-2- 



a serious reduction in yield. The injury ■w'as attributed to a 

 temperature of 7^ F. on November 19. 



Several vorkers in Canada, Ohio, Maryland, and North 

 Carolina have noted that the older runner slants (those rooted 

 in mid-summer) produce more fruit than later runner plants, 

 (those rooted in September and October) . Recent experiments 

 in North Carolina show that vhen grown in a spaced rov the in- 

 dividual Dlants produce far more fruit per plant and that 

 yields per acre are also greater. Such spaced plants were 

 larger and had mere leaves in the fall v^hen fruit buds were 

 forming. Plants with tvo leaves in the fall formed small 

 fruit buds and bore fev berries. The greater the number of 

 leaves in the fall the greater the amount of fruit the follov— 

 ing spring. The grover should therefore aim to produce the 

 largest individual plants in the fall by early rooting of 

 runners, removing late runners, and by nrooer ST58Cing of plants. 



Recent v ork in the U.S.C.A. shov/s that the Blakemore, 

 Missionary, and Klondike are adaoted to southern regions because 

 they can trov vigorously during the short days of early spring 

 vrhile the Hov.ard 17 sn6 other northern vprieties require the long 

 days of midsummer to succeed. Varieties like Dor sett form so many 

 runner olants unless attended .to, that the plants are too crowded 

 to set much fruit. Control of runner plant production is essen- 

 tial on Cor sett, Fairfax, and Cat skill. 



Can -AoDle Trees be :-iade to Bear Annually? 



If it "-ere possible to thin blossoms economically there 

 v'ould be little question about annual crop of aoples even on 

 biennial bearing varieties. But thinning of blossoms is not 

 feasible commercially. Early thinning of fruits, hovever, may 

 be vortli the cost even though ratl.er expensive. There is evidence 

 to Ehov that thinning vithin t^o or three v-eeks of petal fall will 

 help to overcome the biennial tendency.- 



In discussing biennial bearing at a recent F. and H. V"eek 

 meeting, G. F. Potter of Nev.- Hampshire referred to a grover in 

 Vashington v;ho, after observing a light set of Anjou pears in 

 spite of a heavy bloom decided to experiment Tvith his apple trees. 

 He inflicted the Anjou habit of set on his biennial bearing Nev- 

 tovn and Ortley aDoles by a system of hana thinning of the blossoms, 

 The result vas a croo of apples the next season. In a test near 

 Hancock, Maryland, vhere side differences in vigor of grovth in 

 mature Xork trees had been induced by means of oruning and ferti- 

 lizing, no differences in regularity of bearing were observed until 

 a frost thinned out the bloom and reduced the set. Then annual 

 bearing occurred on all plots. 



