72 STATE POMOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 



While "humbug" is so naturally one of the subjects con- 

 nected with this discussion, I deem it a duty to the cause of 

 pomology to bring to your notice what I consider a more 

 dangerous humbug even than anything chargeable to the 

 Russian apple business. Within the last ten years, since the 

 hardy kinds of crab apple trees have become well known, the 

 impression has prevailed extensively that this kind of stock 

 was the only reliable and safe thing in the apple line to plant, 

 or that stocks and roots from the wild crab seed were more 

 valuable upon which to propagate the finer varieties of apples, 

 than stocks grown from seeds of common kinds of apples. 

 This opinion, whether originating in the pretensions of inter- 

 ested tree-growers or not, I am unable to say, has neverthe- 

 less been sedulously fostered and encouraged by parties 

 having or pretending to have large nurseries composed of 

 trees grown on crab-roots ; and by this means, and with the 

 distinct understanding and agreement to furnish trees thus 

 propagated, and which should be warranted to be more 

 hardy, long-lived, productive, and as a matter of course, more 

 profitaljle than any others, large sales of these trees have 

 been made in this and other States, and in the adjoining 

 Provinces, at prices much above the prevailing prices of the 

 best standard apple trees of the most popular market varie- 

 ties. I had an opportunity to converse with a man during 

 the past autumn who is quite largely interested in growing 

 apple trees for sale in our State, and is at the present time 

 grafting large numbers of roots for planting next spring in 

 this State, who claims that every tree he raises is grafted on 

 a crab stock or root ; that his trees are sure to be hardy, 

 long-lived and productive ; that l)y reason of using this kind 

 of stocks, the trees are much more valuable for the orchardist 

 than any trees whose roots are the offspring of any of our 

 common apple seeds. He furthermore distinctly asserted, 

 that all New York apple trees were grown on stock originat- 

 ing from common seeds taken from the pomace of the cider- 

 mill, but that his trees were grown from wild crab apple 

 seeds which cost him $300 per bushel ! 



