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APPLE GROWING

APPLEGROWING

BYM. C. BURRITT

NEW YORKOUTING PUBLISHING COMPANYMCMXII

COPYRIGHT, 1912, BYOUTING PUBLISHING COMPANY. 

All rights reserved. 

PREFACE

In the preparation of this book I have tried to keep constantly beforeme the conditions of the average farm in the Northeastern States withits small apple orchard. It has been my aim to set down only suchfacts as would be of practical value to an owner of such a farm and tostate these facts in the plain language of experience. This book is inno sense intended as a final scientific treatment of the subject, andif it is of any value in helping to make the fruit department of thegeneral farm more profitable the author will be entirely satisfied. 

The facts herein set down were first learned in the school ofpractical experience on the writer's own farm in Western New York. They were afterwards supplemented by some theoretical training and bya rather wide observation of farm orchard conditions and methods inNew York, Pennsylvania, the New England States and other contiguousterritory. These facts were first put together in something liketheir present form in the winter of 1909-10, when the writer gave aseries of lectures on Commercial Fruit Growing to the Short Courses inHorticulture at Cornell University. These lectures were revised andrepeated in 1910-11 and are now put in their present form. 

The author's sincere thanks are due to Professor C. S. Wilson, of theDepartment of Pomology at Cornell University, for many valuable factsand suggestions used in this book, and for a careful reading of themanuscript. He is also under obligations to Mr. Roy D. Anthony of thesame Department for corrections and suggestions on the chapters onInsects and Diseases and on Spraying. 

 M. C. BURRITT. 

Hilton, N. Y. February, 1912. 

CONTENTS

CHAPTER PAGE

I. THE OUTLOOK FOR THE GROWING OF APPLES 11

II. PLANNING FOR THE ORCHARD 18

III. PLANTING AND GROWING THE ORCHARD 30

IV. PRUNING THE TREES 48

V. CULTIVATION AND COVER CROPPING 62

VI. MANURING AND FERTILIZING 78

VII. INSECTS AND DISEASES AFFECTING THE APPLE 92

VIII. THE PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE OF SPRAYING 108

IX. HARVESTING AND STORING 127

X. MARKETS AND MARKETING 142

XI. SOME HINTS ON RENOVATING OLD ORCHARDS 153

XII. THE COST OF GROWING APPLES 164

APPLE GROWING

CHAPTER I

THE OUTLOOK FOR THE GROWING OF APPLES

The apple has long been the most popular of our tree fruits, but thelast few years have seen a steady growth in its appreciation and use. This is probably due in a large measure to a better knowledge of itsvalue and to the development of new methods of preparation forconsumption. Few fruits can be utilized in as many ways as can theapple. In addition to the common use of the fresh fruit out of handand of the fresh, sweet juice as cider, this "King of Fruits" can becooked, baked, dried, canned, and made into jellies and otherappetizing dishes, to enumerate all of which would be to prepare alist pages long. Few who have tasted once want to be without theirapple sauce and apple pies in season, not to mention the crisp, juicyspecimens to eat out of hand by the open fireplace in the long winterevenings. Apples thus served call up pleasant memories to most of us, but only recently have the culinary possibilities of the apple, especially as a dessert fruit, been fully realized. 

It is doubtless this realization of its great adaptability, togetherwith its long season, which have brought the apple into so greatdemand of late. It is possible to have apples on the table in someform the year round. The first summer apples are almost always with usbefore the bottom of the Russet barrel is reached. Or, should thefresh fruit be too expensive or for some reason fail altogether, thehousewife can fall back on the canned and dried fruit which are almostas good. 

The tendency in the price of this staple fruit has been constantlyupward during the last decade. Many people are greatly surprised whenthe fact that apples cost more than oranges is called to theirattention. The increase in consumption, due to the greater variety ofways of preparing the apple for use, has undoubtedly been an importantfactor in this higher price. But at least an equally important factoris the marked decrease in the supply of this fruit. To those who arenot familiar with the facts, the great falling off in production whichthe figures show will be no less than startling. 

PRODUCTION OF APPLES IN BARRELS IN THE UNITED STATES FROM 1896 TO 1910

 1896 69, 070, 000 1897 41, 530, 000 1898 28, 570, 000 1899 37, 460, 000 1900 56, 820, 000 ----------- Total crop for five years 233, 450, 000 Average crop for five years 46, 690, 000 1901 26, 970, 000 1902 46, 625, 000 1903 42, 626, 000 1904 45, 360, 000 1905 24, 310, 000 ------------ Total crop for five years 185, 891, 000 Average crop for five years 37, 178, 200 1906 38, 280, 000 1907 29, 540, 000 1908 25, 850, 000 1909 25, 415, 000 1910 23, 825, 000 Total crop for five years 142, 910, 000 ------------ Average crop for five years 28, 582, 000

 Estimates of 1896, 1897, and 1898 from "Better Fruit, " Vol. 5, No. 5. All other years from the estimates of the "American Agriculturist. "

It will thus be seen that the apple crop of 1910 was 45, 245, 000barrels less than that of 1896, and that during the whole period offifteen years the decline has been regular. The average annual crop ofthe five year period ending with 1905 was 9, 511, 800 barrels less thanthe average annual crop of the preceding five years ending with 1900, and correspondingly the annual average crop of the last five years, ending with 1910, was 8, 596, 200 barrels less than that of the secondfive year period. Comparing the first and the last five year periods, we find that the crop of the last was 18, 108, 000 barrels less thanthat of the first. These facts alone are enough to explain the higherprice of this fruit during the last ten years. 

HEAVY PLANTINGS. --Moreover, it should be further noted that thisfalling off in the apple crop has been in the face of the heaviestplantings ever known in this country. During the last ten years oldfruit growing regions like western New York have practically doubledtheir orchard plantings. Careful figures gathered by the New YorkState Agricultural College in an orchard survey of Monroe County showthat 4, 972 more trees (21, 289 in all) were planted in onerepresentative township during the five year period from 1904 to 1908inclusive than were ever planted in any other equal period in itshistory. New fruit regions like the Northwestern States and a largepart of the Shenandoah valley of Virginia have been developed by heavyplantings. These three are all great commercial sections. To them wemight add thousands of orchards which are scattered all over theNorthern and Eastern States, from Michigan to Maine and from Maine tonorth Georgia. 

It is doubtful, however, if these scattered plantings have made goodthe older trees which have died out. Scarcely a season passes thathundreds of these old veteran trees are not blown down or badlybroken. Every wind takes its toll. After one of these windstorms inSouthern New York the writer estimated that at least twenty per centof all the standing old apple trees had been destroyed or badlybroken. In the commercial regions only a small part of the newplantings have yet come to bearing and even here these probably do notmuch more than make good the losses of old trees. So that on thewhole, heavy as our plantings have been, it is extremely doubtful ifthey have very much more than made good the losses of the older treesthroughout the country. It is a fact worthy of note that this talk ofover-planting the apple has been going on for over thirty years, andwhile the timid ones talked those who had faith in the business andthe courage of their convictions planted apples and reaped goldenharvests while their neighbors still talked of over-planting. 

Whether or not it is true that we have over-planted the apple, it mustbe admitted that at the present time the demand is so much greaterthan the supply that the poorer of our people cannot afford to useapples commonly, and that no class of farmer in the NortheasternStates is more prosperous than the fruit growers. The new plantingsmust of necessity begin to bear and become factors in the market veryslowly. Meanwhile the great opportunity of the present lies in makingthe most possible out of the older orchards which are already inbearing. Practically all of these old farm orchards which can presenta fairly clean bill of health, and in which the varieties aredesirable, can with a small amount of well directed effort be put towork at once and during the next ten years or more of their life time, they may be made to add a substantial income to that of the generalfarm. Now is a time of opportunity for the owner of the small farmapple orchard. 

FUTURE OF APPLE GROWING. --In the writer's opinion the future of applegrowing in the United States is likely to shape itself largely in thegreat commercial regions. As these become more and more developed andas the industry becomes more specialized the farmer who is merelygrowing apples as a side line, except where he is delivering directlyto a special or a local market, will be crowded out. Here as elsewhereit will be a case of the survival of the fittest. In the production ofapples commercially those growers who can produce the best article themost cheaply are bound to win out in the end. 

It would, therefore, seem to be advisable for the general farmer toplant apples only under two conditions; first, when he has a veryfavorable location and site and plants heavily enough to make it worthwhile to have the equipment and skilled labor necessary to make theenterprise a success, and second, when he can market his fruitdirectly in a local market. It would appear that the immediate futureof apple growing in the United States lies in the small farm orchardas well as in the commercial orchards, but that the more distantfuture lies in the commercial orchard except where special conditionssurround the farm. 

CHAPTER II

PLANNING FOR THE ORCHARD

LOCATION. --Having decided that under certain conditions the plantingof an apple orchard will prove a profitable venture, and havingascertained that those conditions prevail on your farm, the next stepwill be to determine the best location on the farm for the orchard. Inchoosing this location it will be well to keep in mind the relativeimportance of the orchard in the scheme of farm management. If theorchard is merely a source of home supply, naturally it will notrequire as important a position on the farm as will be the case if itis expected to yield a larger share of the farm income. If therelatively large net income per acre which it is possible to obtainfrom an apple orchard is to be secured, the best possible location isdemanded. 

Contrary to the common ideas and practice of the past, the orchardshould not be put upon the poorest soil on the farm. The bestorchards occupy the best soils, although fairly good results are oftenobtained on poor or medium soils. The relative importance which isattached to the orchard enterprise must also govern the choice ofsoil. If apples are to be a prominent crop they should be given thepreference as to soil; if not, they may be given a place in accordancewith what is expected of them. 

SOILS. --In general, the apple prefers a rather strong soil, neithervery heavy nor very light. Subsoil is rather more important thansurface soil, although the latter should be friable and easily worked. The apple follows good timber successfully. Heavy clay soils are aptto be too cold, compact, and wet; light sandy soils too loose and dry. A medium clay loam or a gravelly clay loam, underlaid by a somewhatheavier but fairly open clay subsoil is thought to be the best soilfor apples. Broadly considered, medium loams are best. The lighter thesoil the better will be the color of the fruit as a rule, and so, also, the heavier the soil and the more nitrogen and moisture it holdsthe greater the tendency to poorly colored fruit. In the same waylight soils give poorer wood and foliage growth as compared with thelarge rank leaves and wood of trees on heavy, rich soils. 

VARIETAL SOIL PREFERENCES are beginning to be recognized. We cannot gointo these in detail in this brief discussion. A few suggestionsregarding standard varieties must suffice. Medium to light loams orheavy sandy loams, underlaid by slightly heavier loams or clay loams, are preferred by the Baldwin, which has a wider soil adaptation thanpractically any other variety. Baldwin soils should dry quickly aftera rain. Rhode Island Greening requires a rather rich, moist, but welldrained soil, containing an abundance of organic matter. A light toheavy silty loam, underlaid by a silty clay loam, is considered best. 

Northern Spy is very exacting in its soil requirements. A medium loam, underlaid by a heavy loam or a light clay loam, is excellent. Heavysoils give the Spy a greasy skin. Light soils cause the tree to growupright and to bear fruit of poor flavor. The King likes a soilslightly lighter than the best Greening soils, but retentive ofmoisture. Hubbardson will utilize the sandiest soil of any northernvariety, preferring rich, fine, sandy loams. 

The particular location of the apple orchard is largely a matter ofconvenience. It should be remembered, however, that the apple requiresmuch and constant attention, therefore the orchard should beconvenient of access. The product is rather bulky, so that the haul tothe highway should be as short as possible. Other conditions beingequally good there, the common location near the buildings and highwayis best. 

THE SITE OF THE ORCHARD is a more important matter. Two essentialsshould be kept in mind, good air drainage and a considerableelevation. Although it is not so apparent and therefore less thoughtabout, cold air runs down hill the same as water. Being heavier, itfalls to the surface of the land, flowing out through the waterchannels and settling in pockets and depressions. Warm air, beinglighter, rises. It is desirable to avoid conditions of stagnant air orcold air pockets where frost and fogs are liable to occur. A freemovement of air, especially a draining away of cold air, is bestsecured by an elevation. Fifty to one hundred feet, or sometimes less, is usually sufficient, especially where there is good outlet below. Frosts occur in still, clear air and these conditions occur mostfrequently in the lower areas. 

Aspect or slope requires less attention. Southern exposures are warmand hasten bud development and opening in spring. Northern exposuresare cold and retard the blossoming period. It is usually advisable toplant the apple on the colder slopes which hold it back in springuntil all danger of late frosts is past. Northeast exposures are bestas a general rule. Choose a slope away from the prevailing wind ifpossible. If this is impracticable it is often advisable to plant awind break of pine, spruce, or a quick, thick growing native tree toprotect the orchard from heavy winds. 

A large body of water is an important modifier of climate. Warming upmore slowly in the spring, it retards vegetation by slowly giving upits cold. Vice versa, cooling more slowly in the fall giving up itsheat wards off the early frosts. It is therefore desirable to locatenear such bodies of water if possible. Their influence variesaccording to their size and depth, and the distance of the orchardfrom them. Good examples of this influence are the Chautauqua GrapeBelt on the eastern shore of Lake Erie and the Western New York AppleBelt on the south shore of Lake Ontario. 

Professor Brackett has well summed up the whole question: "Theselection of the soil and site for the apple orchard is not governedby any arbitrary rule, " he says. "All farms do not afford the bestsoils or exposures for orchards. The owners of such as do not areunfortunate, yet they should not feel discouraged to the extent of notplanting trees and caring for them afterward. " There are a number offactors which influence not only a person who wishes to locate, butone already located, either favorably or unfavorably. About these eventhe most intelligent orchardists often differ. We have only laid downgeneral principles and given opinions. Here as elsewhere applicationis a matter of judgment. 

VARIETIES. --A proper soil and a good location and site having beenselected, the next important question to be decided is the varietiesto be planted. So much and so variable advice is given on thisquestion that many persons are at a loss as to what to plant and toooften decide the matter by planting the wrong varieties. Rightlyviewed, the question of varieties is a comparatively simple one. Personal preference, tempered by careful study of certain factors andgood judgment, are all that are required. Beginners, especially, aretoo apt to rely entirely on another's opinion. The only safe way is tolearn the facts and then decide for yourself. 

We have already indicated that soil is a determinant in the choice ofvarieties. This should be absolute. It is very unwise to try to growany variety on a soil where experience has shown that it does not dowell. The experience of your neighbors is the best guide in thisrespect. 

The limitations of climate should also be carefully heeded. An applemay be at its best in one latitude or one situation and at its worstin another. Find out from experienced growers in your region, or fromyour State Experiment Station what varieties are best adaptedclimatically to the place where you live. It is an excellent rulenever to plant a variety that you cannot grow at least as well as anyone else, or still better, to plant a variety that you can grow betterthan anyone else. Grow something that not everyone can grow. Do nottry to produce more of a variety of which there is already an oversupply. 

A few examples may make this more clear. Western New York is the homeof the Baldwin, the Twenty Ounce and the King. Albemarle Pippins grownon the eastern slope of the Blue Ridge are famous. The Spitzenburgappears at its best in the Northwest. The Northern Spy, the McIntosh, and the Fameuse are not to be excelled as they are grown in theChamplain Valley, in Vermont, or in Maine. To attempt to compete withthese sections in the growing of these varieties, except under equallyfavorable conditions, would be foolish. Your section probably growssome varieties to perfection. Find out what these varieties are andplant them. 

All these are general factors to be observed which cannot bespecifically settled without knowing the soil and particular locality. Certain other factors governing the choice of varieties can be moredefinitely outlined. If the prospective orchardist will get thesefactors thoroughly in mind and apply them with judgment mistakes inplanting should be much more rare. The more important ones are: Thepurpose for which the fruit is intended to be used, whether for thegeneral market, a dessert or fancy trade, or for culinary and generaltable use; whether the trees are to be permanent and long lived, ortemporary and used as fillers; whether the earliest possible income isdesired or whether this is to be secondary to the future developmentof the orchard; whether the stock of the particular variety is strongor weak growing; whether the variety is high, medium, or low as toquality; and whether the market is to be local, distant, or export. 

The following tables were originally compiled by Professor C. S. Wilsonof Cornell University. They have been slightly revised and modifiedfor our purpose. We believe that they are essentially correct and thatthey will be a safe guide for the reader to follow in his selection ofvarieties:

GENERAL MARKET APPLES DESSERT OR FANCY TRADECOMMERCIAL BOX WELL

 Baldwin McIntosh Ben Davis Northern Spy Hubbardson Fameuse Northern Spy Wagener King Grimes Golden Rome Beauty Yellow Newton Oldenburg Red Canada Alexander King Twenty Ounce Sutton Winesap Hubbardson York Imperial Esopus Spitzenburg

 CULINARY AND GENERAL TABLE USE

 Rhode Island Greening Grimes Golden Gravenstein Twenty Ounce Newtown Yellow Bellflower Alexander Oldenburg Tolman Sweet Sweet Winesap

GOOD PERMANENT GOOD TEMPORARYTREES TREES--FILLERS

 Baldwin McIntosh Rhode Island Greening Wealthy Northern Spy Wagener McIntosh Rome Beauty *King Oldenburg *Twenty Ounce Jonathan *Hubbardson Alexander Alexander Twenty Ounce Rome Beauty Hubbardson

 * When this variety is set as a permanent tree it should be top worked on a hardier stock, such as Northern Spy. 

Age at which variety may be expected to begin to fruit. (Add two yearsfor a paying crop). 

FIVE YEARS OR UNDER EIGHT YEARS AND UP

 Rome Beauty Esopus Spitzenburg Oldenburg Fall Pippin Maiden Blush Golden Russet Wagener Northern Spy Yellow Newton Baldwin McIntosh Gravenstein Fameuse Tolman Sweet King Rhode Island Gr. Twenty Ounce Winesap

ESPECIALLY HARDY STOCKS POOR RATHER WEAK GROWERS*

 Northern Spy King Tolman Sweet Twenty Ounce Ben Davis Esopus Spitzenburg Baldwin Hubbardson Fameuse Grimes Golden Winter Banana Sutton Canada Red

* Other varieties are medium. 

HIGH IN QUALITY LOCAL OR PEDDLER'S VARIETIES

 McIntosh Rhode Island Greening Esopus Spitzenburg Wealthy Northern Spy McIntosh Newtown Fameuse Gravenstein Tolman Sweet Red Canada Grimes Golden Fameuse Jonathan Grimes Golden Hubbardson GOOD GENERAL MARKET VARIETIES Rhode Island Greening BaldwinMEDIUM TO POOR QUALITY Rhode Island King Ben Davis Twenty Ounce Oldenburg McIntosh Rome Beauty Hubbardson Roxbury Russet Northern Spy

 GOOD EXPORT VARIETIES

 Baldwin Newtown Ben Davis Esopus Spitzenburg Northern Spy Jonathan

Only the best and most common varieties for the more northernlatitudes have been included in this list as it would make it toocumbersome to classify all our known varieties. It must be rememberedthat this is not an arbitrary classification and that it is made as aguide to indicate to the reader the general characteristics of thevariety. It should be used as such and not taken literally. Thecharacters of the different varieties grade into each other. Forexample, the McIntosh is very high and the Ben Davis is very low inquality but the King and the Twenty Ounce are neither very good norvery poor, but midway between. 

We must again remind the reader that the choice of varieties is amatter of judgment, tempered by the facts regarding them. One who isnot capable of rendering such judgment after studying his conditionsand the characteristics and requirements of leading varieties hadbetter stay out of the apple business entirely, as he will often becalled on for the exercise of good judgment in caring for the orchard. The facts here given are intended as suggestive. The reader whodesires to know more of a particular variety will do well to consultBeach's "Apples of New York, " published by the Geneva ExperimentStation. 

CHAPTER III

PLANTING AND GROWING THE ORCHARD

The proper soil, site, and location having been selected, the solutionof the problems of orchard management is only just begun, although agood start has certainly been made. Farm management brings constantlyto one's attention new problems and new phases of old problems, whatever the type of farming. The skill with which these problems aremet and a solution found for them determines the success or failure ofthe farm manager. To some men the details of the orchard businessoffer the greatest obstacles, while to others it is the generalrelationship of one detail to another which is difficult. Both areessentials of good management. If we are able in this chapter toremove some of these minor difficulties and at the same time indicatethe correct relationships we will have accomplished our purpose. 

