STATE POMOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 121 



of room for new orchards, and with the same care and attention 

 that the western people give, there is no reason why they would 

 not do as well. Perhaps we cannot come up to them on size 

 of fruit, but we can surely beat them on the flavor, and we ought 

 to be able to supply our own markets and supply our share of 

 the foreign trade. 



President Twitchell: I wish Mr. Hardy might give us a 

 little more in regard to his faith in the sod system with his old 

 trees, it being contrary to the generally accepted idea. 



Mr. Hardy : I will say in regard to the south orchard, I have 

 cut the grass and taken it into the barn. The crop has been 

 very light until this last year. After top dressing with these 

 fertilizers, the bone and potash, using so much last year, the 

 crop of grass was quite a good deal heavier. I did think about 

 leaving it on the ground as a mulch, and then I was afraid of 

 fire running over it and spoiling the trees, and I put it in like 

 any other hay. Now last year my prize apples on which I took 

 the cup at the New England fruit show, came from the young 

 trees in the south orchard. They are not so large as they ought 

 to be for their age from the fact that they have never been cul- 

 tivated. They were bearing anywhere from four to six or seven 

 barrels to the tree, and I was obliged to put twenty or thirty 

 props under some of the trees and then they would break down 

 in spite of me. It is a question in my mind. I have some idea 

 of ploughing a part of that orchard but I am almost afraid to 

 do it from the fact that I am afraid it will result as it did in the 

 old orchard and that I won't get the color. 



President Twitchell : Prof. Gardner of Orono w^as ap- 

 pointed to open the discussion on the subject of insect pests. 

 He has kindly consented to follow Mr. Hardy at this time. 



Professor V. R. Gardner : 

 Mr. President, Ladies and Gentlemen: 



After two days, or two days and a half of such a program as 

 we have had, with the lectures and with all the questions that 

 have been asked and the answers given, there is hardly any- 

 thing left to say for the last man that is scheduled to come on 

 the program, so that I shall probably have to be excused with 

 a very few remarks. 



