118 MIDDLESEX SOCIETY. 



Ill 1847, I set out twenty six apple trees and seeded the 

 ground to oats and grass as before, but the oats lodged and kill- 

 ed the grass so much that I ploughed the next spring and have 

 kept it ploughed until the present season. In 1848, 1 set forty- 

 seven trees on a very rough piece of ground that had been 

 planted one year and sowed it with oats. In September I 

 ploughed in the stubble, spread thirty loads of manure to the 

 acre, cross-ploughed and sowed grass seed, and have hoed round 

 them and manured in the same way as above described. In 

 1850, 1 set thirty-four apple trees in grass ground, dug the holes 

 as deep as I wanted to set the trees, spaded up the bottom of 

 the holes as deep as the length of the spade, set the trees and 

 covered the space with old hay. Last spring I dug about a 

 foot farther round the trees, added more hay, after spreading a 

 coat of manure from the horse stable. The first of August I 

 removed the hay and hoed round the trees, after mixing the 

 manure with the earth. 



The soil in which my trees are set is a deep rich loam, very 

 rocky and a portion of it quite moist. Therefore I prefer horse 

 manure to any other, as it is of a warm nature. In regard to 

 insects, I examine my trees before they leaf out, and take off 

 the eggs of the caterpillars. I have made a practice of exam- 

 ining them twice a year for borers, in June and September, by 

 hoeing the earth from the tree down to the roots and scraping 

 the bark with a knife. In this way the borer is easily discov- 

 ered. I have found but three trees this season, that had any in 

 them. I wash my trees once a year with awash made of lime, 

 potash, green cow manure and a little salt. 



Westford, Aug. 28, 1851. 



Enos Wiley^s Statement. 

 My trees are on land that was a poor pasture when I bought 

 it. The soil is light, gravelly, sandy and loamy. I broke up 

 the land about a month previous to setting the trees, which 

 was in the fall of 1845 and 1846. At setting the trees, I trim- 

 med off all the bruised roots and the ends of broken ones, and 

 the spritig following took off part of the tops. Care was taken 

 not to set the trees too deep and to have the soil solid under 



