would permit I should like to discuss the second part )f alfalfa production, the handling and curing of the hay, but I ii6 have taken up a considerable amount of time, and if your president thinks it is in order to continue the discussion I shall be glad to do so. LESSONS FROM WESTERN APPLE GROWERS. Mr. Tenny. In a field where potatoes were grown last summer when would you seed to alfalfa? Dr. Lipman. We find that between the 15th and the 25th of August is the best time for us under all conditions. We have tried spring seedings and have had success, but on the whole we find the best time in August because we can get our seed bed ready, particu- larly as the growth of weeds is sufficiently retarded by that time. In Wisconsin they get the best results by seeding in the spring. They use 20 pounds of alfalfa seed and about 50 or 60 pounds of barley per acre for spring seeding. The climate will determine the best time to seed. If you go far enough south I dare say you will find spring seeding most satisfactory. In Adams County, I am quite certain that from the loth to the 15th of August would be the best time. I might add here that in Ohio they have been experimenting in various ways. For instance, they have used alfalfa as a catch crop, now and then, with good success. Then they have used alfalfa as we use clover for seeding with oats. There are various ways in which it may be used, and now and then one man will succeed where others fail, but as a general method for southern Pennsylvania or New Jersey and almost all of New York, seeding in August, on the whole, will give the best results. Prof. Hopkins of the Illinois Station, has made the claim that the bacteria will form nodules on the roots of sweet clover, and will also form nod- ules on the roots of alfalfa. R. A. Wickersham. Could you grow sweet clover as success- fully and profitably as alfalfa? Dr. Lipman. I do not think so. I think that sweet clover will not compare favorably with alfalfa for yield, but at the same time sweet clover has its uses and will grow on soil too heavy or too wet for alfalfa. Where alfalfa can be grown successfully, all people who have compared the crops will admit that it is a better crop than sweet clover. A. W. Griest. For alfalfa started this fall, what would you recommend as a fertilizer, after the first cutting next summer ? Dr. Lipman. I would recommend 300 pounds of acid phos- phate and 100 pounds of muriate of potash. No nitrogen. The crop is able to get its nitrogen from the air. Question. How would you apply that fertilizer? Dr. Lipman. You would want to broadcast your fertilizer. We have taken the matter up in New Jersey now as to keeping al- falfa in for a longer time— possibly about 20 years. If we could keep alfalfa in for 12 or 14 years it might be cheaper to put it in rows rather than broad cast it. We intend to find out whether it would pay to have alfalfa sown in rows. *i} Mr. C. E. Bassett. The average farmer is not a good business man. That is a harsh statement, but we may as well face it and make the most of it. If we ever take a look at our competitors it is to become jealous of their successes or to gloat over their failures, rather than to study their methods so as to adopt what brings success or avoid the plans which lead to defeat. It is reported that within two years the Pacific Coast will have over 15,000,000 bearing apple trees. That is interesting to the eastern grower, because he ought to plan his work so as to meet that competition. My home town of Fennville, in western Mich- igan, is known to very few of my hearers — is hardly on the map, so far as you are concerned — and still it ships more apples to cold storage every year than does the world-wide known Hood River Valley. Western New York and southern Pennsylvania also have points that excel Hood River in the quantity of apples grown and shipped, but it is in the quantity and natural quality that we lead, while it is the finish and excellence of pack that has put the Pacific Coast points on the map in big red letters. We all have a general knowledge of western conditions, but it was this summer, while visiting that section, that I had an oppor- tunity to study their problems by seeing for myself and by talking with the growers. The western land agents know just how to use the brightest tints of printer's ink when describing their wonderful land bargains and their use of superlatives is sufficient to put the ad- vance agent of the modern circus completely in the background. Among the many horticultural leaders that I met and conversed with was the head of one of the large fruit exchanges, who seemed to take as much interest in eastern fruit progress as in what was being done in his own section. He was keeping a sharp eye on what their competitors were trying to do and on the probable effect it would have on their business. As I told him of the reviving of in- terest in horticulture in the east, the rejuvenating of old apple orchards, etc., I said, "What are you going to do with these high- priced orchards when we get our methods improved and our or- ganizations for fine packing completed in the east ?" What do you suppose his answer was? "You never will do it!" He practically told me and, through me, he tells you that the Pacific Coast grower relies on the lack of business of the eastern grower — upon his lazi- ness, his shiftlessness, his dishonesty, if you please. Was he right? I put it up to you. Did he tell the truth