CHAPTER V 



FRUIT STOCKS 



APPLES Collecting Seeds Sowing Seeds Dwarf Apples APRICOTS 

 CHERRIES PEACHES PEARS PLUMS PEDIGREED STOCK 

 Bud Variations. 



APPLES 



THE common stock for the Apple is that grown from the seed 

 of the French Grab Apple, which is found wild in Europe. 

 The Apples are used for cider making, the seeds being kept and 

 sown. The seedlings are quite uniform in their growth and are sup- 

 plied to the American nurserymen so cheaply that much stock is 

 imported rather than grown from seed. 



There is, however, an extensive acreage of Apple stock growing 

 in Kansas and other parts of the Central West. Formerly quan- 

 tities of seeds were collected in Vermont, but as this seed was in 

 many cases obtained from grafted varieties, rather than from 

 seedlings, it proved inferior and is gradually losing favor. 



Collecting Seeds. Should the orchardist or nurseryman wish to 

 save his own seed, he may collect the pomace at the cider mill and 

 place it in a barrel of water to soak. The pulp will gradually come 

 to the top and can be skimmed off; the seeds will settle to the bot- 

 tom. Screening through two sieves cleans the seeds sufficiently. 

 The first screen should be just coarse enough to let the seeds pass 

 through and the second sieve should be finer, so that the fine pulp 

 may be removed, leaving the seeds. The seeds are spread out in 

 thin layers to dry, after which they are stored in a cool, moist place 

 until Autumn, when they are sown. 



Sowing Seeds. Apple seeds are usually sown during November in 

 special seed beds prepared with a light sandy loam. Four feet is 

 a convenient working width for such beds. Lath screens should 

 be provided. In the Spring, when germination has taken place, 

 the seeds are taken from the beds and sown in the nursery row. 



Were the seeds sown directly in the nursery there might possibly 

 be a greater chance of vacant spots due to poor germination, and 

 at the same time the weeds would come up earlier than the Apple 



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