February, igso 



BETTER FRUIT 



Page 15 



TABLE 5.— No. OI' SEEDS PRODUCED BY 

 Cross 



Gravenstein x Gravenstein 



Maiden's Blush x Maiden's Blush.... 



Rome Beauty x Rcjnie Beauty 



Spitzenburg x Spitzenburg 



Winter Banana x Winter Banana 



Wagener x Wagener 



Yellow Newtown x Yellow Newtown. 



Spitzenburg x Jonathan 



Jonathan x Wagener 



Wagener x Jonathan 



Jonathan x Spitzenburg 



Jonathan x Ben Davis 



VARIETIES IN DIFFERENT CROSSES. 



No. fruits \o. seeds No, seeds per fruit 



47 5 .10 



2 7 3.5 



2 6 3.0 



3 7 2.3 



4 3 .76 



27 11 .51 



10 



12 81 6.7 



34 205 6.0 



131 769 5.8 



1-1 76 5.4 



207 1216 5.4 



Apple Cross-Pollination. 



From the data presented it is evident 

 that a large number of our commercial 

 varieties of apples are self-sterile and 

 furthermore those that are apparently 

 fertile or partially so, are inferior in 

 size to the fruits that set under natural 

 conditions. 



Cross-pollination experiments are 

 therefore necessary in order to arrive at 

 definite conclusions, concerning the 

 best pollinizers for any commercial va- 

 riety. Naturally then the question arises 

 as to what constitutes a good pollenizer. 

 In the first place there must be a mutual 

 affinity between the varieties planted 

 together. At the present time very little 

 is known about the sexual affinities of 

 our cultivated fruits. To throw some 

 light upon this important question at 

 the Idaho station a number of crosses 

 were made during the season of 1915. 

 A study of the following table may be 

 found of interest in this connection: 



These results show that certain 

 crosses give better results than others. 

 For instance, Jonathan X Newtown 

 gave a 27.3 per cent of fruit, which 

 would be considered a normal set, if 

 31.8 per cent represents approximately 

 a normal set under natural conditions. 

 A combination of Jonathans and Romes 

 would be good economy in view of the 

 fact that approximately 26 per cent of a 

 set of fruit was obtained. On the other 

 hand, one would hesitate in planting 

 Romes and Gravensteins together, as 

 only .83 per cent of fruit set. Likewise 

 the same is true of Grimes and Graven- 

 stein. Before definite conclusions can 

 be drawn further, experimentation is 

 necessary, but on the face of the evi- 

 dence presented, it is apparent that all 

 varieties will not cross with each other. 



Therefore, in the selection of a pol- 

 lenizer, the following points should re- 

 ceive due consideration: First, there 

 must be a mutual affinity between the 

 varieties planted together; second, the 

 two varieties must bloom at approxi- 

 mately the same time; and third, the 

 varieties should be good pollen pro- 

 ducers. 



Those who have orchards just com- 

 ing into bearing, or old orchards for 

 that matter, planted with one or two 

 varieties which are shy pollen produc- 

 ers, should graft over one tree at least 

 out of every ten with some other vari- 

 ety that is an abundant pollen producer, 

 and blooms at the same time as the 

 others. 



BEST SERVICE 

 QUALITY a PRIG 



PERFECTION IN 



FRUIT 

 LABELS 



1423-24 NORTHWESTERN BANK BlDfi. ' 

 PORTLANO.ORECON. 



' E.Shelley Morgan 



NORTHWESTER N MANA GER 



: WECARRY-AND CANSHIPIN 24 



HOURS-STOCK LABELS FOR PEARS. 

 vAPPUS.CHERRIES a STRAWBERRIES. 



Showing line of the cages used in making llu' tests. 



Bees and Pollination. 



In a discussion of the subject of or- 

 chard pollination, the question of bees 

 should not be overlooked, for cross- 

 pollination will not be effective unless 

 insects are present to carry pollen from 

 tree to tree. The wind is a very poor 

 conveyor of pollen, hence the orchard- 

 ist depending entirely upon this agency 

 in fertilizing his trees will meet with 

 disappointment. Mr. E. B. Kelly, Hor- 

 ticultural Inspector for the Spokane 

 Valley, is confident that lack of pollina- 

 tion in his district is due largely to the 

 absence of pollen-carrying insects. This 

 is apparently true in practically all 

 commercial fruit districts of the North- 

 west. 



The experiments conducted by the 

 University of California with prune 

 trees confirm these points. Their re- 

 sults seem to warrant the following 

 conclusions: 



(1). Both the French and Imperial 

 prunes may be aided in setting fruit by 

 the use of bees in the orchard during 

 the blooming period, provided the trees 

 are in a normal, healthy condition. 



(2). The absence of bees in the or- 

 chard may mean a low percentage of 

 set with both these varieties. 



(3). The French prune does not ab- 

 solutely require interplanting with the 

 Imperial, even though this arrangement 

 may prove beneficial to both varieties. 



In conclusion therefore I wish to say 

 that the introduction of a number of 

 hives of bees in the orchard, one hive 

 to the acre, especially during the bloom- 

 ing period would unquestionably in- 

 crease the normal set of fruit. 