or is it a libel upon the man- hood and womanhood of our eastern growers? Your answer must come in the work that you do in the future. Acts speak louder than 117 ii8 words and if we continue to practice the slack methods of Jh^ « that man told the truth and we will deserve our fate. But I don t belk^ him I have faith in the latent honesty and busmess ability of our eastern growers. - . The western growers went there mostly from the east ana cross ng tlTe Rocky Mountains did not especially work a miracu ous Ege in their honesty or business ability. But their disadvantage of hieh-priced lands and their distance from market have worked out tf their advantage. My home town is only a few hours from SicagSe largest distributi^^ market in this cpuntry-and, since we can^hip anything to Chicago and get something for it, most of us are raisfng anything, shipping everything and are getting a IjUe of nothing, and then, to cap the climax, are trying to lay the blame on everyone except the right party--ourselyes. Next to the disadvantage of distance from market the other disadvantage that works out to their advantage is the inflated price of land, f his compels the western grower to practice intensive c^^^ tivation, as compared with our extensive methods. An Illinois farmer sold his no acre farm and invested the entire price in lo acrS of apple and pear orchard in Oregon, and on that orchard he was hiring as much help and using almost as many horses as he Tormeriy Ssed on his big farm in Illinois. Think of it ! No wonder thl^he produced the very finest fruit that sold at the highest price If you and I would let about three-fourths of our land lie m grass or simply rest and then on the balance of the land devote all of our usual energ>' and brains, we might not produce quite as many bushels of fruit as before, but we would have nearly as much of a much higher quality and our profits, reputation and happiness would be increased many fold. When you stop to think that the price the western grower pays for transportation alone to my home market would be a big protit for me in my business and that I do not get it, simply proves that the statement with which I started-that I am not a good business man. I wish that I could drive home to you the insult, if you have any manhood in you, that that man gave to us when he said we would not do these things. He did not say we couldn t ; he did not say that we lacked natural advantages, but he said we lacked nerve , that we lacked the western spirit of "get up and get. That state- ment rankles in my breast and it ought to in yours God gave Mich- igan, Pennsylvania, New York and all this grand country wonder- ful opportunities and if we fail, no one is to share the blame with us^ The western apple excels in what I call "finish" and in addition to freedom from insect and fungus injuries, that finish is largely due to high color. Just as long as attractiveness to the eye is the first standard by which the buyer selects his purchases, richness of color will be an essential. While our best fruit authorities may dis- acree as to the possibilities of increasing color in fruit by the ap- plication of potash, phosphoric acid or other chemicals no one can deny that the one great cause for color is sunshine— God s great gitt "9 to man. While the west may have a little more of sunshine, on ac- count of their dry atmosphere, do we not have sunshine here in the cast ? The chief point of difference lies in the fact that the method of growing trees in the west is such as to make the greatest possi- ble use of that sunshine, while we in the east are so anxious to get an immense amount of bearing wood on our trees and also crowd our trees so that they interlace, thus making our orchards appear more like a forestry proposition. Their trees are low and with open heads — vase form. In our greed we leave so much brush in our trees that a sparrow can hardly fly through them. We over- work our trees and then starve them. They restrict their trees by severe pruning and thinning of the fruit so that the trees can do their best and keep it up. In trying to discourage us the western land agent says we could not have their kind of open heads, that "The sun scald would kill your trees.'* Don't you believe it. The only disease we need fear in the east is "dry rot" and the most violent form of this disease is where it attacks the man rather than the tree. While we must be more thorough in our spraying, we must practice more intelligent pruning and thinning of fruit if we want the high grade that is skimming the cream from our own markets. I know that some of my eastern horticultural friends are issuing words of caution for fear that we will prune too much, and thus "upset the balance" or do something equally unwise. Did you ever stop to consider that our "forestry" methods have been standing us on our heads so long that we have lost all thought of any "bal- ance"? What, pray, will restore the "balance" to a starved root system, but to restrict by pruning the heavily loaded top? An overloaded and starved team are first relieved by removing a part of the load. Where you find one grower who has made the im- probable mistake of pruning his orchard too much, I can show you thousands of growers in leading fruit sections who do not prune enough and hundreds of others who do not prune at all. When the western grower sees an imperfect apple on bis tree in the growing time, he realizes that that fruit can