i8g8. 



GARDENING. 



363 



on packing and marketing apples by G. 

 S. Christy, of Johnson, Neb Mr. Christy 

 is a large grower, and he urges the im- 

 portance of grading carefully, and pack- 

 ing in a way to have fruit arrive at its 

 market in perfect condition. He stated 

 that this district produces apples of the 

 best quality, and with proper care and 

 study on picking, packing, and market- 

 ing, we have an unlimited market for 

 fruit. Eastern buyers are already in the 

 field contracting for orchards. He rec 

 ommended careful hand picking and 

 packing. 



This paper was followed by J. P.Jack- 

 son, of Glenwood, Iowa, who read a 

 valuable paper on different varieties of 

 apples. This gentleman has over 200 

 varieties of apples in his orchard. He 

 would not recommend the average 

 orchardist to grow my large number of 

 varieties but the experimentalist with 

 time and means for investigation finds 

 pleasure in this class of work. He rec- 

 ommends at some length many of the 

 new varieties, thought we had a prospect 

 of profit from some of them, but for the 

 present large planters should use tested 

 varieties. 



I'eter Younger, Jr., superintendent of 

 the Nebraska horticultural exhibit of the 

 exposition, has kept careful record of the 

 behavior of each and every variety han- 

 dled, giving valuable data regarding the 

 varieties which best endure cold storage, 

 and also data regarding summer fruits 

 which have arrived in best condition and 

 of best quality. One hundred and sixty 

 barrels were placed in cold storage in 

 < Ictober last, and they began making use 

 of them on the tables June 1. So far the 

 the fruit has kept much better than ex- 

 pected. But few of the apples -are de- 

 cayed, usually not more than three or 

 four in a barrel. On the basis of a score 

 of ten points, Ben Davis, Winesap, and 

 Genet have come out in perfect condition. 

 The condition of Grimes' Golden is repre- 

 sented by 7, Missouri Pippin 8, Iowa 

 Blush 8, White winter Pearmain and 

 Mcintosh Red 9. On the other hand 

 Walbridge has not retained its color or 

 come out in as good condition as ex- 

 pected. Its condition wasatfirst rated at 

 5, and later dropped to 3. Yellow Bell- 

 flower 0, Roman Stem S, but after July 

 14- inclining to become mealy. The 

 method of packing has been to wrap each 

 apple first in a thin waxed paper and 

 then in a thicker paper, at a cost of about 

 fifty cents per barrel. It is found that 

 wrapping in two papers, the inner of 

 which was something of the texture used 

 to wrap oranges but coated with a prep- 

 aration that makes it nearly moisture 

 proof, is a most effective method of carry- 

 ing fruit through and bringing it out in 

 good condition. The very superior qual- 

 itv of fruit stored and handled by this 

 process, and its remarkable keeping qual- 

 ity, some of them standing up for a num- 

 ber of weeks after placing them on the 

 tables at the exposition, makes this 

 method of packing apples for cold storage 

 well worthy of study and imitation. 



In the afternoon session Mr. J. A. 

 Hogg, of Shelton, read a paper on the 

 codlin moth. This gentleman is located 

 in Buffalo county on a high table between 

 the Platte and Wood rivers, and is quite 

 successful in growing fruit. He finds 

 clean culture advantageous, and in addi- 

 tion to spraying for codlin moth he 

 makes an effort to hunt up and destroy 

 during the winter and spring such of the 

 larva; as have concealed themselves under 

 the rou^h bark at the forks ol the limbs 

 or on the trunk of the tree, his experience 

 being that it pays to spend an increased 



amount of time in destroying the larvae 

 in their winter quarters than to depend 

 wholly on spraying. His trees at present 

 show only about five percent of wormy 

 apples. 



J. P. Dunlap of Dwight, in the discus- 

 sion following this topic, stated that his 

 method was to pile up the wormy fruit, 

 cover it with sheets of burlan. The 

 worms crawling out of the apples were 

 apt to locate themselves and their co- 

 coons on the under side of this burlap, 

 which after some weeks was turned over 

 to the chicken yard. He also found that 

 the larvre of the codlin moth showed a 

 preference for lodging on groupsof Scotch 

 pine which he had in the vicinity of his 

 packing ground, and that before spring 

 the birds searched them out and destroyed 

 most of them. 



The experience of many members and 

 the discussion along this line developed 

 the thought that very clean culture 

 affords less shelter for the codlin moth 

 on or near the ground, drives them to the 

 trees where they can be destroyed by 

 scraping off the rough bark, and also by 

 lodging under moth bands and later des- 

 troy them. 



In the absence of Mr. Needles, of Atlan- 

 tic, Iowa, two papers on strawberry 

 culture, one under irrigation, the other 

 under dry farming, were presented by E. 

