270 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER, 



FEB. 23, IS 



AND HORTICULTURAL REGISTER. 



Boston, Wednesday, February 22, 1843. 



FIFTH AGRICULTURAL MEETING AT THE 

 STATE HOUSE. 

 Mr King, President, in tlie chair. TIjo subject for 

 discussion — Fruits and Fruit Trees — was resumed.- 



Tlie chair read the following letter:— we know not 

 whence it came : 

 To the Gentlemen nf the Agricultural Society : 



The application of common brown soap on apple trees 

 or other fruit trees, is of great benefit in preserving them 

 in a healthy state. Take one pound of soap— go in to 

 an orchard of 30 trees, from 5 lo 30 years old ; when 

 you see a crevice or small hole in the bark, crowd in a 

 piece of soap as big as a bean or chesnut ; the -rain and 

 dew will cause this to balhe the tree to the roots; in a 

 few months you will see the healih and vigor of the tree 

 promoted. 'I'here is no composition equal to soap for a 

 wounded tree ; it repels all insects; — it will stand the 

 rain longer than you would suppose. Apply it in April 

 and in August ; it will clean oft' scaly bark, destroy the 

 eggs of insects, moss and lice. I have found the horer 

 worm destroyed by the wash of the soap going in the 

 hole of the borer. The labor and eipense is very small. 

 Nothing will bring to a sickly tree like this, and it is 

 the thing to be used when pruning. 



I am very much in favor of banking up peach trees 

 early in the fall. A wheelbarrow load of compost or 

 loam put round ihem, and a quart of ashes on top next 

 the tree, will prevent the early frost from freezing the 

 sap and cracking the tree. 



Yours, respectfully, J. F. R. 



After the reading of the letter, Mr Putnam, (Ed.) re- 

 marked that the course recommended at the last meet- 

 ing, of taking all the top from old trees, and inserting 

 scions by scores and even hundreds, might promise well 

 for a time; but his observation led him lo expect, that 

 after o few years tlie tree would perish, and this too bo- 

 fore it had borne much fruit. The same amount of la- 

 bor and expense given to young trees, would be more 

 profitable. He thought (he laws of the growth of trees 

 would lead to disappointment if we took away all the 

 top; for the roots of the large tree will send up sap for 

 a large top ; — the leaves of the scions will not be suffi- 

 cient to elaborate this sap ; — it will be in the tree like 

 undigested food in our stomachs. The scions will put 

 forth vigorously and do all ihey can to fit the food fo 

 the large trunk ; but the work is loo much for them, 

 and in a fetv years the bark will start from the trunk, 

 and the whole will perish. 



He made these remarks because he was unvvillin 

 that statements should go out from the meeting which 

 should aulhcjrize the inference that the mode of taking 

 the whole top at once from the trees, was a good one 



Mr Merriam to Mr P. What did you understand by 

 taking off the whole top ? 



Ans. Tlrat the large limbs thai were not fit for graft- 

 ing, were cut otf at the trunk, and that ihe others had 

 scions set in them where Ihey were an inch or little 

 more in diameter. 



Mr M. I was misunderstood. When I insert a sci- 

 on, I cut the surrounding limbs down or head them in lo 

 a level with the scions set, and let the lateral twifs re- 

 main on Ihem. 



[With this qualification, the course is less objectiona- 

 ble than as we understood from ihe original descrip- 

 lion. — Putnam.] 



Mr Badger, of Chelsea, asked whether any one pre- 

 sent has an acquaintance with Dr. Lee's method of graft- 

 ing .' — a method of laying a tree of four or five feel in 

 length, in a trench, and inserting scions in its side, every 

 5 or 6 inches, letting them grow a few years and then 

 taking Ihem up, sawing apart and setting out as sepa- 

 rate irees. (The description as contained in the New 

 England Farmer of Oct. last, was read by the chair.) 



Mr Putnam. I copied that article as a curiosity, but 

 do not see any advantage it possesses in economy of la- 

 bor or time, over the common method. 



Mr Buckminstcr concurred. We can bud or graft in 

 two or three years, from the seed, and in six or seven, 

 get Irres suitable for standards. 



The borer is a great destroyer of our apple trees. We 

 have his history or life :— a brown fly, three-fourths of 

 an inch long, lays 10 eggs on ihe tree near the ground, 

 about July 1 ; — thefe hatch in 8 days. The young 

 worm immediately buries itself under the bark — 

 usually near the root. The second year it goes to the 

 heart of the tree j the third it comes out to the bark and 

 opens a hole, and then remains in its burrow until it 

 changes to the brown fly, when it issues forth and lays 

 eggs- To dig for the worm, since it does not open the 

 hole at the bark until ils work is done, is like locking 

 the stable door after the horse is stolen. 



A little wash in July, will destroy the borer — a wash 

 of potash and water. Many farmers have cut ihe worm 

 out or pulled it with a wire; hut this need not be done ; 

 for the wash will do the work. The same insect trou- 

 bles the quince, locust and mountain ash. 



