STATE POMOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 93 



larger the yield. Now we are speaking of mature trees. We 

 are not speaking of interplanting, as Prof. Sears has described, 

 but referring to permanent trees which are to stand for the gen- 

 erations. The large tree of the Baldwin or Greening type needs 

 plenty of space, and this table shows you that as the area 

 around these trees is increased, so does the yield increase. The 

 yield increases in inverse ratio to the number of trees to the 

 acre. 



From the last table we find that the yield of that county would 

 have been greatly increased had the trees been all placed at the 

 maximum distance. There would have been 31,320 more 

 bushels of apples in the county in the given year when this 

 census was made if they had all been properly spaced. 



Here is a picture which illustrates the crowding of trees, 

 shows what will happen to Prof. Sears' orchard if he doesn't 

 have the courage which he spoke of and thin at the proper time. 

 There isn't any method of pruning down or heading back, which 

 will put a standard apple in good bearing condition at a close 

 distance. We cannot do it. 



It is interesting to note what the influence of the owner is 

 compared with the influence of the renter on the yield of the 

 orchard. In the upper chart we see those trees which were set 

 before 1880 in the entire county, and the per cent of trees under 

 the owner and the per cent of trees under the renter; '/']% 

 worked by the owner, and 37% by the renter. In the lower 

 chart we see the average yield. Notice here in 1903 the aver- 

 age yield showing 260 bushels per acre under ownership, 216 

 bushels under renter, or a difference of 44 bushels per acre. 

 This last column gives the four-year average — 210 bushels for 

 those orchards managed by the owner, 174 in the orchards 

 managed by the renter. There is another point to this study, 

 namely, the influence on the orchard itself, ultimately and 

 finally. Those rented orchards are infinitely worse off now than 

 they were at the time they were taken hold of, and should the 

 owner take possession again and manage them it will take him 

 some time to get them back into good bearing condition again. 

 Now I will give another piece of advice to our friend Sears 

 without any charge, and that is, with his low trees, closely 

 headed back, he will have to look out for bad forks. The 

 branches are likely to spring out very close together, resulting 



