132 STATE BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



ties at the rate of twenty-five to fifty bushels per acre; and with the 

 addition of fifty to one hundred pounds of sodium nitrate, especially if the 

 soil is light and the grass thin, it will form a valuable fertilizer. Upon the 

 heavier soils there seems to be less need of potash, and ground bone will 

 often give better results, although where the price of* ashes does not 

 exceed ten cents per bushel, it may be cheaper to use an excess of ashes 

 and thus provide the required amount of phosphoric acid. 



SOUTH HAVEN SUB-STATION. 



The work of testing fruit and the various methods of handling the trees, 

 as well as insecticides and fungicides, that has been carried on in previ- 

 ous y( ars at the South Haven Sub-Station has been continued during the 

 past year under the supervision of T. T. Lyon. Although the season has 

 been fairly favorable, the results have not been as satisfactory as in 

 previous years, so far at least as the orchard fruits are concerned, as 

 comparatively few of the apple trees blossomed and the crop of plums 

 upon most varieties was also light. Quite a number of the new varieties 

 of peaches, however, were in fruit, as were many of the grapes, cherries 

 and pears. Full notes upon the varieties that fruited during the year 

 will be published in a bulletin. In the spraying experiments, as was 

 the case at the College, the results secured from the treatment of the 

 curl leaf were particularly noticeable and agreed well with what has been 

 stated above. As, in one respect, the experiments differed somewhat 

 from those carried on at the College, it may be well to refer to them 

 here. 



The practical difference arose from the fact that while some of the 

 trees were sprayed during the last week in March, others were treated 

 four weeks later, or just as the buds were opening. The effect of the 

 early spraying was to almost entirely prevent the disease, while the trees 

 sprayed as the buds were swelling were considerably injured — so much so 

 that fully one-half of the leaves of some varieties were destroyed, and 

 tbis resulted in a loss of much of the crop. In previous years we have 

 recommended to spray the trees before the buds started, but from this 

 experiment it is evident that unless the application is made consider- 

 ably before the opening of the buds the best results cannot be secured. 



The sub-station has been in the hands of Mr. Lyon for ten years, and 

 during that time he has, at the end of each season, submitted a report 

 of his operations with full notes upon each of the varieties under test. 

 The bulletins have had a wide circulation and have met with much favor 

 from the fruit growers, who recognize his ability as a pomologist and 

 place implicit confidence in the results reported by him. Owing to fail- 

 ing health Mr. Lyon has thought it best to give up the work, and has 

 presented his resignation, to take effect at the close of the year. While 

 it is doubtful if we secure the services of any one who can fill his place, 

 the mportance of the fruit testing station upon the lake shore to the 

 fruit growers of that section make it desirable that the station be main- 

 tain d in its present efficiency. 



