REPORTS OF AUXILIARY SOCIETIES. 281 



oats, wheat, corn or any other grain. Another thing : the plan of filling up 

 old orchards, where the trees had died out, with young trees, had been a failure 

 with him. 



Mr. House agreed with Mr. Loomis in this respect. His theory was that the 

 roots of the remaining old trees so thoroughly occupied the soil as to leave no 

 room or sustenance for the roots of the young trees. 



One inquired how far the roots of old trees would occupy the ground. Mr. 

 Hamilton said from 18 to 20 feet from the trunk of the tree, and perhaps more. 



K. W. Lewis would like to hear the experience of other fruit-growers on the 

 subject of fertilizing orchards. For his part he did not think the dropping of 

 fruit should be attributed to sterility of soil. He knew of very many orchards 

 planted on poor soils that had borne good crops of fine fruit for a series of 

 years. Believed that a forced growth was fully as likely to cause fruit to drop 

 as poor soil. Believed in thorough cultivation for young trees in fore part of 

 season, but none after about the first of August, when a crop of buckwheat 

 could be grown and allowed to rot on the ground to good advantage to the 

 laud. 



Mr. Ehli said that on portions of his farm the hardpan was not more than 

 two feet below the surface, and asked if such soil was adapted to orchards. 



S. E. Lewis said that such soils would do for orchards, but would advise 

 shallow planting, especially on low lands, as the drainage was so imperfect as 

 to endanger the life of the trees, and as the roots could not penetrate the hard- 

 pan, would most likely be short lived. 



Mr. Wiley had had some experience in using fertilizers, and he thought there 

 was but little of our soils, if properly drained, but that would bring a young 

 tree up to the fruiting time in a healthy condition, and thought that many of 

 our young orchards were injured by over-fertilization. In his orchard he had 

 used wood ashes, and the refuse from the tannery. Had confidence in wood 

 ashes and lime on sandy soil. 



President Taylor agreed with Mr. Wiley in the use of fertilizers on young 

 orchards, and was convinced from his extensive observations that more harm 

 than good had been done by their use. 



He had seen limbs frozen bare for two feet, and yet bearing fruit on the 

 same limb. This was conclusive to him that time enough was not given the 

 trees to fully ripen up the wood, as it was a well known fact that ripe wood 

 would stand many more degrees of cold than fruit buds. Trees planted where 

 hardpan was so near the surface might do well for a few years, but unless some 

 means of thorough drainage could be had, they would die out before they were 

 of any profit to the owner. The kind of fertilizers to be used should be 

 -thoroughly inquired into by the fruit-grower. 



N. W. Lewis inquired if the hardpan referred to was a tough, hard clay, or 

 a sort of sand and iron mixture, hard as stone and apparently impervious to 

 water? 



Mr. Taylor replied that the iron and sand mixture was what he referred to. 



The February meeting was devoted to the subject of insect enemies of fruits. 



The codling moth was first taken up. Mr. Levi Loomis was experimenting 

 by plowing his orchard as soon as the small apples began to drop; his 

 theory was that by burying the apples the worms which they contained would 

 be smothered and die. His experience of last year was entirely satisfactory, 

 and he believed if he persevered he would, in the end, be successful. The late 

 Dr. Goodrich, who had been one of our most intelligent and successful experi- 

 menters in this direction, said at the last pomologicai meeting he ever attended, 



