152 STATE BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



of fertilizers there is perhaps no question that is more often asked by 

 the fruit grower than the proper care of orchard trees. The conditions 

 of soil and climate have so much to do with the growth, of trees that 

 no single experiment can determine what method will give the best 

 result under all conditions; but, as it will have a more or less general 

 application in a large portion of the ''Fruit Belt," an endeavor has 

 been made upon the station grounds to secure some light regarding 

 the best way to grow apples, pears peaches and plums in sections where 

 the soil is a sandy loam with a clay subsoil. The method of treatment 

 w^as described in the report of last year and, at the end of two seasons, 

 it can only be reported that the heavily mulched trees have made a 

 growth fully equal to those cultivated, but it should be stated that the 

 land had been in cultivation up to the time the trees were planted and the 

 result might have been quite dififerent had the trees been set in a heavy 

 sod. 



In caring for the mulched plots particular attention was paid to using 

 sufficient straw not onh^ to prevent the grass from growing under the 

 trees but the covering extended a foot or more beyond the ends of the 

 branches in all directions in order to conserve the moisture even out- 

 side of the feeding area of the roots. Failure to do this, in many in- 

 stances where orchards have been mulched, has led to partial or complete 

 failure of the trees and few persons seem to comprehend that it is nec- 

 essary to use a thick mulch, and that a narrow ring of mulch around the 

 trunks will not suffice. 



FRUIT EXHIBITS AT FAIRS. 



Although the fruit crop upon the station trees in 1908 was not as heavy 

 as in some years, very creditable exhibits were prepared by Mr. Wilken 

 and were shown at the State Fair at Detroit and at the West Michigan 

 Fair at Grand Rapids. The collections of apples and pears were very 

 large and of high quality but owing to the killing back of the grape 

 vines by the freeze of 190G, only a few varieties of that fruit could be 

 shown. For the same reason, no peaches were exhibited, all of the trees 

 having been killed and those planted since that time being too young to 

 bear. 



COOPERATIVE EXPERIMENTS. 



The experiments carried on in cooperation with fruit growers referred 

 to in my report of last year have been continued. Considerable progress 

 has been made in various parts of the state in the spraying experiments 

 and the results secured where tests of fertilizers and trials of various 

 orchard cultural methods are being made have been very helpful not only 

 to the writer but to the parties cooperating and, in many cases, to their 

 neighbors who are noting the results. 



Cooperative Spraying. In many cases the experiments have been very 

 largely for demonstration purposes and the methods used have been 

 those worked out in previous years either at F^outh Haven or at other 

 points in the state. They have been carried on for the most part for the 

 purpose of showing what can be done in the way of controlling our 

 more troublesome insect pests and fungous diseases, when the directions 

 which have many times been given in bulletins and spraying calendars 

 are carefully followed. The results have been very satisfactory as, where 



