August, ipjo 



in clover which had all the growth 

 plowed under. As compared with the 

 clover plot with all the growth removed 

 there was a variation of only 2 08 

 pounds in favor of the peas. 



The most interesting thing, however, 

 and the point which prevents many 

 orchardists from using cover crops, is 

 the cost of the cover-crop seed. While 

 I do not have the figures here the final 

 result showed that the cost of clean 

 cultivation was greater than where the 

 cover-crops were used. 



Last year samples of soil were taken 

 again from the various plots, and while 

 we are not able to give the results as 

 yet, we anticipate important results 

 from the tests. 



The nitrogen content of the soil is 

 not the only variation we have found 

 in the work with cover-crops. The 

 trees on the clean cultivated plot are a 

 sorry looking lot, and many have either 

 died or been badly affected with the 

 so-called winter injury or "rosette" 

 which is very common on soils deficient 

 in plant foods. The trees on the cover- 

 cropped plots are uniformly healthy 

 and quite normal. The most important 

 variation is that of the fruit production. 

 The plot in clover where all growth 

 was plowed under, and the plot in peas 

 have produced the highest yields of 

 fruits, and the clean cultivated plot the 

 lowest. This was true in 1916 and is 

 more marked in the records of the past 

 three years since 1916. In the course 

 of another year a second report will be 

 prepared which will show some defi- 

 nite results, and from which some final 

 conclusions may be drawn. 



In this work no attempt has been 

 made to increase the amount of potash 

 or phosphoric acid, the idea being that 

 these were present in abundance for 

 the present at least. Reports from other 

 stations show that the fertility of the 

 orchard soil may be maintained by the 

 addition of fifteen tons of barnyard 

 manure per acre every three years. 

 This is said to be able to take place of 

 cover-crops from the standpoint of 

 humus and in addition supply the 

 amount of nitrogen, potash and phos- 

 phoric acid required to produce an an- 

 nual crop of 160 barrels of apples. 



The fertility problem which the 

 orchardist of today faces is the same 

 that confronts every other tiller of the 

 soil. The only safe and sane method of 

 soil management is that which returns 

 to the soil an equal or greater quantity 

 of plant food than which is removed 

 by the annual crop, and by leaching 

 and washing away. This and no other 

 method will build up a permanent agri- 

 culture. When the measure of a suc- 

 cessful farmer or orchardist is the 

 maintenance or increase in the plant 

 food content of the soil instead of his 

 bank account, then will he pass from 



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the soil robber class which is not far 

 from the bolsheviki, to that of the de- 

 sirable citizen. While our experiments 

 with cover-crops have shown beyond 

 doubt that cover-crops, especially of 

 the leguminous class, furnish a cheap 

 and dependable supply of humus and 

 nitrogen, we feel that in the not far 

 distant future additions of potash and 

 phosphoric acid will be profitable if 

 not absolutely necessary. 



Page 21 



As yet our experiments with com- 

 mercial fertilizers have been too incom- 

 plete to draw conclusions from, but 

 some desireable variations have been 

 noticed and in the near future it is 

 hoped that this work may have been 

 extended considerably. 



For the benefit of those who use or 

 anticipate the use of peas as a cover 

 crop, I might relate our experience in 

 plowing this crop under. After two 



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