never grow to be anything but a cull and it is at once taken off to make room for other fruits. They thus grade their fruit on the trees, because they know that it takes as much of the vitality of the tree to ripen a cull as it does to put the finish on a perfect fruit. In the east the prac- tice is to leave all the fruits that set until harvest time, then paw them over on the packing table to find enough fairly good specimens to face out the barrel. What happens after that we blush to relate. You say it costs money to thin apples. Does it cost any more, or even as much, to pick off the extra fruits and break up the clusters in June, dropping the little culls on the ground, than to wait until harvest time and then pick the whole mess (and, by the way, that is a very good word) carry them down the ladders, pour out on the packing table, sort them and put the culls in the cider lot or in a more improper place ? •f.' I20 Not only do we fail to grow as good fruit as we might, but wc have had no system of grading and packing. Why are people not eating and cooking more apples? Have they lost their taste for apples ? Why is the demand for bananas, oranges, grape fruit and western apples increasing while our own superior quality apples go begging a market? You know the reason. The man who buys a barrel of our apples buys them under a suspicion and pays a price accordingly. All business is and must be based on one principle — confidence. The average eastern pack of fruit does not command the respect of the consumer and the man who starts out to pack honestly and then market in the old way generally finds himself in bad company and too often suffers as did "old dog Tray." But the Sulzer bill, which takes eflfect next July, offers us a means of establishing a reputation and of being known as packing an honest grade, for which the consumer will eventually call and pay a good price. Let us adopt this new law and then by modern systems of distribution, through co-operative organizations, modeled after the western methods, we will enjoy increasing demands from a satisfied purchasing public, our markets will be steady, prices will be good and we will not only possess the cash and confidence and respect of our customers but we will have that self respect that comes from a feeling of work well done. Fennville, Michigan. These Harrows Are For Intensive Tillage Rigid Main Fratnm Forgmd'mdgm* Diskt q Remember the CUTAWAY disk is the original * 'cutaway '•; the CUTA- WAY double artion harrow, the original double action ; the CUTAWAY reversible harrow, the original reversible; the CUTAWAY extension head harrow, the original extension head. CUTAWAY double action harrows have all four of their gangs compactly hung on one rigid maim frame, which is the^ secret of successful double action harrows. TTiat is one reason why double action harrows grind and pulverize the soil finer than other harrows. CUTA- WAY double actions are all ec^uipped with the detachable jointed tongue, which can be removed or replaced m one minute, making the harrow into either a tongue or tong^eless ma(!hine as desired. Both the single action and the double action are made with extension heads for orchard work, and can be closed for regular field work. They are equipped with the famous Clark cutlery steel disks, forged sharp, and Clark hard*wood ]o\xm2\%. And remem- ber, CUTAWAY single action harrows are re,* '^^ ,,-,^^K--?-'' fmi^^ p**- At thk F.vaporator. A (xood Place for the Culls. THE Citizen^ s Trust Company President, GEO. W. SWARTZ OF GETTYSBURG Vice Pres., W. T. ZEIGLER Treasurer, H. L. SNYDER Your Bank Account and Trust Business Solicited qWe pay 3/.% on CERTIFICATE if left 60 days or more. We act as Guardian, Trustee, Administrator or Ex- ecutor, in settling up estates. ^Courteous treatment and prompt attention to business a feature. R. WM. BREAM, Secretary. 131 > ■ <~ •■ - ■ '^ ■• ..v:..-, ^mm t Established 1887 100 Acres Kelly Bros. Fruit Trees Direct from the Nursery to the Planter WE grow our own trees and can guarantee them true to name, which we beHeve is the most essential part of the fruit tree business. We are lo- cated in the famous Genesee Valley, the best locality in the world for growing healthy fruit trees. Mr. Barton, the N. Y. state inspector unreservedly says that he has never found San Jose Scale in the nur- series at Danville. Write us to-day for Illustrated Catalogue KELLY BROTHERS 20 Main Street DANSVILLE, N. Y. Nkat Facino is Not Oishonkst Packing. Both Alike to the Bottom. I '^)^f?i^ii^M^':^fM^^'k^''^^^^'^-'^£^ 132 Capital, $145,150 Deposits, $930,000 Pa^s 3% per cent, on Special Deposits ^ We offer the public the use of our large fire-proof and burglar-proof safe deposit vaults FREE. WM. McSHERRY. President E. M. BENDER. Cashier State CollEGU Stitdents at Work Gathering Tomatoes. 