As we come now to the actual plans for planting our orchard manyquestions come up for answer. When shall I plant? Where and of whomshall I purchase my trees? How old should they be? Is it wise to usefillers or temporary trees, and if so, what kind? How far apart shouldthe trees be planted and how many are required for an acre? Whatarrangement of the trees is most advisable? How should the ground beprepared? What is the best method of setting? When the trees areplanted should they be inter-cropped, and if so, with what? How shouldthe young trees be handled and cared for? He who would be a successfulorchardist must endeavor to answer these questions. 

WHEN TO PLANT. --The question of fall or spring planting is a lessimportant one with a comparatively hardy fruit like the apple than itis with a more tender fruit like the peach. Apples may safely beplanted in the fall when soils are well drained and when the youngtrees are well matured, both of which are very important if winterinjury is to be avoided. Fall planting has several distinctadvantages. During the winter fall planted trees become wellestablished in the soil which enables them to start root growthearlier in the spring. Consequently the young trees are better able toendure droughts. In the fall the weather is usually more settled andthere is better opportunity to plant under favorable conditions thanin the unsettled weather of spring. It is usually possible, too, toget a better selection of trees at the nursery in the fall becausemost of the trees are not sold until midwinter. 

Still the fact remains that the common practice of spring planting isthe more conservative course. There is always danger of gettingimmature trees in the fall, and of winter injury to fall plantedtrees. Trees may be set in the fall any time after the buds are maturewhich is usually after October 1st to 18th in the latitude of NewYork. They should not be pruned back in the fall, as this inviteswinter killing of the uppermost buds. The question of available timemust also be considered. On some farms fall offers more time; onothers, spring. To sum up the matter, plant at the most convenienttime, providing the conditions are favorable. 

WHERE TO BUY. --But one rule as to where to buy trees can be laid down. Buy where you can secure the best trees and where you can be sure ofthe most reliable and honest dealers. Beware of the tree agent, whohas been guilty of more dishonesty and misrepresentation than almostany other traveling agent. Buy of a salesman under one condition only, that he prove to you that he is the bona fide representative of awell-known and reputable nursery firm, and then make your ordersubject to investigation of the firm's standing and finding it asrepresented. 

The safest course is usually to purchase of your home nurseryman withwhose standing and honesty you are familiar, and whose trees you canpersonally inspect. Such a man has a reputation at stake and will havean object in keeping your trade. Moreover, you will save freight, secure fresher stock with less liability of injury in handling, andget trees grown under your own conditions. If stock is purchased awayfrom home it is better to get it at a nursery in a more southernlatitude in order to secure trees of better growth. 

All trees should be purchased in the late summer or early fall whenthe nurseryman has a full list of varieties and you can get the pickof his stock. Select a well grown mature tree two years old from thebud. One year old trees are preferred by many and if well grown and atleast five feet high they are probably best. But a one year old treeis rather more delicate, requiring careful handling and intelligenttraining. Unless a person buys from a southern nursery and is anexpert in handling trees, the two year old tree is to be preferred, but a skilful grower can make a more satisfactory tree from a one yearold seedling. 

The average buyer must depend largely on his nurseryman for gettingtrees true to name, which is the reason for laying so much emphasis onpurchasing from an honest dealer. Some nurserymen guarantee theirvarieties to be true to name, and all ought to do so. Buyers shoulddemand it. The seeds of the apple rarely come true to the varietyplanted. They are therefore usually budded on one year old seedlingsimported from France. Sometimes they are whole or piece root graftedwhich is equally as good a method of propagation. 

It is possible for a man to grow and bud or graft his own seedlings, but hardly advisable for the average small grower or general farmer, as it is usually expensive when done on a small scale and requiresconsiderable skill. Always buy a high grade tree. Seconds are oftenequally as good as firsts when they are simply smaller as a result ofcrowding in the nursery row. A tree which is second grade because ofbeing stunted, crooked, or poorly grown should never be set. Thirdsare seldom worth considering at any price. 

FILLERS. --Whether or not the planter of an apple orchard should usefillers is a question which he alone must decide. In the writer'sopinion there are more advantages than disadvantages in so doing, butwe must state both sides of the question and let the reader judge forhimself. The term "filler" is one used to designate a tree planted inthe orchard for the temporary purpose of profitably occupying thespace between the permanent trees while these are growing and not yetin bearing. Fillers make a more complete use of the land, bringing inlarger as well as quicker returns from it, three distinct advantages. (See Chapter XII, The Cost of Growing Apples. ) On the other hand, objections to their use are that they are often left in so long thatthey crowd and seriously injure the permanent trees, and that theircare often requires different operations and at different times fromthe other trees, such as spraying, which may result in injury to thepermanent trees in the orchard. 

Trees used as fillers for apples should have two importantcharacteristics; they should be rapid, vigorous growers and shouldcome into bearing at a very early age. Two kinds of fillers areavailable, those of the same species, which may be either dwarf orstandard trees, and those of a different species, of which peaches andplums, and possibly pears, are the best adapted. Dwarf trees may bedismissed from our plans with the statement that they have rarelyproved profitable under ordinary conditions, as they are much moredifficult to grow than standards and when grown they have but fewadvantages over them. The varieties of standard apples which areadvisable as fillers have been indicated in Chapter II. 

The use of peaches and the Japanese plums, both of which makeexcellent fillers because they grow rapidly and come to heavy bearingquickly, is limited to their soil and climatic adaptation. They areadapted to the lighter phases of soil and the more moderate climatesand under other conditions are impracticable. On heavier soils and inmore rigorous climates the European plums and the more rapid and earlybearing pears, such as the Keiffer, make fairly good fillers. 

On the whole, the writer is inclined to advise the use of fillers inthe general farm orchard. Quicker returns from an investment of thisnature, which is usually heavy and which at best must be put offseveral years, are very important. Under careful and intelligentmanagement the objections to their use are easily overcome. 

SPACING AND ARRANGEMENT OF TREES. --The distance apart of plantingdepends on the variety planted. Close headed, upright growing treesmay be planted closer together than spreading varieties. Somevarieties grow larger than others, and the same variety may vary insize on different soils. It is seldom advisable to plant standardapple trees in the latitude of New York closer than thirty feet, orfarther apart than fifty feet. Trees of the nature of Twenty Ounce andOldenburg (Dutchess) should be planted from thirty-two to thirty-sixfeet apart, while Baldwins, Rhode Island Greenings, and Northern Spiesrepresent the other extreme and will require forty, and sometimesfifty feet of space. The method and thoroughness of pruning influencesthe size of trees greatly, and hence the distance at which It isnecessary to set them. 

Varieties top worked on other stocks have a tendency to grow moreupright and may be set closer together. It should be remembered inthis connection that the roots of a tree extend considerably beyondthe spread of the branches. From thirty-five to forty feet is a goodaverage distance and trees should be trained so as to occupy thisspace and no more. Where fillers are used the latter distance is best, as the twenty feet apart at which the trees will then stand is closeenough for any standard variety. 

RECTANGULAR. --The method of setting or the arrangement of the treeswill greatly influence the number of trees which may be put upon anacre and the distance apart of the trees in the row. The most commonmethod in the past has been the regular square or rectangular method, e. G. , trees forty by forty feet, or forty by fifty feet, and rows atright angles, and this is still preferred by many. It is easy to layout an orchard on this plan and there is less liability of makingmistakes. It is best adapted to regular fields with right anglecorners, especially where the orchard is to be cropped with a regularrotation. All tillage operations are most easily performed in orchardsset on this plan. 

A slight modification of this arrangement which is often advisable, especially where fillers are used, is to set a tree in the center ofthe square. The trees then stand like the five spots of a domino, andthe shortest distance between trees will be about twenty-seven feetwhen the trees in the regular rows are forty by forty feet apart. Thisplan practically doubles the number of trees which can be set on anacre. 

HEXAGONAL OR TRIANGULAR. --Another method of arrangement of the treeswhich is becoming more and more popular is the hexagonal or triangularsystem. More trees can be planted on an acre by this plan than by anyother, it being very economical of space. It makes all adjacent treesequally distant from each other and is really a system of equilateraltriangles. This plan is better adapted to small areas and especiallyto irregular ones, and should be employed where land is expensive andculture very intensive. It is more difficult to set an orchard afterthis method without error, and it is open to the objection ofinconvenience in cultural operations. Most people forget that whilethe rows running cornerwise in a rectangular or square field set afterthis plan may be a standard distance apart, yet the right angle rows(not trees) in which it may be more convenient to work are actuallymuch closer together. 

The best plan to follow to get the rows of trees straight on a levelfield is what is known as the outside stake method. This plan requiresthe placing of a row of stakes on each of the four sides of the fieldwhere the trees are to be set and usually about two rows each waythrough the middle. For this purpose ordinary building laths are best, about one hundred and fifty laths, or three bundles, being requiredfor five acres, which is as large a unit as can be set at once by thisplan. 

_First_, determine the distance from the road or fence to the firsttree row, which would be at least eighteen feet to allow for turningthe teams, and establish base lines on each side of the field at rightangles to each other. 

_Second_, beginning at the given distance from the side of the field, set up a row of stakes along these base lines at the exact distanceapart at which the trees are to be set and about half way between thefence and the first right angle row. Do the same on all sides of thefield. 

_Third_, by sighting across the field from one end stake to the otherthe cross rows of stakes can be set through the middle of the field. These should be about six or eight rods apart, and care should be usedto avoid setting them where they will interfere with the sighting ofthe right angle rows. This plan has the great merit of enabling theentire orchard to be set without moving a stake, as no stake standswhere a tree is to be set. If the trees are set exactly where thesight lines cross at right angles and if all rows are an equaldistance apart, the rows will be perfectly straight. 

On rough or rolling land this plan does not work well. Here moresimple methods, though requiring more time, must be used. Lines drawnwith a cord or marked across the field with a corn planter answer wellfor small areas. Poles of the right length are often used to goodadvantage. In setting trees after the hexagonal plan an equilateraltriangle made of light poles or wire is probably best, especially onsmall rough areas, as it is very accurate, simple, and quite rapid. Some men prefer to make measurements and set a stake at every pointwhere a tree is to be placed. In these cases a simple device locatesthe original stakes after the hole has been dug. A light board aboutsix feet long with a notch in the center and holes with pegs in themat each end is placed with the notch at the stake. One end is thenswung round and the hole dug. When the end is replaced on its peg thetree set in the hole should rest in the notch where the original stakedid. 

The following table shows the number of trees required per acre atdifferent distances for the square or rectangular method and for thehexagonal method. 

 Sq. Hex. Sq. Hex. 

 12 × 12 302 344 24 × 24 75 80 12 × 15 242 . . . 24 × 30 60 . . 15 × 15 193 224 30 × 30 48 56 15 × 18 161 . . . 30 × 36 40 . . 15 × 20 145 . . . 33 × 33 40 46 15 × 30 96 . . . 30 × 48 30 . . 18 × 18 134 156 30 × 60 24 . . 18 × 20 121 . . . 36 × 36 33 39 20 × 20 108 124 40 × 40 27 31 20 × 30 72 . . . 40 × 50 21 . . 

It will be noted that the hexagonal plan allows the setting of fromfour to forty trees more per acre than the square plan, even when thetrees are set the same distance apart. This is the great advantage ofthis plan over the square. Filling an orchard one way, i. E. , betweenthe permanent row, in one direction only, practically doubles thetrees which can be set on an acre; filling both ways quadruples thenumber. 

PREPARATION OF SOIL. --The previous condition and treatment of a soilfor an orchard are important. If the soil has been in a good rotationof field crops, including some cultivated crops, it should be in primecondition for the trees. Old pastures and meadows should be plowed up, cropped, and cultivated for a year or two before setting to obtain thebest and quickest results. If one is in a hurry, however, this may bedone after setting the trees. Good results are sometimes obtained bysetting trees right among the stumps on recently cleared timberland. Where no stiff sod has formed the trees start quickly in the richsoil. 

The best immediate treatment of land preparatory to setting the treesshould be such as to place the soil in good tilth. Deep plowing, thorough cultivation, and the application of liberal amounts ofmanure--twelve to fifteen loads per acre--are the most effective meansof doing this. The best crop immediately to precede trees is clover. Sometimes an application of one thousand five hundred to two thousandpounds of lime will help to insure a stand of clover and at the sametime improve the physical condition of the soil. Fall plowing is agood practice on the medium loams and more open soils, but on theheavy clays spring plowing is to be preferred, as when plowed in thefall these soils puddle and become hard to handle. Care should alwaysbe taken to keep the orchard well furrowed out as standing water isdecidedly inimical to satisfactory tree-growth. Tile draining isfrequently advisable. 

INTERCROPPING. --The question of intercropping a young orchard is oneto be carefully considered. As it is often practiced it is veryinjurious to the orchard, but it is possible to manage crops so as tobe of very little harm to the trees. While the practice may beinadvisable in many commercial orchards, yet on a general farm weshould by all means think that it was the right thing to do. Certainfacts must be remembered, however, which have a bearing on thesubject. 

Trees are a crop, as much as corn or grass. If we grow a crop betweenthe tree rows we must remember that we are double cropping the landand that it must be fed and cared for accordingly. There is absolutelyno use in setting an apple orchard, expecting it to take care ofitself, "just growing, " like Topsy, as numerous dilapidated and brokendown orchards bear ample testimony. If orchards are to be croppedthis must be judiciously done with the trees primarily in mind. 

The best crops to grow in a young apple orchard are those requiringcultivation, or which permit the cultivation of the land early in theseason. Field beans, potatoes, and garden truck of all kinds, as smallvegetables, melons, etc. , are among the very best crops to grow in theyoung orchard. Corn will do if it does not shade the trees too much. Small grain and grass should not be used, especially where they comeup close to the trees. These crops form too stiff a sod and use up toomuch moisture. A mulch of straw, cut grass, or coarse manure will helpto correct this condition somewhat when these crops must be used. After cultivation until midsummer buckwheat makes a satisfactoryorchard crop in some cases. 

A regular rotation may be used in the young orchard to advantage whena space is left next the trees to receive cultivation. This spaceshould be at least two feet on each side of the tree the first yearand should be widened each year as the tree grows older and larger, tofour, six, and eight feet. This method has been used by the authorvery successfully for a number of years. Some good rotations to usein a growing orchard are: (1) Wheat or rye one year, clover one year, beans or potatoes one year; (2) oats one year, clover one year, potatoes one year; (3) beans one year, rye plowed under in spring, followed by any cultivated crop one or two years. The essentials of agood rotation for an orchard are: A humus and fertility supplyingcrop, preferably clover, in the north, and cow peas in the south, andat least two crops in four requiring cultivation up to the middle ofthe summer. 

Most of the points regarding the management of young trees havealready been mentioned, but a few others should have attentiondirected to them. Fall planted trees should not be cut back untilspring. In the spring all newly planted trees should have their topscut back rather severely to correspond with the injury to the roots intransplanting, thus preserving the balance between root and top. Thiswill usually be about half to two-thirds the previous season's growth. From three to five well distributed branches should be left with whichto form the top. During the first few years of their lives the youngapple trees will need little or no pruning, except to shape them andremove crossing or interfering branches. 

Constant cultivation at frequent intervals until midsummer should bethe rule with young growing trees, with which this is even moreimportant than with older trees. It is a good plan to plow the orchardin fall where possible, always turning the furrows toward the trees, leaving the dead furrows as drainage ditches between the rows. AtBeechwood Farm we have always banked the trees with earth in the fall, using a shovel. This not only firms the soil about the tree, holdingit straight and strong through the winter, but it affords goodprotection against rodents, especially mice. Where rabbits areprevalent it is well to place a fine mesh wire netting around thetrees in addition to this. 

CHAPTER IV

PRUNING THE TREES

Pruning is not an entirely artificial operation as one might at firstthought suppose. It is one of nature's most common processes. Natureaccomplishes this result through the principle of competition, bystarting many more trees on a given area than can possibly survive. Inthe same way there is a surplus of buds and branches on eachindividual tree. It is only by the crowding out and the perishing ofmany buds, branches, and trees that others are enabled to reachmaturity and fulfill their purpose. This being too slow and tooexpensive a process for him, man accomplishes in a day with the knifeand saw what nature is years in doing by crowding, shading, andcompetition. Proper pruning is really an improvement on nature'smethod. 

Neither is it true, as some claim, that pruning is a devitalizingprocess. On the contrary it is often stimulating and may actuallyincrease the vigor of a weak or declining tree. All practicalexperience teaches us that pruning is a reasonable, necessary, andadvantageous process. True, it is often overdone, and improperly done. As in many other things, certain fundamental principles underlie andshould govern practice. When these are known and observed, pruningbecomes a more simple matter. 

Heavy pruning during the dormant or winter season stimulates thegrowth and tends to increase the production of wood. In the same waypruning during the summer or growing season stimulates the growth andtends to induce fruitfulness, if the tree remains healthy. But thisfruitfulness is apt to be at the expense of the vigor of the tree. Onthe other hand, the pruning of the roots of a tree tends to check thegrowth of wood, the same as poor feeding. As above noted heading backa tree when dormant tends to stimulate it to a more vigorous growth. 

The habit of growth of a variety has much to do with its pruning. Somevarieties of apples are upright, others are spreading growers. Climateand locality greatly affect these habits of growth. So also the habitof a young tree often differs from the habit of the same tree in oldage. The tendency is for a tree to continue its growth from itsuppermost or terminal buds. Although the heading in of new growthchecks this upward tendency and throws the energy of the tree into thedevelopment of lateral and dormant buds, nevertheless the pruned treesoon resumes its natural upward growing habit. 

Plant food is taken up by the minute tree rootlets in solution andcarried to the leaves where it is elaborated and then returned for useto the growing tissues of the tree. Whenever there is any obstructionabove a bud the tendency is to throw the energy of the branch into alateral bud, but if the obstruction is below the bud the branch merelythickens and growth is checked. When too heavy pruning is practicedthe balance between the roots and top is disturbed. This usuallyresults in what are commonly known as "suckers. " These are caused byan abnormal condition and while they may be the result of disease orinjury to the tree, they are often of great value in restoring orreadjusting the proper balance between the roots and top. 

Pruning a tree is a way of thinning the fruit and a good one. It maysometimes be used to influence the bearing year of trees like theBaldwin, which have an alternate bearing habit, but this is a moretheoretical than practical method. Fruit bearing is determined more bythe habitual performance of the tree than by any method of pruning, and this is especially true of old trees. It is easier to influenceyoung trees. Conditions which tend to produce heavy wood growth areunfavorable for the formation and development of fruit buds. Aquiescent state is a better condition for this. 

REASONS FOR PRUNING. --With these fundamental principles in mind we maysafely outline a method of pruning an apple tree. As the desired endis different so will the method of pruning a young tree differ fromthat of an old one. There are five important things for which to prunea young tree, namely:

1. To preserve a proper balance between the top and root at the timeof setting out. This usually means cutting off the broken and the verylong roots to a reasonable length and cutting back from one-half totwo-thirds of the growth of the previous season. 

2. To make the top open in order to admit the sunlight freely. In thehumid climate of the Northeastern States, it is usually advisable toprune a tree so as to have a rather open top. This is necessary inorder properly to color and mature the fruit. 

3. To regulate the number of limbs composing the top. Probably threebranches well distributed on the trunk would make most nearly theideal head, but as these cannot always be obtained the best practiceis to leave from three to five branches from which to form the top. 

4. To fix the branches at the proper height from the ground. This ismore or less a matter of opinion, some growers preferring a low andothers a high head. The character of the tree growth, the method ofculture, and the purpose of the tree whether temporary or permanentgreatly influence the height of the head. An upright growing varietyshould be headed lower than a spreading one. Trees kept in sod orunder extensive methods can well be headed lower than those under moreintensive culture where it is desirable to carry on culturaloperations close around them. Permanent trees should be headed higherthan temporary trees. Apple trees should seldom be headed lower than afoot from the ground, nor more than four feet above it. For uprightgrowing varieties intended as permanents, the writer prefers three tothree and one-half feet and for more spreading varieties four feet;while for temporary trees eighteen inches should be a good height. 

5. To do away with weak crotches and to remove crossing or interferingbranches. A crotch formed by two branches of equal size, especiallywhen the split is deep, is a weak crotch and should be avoided. Strongcrotches are formed by forcing the development of lateral buds andmaking almost a right angle branch from the parent one. All brancheswhich rub each other, which tend to occupy the same space withanother, or which generally seem out of place, are better removed assoon as any of these tendencies are found to exist. 

