1891.] PUBLIC DOCUMENT — No. 4. 161 



it. He has told you that he keeps his cultivators going 

 from early in the spring until late in the fall. 



Mr. Rice of Worcester. There is quite a controversy in 

 regard to clean culture and having crops in an orchard. I 

 would like to have Mr. Hale's idea in regard to clean culture 

 for orchards. 



Mr. Hale. Keep the horse cultivator in there. That is 

 the only crop I would let in. 



Professor Roberts. When the orchard gets large, put 

 in a flock of sheep and manure it in that way. If you have 

 an orchard that would pasture a hundred sheep, put in two 

 hundred and fifty, and then give them enough grain to 

 supply the deficiency of grass. Every apple that falls will 

 be eaten, and the ground will be richly manured. 



Mr. Rice. Should you object to keeping an orchard 

 entirely uncultured all the time, and have nothing grow on 

 the ground except the trees? 



Professor Roberts. No, I would not, after your trees 

 get large. I think you can accomplish the result quite 

 as easily by feeding sheep in your orchard, and make a 

 good round sum from the sheep, and also make quite as 

 much from the apples as you would if you cultivated it. 

 Swine in an orchard are not nearly as good as sheep. 



Mr. Gold. Mr. Hale's remarks in regard to culture 

 referred to peach trees. 



Mr. Bowker. I do not want to have this discussion 

 digress into a talk about commercial fertilizers, but I do 

 want to say a word with reference to this matter ; for my 

 friend Mr. Hale raises fruit, and, as Professor Roberts will 

 tell you, fruit is made up largely of sugar and water, very 

 little nitrogen enters into it. But, if the professor were 

 raising a crop of cabbages, would he depend entirely upon 

 the air for the nitrogen, or on the microbe in the soil? Or, 

 if he were raising a crop of tobacco, one of the largest 

 feeders that we have, or a crop of potatoes, would he depend 

 upon that little fellow in the soil to develop the nitrogen 

 that he wanted, especially when the potato grows, as we 

 know, in thirty or sixty days? You see, we must consider 

 just what we are growing. One man grows wheat out in 

 New York State, where clover is not worth much to feed, 