133 Onj.: of THi: GrJ'Kn HOUSES AT Stats Coli^ege, Showing the Student Plots. No. 1 , FOLDING CRATE, with or without cover. See catalog for other ttyles and sizea. OVER 15.000.000 IN USE TO-DAY. T E S UMMER line of RATES, for every lervice, ANNOT be excelled. IGID. collaps ble or folding IGHT in all proportions EASON ABLE in price. LL materiali used RE carefully selected and construction SUREDLY honest throughout. AKE our word for it HIS brief statement is worthy O fill your "pipe of reflection." ACH crate is as nearly VERLASTING as is humanly possible and NCOMIUM encourages examination. TRONG language is never ERVICEABLE unless backed up by the goods END for catalog and price list. CUMMER M Cadillac, Mich., or Flora Dale 'PG. CO., I )ale, Pa.,Box45.T| 134 135 PiCKiNC. AnAMS CorNTY York Imperial. Nothing But Fancy Fruit in Sight. ►> 4 Good Business Propositions Any one or more of which can be ob- tained on a very small investment. No. I Upper left ORCHARD KING Pruner with its double acting compound lever cuts a two inch limb easily. No. 2 Upper right KANSAS Improved automatic in action, no hand levers to bother, its quick and cuts a limb 1 ^/^ inches. No 3 Lower left HAPPY THOUGHT a fast one for setting back, budding, etc. Capacity ^ inch limb. No. 4 The DETROIT, another with a pump gun speed and an inch limb capacity. Don't overlook these high quality knives, but for your own best interest ask for our illustrated circulars and prices. Just mail a card NOW to International Tool Company 169 Brooklyn Ave. V DETROIT, MICHIGAN | Adams County Grows Fink Fruit. 134 135 PicKixc. Atiam? CorvTv York iMrKRiAi.. Nolhiim Hut I'ancv I'Vuit in Sight. i % 4 Good Business Propositions Any one or more of which can be ob- tained on a very small investment. No. I Upper left ORCHARD KING Primer with its double acting compound lever cuts a two inch limb easil)'. No. 2 Upper right KANSAS Improved automatic in action, no hand levers to bother, its quick and cuts a limb 1 ^ inches. No 3 Lower left HAPPY THOUGHT a fast one for setting back, budding, etc. Capacity ^4 ^^^^^^ limb. No. 4 The DETROIT, another with a pump gun speed and an inch limb capacity. Don^t overlook these high quality knives, but for your own best interest ask for our illustrated circulars and prices. Just mail a card NOW to International Tool Company 169 Brooklyn Ave. DETROIT, MICHIGAN Adams CorxTv C.kows 1m ni: Fkiit. INTENTIONAL SECONDEXPOSURE 136 137 A Clustkr ok Adams County Grown "Winter Banana," (every specimen perfect). ELECTRICITY IN YOUR HOME -:- Save Money, Time and Labor P R A C T I C A L E C O N O I C A L DEAN HOMELITE PLANT will not only /ij^/it every room in your /lome and outbuildiniSy but it will operate your feed cutter, washing machine, food chopper, sewing machine, grindstone, cream separator, ventilating fans, or, in fact ANYTHING that uses electricity for power. C You can easily set up the Dean **HOMELITE'' Plant. C Installing instructions furnished with each Plant, are so complete that a mere novice can install it. C The engine and dynamo comes to you mounted on one skid ; the storage batteries and power board complete the equipment. C Starts by simply throwing in a switch — no cranking. C So simple that a child can operate it. f^'ti';v'T, ,«^. .■,'',*>•■■ ,-?? ^ -^^ •'^■"•>;.-»'S*^ ^i > > Trees ! Trees ! Trees ! Among the 1 00,000 apple trees we have to offer for Spring of 1913 are 20,000 Stay man's Winesap 5,000 Grimes' Golden 5,000 Jonathan, all 2 years, 4y2"6 feet Also other varieties in lots not quite so large. We can also offer a large lot of one year apples — all leading varieties €|| The peach orchard proposition is now booming. Money to be made in this line. Have us quote you stock. Can offer 75,000 to 90.000 fine peach trees at this date. The Mountain View Nursery Co. WILLIAMSPORT, MARYLAND Everything in Nursery Stock Adams Couxtv Yokk Imperials— 'None Bkttkr Grown." 140 CHESTNUT BLIGHT. AT- ♦» "The Home of Fine Clothes You will find gift suggestions for all, from baby to grandparents When in town make our place your headquarters To all A Merr^ Christmas Funkhouser & Sachs * * The Home of Fine Clothes GETTYSBURG, PA. 4'i 4 -i r 4. f ^^f ^L^ C' l\ ^ 141 The Christmas Store Ready— Everything ready. The Gift things have all been here for several days HANDKERCHIEFS— The Great Christmas article. Never so many as now. Ladies', Gentlemen's and Childrens. A beau- tiful line of them— Ic. to gl.OO each. Japanese hand-marked linens, all sizes. Other linens of all kinds. GLOVES, FURS, BLANKETS, RUGS. HOSIERY A beautiful line of Ladies' Neckwear for Christmas. Gent's Neckwear. Special prices given on Ladies' Coats for Holidays. See our line of Christmas Fancy Novelties before purchasing elsewhere DOUGHERTY k HARTLEY, Gettysburg Skinnkr System of Irrigation With Celkry. ^ , « V>S,«i- '^^ 140 CHESTNUT BLIGHT. AT- »» "The Home of Fine Clothes You will find gift suggestions for all, from baby to grandparents When in town make our place your headquarters To all A Merry Christmas Funkhouser & Sachs * * The Home of Fine Clothes GETTYSBURG, PA. 4- - A o'l 4 Vf V ' n 141 The Christmas Store Ready—Everything ready. The Gift things have all been here for several days HANDKKRCHIKFS— The Great Christmas article. Never so many as now. Ladies', Gentlemen's and Childrens. A beau- tiful line of them— Ic. to $1.00 each. Japanese hand-marked linens, all sizes. Other linens of all kinds. GLOVES, FURS, BLANKETS, RUGS, HOSIERY A beautiful line of Ladies' Neckwear for Christmas. Gent's Neckwear. Special prices given on Ladies' Coats for Holidays, See our line of Christmas Fancy Novelties before purchasinji elsewhere DOUGHERTY & HARTLEY, Gettysburg Skinnkr Systkm op Irrioation With Ckli^ry. W^ 142 145 Modern Methods Mean Money to You Time Was When Any Old Thing Would Do Any old field for an orchard (often too steep or too rocky or too poor for anything else) Any old trees, of any old variety, set any old way Any old cultural methods (or none) coupled with any old care (,f any) Any old ladder, plus any old saw (or ax) equaled any old pruning (or butchering) , Any old