IDEALS IN PRUNING. --The general method of pruning the old trees andthe ideal in mind for it will also influence the pruning of the youngtree, especially the shaping of it. Once determined upon, the idealshould be consistently followed out in the pruning of the tree as itbecomes older. As the tree comes to bearing age it will be necessaryto prune somewhat differently and for other purposes. These we canconveniently consider under six heads:

1. Every tree should be pruned with a definite ideal as to size, shape, and degree of openness in mind. To have such an ideal is veryimportant. It is only by industriously and consistently carrying itout that the ideal tree in these respects can be ever obtained. Haphazard cutting and sawing without a definite purpose in mind arereally worse than no pruning at all. 

2. It almost goes without saying that to remove all dead, diseased, orinjured wood is a prime purpose of pruning. Dead and injured branchesopen the way for rot and decay of contiguous branches, and diseasespreads through the tree. The removal of all such branches is asessential to the health of the tree as it is to its good appearance. In removing them the cut should be made well behind the diseased orinjured part to insure the checking of rot and disease. 

3. All mature apple trees should be so pruned as to keep them in themost easily manageable shape and to facilitate in every possible waythe operations of tillage, spraying, and harvesting. It is mostimportant to have the tree low enough down so that spraying andpicking can be easily done. It is difficult to spray properly a treewhich is more than twenty-five feet in height. Even this heightnecessitates a tower on the spray rig and the use of an extensionpole. An apple tree should be so pruned that all the fruit can bereadily picked from ladders not longer than eighteen to twenty-twofeet. 

Of course, if the tree has been allowed to get higher than this underprevious management, sometimes we have to make the best of a badsituation. If the trees are too high head them back by cutting off theleaders, but it is not always wise to lower all trees to twenty-twofeet. Heading back of old trees will be more fully discussed in thechapter on "Renovating Old Orchards. " Ladders longer than twenty-twofeet are heavy and clumsy to handle. 

If cultivation is to be carried on close up under the tree the lowerlimbs must be pruned so as to allow this. It is not necessary, however, to drive a team closer than twelve or fifteen feet from amature tree, contrary to the common belief and practice. Cultivationis least important in the first few feet of space around a maturetree. By the use of set-over tools, all that is necessary can be wellcultivated without crowding the team under or against the branches. 

4. As has been pointed out in the discussion of the pruning of youngtrees, in humid regions where the sunlight is none too abundantthrough the growing season, the open head is most desirable. Sunlighton the leaves as well as on the fruit is essential to good color ofthe fruit, and good color is a very important factor in the flavor andattractive appearance of the fruit. An open center with uprightgrowing leaders removed gives the greatest opportunity for sunlight topenetrate through the tree. 

5. As we have seen, pruning in the dormant season tends to increasethe vigor of the tree. Thus winter pruning serves to secure a normaland vigorous wood growth, which is most essential to a healthyfruit-bearing tree. On the other hand, such pruning may be excessiveand produce wood growth at the expense of fruit buds, throwing thetree out of bearing. 

6. The sixth and last reason for pruning is to regulate the number anddistribution of the wood and the fruit bearing buds. The properbalance between these is greatly affected by pruning and can be bestregulated by experience with the particular tree or variety. A perfectbalance is hard to get, but with study and skill it can be closelyapproximated. Pruning, too, may thin the fruit, as removing branchesremoves fruit buds. This is best done by removing small branches nearthe ends of larger ones. It is a much cheaper method of thinning thanpicking off individual fruits, but not as effective. 

TIME OF PRUNING. --The particular time of the year for pruning is notvital. As between summer and winter pruning, winter is to be preferredbecause of the physical effect on the tree. Summer pruning is anunnatural process and should only be practiced as a last resort tocheck growth or induce fruitfulness, as it may result in injury to thetree. It is essential that a tree mature its foliage, which itfrequently does not do after summer pruning. Diseased, dead, orinjured wood should be removed when first observed, summer or winter. 

Spring is the logical and usually the most convenient time to prune onthe general farm. While dormant season pruning may be done at anytime between November 1st and June 1st, the cuts heal more rapidly inthe spring when the sap begins to flow. In regions subject to severeand drying winds in the winter, pruning should be deferred at least tolate winter. Considered from every standpoint, March and April arequite the best months in which to prune. After the removal of uselessbranches, the normal amount of food material is delivered to fewerbuds under greater sap pressure and the remaining buds are made morestrong and vigorous. 

In removing small branches with a knife or other cutting tool, the cutshould be made upward from below and opposite a bud. On uprightgrowing varieties the last bud left should be an outside one to inducethe tree to spread as much as possible, while on spreading treesleaving as the last bud an inside one has a tendency to make the treegrow more upright. Always cut close to the parent branch, neverleaving a stub no matter how young or old the tree. 

Cuts of lateral branches should be made just at the shoulder of thebranch where it joins the parent. A cut behind the shoulder will notheal, neither will one too far ahead of it. A stub left on a trunk orlarge branch does not heal, but soon begins to rot at the end wherethe heartwood is exposed. This gradually works back into the mainbranch and the tree finally becomes "rotten at the heart. " All that isneeded to complete the destruction is a heavy wind, an ice or a snowstorm, or a heavy load of fruit. 

All wounds more than two inches in diameter should be painted eitherwith a heavy lead paint, which is preferable, or with some gas tarpreparation. These things do not in themselves heal a cut, but theykeep out the decaying elements, air and moisture, thus helping topreserve the branch and by protecting it to promote healing innature's way. A little lamp black will serve to deaden the color ofthe paint. 

PRUNING TOOLS. --The best tool to use in pruning is one which bringsyou nearest to your work and over which you have the greatest controlto make all kinds of cuts. In the writer's experience no tool doesthis so smoothly and conveniently as a properly shaped saw. A good sawshould be quite rigid, rather heavy at the butt, where its depthshould be about six inches, tapering down to about two inches at thepoint. It should have a full, firm grip, be not more than thirtyinches long, and should always be kept sharp. Two-edged saws shouldnot be used because of the injury done to the tree when sawing incrotches. 

Cutting shears are often very useful, especially the smaller, one-handed type which is almost indispensable in pruning young trees. The larger, two-handled shears are useful in thinning out the ends ofbranches or in heading back new growth. They should not be too heavy, as they are tiresome to use. The extension handled types are toocumbersome, too slow to work with, and the operator is of necessitytoo far away from his work for the best results. 

FRUIT THINNING. --A matter which is quite nearly related to pruning isthinning the fruit, and may properly be treated here. That this is notas common a practice with most fruit-growers as it should be, thegreat lack of uniformity in our ordinary market apples is ampleevidence. Many persons will at once raise the question as to whetheror not it is practicable to thin the fruit on large apple trees. Theanswer is that many growers find it not only practicable, but mostprofitable to do so. Wherever fruit of a uniform size and color isdesired, thinning is a practical necessity, especially when the cropof fruit is heavy. 

The proper time to thin the fruit is just after what is commonly knownas the "June drop, " i. E. , the falling off of those fruits not wellenough pollinated or set to hold on to maturity. In thinning the fruitshould be taken off until they are not closer than from four to sixinches apart on the same branch, although the distance apart on anybranch will depend somewhat on the amount of the crop on other partsof the tree. Never leave clusters of fruit on any branches, as some ofthem are sure to be small and out of shape. Furthermore two appleslying together afford a fine place for worms to get from one apple toanother and they seldom fail to improve the opportunity. Step laddersand ordinary rung ladders are used to get at the fruit for thinning. The cost of the operation is not nearly as large as might appear atfirst thought and in practically all cases is a paying investment. 

CHAPTER V

CULTIVATION AND COVER CROPPING

In its broad sense cultivation is the treatment of the soil. Thusunderstood orchard cultivation includes the sod mulch system as wellas the stirring of the soil with various implements. In its morecommon and restricted meaning, however, cultivation is the stirring ofthe soil about plants to encourage growth and productivity. To havethe apple tree in sod was once the commonly accepted method of orchardtreatment--a method of neglect and of "letting well enough alone. "With the advent of more scientific apple culture the stirring of thesoil has come to be the more popular method. But within the last fewyears an improved modification of the old sod method, known as the sod"mulch" system, has attracted much attention because of the successwith which a few men have practiced it. For a correct understanding ofthese practices and of the relative desirability of these systems wemust again turn to underlying principles and purposes. 

It may be said on first thought that tillage is a practice contrary tonature. But it accomplishes what nature does in another way. Tillagehas been practiced on other crops than trees for so long that we thinkof it almost as a custom. There are, however, scientific and practicalreasons for tillage. 

THE EFFECTS OF TILLAGE on the soil are three fold, physical, chemical, and increasing of water holding capacity. Tillage affects the soilphysically by fining and deepening it, thus increasing the feedingarea of roots, and by bringing about the more free admission of airwarms and dries the soil, thus reducing extremes of temperature andmoisture. Chemical activities are augmented by tillage in setting freeplant food, promoting nutrification, hastening the decomposition oforganic matter, and the extending of these agencies to greater depth. Tillage conserves moisture by increasing the water holding capacity ofthe soil and by checking evaporation. 

Of all these things which tillage accomplishes in a soil, two shouldbe especially emphasized for the apple orchard, namely, soil moistureand soil texture. That moisture is a very important consideration inthe apple orchard the effects of our frequent droughts are ampleevidence. The amount of rainfall in the Eastern States when it isproperly distributed is fully sufficient for the needs of an appletree. By enlarging the reservoir or water holding capacity of the soiland by preventing the loss of water by evaporation, an excess ofrainfall in the spring may be held for later distribution and use. 

As a rule, the improvement of a poor soil texture is as effective asthe supplying of plant food and much cheaper. The latter is of noconsequence unless the plant can use it. Scientists tell us that thereis an abundance of plant food in most soils. The problem is to make itavailable. Plant food must be in solution and in the form of a filmmoisture surrounding the smallest soil particles in order to beavailable to the fine plant rootlets which seek it. Good tillagesupplies these conditions. Can they be obtained equally well inanother way?

It is claimed by the advocates of the sod mulch system of orchardculture that it also supplies these conditions. Humus or decayedvegetable matter holds moisture. Grass or other mulch decaying in thesoil increases its humus content and hence its water holding capacity. By forming a mulch over the soil evaporation may be checked to someextent, although probably not as effectively in a practical way, as bycultivation. If there is a good grass sod in the orchard, moisture andplant food made available by that moisture are utilized, and if thegrass is allowed to go back into the soil it continues to furnishthese elements to the tree. But there is a rapid evaporation ofmoisture from the surface of the leaves of grass. In fact, grass maywell serve to remove an excess of moisture in wet seasons, or from wetlands. 

Laying aside theoretical considerations, let us see what practicalexperience teaches on this subject. We have the accurate data on alarge number of western New York orchards showing the results ofcultivation and other methods of soil management. These data areoverwhelmingly in the favor of cultivation. In Wayne County theaverage yield of orchards tilled for five years or more was 271bushels per acre, as compared with 200 bushels per acre for those insod five years or more but otherwise well cared for, --an increase ofthirty-five per cent. In favor of good tillage. In Orleans County, under the same conditions, the increase in yield due to cultivationwas forty-five per cent. And in Niagara County it was twenty-two percent. Records were made on hundreds of orchards and the results shouldbe given great weight in determining the system to be practiced, asintelligent consideration of trustworthy records is to be encouraged. 

These results were obtained in one region under its conditions and itis quite possible, although not probable, that other conditions mightgive different results. There are, however, special conditions as willbe pointed out later, under which the sod mulch method might be moreadvisable than tillage. It is cheaper, makes a cleaner cover for thedrop fruit, avoids the damage from tillage implements to which tilledtrees are liable, and can be practiced on lands too steep to till. Itoften happens, too, that it fits into the scheme of management on ageneral farm better than the more intensive and specialized system ofcultivation. And it must be remembered that we are dealing with thisquestion from the point of view of the home farm rather than of thecommercial orchardist. So that where the sod mulch gives equally goodresults it would be preferred under these conditions. 

LATE FALL AND EARLY SPRING PLOWING. --The common tillage practice inthe sections where it is most followed is to plow either in late fallor as early as possible in the spring. Whether fall or spring plowingis best depends on two things: the character of the soil andconvenience. On heavy clay soils where drainage is poor it is notadvisable to plow in the fall as the soil is apt to puddle and then tobake when it dries, making it hard to handle. On gravel loams, mediumloams, and all well drained soils which are fairly open in textureeither fall or spring plowing is practiced depending on which periodaffords the most time. 

On the general farm where there are several crops for which the landmust be prepared in spring, it would seem best to get as much of theplowing as possible done in the fall. But a large crop of apples or alarge and late corn husking or potato digging may interfere with thison some farms and make spring plowing more desirable. Always plan thiswork in connection with the other farm work so as to give the bestdistribution of labor. 

After fall plowing either the spring-tooth harrow or the disk harrowis best to use to work up the soil and no time should be lost ingetting at this as soon as the land is dry enough in the spring. Sometimes the disk harrow can be used to work up the soil in theorchard in the spring without any plowing at all, especially on looseloams where there are few stones. But on newly plowed land a disk cutstoo deep and there is too great danger of injuring the roots. Onspring plowed land the spring-tooth harrow usually gives the bestresults. After the soil is thoroughly fined and worked into a mellowbed and as soon as the period of excessive moisture in spring ispassed, a lighter implement like the smoothing harrow or a lightshallow digging cultivator should be used to stir the surface of thesoil only. 

The growing period for an apple tree begins as early as growth startsin the spring and continues up to about midsummer. If cultivation isto stimulate growth as much as possible, it should be done during thisperiod. The first object of cultivation in the early spring is toloosen up, aerate, and dry out the soil, which is usually too wet atthat time. As cultivation is continued the soil will become fined andfirmed again by the time drier weather comes on. A fairly deepdigging and lump crushing tool is the best implement to use up to thistime, and a disk or spring-tooth harrow meets these requirements. 

After this period is passed and during drier weather, cultivation iscarried on for a different purpose, namely, to conserve moisture bymaking a thin dust mulch of soil over the surface. This is bestaccomplished by shallow-going implements of which the spike-toothharrow, the acme harrow, or a light wheel cultivator are best. As theseason and the amount of rainfall vary, so must tillage operations bevaried. In an early dry season begin with the lighter implementsearlier. In a late wet season keep the digging tools at work later. Assoon as the soil is in good physical condition the principal object oftillage is to modify moisture conditions. 

As a matter of practice three to four harrowings at intervals of aweek to ten days are necessary. Sometimes more, sometimes less arerequired, according to the character and condition of the soil and theseason. The later moisture-conserving tillage should also be carriedon every week or ten days, according to weather conditions. It is goodpractice to stir the soil after every heavy or moderately heavy rain. Use the smoothing tools after light to medium rains and the heaviertools after packing or beating rains. In practice from five to eightor ten of these cultivations are necessary. The drier the season themore necessary does frequent cultivation become. 

A COVER CROP is so closely associated with tillage that it is usuallyconsidered a part of the system. It should be sown in midsummer as soonas tillage ceases. This time will vary from July first to Augustfifteenth, depending on the locality, the rainfall, the crop of fruiton the trees, and on how favorable the conditions for securing a goodstand of the cover crop are. The farther south the locality, or theearlier the fruit, the sooner the crop should be sown. Absence ofsufficient rainfall necessitates a continuation of the cultivation, both because it is necessary to conserve all the moisture possible andbecause it is difficult to get a good stand of a cover crop--especiallyof one having small seeds--at a dry time in midsummer. 

In a year when there is a full crop of fruit on the trees cultivationshould be continued as late as possible as all the stimulus that canthus be secured will be necessary to help the fruit attain good sizeand maturity, and at the same time enable the tree properly to matureits fruit and leaf buds for the following year. On the other hand, ina year when there is not a full crop of fruit cultivation should bestopped early so as to avoid forcing a too rank growth of wood andfoliage and continuing the growth of the next season's buds so latethat they may not mature and therefore may be in danger of winterkilling. 

The different kinds of cover crops which may be used in the appleorchard will be considered in the next chapter as they are so closelyassociated with fertilization. Strictly speaking, however, a covercrop is used principally to secure its mulching and physical effectson the soil in the intervals between the seasons of tillage. Inaddition to its physical and feeding effects the cover crop serves tocheck the growth of trees in the latter part of the season by takingup the nitrates and a part of the moisture, thus helping to ripen thewood. 

SOD MULCH. --The ordinary sod culture which is practiced in so manyorchards should not be confused with the sod mulch system. The one isa system of neglect, the other of intention. In the sod mulch systemthe grass sod is stimulated and encouraged and when the grass dies oris cut, it is left on the ground to decay, forming a soil mulchmeanwhile. The removal of grass from the orchard as hay is poorpractice and should be discouraged. The grass mulch may well besupplemented by the addition of other grass, straw, leaves, coarsemanure, or other similar materials. Sometimes this mulch is put on tothe depth of six inches or even a foot around the tree. Thus practicedit is very effective in conserving moisture and in adding the humuswhich is so necessary to the soil. 

Sod and tillage have somewhat different effects on the tree and on thefruit. Let us see what these effects are. It is common knowledge thatfruit is more highly colored when grown in sod than when grown under atillage system. This is probably largely due to the fact that tillagekeeps the fruit growing so late that it does not mature so well or soearly. Fruit is usually two or three weeks later in tilled than in sodorchards. It has been shown that fruit grown under tillage keeps fromtwo to four weeks longer than that grown in sod. It is claimedalso--but this is a disputed point--that tilled fruit has a betterquality and flavor. Certain it is that fruit grown in sod is drierand less crisp and juicy. 

The effect of tillage on the trees is more marked and better known. Tilled trees have a darker, richer green foliage, indicating a betterand more vigorous health. The leaves are also larger and morenumerous. They come out three or four days earlier in the spring andstay on the trees two weeks later in the fall than the leaves on treeskept in sod. Tilled trees make nearly twice the growth in a seasonthat those in sod do, in fact there is danger of their making woodgrowth at the expense of fruit buds. Tillage also gives a deeper, better distributed root system. 

Despite the advantages and the disadvantages of each system, there aretimes, places, and circumstances under which one is more advisablethan the other. On lands rich in humus and in plant food and level soas to be easily tillable, cultivation is without doubt the bestsystem. But it should be practiced in connection with cover crops, andthe orchard should be given occasional periods of rest in sod--say oneyear in from three to five. 

The sod mulch system of orchard culture is probably better adapted torather wet good grass land and where mulching material is cheap andreadily available. It is undoubtedly at its best on lands too steep orrough to till, or otherwise unsuitable to cultivation. Tillage is themore intensive method and where labor is scarce and high sod culturemight be more advisable for this reason, other conditions being nottoo unfavorable. 

In order to illustrate a method of management under the tillage systemwe may suggest the following as a good one for level to gently rollingland:

 1912. Early plowing in spring, cultivation to July first to fifteenth. Then sow red clover as a cover crop. 

 1913. Repeat previous year's treatment, varying the time of sowing cover crop according to conditions. 

 1914. Let the clover grow, mowing and leaving on the ground as a mulch, June fifteenth to twentieth, and again in August. 

 1915. Plow early in spring, cultivate to midsummer, and then sow rye or buckwheat as a cover crop July fifteenth to August fifteenth. 

 1916. Repeat 1915 treatment and if trees are not growing too fast, sow clover or hairy vetch as a cover crop. 

 1917. Same as 1912, etc. 

PASTURING THE ORCHARD. --The sod mulch system explains itself and doesnot need illustration. Sod orchards are often managed as pasture foranimals, however, and this practice should be discussed. An orchard isconsidered as pastured when a considerable number of animals areturned into it for a greater or less portion of the year. Results inorchards where pasturage has been thoroughly tried out show that it isnever advisable to pasture an orchard with horses or cattle, but thatfairly good results may be expected where sheep or hogs are used. 

The evidence of yield of fruit and appearance of trees both indicate, that pasturing an orchard with horses or cattle is about the worstpossible practice. These animals rub against the trees, break thebranches, browse the limbs and leaves, and destroy the fruit as highas they can reach. All experience is against this practice whichcannot be too strongly deprecated. 

Pasturing an orchard with sheep, although a somewhat doubtfulpractice, often gives good results. Sheep crop the grass close to theground and to some extent prevent the extensive evaporation whichusually takes place from the leaves of grass. Their well distributedmanure is worth considerable. They also browse the branches to someextent and should not be allowed to run in the orchard late in theseason as they will destroy considerable fruit. 

Pasturing an orchard with swine gives better results than any otherpasture treatment of the orchard. Hogs do considerable rooting whichprevents the formation of a stiff sod and itself may often amountalmost to cultivation in well stocked orchards. A good deal of manureis added to the soil, especially when the hogs are fed outside theorchard. Hogs also destroy many insects by eating the wormy fruit. 

