January, 1921 



BETTER FRUIT 



Page 9 



Mussel Shoals were endorsed by a 

 unanimous vote. An increase of 100 per 

 cent in the appropriations of the Wash- 

 ington State Agricultural College ex- 

 periment stations and extension service 

 was also strongly recommended. 



The officers elected for the coming 

 year are: President, F. A. Wiggins, 

 Toppenish; first vice-president, R. H. 

 Kipp, Quincy; second vice-president, 

 Dr. H. L. Geary, Underwood; secretary- 

 treasurer, M. L. Dean; directors (three- 

 year term), G. H. Boehlke, Cashmere; 

 J. Howard Wright, Yakima. 



Notwithstanding the strong plea of 

 the Yakima delegation to the Grade and 

 Pack Conference that the three grade 

 pack be abandoned and the two grade 

 pack substituted the decision of the 

 conference was to retain the three 

 grade pack. 



The social features during the confer- 

 ence including the annual horticultural 

 dinner and the Ad Club luncheon were 

 characterized by the usual Spokane 

 vim, diversion, and sociability. 



The general opinion of the gathering 

 was that the outlook for the fruit in- 

 dustry in the Northwest is more than 

 promising and that given a little time 

 will adjust itself. 



Intensive Fruit Culture Abroad 



Intensive fruit culture to an extent 

 scarcely to be found in this country was 

 noticed at Cambridge, England, bv Prof. 

 L. C. Corbett, of the United States De- 

 partment of Agriculture, who has just 

 returned from a European mission. A 

 concern there has an orchard of 1,400 

 acres, so densely set that machine culti- 

 vation or the introduction of a horse- 

 drawn spraying machine is impossible. 

 Apple trees are set 2 rods apart and 

 are hedaed high, 6 or 7 feet from the 

 ground, the spread of limb being more 

 than 6 feet from the trunk. Between the 

 apple rows, plum trees are set midway 

 and also headed high; beneath the plum 

 and apple trees, currant and gooseberry 

 bushes are set in rows 3 feet apart. 



Before the war culture was by hand, 

 even to the spading. When the war 

 took away man-power the owners 

 saved themselves by introducing small 

 "wheelbarrow tractors," manufactured 

 • in the United States, which have a tread 

 of only 18 to 20 inches. The density of 

 the orchard, of course, precludes horse- 

 spraying. To meet this condition a com- 

 plete waterworks system has been run 

 through the roadways, which are placed 

 at intervals, and lime-sulphur mixture 

 or Bordeaux mixture is pumped through 

 the mains from a central power plant, 

 spraying 200 acres. The mixture is 

 taken off by hose connected at intervals. 

 The company owning this orchard has 

 a large preserving plant for the manu- 

 facture of jam when the market is poor 

 for plums and apples. 



In Lombardy and Normandy, on the 

 contrary, apple culture appears to be 

 incidental to pasturage. The trees are 

 set 50 or 60 feet apart and are pruned 

 high so as to be out of the way of stock. 

 Apples of Northern France are largely 

 used for cider, in the manufacture and 

 blending of which the people are as 

 expert as in the manufacture of wine. 



TOP-DRESSING TALK No. 2 



Off- Year Bearing of the Apple 



Observation of alternate bearing or- 

 chards for the past five seasons, however, 

 leads to the suggestion that this habit is 

 largely due to nutritional conditions. 



Off-year trees have been made to bear 

 in succession by experimental means. 



The view has been presented that the 

 use of an early season application of a 

 quickly available nitrogenous fertilizer 

 may be one means toward including regu- 

 lar bearing of off-year varieties of apples. " 

 (Wisconsin Bulletin No. 317 — "Off- 

 Year Apple Bearing.") 



Both the Yellow Newtown and the Spitz- 

 enburg seem to be alternate bearers, and 

 even under some of our fertilizer experi- 

 ments continue to be. On the other hand, 

 in some of our experiments we were able 

 to get three successive crops with both 

 Spitzenburgs and Newtowns. It would 

 appear reasonable to conclude that such 

 a condition was due to the fact that all 

 factors surrounding the tree contributed 

 to such a condition, namely, that tillage, 

 irrigation, pruning, etc., all contributed 

 to this general result and harmonized with 

 the fertilizer treatments." (Oregon Bul- 

 letin No. 166 — 'Fertilizers for Oregon 

 Orchards.") 



Arcadian Sulphate of Ammonia 



Proper use of a nitrogenous fertilizer in 

 the orchard demands a quickly available 

 form of nitrogen, and this must be applied 

 two or three weeks before blossoming 

 Arcadian Sulphate of Ammonia is, 

 therefore, the ideal nitrogenous fertilizer 

 for orchard work. It is quickly available 

 and because of its non-leaching property 



can be applied early without danger of 

 loss from washing. 



Arcadian is fine and dry, and can be 

 applied by hand or machine. An excel- 

 lent method of applying is with the grain 

 drill set to feed slowly — 100 to 300 lbs. 

 per acre, depending on the needs of the 

 trees. 



ARCADIAN IS FOR SALE BY 



CALIFORNIA: San Francisco; Hawaiian Fertilizer Co., Pacific Bone Coal & Fertilizing Co., 

 Pacific Guano & Fertilizer Co., Western Meat Co., California Fertilizer Works; [.us Angeles; 

 Pacific Guano & Fertilizer Co., Pacific Bone Coal & Fertilizing Co., Agricultural Chemical Works, 

 Hauser Packing Co., Hawaiian Fertilizer Co., Ltd., Southern California Fertilizer Co. OREGON: 

 Portland; Swift & Co. 



Write Desk 1 for 

 Our Bulletin No. 

 "Fertilizing the Afifil, 

 Orchard. ' ' 



I The ^M0 Company {* 



510 First National Bank Building, Berkeley, California 



lltur 



