10 



ROEDING'S FRUIT GROWERS' GUIDE 



are raised from seed. Much interest has been mani- 

 fested in the Wooly Aphis resistant roots. After twenty 

 years of careful experimental work, it has been fully 

 demonstrated that the Northern Spy root is absolutely 

 resistent to the attacks of this insect. Trees growing in 

 badly infested districts are entirely free from it, thus 

 proving conclusively the value of the Northern Spy 

 root. It is only reasonable to suppose that these trees 

 should command a higher figure than those budded on 

 the seedlings, when the additional expense incurred in 

 handling is taken into consideration. In the first place 

 it is necessary to have mother trees growing in the 

 nursery to supply a crop of roots. They are permitted 

 to grow for several years, when they are dug up and all 

 the roots fit for grafting are cut off and the trees are 

 again planted for the purpose of supplying another crop 

 of roots. These roots are in turn grafted with Northern 

 Spy scions and the grafts are planted in beds. The fol- 

 lowing year they are transplanted to nursery rows and 

 the Northern Spy stock is budded. The several opera- 

 tions, therefore, extend over a period of three years 

 before the trees are marketable. It is practicable to 

 produce dwarf apple trees by budding them on dwarf 

 apple stocks, commonly known as Paradise or Doucin 

 stocks. These are produced by layering. The demand 

 for apples on this stock is very limited. Trees grown 

 on this root may be planted as close as six feet apart. 

 They come into bearing within three years after plant- 

 ing. For gardens or for suburban homes they will prove 

 to be a valuable acquisition. 



THINNING 



Fruit growers fully realize that it is just as important 

 to thin their apples as any other class of fruit. Where 

 apples are allowed to grow in bunches many of them 

 are undersized, and in addition to this, the difficulty of 

 thoroughly spraying the fruits touching each other 

 gives the codlin moth a good chance to get in its work, 

 thus causing a good part of the crop to be wormy. If 

 there was no other incentive, this alone should be a 

 sufficient inducement to thin. The life of the tree is 

 conserved by relieving it of its heavy burden of fruit. 



GATHERING AND STORING 



This is a problem which confronts every grower of 

 fruit. The safe rule is to gather summer and early fall 

 apples when they have attained full color and before 

 they become soft. Care should be exercised not to 

 break out the stem. Winter apples should be mature 

 but not ripe. When the seeds show that they are turn- 

 ing slightly brown, it is a safe indication that the fruit 

 is ready to pick. The external appearance of the fruit 

 is usually a good guide as to the time of gathering. All 

 late winter varieties should be gathered when too hard 

 to yield to the pressure of the thumb and always before 

 heavy autumn frosts. An old plan, and one which is 

 followed even to this day by many orchardists, is to 

 pile winter apples under the trees covering them with 

 leaves, allowing the rains to fall on them. For family 

 use there is no serious objection to this method, for in 



nearly all cases the apples when taken from their cover- 

 ing are smooth and plump. The commercial practice- 

 is to pick and sort the apples, carefully removing all 

 diseased and inferior fruits, place them loose in boxes 

 and then transfer to a fruit house. This should be con- 

 structed so that a fairly uniform temperature is main- 

 tained. The ventilation should be good and the boxes 

 should be stacked so that there is a circulation of air. 

 In the mountains, where stone is to be had readily, 

 there is no better material than this for an apple house, 

 as it resists any sudden changes in temperature. 



It is quite true that the apple will withstand rough 

 handling far better than many other fruits, but even 

 admitting this fact, it is nevertheless just as much to 

 the interest of the grower to give every attention to all 

 the details necessary to the careful handling of apples 

 as with any other class of fruit. 



COMMERCIAL VARIETIES 



Alexander, Arkansas Black, Black Ben, Delicious, 

 Early Harvest, Esopus Spitzenburg, Gravenstein, Jona- 

 than, Red Astrachan, Rome Beauty, Smith's Cider, 

 Stayman's Winesap, White Astrachan. White Winter 

 Pearmain, Winesap, Yellow Bellflower, Yellow New- 

 town Pippin. 



Period of ripening of varieties in an average apple 

 section. Listed in the order in which they ripen. 



June 



Red June, Red Astrachan, White Astrachan, Duchess 

 of Oldenburg. 



July 



Early Harvest, Alexander, Gravenstein. 



August 

 Maiden's Blush, Red Beitigheimer. 



September 

 Fameuse, King of Tompkins County, Bismarck. 



October 



Jonathan, Rhode Island Greening, Rambo, Red 

 Bellflower or Marshall Red, Yellow Bellflower, Winter 

 Banana, King David. 



- '*\'*" --V*. .'V* 



November 



Ben Davis, Gano of Black Ben, Arkansas Beauty, 

 Arkansas Black, Baldwin, Delicious, Esopus Spitzen- 

 burg, Grimes Golden Pippin, Lawyer, Mammoth Black 

 Twig, Missouri Pippin, Northern Spy, Rome Beauty, 

 Smith's Cider, Stayman's Winesap, White Winter 

 Pearmain, Winesap, Yellow Newtown Pippin. 



CRAB APPLES 



August 

 Red Siberian, Hyslop, Yellow Siberian. 



September 

 Whitney No. 20, Transcendent. 