The canker worm is best destroyed by strewing lime, 

 potash or salt under the trees at the time when the 

 worms are about to quit trees in June. Ley for a wash 

 is better than lime ; and so also thinks Rer. M. Allen, 

 of Pembroke. 



The peach tree has another worm. This worm works 

 do2cn ; and as Mr B. thinks, causes the yellows. Many 

 dig this out ; but you need not do it; — keep them from 

 getting in. Worms, he thinks, caused the trouble in the 

 buttonwoods. Ashes thrown around the peach trees, 

 or lime, or any similar substance, will keep the eggs 

 from hatching. 



Mr French, of Braintree, wished that he might not be 

 reported — (but as he made no motion to have the re- 

 porters excused, and as we have no wish to be excused 

 in the case, he may happen to see a few of his good 

 opinions down in our page.) 



He finds the borer has grown cunning, and will not 

 stay at the trunk, where we look for him, but goes up 

 to the limbs and branches,— therefore it will be difGcull 

 lo rpaoh all the eggs with the potash wash, and this is 

 not an effectual remedy. 



Work as much as you may at renovating and engraft 

 ing an old tree, it is, after all, but an old tree. 



As a preventive for the borer, he has no great faith in 

 any thing but the expensive process of going over the 

 orchard three or four times in the year, with chisel and 

 wires. This is only an imperfect check. 



Trees may flourish any where but in ihe water. On 

 bleak Nuhant, Mr Tudor has produced the finest fruit 

 that has ever been exhibited at the Horticultural Soc 

 ty's rooms, and Dr. Cox made trees grow well in a field 

 where the sands would blow. But to get their success, 

 we must learn their piocesses. 



The fungus or wart on the plum tree, he thinks con 

 tagiitus. 



Mr Pierce, of West Cambridge, a most skillful practi- 

 cal grower of fruits, made many valuable remarks and 

 suggestions. We have not space to do him justice this 

 week, and must therefore defer our report of his re- 



marks. Mr P. said, the idea of engrafting an old ti 

 uncultivated lands, .would not occur to him. 



Mr Merriam. The trees I referred to last week, 

 thrifty trees. 



(If ihe old, wild trees of Mr M. were thrifty tree; 

 if the taking off the whole top, allowed the leav 

 many lateral twigs on the main branches, he fai 

 make himself understood by us at the time, and c 

 us to make objections which otherwise we shoul i 

 have offered. We had no thought that thrifty tri 

 far only trimmed as to give free room to the new 

 serted scions, would perish under such an operati 

 Putnam ) 



Mr Merriam succeeded Mr Pierce, and had the 

 for some time; but we do not remember that 1; 

 vanced any ihing of importance different from wl 

 had previously staled. 



Mr Gardner, of Sekonk, said that he wished to 

 that there were some spots in the Commonw 

 where apple trees will do well in sward or grass 

 He had planted out, three or four years ago, an ore 

 part of the land has been tilled; but more of it 

 grass ; where tlie grass is, he keeps the soil s 

 around the trunk. These trees have done quite as 

 as those where all the land is tilled. He has al 

 older full grown orchard, in grassland: here } 

 dresses occasionally, but does not till around the t 

 This is a good orchard — a- very good one; — the 

 good. There are spots where we may have gooc 

 without constant tillage. 



Subject for next evening — Mineral and Concen 

 Manures — as plaster, lime, salt, poudrette, bone, &< 



Cows Shedding or Leaking their Milk. — A gentl 

 who has a fine cow for milk, but less so than she \ 

 be, did not the milk drop from her before milking 

 wishes to know whether there is any way to pr 

 this loss, other than by very frequent milkings. 

 any thing be administered or applied that will alt 

 p{>wer of the muscles around the milk orifices.^ 

 will thank any one of our correspondents to answ 

 inquiry and give information upon the subject. 



inrln answer to the question put to us in the Jl 

 chusetts Spy, of Feb. 8, we say — yes. And we sa; 

 ther, that if the editor of the Spy has sent us the 

 we asked for in a private note, ue have never ret 

 it. Possibly it came to our office, which we do no 

 every day, and our miscellaneous papers are not ai 

 kept for our inspection. Should the paper be sent 

 we ask that it may be enclosed in a separate wri 

 and directed to Allen Putnam. 



To Correspo7idents. — We are obliged to defer 

 week, the communications relating to Yankee 1 

 and Drivers — to Turnips and Oil as fatteners — 1' 

 Plum Trees that are the least liable to be attack 

 worms. 



Hon. H. L Ellsworth has our thanks for his K 

 to Congress relating lo agriculture and its statistics 

 shall notice it soon. 



Smart Repartee. — A single horse was taking a 

 and five women up a hill in Brighton — and, pass 

 school-girl, the man said lo her, " Wont you ride: 



Girl. No — it 's too hard a case for the horse. 



Man. You 're a smart one — does your mother 1 

 you 're out ?" 



Girl. Yes, she does — and she gave me a cent Ic 

 a monkey with : — arc you for sale? 



