No. 7. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 579 



years from the time my trees have been top-worked, I can get from 

 half a bushel to a bushel of apples to a tree. 



During this season 1 have been able to make a record with the 

 Wealthy apple. It is naturally an early bearer, and yet on my 

 farm six years after the trees were planted and top-worked, we 

 were able to show a profit of sixty dollars an acre. That is an 

 unusual record. Let me say, in this connection, that in top-working 

 it is of the utmost importance that the trees be kept in a growing 

 condition especially where budding is done. 



You cannot hope to meet with much success with what is known 

 as the mulch system. You have to have thrifty, growing trees, 

 otherwise the whole system will fail. You will understand that 

 J iam an advocate of culture in the orchard, not of the mulch sys- 

 tem. Now, this wealthy orchard has been thoroughly cultivated 

 from the time the trees were set out. During the year 1909 there 

 was a very good setting of fruit, but the most of the fruit was taken 

 off. Last year it came out with a magnificent bloom, and a fine 

 setting of fruit. Then we went over the trees and had at least one- 

 half of the fruit taken off. That was when the fruit was about one- 

 quarter grown — about July 1st. Men and women were set to work 

 again two weeks later, with instructions to take oft" anything be- 

 tween six or eight inches, on matter how perfect the fruit was. The 

 results was that the fruit was very fine, and sold for $4.50 a bushel, 

 so that after deducting all expenses for freight, barrels, commis- 

 sion, etc., when the balance was struck that young orchard showed 

 the profit of which I have spoken. 



Now, I believe that great value lies in propagating from perfect 

 trees. You don't want one tree full, and the next half full, and 

 on the next perhaps none at all. Through this method of propaga- 

 tion you may have every tree in your orchard giving you a satis- 

 factory yield. There is no other way possible in which you can 

 get unifority in orchards, and a greater uniformity in bearing, ex- 

 cept through his principle of selection of which I have spoken and 

 advocate. 



I believe it is possible to extend this principle to the propagation 

 of peach trees. Why is it, that when we have frosty periods in 

 the spring, that a portion of the crop — ^perhaps one-half — in the 

 same localities is not affected by the frost, and suffers no harm? 

 How can you explain the fact that in the same orchards some trees 

 will come out unharmed? Here comes in this same principle of varia- 

 tion, and it apples not only to the productivity of the trees, but also 

 to hardiness and resistance in trees. I believe it is possible to so 

 develop trees that they will not only show greater productivity, but 

 will have greater resistance to frost, and will come out unscathed. 

 Such trees are to be discovered and to propagate from them, in 

 time will enable us to produce trees that will be practically frost- 

 resisting. Also we should study and propagate trees for resistance 

 to disease. I sent a men over Central New York to find a King tree 

 that had been bearing for thirty years, and had in that time shown 

 no signs of disease, and when he found it, had him send me buds 

 from that tree from which to toj) work my Northern Spy trees. 

 By working in this manner T believe it is possible to produce a tree 

 that is also practically disease resistant as not a trace of disease has 

 yet appeared in this King orchard. 



