EXPERIMENT STATION BULLETINS. 159 



SOUTH HAVEN REPORT FOR 1899. 



BY S. H. FULTON. 



Bulletin 177. — Horticultural Department. 



I'ROF. L. R. Taft, Horticulturist: 



Sib — The following account of the work of the South Haven sub-station for the year 

 1899 is herewith submitted. The effects of the severe winter of 1898 and 1899 

 were not so serious as anticipated and most kinds of fruit made a good showing this 

 season. Peaches, blackberries and strawberries were more or less damaged, but other 

 fruits suffered little if any injury. The past season has been a most favorable one for 

 plant growth and for repair in case winter injuries were sustained. Trees of all kinds 

 have made a good development of new wood. This new growth, although stronger and 

 more vigorous than usual, has ripened well and the trees this fall are apparently in 

 good condition for winter. After cultivation was stopped in summer, the orchards 

 were seeded with crimson clover, while grapes and small fruits were sown with oats. 

 A very good stand of clover was secured except for a small part of the last seeding 

 which failed because of the occurrence of a spell of hot dry weather before the plants 

 had become well established. The oats have grown vigorously and will afford a good 

 cover for the ground during the winter. Operations in spraying, pruning and fertiliz- 

 ing as carried on this year are briefly reviewed, together with the results of some 

 experiments undertaken in these and other branches of the work. Tabulations, includ- 

 ing the names of varieties which fruited this season, with records of the time of 

 blooming and ripening of the different kinds, productiveness, weights of specimens, 

 etc., are given as in former reports. Quite a large number of sorts, mostly new kinds, 

 are also given more extended mention by way of notes on varieties. 



STRAWBERRIES. 



Strawberries have been grown at the South Haven sub-station since it was established 

 ten years ago. When the trees were small, it was the custom to set strawberry plants 

 received for trial between the rows ; but as they became larger this practice was dis- 

 continued and the last planting was made on ground left vacant by the removal of a 

 number of varieties of bush fruits. This plantation, having been fruited two years, 

 was plowed under shortly after the last picking of berries was made this season, and 

 the plat will again be set with bush fruits. The grounds are now so well filled with 

 fruits of other kinds that no really suitable place for a new plantation of strawberries 

 is available, and for this reason it has been thought best to discontinue further tests 

 of this fruit at the sub-station. 



Owing to unfavorable conditions, the yield of strawberries was quite imsatisfactory 

 this season. As the plants rarely winter-kill in this section, no mulch was pro\ided 

 last winter for their protection. But owing to the unusual severity of the weather 

 to which they were subjected, a large number of varieties killed out badly and many 

 of the surviving plants were so injured that they could not properly mature their 

 fruit. Hot dry weather during the latter half of June brought the fruiting season 

 to a close several days earlier than usual. However, in spite of these unfavorable 

 conditions, some varieties made a very creditable showing; and while in many 

 instances the following tabulation and notes do not represent the true value of varieties 

 under usiial conditions, still the record of results obtained may have worth as indi- 

 cating some of the most reliable sorts. 