Pasturage of orchards has its advantages. It gives a doubleutilization of the land. It is a cheap method of management. When theanimals are fed outside the orchard, as should always be the case, itadds considerable plant food to the soil. When plenty of outside foodcan be given and when the orchard is not overstocked--the animalsshould never be hungry--hogs and sheep may be used to advantage inpasturing orchards. In very rough fields incapable of tillage, this isundoubtedly the very best system of orchard management. 

Pasturage has the disadvantage of exposing young trees to injury fromthe animals, but this may be at least partly avoided by protectingthem with stakes or a heavy wire meshed screen. Hogs especially soilthe fruit and make the land rough and difficult to drive over. Underthe proper conditions pasturage may be practiced to advantage, especially on small areas and on the general farm where it is moreadvantageous than it would be commercially. 

CHAPTER VI

MANURING AND FERTILIZING

Cover crops may be said to be supplementary to tillage. In theprevious chapter this function has been discussed. It now remains topoint out another important function--that of a green manure cropadding humus and plant food to the soil. Not only do some cover cropsadd plant food and all humus to the soil, but they tend to conservethese by preventing leaching, especially of nitrates, and they help torender plant food more available by reworking it and leaving it in aform more available for the tree. They sometimes act as a protectionagainst winter injury by holding snow and by their own bulk. They alsohelp to dry out the soil in spring, thus making the land tillableearlier. 

There are two great classes of cover or green manure crops, leguminousand non-leguminous. A non-leguminous crop merely adds humus andimproves the physical condition of the soil. In itself it adds noplant food, although it may take up, utilize, and leave behind plantfood in a more available form for the tree's use. But in addition tothese benefits, leguminous crops actually add to the soil plant foodin the form of nitrogen which they have the ability to assimilate fromthe air by means of bacterial organisms on their roots. 

NON-LEGUMINOUS CROPS. --The most important of the non-leguminous cropsare rye, buckwheat, turnips or rape, barley, oats, and millet. Thefirst mentioned are the most commonly used. Also in order ofimportance the following are the usual leguminous cover and greenmanure crops to be used: clovers, winter vetch, soy beans, alfalfa, cow peas (first in the South). In order to determine the relativeadvisability of the use of these various crops let us now look at someof their characteristics and requirements. 

Rye is one of the best non-leguminous cover crops, especially in theyoung orchard, as it does not grow as well in shade as in the open. Aparticularly strong point about rye is that it grows rapidly quitelate in the fall and starts early in the spring. Starting earlier thanmost crops in the spring, it makes a considerable amount of growthbefore the land is fit to plow. Especially in warmer climates ryeshould not be sown too early in the fall--not usually before September1st--because of this too heavy growth. Rye is also adapted to a greatvariety of soils and hence will often grow where other crops will notdo well. About two bushels of seed are required per acre. 

Buckwheat is probably about equally as good as rye for an orchardcover crop, although it does not produce quite as much organic matter. It will germinate at almost any season of the year even if it is verydry. It is a great soil improver because of its ability to feed andthrive on soils too poor for other crops, due to its numerous shallowfeeding rootlets. It grows rapidly and covers the ground well, butlike rye does not thrive as well in shade. Buckwheat should not beused to excess on the heavier types of soil as it is rather hard onthe land. One bushel of seed to an acre makes a good seeding. 

Turnips or rape often make good pioneer cover or green manure crops. They are great soil improvement crops and it is comparatively easy tosecure a good stand of them even in dry weather. Sown in late July inthe North they will produce a great bulk of humus and add muchmoisture to the soil, especially if they cover the ground well. Theirbroad, abundant leaves and high tops also hold the snow well inwinter. Cow Horn is the best variety of turnips to use, as it is alarge, rank grower. Use one to two pounds of seed to the acre. Rapemakes an excellent pasture crop in an orchard both for sheep and hogs, but especially for the former. Eight or nine pounds of seed arenecessary to the acre. 

Barley, oats, and millet are not as good crops as the foregoing, because, with the possible exception of millet, they make their bestgrowth early in the season. Moreover they take up too much moisturefrom the soil at a time when the tree most needs this moisture. Infact they are sometimes used for this specific purpose on wet land intoo wet seasons. Two to two and one half bushels of oats or barley andone to one and one half bushels of millet to the acre are necessaryfor a good seeding. 

Although weeds can hardly be classified as cover crops, they are oftenvaluable ones. They grow rapidly and rank, making a large bulk ofhumus, without the expense of seeding. If they are not allowed to goto seed so as to scatter the seed about the farm, they often make thebest of cover crops. This necessitates a mowing in September. Weedsare plants out of place, and when these plants are in place they arenot necessarily weeds, as they have then become serviceable. 

LEGUMES. --In general, legumes are more valuable as cover and greenmanure crops than non-leguminous plants, because as a rule they aremore rank growers and more deeply rooted, as well as because they addnitrogen to the soil. But it is rather more difficult to secure a goodstand of most legumes than it is of the crops previously mentioned forseveral reasons. As a rule the seeds are smaller and a large seedusually has greater germinating power than a small one. This oftenmeans much at the time of the year when the cover crop is sown. Thenlegumes are more difficult to grow, requiring better soil conditions. Still these should be present in good orchard soils. Drainage must begood, the soil must be at least average in fertility and physicalcondition, it must not be sour--hence it is often necessary to uselime--and soils frequently require inoculation before they will growlegumes satisfactorily. 

Where the clovers grow well they make excellent cover crops as well asgreen manure crops. The chief difficulty with them is that ofobtaining a good stand in a dry midsummer. The mammoth red and themedium red clovers are probably the best of their genus on the heaviersoils, while crimson clover is best on sandy soils and where it willgrow, on the lighter gravel loams. The latter is especially welladapted to building up run down sandy soils. Although it is somewhateasier to secure a stand of this clover, alsike does not grow rankenough to make a good cover or green manure crop. Most clovers aredeep rooted plants and therefore great soil improvers physically aswell as being great nitrogen gatherers. The amounts of seed requiredper acre for the different kinds are about as follows: mammoth fifteento twenty pounds; red (medium) twelve to fifteen pounds; crimsontwelve to fifteen pounds; and alsike ten to twelve pounds. 

Where it can be readily and successfully grown alfalfa is really abetter cover and green manure crop than the clovers. It is deeperrooted, makes a better top growth, and therefore adds more nitrogenand more humus to the soil than the clovers. It cannot be recommendedfor common use, however, as it is so difficult to grow except underfavorable conditions. It requires a more fertile soil than clover, asoil with little or no acidity, good drainage, and usually the soilmust be inoculated. Only where these conditions prevail can alfalfa begenerally recommended. 

Vetch is an excellent cover and green manure crop, forming a thick, close mat of herbage which makes a good cover for the soil. It is veryquick to start growing and a rapid grower in the spring. It also addslarger quantities of nitrogen. The hairy or winter vetch lives throughthe hard freezing winters. Summer vetch, although an equally goodgrower, is killed by freezing. One bushel of seed is required per acreand the seed is expensive, which is the greatest objection to the useof this excellent crop. 

Two other less well known and used leguminous crops are well worthtrial as cover crops--soy beans in the North and cow peas in theSouth. Both are great nitrogen gatherers and as they are rank andrapid growers add large quantities of humus to the soil. Underfavorable conditions they will cover the ground with a perfect mat ofvegetation in a very short time. Being larger seeded, it isconsiderably easier to obtain a stand on dry soils and in dry seasonsthan it is of the smaller seeded clovers. It is usually best to sow indrills the ordinary width, seven inches, apart. 

Cow peas are universally used as a cover and green manure crop in theSouth, but they do not thrive so well in the North. One and one halfto two bushels of seed are required per acre. In the North the earliermaturing varieties of soy beans are almost equally good. One to oneand one half bushels of seed are sown per acre. 

Leguminous cover crops are also the best and the cheapest source ofnitrogen for the apple orchard, after they are well established. Theiruse may be overdone, however. Too much nitrogen results in a growth ofwood at the expense of fruit buds. To avoid this it is often advisableto use non-leguminous and leguminous crops alternately, when theorchard is making a satisfactory growth. Sometimes also these twokinds of crops, as buckwheat and clover for example, may be combinedwith good results. When this is done one half the usual amount of seedof each should be used. 

EARLY PLOWING. --Many people make the common mistake of thinking thata green manure crop must be allowed to grow until late in June inorder to secure the maximum amount of growth. There are severalreasons why this is not good practice. In the first place cultivationis most essential in the early spring as has been pointed out. Thenmoisture is better conserved by plowing under the crop early and abetter physical condition of the soil secured. Plowing early in thespring warms up the soil and sets plants to work more quickly. Lastly, material rots much more quickly in the early spring when moisture ismore abundant, which is very important. 

An apple tree is as much a crop as anything grown on the farm and mustbe so regarded by those who would become successful orchardists. Whenit is not properly fed and cared for, good yields of fruit may notjustly be expected. Especially is this true of an orchard which isbeing intercropped. But because of the fact that an apple tree is notan annual crop but the product of many years' growth, because its rootsystem is deeper and more widely spread out than those of other crops, and because the amount of plant food removed in a crop of fruit iscomparatively small, fertilization is less important than manypersons would have us think. It is a fact that where orchards receivegood cultivation and a liberal supply of humus commercial fertilizersgive but medium results. 

ELEMENTS OF FERTILITY. --Three elements are necessary for the growth ofapple trees, nitrogen, phosphoric acid, and potash. To these lime maybe added, although its benefit is indirect rather than direct as aplant food. How badly any of these elements may be needed depends onthe soil, its previous treatment, and on the system of management. Bylearning what are the effects of these elements on the tree and fruitwe may determine under what conditions, if any, their use isadvisable. 

Nitrogen promotes the growth of new wood and leaves, giving the lattera dark green color. In fact the color of the leaves and the amount ofthe wood growth are usually good indicators of the need of nitrogen. Nitrogen in excess develops over vigorous growth and prevents thematurity of wood and buds. It always has a tendency to delay thematurity of the fruit by keeping it growing late. On many varieties ittends to produce poorly colored fruits. 

When trees are making a normal amount of growth in a year--say a footto three feet or more--and when the leaves are of good size and adark green in color, there is little need of nitrogen. But when treesare not growing satisfactorily and the leaves have a sickly yellowcolor, then the need of nitrogen is evident. On early soils and inlong growing seasons nitrogen may be more freely and safely used thanunder other conditions. 

The effect of phosphoric acid and potash on the tree and fruit is muchmore uncertain. They are supposed to influence the quality and theflavor of the fruit, giving better color and flavor, and this theyundoubtedly do to some extent. Potash probably gives the leaves adarker green color. The precise effect of these two elements is atpresent a subject of much discussion, one set of investigatorsmaintaining after a long and careful investigation that these effectsare too small to be worth while, and the other claiming that they havea marked effect in the ways above indicated. The only safe guide isthe actual local result. If the fruit is satisfactory in every way itwill be of little use to try fertilizers. On the other hand, if it isnot, then it will pay to experiment with them. The needs of and theresults on different soils are so variable that it is always wise toexperiment on a small scale before using fertilizers extensively. 

STABLE MANURE. --The necessary plant food is best supplied by stablemanure applied at the rate of ten loads per acre for a lightapplication to twenty loads per acre for a heavy application. Thisamounts to a load for from two to five mature trees. Such anapplication will not only go far toward supplying the necessarynitrogen, phosphoric acid, and potash, but especially if coarse willadd considerable humus and improve the physical condition of the soil. 

Except on land which washes badly, manure should be applied in thefall and winter. It should not be piled near the trunk of the tree butspread uniformly over the entire surface of the ground. It isparticularly important to spread the manure under and beyond thefarthest extent of the branches as this is the most important feedingroot area of the tree. 

COMMERCIAL FERTILIZERS. --Where manure is not available or where itcannot be applied in sufficient amounts, commercial fertilizers may beresorted to, after they have been experimentally tested out. Leguminous cover crops are the best source of nitrogen, as has beenindicated, but where these do not grow well, or in seasons when theyhave for some reason failed, nitrate of soda or dried blood are goodsubstitutes. From two hundred to three hundred pounds of one or theother of these may be applied broadcast in the spring soon aftergrowth is well started and all danger of its being checked by frost orcold weather is past. It is well to apply the nitrate of soda in twoapplications a few weeks apart, especially on soils which are leachyand in wet seasons, as part of the nitrogen may leach away if all isapplied at once. These should be thoroughly worked into the soil witha spring-tooth harrow. 

To supply the other two elements, from two hundred to four hundredpounds of treated rock phosphate or basic slag for the phosphoricacid, and the same amount of sulphate of potash for the potash, shouldbe applied at any time in the early part of the season, preferablyjust before a light rain, and worked into the soil as before. Home-made wood ashes are a good source of both these elements, andespecially of the potash. They cannot be purchased economically in anyquantity, but on the general farm there could be no better way toutilize the wood ashes made around the place than by applying them twoor three bushels to a full grown tree every year or two. Wood ashesare also a good source of lime, being about one-third calcium oxide. Thus a large amount of available plant food will be supplied to thetree, and where it is needed should result not only in better woodgrowth but in the formation of vigorous leaf and fruit buds for thefollowing year. 

Lime is not usually considered as a fertilizer except on soilsactually deficient in it. But it will usually be advisable to applyfrom one thousand five hundred to two thousand pounds of fresh burnedlime or its equivalent, in order to correct any natural soil acidity, to hasten the decay of organic material, to increase the activity ofthe soil bacteria, and to improve the physical condition of the soilby floculating the soil particles and helping to break up lumpy soils. Lime also helps to liberate plant food by recombining it with certainother elements in the soil. All these effects make a more congenialmedium for the leguminous crops to grow in, and it is frequentlyadvisable to use lime for this purpose alone. After this first heavyapplication about 800 pounds of lime should be applied per acre everyfour or five years. 

CHAPTER VII

INSECTS AND DISEASES AFFECTING THE APPLE

It is a common saying among farmers who have grown apples on theirfarms for many years that there are many more pests to fight thanthere used to be. How often we have heard a farmer tell of the perfectapples that grew on a certain tree "when he was a boy, " before peoplehad generally heard of codling moth, San José scale, apple scab, orother troubles now only too common. "We never sprayed, but the appleswere fine, " he says. Is this the usual glorification of the mythicalpast or is it true? In all probability it is a little of both, but itis undoubtedly true that insects and fungous diseases have increasedrapidly of late years. 

REASONS FOR PEST INCREASE. --When there is an abundance of food andconditions are otherwise favorable, any animal or plant will thrivebetter than when the food supply is scarce and conditions unfavorable. As long as apple trees were scattered and few in number there was notthe opportunity for the development of apple pests, but as soon asthey became numerous the prosperity of bugs and minute plant parasiteswas wonderful to see. Another factor which has been at least partlyresponsible for the great increase in our insect life is that man hasupset nature's balance by destroying so many birds, and, byinterfering with their natural surroundings, driven them away. Birdsare great destroyers of insects, and their presence in the orchardshould be encouraged in every possible way. Add to these facts themarvelous fecundity of the insect tribe, and the increase is lessremarkable. Loss from these orchard pests has now run up into themillions. It has been estimated that the loss in the United Statesfrom wormy apples alone is over $11, 000, 000 annually. Thus has thenecessity for fighting these enemies of good fruit arisen. 

In order successfully to combat an insect or a disease it is verynecessary to have a somewhat detailed knowledge of its life historyand to know its most vulnerable point of attack. It is impossible towork most intelligently and effectively without this knowledge, whichshould include the several stages of the insect or disease, the pointof attack, the time of making it, and when and with what it can bemost easily destroyed. The number of insects and diseases which affectthe apple is so great that it is simply out of the question to treatthem all in detail here. We have therefore selected nine insects andthree diseases as those pests of the apple which are most common andwhose effects are usually most serious. The essential facts in theirlife histories and their vulnerable points will now be pointed out. The method of study may be taken as applicable to any other pestswhich it may be necessary to combat. 

INSECT PESTS. --Of the many insects which affect either the tree or thefruit of the apple, the nine selected probably inflict the most damageand are the most difficult to control of all those in the NortheasternStates. According to their method of attack all insects may be dividedinto two classes: biting and sucking. Biting insects are those whichactually eat parts of the tree, as the leaves or fruit. These arecombated by the use of stomach poisons as we shall see in thefollowing chapter. Sucking insects are those which do not eat the treeor fruit directly, but by means of a tubelike proboscis suck thejuices or sap from the limbs, leaves or fruit. Of the biting insectsthe five which we shall discuss are: (1) codling moth, (2) applemaggot, (3) bud moth, (4) cigar case bearer, (5) curculio. The foursucking insects discussed are: (6) San José scale, (7) oyster shellscale, (8) blister mite, and (9) aphis or plant louse. 

1. THE CODLING MOTH, the most insidious of all apple pests, is mainlyresponsible for wormy apples. The adult is a night flying moth with awing expanse of from one-half to three-quarters of an inch. The mothsappear about the time the apple trees are in bloom. Each female issupposed to lay about fifty eggs which are deposited on both theleaves and fruit, but mostly on the calyx end of the young apples. Theeggs hatch in about a week and the young larvae or caterpillars beginat once to gnaw their way into the core of the fruit. Three-fourths ofthem enter the apple through its blow end. 

After twenty to thirty days of eating in the apple, during which timethey become full grown and about three-quarters of an inch long, theyleave the apple, usually through its side. The full grown caterpillarnow secretes itself in the crevices in the bark of the tree or inrubbish beneath the tree and spins a tough but slight silken cocoon inwhich the pupal period is passed. This lasts about a fortnight, whenthe process is sometimes repeated, so that in the Eastern States thereare often two broods each season. 

The most vulnerable point in the career of this little animal is whenit is entering the fruit. If a fine poison spray covers the surface ofthe fruit, and especially if it covers the calyx end of the appleinside and out, when the young larvae begin to eat they will surely bekilled. It is estimated that birds destroy eighty-five per cent. Ofthe cocoons on the bark of trees. 

2. APPLE MAGGOT. --It is fortunate that the apple maggot, often calledthe railroad worm because of its winding tunnels all through thefruit, is not as serious a pest as the codling moth for it is muchmore difficult to control with a poison. A two-winged fly appears inearly summer and deposits her eggs in a puncture of the skin of theapple. In a few days the eggs hatch and the maggots begin to burrowindiscriminately through the fruit. The full grown larvae are agreenish white in color and about a quarter of an inch long. From thefruit this insect goes to the ground where the pupal stage is passedin the soil. The next summer the fly again emerges and lays its eggs. 

Spraying is not effective against this insect as the poison cannot beplaced where it will be eaten by the maggots. The best known remedy isto destroy the fruit which drops to the ground and for this purposehogs in the orchard are very effective. The distribution of thisinsect in the orchard is limited and it has shown a marked preferencefor summer and autumn varieties. 

3. THE BUD MOTH closely resembles the codling moth in form and size, but differs from it in color and life history. The larvae, afterhibernating through the winter, appear as little brown caterpillarsabout May first or as soon as the buds begin to open, and a week ortwo later begin their work of destruction. They inflict great damageon the young leaf and fruit buds by feeding on them. When full grownthe larvae, cinnamon brown in color with a shining black head, areabout one-half inch long. They then roll themselves up in a tube madefrom a leaf or parts of leaves securely fastened together with silkenthreads. In this cocoon pupation, which lasts about ten days, takesplace. Early in June the moths appear. There is but one brood in theNorth. These insects can be successfully combated with a poison sprayapplied early before the buds open. 

4. THE CIGAR CASE BEARER winters in its case attached to a twig. Whenthe buds begin to open in the spring it moves to them, carrying itscase with it, and begins to feed on the young and tender buds. By thetime the leaves are well open, it has fed a good deal on the tenderbuds and young leaves and is ready to make a new and larger case. Thisit does by cutting a leaf to suit and then rolling it up in the formof a cigar, whence its name. In this case the larvae continue feedingabout a month, causing much injury to the leaves, although this is notas serious as the mutilation of the young buds in the spring, beforethe tree is fully leafed out. 

About the last of June pupation takes place and in about ten days themoth emerges. The eggs are then layed along the midribs of the leavesand hatch in about fifteen days. The newly hatched larvae become leafminers during August, and migrate to the branches again in the fallwhere they pass the winter. These leaf and bud eating insects can bedestroyed by applying a poison to the buds before they open and againlater to the opening leaf and flower buds. 

5. CURCULIO BEETLES pass the winter under leaves and grass. In thespring they feed on the blossoms and the tender leaves. As soon as theyoung fruits are formed the female deposits her eggs in a puncturemade just inside a short, crescent-shaped cut in the little apple. Theeggs soon hatch and the young grubs burrow into the fruit to the corewhere they remain two or three weeks, or until full grown. The larvaethen bore their way out of the fruit and drop to the soil where theypupate. The earliest of the beetles to emerge again feed on the fruit. The principal damage from this pest comes from the feeding of thebeetles and the work of the larvae, although the latter is not as badin the apple as in the stone fruits. A poison on the young foliage assoon as the beetles begin to feed is the best method of combatingcurculio. Jarring the tree is not as practicable with the apple as itis with the plum. 

