876 ANNUAL REPORT OF THE Off. Doc. 



It will be noted that the soil types range from heavy clay loams 

 in experiment 218, through silt aud plain loams to light sandy and 

 stony loams, in experiments 21G aud 211), 



The first three experiments deal with the influence of fertilizers, 

 and involve lU treatments and cheeks in each case. The next 

 four experiments deal with cultural methods and involve 12 treat- 

 ments in each case, except the last, which has six. The last four 

 experiments are a combination of portions of the first two types 

 and deal with both fertilizers and cultural methods. As shown 

 in the table, the trees are of 10 varieties, though with one excep- 

 tion there are two or more varieties in each experiment. In age 

 at the present time, the bearing trees range from 9 to 39 years; and 

 since the work started they have produced over 1,315,000 pounds of 

 fruit. 



In this one item of fruit, we may call attention to the facts that, 

 so far as American experiments are concerned, this amount is more 

 than treble that reported in any other single experiment, and very 

 distinctly more than the total fruit reported from all other similar 

 experiments combined. This does not mean that the importance 

 of the experiments elsewhere is to be minimized in the least, but 

 it should help to emphasize the fact that, in those cases where con- 

 clusions or attitudes are in conflict, very careful attention should be 

 given to the actual and relative amounts of evidence upon which 

 the differing attitudes are based. In fact, within our own experi- 

 ments we can find the counterparts of practically all those reported 

 elsewhere. If we had fewer experiments — for example, only one 

 on fertilization and another on cultural methods, — our conclusions 

 could be much more easily formulated, and we might readily be- 

 come ardent partisans on either side of the questions, the side de- 

 pending merely upon which of the present locations our experi- 

 ments chanced to have. In other words, if Ave attempted to base our 

 conclusions upon any one or two of our present experiments, those 

 conclusions would be very different from any we would now form- 

 ulate, on the basis of all the results. There can be no doubt that 

 when the whole truth is known, we shall be able to account for all 

 of the facts, and this is what we are undertaking to do. 



THE INFLUENCE OF FERTILIZATION 



The first factor to which we shall give attention is that of fer- 

 tilization. Can the yield, color, size and wood-growth of apples 

 be influenced by fertilization, and, of so, how and under what con- 

 ditions? This has always been an important question, and five 

 years ago, when we were starting our experiments, we could find 

 no data upon which to base a definite, well-founded answer. We 

 do not say that we can fully answer it yet, but such progress as we 

 have made may be partially seen in Table II and III: 



