WINTER MEETING. 247 



PRUNING . 



Training or pruning the peach is an important factor, and should not be neg- 

 lected. When the tree is one year old, cut back all side-shoots and top-growth 

 two-thirds; the second year, one-half to two-thirds, according to growth, and 

 every year thereafter, fully one-half of previous year's growth. This is all the 

 pruning that I have ever done in my orchard. 



THINNING. 



Thinning is also indispensable. It was a hard matter to get men that have the 

 courage to go in and pick oflF three-fourths of all the peaches on the trees; their 

 conscience would not allow them to do it. I sent them over the second time and 

 gave positive instructions just how to do it, and after they were through I found 

 that there would be branches too full. I took one of my men out and gave him a 

 confidential lecture, and again gave positive instrucUons that he must not leave 

 peaches closer than six inches apart on the tree, and that if I found a s'ngle branch 

 after he had gone over it that was too thick I would take a club and run him off 

 the farm. This time 1 think they were thinned properly. 



SPRAYING . 



Of course I have had a time spraying. You are all, no doubt, aware that I 

 knocked an entire crop off in 1891 with Paris green. The trees did not recover 

 sufRciently in 1892 to make a crop, and this season I thought I had the spraying 

 business down pretty fine. I had read every work and bulletin on spraying that I 

 could get hold of for two years. Sent to a half a dozen Experiment stations, and 

 was thoroughly enlightened. I found that in 1891 the only mistake I bad made 

 was that I had omitted to add lime to my solution. 



After so much reading I, of course, got my pump out this spring with all the 

 confidence of a professional sprayer. I, however, felt a little weak in trying it, as 

 this was World's Fair year and I did not want to lose my crop, for I had about the 

 only one I could hear of in the State. I was very sure, however, that if I followed 

 the formula recommended by the Department of Agriculture at Washington that 

 I could not possibly make a mistake, so I took the dilute Bordeauy mixture and 

 added four ounces of Paris green that I bought at LocKport two years previous, 

 to 50 gallons of mixture. I sprayed four rows and weakened. I dumped the 

 balance I had left out, and waited 10 days for results. A close examination at 

 this time showed no signs of injury, so I braced up again and made another barrel 

 of the mixture and sprayed eight rows more and again weakened . I dumped it out 

 and waited another week. No signs of injury at all ; 1 began spraying the bal- 

 ance, six rows ^one- fourth mile long. 



This morning the sun was out bright and warm for the first time since I made 

 the first spraying, and everything was lovely ; the ^ir seemed to be filled with an 

 invigorating something that makes one feel very happy. 



When the six rows were completed I was about to commence the second 

 spraying on the first four rows treated, but put it off for a day or two. Sunny 

 weather followed, and about the third day after the six rows were sprayed, to my 

 great horror I found the 'eaves curling up. Oh, how my heart sank! I could 

 hardly support myself. I was struck dumb. All my hopes were blasted. No 

 fruit for Chicago this year. Can you imagine my utter distress? A week later I 

 found all foliage that had had a fair spray on the six rows all off the trees, and all 

 peaches on those branches were wilting aud dead. No fruit on the six rows ex- 