6. THE SAN JOSÉ SCALE, one of our worst apple tree pests, is a suckinginsect extracting the juices of the tree from the trunk, limbs orbranches, or even from the leaves and fruit when it is very abundant. At first the growth is checked only, but as the insects develop theirwork finally results in the death of the part, unless they aredestroyed. The insect winters in an immature condition on the barkunder a grayish, circular, somewhat convex scale about the size of apinhead. The young, of which a great many broods are produced, aresoft bodied but soon form a scale. In the early spring smalltwo-winged insects issue from these scales. 

After mating the males die, but the females continue to grow and inabout a month begin the production of living young--minute, yellow, oval creatures. These young settle on the bark and push their slenderbeaks into the plant from which they begin to suck out the sap. Inabout twelve days the insects molt and in eight to ten more theychange to pupae, and in from thirty-three to forty days are themselvesbearing young. A single female may give birth to four hundred young inone season and there are several generations in a season. This greatprolificacy is what makes the scale so serious a pest. 

In fighting it every scale must be destroyed or thousands more aresoon born. In order to be able to use a strong enough mixture of limeand sulphur to destroy them by smothering or choking the spray must beapplied on the dormant wood in the spring or fall or both. Thoroughness is most essential. 

7. THE OYSTER SHELL SCALE, although it is essentially the same in itshabits and in its methods of sucking the sap from the tree is not asbad a pest as the San José scale because it is less prolific, therebeing but one brood a year. Still this scale often destroys a branchand sometimes a whole tree. The "lice" winter as eggs under the scaleand hatch in late May or early June. After crawling about the bark fortwo or three days, the young fix their beaks into it and remainfastened there for life, sucking out the sap. By the end of the seasonthey have matured and secreted a scaly covering under which their eggsfor the next season's crop winter. A smothering spray like lime andsulphur applied strong when the trees are dormant will practicallycontrol this scale. But the young may be destroyed in summer by acontact spray such as tobacco leaf extract or whale oil soap. 

8. THE LEAF BLISTER MITE is a small, four-legged animal, so small ashardly to be visible to the naked eye. It passes the winter in thebud scales and as soon as these begin to open in the spring it passesto the tender leaves which it punctures, producing light green orreddish pimples according to the variety of apple. These later developinto galls or blisters of a blackish or reddish brown color andfinally result in the destruction of the leaf. Trees are sometimespractically defoliated by this pest, and this at a time when a goodfoliage is most needed. Inside of the galls eggs are deposited andwhen the young hatch they burrow in all directions. In October themites abandon the leaves to hibernate in the bud scales again. Astrong contact spray of lime sulphur when the trees are dormantdestroys the young mites while they are yet on the bud scales, whichis practically the only time when they are vulnerable. 

9. APHIDES, or plant lice, are of seasonal importance. Although nearlyalways present, it is only occasionally that they become so numerousas seriously to damage mature apple trees. But they are more oftenserious pests on young trees where they should be carefully watched. Their presence is determined by the curled and distorted condition ofthe terminal leaves on the under side of which the green or pinkishlice will be found. Eggs deposited in autumn pass the winter in thiscondition, hatching in the spring about the time of the beginning ofthe growth of vegetation. From these winter eggs females are hatchedwhich bear living young, which may also bear living young and so onfor several generations until autumn, when eggs are again depositedfor the winter stage. 

Fortunately weather conditions together with parasitic and predaceousinsects hold them more or less in check. Because of the difficulty ofgetting at the underside of the curled leaves where these lice mostlywork they are extremely hard to control. Lime and sulphur when thetrees are dormant destroy as many of the eggs as it comes in contactwith. A tobacco extract is quite effective as a contact spray in thegrowing season. The trees must be closely watched and if the liceappear in any considerable number they must be promptly attended to orserious damage is likely to result. 

These are by no means all the insect pests which the fruit grower hasto combat, but they are usually the most important. Canker worm andtent caterpillars often do great damage in unsprayed orchards, butthey are easily controlled by an application of a poison as soon asthey appear. The same is true of other caterpillars and leaf eatingworms. Apple tree borers are frequently serious, especially in youngorchards, where the trees should be regularly "grubbed" and the borersdug out or killed with a piece of wire. They may be prevented to someextent by painting the tree trunks with a heavy lime and sulphur orsome gas tar preparation. 

DISEASES. --Although not as numerous as insects, the diseases whichattack the apple inflict great damage and are fully as difficult tocontrol. They are caused by bacteria and by fungi which may becompared to weeds growing on or in the tree instead of the soil. Ifeither of these works within the plant, as is sometimes the case, itmust be attacked before it enters. It is very necessary to be thoroughin order to control these diseases. Weather conditions influencenearly all of them materially. Of those which attack the apple tree orfruit we have selected three as the most serious and the mostnecessary for the grower to combat, namely, (1) apple scab, (2) NewYork apple tree canker, and (3) fire blight. To these should be addedin the South and middle latitudes, sooty blotch and bitter rot. Baldwin spot is also frequently serious in some seasons andlocalities. 

(1) THE APPLE SCAB, commonly known among growers as "the fungus, " isthe most important of our common apple diseases and is most evident onthe fruit, although it attacks the leaves as well. In some seasons thefruit is made almost unsalable. This disease lives through the winteron old leaves. In the spring about blossoming time the spores arescattered by the wind and other agencies, and reaching the tendershoots germinate and enter the tissues of the plant. Their developmentis greatly dependent on the weather. In a season in which there islittle fog or continued damp or humid weather, they may not develop atall, but where these conditions are present they frequently becomevery virulent. 

Spraying will be governed by the weather conditions, but the mixturemust be applied very promptly as soon as it is evident that it islikely to be necessary and must cover every part of the tree to beeffective. The object is to prevent the spores from germinating, thespray being entirely a preventive and in no sense a cure. The diseasemost frequently first manifests itself on the tender new growth and onthe blossoms. Two mixtures have been found to control it, namely, Bordeaux and a weak solution of lime and sulphur. One or other ofthese should be applied just before the blossoms open, just beforethey fall, and when necessary two and nine weeks later. 

(2) NEW YORK APPLE TREE CANKER is usually found mainly on the trunksof old trees, but it also affects the smaller branches. Practicallyevery old or uncared for orchard has more or less of this canker, andwhere it is not checked it eventually destroys the tree. This fungusis the cause of most of the dead wood found in old orchards. Thesurface of the canker is black and rough and covered with minute blackpimples. It lives over winter and spreads from one branch or tree toanother. As it most frequently enters a branch through wounds made inpruning, these should be promptly painted over with a heavy lead andoil paint. All diseased parts should be cut out and removed as soon asobserved. The value of spraying for this disease is not definitelyknown, but it is seldom very troublesome in well sprayed and wellcared for orchards. 

(3) BLIGHT appears on apple trees in three forms, as blossom blight, as twig blight, and as blight cankers. It is a bacterial diseasewhich is distributed by flies, bees, birds, etc. , and cannot becontrolled by spraying. The bacteria are carried over the winter incankers on the main limbs and bodies of the trees, oozing out in asticky mass in the spring. These cankers should be cut out with asharp knife cutting well into the healthy bark and then washing thewound with corrosive sublimate, one part to one thousand of water. Cutting out and destroying are also the chief remedies to be used whenthe blight appears in the twigs and blossoms. It is not usually asserious on apples as on pears. Some varieties, like Alexander, aremore subject to it than others. 

CHAPTER VIII

THE PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE OF SPRAYING

The spraying of fruit trees in the United States is of comparativelyrecent origin, having been a general commercial practice for less thantwo decades. It involves the principle of applying with force and inthe form of a fine rain or mist, water in which a poison or asubstance which kills by contact is suspended. The first applicationof the principle was against chewing insects with hellebore. Purearsenic was early used and soon led to the use of other arsenicals. 

Our greatest fungicide, Bordeaux mixture, was discovered by accidentin 1882 when it was found to control mildew in France. Up until aboutfive years ago Bordeaux mixture as the fungicide and paris green asthe poison were almost universally used. Within the last few years, however, there have been developed two substitutes which, althoughknown and used to some extent for twenty years, have only recentlycome into such general use as practically to replace the old sprays. These are lime and sulphur as the fungicide and partial insecticideand arsenate of lead as a partial insecticide. 

The necessity for and the advisability of spraying have already beenpointed out. There is an increasing demand for fine fruit thesupplying of which is possible only with thorough spraying. In thehumid East especially the competition of more progressive sections inthe West is demanding more and better spraying. There is no cure-allin this process. It does not make a tree more fruitful except as itimproves its general health, but it does bring a larger percentage ofthe fruit to perfection. Certain knowledge is fundamental; the growermust know what he is spraying for, when and with what to combat it andhow to accomplish the desired result most effectively. 

Spraying is an insurance against anticipated troubles with the fruit, and the best and most successful growers are those most completelyinsured. It has many general advantages also. It stimulates the growerto a greater interest in his business because of the extra knowledgeand skill required. It compels thoroughness. It necessitates spendingmoney, therefore a return is looked for. To be sure, it is only oneof the operations necessary to success, but it enables us to grow aquality of fruit which we could not obtain without it. 

SPRAY MATERIALS are conveniently divided into two classes, insecticides and fungicides. An insecticide is a poison by which theinsect is killed either directly by eating it, or indirectly by thecaustic, smothering, or stifling effects resulting from closing itsbreathing pores. Direct poisons are used for insects which eat somepart of the tree or fruit and are called stomach poisons. Sprays whichkill indirectly are used for insects which suck the sap or juice fromthe tree or fruit and are called contact sprays. Arsenical compoundshave supplanted practically all other substances used to combatexternal biting insects. Two stomach poisons are commonly used, namely, arsenate of lead and paris green, but the former is rapidlyreplacing the latter. 

ARSENATE OF LEAD is prepared by mixing three parts of crystallizedarsenate of soda with seven parts of crystallized white sugar(acetate) of lead in water, but it will not as a rule pay the growerto mix his own material, as arsenate of lead can be purchased inconvenient commercial form at a reasonable price. The preparation onthe market is a finely pulverized precipitate in two forms, one apowder and the other a paste. These are probably about equally goodand are readily kept suspended in water. Less free arsenic iscontained in this form than in any other compound of arsenic, makingit safer to use, especially in heavy applications. Arsenate of leadmay be used without danger of burning the foliage as strong as five orsix pounds to fifty gallons of water, but three pounds is the usualand a sufficient amount for the control of any apple insect for whichit is efficacious. 

PARIS GREEN is being rapidly displaced by arsenate of lead for severalreasons. It is a compound of white arsenic, copper oxide, and aceticacid. The commercial form is a crystal which in suspension settlesrapidly, a serious fault. It is more soluble than arsenate of lead andhence there is greater danger of burning the foliage with it. Moreover, it costs from twenty to twenty-five cents a pound, and thearsenate of lead can be purchased for from eight to ten cents a pound. 

The amount which it is safe to use in fifty gallons of water is fromone-half to three-quarters of a pound. When paris green is used aloneas a poison lime should be added. Both these arsenicals should bethoroughly wet up by stirring in a smaller receptacle before they areput into the spray tank, in order to get them in as completesuspension as possible. They may be used in the same mixture withBordeaux or lime sulphur. 

CONTACT SPRAYS. --Four compounds are used as contact sprays incombating sucking insects, namely, lime sulphur, soaps such as whaleoil soap, kerosene emulsion, and tobacco extract. Of these limesulphur is the most used and for winter spraying is probably the best. This preparation is made by boiling together for one hour or untilthey unite, twenty pounds of quick lime, fifteen pounds of flower ofsulphur, and fifty gallons of water. Although the home made mixture ismuch cheaper than the commercial form which may be purchased on themarket, many people prefer the latter because of the inconvenience andtrouble of preparing the mixture, although there is nothing difficultabout it. 

This contact spray is used chiefly for the San José scale and theblister mite, and in order to control these must be applied strong onthe dormant wood. The strength necessary will vary from one part ofthe mixture above mentioned or of the commercial preparation, to fromseven to ten parts of water, according to the density test of thematerial, which should be around twenty-eight per cent. Beaumé (ascale for measuring the density of a liquid) for home made, andthirty-two per cent. For the commercial mixture. 

Any good soap is effective in destroying soft bodied insects such asplant lice. The fish oil soaps, although variable in composition, areoften valuable, especially the one known in the trade as whale oilsoap. This soap dissolved in water by boiling at the rate of twopounds of soap to one gallon of water, makes a good winter spray forscale but should be applied before it gets cold as it is then apt tobecome gelatinous. For a summer contact spray against lice, one poundof soap to seven gallons of water is strong enough to be effective. Itis objectionable because of its odor and because it is disagreeable tomake and handle. Lime sulphur is to be preferred as a winter spray, but the soap spray is often necessary and valuable for summer suckinginsects. 

Kerosene emulsion was formerly more commonly used than now against thescale and plant lice. It is a mixture of one-half pound of soap andtwo gallons of kerosene in one gallon of water--preferably in hotwater. For dormant trees one gallon of this mixture should be dilutedwith six gallons of water. While this spray is effective it is no moreso than lime-sulphur and is quite difficult and disagreeable tohandle. As a summer spray, however, it is often necessary. Severalpreparations of petroleum known as the miscible oils are sometimesused. Their use is the same as that of lime-sulphur and they are notas good. 

Within the last few years a tobacco concoction known as black leaftobacco extract (nicotine sulphate) has come into quite common use. Itcan be purchased commercially under various brand names, and should bediluted according to its strength, but usually about one part to fiftyof water. It may be made by boiling one pound of good tobacco stems intwo gallons of water for one-half-hour. Objections to it are that itevaporates very quickly, although it is supposed to be non-volatile, and that it is expensive, but it is very convenient to use, can bereadily mixed with other summer sprays, and is very effective againstplant lice and mites. 

BORDEAUX MIXTURE. Fungicides are mixtures of chemical compounds madeup for the purpose of controlling plant diseases caused by a class ofplant weeds known as fungi. There are three commonly well known andused fungicides, Bordeaux mixture, commercial lime sulphur, and theself-boiled lime-sulphur. The Bordeaux mixture is the best all-aroundfungicide known. It is a mixture of three pounds of copper sulphate(blue vitriol or bluestone) with three or more pounds of fresh burnedstone lime in fifty gallons of water. The two compounds should be puttogether as fruit growers say "with water between, " that is eachshould be diluted with the water separately before the two are mixed. 

The best plan is to have stock mixtures of each in barrels, fiftygallon cider or vinegar barrels making good receptacles for thepurpose. Place the bluestone in an old fertilizer or meal sack andsuspend it about midway in the barrel of water. In a few hours it willall be dissolved and will remain in suspension for some length of timevery well. If say fifty pounds of the copper sulphate are dissolved infifty gallons of water, each gallon of water will contain one pound ofthe bluestone, which makes a very convenient way to measure it. Soalso fifty pounds of fresh burned stone lime should be placed in abarrel--in this case in the bottom of the barrel rather than in asack--just covered with water and allowed to slake, more water beingadded as required up to fifty gallons. If too much water is added tothe lime at the first it will be "drowned" and its slaking checked. These two stock mixtures, each gallon containing one pound of thecopper sulphate or one pound of the lime, are then mixed together. 

It is well to fill the tank about half full of water, then put in therequired amount of the copper sulphate, and after stirring well addthe lime milk. It is a good plan to add an excess of lime as itminimizes the danger of burning and aids the mixture in sticking tothe leaves well. If one is sure that he has at least as much lime, oran excess of lime, it will not be necessary to test the mixture, butif he is not, a simple test may be made with ferro-cyanide ofpotassium, obtained at a drug store. A few drops of this mixture willdisappear if the lime is equal or in excess of the copper sulphate, that is, it will be neutralized, but if it is not, they will remain abright purplish red. Bordeaux mixture is used in strengths varyingfrom three to five pounds each of bluestone and lime in fifty gallonsof water, but the former is usually sufficient. 

LIME-SULPHUR. --The more important fungicides, the commercial limesulphur and the self-boiled lime-sulphur, are practically supersedingBordeaux as a fungicide, not because they are necessarily better, butbecause there is frequently much burning of the foliage and russetingof the fruit from the use of the Bordeaux. This is unfortunate as thelatter is a rather more effective fungicide as well as more convenientand pleasant to use. The self-boiled lime sulphur is a combination oflime and sulphur which is boiled by the heat of the slaking limealone, and makes a pretty good substitute for the Bordeaux when itinjures foliage or fruit. This preparation of lime and sulphur differsfrom the commercial form used as a winter wash in that it is wholly amechanical mixture and not partly chemical like the latter. It maytherefore be used on the foliage in summer at a greater strength, there being only a very small percentage of sulphur in solution whenthe mixture is properly made. 

Equal amounts of lime and sulphur are used, these being from eight toten pounds each to fifty gallons of water. The mixture is bestprepared in larger quantities so as to get heat enough from theslaking lime to produce a violent boiling for a few minutes. First, place say forty pounds of lime in a barrel and pour on just waterenough to start it slaking nicely--about a gallon to each three orfour pounds of lime is usually sufficient. Then add the sulphur andenough more water to slake the paste, keeping it well stirredmeanwhile. The violent boiling of the lime in slaking will cook themixture in from five to fifteen minutes, depending on the quality ofthe lime and how fast it is slaked. Just as soon as the violentboiling is over add enough cold water to stop all action. If this isnot done, some sulphur will unite with the lime and burning may be theresult. 

This self-boiled mixture is entirely harmless to apple foliage andeven appears to have a stimulating effect upon it. Against the applescab, however, it is not as effective as the boiled wash, or thecommercial preparations. For this disease a strength of from one tothirty to one to forty (that is about one and one-half gallons of theprepared mixture testing 31 to 33 Beaumé to fifty gallons of water) ofthe commercial lime-sulphur is most effective. 

SPRAY PUMPS. --The application of the foregoing spray mixtures is fullyas important as the sprays themselves, for on the right application atthe right time depends the efficacy of the spray. For this purpose aconsiderable amount of special machinery has been devised. Lack ofspace prevents us from going into much detail on this question, so wemust be content with merely outlining the different types of machinesand mentioning their accessories. Sprays are forced through single, double or triple acting pumps, either by hand or power. The threetypes of power available are traction, compressed air, and gasoline, the last being the most used. Steam power is practically obsolete. 

The knapsack is the simplest type of hand pump, but it is of nopractical use in the mature apple orchard. For small orchards andsmall trees several types of hand pumps are quite effective. The levertype of pump, where the handle is pushed from and pulled toward theoperator, probably gives the most power with the least tiring effect, because it enables one to use the weight of the body to some extent. It is best not to have the pump attached to the spray barrel or tank, but set on a movable base of its own, as then it can be used for anyone of a number of barrels. Such an outfit may be obtained for fromtwenty-five to forty dollars. 

It is well to buy a standard make of pump, preferably from a nearbydealer, so that repairs may be readily secured. For all orchards up tothree or four acres in size, and for larger orchards where the treesare not over twelve or fifteen feet in height, this kind of spray rigis the most practicable and advisable, when the expense is taken intoconsideration. This applies especially to the general farm. 

The power of a traction sprayer is developed from the wheels. There ismuch discussion as to whether sufficient power to throw an effectivespray can be supplied by this method. By accumulating considerablepressure by extra driving at the ends of the rows and then skippingevery other tree in order to keep up the pressure, going over the rowstwice, a very satisfactory pressure can be obtained for trees whichare not too large. The argument for this type of machine, and it isespecially applicable on the general farm, is that it can be used forother spraying on the farm as well as for the apple orchard, especially for potatoes and small fruits. It is a comparatively cheaptype of power, particularly when it can be used for several purposes. 

The compressed air gas sprayer comes next in point of simplicity andcost for a power sprayer. Its most economic use is found whereorcharding is carried on extensively enough to pay to compress the airor gas right in the orchard. This is of course impracticable on thegeneral farm. Therefore the air or gas must be purchased and shippedto the farm in steel tubes. This often causes delay at critical timesand is rather expensive. Moreover, the gas is open to the objection ofinterfering with the lime-sulphur compound by precipitating some ofthe sulphur. 

