444 EXPERIMENT STATION EECOED. (Vol.36 



The ten leading varieties iu the bearing orchards were Winesap, Jonathan, 

 Esopus, Rome Beauty, Stayman, Gano, Ben Davis, Yellow Newton, Arkansas 

 (Mammoth Black Twig), and Arkansas Black. In orchards of from one to five 

 years of age varieties such as Delicious, Winter Pearmain, and Banana are re- 

 placing varieties like Ben Davis, Arkansas, and Ai'kansas Black. 



The general cost of establishing a meadow orchard of cider apples, A. 

 Tbuf.t.t.k (Vie Agr. et Rurale, 6 {1916), No. 45, pp. 391-396, figs. 5).— A discus- 

 sion with estimates of cost entering into the establishment of a cider orchard in 

 land used for pasture. 



Methods and problems in pear and apple breeding, W. R. Ballaed (Mary- 

 land Sta. Bui. 196 (1916), pp. 79-92, figs. 3). — Investigations in the improve- 

 ment of orchard fruits have been conducted by various investigators at the 

 station for 11 yeai's. The data secured from these breeding projects are re- 

 served for a later publication. The present bulletin is limited to a discussion 

 of some of the methods which have been found xiseful and some of the problems 

 which have been encountered in these investigations. The phases discussed 

 include knowledge of varieties, the blooming period, collecting and ripening 

 pollen, emasculation, pollination, bagging and labeling, setting of the fruit, 

 gathering and planting the seed, handling the seedlings, early elimination of 

 undesirable types, the permanent planting, and the fruiting age. A summary 

 is given of the pear and apple crosses made at the station showing the number 

 of buds pollinated and the number and percentage of fruit set. 



Pear breeding, W. R. Baixabd (Jour. Heredity, 7 (1916), No. 10, pp. 435-442, 

 figs. 4)- — This comprises a reprint of the greater part of the above noted 

 bulletin. 



Growing cherries east of the Eocky Mountains, H. P. Gould (U. S. Dept. 

 Agr., Farmers' Bui. 776 (1916), pp. 36, figs. 29). — A treatise on cherry culture 

 discussing the extent and distribution of cherry growing, locations and sites for 

 cherry orchards, methods of propagation, selection of stocks and trees, the 

 season for planting trees, care of trees when received from the nursery, prepar- 

 ation of the land, planting operations, pruning at time of planting, tillage and 

 maintenance of soil fertility, intercrops, irrigation, pruning, fungus diseases 

 and insects and other pests, picking and handling the fruit, varieties, the 

 sterility of sweet cherries, the sequence of ripening of different varieties, and 

 the future planting of cherries. 



Self-sterility in dewberries and blackberries, L. R. Detjen (North Carolina 

 Sta. Tech. Bui. 11 (1916), pp. 5-37, figs. 9).— This bulletin presents in detail the 

 results of an investigation of the extent and causes of sterility among varieties 

 of dewberries and blackberries and their hybrid forms. 



In the work with blackberries, which was conducted through three successive 

 seasons, the 11 true blackberry varieties included in the study proved to be 

 self-fertile, one hybrid blackberry was partially self-sterile, and three hybrids 

 were self-sterile. In case of the dewberries, on the other hand, 10 of the true 

 dewberries were self-sterUe and three of the hybrid dewberries were self-fertile, 

 thus indicating that sterUity apparently occurs only in dewberries and their 

 hybrids with blackberries. Examination of the origin of the different varieties 

 of dewberries tested showed that all of the varieties that are pure lineal de- 

 scendants of Rubus trivialis and those varieties in which trivialis blood pre- 

 dominates are self-sterile, while those varieties that come from R. viUosus are 

 generally self-fertile. Among the factors studied and discarded as not ex- 

 plaining the general sterUity among dewberries are the structure of the flower, 

 disease, daily blooming period of varieties, amount of pollen produced by the 

 flower, environment, sterility due to hybridism, and the percentage of defective 

 pollen grains produced. The author concludes that the self-sterility among 



