14 New Hampshire Experiment Station [Bulletin 223 



so-called quincunx system in such a manner that it makes no difference 

 which is retno\ed. In other words, judiiinent as to which variety is per- 

 manent and which is filler ma>- be defei'red until after 20 to 25 years 

 of test. Plantings of Delicious set in this manner would undoubtedly 

 in the present sur\-ey be recorded as fillers, althouiih at the end of 20 

 years they might pro\-e to be the i)erinanents. If ;ii)pi'ars to. be good 

 judgment to use this plan in ]ilanting the variety. 



One might e.xpect that the Delicious would be used as a winter var- 

 iety in the sections which are relatively cold and therefore not well 

 adai)ted for planting of ihe Baldwin. However, we iind that Coos 

 County has planted very few. It is most lai'gely found in Rockingham, 

 Sullivan, and Cheshire counties, with Belknap, Merrimack and Grafton 

 showing the lowest average plantings. 



Northern S))y ranks rhii-d in . commercial imi)ortance among winter 

 sorts and si.xth among nil \arieties, there being ai)proximately three- 

 fourths as many trees as of Delicious. Forty-three per cent of the trees 

 are non-bearing, and 44 per cent arc vmder 10 years of age. Apparently 

 during the jteriod from 1905-1910 \cr\' few trees of this x'ariety were set. 

 But with the revival of fi'uit growing in 1915. plantings of Spy increased 

 along with those of other varieties. That the Northern Spy, which is 

 so long and fa\orably known for its high dessert cpiality, does not con- 

 stitute a larger iirojiortion of New Hampshire apples is apparently due 

 to tlu! fact that the growers in the principal commercial sections in the 

 southern part of the state luue been afraid that they could not produce 

 a high cjuality apple of this variety. It is cai)ricious in its requirements 

 as to soil and climate, and under unfavorable conditions the fruit is 

 gnH'ii and of poor flavor. As a consequence, in Hillsborough County 

 we find l(>ss than 1 per cent of trees of this variety. 



Another factor that restricts the planting of the tipy is its slowness 

 in coming into bearing. While the iiroportion of trees under 10 years 

 of age and the proportion of non-bearing would indicate that in this 

 resi)ect it is but slightly later than the Baldwin or Delicious, it is known 

 that the first crops of ai)ples are largely borne terminally on twigs; and 

 while the trees ma.v be classified as bearing, the cro])s are relatively 

 small. It is somewhat surprising in view of this fact to find that ap- 

 Ijroxiinatel.v 9 per cent of the Northern Spy trees an^ cla.ssified as fillers. 

 An exi>lanation of this fact may lie >n the changing opinion in regard 

 to Ihe valu(> of Mcintosh. As has been previously stated, orchards 

 mav b(> so planted that the decision as to which variety may be the 

 fillers and which may be the permanents may be delayed until the 

 trees are 20 to 25 years of age. It does not ai)i)ear likely that any per- 

 son would have deliberately set Northern Spy as a filler. It is quite 

 possible that it may have been interplanted with Mcintosh, and ev(ni 

 at this date the grower has come to th(^ conclusion that the S])y rather 



lli.-in llu> Mclntcsh will b(> nnnox'ed when they begin to crowd. 



The b(>st Northern Spies in New Ihnupshire are rejjuted to b(^ grown 



among the hills of Belknap County in t lie lerritoiy of Lake Winnepe- 