The gasoline engine is the most useful and popular type of power forthe orchard sprayer, as well as for general use on the farm. Manymakes are now so perfected that they give little or no trouble. Oneand a half or two horsepower are fully sufficient for spraying, butmost farmers prefer from three to five horsepower in order to be ableto use the engine more for other purposes. The latter power is open toobjection for spraying purposes on account of its weight, asespecially in early spring it is very difficult to haul so heavy a rigover the soft ground. Such an outfit is also rather expensive. Standard makes of gasoline engines of sufficient power for sprayingcost from $75. 00 to $150. 00 according to horsepower and efficiency. For very large trees, for mature orchards, and for all orchards largerthan four or five acres, the gasoline engine is the best source ofpower for spraying, particularly where it can be used for otherpurposes on the farm. 

A double acting or two cylinder pump is most desirable. If there isplenty of power a triplex or three cylinder pump is still better. Therequirements of a good pump are: sufficient power for the work desiredof it; strong but not too heavy; fewest possible number of partsconsistent with efficiency; brass parts and valves; and a good sizedair chamber. A number of standard makes of pumps answer theseconditions very well. Pumps should always be washed out with cleanwater when the operator is through with them and the metal partscoated with vaseline. Never leave water in a pump chamber or in theengine jacket in cold weather. 

The ordinary hand pump and barrel give satisfactory use when placed ona wagon, unless the trees are very high. But for large orchards, hightrees, and where larger tanks and power pumps are used it isdesirable to have a special truck for the outfit. The front wheelshould be made low so as to turn under the tank to enable the driverto make short turns around the trees. A tower is desirable where highold trees are to be sprayed. This should be substantial but as smallas is consistent with the purpose so as not to catch on the limbs andmake it difficult to get close up around the trees. The height of theplatform must be regulated by the need and by the roughness of theground. On steep side hills the wagon body on which the tank restsshould be underslung. 

In order to get as near to the work as possible get a long hose--fromtwenty to thirty feet according to circumstances. The best quality, three to five ply, is none too good. Hose should be three-eighths toone-half inch in diameter, one inch being too heavy. Extension rodsare a practical necessity. They should be ten to twelve feet long andmade of bamboo lined with brass, that is, as light as possible. Nozzles are very important in thorough and effective spraying. Thereis no best nozzle, nor one with which all the work can be done. 

Several things should be considered in selecting a nozzle. First ofall, it must be of convenient form so as not to catch in trees and soconstructed that it will not clog easily. Second, for apple trees itshould have good capacity and deliver as spreading a spray aspossible. Third, the nature of the spray is very important. Insecticides should usually be applied with force in a comparativelycoarse driving spray, but fungicides should be applied in a fine mistor fog so that they will settle on every part of the tree. Thereinlies the difficulty of applying insecticides and fungicides together. 

TIME OF SPRAYING. --Fortunately it is not necessary to make a separateapplication for each insect and disease, but they may be treatedtogether to some extent. In most cases expediency demands that thearsenicals be used with the fungicides. Many growers are finding themost satisfactory results, however, from applying the arsenical sprayseparately, just after the blossoms fall, because of the physicalimpossibility of properly applying the two sprays--the driving and themist spray--together. For most practical purposes on the general farm, three sprayings are necessary in order to secure clean fruit and four, sometimes five, are often advisable. These may be summarized asfollows:

 1. With lime-sulphur, winter strength, on the dormant wood in early spring. 

 2. With lime-sulphur and arsenate of lead just before the blossoms open (may sometimes be omitted). 

 3. With the same (or Bordeaux for scab) just after the blossoms fall. 

 4. With the same two or three weeks later. 

 5. With arsenate of lead eight or nine weeks later (may sometimes be omitted). 

 (In the south and middle latitudes where bitter rot and apple blotch occur two other sprayings may be necessary. )

 6. With Bordeaux about eight or ten weeks after the blossoms fall. 

 7. Again with the same about two weeks later. 

A Calendar for Spraying Apples

--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+-------+---------+----------INSECTS | Nature | Before | Before | After | In 2 | In 8 | Materials | of | Leaf | Flower | Petals | to 3 | to 9 | to | Injury | Buds | Buds | Fall | Weeks | Weeks | Use | | Open | Open | | | |--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+-------+---------+----------Codling | Eating | | | x | x | x | LeadMoth | Worm | | | | | | Arsenate | | | | | | | or | | | | | | | Par. Gr. --------+--------+--------+--------+--------+-------+---------+----------San José|Sucking | x | | | | | LimeScale | Insect | | | | | | Sulphur--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+-------+---------+----------Oyster | Sucking| x | | | | | LimeShell | Insect | | | | | | SulphurScale | | | | | | |--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+-------+---------+----------Blister | Leaf | x | | | | | LimeMite | Miner | | | | | | Sulphur--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+-------+---------+----------Plant | Sucking| | when seen | | | Whale OilLouse | Insect | | | | | | Soap or | | | | | | | Tobacco--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+-------+---------+----------Cigar | Eating | | x | x | x | | LeadCase | Insect | | | | | | ArsenateBearer | | | | | | | or | | | | | | | Par. Gr. --------+--------+--------+--------+--------+-------+---------+----------Apple | Eating | x | x | | destroy fruit | LeadMaggot | Worm | | | | | | Arsenate | | | | | | | or | | | | | | | Par. Gr. --------+--------+--------+--------+--------+-------+---------+----------Bud | Eating | x | x | x | | | LeadMoth | Worm | | | | | | Arsenate | | | | | | | or | | | | | | | Par. Gr. --------+--------+--------+--------+--------+-------+---------+----------Curculio| Eating | | x | x | | | Lead | Worm & | | | | | | Arsenate | Beetle | | | | | | or Par. Gr. --------+--------+--------+--------+--------+-------+---------+----------=Diseases=| | | | | | |--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+-------+---------+----------Apple | Fungus | x | x | x | x | if | LimeScab | | | | | |necessary| Sulphur | | | | | | | or | | | | | | | Bordeaux | | | | | | | 3-3. 50--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+-------+---------+---------- | | | | | | |New York| Fungus | x? | cut out | | | LimeApple | | | infections | | | SulphurTree | | | | | | |Canker | | | | | | |--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+-------+---------+----------Leaf | Fungus | x | x | x | | | LimeSpot | | | | | | | Sulphur--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+-------+---------+----------Sooty | | | | x | x | x | BordeauxBlotch | | | | | | | Mixture | | | | | | | and Lime | | | | | | | Sulphur--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+-------+---------+----------

CHAPTER IX

HARVESTING AND STORING

Apples are practically never allowed to ripen on the trees but arepicked and shipped green. By "green" we mean not fully ripe, not ripeenough to eat out of hand. This is necessary for all fruit which is tobe shipped any considerable distance or which is to be stored. Used inthis sense green has no reference to color, but as a matter of fact, much of our fruit is picked too green, before it has even reached itsfull size and is well colored. There is no exact time at which applesmust be picked, but this depends on many factors such as the variety, the distance to be shipped, the soil, the climate, and various otherconditions, to say nothing of seasonal differences. 

The time at which any variety should be picked in a particular sectionwill be learned by experience. In general, apples should be left onthe tree as long as possible in order to get the best size and color. When the apples begin to drop badly it is a pretty sure indicationthat it is time to pick. If the fruit is to be sold in the localmarket or for immediate consumption, it may be allowed to get riperthan would otherwise be the case. With most varieties one picking issufficient, but in the case of varieties like the Wealthy which doesnot ripen uniformly, or like the Twenty Ounce, which does not alwayscolor evenly, two or three pickings should be made. Two or threepickings are practically always necessary where fancy fruit isdesired, in order to get the ideal size, color, and uniformity. 

LADDERS. --There are two general types of picking ladders, the rung andthe step ladders. For large trees the rung ladders are the best. Theymay be obtained in lengths to suit the height of the tree. Lengths ofmore than twenty-two or twenty-four feet become too heavy and clumsyto handle, even when made of pine, which is the best material as it islight and strong for its weight. In very old, high trees extensionrung ladders are sometimes used. They are also useful for interiorwork but are heavy to handle. Rung ladders cost from ten to twentycents a running foot. Step ladders are useful only on young and smalltrees. The two styles, the three (Japanese) and four legged, are bothquite satisfactory where one can reach the fruit from them. 

Receptacles for picking usually hold about half a bushel. Both basketsand bags are used, some preferring one and some the other, and achoice between them is merely a matter of personal preference. Thereis a little less liability of bruising the apples in bags than inbaskets, but the latter are more convenient in some ways. Fruit shouldnever be thrown or dropped into a basket but always handled carefully. Some varieties, as McIntosh, show almost every finger mark andliterally require handling with gloves. 

HANDLING. --The old custom of picking and laying on the ground in theorchard is a poor one and should not be followed, as it causesunnecessary handling and bruising. Moreover, fruit should be packedand hauled to storage as soon after picking as possible. Picking andplacing directly on the packing table from which the apples areimmediately packed is the best plan where it is practicable, but asthe weather at picking time in the Eastern States is frequently quiteuncertain, it is not always possible to follow this plan as closely ascan be done in the West, where dry air and sunshine prevail. Still, wherever there is a considerable quantity of fruit and severalpickers, the plan of packing directly from the table is best. Manygrowers pick in boxes and barrels and haul the apples to a packingshed to be packed later. Convenience and expediency must govern thegeneral farmer who is not always at liberty to choose the best plan, often having to do as he can. 

PACKING TABLES enable the grower to pack his fruit better because hecan see better what he is doing, and to handle the fruit more cheaplyand quickly and with less injury. They should be portable so that theycan be moved about the orchard. A convenient type has one end mountedon wheels so that it can be pushed from one place to another. The topof the table should be made of two strong layers of canvas, one tackedfirmly to the framework of the table with about three or four inchesof dip and the other laid loosely over it. This plan provides a softresting place for the fruit and the table can be easily cleaned off bysimply throwing back the upper layer of canvas. 

Three feet six inches is about the right width for the table, and thesame sloping to three feet four inches at one end, is the correctheight from the ground. Most packers like to have this gradual slopeto one end so that the apples will naturally feed toward that end. Thelength may be anything up to eight or ten feet, beyond which the tablebecomes heavy and unmanageable. 

BARRELS. --The standard apple barrel adopted by the National AppleShippers' Association and made law in New York State has a length ofstave of twenty-eight and one-half inches and a diameter of head ofseventeen and one-eighth inches. The outside circumference of thebilge is sixty-four inches and the distance between the heads istwenty-six inches. It contains one hundred quarts dry measure. Thestaves are mostly made of elm, pine, and red gum, and the headsprincipally of pine with some beech and maple. In most apple growingsections barrels are made in regular cooper shops where theirmanufacture is a business by itself. Only the largest growers set uptheir own barrels. Practically all barrels are purchased "knockeddown" and it costs from four to six cents each to set them up. Barrelscan ordinarily be purchased for about thirty-five cents each, but thecost varies somewhat with the season and the region. 

Apple packages should always present a neat, clean, and attractiveappearance. Never use flour barrels, soiled or ununiform barrels ofany kind. If a head cushion is used a good deal of waste from thecrushing and bruising of the fruit will be saved. A head lining ofplain or fringed paper also adds much to the attractiveness of thepackage. The wrapping of apples for barrel packing is hardlyadvisable. The fruit is pressed into the barrel tightly with one oftwo types of presses, both of which are good. 

The lever press is more responsive and the pressure is more easilychanged, but it is harder to operate. The screw press distributes thepressure more evenly with less injury to the fruit and is morepowerful. 

The steps in properly packing a barrel of apples are: First, see thatthe middle and closed end hoops are tight, if necessary, nailing themand clinching the nails; second, mark the head plainly with the gradeand variety and the name of the packer or owner; then place the barrelon a solid floor or plank and lay in the facing papers (the face endbeing packed first); select the "facers, " which should be the bestrepresentatives of the grade being packed, and _no others_, and placethem in two courses in regular order stems down; with a drop handlebasket fill the barrel, using care not to bruise the fruit, andjarring the barrel back and forth on the plank as each basket is putinto it in order to settle the fruit firmly in place; lastly, arrangea layer of apples stems up and apply the press, using a hatchet to getthe head in place and to drive on and tighten the hoops. 

THE BOX PACKAGE is rapidly growing in favor, especially as a carrierof fancy fruit. There is no standard box the size of which is fixed bylaw unless it be a box labeled a bushel. But two sizes of boxes are incommon use, both probably being necessary on account of the variationin the size of different varieties. The "Standard" box is 10˝ by 11˝by 18 inches inside measurement and contains 2, 173. 5 cubic inches (thelawful stricken bushel is 2, 150. 4 cubic inches). The "Special" box is10 by 11 by 20 inches inside measurement and contains 2, 200 cubicinches. The bulge when properly made will add about 150 cubic inchesmore, making the two boxes hold 2, 323. 5 cubic inches and 2, 350 cubicinches respectively. 

Spruce is the most reliable and in general the best material. Fir issometimes used, but is likely to split. Pine is good if strong enough. The ends should be of three-quarter-inch material; the sides ofthree-eighth-inch, and the tops and bottoms--two pieces each--ofone-quarter-inch material. There should also be two cleats each fortop and bottom. The sides of the box should be nailed with four, preferably five-penny cement-coated nails, at each end. The cleatsshould be put neatly on each end and four nails put into them, goingthrough into the top and bottom. Boxes commonly come "knocked down" orin the flat and are usually put together by the grower. They cost fromten to thirteen cents each in the flat. 

There are several kinds of packs, depending on the size of the applesand the choice of the grower. The diagonal pack with each appleresting over the spaces between others is preferable, but on accountof the size of the apples one is often forced to use the straight packwith the apples in regular right angle rows for some sizes. The offsetpack, first three (or four) on one side and then on the other, isvery much like the diagonal, but not much used on account of itsaccommodating too few apples in a box. The following table gives thepacks, number of rows, number of apples in the row, box to use, andnumber of apples used to the box, as used at Hood River, Oregon:

 No. Size expressed apples No. In No. Apples in layers in Box per box Tier Pack row depth used-------------------------------------------------------------------- 45 3 3 St. 5-5 3 Standard 54 3 3 St. 6-6 3 Special 63 3 3 St. 7-7 3 Special 64 3˝ 2-2 Diag. 4-4 4 Standard 72 3˝ 2-2 Diag. 4-5 4 Standard 80 3˝ 2-2 Diag. 5-5 4 Standard 88 3˝ 2-2 Diag. 5-6 4 Standard 96 3˝ 2-2 Diag. 6-6 4 Special 104 3˝ 2-2 Diag. 6-7 4 Special 112 3˝ 2-2 Diag. 7-7 4 Special 120 3˝ 2-2 Diag. 7-8 4 Special 128 4 4 St. 8-8 4 Special 144 4 4 St. 9-9 4 Special 150 4˝ 3-2 Diag. 6-6 5 Standard 163 4˝ 3-2 Diag. 6-7 5 Standard 175 4˝ 3-2 Diag. 7-7 5 Standard 185 4Ľ 3-2 Diag. 7-8 5 Special 200 4˝ 3-2 Diag. 8-8 5 Special

It is good practice to wrap apples packed in boxes. For this purpose aheavy-weight tissue paper in two sizes, 8 by 10 and 10 by 10, according to the size of the apple, is used. A lining paper 18 by 24in size and "white news" in grade is first placed in the box. Betweenthe layers of apples a colored "tagboard" paper, size 17Ľ by 11 or 20by 9ľ, according to the box used, is laid so as to make the layerscome out right at the top. In packing the box is inclined toward thepacker for convenience in placing the fruit. After laying in thelining paper each apple is wrapped and put in place. As an aid topicking up the thin wrapping paper a rubber "finger" is used on theforefinger. When the box is packed the layers should stand a quarterto a half inch higher in the middle than at the ends, in order to givea bulge or spring to the top and bottom which holds the fruit firmlyin place without bruising. 

There has been much discussion as to whether the box or the barrel isthe better package for apples. This is needless, for as a matter offact each is best for its own particular purpose. The barrel is bestadapted as a package for large commercial quantities of fruit andwhere labor could not be had to pack apples in boxes even if the tradewanted them. The barrel permits the packing of a greater variety insize and shape than does the box, and these can be more easily andcheaply handled in packing. 

On the other hand, the box is the ideal package for small amounts offancy fruit, to be used for a family-or fruit-stand trade. It presentsa neater and more fancy appearance and is a more convenient package tohandle, as well as one which is more open to inspection. It alreadyhas a better reputation as a quality container than the barrel. As afancy package for a limited private trade from the small general farmorchard with high-class varieties like the Northern Spy, McIntosh, andothers there is no comparison of the box with the barrel. 

STORAGE. --Car refrigeration and cold storage of fruit arecomparatively modern developments. Few persons who have not beenaffected directly realize what a tremendous influence they have hadupon the fruit, and particularly the apple industry. Apples could notbe shipped any very great distance. Crops had to be marketedimmediately and when they were large the markets were soon glutted andthe fruit became almost valueless. The first hot spell woulddemoralize the trade altogether. Then later in the season the supplywould become exhausted and famine would ensue where but a few weeksbefore there had been a feast. Under such conditions it is notsurprising that the apple industry did not develop very rapidly andthat apple growing was mostly confined to areas near the largermarkets. 

The coming of the refrigerator car extended fruit-growing over a muchwider area. Refrigeration on shipboard opened up and enlarged theexport trade. Cold storage warehouses lengthened the season by holdingover the surplus of fruit, thus relieving fall gluts in the market andproviding a winter supply of apples. These conditions created a morestable market with more uniform prices, extending the business from aside issue to one of chief importance. Marketing has become almost abusiness by itself, inducing the formation of growers' associationsand creating a profitable occupation for large dealers and commissionmen. These conditions, too, have led to speculation. 

Two kinds of storage are used, common or cellar storage and coldstorage. Both are about equally available, but the latter is tooexpensive for the small grower. There is always a question as to theadvisability of the small grower storing his fruit. Storage means adegree of speculation. "A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush, "especially when the bird is a good one. So far as rules can be laiddown, the following are pretty safe ones to keep in mind: It is safestto store apples when they are of the highest quality; in a season mostunfavorable to common storage; when the fewest are being stored; whenthe price in the fall is medium to low, never when high; and when onecan afford to lose the whole crop. 

Successful storage requires several things: good fruit, storedimmediately after picking, careful sorting and handling, subsequentrest, and a reasonable control of the temperature. The functions ofstorage are to arrest ripening, retard the development of disease, andfurnish a uniform, cold temperature. Storage of apples does not remedyover-ripeness nor prevent deterioration of already diseased, bruised, or partly rotted fruit. There are three general methods of storage:(1) by ventilation, (2) by the use of ice and (3) by mechanical means. 

Cooling by ventilation offers the most practical system for a farmstorage. It requires that there be perfect insulation against outsidetemperature changes, adequate ventilation, and careful watching oftemperatures. To provide for good insulation a dead air space isnecessary. This can be secured by a course of good two-inch boardswith one or two layers of building paper inside and out, over aframework of two-by-fours. Over the building paper tight, well matchedsiding should be laid also inside and out. Two of the dead air spaceswill make insulation doubly sure. 

To provide for proper ventilation construct an intake for cold air atthe bottom, and an outlet for warm air at the top of the room. Theseshould serve all parts of the room, one being necessary for thispurpose every twelve to sixteen feet. Do not depend too much onwindows. Warm-air flues should be twelve inches square and six totwelve feet long. 

The attention to such a house is most important. Keep it closedtightly early in the fall with blinded windows. When nights get coolopen the doors and windows to let in cold air, closing them againduring the day. On hot days close the ventilators also. In this way atemperature of 36 to 40 degrees Fahr. Can be secured in early fall andone of 32 to 33 degrees Fahr. Later. This is probably the cheapest aswell as the most practical method of farm storage. 

Ice storage is quite practical in the North, but more expensive. Theprinciple of such a storage is to keep ice above the fruit, allowingthe cold air to flow down the sides of the room. A shaft in the middleof the room will serve to remove the warm air. This method is open tothe objection of difficulty in storing the ice above the fruit. Moreover the uniformity of its cold air supply is questionable. Mechanical storage in which cold temperatures are secured by thecompression or absorption of gases is altogether impracticable forindividual growers, as it costs from $1. 50 to $2. 00 a barrel ofcapacity to construct such a storage. Rents of this kind of storagerange from 10 to 25 cents a barrel per month, or 25 to 50 cents abarrel for the season of from four to six months. 

