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TOP-WORKING FROM THE FARMER’S STANDPOINT. 427 
TOP-WORKING FROM THE FARMER’S STANDPOINT. 
J. C. HAWKINS, AUSTIN. 
I have been asked to give my views on top-working an orchard 
from a farmer’s standpoint. Iam not expecting you all to agree 
with me. While I am always willing to listen to all who differ from 
me, I shall always claim the right to do my own thinking, and I ad- 
vise you alltodothe same. But before you take my advice, let me 
warn you that this is what constitutes a genuine crank and top- 
working howler. 
These crazy cranks were the first that had the impudence to ques- 
tion the prescriptions of the horticultural doctors when they told 
the farmer to plant this seedling and that seedling, this and that 
variety, whole root,piece root, everything it was possible to swallow 
and not die of strangulation. We have the experience and practi- 
cal demonstrations of such orchardists as Philips, Wilcox, Gaylord 
and others, and they still have the cheek to tell us that we must 
swallow these nostrums or surely die a horticultural death. While 
_I believe our nurserymen should propagate and investigate and do 
all that is possible to produce the coming long-keeping apple, yet 
this is not a work that would be practical for the farmer io under- 
take. We have had the Russian craze for years, and what has the 
Russian given us in the way of a winter apple of long keeping 
qualities? With perhaps one or two exceptions, practically nothing. 
It appears to me that the farmers need some good summer and fall 
apples that come early into bearing, and we have gotthem. Then 
he needs winter apples of good quality ‘and long keeping. And 
right here occurs a blank, a great open void the coming apple has 
to fill. We have a few apples and crabs that are perfectly 
hardy—you all know them. I would plant largely of Virginia crab, 
and two or three of the best Russians for top-working. Commence 
the work after three years’ growth in the orchard row; top-work one- 
half of the top ofeach tree one season, the other half the next season, 
with such varieties as suit the taste and that would be suited to 
the conditions and locality. In my own immediate vicinity I would 
set grafts of Malinda, Ben Davis, Seek-no-further—an dmany other 
good apples can be profitably grafted on the Virginia crab. My or- 
chard is young, three, four and five years planted. I have Malinda 
grafted on Duchess, Hibernal and Transcendent, making a fine 
growth, and the union appears to be perfect; Wealthy and Duchess 
on Hibernal and Transcendent, that seems to be perfect in every 
way: Wolf River on Duchess is doing well. 
I would distribute the varieties promiscuously through each 
group of the blooming period, early, middle, and late. [am nota 
botanist or pomologist, yet I see and recognize the following facts: 
Years ago I observed, for instance, that isolated trees of the Wild 
Goose plum, then one of the most common of the native sorts, al- 
most without exception remained barren, while trees standing near 
other varieties or, perhaps, near cherries or peaches, bore heavy 
crops. Investigation led to the discovery of the fact that the pollen 
of the Wild Goose blossom is incapable of fertilizing its own pis- 
