THE FARMERS' REGISTER. 



81 



groat rax ages. Pennyroyal whs ftathrrrd anrl 

 sf'attereil omt the caljh.iiff-liPiKls plenlil'ully, iind 

 the work of cUvlriuMioii clmsciI." The wiiier did 

 noi kiioiv iviii'.ilii'r the. discovery was a new une, 

 but i( tieenis lo have been a very easy and ellec- 

 tual one, and well worth a trial. 



EFFECTS OF THE STOCK ON GRAFTED FRUIT. 



From tlie New Genesee Farmer. 



A late number ofihe Yankee Farnner, coniains 

 some remarks of the edi;or, relative lo ihe influ- 

 ence of ihe slock on frral'led fi'uit, copied from a 

 (brmer volume, in which he lays down the (ollovy-- 

 iiii^ propositions : 



1. "Stocks have an eflect as to hearintr years. 



"2. Stocks aHect the scion in hastening or retard- 

 ins 'he ripening ol" Ihiii. 



3. S'ocks produce defects on grafied fruit. 



4. Slocks affect the color of fruit. 

 6. Stocks atiect the quality of fruit. 



6. Stocks have an influence in increasing or de- 

 creasing the size of fruit." 



This subject is not new to horticulturists. An 

 elaborate article by Dr. Mease of Philadelphia, 

 nfBrming such influence was reviewed by us se- 

 veral years airo, in the 3rd volume of the Genesee 

 Farmer; but we did not think at the time that 

 the evidence was conclusive : and we have seen 

 nothing since to induce us to chatiire that opinion. 

 Siill, we are willing to examine the subject anew 

 with fairness atid candor. 



We should have been gratified if the editor h;ul 

 given in detail, the liicts on which he Ibunds those 

 opinions; but as he has only done so in |)art, we 

 would respectfully suggest ih^t if these proposi- 

 tions are true, it would not be ditRcull to prove 

 them by experunents laithfully recorded, from the 

 commencement to ilie termination, and belbre wit- 

 nesses of unexceptional)le character. Statements 

 of this kind vvoidd have a weight that solitary or 

 imperfect recollections can never produce; and 

 more especially where the observations are has'ily 

 taken, without a thorough examination of all the 

 circunrsiances connected with the subject. 



But we cannot properly omit on this occasion 

 the statement made by Professor Lindley, that 

 " no such influence can be exercised." He adds: 

 " Those who fancy that the quince, for instance, 

 communicates some of its austerity to the pear, 

 can scarcely have considered the question physi- 

 ologically, or they would have seen that the whole 

 of the food communicated from the alburnum of 

 the quince to that of the pear is in nearly the same 

 ptale as wh.en it entered the roots of the former. 

 Whatever elaboration it undergoes, rhust necessa- 

 rily take place in the Ibilaire of ifie pear ; where, 

 far from the influence of the quince, secretions na- 

 tural lo the vaiiety goon with no more interrup- 

 tion than if the quince (brmed no part of the sys- 

 tem of the individual." 



This decision is emphatic ; and so far as we can 

 perceive, the reasoning is as clear and conclusive 

 as can be expected frotn theoretical considerations 

 alone. If there are fiicts, however, that come in 

 conflict, their weight must fie allowed, and the 

 theory should then be revised and amended. 



Bearing in alternate years is a habit chiefly ob- 

 Voi.. IX.-6 



servable among apple trees; for when the pear, 

 the peach, Ihe plum, and the quince fail lo be re- 

 gular bearers in this quarter, the deficiency is to 

 he ascril>ed lo unfavorable seasons, or the depre- 

 dations of insects. The case is otiierwise, how- 

 ever, with some vaiieties of the apple ; and we 

 have supposed the habit was owing to the trees 

 becoming, through exhaustion, unable to produce 

 blossom buds for tlie next season. In this, indeed, 

 we may be mistaken ; but oi ivvo Ihinga we arc 

 confident ; moderate bearers are commonly annual 

 bearers; and tho3'3 thai we find unproduclive, 

 have generally borne profusely in the preceding 

 season. As examples, we would name Veduer'e 

 pi|)pin3, and the sweet bough, or htirvesl apple. 

 The former is an alternate bearer, but the latter 

 bears every year ; and as we have half a dozen 

 trees set on as many different seedlings, among 

 which we have observed no variation in point of 

 regularity, earliness or productiveness — we feel at 

 liberty to infer that these slocks have had no influ- 

 ence on the graft.s. 



But alternate bearers conform to circumstances 

 in commencing their biennial course. We had 

 six trees of a ruseet apple, all of thesame variety, 

 half of which bore abundantly at one time, and 

 ihe other half in the following year. Now if 

 aliernale bearing is caused l)y excess in one sea- 

 son, and we prevent that excess by destroying a 

 portion of the blossoms, we shall certainly prevent 

 ■rdiernnte bearing. How then can a siock piib- 

 Ject to such conli)rmtiy induce a graft to alter ^\a 

 lime of bearing 7 It appears lo us it cunnot l>e. 



There are some things in regard to the ripening 

 of the same variety on different stocks, however, 

 thai we are not prepared to explain. For instance, 

 we have three trees of ihe transparent guigne 

 cherr)?-, one of which ripens a week or ten dny3 

 before the others. The lale trees stand near to- 

 gether— the other at the distance of six'y leer. 

 The subsoil in that part of the fruit garden 

 is very variable — small beds of sand in sopjb 

 places, and clay and stones in others; but we 

 know not whatlhe subsoil is under those trees. Nei- 

 ther, do we know whether the stocks are all suckers 

 ofthemorello*ora part of the Kentish* cherry. We 

 may ascertain this nextseason. In the meantime, 

 we are quite as much disposed to ascribe the difl'er- 

 ence ir* the time of ripening, to the subsoil, as we 

 are to the stocks. 



It is well known, however, that stocks have an 

 influence on the riitening of wood, and tender s.irts 

 become hardier when grafted on hardy storks — not 

 because the latter exerts any specific influence on 

 the former, but because the usual supplies of sap 

 are withheld earlier iti the season, and ihe wood 

 has more time to mature. Tlie same efText i9 

 produced when tender shrubs are planted m dry, 

 sterile, rocky situations. 



In examining appearances out of the usual order 

 of things, great care is necessary to prevent us 

 from drawing wrotig infi^rences. When diflerent 

 trees derived from ihf same parent variety. <l'ffer 

 in their fruit, perhaps the first idea ifiat occurs is a 

 difference between the stocks, and the tna'ter is 

 settled too often, we apprehend, without fiirthcr 

 examination. But let us not deceive ourselves. 



• These two sorts as stocks, are well adapted to test 

 this question. 



