TPIE PENINSULA FARMERS' CLUB— DISCUSSIONS. 87 



THE ELECTION OP OFFICERS FOR 1873 — HIGH AND LOW TRAINING OP 



TREES. 



Old Mission, Jan. 2, 1873. 



This being the annnal meeting of the Club, according to Article 4 of the 

 Constitution, the Club met with II. W. Curds in the chair. After the reading 

 of the minutes of the previous meeting, and of the constitution, the club 

 proceeded to the election of officers for the ensuing year. 



Mr. Chauncy P. Avery was unanimously elected President, J. E Savage 

 Secretary, and George Parmelee was re-elected Treasurer. Mr. W. W. Tracy 

 and H. K. Brinkman were elected as committee on business. The Club then 

 proceeded to the discussion of the question before it, viz.: "Fruit and fruit 

 trees." 



Mr. Curtis — It seems to me to be of much importance to know how high 

 apple trees should be headed. I am of the opinion that trees should be headed 

 high enough so that a horse can go under the branches in cultivation. Elwan- 

 ger & Barry, of Rochester, N. Y., are training the trees in their nurseries very 

 low, from 1^ to 2 feet in length of body. We got our trees at the Painesville, 

 Ohio, nurseries. We think they are nice trees, the bodies are stocky, but they 

 are universally too low. We must certainly cut off the side branches some time. 

 The first lot we got, I trimmed my part up to a whip immediately after setting. 

 Last year I left them until fall before trimming. If I had wanted to have 

 trees headed low I had just the trees wanted for that purpose. I have been up 

 to Mr. Parmelee's and have seen his orchard. His trees looked stocky and fine, 

 hut according to my ideas they had limbs too near the ground. I asked him 

 If he would not trim them off? He said he should leave the most of them but 

 might cut some of them off ? I think the reason they are so low is because 

 they were headed so in the nursery. Suppose we allow Greening trees to head 

 three feet from the ground, in a few years they will occupy the ground. Now 

 how are we to get into the orchard with a team ? The limbs of the Northern 

 Spy and Baldwin will run up, but those of the Greening, Rox. Russet and 

 Talman Sweet will go down. 



Mr. Tracy — How high should they be headed ? 



Mr. Ccjrtis — Six feet. 



Mr. Tracy— Could the Greening be headed that high ? 



Mr. Curtis — Yes. 



Mr. Tracy — If you head them that high will not the limbs hang down and 

 he in the way? 



Mr. Curtis — I remember I had an orchard in Ohio and the limbs were high 

 enough so we could drive a wngon through the orchard anywhere. The 

 Greenings were top-grafted. Their limbs hung down but were not in the way. 

 If trees were high trained and the limbs hung down too low, they could be 

 propped up, which could not be done were the trees low trained, and while in 

 bearing. 



Mr. Tracy — The question has been discussed in Agricultural papers a great 

 deal. In one instance after it had been running some time it was ascertained 

 that those who advocated high training were invariably tall men, and the 

 advocates of loio training were invariably sJi07't men, and the idea seemed to 

 them so ludicrous, that they dropped the discussion. 



Mr. E. Franklin — When I was at work in my orchard I always thought my 



