THE CHERRIES OF NEW YORK 73 



smaller. No one seems to have seen or to have thought that there are 

 differences in the size of cherries grown on Mazzard or Mahaleb stock. 



5. Better imions are made with Mazzard than with the Mahaleb. 

 This would be expected because of the close relationship of the Mazzard 

 to orchard cherries. 



6. The Mahaleb is probably the more cosmopolitan stock — will thrive 

 on a greater diversity of soils than the Mazzard stock. In particular it 

 is somewhat better adapted to sandy, light, stony, and arid soils that are 

 not weU adapted to growing cherries. Its root system is much nearer 

 the surface of the ground and it is, therefore, better adapted to shallow 

 soils than the Mazzard. 



7. Though the evidence is somewhat conflicting on this point it is 

 probable that cherries on Mazzard live longer than on Mahaleb. It may 

 be that the frequent statements to this effect arise from the knowledge 

 that dwarf fniit-trees are generally shorter lived than standard trees since 

 there seem to be no records of actual comparisons. 



8. Lastly, in climates where the cherry can be grown with reasonable 

 certainty and in soils to which this fruit is adapted, varieties on Mazzard 

 are more productive and profitable than on the Mahaleb stock. This 

 seems to be the concensus of opinion among growers in the great cherry 

 regions of California, Oregon, Washington, Michigan and New York. 



Several other stocks have been more or less successfully used for 

 cherries and a great number have never been tried that might make good 

 stocks. In a country as diversified as ours and in a state as variable in 

 soil and climate as New York and with the manifold varieties of Sweet 

 and Sour Cherries, it is almost certain that under some conditions there 

 are stocks more desirable than either Mazzard or Mahaleb. The resources 

 of the cherry-grower in this direction are so great that in this accotmt 

 we can but briefly outline them, describing but a few of the many stocks 

 that might be used. 



In the colder parts of New York and of the United States, tmdoubtedly 

 seedlings of Russian cherries wovild make hardy and in most other respects 

 very desirable stocks. These Russian cherries, too, as a rule, come nearly 

 or quite true to seed, making very good orchard plants on their own roots. 

 Some of them, if not most of them, sprout rather badly — not so serious 

 a fault as one might think, especially in a cultivated orchard. For budding 

 over to othfer varieties only sour sorts should be used, taking for trial such 

 varieties as Bessarabian, Brusseler Braune, Double Natte, George Glass, 