spray material, applied at any old time with any old spraye Any old grading (or none) packed in any old barrel or box. Result (of necessity) ANY OLD PRICE IT WONT DO IN THE TWENTIETH CENTURY Only by using modern methods can you hope to GET YOUR SHARE Poor equipment i. worse than fooli.h. It means loss every time Use sharp pruning tools of approved type < WE HAVE THEM) Cultivate with Cutaway and Forkner Light Draft Harrows (ASK US FOR CATALOGS) ^„^v, Use the best ladders you can buy (NONE BETTER THAN TTT I EY'S) sole agents for Pennsylvania) W'./^ ARE THE CREAM catalogs for the asking r=.refullv nicked and graded fruit packed in neat, clean boxes or barrels win always command good prices. We supply orchard c« te Oregon boxes, standard New York barrels, barrel presses and all paper requisites needed in packmg fancy fruit . Write us for any Orchard Requisite. If we cannot supply It we can Write us lor any ^^.^^^^ly ,j„ y^u where to get it SPECIAL PRICES TO MEMBERS F. G. A. ASK US ABOUT IT EDWIN C. TYSON, fi25i?^P: WHOLESALE AND RETAIL ORCHARD TOOLS AND SUPPLIES '■(t ^M^ I i ^1 CO (A O Oh .^ pq o O oi P5 CL, fL, Gardners, 1903 997 985 1982 13 1905 912 5215 6127 41 4 1906 1907 6905 5440 12345 82 4 1908 433 433 3 1 1909 2275 4571 6846 46 1910 1566 3722 5288 35 1 1911 3900 4800 8700 58 1912 1860 1860 12 6 Starners, 1905 682 1016 1698 11 5 1906 664 133 797 5 4 1907 1572 219 1791 12 3 1908 487 487 3 3 1909 1825 8 1833 12 4 1910 2500 2192 4692 31 3 1911 2018 668 2686 18 2 1912 2000 563 2563 17 18 Hunters Run, 1903 625 625 4 1905 160 160 320 2 8 1906 295 262 557 4 5 1907 1417 514 1931 13 12 1908 1704 1704 11 1 1909 1289 510 1799 12 1 1910 2103 2190 4293 29 1 1911 3750 300 4050 27 1912 2040 2040 14 1903 17468 4385 21853 146 1905 15617 9908 25525 170 1906 6295 3450 9745 65 1907 34797 19217 54014 360 56 1908 12017 12017 80 39 1909 27037 6426 33463 223 26 1910 43523 13003 56526 377 57 1911 70100 7049 77149 514 9 1912 41508 2862 44370 296 76 > Ph a> o • ^^ PL, < o X5 P5 U Oh c« O CL, o Ph a, w > (U < pL, $1 75 $1 50 $0 50 1 35 2 00 1 50 45 1 50 2 50 2 00 2 00 1 50 65 55 45 (Good year) 1 50 1 75 1 50 2 50 75 85 50 50 2 00 & H. R. Total R. 47 35 1 2 2 2 1 45 50 00 00 50 75 50 65 55 50 80 45 Gardners — 1906. 2 cars pears; 1007, pears; 4 cars peaches; 191 1, 5 cars pears; Starners — 19 10, 2 cars peaches; 191 i, 500 baskets peaches; 300 bushels pears. I car pears; 1908, 2 cars pears; 1910, 2 cars 25 cars canned apples. 300 bushels pears; 200 baskets peaches; 191 2, A 1 142 Modern Methods Mean Money to You Time Was When Any Old Thing Would Do Any old field for an orchard (often too steep or too rocky or too poor for anything else) Any old trees, of any old variety, set any old way Any old cultural methods (or none) coupled with any old care (,f any) Any old ladder, plus any old saw (or ax) equaled any old prun.ng Anyhow s"pmy material, applied at any old tin.e with any old sprayer Any old grading (or none) packed in any old barrel or box. Result (of necessity) ANY OLD PRICE IT WON'T DO IN THE TWENTIETH CENTURY Only by using modern methods can you hope to GET YOUR SHARE Poor .quipment U worse than fooli.h. It means loss every time Use sharp pruning tools of approved type < WE HAVE THEM) Cultivate with Cutaway and Forkner L.ght Draft Harrows (ASK „„ ^rS "If,""! Wv > P5 u o pq PL, C/} o O CD d. PQ Gardners, 1903 997 985 1982 13 . 1905 912 5215 6127 41 4 1906 ■ • • • • Starners, Hunters Run, . (Good year) G. & H. R. R., .... Total 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1903 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1903 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 6905 433 2275 1566 3900 1860 682 664 1572 487 1825 2500 2018 2000 625 160 295 1417 1704 1289 2103 3750 2040 17468 15617 6295 34797 12017 27037 43523 70100 41508 5440 4571 3722 4800 1016 133 219 8 2192 668 563 160 262 514 510 2190 300 4385 9908 3450 19217 6426 13003 7049 2862 12345 433 6846 5288 8700 1860 1698 797 1791 487 1833 4692 2686 2563 625 320 557 1931 1704 1799 4293 4050 2040 21853 25525 9745 54014 12017 33463 56526 77149 44370 82 3 46 35 58 12 11 5 12 3 12 31 18 17 4 2 4 13 11 12 29 27 14 146 170 65 360 80 223 377 514 296 4 1 $1 75 $1 50 $0 50 1 35 • • • • 2 00 1 50 45 5 4 3 3 4 3 2 18 1 50 2 50 2 00 2 00 1 50 65 55 45 8 5 12 1 1 1 1 50 1 75 1 50 2 50 75 85 50 50 2 00 47 :{5 56 39 26 57 9 76 1 2 2 o 1 45 50 00 00 50 75 1 50 65 55 50 80 45 (lardners — 1906, 2 pears; 4 cars peaches; Starners — iqio, 2 500 baskets peaches; 3 cars pears; 1Q07, 191 1, 5 cars pears; cars peaches; 191 i, 00 bushels pears. I car pears; 1908. 2 cars pears; 191 o, 2 cars 25 cars canned ai'.ples. 300 bushels pears; 200 baskets peaches; 191 2, iNTENTIONAL SECOND EXPOSURE i4/b THE _ "REITER BOLSTER SPRING I See That Hanger i .„ <« * 0 9 "ff o as < . OS . eL,3 in r^ ry? ^ ^ V3 .^k • . I- >^ ;^ ;^ 'Z :z;w :2;w < <^^ o 3 rt o Pm o a> Orrtanna, McKnightstown, New Oxford, East Berlin, W. M. R. R., ... Total , 1903 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 . 1903 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 . 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 . 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 . . 