RELATION OF EAULY MATURITY TO HARDINESS. 215. 



made impossible by the arrival of winter weather. It is interesting to 

 note in this connection that the soft, undeveloped twigs of the French 

 Crab were actually dead when cut, having been caught by winter's cold 

 while still growing. The degree of ripeness of the twigs of two tender 

 apples (French Crab and Grimes) and two hardy varieties (Oldenburg 

 and Wealthy) is perhaps even better seen in figure 3, which presents 

 longitudinal sections of the twigs. The left twig of each group was 

 stained with iodine to show the deposit of starch in the pith, a very 

 prominent feature of well-matured twigs. In case of practically all 

 varieties of apple which the writer has observed in this connection, 

 including many not shown in the cuts, the earliest to ripen their wood 

 are the hardiest. 



EARLY RIPENING AND HARDINESS OF TREES WITH 



RESPECT TO AGE. 



It is very generally known that young trees are more susceptible to 

 severe winter weather than older trees of the same kinds, except in 

 case of trees that are so old as to be feeble from age. Nurserymen And 

 it necessary to protect young plants, whether seedlings or from grafts, 

 cuttings, etc., though they may need little or no protection after being- 

 set in the orchard. It is necessary here simply to point out the fact 

 that young, vigorously-growing trees ripen their wood later in fall than 

 older trees, and that this is at least in large part responsible for their 

 lack of hardiness. 



Figure 4 indicates something of the difference between the twigs of 

 old and young apple trees. The varieties shown are Jonathan and 

 WealthJ^ The twigs were cut and photographed December 16, 1804. The 

 twigs on the left in cass of each variety are from one-year root grafts 

 growing in the nursery, and the ones on the right are from old, bearing 

 trees. The difference in maturity betAveen old and young trees, even in 

 case of so early ripening a variety as Wealthy, is quite apparent, and 

 vfiOx the Jonathan the difference of course is even more noticeable. 



EARLY MATURITY AND HARDINESS OF FOREST TREES FROM 



DIFFERENT LOCALITIES. 



In the spring of 1897, seeds of several kinds of forest trees from 

 various parts of the country were planted at the Experiment Station. 

 The test was to have been carried on in cooperation between the Experi- 

 ment Station and the United States Department of Agriculture, the 

 latter having collected the seeds the previous fall. The Department of 

 of Agriculture, however, withdrew from cooperation after a year or two, 

 leaving the work solely with the Experiment Station. The seeds were 

 planted in nursery rows^ where the seedlings have grown since. As the 

 trees began to crowd, they were thinned, until at present only one aver- 

 age tree is left to represent each locality from which the seed was 

 secured. The first records were made by Professor F. W. Card, then 

 Horticulturist at this Experiment Station, or under his direction. The 

 records since 1899 have been made by the writer. 



