FRUIT flOTSS - February, 1941 



V^. H. Thies 

 Extension Horticulturist 



Spacing of Strawberry Rimners 



In the past few years considerable atter:;tion has been 

 given to the value of spacing runner plants. Reports from sec- 

 tions of the country having longer growing seasons ;, hotter sum- 

 mers and less rainfall than ours, have shov.n substantial in- 

 creases in yield when the rimner plants were spaced. For example, 

 Maryland has reported increases in yield of from 30 to 60^ for 

 7-inch runner spacing as compared \.'ith a matted rov' of the same 

 v;idth. The results of our limited tests of these two systems 

 at Amherst do not show such great advantages from spacing. The 

 5-year average increase in production of the 7-inch spaced vovj 

 over the matted row ranges from to 20$o, depending upon the 

 variety. Hov;ard 17 and Borsett have consistently yielded better 

 when spaced. Fairfax shows a slight gain for spacing while 

 Catskiil in tv;o of the five years has produced more under a 

 matted row than a spaced row system. The highest yield we have 

 ever obtained from Catskiil v/as from the matted row system in 

 1940 v/hen it yielded at the rate of about 14,000 quarts per 

 acre. It is possible that spacing may be of greater value on 

 soils of lov/ fertility tlian on those whicii have an abundance 

 of humus and fertility. ^_^ P^ ^.^^^^j^ 



Germination of Apole Pollen 



Tlie germination of the pollen of 134 varieties of 

 apples has been tested at Cornell University. Among the var- 

 ieties that rated highest (over 60fo germination) were the fol- 

 lov;lng : 



Delicious northwestern Greening Rome 

 hubbardston Oldenburg Tolman 



Northern Spy Opalescent V'/agener 



Red Spy Red Astrachan Vv'olf River 



Varieties rated as poor (less tlian 10;;;' germination) 

 were all so-called triploid varieties, as follows: 



Arkansas (Mammoth IJlack Tv;ig) Fall Pippin Stark 



Arkansas Black Gravenstein Stayman 



Baldwin King Turley 



Blenheim R. I. Greening 



Fallawater Roxbur^'" Russet 



Pollen germination of otlier varieties was intermediate. 

 Mcintosh pollen germinated ■.■ell, although this variety did not 

 make the "over 60^ '^ class. j. k. shaw 



Phosphorus Moves Slowly in the Soil 



It is hnowi that nitrates move freely in the soil for 