1903 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 3300 1062 3659 3177 2686 741 8216 7043 8912 3438 7895 2296 3393 1785 7724 14275 26297 4122 2342 1020 840 4045 3846 2798 178 254 1155 251 2030 1800 2231 520 1033 3300 1062 3659 5519 3706 1581 12261 10889 11710 3438 8073 2550 4548 2036 9754 16075 28528 4642 1033 22 7 24 37 25 10 82 73 78 23 54 17 30 13 65 107 190 31 7 1 $2 00 $1 50 $0 50 2 40 1 50 'A 1 2 00 1 50 60 1 1-6 3 • • • 1-3 2 Va 2 1 00 1 00 2 15 1 85 1 75 2 50 1 50 47 50 2 00 1 50 60 390 275 50 1140 49 276 695 152 276 2 695 4^4 390 2^ 427 3 50 1193 2333 49 15 1-3 $1 80 $0 90 $0 70 3/^ 2 25 2 25 60 10 1 18 6738 10380 7447 7720 4536 8873 22946 33959 14091 205 215 1 2 160 178 80 80 6738 1320 11700 1447 8894 13948 21668 2891 7427 4870 13743 7135 30081 6637 40596 3550 17641 1 ^ 45 78 59 144 49 91 201 270 117 5 3 7 1 1-3 214 1 75 2 50 1 50 11 2 00 1 50 60 Littlestown — 1910, 3 cars apples; 2 cars potatoes; 191 1, 2 cars apples; 1912, 5 cars potatoes. Dillsburg — 1910, 2 cars apples; 19". 2 cars apples. McKnightstown — 191 1, i car pears; 1912, 40 bushels pears. Orrtanna — 191 1, 620 baskets peaches; 1912, 1,810 baskets peaches. Charmian — 191 1, 48 barrels apples; 1912, 40 barrels apples; 50 bushels pears. Gettysburg — 1912, 42 barrels apples; one-third car potatoes. Virginia Mills — 1912, 300 barrels apples; 4 cars potatoes. Granite Station-^-iQiz, 400 barrels apples. Total Fruit Marketed in County. 148 II' Ill THIS VALUABLE BOOK FREE THIS book contains facts and figures of vital interest to every orchardist. Read its pages and learn how Red Cross Dynamite has been safely and prof- itably used for tree plant- ing, subsoiling and re- generating orchards. Every page is instruct- ively written and the sim- plicity of methods recom- mended insure success. Why continue to risk the life of fruit trees by planting in "Spade dug" holes when Red Cross Dynamite easily, cheaply and surely prepares the deep, broad and mellow root bed needed for rapid and sturdy growth of young trees ? Du Pont Powder Company, ^ MAIL THIS COUPON TO-DAY Name WILMINGTON, DEUWARL Adams County Fruit Growers' Assn., Penn. '13 1 P. O. Address County State PLEASE GIVE US THIS INFORMATION Have you ever used exnlosives ? Yes No For what purpose, stump or boulder blasting, tree-planting, subsoiling, ditching, orchard regenerating, #»vpavatin0- (Mark X over work done.) ,, I ""shTyou plant trees in the Spring of 1913 ? Yes No or Fall, I 1913 ? Yes No How large is your orchard ? Acres 1 rees I (estimated). Shall you wish the name of a reliable agricultural blaster to do I the dynamiting for you ? Yes No ^^* ns ,^ CO ^^ ^ CO ^4. • CO *T3 O • Is <; . CT3 . 3 SI o 1> . A u s 3-^ •— • rt pq Y^ CO o u ^ ^ pL, .H3 O CO ^B 6 O o o ?^ <^o > >n' > oJ JK • > ^ ^ :^ :2;w 12;^ < <^ £H 1912 55599 6412 62011 413 84 > iH Evaporated, . . . 1903 . 6547 6547 44 ^ mt 1905 . 10670 10670 71 ^^»J 1907 . 1908 . 1909 . 8333 8333 56 wm 4666 4666 ox .... iK 1910 . 8600 8600 0 1 .... >^^^B 1911 . 1912 . 21750 5000 21750 5000 145 33 ^H • • • • ^H Canned, 1905 . 2400 2400 16 ^B 1907 . 10000 10000 67 .... t ' i9 ' 1908 . 1673 1673 11 .... 1909 . 12398 12398 82 ^ iB 1910 . 16700 16700 111 .... ^B 1911 . 25000 25000 167 .... • • • • * jB 1912 . 27108 27108 181 .... 3 Cider, 1907 . 1908 . 9524 6670 9524 6670 63 . . . . 44 Tr 1909 . 5714 5714 38 . . . . J 1910 . 11120 11120 74 .... '*" m 1911 . 12500 12500 8o . . . . m 1912 . 8000 8000 Oo . . . . f Total fruit, .. 1903 1905 1906 24206 10932 25997 24298 13742 4897 35138 50295 18639 234 335 52 124 38 • • • • • g 1907 42517 61022 103539 690 63 2 25 . 1 75 55 1 1908 16553 11234 27787 185 40 1 K ) 75 60 M 1909 35910 34074 69984 465 27 ' 2 5C ) 1 50 1 50 r" 1910 67219 56558 123777 825 615^ 2 OC 1 1 20 50 1911 104659 72936 177595 1184 10 2 Of 1 75 1 00 '. 1912 55599 46520 102119 680 84 1 5C I 80 50 Compai rison of Percentages .'^ <^-^ 4^^ ^ a; •>-> -4-> SI Cen orat C-3 013 u-^ U V Ph-^ Ph S (x, z Oh I- c^ 2 a 1903 70 12 18 • • • • 100% 1905 52 22 26 • • • • 143% 1907 41 32 8 10 9 295% 1909 51 16 7 18 8 200% 1910 54 16 7 14 9 356% 1911 59 8 12 14 7 500% 1912 54 6 5 27 8 344% Three cars evaporated apples; 62 cars canned apples; 3 cars pears; 5,600 baskets peaches. GET THE BEST A Good Spra\) Pump earns big profits and lasts for years THE ECLIPSE Is a good pump. As practical f^^'t gro^^'-«,^^^;j,f";;;'3«^Jd rommon soravers in our own orchards, found the r detects ano STnveS the Ec/ipse. Its success practically forced us m^o tnen invciucu a- ^ chances. We manufacturing on a large scale. j;^,,,''f„„, uiuBtraud cataiogu, have done all the expenmentmg. „„j treatue on tpraying-FR£t. MORRILL & MORLEY, MFG. CO., Benton Harbor, Mich. EDWIN C. TYSON, Distributor, Flora Dale, Pa. INDEX. A Addresses — "Peaches," 25-32 "Essentials in Spraying," 33-35 "Duties of Citizenship," 36-45 "Winter Injuries to Fruit Trees," 46-55 "The Use of Fertilization in Apple Orchards," 57-75 "Peach Packing and Packages," 77-^3 "Grape Growing and Its Possibilities on a General Fruit Farm," 85-90 "The Chestnut Blight," 91-98 "Cover Crops and Their Effect on the Soil," 95-106 "Some Problems Confronting the Apple Grower of To- day," 107-1 ID "Alfalfa," 111-116 "Lessons from Western Apple Growers," 1 17-120 "Principles of Cookery as Applied to Farm Cooking," . . 121-126 Apple Varieties, 107 Amendments, 19 Adams, W. S. (Adv.), 56 American Agricultural Chemical Co. (Adv.), 76 Air Tight Steel Tank Co. (Adv.), 22-23 Advertisers — Bowker Insecticide Co. (Spray Materials), 2 J. G. Harrison & Sons (Nursery Stock), 4 The Deming Co. ( Sprayers) , 6 Dcyo-Macey Engine Co. (Sprayers), 8 G. P. Read (Packages and Cushions), 10 B. G. Pratt Co. (Spray Materials), 12 York Chemical Works (Fertilizers) . 