68 BOARD OF AGKICULTUKE. [Pub. Doc. 



noted, in our New York market, that after the holidays 

 the high-priced pears are those that come from the vicin- 

 ity of Boston and Worcester. The Boston box pears are 

 brought out after the holidays, and always command a high 

 price. The soil in portions of Connecticut has no superior 

 for the growing of peaches. 



Now, in all of the New England States, by simply study- 

 ing this question of adaptability of soil to the product, there 

 may be grown excellent fruits of all kinds, with the excep- 

 tion of peaches and cherries in the more northern portions. 



While apples are grown among the rocks and unculti- 

 vated fields on many of the hill farms of New England, they 

 are by no means the best apples. The trees grown in those 

 rough places cannot receive the care and cultivation re- 

 quired, and full}' 75 per cent of the fruit is so injured by 

 the codling moth and other insects that its value frequently 

 is but little above the cost of barrels, freight and other ship- 

 ping expenses. 



There is much discussion of the svstem of crowing trees 

 with mulch, rather than by cultivation. While the soil may 

 be improved by a mulch, there will be more rapid improve- 

 ment made through cultivation and the plowing in of green 

 manure crops. For fifteen years we have been following 

 the plan of cultivating the soil among trees up to July 1, 

 and then sowing crimson and red clover, which are allowed 

 to grow the balance of the season, to be plowed in the fol- 

 lowing spring. 



One of the great disadvantages of the mulch system is 

 the large amount of water Avhich grass will abstract from 

 the soil, in addition to that which is required by the trees. 

 A well-grown apple tree, with an abundance of unimpaired 

 foliage, will take up from the soil and transpire through its 

 foliage every twenty-four hours during the warm days of 

 June and July over 4 tons of water ; an acre of grass during 

 the same time will take up daily and pass out of the soil 

 over 100 tons of water ; and in times of drought trees and 

 fruit suffer alike from this great absoi-ption of Avater by 

 the grass that is growing for the purpose of a mulch. AVe 

 can hardly realize this fact, but when the hot days of June 



