No. 4.] FRUIT GROWING. 39 



cannot bold his own with some of the larger developments con- 

 templated. I do not share this view. The one who comes 

 into intimate contact with the work, handles the spray rods 

 and picks the fruit can do it better himself than can another 

 delegated by him. 



Possibly a word of caution may not be amiss to those who, 

 without any experience, would plunge headlong into fruit 

 growing as a vocation. It is not a get-rich-quick proposition ; 

 time and patience are required ; methods which the more 

 experienced consider a life study cannot be learned in a day. 

 Again, there are many who fear overproduction when the 

 orchards now being planted come into bearing. They do not 

 take into account the fact that only a small proportion of 

 trees planted ever come into profitable bearing; that insect 

 enemies and fungous diseases may raise havoc heretofore 

 unheard of; that our population is rapidly increasing, and 

 that there are many people on the face of the globe who do 

 not now have a chance to purchase an apple for a reasonable 

 price^ Undoubtedly there will come a period of lower prices, 

 and this will render co-operation a necessity ; co-operation will 

 bring better distribution of the product, all of which is as it 

 should be. 



I am not one of those who greatly fear this overproduction 

 of fruit. I have heard the same fear expressed ever since I 

 can remember, and it has not come yet. Granting this possi- 

 bility exists, what about the orchards three thousand miles 

 away, on the Pacific coast ? Are not they the ones to suffer, 

 not ISTew England ? 



Mr. H. J. Wilder. What cover crops would you recom- 

 mend for northern Massachusetts, at an altitude of from 1,000 

 to 1,500 feet? 



]\Ir. Drew. Personally I prefer rye and hairy vetch. Rye 

 will grow almost anywhere except where the soil is too wet, 

 and with a leguminous crop forms an ideal combination. I 

 would sow it generally in August, though there might be some 

 seasons when it could be sown earlier or later, owing to 

 drought or unusual rainfall. In the spring I should plow 

 onlv one wav, and let some of the vetch mature. On a soil 



