OECHAEDING IN THE ANNAPOLIS VALLEY 



N. S. . 



OBSERVATIONS BY THE CHEMIST OF THE EX- 

 PERLMENTAL FARMS ON SOILS. CROPS, ETC. 



AT the request of the Boards of Trade 

 of Annapolis, Kentville and Wind- 

 sor, and by the authority of the 

 Minister of Agriculture, Mr. Frank T. 

 Shutt, Chemist of the Experimental Farms, 

 recently made a tour through the famous 

 apple growing section ot Nova Scotia, 

 partly to give addresses and partly to gain 

 further information regarding the nature of 

 the soils in that district and the methods of 

 orchard culture in vogue. 



To a horticulturist representative, Mr. 

 Shutt said : " My trip has been most profit- 

 able and pleasant. While the attendances 

 at some of the places where I spoke was 

 not large, owing to pressure of work at this 

 time of the year upon the farm, we always 

 had most interesting and instructive meet- 

 ings. The discussions and questions asked 

 showed a keen appreciation of the value ot 

 scientific knowledge as applied to practical 

 orcharding. I found a large number of men 

 who are carrying on their work on rational 

 lines — not only reading men, but men who 

 are putting to the practical test the methods 

 suggested by the results of experiments car- 

 ried on here and at other research institu- 

 tions. We have already a number of care- 

 /^ful enthusiastic co-workers there, and I feel 

 convinced that every year will see an addi- 

 tion to that number. Several have prom- 

 ised me, or rather have volunteered to carry 

 out, and take observations upon, certain 

 experiments or systems of soil fertilization 

 and culture, and such must result in in- 

 creased knowledge as to the most profitable 

 ways to manage orchards. Certainly, the 



orchardists of Nova Scotia are amongst the 

 most intelligent and progressive that I have 

 met in Canada." 



What are the chief products? "Hay, 

 apples, potatoes and oats. The hay is 

 grown on the fertile, dyked lands. Such 

 are seldom fertilized (though some farmers 

 are now using a certain quantity of bone 

 meal on them), and only occasionally re- 

 seeded, when oats are used as the nurse 

 crop. It is not at all unusual to take two 

 tons and over of hay per acre for a number 

 of years without breaking the sod or apply- 

 ing any manure. 



"The orchards are planted for the most 

 part on what we should call the upland 

 soils — upon the gentle, rising slopes of the 

 mountains, and there they flourish, for the 

 trees get good natural drainage. The 

 orchards are mainly apples, but plums, pears, 

 cherries, peaches and small fruits are also 

 in some parts extensively grown. The 

 soil and climatic influences seem particu- 

 larly well adapted to fruit growing of all 

 kinds. No doubt the future ot that country 

 — I refer to the valleys and adjacent lands 

 of that part of Nova Scotia — lies in fruit 

 growing, and it will be successful. All the 

 progressive, up-to-date men are now prac- 

 tising clean culture, and the turning under 

 of clover or some other green crop to enrich 

 the soil, and the results are excellent. A 

 considerable and ever-increasing amount of 

 commercial fertilizers (principally bone meal 

 and muriate of potash), is being used." 



What do you think of the soil generally ? 

 " Leaving out of consideration the dyked 



