194 STATE BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



REPOKT OF THE IIORTICULTUKIST. 



Director R. S, Shaw: 



Sir — I herewith submit a report of the Horticultural divisiou of the 

 Experiment Station. 



The tests of the desirability and value of ditl'erent cover crops in 

 vineyards and orchards have been continued as in the past two seasons, 

 this year, in three vineyards near Lawton and in orchards at South 

 Haven. Ludinjjton, Scottdale. Bellaire and Hart. Where the land is 

 plowed, the winter vetch has given the best satisfaction. It is sown 

 during the first part of August, using 15 to 30 pounds of seed per acre 

 and by adding a bushel of oats, a quick growth or catch crop can be 

 secured. A bushel or a half bushel of rye is sometimes used in place 

 of the oats. Some fruit growers i)refer to work the soil in their orchard 

 by discing instead of plowing and prefer a cover crop plant that is 

 killed by the winter so that it can be worked into the soil easily. An 

 excellent combination is a bushel of oats and a bushel of Canada peas. 



A circular giving our experience with various cover crops will be 

 issued this summer. 



The practice of spraying j>otatoes with Bordeaux mixture has con- 

 tinued to be a paying operation even when the blight (Phytophthora 

 infestens) was not ])resent. Last fall there was a gain of 39 bushels 

 per acre for four sprayings. Potato growers of the state should be alive 

 to the advantages of spraying as a factor in increasing crop production. 

 Nearly all fields have to be sprayed once or twice with poison for bugs. 

 The expense of the Bordeaux which could be applied with the poison 

 would be small, jirobably no operation in connection with the produc- 

 tion of the potato crop would pay as well nor could be done with so 

 little extra labor as making a few sjirayings. 



Tests Avith various fertilizers have been continued and we have, from 

 our experience, suggested 500 pounds per acre of a home mixed formula 

 given in Circular No. 15, issued in April, 1912, to which the reader is 

 referred. 



A few years ago, there was a belief common among some fruit grow- 

 ers that the long time required by apple trees before bearing might be 

 due to using scions of 'Vater sprout" or ''sucker" or "non-bearing" 

 wood instead of scions from fruiting trees or the portion of a tree that 

 was fruiting. 



An experiment to test this question was started in 1909 by securing 

 "blind" or "sucker" wood and "fruiting" wood and grafting the scions 

 on Paradise roots. Some of the varieties have now fruited and there 

 does not seem to be any difference due to the different kinds of wood. 



The experiments to determine the difference in cherry trees growing 

 on different stocks is progressing nicely, but at this time there is no 

 indication of any marked difference in either kind of stock. 



Report of progress can also be made on the value of the different fer- 

 tilizers for young trees. 



Orchard spraying experiments have been carried on at Hart and 



