'C(zly h^vi^^'iM /ui^ 



WATER IN THE SOIL 



In early spring or following a period of heavy rainfall, the space 

 between the particles in the soil may be nearly or quite filled with water. 

 Part of this water drains away by gravity and is good riddance, for fruit 

 trees will not grow in a v/ater-logged soil. Air in the soil is necessary 

 if tree roots are to grow and function properly, and air and water cannot 

 occupy the same space. After drainage has removed what water it can, much 

 still remains. The trees drav/ upon this water until it is so far exhausted 

 that the leaves wilt, and if not watered, the trees soon die. Considerable 

 study has been made to learn if this available v;ater is all of equal value 

 to the trees, and whether the trees suffer before the v/ater falls to the 

 wilting point. 



Experimenters at the V^ashington State Experiment Station studied this 

 problem by measuring the carbon dioxide intake of the leaves under various 

 amounts of available v/ater in the soil. This is a good measure of the grov/th 

 of tree and fruit. They found that the trees v/orked efficiently until the 

 water dropped to within 3^ of the wiltin^, point. This 3U(^^fjsts that a drought 

 period v/ill not harm the trees if it is not too severe and prolonged, Vdien 

 the leaves begin to wilt, and do not entirely recover over night, the tree is 

 in a bad v/ay. If they V/ilt during a hot dry afternoon, it means that water 

 is getting scarce and it is time to pray for rain or do something else about 

 it. (Proc. Amer. Soc. for Hort. Sci. 42 j page 133.) 



— J. K. Shaw 



INTAKE OF NITROGEN DURIH G Vf lNTER 



Experiments conducted by Batjer, Ilagness, and Regeimbal of the U.S.D.A. 

 show that young apple trees may take nitrate and ammonium nitrogen into the 

 roots under winter conditions, but that the nitrogen does not move upward in 

 the tree during the dormant season. The roots were subjected to a temperature 

 of 38-40° and the tops to 45-60". At 45-6C°, the roots absorbed no more nitro- 

 gen than at the lower temperature. The fact that apple roots take in nitrogen 

 at relatively low temperatures suggests one reason v;hy fall applications of a 

 nitrogenous fertilizer meet with favor in the more southern . apple areas. In 

 New England, there is evidence that fall applications may cause v^inter injury 

 to the trees. (Proc. Amer. Soc. for Hort, Sci., Vol. 42", p. 69. 1943), 



--J. K. Shaw 



ANOTHER KIND OF DY/ARF APPLE TREE . 



Dwarf apple trees are produced by budding the desired varieties on 

 dwarfing stocks v;hich are small, slow growing kinds of the com^'aon apple. 

 Different stocks produce trees ranging from vsry dvmrf (6-8 feet tall) to 

 nearly full-sized trees. By budding or grafting a very dv/arfing stock oiato 



