342 THE SURVIVAL OP THE UNLIKE. [XX. 



the species to the region. I do not know why these 

 facts should puzzle us any more than the fact that 

 maize completes its life in Minnesota in half or two- 

 thirds the time that it does in the Gulf States, or that 

 cotton is not adapted to Pennsylvania. It only proves 

 that apple growing in the northwest and prairie coun- 

 ti'ies must be conducted on a different basis than in 

 the east. 



5. Forceful methods of cultivation. — I am inclined 

 to think that high cultivation and consequent heavy 

 fruit -bearing tend somewhat to shorten life, but I do 

 not see that they can be accepted as general or serious 

 causes of lessening longevity. I should be glad, 

 however, if forceful cultivation should shorten life, for 

 we should then be able to obtain the full returns 

 from orchards sooner than we do now. And in this 

 statement, it seems to me, is to be found the means of 

 determining the relations of high cultivation to lon- 

 gevity. High cultivation, if it really forces the plants, 

 would make varieties more precocious. Do the North- 

 ern Spy and the Baldwin bear earlier now than for- 

 merly ? So far as we know, they do not. It should 

 also be borne in mind that failure of trees oftener 

 follows neglect or poor cultivation than high culti- 

 vation, and this brings us to the consideration of our 

 next subject. 



6. Lack of fertility, and neglect. — Under general 

 conditions of farming, every succeeding crop leaves 

 the ground poorer than it was before, and in this 

 fact, it occurs to me, is to be found the most potent 

 cause of comparative failure of trees. And there 

 appears to be ample proof of this statement in the 

 good results obtained all through the east wherever 