 F. Stephens, of Crete Neb. On the 49,- 

 000,000 acres in Nebraska, about 1,000,- 

 000 are covered by ditches already con- 

 structed and in operation. About 2,000,- 

 000 acres more can be irrigated. With 

 our very fertile soil, unequaled transpor- 

 tation facilities, and with the waters of 

 the Platte, Republican, and the Loups 

 abundant in quantity, easily led out into 

 the ditches and applied, irrigation per 

 acre is less expensive in Nebraska than in 

 most other states. We should at least 

 grow fruit enough to supply our own 

 markets, and with added experience, ship 

 to others more distant. At present, to a 

 considerable extent, our markets are sup- 

 plied with strawberries from Oregon, 

 I'tah and Colorado, and this in spite of 

 the fact that Oregon fruit pays an express 

 tariff of $3.50 per hundred pounds, or 

 $2 50 per hundred pounds in car lots, 

 giving us a protection of 70 to 90 cents 

 on a case in distant express charges. The 

 express rate from Ogden to our leading 

 towns is $25 per thousand pounds, and 

 from Denver $17.50 per thousand. Under 

 protection of this heavy express rate. 

 with proper study and care, the growing 

 of strawberries should be rapidly devel- 

 oped and built up into a profitable busi- 

 ness. To guard against the spring freeze, 

 many incidents have developed showing 

 that the free use of water on cold nights 

 was a nearly- perfect safeguard against 

 harm from frost in the month of May. 



"Peach Culture and Varieties" was 

 discussed by J. M. Russell, of Wymore, 

 Neb , a veteran peach grower. This gen- 

 tleman commenced growing peaches in 

 Nebraska extensively some seventeen or 

 eighteen years ago, and at present has 

 about 100 acres of peach orchard near 

 Wymore. from which he expects to mar" 

 ket upwards of 60,000 baskets this sea- 

 son. Of the 100 acres forty acres near 

 Wymore are yet young and not produc- 

 ing this season. Near Lincoln they have 

 recently planted another peach orchard 

 of 150 acres, aiming to avail themselves 

 of the unequalled distributing facilities of 

 the net work of railroads centering at 

 Lincoln. Mr. Russell brought about a 

 dozen varieties, and many branchessho w- 

 ing clusters of peaches in various stages 

 of growth as an illustration of the com- 



parative size at this time, the maturity 

 and the period of ripening of the various 

 varieties with which he was experiment- 

 ing. He regards the Alexander, a semi- 

 cling, as the earliest productive peach. 

 His earliest freestone was one of his own 

 seedlings, Russell's No. 1. Mr. Russell 

 had fine specimens of Triumph which 

 seemed to be doing well with him but was 

 not a perfect freestone. He had very fine 

 clusters of Hale's Early, Hill's Chili, 

 Wager and many other varieties. The 

 period of ripening with him at Wymore 

 in average years. Alexander, July 4-10; 

 Early Rivers, July IN; Hale's Early, July 

 29, Russell's No. 3, August 10; Coolidge 

 Favorite, August 12: Champion, August 

 20; Wager August 26; Elberta, Septem- 

 ber 1: Wright, a productive local variety, 

 September 2; Heath Cling. September 21. 

 Previous to this season Mr. Russell had 

 not thought. well of the Elberta. but this 

 year it was doing better. Mr. Russell is 

 very well pleased with the behavior of 

 the peach in Nebraska and with their 

 profits in growing the same. He thinks 

 the essentials of success are careful and 

 vi orous culture, the proper and perfect 

 ripening of the wood at the approach of 

 winter, and would plant but a narrow 

 list of those so far proved successful. 



Hon. Silas Wilson, of Atlantic, Iowa, 

 followed in the discussion of the behavior 

 of the peach, and particularly commended 

 the behavior of Bokhara No. 3, which with 

 him had successfully endured a tempera 

 ture of one year 25°, another 28° below 

 zero, and had the following season borne 

 some fruit. He urged that we be careful 

 in looking for Bokhara No. 3 not to 

 be misled or confused by the large num- 

 ber of varieties of the Bokhara family 

 which have not proved successful. Mr. 

 Wilson developed considerable enthusi- 

 asm by urging that we stand up first tor 

 the Pnited States and our navy, having 

 faith in our country, ourmission, and our 

 fruit; that Iowa and Nebraska were fruit 

 countries and peach countries; that the 

 day would come when Iowa and Ne- 

 braska would stand in the front rank as 

 peach growing states, and that we as 

 horticulturists should have more faith in 

 our business and ourselves, and should 

 push the work of fruit growing with 

 increased confidence and vigor 



The peculiarity was remarked upon 

 that the same years young trees from 

 three to six years old might fail to set a 

 crop, the old orchards twelve to eighteen 

 years of age grew fine crops, for the rea- 

 son doubtless, that growth was less vig- 

 orous, they were not tempted to grow so 

 late in the fall, and their fruit buds weie 

 more perfectly ripened. 



W. M. Bomberger called attention to 

 the fact that dry falls and well ripened 

 trees, usually meant hardy trees and 

 that the question of hardihood was 

 very generally determined by the condi- 

 tion in which the treesentered the winter. 

 Trees that were completely ripened, both 

 wood and fruit buds, were very likelv to 

 be considered hardy, and to winter well. 



The discussion of the growing of the 

 raspberry led by A. Van Kirk, of Glen- 

 wood, la , and C.C. Marshall. Arlington, 

 Neb., developed the fact that the average 

 profits in growing and marketing the 

 black raspberry were about $125 per 

 acre. T. G. Wallace has one and a half 

 acres of a new red raspberry which prop- 

 agates from tips, seems to be quite 

 hardy and fruits freely. Samples of 

 bushes and fruit were on exhibition. It 

 has the peculiarity of bearing on the old 

 wood as well as the new wood, and con- 

 tinues in bearing nearly a month. 



J. P. Hess, who is growing blackberries 



