FARMERS' INSTITUTES. 101 



water and it will dissolve; add a drop or two of this and the material 

 will, if properly mixed, make no change of color. I always use an excess 

 of lime. I put in lime enough so there will be no change with this test, 

 and then add some more. I strain in the material, after having made my 

 dilution. I use the finer particles of the lime; if properly slaked, how- 

 ever, the lime will be in a fine state. I don't like to use air slaked lime, 

 but look out for burning — that is as bad as the air slaking. 



EXTRA SESSION— DISCUSSION OF FRUIT TOPICS. 



The interest in fruit was so manifest that nearly the whole audience 

 remained for an hour to discuss miscellaneous fruit topics. 



Q: How would you prune standard pear and plum trees? 



Prof. Taft: In case of the standard pear, it depends on the variety. 

 Many are upright growers; in case of the Kieffer, I would head them 

 back severely for the first two or three years, and would at the same 

 time thin out the surplus branches. If you head back, as in the case of 

 the peach, it thickens up too much. In case of the plum, our own practice 

 is to head back the trees somewhat and thin out at the same time; after 

 that we have them in good shape and they grow without pruning. We 

 merely thin out the surplus shoots. 



Mr. Stearns: I rise to answer another question asked some little time 

 ago, which I consider of importance to peach growers in Michigan. I 

 believe one of the worst things we have to contend with in peach grow- 

 ing is the curl leaf, although this last season was such that we had but 

 little, but for the past five or six years it has been a great bane to peach 

 growing. One season we lost nearly our entire crop. 



Now I want to give you my experience in spraying to prevent that — 

 in spraying before the trees blossom. I sprayed thoroughly with the 

 Bordeaux mixture, which is equally as good, I think, for that purpose. I 

 used two pounds copper sulphate in 50 gallons of water, but was sure to 

 reach every portion of the tree. I sprayed for the curl leaf this last spring, 

 but the season was such that it was not so necessary; but the year before, 

 I sprayed for this purpose, and another orchard, which adjoins mine and 

 is of the same sort — well, you could see which was sprayed as far as you 

 could see the two orchards. I want to impress upon you the importance of 

 spraying to keep off curl leaf. I believe it is also effective in heading off 

 the black knot and the pear blight. 



Now in regard to pruning. I don't believe that any of us do enough 

 heading back in plums and pears and peaches, and I have followed the 

 practice, on the dwarf pears, of heading back from one-half to two-thirds 

 of the previous growth. This depends on the form of course. Many, 

 like the Bradshaw, that make a strong upward growth, as well as the 

 Sheldon and Bartlett pears, I head in two-thirds of the last year's growth. 

 This, however, is- especially important on the dwarfs. 



Q: At what time of the season do you do this? 



Mr. Steams: In March. 



Q: It it profitable or wise to thin plums? 



