48 



tree fruit grower is warranted to use large amounts of these 

 materials, and I would hesitate to even suggest certain 

 amounts for the reason that on that particular soil the 

 amount of potash might not be needed. On another partic- 

 ular soil the amoiuit of phosphoric acid might not be needed. 

 It would be largely guess-work, pure and simple, to indicate 

 amounts which would be found satisfactory. This can only 

 be determined by trial -under the soil conditions. 



MR. CLAPP of Northampton : I would like to inquire if 

 any difficulties have been experienced in removing the cover 

 crop in the spring, when you use clover or vetch. 



MR. TAYLOR: There will be difficulty experienced if 

 in sowing the seed the sower has been careless and the seed 

 has fallen in among the plant row, or among the hills. It is 

 quite important that the seed be sown carefully between the 

 rows and if this is done there should be no trouble in plow- 

 ing it under. It is important that it be plowed under before 

 it is tall enough to interfere with its being well covered. 



I\IR. WILFRID WHEELER : I woulcl like to say a word 

 in relation to that point. In the last few years instead of 

 fowiiig a cover crop and leaving until spring, we sow oats 

 for strawberries, gooseberries, raspberries and currants, 

 sowing them the latter part of September or even as late as 

 the early part of October. Under ordinary conditions a 

 growth of six to eight inches of the oats will be reached 

 and they will protect the land. I found in strawberry 

 plants that some have gone through the winter without any 

 other protection. The earlier you sow them of course the 

 heavier the growth you have. You have to keep up some 

 cultivation late in the season and you cannot sow them as 

 early as you might like to, but the early end of September 

 or even October will give you a good cover. 



MR. TAYLOR: One of the difficulties we have found in 

 New York State in the use of either oats or barley in the 

 strawberry bed, for instance, has been in periods of drought, 

 — and we cannot foresee these, — and there might not be 

 enough moisture the last of September and during the 