14 Goulds Manufacturing Co. (Sprayers), 16 Musselman Canning Co. (Greeting) , 18 T. H. Evans & Co. (Commission Merchants), 20 Air Tight Steel Tank Co. (Power Sprayers), 22-23 Keystone National Powder Co. (Dynamite), 24 T. S. Hubbard Co. (Grape Vines and Small Fruits), .... 32 U. S. Kleinfelter (Barrels), 55 First National Bank, Gettysburg 56 Hill Top Orchards Warehouse Co., 56 P. S. Orner, (Barrels), 75 American Agricultural Chemical Co. (Fertilizers), 76 Franklin Davis Nursery Co., 83 Wickersham Nurseries, 84 Battlefield Nurseries, 98 Chas. Cooper & Co. (Sulphur) , 106 Cutaway Harrow Company, 120 Madison Cooper Co. (Cold Storage Plants), 126 Baugh & Sons Company (Fertilizers), 127 J. W. Richley Auto Co. (Automobiles), 128-129 Citizens Trust Co 130 Kelley Brothers (Nursery Stock), 131 Gettysburg National Bank, 132 Cummer Mfg. Co. (Crates), 133 151 152 SPRAY Ask us to send you Spraying Calendar and Directions FREE M« matter whether yours is a large or a small spraying con' ;:rmix',i,« wKTospra"; and how .o spray .o secure ,he ♦he best results. A SPRAYER To Suit Your Needs. Our line includes everything from the small hand sprayer uP tooul Watson-Ospraymo machines and our famous Power Or ''ol'rEADE/f'brchard Sprayers are typical modern rna- chfn's" large spraying operaUons E.a.ppe^ w^^ ^n'gl'n^i^c^n^^^l^Sn^^^^^^^^^ of farm work. , _ Strainer cleaners. Hand, Bucket and Knapsack Sprayers. Something to suit EVERY REQUIRE- MENT—every one the best of its kind. Be sure to write and get our sprayer book before anything in the sprayer line. Address: - ««^ r^/^ FIELD FORCE PUMP CO., 11th Street, East, Elmira, N. Y. buying -2 IS PI X o 3 3 s> t^ A p ^4 ^ i^ 135 137 138 139 140 141 142 144 146 148 150 152 154 156 I43-I4S 147 149 134-136-139 34 34 111-116 I I 2-1 14 74, 104 153 International Tool Co. (Pruning Tools), The Dean Electric Company (Electric Manufacturing Plants), J. G. Stover (Orchards), The Mountain View Nursery Co., Funkhouser & Sachs (Tailors ) , Dougherty & Hartley (Merchants), Edwin C. Tyson (Orchard Tools and Supplies), Sherwin-Williams Company (Spray Materials)^ W. C. Reiter ( Bolster Springs ) , DuPont Powder Co. (Dynamite), Morril & Morley Mfg. Co. (Sprayers), Field Force Pump Co. ( Sprayers) , Light Draft Harrow Co. (Orchard Harrow), John S. Tilley (Ladders), Adams County Fruit Records, Gettysburg and Harrisburg R. R. Shipments, Western Maryland R. R. Shipments, Total Shipments and Total Fruit, Adams County Orchard Photographs, Advantages of Tower in Spraying, Of Agitator in Spraying, Alfalfa, Illustrations, As Cover Crop, B Baugh & Sons Company (Adv.), -. 127 Bowker Insecticide Co. (Adv.), 2 Battlefield Nurseries (Adv.), 98 Baskets • 7^ Bassets,' C. E., 29, 52, 54, 33-35, 73, 117-120 Black, W. H., 90, 97 Bolster Springs (Adv.), 146 Banks (Adv.), 56, 130, 132 Barrels (Adv.), 55, 75 Cushions, Caps and Circles for (Adv.), 10 Blake, Prof. M. A., 46-55,77-83 Barnyard Manure on Peaches 31 By Laws, I9-2I Broiling Steak, 125 Committees, List of, ^9 Duties of 19-21 Cultivating Machinery (Adv.), 120,154 Constitution, ^7 Chestnut Blight, 91-98, 140 133 29 106 " 22, 23 Crates (Adv.), Crown Gall on Peach, Citizens Trust Co. (Adv.), Chas. Cooper & Co. (Adv.) Compressed Air Sprayer (Adv.), Crop Reports, I43, I45, I47, I49 Commercial Lime Sulphur, 2, 144 Cummer Mfg. Co. (Adv.), I33 Cutaway Harrow Co. (Adv.), 120 Cooking, 121-126 Cover Crops, 30, 99-ioo, 74 Collingwood, H. W., 3^5 154 FORKNER LIGHT-DRAFT HARROW-IN ACTION NOTE that every Inch of soil is thoroughly cultivated, lifted and turned in long wavy levels, thus exposing the maximum amount of soil surface to the chemical action of the sun. See how easily the driver can work up to tree tnmk without having to dodge branches. Observe low center of gravity, width of cut, and ease with which each separate gang (there are four) can be raised to dump trash, or all hooked up in moving over road. WILL DO JUST AS GOOD WORK FOR YOU Dozens of Orchardists have proven it as shown by letters we have on file-- One large grower, after thoroughly testing a sample harrow ordered six more, but thesis A^O NEED TO TAKE OUR WORD FOR IT Write today for catalogue and 30 day trial offer. Select the size and type of machine best suited to your soil, we will ship one to any responsible party, and TRY IT IN YOUR ORCHARD-AT OUR RISK Send it back if you don't find it the finest cultivator made Think of culti- vating 20 acres daily with 2 horses.. Do not delay there is bound to be a tre- mendous demand for 1913 and late comers may be disappointed. UGHT-DRAFT HARROW CO. 910 E. Nevada St. Marshalltown, Iowa SOLE PENNSYLVANIA REPRESENTATIVE EDWIN C. TYSON, Flora Dale, Pa. 4 i s. Li K'. i ^ I i D Dean Electric Co. (Adv.), DuPont Powder Co. (Adv.), ... Deyo-Macey Engine Co. (Adv.), Deming Company, (Adv.), Davis, Franklin & Co. (Adv.), • ••••• • • • • • Dues, Duties of Officers, Discussion Following Addresses of — Prof. F. N. Fagan, Prof. M. A. Blake, Dr. J. P. Stewart, Mr. Lloyd S. Tenney, Mr. Keller E. Rockey, Dr. J. S. Lipman, Mrs. Edith C. Salisbury, "Duties of Citizenship," Executive Committee, List of, Duties of, Eldon, Robert M., Experimental Orchards, Report on, Essentials in Spraying, Evans, T. H. & Co. (Adv.), Effect of Adding Plant Food to Orchards, Effect of Cover Crops on the Soil, • • • • • First National Bank, Gettysburg, (Adv.), Field Force Pump Co. (Adv), Food Required by Mature Orchards, Farm Credits, Food Values, Freezing of Trees, Fireless Cooker, Fruit, Adams County Records, ^43, of Adams Co., at Pittsburg