CHAPTER X

MARKETS AND MARKETING

Having produced a good product, there remains the problem of making aprofitable and satisfactory disposition of it. In many ways marketingis the measure of successful fruit growing. Of what use is it to prunewell, cultivate well, spray thoroughly, or even pack well the finestkind of product, if after the expense of these operations is paid andthe railroad and commission agents have had their share, no profitremains to the producer? Many growers find it easier to produce goodfruit than to market it at a good price, and this is especially trueof the general farmer. Failure to market well spells failure in thebusiness of fruit growing. Successful marketing presupposes aknowledge of the requirements of different markets as to quality, varieties, and supply demanded in those markets. Methods ofdistribution are also one of the great factors in this problem ofmarketing. 

TYPES OF MARKETS. --There are two general types of markets, the local, which is a special market and the general or wholesale market, both ofwhich have different but definite requirements. The local markethandles fruit in small quantities, but usually with a larger margin ofprofit per unit to the producer. As a rule delivery is direct in alocal market, and thus commissions are saved. Competition is also moreor less limited to one's neighbors. More varieties, including lesswell known ones, are called for. Appearance does not count for as muchas quality, which is of first importance. Fruit may be riper as it isconsumed more quickly and meets with less rough handling. Packages areusually returned to the grower. Special markets are often willing topay extra for fruit out of season, and they always require specialstudy and adaptation to meet their needs. 

The general or wholesale market handles fruit in larger quantities, usually with a smaller margin of profit. A selling agent or commissionman is the means of disposing of fruit in such a market, wherecompetition is open to the whole country and sometimes to the world. Only standard well-known varieties find a ready and profitable sale. Great attention is paid to appearance and comparatively little toquality. Fruit shipped to a wholesale market must be packed in astandard package, which is not returned, but goes with the fruit, andmust be packed so as to endure rough treatment. Out of season fruit isnot in demand, but even the general market sometimes has specialpreferences. 

Almost every market has favorite varieties for which it is willing topay a larger price than other markets. Just as Boston wants a brownegg and New York a white one, so these and other cities have theirfavorite varieties of apples. Some markets prefer a red apple, othersa green one, although the former is most generally popular. In themining and manufacturing towns working people want smaller greenapples, or "seconds, " because they are cheaper. Many second-classhotels prefer small apples, if they are well colored, as they gofarther. The fashionable restaurant and the fruit stand are themarkets for large, perfect, and highly colored specimens. Housewivesdemand cooking apples like Greenings, hotels want a good out-of-handapple like the McIntosh, while private families have their ownspecial favorites. As will readily be seen, the producer's problem isto find the special market for what he grows. 

It has been said that different markets have special varietalpreferences, paying a better price for these than do other markets forthe same quality. We can only take the space here to point out a fewof these preferences. The Baldwin is by all odds our best generalmarket and export variety. It is the workingman's apple and finds itsbest sale in our largest cities, particularly in New York and Chicago. The Rhode Island Greening is a better seller in the northern marketsthan it is in the southern, finding its best sale in Boston and in NewYork. The Northern Spy is highly regarded by all our large northernand eastern markets, is fairly well liked by the middle latitudemarkets, but not popular south of Baltimore and Pittsburgh or west ofMilwaukee. 

Central western markets appear to prefer the Hubbardson, but thisapple is fairly good in all markets. King is well thought of nearlyeverywhere. Ben Davis is a favorite in the South, New Orleansespecially preferring it on account of its keeping quality. Jonathanhas a good reputation everywhere. Dutchess of Oldenburg is regardedas excellent in Buffalo and Chicago. Wealthy, although generally alocal market apple, is well known and liked in all markets. TwentyOunce is spoken well of nearly everywhere. The Fameuse is not wellliked in the South, but popular in the North, etc. These particularfacts as to varieties are best learned by experience and byobservation of the market quotations. 

THE COMMISSION MAN. --The present system of marketing fruit productsmakes the commission man almost a necessity in the general market. Neither the grower nor the local dealer can ship directly to theconsumer or even to the retailer, except in a very limited way. It maybe impracticable to devise any other workable system, but it must beremembered that every man who touches a barrel of apples on itsjourney from producer to consumer must be paid for doing so, and thispay must come either out of the seller's price or be added to thebuyer's price. But so long as present conditions of marketing anddistribution prevail, so long will a selling agent in the generalmarket be necessary, and the evil cannot be ameliorated by rantingagainst it. 

An unfortunate impression prevails that all commission men aredishonest. This is not true, although undoubtedly there are manyscoundrels among them, as they have shippers almost completely attheir mercy. The best method under our present system is to choose anhonest commission man in the city where you sell, to get acquaintedwith him, to let him know that your trade will be in his hands only solong as he treats you fairly, and then supply him with as good qualityof stuff as you can produce. This plan has worked out well with manysuccessful growers and marketers. 

Perhaps the greatest difficulty to be overcome in successfully findinggood markets is that of proper distribution. As has been pointed outin the previous chapter, there has been a great increase in theproduction of apples and hence in competition, accompanied byspeculation and more intensive methods in all phases of the business. A necessity has arisen for the production of the best at a minimumcost, as well as for finding the best market for that product. In therush for the best market every seller is apt to be guided only by hisown immediate interest without due regard for the fact that others areacting in the same way or that there is a future. The result is thepiling up of fruit in a market of high quotations, and a subsequentdrop in the price. Then all turn from such a market to a better onewith the result that a famine often results where but a few weeks oreven days before there had been a feast. 

Thus it often happens that one market may have more fruit than it canpossibly dispose of at the time, while another, perhaps equally good, goes begging. Such conditions are ruinous to trade. Growers aredisappointed and ascribe the cause to the commission man. Consumersare unable many times to profit by a glut in the market but promptlyblame the middleman or the grower when the supply is small and theprice high. 

Other difficulties with our system of marketing are non-uniformity ofthe grades, the packages, or the fruit itself. There should be a cleardefinition of just what "firsts" and "seconds" are and this definitionrigidly adhered to. Transportation is too frequently insufficient, notrapid enough, especially when perishable fruit is shipped in smalllots, and usually at a too high rate. There are undoubtedly too manymiddlemen between producer and consumer. Growers sell to local dealerswho sell to wholesalers at the receiving end. These sell towholesalers at the consuming end, who may sell to jobbers, who sell toretailers. Each man must have his profits, all of which greatlyincreases costs. 

CO-OPERATION. --Individuals have practically no power to remedy such astate of affairs. So long as producers act independently they willhave little power either to bring about favorable legislation or tobetter such market conditions. Acting together as a unit growers haveaccomplished great things which can be repeated. The co-operativeprinciple has been well tried out in California, where it was firstput into operation with citrous fruits, in several other WesternStates with apples, and in Michigan and the Province of Ontario. 

Co-operative associations study carefully the law of supply and demandand take steps to adapt their shipments to it. They standardize thegrade, the package, and the fruit, and govern their shipments to givenmarkets by the needs and the demands of those markets. Their unity ofeffort enables them to make great savings in the purchase of supplies, such as packages, spraying material, fertilizers, etc. , and inobtaining and distributing frequently knowledge of markets and marketconditions. They also advertise their products, making them betterknown, creating a demand for them, and by means of correspondence ortraveling agents seek out the best markets. 

There are now several large fruit exchanges operating over widesections of country. But the local associations are the vital units inany co-operative movement. Such associations should be incorporatedunder State laws so that they can do all sorts of business whennecessary. Six simple objects should be kept in mind, namely, (1) toprevent unnecessary competition, and to supervise and controldistribution of products; (2) to provide for uniformity in the grade, package, and fruit; (3) to build up a high standard of excellence andto create a demand for it; (4) to economize in buying supplies andselling products; (5) to promote education regarding all phases of thefruit business; and (6) when necessary to act as a buying and sellingagent for the community. 

Such an association requires a board of directors, a treasurer, and anactive and well-paid manager. The latter is most important, as uponhis honesty, ability, and energy will largely depend the success orfailure of the organization. Sometimes where fruit is packed in acentral packing house or under an association brand or guarantee, aforeman packer is also necessary. The capitalization required for suchan enterprise is not necessarily large, unless warehouses or packinghouses are built. These are usually better rented until theorganization becomes well established. 

The shares should be small so that every member may be financiallywell represented, and members should be prohibited from holding morethan a small percentage of the total shares, in order to preventpossible monopoly. Dividends on stock held should only be expectedfrom business done outside the association membership, interest onmoney invested being obtained in the handling of members' products atcost. Receipts should be given growers for just what they bring in, and they should then be paid according to the grade of fruit whichthey contribute, prices for the same grade being pooled. The charge togrowers for handling should be actual cost, but outsiders' productsshould be handled at a small profit in order to induce them to comeinto the association. The same method should be followed in purchasingsupplies. 

The general result of such co-operation is that the consumer gets abetter product for his money and the grower receives a better pricefor his product. It is very essential to the success of theorganization that growers stick together, even through low prices anddiscouragement which so often come, until they are firmly established. Substantial reduction in the cost of the product to consumers can onlycome by similar co-operation among them at the buying end and by theco-operation of both consumers and producers for distribution andhandling in market. 

If a neighborhood does not feel yet ready to attack this problem inthis thorough and businesslike way, it will be advantageous and a stepin the right direction if they simply agree on certain standards ofquality and packing and then pool their product for marketing. Thismethod has also been followed with success. 

CHAPTER XI

SOME HINTS ON RENOVATING OLD ORCHARDS

Nearly every general farm in the humid part of the United States hasits small, old apple orchard. For the most part these orchards wereplanted in order to have a home source of supply of this popularfruit. In fact, but few orchards have been planted on a commercialscale with a view of selling the fruit, until recently and outside ofa few sections. Therefore, as a rule we find these old farm orchardsto consist of a few acres containing from twenty-five to two hundredtrees. These trees are usually good standard varieties which have beenthe source of much apple "sass, " many an apple pie, and many a barrelof cider-vinegar. 

Not having been set for profit, these trees received little care. Orchards were cropped in the regular rotation, or with hay, orpastured. Farmers then knew little of modern methods of orchardmanagement. The orchard was regarded as an incumbrance to the land, which had to be farmed to as good advantage as possible under thecircumstances, and if the apple trees by any chance yielded a crop, the owner regarded himself as fortunate indeed. 

But conditions have now changed. Both local and foreign markets havebeen opened up and developed so that the demand for good fruit isgreat. It will be some time before the thousands of acres of orchardswhich have been and are being planted to meet this demand will be ableto do so in any adequate way. It has been shown in Chapter I how heavyhas been the falling off in the supply, even in the face of theseheavy plantings. Meanwhile we must turn to the old neglected farmorchards for our supply of apples. Just at this particular time therenovation of these old orchards offers a splendid opportunity toincrease the farm income. 

The question is a live one on nearly every general farm in the East. Will it pay to try to renovate my old apple trees? If so, what shouldI do to make them profitable? What will it cost and what returns maybe expected? The latter question will be taken up in the followingchapter, but here we must try to indicate under what conditions itmay pay to renovate an old orchard, as well as those under which itmay not pay, and also how to go about the problem. 

NECESSARY QUALITIES. --An apple orchard must have certainqualifications in order to make it worth while to spend the time andmoney necessary to accomplish the desired results. These we may takeup briefly under five heads: (1) varieties, (2) age, (3) number or"stand" of trees, (4) vigor and health of the trees, and (5) soil, site, and location. The discussion of these subjects in Chapters IIand III has equal application here, but we may perhaps point out theirspecific application more definitely in the case of the old neglectedfarm orchard. 

(1) Varieties should be desirable sorts. If they are the best standardmarket varieties, as is often the case, so much the better. Otherwiselittle is gained by improving the tree and fruit. Poor or unknownvarieties have little or no market value, except perhaps a very localone. If the trees are not too old and are fairly vigorous, poorvarieties may sometimes be worked over by top grafting to bettervarieties. Characteristics which may make, a variety undesirable are:inferior quality; unattractiveness in color, shape, or size; lack ofhardiness in the tree or keeping quality in the fruit; low yield; orbeing unknown in the market with its consequent small demand. Summervarieties are worth renovating only when they are in good demand in anearby local market. 

(2) Vigor is more important than age in the tree, but is closelycorrelated with it. Ordinarily one should hesitate to try to renovatea tree more than forty or fifty years old, but this must always dependalmost wholly on its condition and other characteristics. 

(3) In order to make a business of renovation and to do thorough workwhich means expense, there must be enough of the orchard to justifythe expenditure of the time and money. This affects the results notonly in expense, but in economy in management, equipment, andmarketing. There should be at least an acre of say thirty trees, andbetter, more than that number to justify the expense of time and moneynecessary for renovation. One hundred trees would certainly justifyit, other conditions being favorable. Then, too, the trees should bein such shape that they can be properly treated without too greattrouble and expense, i. E. , not too scattered or isolated or in themidst of regular fields better adapted for other crops. 

(4) Vigor and good general health are of great importance. Many oldtrees are too far gone with neglect, having been too long starved orhaving their vitality too much weakened by disease to make an effortfor their rehabilitation worth while. Good vigor, even though it bedormant, is absolutely essential. Disease weakens the tree, making theexpense of renovation greater. Moreover, all diseased branches must beremoved, requiring severe cutting and often seriously injuring thetree. Disease too often stunts the tree to such an extent as to makestimulation practically impossible. Such matters should be carefullylooked into before attempting renovation. 

(5) If the soil, site, and location are all unfavorable or even if twoof these are not good, time and money are likely to be wasted onrenovation. What constitutes unfavorable conditions in these respectshas already been pointed out in Chapter III. 

Practically the same principles of pruning, cultivation, fertilizationand spraying apply in the management of the old orchard as in anyother orchard. It may be well, however, to restate these, brieflypointing out their special value and application to the old neglectedorchard together with the few modifications of practice necessary. Thesteps to be taken are four: (1) pruning, (2) fertilizing, (3)cultivating, and (4) spraying. 

(1) PRUNING. --Old and long-neglected apple orchards usually have alarge amount of dead wood in them. This may be removed at any time ofthe year, but fall and winter are good times to begin the work. If thetrees are high and the limbs scattered and sprawling so that themiddle of the trees is not well filled out, the trees should be headedback rather severely. Such trees may safely have their highest limbscut back from five to ten feet. It is best not to remove too manybranches in one year, but to spread severe cutting back over at leasttwo years, as so much pruning at one time weakens the tree and causesan excessive growth of "suckers. " Each limb should be cut back to arather strong and vigorous lateral branch which may then take up thegrowth of the upright one. The effect of such heading back will be tostimulate the branches lower down and probably to bring in more orless "suckers. " The following year the best of these suckers shouldbe selected at proper points about the tree, headed in so as todevelop their lateral buds, and encouraged by the removal of all othersuckers to fill in the top and center of the tree in the way desired. All such severe heading in should best be done in the early spring. 

(2) FERTILIZING. --At some time during the late fall or winter twelveto fifteen loads of stable manure should be applied broadcast on eachacre, scattering it well out under the ends of the branches. This willamount to a load to from three to five trees. In case manure is notavailable, or sometimes even supplementary to it in cases where quickresults are wanted 100 to 200 pounds of nitrate of soda, 300 to 500pounds of acid phosphate, and 150 to 200 pounds of sulphate or muriateof potash should be applied in two applications as a top dressing inspring, as soon as growth starts, and thoroughly worked into the soil. This will give the trees an abundance of available plant food, whichis usually badly needed, and help to stimulate them to a vigorousgrowth. Such heavy feeding may easily be overdone and should beadjusted according to conditions and the needs of the orchard. 

(3) CULTIVATING. --If the orchard has been in sod for a number ofyears, as is often the case, it is usually best to plow it in the fallabout four inches deep, just deep enough to turn under the sod. By sodoing a large number of roots will probably be broken, but such injurywill be much more than offset by the stimulus to the trees the nextseason. It is a good plan to apply the stable manure on the top ofthis plowed ground early in the winter. Fall plowing gives a betteropportunity for rotting the sod and exposes to the winter action ofthe elements the soil, which is usually stale and inactive after lyingso long unturned. In the spring the regular treatment with springtoothand spiketooth harrows should be followed as outlined in Chapter V. 

(4) SPRAYING in the old orchard is essentially the same as elsewhere. It is necessary, however, to emphasize the first spray, the dormantone, winter strength on the wood. This is the most important spray fora neglected orchard and it should be very thoroughly applied. It is asort of cleaning-up spray for scale, fungus, and insects which winteron the bark. In orchards where the San José scale is bad a stronglime-sulphur spray should also be used in the late fall in order tomake doubly sure a thorough cleaning up. It is usually a pretty goodplan to scrape old trees as high up as the rough, shaggy bark extends, destroying the scrapings. For this purpose an old and dull hoe doesvery well. This treatment will get rid of many insects by destroyingthem and their winter quarters. 

PATCHING OLD TREES. --A few suggestions on patching up the weak placesin an old tree may not be entirely out of place. The question is oftenasked, will it pay to fill up the decayed centers or sides of oldtrees? If the tree is otherwise desirable to save, it usually will. Scrape out all the dead and rotten material, cleaning down to thesound heart wood. Then fill up the cavity with a rough cement, beingcareful to exclude all air and finishing with a smooth, slopingsurface so as to drain away all moisture. This treatment will probablyprevent further decay and often acts as a substantial mechanicalsupport. 

Trees which are badly split or which have so grown that a heavy cropis likely to break them over should be braced with wires or bolts. Where the limbs are close together a bolt driven right through themwith wide, strong washers at the ends is very effective instrengthening the tree. Where limbs must be braced from one side ofthe tree across to the other wires are the best to use. They may befastened to bolts through the limbs with wide washers on the outsidehooks on the inside, or by passing the wire around the branches. Inthe latter case some wide, fairly rigid material such as tin, piecesof wood, or heavy leather should be used to protect the tree from thewire which would otherwise cut into the bark and perhaps girdle thelimb. 

COST. --For the benefit of those who would like to get some idea of theprobable cost of renovating old apple orchards, the following estimatemade by the writer in a recent government publication on this subjectis given. This estimate has been carefully made up from actual recordskept on several New York farms. Because these costs are very variableaccording to the condition of the orchard, both maximum and minimumamounts are given per acre for the first year only. 

 Minimum Maximum cost cost

 Plowing $2. 00 $3. 00 Manure, 10 to 20 loads at $1, or their equivalent in commercial fertilizer 10. 00 20. 00 Hauling manure 5. 00 10. 00 Pruning and hauling brush 5. 00 10. 00 Disking or harrowing twice 1. 00 1. 50 Disking or harrowing 3d or 4th time . 50 1. 00 Cultivating two to four times . 50 1. 00 Spraying once with L. S. Dilution 1 to 9--material 2. 00 4. 00 Spraying once, L. S. , labor 1. 00 1. 50 Spraying second time with L. S. Dilution 1 to 40, labor and material 1. 50 2. 50 Spraying third time with same 1. 50 2. 50 ------ ------ Total cost $30. 00 $57. 00

CHAPTER XII

THE COST OF GROWING APPLES

Two factors have always operated to deter many persons from taking upfruit growing as a business or even as a side issue on the farm, andthey will probably continue to be an obstacle for more time to come. These are the comparatively large investment required and thenecessarily long period of waiting before paying returns can beobtained. Farmers who have not gone into the business of fruit growingbecause they could not afford this heavy investment or to wait so longfor returns have been wise. Others who, though lacking the necessarycapital, still have planted heavily have learned to their sorrow theimportance of capital in the business both for the original investmentand to carry the enterprise. And yet with sufficient capital and theproper conditions there is no more attractive or profitable line ofagriculture than fruit growing. 

Who knows what it costs to grow an orchard to bearing age? Or what itcosts to produce a barrel of apples? We venture to say that very fewpersons do. Because of the large investment both in fixed and inworking capital it is most important to know these costs. Moreover anaccurate knowledge of the financial conditions and facts in anybusiness is of first importance to intelligent management. For thesereasons every grower ought to keep careful records of the cost andincome from each field or orchard every year in order to determine asaccurately as possible what his crops have cost him per unit and peracre and what rate of interest he has realized on his investment. Asfarming becomes more intensive competition increases, costs multiply, and the margin of profit on any given unit becomes smaller. Ittherefore becomes increasingly necessary to have accurate records onthe cost of production. 

FACTORS IN THE COST OF PRODUCTION. --The value of records depends ontheir accuracy and on their completeness. There are a great manyfactors which enter into the cost of production. For convenience thesemay be classified as cash costs and labor costs. Labor charges shouldinclude the work of both men and teams at a rate determined by theiractual cost or by a careful estimate. Man labor costs are easilyreckoned, as they are either simple cash or cash plus board andcertain privileges, the value of which should be estimated in cash. 

