20 



THE POMOLOGIST. 



Feb. 



Address of Pbesident Mathews, at tlie 

 Opening of the FouHli Annual Meeting, 

 January 11, 1870. 



Gentlemen of the Iowa Slate Horticultural 

 Society: — Permit me to express my happiness 

 in again meeting you at tliis our fourth Annual 

 Oonventioa. It is a source of great gratifi- 

 cation to meet horlicuUural friends from 

 different portions of the State on an occasion 

 like this, where we may renew social rela- 

 tions and friendly intercourse, and recipro- 

 cally communicate the labors, experience and 

 re-ults ; and successes or mishaps which may 

 have attended our efforts during the past 

 year. To those who lake a 6ona ,^rf« interest 

 in horticultural progress, an opportunity like 

 this, is "a fca!<t of fat things" such as none 

 but the devotees of PomonaOiin truly appreciate. 

 While we should be devoutly thankful to 

 the Great Gwer, for the general prosperity, 

 health and happiness which have been so 

 abundantly manifested throughout our belov- 

 ed State since the last meetingof this society, 

 the lessons of the season should not go un- 

 heeded, or pass away as an ephemeral illusion. 

 There has never perhaps been a year in 

 the history of Iowa, more pregnant with 

 useful instructions to the pomologist, than 

 the one just past. As far as I have been 

 enabled to examine orchards and vineyards, 

 many varieties of the fruits therein, were 

 seriously affected by continued wet weather. 

 Mildew, scab and rot, were the results. 

 In the county where I reside, the Red June 

 apple, a pretty general favorite, was bo scabby 

 as to render it almost wholly worthless. 

 White Winter Pearmain, (root grafted). Fall 

 Wine, Bevans Favorite, Rome Beauty, Bowles 

 Jannet, and a few others were a little better; 

 while Williams Favorite, Red Astracan, Cole's 

 Quince, Jonathan, Roman Stem, Wine Sap, 

 Monmouth Pippin, Seek-no-Further, etc., 

 were never finer. 



By these observations and results, we have 

 a tolerably clear indication of the various 

 effects of wet weather, upon different varieties 

 of the apple. The inj irious consequences to 

 the grape crop, w. re still more marked and 

 fatal. Out of some seventy kinds which 

 fruited with me, not more than nine or ten 

 varieties, were entirely exempt from either 

 mildew, scab, or rot; so that they were either 

 a partial or total failure. 



To speak of the precise way in which each 

 kind was affected, and the extent of the 

 injury, will not be expected in an address 

 like this, which I intend shall be as brief as 

 the nature of the case will allow. In the 

 course of such discussions as we may have 

 on the dift'ereut fruits, I shall be happy to 

 answer any special interrogatories on this 

 subject, if my Iriends shall think it worthy 

 of any further attention. 



While the had behaviour of any variety of 

 fruit in an unsual season like the one of 1809, 

 may constitute no sufficieiit grounds for its 

 future rejection, many who cultivate fruits 

 may be anxious to know, and should be in- 

 formed if they require it, what kinds, if any, 

 can be relied upon for a crop every year, or 

 if biennial bearers, every alternate season, 

 without regard to climatic influences, isother- 

 mal lines, or adverse conditions of weather. 



Ab the ureat o^Ject of this organization is, 

 B8 far .as possible, to iliffuse ezperimenlnl 

 knowledge upon fruit culture and its kindred 

 pursui's, amongst the people of Iowa, we may 

 as well enquire a little, what we have done 

 in the paS', jjracliealhj . and what we are likely 

 to accotnplish in the future? To act under- 

 siandiiii^ly, ami with a well founded antici- 

 pation ot good results, a few pripjnr,v and 

 fundamental matters must lie duly coneidond 

 I believe it is a cineeded fact amona; our 

 fruit nien generally, that Irom the peculiarity 

 of our soil, cliinaie and seasons, we must of 

 necessiiy adopt modes of OuKure, as well as 

 lists of fruits, almost peculiarly our own 



Many varieties which succeed well, and are 

 highly prized in other States, and perhaps in 

 latitudes comparing with ours, are worthless 

 here. Modes of cultivation recommended by 

 our authors, and practiced and approved 

 elsewhere, may be fatal with us, and are 

 generally to be greatly modified, and even 

 sometimes totally rejected. Nor can there be 

 an entire uniformity in these respects, in 

 different localities in Iowa. 



I apprehend, however, that these discrep 

 ancles, or different conclusions of our Iowa 

 pomologiats, arise to a considerable extent, if 

 not mainly, from causes which I fear we have 

 not yet carefully and thoroughly investigated, 

 and to which I shall briefly call youi atten- 

 tion. 



As yet in the West, we have given but 

 little consideration to raising fruit from seed; 

 perhaps not enough, but as our country is 

 new, and there is a great demand for good 

 fruits, many of which succeed well with ua 

 under proper circtimstances, we depend upon 

 budding or grafting, either in top or root. 

 Here, then, is the great starting point, and if, 

 when the budding or grafting is in the top 

 we fail to have a hardy and healthy slock, 

 we shall have made a mistake which we can 

 never remedy, and which besides resulting in 

 disappointment and disaster in the particular 

 case, will eventually lead to diverse opinions, 

 and interminable confusion. 



We as a Society, have already recommend- 

 ed that certain varieties of the apple, to suc- 

 ceed well in Iowa, should be top budded, or 

 lop grafted. So far so good. We have in 

 this thrown out to the public an idea, but one 

 which is exceedingly indefinite, and without 

 any instructions as to the principle, mode or 

 manner, greatly calculated to mislead. What 

 stocks shall we use? This question naturally 

 suggests itself to the mind, and with all cul- 

 turists, or at least with fruit men generally, 

 the answer would be, "seedling stocks." 

