December i, 1882.] 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



4C9 



THINNING PEACHES. 



The American Af/rtcultunst has the following: — "The 

 Hon. A. S. Dyckman, of South Haven, Mich., is a noted 

 grower of fine peaches. One of the leading points in the 

 management of his orchard is that of liberahy thinning 

 the young fruit. In 1877 from one Early Crawford tree, 

 set 17 years, he thinned at one time 8,0W) peaches, and 

 at another 2,000, making 10,000 in all, from a tree which 

 finally yielded about 15 baskets of choice fruit. One man 

 would spend a day in thinning four to six trees. The 

 cost of thinning peaches does not exceed five cents a 

 basket for those ripened. He estimates the cost of tliin- 

 ning his peach crop in 1877 at ^500. Peaches were plenty 

 that year, but he received extra prices for fine, large fruit, 

 which had little competition. He has practised thinning 

 for several years, and is assured that the excellent reputation 

 which liis fruit enjoys is due to this. In pruning, ho 

 removes one-third of the small limbs. He then removes 

 nine-tenths of the young peaches, lea^aug no two nearer 

 than six inches of each other. He has fewer specimens 

 to iiaiidle, but about as many bushels as though he Ivid 

 not thimied. We have similar testimony from J. J. Thomas. 

 E. Moody, President AVilder, and others, as to the utility 

 of thiimiug apples, pears, kc.y as well as peaches. Mr. 

 Geo. Parnielee, of Grand Traver.se County, says that in 

 one year peaches on a thinned tree brought S2.50 per basket, 

 wliile the fruit from a neighbouring tree of the same variety, 

 but unthinned, brought him only §1.25 per basket. It 

 pays to thin fruit when young. It costs less than one 

 would suppose until he tries it. No one who has fairly 

 tried the experiment, and seen the result, will abandon 

 the practice." 



CAKBOLIO ACID VERSUS INSECTS. 



BY PROF. A. J. COOK, MICHIGAN AGRICULTURAL COLLEGE. 



Few insect pests are more annoying to the gardener 

 than the Radish Fly {Anthomyia vaphani), and the Squash 

 Moth {.^(jeria cuc2(rhitas) . This has been the more true 

 as the remedies heretofore offered have not been satisfactory. 

 The hot water remedy suggested by the late Dr. B. D. 

 W^alsh, perhaps the best, proved too inefficient to make 

 it desirable for general use. These enemies are becoming 

 widespread in our country, and a sure preventive of their 

 mischief is greatly to be desired. 



For the past two years I have been experimenting with 

 Bisulphide of Carbon to destroy subterranean insects. This 

 substance has proved effectual, but in case of the insects 

 in question, especially the Kadish Fly, its expense is an 

 objection to its use. The past season I have tried a new 

 remedy with gratifying success. This consists of a pre- 

 paration of Carbolic Acid. The material which I used 

 was prepared as follows; — Two quarts of common soft soap 

 was added to one gallon of water, and all heated until it 

 commenced to boil, when it was removed from the stove, 

 and while yet hot, one pint of crude Carbolic Acid was 

 added, and all thoroughly mixed. This was then set away 

 in a close vessel, and was ready for use as occasion might 

 require. To repel the insects in question, one part of 

 this mixture was added to from 50 to 100 parts of water, 

 and the new mixture was sprinkled on the plants as soon 

 as they were up, and after that once every week. In case 

 itf thti Squash ^gerian the first application need not be 

 upplit'd earlier then the first of June. The same prepar- 

 ation will serve to repel the Cabbage Fly (uintliomyia 

 hraAAicit). But for the lattter, my experiments go to show 

 that Bisulphide of Carbon is cheap, efiicient, and does 

 not simply drive the fly away, but destroys the maggot. 

 As " he that fights and runs away, may live to fight an- 

 other day, " the Bisulphide of Carbon remedy is, I think, 

 to be preferred to the Carbolic Acid mixtiu-e for use 

 :igainst the cabbage maggot. "We sprinkled the CarboHc 

 Arid preparation directly upon the radish plants, without 

 injury to the latter, but if it is found to injure the 

 plants, from too great strength, it will serve as well to 

 turn it in a trench made close along beside the rows of 

 jihuits. The peculiar odor of the acid which repels the 

 tlies as they come to deposit their eggs, so far escapes, 

 that it is neces.sary to apply the liquid as often as once 

 a week to insure perfect success. Caution is required also 

 that the preparatioa is not so strong as to injure the 

 60 



plants when placed immediately upon them. From one 

 season's trial I can strongly recommend the above api^li- 

 catiou. 



Though not pertinent to the question now imder dis- 

 cussion, it may not be amiss to state that some of our 

 mo.st able fruit growers think that the best way to fight 

 ])<'ar blight is to cut away affected branches as fast as 

 they appear, and dip the cut cud of the branch in Carbolic 

 Acid. Prof. _U^ W. Tracy, Superintendent of 1>. M. 

 Ferry's Experimental Garden, thinks ht; once cured an 

 orchard of blight in this way. Surely if this evil is of 

 fungus origin, as Prof. T. J Burrill thinks he has de- 

 monstrated to be the case, this view would seem reason- 

 able. — American Ayricidturht. 



FACTS ABOUT FODDEK : GRASS GROWING. 



One of the results of investigation at Hothamsted is to 

 sweep away an authority that may yet attach itself to 

 the once famous ** Mineral Theory " of Liebig^that to 

 maintain fertility in the soil, it is necessary to return to 

 it periodically al! the mineral or a.sh constituents of the 

 plant, in quantities proportionate to the amount removed 

 by the crop, and that when this is done, the vegetation 

 will collect for itself ample nitrogen to meet its requirements. 

 In common with the arable crops, from which Messrs. 

 Lawes and Gilbert drew the arguments for their memorable 

 controversy with Liebig fivc-and-thirty years ago, these 

 plots of permanent pastiu-e exemplify the advantage of 

 adding nitrogen artificially. In addition, they show that 

 the amount and natiu-e of the mineral matter that must 

 be returned as manure will be determined, not so much 

 by what is taken away in the crops, as by the relation of 

 the store in the soil to the requirements of the crop to 

 come. Besides, at the worst, the real measure of loss 

 to the soil is not what is removed by the crops, but what 

 is sold off the farm. Neither would it be as necessary 

 to put as much manure on rich deep loams as on light 

 porous sandy soil, which suffers a greater loss by drainage. 

 M. Georges Ville, in his work on " Artificial Manures," 

 condenses his ideas on this subject into the aphorism, 

 *' Give back to the land more phosphoric acid, more potash, 

 more lime, and half the nitrogen taken away." 



The following table sums up some of the chief botanical 

 facts that have been indicated with regard to the Rothamsted 

 experimental meadow. 



The figures indicate the number of species represented 

 and their proportional percentage by weight of the whole 

 crop. 



Bearing in mind that when these experiments were first 

 commenced a uniform herbage covered the whole seven 

 acres, and tliat no new seed has been sown for at leust 

 half a century, the great variety of herbage appearing in 

 contiguous plots presents a very interesting example of 

 the *' sm'vival of the fittest," 



The discussion of the indi\-idual characteristics in 

 the different fodder plants fouud in meadows is manifestly 

 too dutiviled a matter to be treated on in an article con- 

 iiuini; itself to general principles. Moreover, the subject 

 is complicated by botanical as well as chemical consider- 

 ations. Besides this, meadow grass is not like a cereal 

 crop, made up of one species, always cut at the same 

 stage of its e.^stence, but is a highly complicated mixture, 

 containing many species in v.arious stages of maturity. 