The value of horse labor is more difficult to determine. It is made upof interest on valuation, depreciation, stable rental, feed, care, etc. A fair estimate of this cost is $10 a month or $120 a year for ahorse. Cash costs are interest on the investment and on the equipmentin machinery, etc. , or rental of the same, taxes, a proper share ofthe general farm expenses such as insurance and repairs of buildings, telephone, etc. , the cost of spraying material, packages, fertilizers, etc. 

There are many ways of keeping such a record. Any method whichaccomplishes the result in a convenient and accurate manner is a goodone. It will usually be found necessary to keep a cash account or daybook, entering all items in enough detail to make possible their laterdistribution to the proper field or crop, and also to keep a diary ofall labor. Any form of diary will answer the purpose, but one whichhas ruled columns at the right side of the page in which to indicatethe crop or field worked upon, and the number of hours worked is moreconvenient and therefore more desirable. 

AN EXAMPLE. --For a number of years the author has kept such records onhis farm in western New York. As an illustration of the method and inorder to give the reader a general idea as to what the costs abovereferred to are likely to be we venture to give the following tables. It must be remembered, however, that practically everyone of the abovementioned factors varies with the conditions under which the orchardis managed and that these figures are not _an_ average but _one_average and on one farm. True averages are arrived at only by bringingtogether a large number of figures. In any case, the question of costis essentially an individual problem on every farm. These figures areof value only as an example of the method and the cost on one farmunder its own special conditions. 

The orchard for which the following figures were given was set in thespring of 1903, and the records begin with that year and end with1910, covering a period of eight years in all. Throughout this periodother crops have been grown between the tree rows, thereby offsettingto a large extent the cost of growing the orchard. Forty trees at thenorth end of the orchard are pears, but they have receivedsubstantially the same treatment as the apples and have not affectedthe cost. In 1904, 211 plum trees were set as fillers one way. Theapple trees were set 36 by 36 feet apart, so that, filled one way, thetrees stand 18 by 36 feet apart. The orchard is ten rows wide andforty-seven long, containing in all 467 trees. 

BRINGING TO BEARING AGE. --The first of the following tables is givenas a sample of one year's records, that of 1907, on this orchard inorder to show both the manner in which the costs were made up and whatthe items amounted to in one year:

FIELD A--1907. FIFTH YEAR

 Total Hours Cost Cost hours Total per acre per perOperation Man Horse cost Man Horse acre 100Mulching 3 6 $1. 05 . 455 . 91 $0. 16 $0. 22Pruning 11 . . . 1. 65 1. 67 . . . . 25 . 35Cultivating 1 7 7 1. 75 1. 06 1. 06 . 26 . 38Cultivating 2 10 10 2. 50 1. 51 1. 51 . 38 . 54Cultivating 3 6 6 1. 50 . 91 . 91 . 23 . 32Plowing in fall 47 94 16. 45 7. 12 14. 25 2. 50 3. 52Banking trees 12 . . . 1. 80 1. 82 . . . . 27 . 39Harrowing 21 42 7. 35 3. 18 6. 36 1. 11 1. 58 --- --- ------ ----- ----- ----- -----Total lab. Cost. 117 165 $34. 05 17. 73 25. 00 $5. 16 $7. 30

4 loads manure at $1. 50 6. 00 . 91 1. 29Equipment charge 1. 15 . 174 . 25Taxes 5. 29 . 801 1. 13Interest 38. 48 5. 83 8. 23 ------ ------- ------Total cost $84. 97 $12. 875 $18. 20

INCOME, COST AND PROFIT ON BEANS--FIELD A--1907

 Income Cost Profit 75 bushels at $1. 50 $112. 50 3˝ tons pods at $6 21. 00 $133. 65 $94. 50 $38. 85

LOSS ON FIELD A--1907

 Total Per acre Net income from beans $38. 85 $5. 89 Cost of orchard 84. 97 12. 87 ------ ------ Loss $46. 12 $6. 98

A summary of the cost of the orchard, the net income from the crop, the income from the orchard and the profit and loss by years for theeight years follows:

SUMMARY OF COSTS FOR EIGHT YEARS, FIELD A

 Net Income Crop income from Cost of 6. 6 acres Year grown from crop orchard orchard Profit Loss 1903 Corn $ 15. 17 . . . $109. 87 . . . $ 94. 70 1904 Beans 42. 57 . . . 216. 16 . . . 173. 59 1905 Beans 43. 13 . . . 83. 78 . . . 40. 65 1906 Beans 120. 90 . . . 80. 14 $40. 76 . . . 1907 Beans 38. 85 . . . 84. 97 . . . 46. 12 1908 Corn 37. 68 . . . 64. 22 . . . 26. 54 1909 Oats and strawberries 100. 61 $27. 88 84. 73 43. 76 . . . 1910 Wheat 60. 70 38. 65 96. 35 3. 00 . . . ------- ------ ------- ------ ------- Totals $459. 61 $66. 53 $620. 22 $87. 52 $381. 60

Net loss on field for eight years $294. 08Average annual loss 38. 76Total cost an acre, exclusive of income 124. 27Total cost an acre, including income 44. 55Total net cost a hundred trees 62. 97Total net cost an apple tree 1. 37Total net cost an apple tree, exclusive of income 3. 80Total labor cost an acre 35. 09Total cash cost an acre 89. 19

We find that this orchard has cost $124. 27 an acre during the eightyears of its life, but that the $79. 72 an acre of crops grown in theorchard has brought this cost down to $44. 55 an acre. It is safe tosay that the orchard would have cost even more than it did had it notbeen for the crops, for many operations charged directly to the cropswould of necessity have been charged to the trees. The cost a hundredtrees does not mean much, as it often happens that not all the treesare covered by an operation and as the number of trees an acre greatlyaffects these costs. 

We have another and younger orchard upon which a record has been kept. This orchard of five acres contains 126 standard apple trees, "filled" both ways with 375 peach trees. It was set in the spring of1908, so that the trees have grown four seasons. The permanents(apples) are set 36 by 40 feet apart, so that, with the peachesbetween, the trees stand 18 by 20 feet apart. A crop of beans has beengrown between the tree rows each season. The first season a full sevenrows, twenty-eight inches apart, were planted in the wider space; thesecond and third season six rows, and the last season only four rows. The crop has been very good each year until the last. One applicationof manure, one crop of clover and one seeding of rye have been plowedunder, and in addition a liberal amount of commercial fertilizer hasbeen used with each crop. This year the peach trees bore their firstcrop. The record of the four years is as follows:

SUMMARY OF THE COST OF A FOUR-YEAR-OLD APPLE AND PEACH ORCHARD

 Net Income Crop income from Cost ofYear grown from crop orchard orchard Profit Loss

1908 Beans $63. 37 . . . $130. 12 . . . $62. 751909 Beans 66. 70 . . . $85. 03 . . . 18. 331910 Beans 79. 81 . . . 83. 39 . . . 3. 581911 Beans 53. 20 $46. 05 61. 95 $37. 30 . . . ------- ------ ------- ------ ------ Totals $267. 08 $46. 05 $360. 49 $37. 30 $84. 66

Total cost an acre, exclusive of income $72. 10Total cost an acre, including income 9. 47Total net cost a hundred trees 4. 73Total net cost an apple tree . 376Total net cost an apple tree, exclusive of income 2. 86

These figures show a still lower cost of growing trees to bearing age. After paying all expenses connected with the growing of the trees, including the interest on the land at $150 an acre, and deducting thenet profit from the crops of beans and the sales from the first cropof peaches we find that the growing of the trees has cost us $9. 47 anacre, or 37˝ cents an apple tree at four years old. Had no crop beengrown in the orchard it would have cost us at least $62. 89 an acreafter deducting the income from the first peach crop. The peach treesare now at full bearing age, and should show a good profit from thistime on. Possibly at five and certainly at six years of age thisorchard will entirely have paid for itself. The only possible furthercharge which could be made against this orchard is the crop incomewhich might have been obtained from the land had the trees not beenthere. We estimated that the presence of the trees cut down the cropof beans from the land 30 per cent. As the average net income frombeans was $13. 35 an acre this would amount to $4 an acre a year--aninsignificant sum. 

IN BEARING. --Having given the reader an idea of the probable cost ofbringing an orchard to bearing age, it may be well also to give thecost of producing apples in a mature apple orchard. Our bearing appleorchard consists of 6. 1 acres containing 234 trees. About one-half ofthe trees, or 110, are 36 years old. The remainder are nearly 50 yearsof age. As they are all in one block and handled together, the chargescannot well be separated. One hundred and thirty-four of the trees areBaldwins, 44 Twenty Ounce, 40 Tompkins County Kings, and the remainderodd varieties. For the whole period of ten years the orchard has hadvery good care and attention. 

A cover crop was not sown every year, but when it was used the chargewas made against the orchard. The manure charge, omitted because ofuncertainty as to the exact amount applied and as to its real value, is the only thing lacking in this table. 

Two or three sprayings have been made every year. Until 1909, Bordeauxmixture and Paris green were used, but since then the commercialbrands of lime sulphur and arsenate of lead have taken their place, nearly doubling the cost of the spray material. The average cost ofthe material for spraying has been $2. 50 per acre, or nearly three andone-half cents per barrel of apples harvested. In 1910 this cost was$3. 92 per acre and seven cents a barrel. 

TABLE SHOWING THE ITEMS OF EXPENSE IN PRODUCING APPLES IN A SIX ACREORCHARD

-------+------+--------+-------+-------+-------+-------+--------+-------- | | | | 5% | | | | | Cover|Spraying| | int. | Equip. | O'vh'd| Labor | TotalYear | crop |mat. | Bar. |on inv. |charge |charge | cost | cost-------+------+--------+-------+-------+-------+-------+--------+--------1902 | |$6. 64 |$117. 88|$27. 45 |$25. 00 |$2. 97 |$339. 45 |$519. 391903 | |11. 22 | 164. 92| 28. 88 | 25. 00 | 2. 88 | 249. 55 | 482. 561904 | |10. 50 | 109. 90| 30. 50 | 25. 00 | 3. 93 | 180. 55 | 360. 381905 |$6. 10 |12. 45 | 88. 80| 30. 50 | 25. 00 | 3. 40 | 158. 06 | 324. 311906 | |14. 85 | 112. 35| 33. 06 | 25. 00 | 4. 78 | 211. 76 | 401. 801907 |10. 00 |16. 85 | 79. 80| 35. 56 | 25. 00 | 4. 89 | 192. 30 | 364. 401908 | | 9. 75 | 205. 45| 37. 76 | 30. 09 | 5. 09 | 293. 50 | 583. 551909 | 8. 68 |19. 26 | 196. 35| 41. 97 | 38. 98 | 5. 91 | 280. 78 | 591. 931910 | |23. 89 | 116. 90| 45. 75 | 32. 39 | 5. 58 | 175. 26 | 399. 771911 |10. 50 |27. 08 | 206. 38| 45. 75 | 32. 39*| 5. 53* | 275. 00*| 602. 63-------+------+--------+-------+-------+-------+-------+--------+--------10 yr. Av. $15. 25 $139. 87 $35. 73 $28. 37 $4. 78 $235. 62 $463. 07Av. Per acre 2. 50 22. 93 5. 86 4. 65 . 78 38. 63 75. 92Av. Per bbl . 036 . 327 . 084 . 066 . 011 . 552 -1. 08

* Partly estimated, records not yet complete. -------------------------------------------------------------------------

The cost of the package has varied from 28 to 38 cents and hasaveraged about 32˝ cents, or $22. 93 per acre. Of course the latteramount varies greatly with the crop. 

Interest has in all cases been figured at five per cent. , but as theprice of the land has varied from $90 an acre at the beginning of theperiod to its present valuation of $160, 00 an acre, due both to itsimprovement and to a general increase in the price of land, theamount of interest has also varied. The same is true of the equipmentcharge which has steadily increased each year. The average valuationof the land for the ten-year period was $117. 15 an acre. This means anannual interest charge of $5. 86 per acre, or 8˝ cents a barrel. Theequipment charge, which is interest, repairs, and depreciation on themachinery used in the orchard, amounts to more than 6˝ cents a barrel, or $4. 65 per acre. Taxes and insurance on the buildings distributedper acre for the farm average $. 78 per acre, or a trifle over one centper barrel. These costs have also increased in the last few years. 

Labor is the largest single item. For the first four years this wasestimated on the basis of the cost for the last six years, for whichmore careful records were kept. It is computed at its actual cost tous on the farm, which was 15˝ cents an hour for men and 13˝ cents anhour for horses. This amounts to $4. 25 per day for man and team. Thecost of the labor to grow, pick, pack, and market a barrel of appleswas 55 cents, or $38. 63 per acre with an average yield of 70 barrelsper acre. 

To sum up these items of cost we find that taking the average of tenyears with an annual crop of 427 barrels, or 70 per acre, on 6. 1 acresof old apple orchard that the costs per barrel have been as follows:spray material, $. 036; packages, $. 327; interest on the land, $. 084;use of equipment, $. 066; taxes, $. 011; labor, $. 552; and a total of$1. 08 per barrel. If the estimated cost of manure, six cents a barrelbe added, the total will be $1. 14. As we have said, these costs perbarrel vary with the crop. When our yield was 100 barrels per acre thecost per barrel was only $. 99, but when it was 34 barrels per acrethis cost rose to $1. 73 per barrel. In 1910 we grew a crop of 55barrels per acre for $1. 20 per barrel. 

It may be of interest to some to know what the income and profit wereon this orchard. For this purpose we give the following table showingthe yield, income, cost, and net profit for each of the ten years, andthe average:

 Yield in Income Income Cost Net Profit bbls. Bbls. Inc. Culls per bbls. Inc. Culls Year per A. Only and drops bbl. Alone and drops 1902 103 $1. 96* $1. 46* $. 83 $1. 13 $. 63 1903 71 1. 90 2. 23 1. 11 . 79 1. 12 1904 51 1. 66 1. 78 1. 15 . 51 . 63 1905 49 2. 30 2. 68 1. 10 1. 20 1. 58 1906 53 1. 96 2. 25 1. 25 . 71 1. 30 1907 34 3. 49 4. 10 1. 73 1. 76 2. 37 1908 96 2. 03 2. 32 . 99 1. 04 1. 33 1909 92 3. 00 3. 38 1. 06 1. 94 2. 32 1910 55 2. 69 3. 03 1. 20 1. 49 1. 83 1911 100 2. 06 2. 32 . 99¤ 1. 07¤ 1. 33¤----------------------------------------------------------------------10 yr. Av. 70 2. 15 2. 47 1. 08 1. 07 1. 39

 * In arriving at these incomes different divisors were used. Two hundred barrels of the crop were sold in bulk and these were not used in getting the average income from barrels only, but were used in getting the average income including culls and drops. 

 ¤ Partly estimated, records not yet being complete for the season. 

THE END

OUTING

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 "_One of the finest things of the kind I have ever seen. I believe my seven year old boy can learn to use this system, and I know that we will find it very useful here in our Boy Scout work. _"--_Lyman G. Haskell, Physical Director, Y. M. C. A. , Jacksonville, Fla. _

=PRACTICAL POULTRY KEEPING. By R. B. Sando. = The chapters outlined inthis book are poultry keeping and keepers, housing and yarding, fixtures and equipment, choosing and buying stock, foods and feeding, hatching and raising chicks. Inbreeding, caponizing, etc. , What to doat different seasons. The merits of "secrets and systems", The truthabout common poultry fallacies and get-rich-quick schemes. Poultryparasites and diseases. A complete list of the breeds and subjects isattached. It is in effect a comprehensive manual for the instructionof the man who desires to begin poultry raising on a large or smallscale and to avoid the ordinary mistakes to which the beginner isprone. All the statements are based on the authors own experience andspecial care has been taken to avoid sensationalism or exaggeration. 

=PROFITABLE BREEDS OF POULTRY. By Arthur S. Wheeler. = Mr. Wheeler haschapters on some of the best known general purpose birds such as RhodeIsland Reds, Plymouth Rocks, Wyandottes, Mediterraneans, Orpingtons, and Cornish, describing the peculiarities and possibilities of each. There are additional chapters on the method of handling a poultry farmon a small scale with some instructions as to housing the birds, andso forth, and also a chapter on the market side of poultry growing. 

=RIFLES AND RIFLE SHOOTING. By Charles Askins. = Part I describes thevarious makes and mechanisms taking up such points as range andadaptibility of the various calibers, the relative merits of lever, bolt and pump action, the claims of the automatic, and so forth. PartII deals with rifle shooting, giving full instruction for targetpractice, snap shooting, and wing shooting. 

=SCOTTISH AND IRISH TERRIERS. By Williams Haynes. = This is a companionbook to The Airedale and deals with the origin of the breeds, thestandard types, approved methods of breeding, kenneling, training, care and so forth, with chapters on showing and also on the ordinarydiseases and simple remedies. 

=SPORTING FIREARMS. By Horace Kephart. = This book is devided into twoparts, Part I dealing with the Rifle and Part II with the Shotgun. Mr. Kephart goes at some length into the questions of range, trajectoryand killing power of the different types of rifles and charges andalso has chapters on rifle mechanisms, sights, barrels, and so forth. In the part dealing with shotguns he takes up the question of range, the effectiveness of various loads, suitability of the different typesof boring, the testing of the shotguns by pattern, and so forth. 

=TRACKS AND TRACKING. By Josef Brunner. = After twenty years of patientstudy and practical experience, Mr. Brunner can, from his intimateknowledge, speak with authority on this subject. "Tracks and Tracking"shows how to follow intelligently even the most intricate animal orbird tracks. It teaches how to interpret tracks of wild game anddecipher the many tell-tale signs of the chase that would otherwisepass unnoticed. It proves how it is possible to tell from thefootprints the name, sex, speed, direction, whether and how wounded, and many other things about wild animals and birds. All material hasbeen gathered first hand; the drawings and half-tones from photographsform an important part of the work, as the author has made faithfulpictures of the tracks and signs of the game followed. The list is: TheWhite-Tailed or Virginia Deer--The Fan-Tailed Deer--The Mule-Deer--TheWapiti or Elk--The Moose--The Mountain Sheep--The Antelope--TheBear--The Cougar--The Lynx--The Domestic Cat--The Wolf--The Coyote--TheFox--The Jack Rabbit--The Varying Hare--The Cottontail Rabbit--TheSquirrel--The Marten and the Black-Footed Ferret--The Otter--TheMink--The Ermine--The Beaver--The Badger--The Porcupine--TheSkunk--Feathered Game--Upland Birds--Waterfowl--Predatory Birds--Thisbook is invaluable to the novice as well as the experienced hunter. 

 "_This book studied carefully, will enable the reader to become as well versed in tracking lore as he could by years of actual experience. _"--_Lewiston Journal. _

=WING AND TRAP-SHOOTING. By Charles Askins. = The only practical manualin existance dealing with the modern gun. It contains a fulldiscussion of the various methods, such as snap-shooting, swing andhalf-swing, discusses the flight of birds with reference to thegunner's problem of lead and range and makes special application ofthe various points to the different birds commonly shot in thiscountry. A chapter is included on trap shooting and the book closeswith a forceful and common-sense presentation of the etiquette of thefield. 

 "_It is difficult to understand how anyone who takes a delight in hunting can afford to be without this valuable book. _"--_Chamber of Commerce Bulletin, Portland, Ore. _

 "_This book will prove an invaluable manual to the true sportsman, whether he be a tyro or expert. _"--_Book News Monthly. _

 "_Its closing chapter on field etiquette deserves careful reading. _"--_N. Y. Times. _

=THE YACHTSMAN'S HANDBOOK. By Commander C. S. Stanworth, U. S. N. AndOthers. = Deals with the practical handling of sail boats, with somelight on the operation of the gasoline motor. It includes suchsubjects as handling ground tackle, handling lines and takingsoundings, and use of the lead line; handling sails, engine troublesthat may be avoided, care of the gasoline motor and yachtingetiquette. 

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 +-----------------------------------------------------------+ | Typographical errors corrected in text: | | | | Page 12: 'together with is long season' replaced with | | 'together with its long season' | | Page 32: prunned replaced with pruned | | Page 36: profiable replaced with profitable | | Page 65: humous replaced with humus | | Page 82: 'it must be sour' corrected to | | 'it must not be sour' In sentence referring | | to lime which is used to reduce acidity | | (sourness). | | Page 88: prsent replaced with present | | Page 105: tisses replaced with tissues | | Page 107: 'carried over the winter cankers' corrected to | | 'carried over the winter in cankers' | | Page 126: Jose replaced with José | | Page 163: (table) Syraying replaced with Spraying | | Page 163: (table) Syraping replaced with Spraying | | Page 164: 'The factors have always operated to deter' | | corrected to 'Two factors have always operated | | to deter' | | | +-----------------------------------------------------------+

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