188 STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



Answer. Certaiuly, if it will pay to gather apples it will pay to 

 thin them. 



Question. What time of year ? 



Answer. Any time before the seeds begin to harden. 



Mr. Murray — Pick off the imperfect fruit and if they have codling 

 moths, put them in a kettle, boil them and kill the inisects. 



Question. How can you learn how to use commercial fertilizer 

 intelligently ? 



Answers. Prof. Irish — No very systematic experiments have been 

 carried on. One of the conditions necessary to know before we can 

 tell, is the mechanical analysis of the soil. We cannot tell whether 

 the soil will prepare the fertilizer so that they can be assimilated by 

 the plant, without experimentiog in each case. That must be taken 

 into consideration. 



Mr. Gilbert. I have an analysis here of my soil. If I want to 

 raise bigger strawberries or more of them, what must I do ? I will 

 read you the analysis : 



Phosphoric acid 



Equivalent to lime phosphate 



0.19 per cent 

 0.41 per cent 



Nitrogen 0.13 percent 



0.16 per cent 



Eqnlvalent to ammonia. 



Do I want any fertilizer at all, and if so, how much ! 



Prof. Irish — A little more nitrogen and a little potash, possibly 

 half and half by weight. The potash I consider the best for produc- 

 ing fruit and the nitrogen for producing plant growth. For a healthy 

 growth, nitrogen, and for healthy fruit, potash. 



Mr. Gilbert — The largest foliage measured 26* inches in diameter. 

 How much larger should I grow them than that to get the largest 

 fruit ? I have thousands of plants ovor a foot in diameter. It seems 

 to me from what little experience I have had with our soil in Oregon 

 county that the only improvement I could make at any time would be 

 to get an irrigating plant and give the plants what water they need. I 

 have produced berries that measured 7^ inches. 



Prof. Waters advised me to plant eight rows of berries, fertilizing 

 the tirst row with potash, the second with phosphoric acid, the third 

 with nitrogen, the fourth with nothing, the fifth with potash and phos- 

 phoric acid, the sixth with potash and nitrogen, the seventh with 

 phosphoric acid and nitrogen, and the eighth with nothing, and com- 

 pare the results. 



Has anyone here fruited the Yenshing peach introduced from 

 ll^orthwest China by J. L. Bud? 



No. 