Show, (Illustrations), Fertilizers, For Orchards, Experiment in Adams Co Experiment in Bedford Co., Experiment in Lawrence Co., Recommendations, Time and Method of Application, Funkhouser & Sachs (Adv.), G 137 148 8 6 83 17 19-21 29 52,83 73 90 97 105,116 124 36 3 21 30, 52, 55 57-75 33-35 20 59 99-106 56 152 57-58 42 121 46-55 120 145, 147, 149 24, 35, 158 14, 76, 127 57-75 64-65 61 60 69-70 71 140 Gould Mfg. Co. (Adv.), Grove, W. E., Gettysburg Nat. Bank (Adv.), .....; Gettysburg and Harrisburg R. R. fruit shipments, Grape Growing, Griest, A. W., Georgia Carriers, H 16 31,74 132 143-145 85-90 53,116 79,80 Honest Packing, Harrison, J. G. & Sons (Adv.), Harvesting Peaches, Method of, Horticultural Requisites, 43, 117, 120, 131 4 81 142 156 O z o H Z u o sition. To Bale Lock Extension Quick and Positive Always keep rope hand close to lad- der when ope- rating top sec- tion. Pull rope to raise the traveling sec- tion. To lower traveling sec- tion carry the hand slightly to the right while Bale is in vertical po- ....V... ^^ lock it, carry hand to the left, always keep- ine rope hand close to the ladder and the Bale will drop in position and lock it secure Tilley*s Omega Tripod Step Ladder ''First-class in every respect. StifF, rigid, light and durable. All flat steps to stand on. The two lower steps are supported by, and rest on rounds which tie, support and thor- oughly brace the main ladder. Fully cov- ered by patents dated December 26, 1910." "Beware of false statements from unscru- pulous competitors who are trying to force the sale of their inferior goods by intimida- tion. The Pantentee and Manufac- turer is responsible, reliable, able and willing to protect his patrons and himself against bluffers." JOHN S. TILLEY Manufacturer of Ladders and Step Ladders of every description Factory, WATERVLIET, N. Y. Represented in Pennsylvania by EDWIN C. TYSON, Flora Dale, Pa. Tripod Omega 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, 12, 13 steps ^> A <\^ f < M ^>\ 157 I Illustrations — Sprayers (Adv.), 6, 8, i6, 22, 23, 150, 152 Harrows (Adv.), ^54 Bolster Springs (Adv.), 140 Ladders (Adv.), 156 Spray Materials (Adv.), I44 Crates (Adv.), I33 Electrical Apparatus (Adv.), ^37 Pruning Tools (Adv.), I35 Picking Adams County York Imperial, 134 Well Tilled Orchard, 138 State College Greenhouses, 132-133 Automobiles (Adv.), 129 Effect of Fertilizers on Orchards, 00 Baskets of Peaches, 7^, Toa Crates of Peaches, oO» ^^ Advantage of Thinning Peaches, ooa Plate of Apples, ^34 Cluster of Adams Co. Winter Banana, 130 Chestnut Blight, 92,96,140 Basket of Adams Co. York Imperials, I39 Dish of Strawberries, ^30 Alfalfa, 112, 114 Crimson Clover, ^^^ Good Place for Cull Apples, I30 Neat Honest Packing, ^31 Skinner System of Irrigation Mi Adams County Blue Ribbon Fruit at Pittslmrg Show, 24,35,158 International Tool Co. (Adv.), I3S K Keystone Powder Co. ( Adv.) , 24 Kelly Brothers (Adv.), I3I Kinds of Food, 122 L Lipman, Dr. Jacob P 99-106,111-116 Lime Sulphur, Method of Making 33, 83 Little Peach, 29 Light Draft Harrow (Adv.), 154 Lessons from Western Apple Growers, 117,120 M Membership, Roll of, 5, 7, 9, ii» I3 Constitutional Requirement for, I7 Manure vs. Nothing on Apples (Illus.), 00 Manure vs. Fertilizer, 06 Marketing, 77, 82 Musselman Canning Co. (Adv.), ^ Madison Cooper Co. (Adv.), 120 Morrill & Morley Mfg. Co. (Adv.), I50 Mountain View Nursery Co. (Adv.), ^39 Making Good Coffee, 124 O Officers, List of, 3 Consist of, ^7 Duties of, i^' 21 Object of Association, ^7 Order of Business, 21 Orchard Heaters, 32 4 •. » ^^'^■^-^m- 158 .72 Orchard Fertilizer Test Outlined, * * ' * 75 Orner, P. S. (Adv.), P ... 63 Permanent Effect of Fertilizers, *;*.'.'.'.'.'. 42 Parcel Post, • • * * * V; V '^ ........: ^^' Pratt, B. G. Co. (Adv.), 43 Pure Food, ; *. 27, 28 Pruning Peach, 25,32 Peach Culture, ••••:•:•;:.••••;• 'AV^uVrdV ^^ Plant Food Result of Adding to Orchards, ^ 27 Planting Peach, Method of, . . . • * 32 Peach Fillers in Apple Orchards, 77^83 Peach Packing and Packages • * 107, no Problems Confronting Apple Growers, • • ^31, 126 . Principles of Cooking, R 146 Reiter, W. C. (Adv.), * / * * 10 Read, G. P. (Adv.), 91-^ Rockey, Keller E., • • • • • • /aY * V " ' '. '. ' 128,129 Richley, J. W. Auto Co. (Adv.), 53 Reviving Frozen Trees, ..144 ' Sherwin-Williams Co. (Adv.), 106 Sulphur ( Adv.) , . • • ' >; *.'.*."*.*.*.'*... 121, 126 Salisbury, Mrs. Edith C, C2, 57-75 Stewart, Dr. J. P., • • • 104 Soy Beans as Cover Crop, 32,52,54 Storage of Trees, T r ... 34 Tower for Spraying, Importance ot, ' j-^ Tilley, John S. (Adv.), '^^^^'T Relative Plant Food Draft of Wheat and Apples, .... g I.'^nflulnce of Fertilizers on ^;ield (Lawrence Co. , . g TTT Influence of Fertihzers on Yield. (Bedtord L,o. >, V; InLnce of Fertilizers on Yield. (A^ams Co.), ... ^5 V Influence of Fertilizers Elements on Apples, VI. General Fertilizer for Apple Orchards, 7^ VII. Plan of Local Orchard-Fertilizer i est, ^^^ / ^ Trees, Winter Injury to, .'.85,90,98, i07-"0» ^^^ Tenny, Lloyd S., .*.'.*.'..*........ . . ' 53, 74, i03, io5 Tyson, C. J., ^ 107 Varieties, of Apples, ."....,.. I04 Vetch as a Cover Crop •w ; . 98 Sl^Ma^yla^d-R.R.;Shipm;ntroVer;:^ \% Well Tilled Orchard, . ^ 46, 55 Winter Injury to Fruit Trees, .*.'.'.*.'.' 29, 30, 53, 74, 1^6 Wickersham, R. A., Y . • 14 York Chemical Co. (Adv.), 134^ 130, 158 York Imperial, Illustration ot, '.'.'..... 29,30 Yellows of Peach, ..•••••; '. 62,65 Yield Influenced by Fertilizers, Ui ii •A' '■*•-!