EDITORIAL NOTES. 



103 



in spraying potatoes. It is claimed that it 

 adheres better than the ordinary bor- 

 deaux. This mixture is thought, how- 

 ever, to be harder on the spray pump than 

 the ordinary bordeaux. It has been used 

 at the Central Experimental Farm, but no 

 definite results have been obtained. The 

 formula given above was prepared at the 

 Central Experimental Farm, and experi- 

 ments were made to determine the amount 

 of soda necessary to neutralize the copper 

 sulphate. 



Water Core in Apples 



A CORRESPONDENT at Cornwall 

 asks the cause of water core in his 

 Gideon apples. He has a great many of 

 this variety and nearly all are affected. 



We know of no one who has made a study 

 of the cause or remedy for this condition. 

 We have observed it in our Golden Sweets, 

 the off year of bearing, when there were 

 only a few specimens on the tree ; and occa- 

 sionally in wet seasons, in our Kings. 



We referred the question to W. T. Ma- 

 coun, of the Central Experimental Farm, 

 who says in reply: 



" The Gideon apple has been sold and 

 planted to quite a large extent in the north- 

 ern parts of Ontario and the province of 

 Quebec, but although the tree is hardy and 

 the fruit handsome it has proved a great dis- 

 appointment owing to its becoming water- 

 cored. There has been no study of the 

 water-coring of apples, as far as I am aware, 

 and no statement made as to the exact cause 

 of it, but after sixteen years' experience 

 with a great many varieties at the Central 

 Experimental Farm we have been able to 

 draw some conclusions. Apples of Rus- 

 sian origin are much more subject to water- 

 core than apples of American origin. Ap- 

 ples showing Siberian crab parentage are 

 more subject to water-core than others. 

 Water-coring is evidently a physiological 



injury caused by certain climatic conditions. 

 Apples, such as Gideon, which water-core, 

 should be picked early and disposed of early, 

 as the injury increases as the fruit matures, 

 and some Russian varieties become quite 

 translucent, they are so badly affected." 



Thinning Apples 



EXPERLMENTS by Beach, of Geneva, 

 N. Y., go to show that in seasons of 

 very heavy crops, thinning, if done early, 

 say within three or four weeks after the 

 fruit sets, both increases the size and im- 

 proves the color, but in cases of a small crop 

 no benefit was perceptible. 



In the main his method was to remove all 

 wormy, knotty and otherwise undesirable 

 fruits, and each cluster thinned to one fruit. 

 The cost for a well loaded tree of average 

 size he estimates at 50 cents. 



Paint For Barns and Sheds 



A SENSIBLE job for mild days toward 

 spring is the application of a fresh 

 coat of paint or whitewash to the farm 

 buildings. Perhaps in no respect is the 

 Canadian farmer and fruit grower more 

 negligent than with the exterior appearance 

 of his stables, his barns, his sheds, which 

 are very commonly left unpainted and most 

 untidy in appearance. Not only does this 

 neglect expose the buildings to early decay, 

 but it also exhibits a lack of taste on the 

 part of the owner. For buildings sided up 

 with planed lumber the regular white lead 

 paint is of course the best, but for the many 

 rough sheds and barns throughout the coun- 

 try a cheap paint or whitewash will work a 

 wonderful revolution. This may be made 

 by using just enough water to moisten the 

 slaked lime, and then adding kerosene oil to 

 thin it to a consistency of easy application 

 with a whitewash or other large brush. A 

 little color may be added if so desired. A 

 quick way of covering large barns and sheds 

 is. by use of the spray pump. Windows 



