34 



saved. Rose chafers will sometimes drop down on them, 

 or crawl up, in a night, and prompt measures and strong poi- 

 sons are necessary to prevent great damage. A good spray 

 pump ought to be bought when the orchard is set, and kept 

 in readiness. Keep an eye out for the San Jose scale, and 

 for anything else which may attack the trees, and keep ahead 

 of them. When the trees come into bearing, spraying be- 

 comes still more imperative. The codling moth is always 

 rampant in our orchards, and wormy apples are tolerated in 

 a way which is ruinous to our reputation. Fig. 4 shows 

 some Baldwins which were on sale at a fruit store in the 

 town of Amherst, and practically every one had a worm in it. 

 One of the most prominent orchardists of Massachusetts 

 stated to the writer last year that in his opinion the Canadian 

 law, which allows 10 per cent of wormy or otherwise defec- 

 tive specimens in ISTo. 1 apples, was far too strict, and that 

 his own No. I's that year would average nearly 50 per cent 

 wormy. Until we get a different view from this of what 

 is allowable in No. 1 fruit, the west will continue to take 

 charge of our best markets. 



Sixth, practice thinning when trees set heavily. This 

 gets rid of the defective specimens of fruit before the tree 

 has had the drain of bringing them to full maturity, and 

 the result is better fruit for that year, and more likelihood 

 of a crop the following year. Some varieties need thinning 

 far more than others, but any variety of any fruit which 

 tends to overbear will be benefited by it; and it is by no 

 means as expensive an operation as many people think. 



Seventh, and last, handle the fruit with the greatest care, 

 grade it with the greatest accuracy and pack it with the 

 greatest skill and honesty. In picking and sorting, the fruit 

 ought never to be tossed about or let fall. iSTo apple should 

 be let go of until it is in contact with those already in the bas- 

 ket. Pad baskets and tables, to avoid bruising. For pack- 

 ages use the regular bushel box for all the best grades of 

 apples; either 10 by 12 by 20 inches inside measure, or 

 lOi/o by IIV2 by 18 inches. The old, flat bushel box used for 

 vegetables ought to be abandoned. The box ends should be 