 But here, if we take them in the aggregate, 

 without any limitation or explanation, is the 

 breaker upon which our theory is dashed to 

 pieces. One orchardist tells us that he "has 

 tried top grafting, and it is a failure." An- 

 other has tried it with the same variety and 

 pronounces it "a decided success." Both 

 are men of equal expei ience, and both equally 

 entitled to credit; and in short, both are 

 correct, and why ? Because the one happened 

 lo have a seedling stock which was too tender 

 for our climate, and (he stock being bad, the 

 tree necessarily failed. The other being 

 more fortunate, had grafted upon a hardy 

 and healthy stock and was of course entirely 

 successful; and this brings me to a fact 

 which cannot be too strongly urged upon the 

 attention of every fruit culturist, that seed- 

 ling sti cks are just as likely, find perhaps in 

 a much greater proportion, to be unhealthy 

 nd der in a soil and climate like ours, as 

 the known varieties. A seedling may p^iss 

 apparently unharmed through two, three, or 

 fi.ur winters, which, however, are undermin- 

 ing, and by degrees destroying its vitality, 

 till ot hist it yields to the destructive influ- 

 ences operating upon it, and dies out; and of 

 course if grafted, the lop dies also. This 

 theory I liave demonstrated in my own 

 grounds. I have quite a number of seedlings 

 standing in the rows where planted out, now 

 six, seven and eight years old, that is, the 

 survivors; and which I top huddled three and 

 four years asio. While all have had the same 

 chance, and the same treatment in every re- 

 spect, some are as healthy as any trees I ever 

 saw, making as tine heads as I could wish, 

 and others top budded with the same varie- 

 ties are an utter failure, by reason of disease 

 develoyed in the stocks since they were 

 budded. 



I believe that to take the best lot of apple 

 seedlings to be found, at say one year old, 

 two-thirds of them at least would die out 



before being old enough to top bud, or fail 

 afterwards. 



Now admitting all I have said, I may very 

 properly be asked how this difficulty is going 

 to be remedied ? The mere statement of the 

 fact, it may be said, does not obviate the 

 dilemma. That is true, and I shall now un- 

 dertake to remove the difficulties out of the 

 way, 60 that whosoever will, may have an 

 orchard of healthy, hardy, and handsome 

 trees. 



To accomplish this, there is in my judg- 

 ment but one practicable way, and that is, to 

 first root graft with a variety known, not 

 only to be perfectly hardy, but a straight and 

 fine grower like Ben Davis Bevans, Favorite^ 

 or some of the finestj growers among the 

 crabs now being introduced so extensively. 

 When these are two years old from the root 

 lop bud or gralt the main stem about 

 four feet above the ground ; and when the 

 buds or grafts thus put in, have had one or 

 two years growth, the trees will be ready, to 

 transplant into the orchard, and being as 

 they should be, planted six inches deeper 

 than in the nursery rows, will leave the main 

 stem of each, from the ground to where the 

 top branches out, three feet and six inches. 

 By this mode of culture, you gain at least 

 two valuable points. 



First Having top worked entirely with 

 kinds not only known to be hardy, but pro- 

 lific, every tree in your orchard can be 

 depended upon as a lucrative investment. 



Second. You have an orchard the sym- 

 metrical and handsome appearances of which, 

 would in the estimation of men of taste, 

 add from fifty to one hundred per cent to its 

 value. 



In short, by this method, you could have in 

 all respects a model orchard. In top working 

 in the manner I have described, you are 

 always on tUe safe side, for many kinds will 

 only answer with us, worked in this way, 

 whereas there is not a variety so far as I 

 know, which succeeds by root grafting, that 

 will not do as well when top worked. 



The only objection 1 can conceive of which 

 might be urged against this mode of propaga- 

 ting trees, is, that as there will have to be 

 more work bestowed upon them, they will 

 cost more th>in those raised in the ordinary 

 way. I admit that they will cost from twenty 

 10 twenty five per cent more; but who that 

 wants a good orchard, with every tree a per- 

 fect specimen, will stand a moment on the 

 difference in price between them and the trees 

 of all shapes, with heads formed high and 

 low, which have been, and aie now being sent 

 out from our nurseries. 



When this system shall have been adopted, 

 it will mark an era in our pomological ad- 

 vancement, and will at once and forever set 

 at rest the question whether Iowa is, or is not, 

 "a fruit country,'' for we can then have no 

 failures in the raising of trees, except such as 

 result from accident or carelessness. 



Next in importance to the mode of success- 

 ful culture, which I trust I have made quite 

 satisfactory, is the proper protection of fruit 

 t ees after we have tliem planted and in bear- 

 ing condition. AVe are fortunately so situa- 

 ted that the fruits very seldom suffer by spring 

 frosts. Our fprings are backward, but when 

 there is once a cessation of frosts, they scarcely 

 ever return until the fall season; and the 

 change in the spring from frosty to mild 

 weather, usually occurs before Ibe fruit trees 

 are in bloom. We frequently however, have 

 severe winds accompanied with rains for two 

 or three days at a time, about the period of 

 blossoming, which by the severity of the ga'e 

 for such a length ot time, driving the rain 

 drops ai;ainsl the flowers, destroy their fruc- 

 tifying power, and no fruit is formed; or, if 

 these adverse elements, (always ominous of 

 mischief,) make Iheir advent a little later, 

 when the fruits are formed and yet in a tender 



