42 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. [Pub. Doc. 



the peaches, which folh:)wed ; and that we got the price down 

 to 4 cents per tree on the dwarf a])ple trees, which were the 

 last set, — I think yon will agree that it was not an ex- 

 orbitant price. This included plowing and fitting the land, 

 staking it oflF, digging the holes, trinnning the tree and setting 

 it out; and the difference in cost was largely due to the fact 

 that the gang of men sotting the trees' became more familiar, 

 each with his particnlar part of the program, and consequently 

 conld do it more expeditionsly. 



The field operations in setting were carried on as follows: 

 a gang of eight men an<l a foreman were used ; the foreman 

 and one man went to the place where the trees were heeled in 

 for a snpply of trees, which were prepared for setting by 

 pruning back the main roots considerably and packing theni 

 into two oil barrels, partly fnll of water, which were fastened 

 on a stone boat dra^^ai l»y one horse; while this was going on, 

 the rest of the gang were setting stakes and digging holes. 

 When the trees arrived on the scene the whole gang went to 

 setting, the foreman distribnting the trees and the eight men 

 dividing into pairs, one of whom set the tree while the 

 other shovelled in the earth. About 150 trees were carried at 

 a load, and when these had been set ont the gang divided as 

 before. In this way the operations went like clockwork, 

 and the trees arrived at the holes with their roots thoronghly 

 soaked and in the best possible condition to take hold and 

 grow. And that the method was satisfactory from the stand- 

 point of the trees is pretty conclusively shown from the rec- 

 ords of the number that grew: ont of 530 dwarf apples set, 

 we lost 14; of 250 Hubbardstons, 6 failed to grow; of 500 

 Wealthy, 3 died ; and of 650 Mcintosh, only 3 died. This 

 is a remarkably good record in percentage of living trees, 

 even for a good season, but in a season like that of 1908, 

 when crops of all kinds snffered severely, I think it demon- 

 strates conclusively that onr methods of planting were sound, 

 not only theoretically but practically. 



After the trees were set, the next matter was the question 

 of height of heading; and on this, as on several other mat- 

 ters, I presume it will be generally considered that we have 

 pronounced ideas. !N"early all of our trees were headed at 



