286 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER, 



A.M) HOKTlCUI/rilRAI, RKGISTER. 



MARCH C,1S44 



Edited by Joseph Brcck. 



Boston, Wkusesuay, March G, 1844. 



EIGHTH AGRICULTURAL MEETING ATTHK 

 STATE HOUSE. 

 (Cmitinuid from page 282.) 

 Mr B. V. Frencli recii.irked llmt tlie lovers of good 

 fruit need net litiiitate iiliout planting trees, evtn if their 

 soil was not the very best. It might be raised on almost 

 any soil, however rug;;ed or sterile. Fruit of the finest 

 quality had been niisid even at Naliant. Many suppose 

 that /mil trees would not flourish where there had been 

 an old orchard. This was true to some extent: if all 

 that is essential lor the growth of the trees had been ex- 

 hausted in the soil, it would be necessary to renovate it 

 by ajiplying potash and other substanies which enter in- 

 to the composition of the tree. He said he had a fine 

 orchard which was in gr.sss ground that had never been 

 tilled, which piodui ed good crops of Porters, Greenings, 

 and other varieties nl fine quality ; the ground was kept 

 in yood heart by surface in;inuring; the trees were du" 

 about, Uept free of grass a few feet around them, and 

 well pruned. To Keep olf borers, ho washed the trunk 

 of the trees with p-.tash water, or soap, and sometimes 

 lime was used for the same purpo.se. He had set out 

 another orchard on a seven-acre lot, in which he went 

 mure methodically to work. He first took out the 

 stones and built a wall about it, plowed, rolled, and har- 

 rowed it lightly. The trees had been procured the fall 

 previous, and laid in by the heels. Having fixed llie 

 proper position for each tree, he commenced planting 

 them out in the spring, on the sod, without digginc anv 

 holes, unless the roots were long and difficult to man- 

 age, when a little digging was necessary : good loam 

 mas tlien brought to the roots, bo as to cover them : he 

 lost only three trees in the lot. As to staking the trees, 

 lie did not approve of the plan ; thought they did belter 

 without, unless the tree was crooked : in that case, a 

 Blake should be put down, and the tree tied up close to 

 it, pulling round sufficient matting, or something else, 

 so that there could be no chafing : this orchard has done 

 well, but if it had bad the benefit of a subsoil plowing 

 before planting, would no doubt have done better. The 

 subsoil plow lias since beeu used with good results in 

 this same orchard, plowing and stirring up the ground 

 as near the trees as was judged sale. 



Mr French lemarked that a neighbor of his consider- 

 ed it a good day's work for four men to set out ten 

 trees, and thought it ntnes.sary to trench the ground two 

 feet deep, and ten in diameter. Trees planted in ground 

 thus prepared, would thrive well, undoubtedly. Mr F. 

 thought so much labor unnecessary : llie sub.soil phnv 

 was about as effVctuul as trenching. He found that 

 tiees do well when planted near walls, but he thought 

 better to plant at some distance from them. When it is 

 perceived that the fiiliage of a tree looks sickly, and the 

 ends of the limbs begin to decay, it indicates a want of 

 potash : this should be applied to renovate the soil. 



Last year, alter preparing a very stony four acre lot 

 of land, by taking off the stones and filling up the stone 

 holes, he plowed and suhsoiled it — then rolled, and har- 

 rowed it lightly : a substantial stone wall enclosed the 

 field. First, he sat a row of cherries, two rods from 

 each other, near the wall : then two rodii parallel from 

 them, a row of apple trees— between the rows of apples 

 a rovT of pears— and between the apples and pears, a 

 row of peach trees. He avoided setting deep. He cut 

 be peach trees down to 8 or 10 iiichei above the bud- 



ding. Although the season was a very trying one, on 

 account of tlio long continued drought, most of the 

 trees did well. Ho lost some pear trees, but accounted 

 for this by tlie fact, lliat these trees were of very vigo- 

 rous growth and the wood was not fully matured. He 

 has set out peach trees when in bloom, and thought 

 they did better than when set out before the buds began 

 to slart. Peach trees should be kept low, and niado to 

 branch out near the ground : unless proper attention 

 was paid to them, they were apt to grow straggling and 

 unsightly. 



In setting out an orchard, no one has good reason to 

 expect success, unless it is protected from cattle, which 

 will seriously injure the trees by rubbing against, eat- 

 ing, and bieaking them down. Pruning should be done 

 when the tree is young. When it is deferred until ihe 

 tree is old, and large limbs are amputated, the wounds 

 are so large llicy will not lieal over, and by exposure to 

 the weather, will soon begin to rot, and the limb eventu- 

 ally become hollow. A young orchard requires con- 

 stant attention. In selecting fruit trees, it was often 

 necessary to consult the nurseryman — but his opinions 

 were not always infallible : they were liable to mis- 

 takes. Te prevent disappointment, it was a good plan 

 to have a good supply of thrifiy stocks always on hand 

 for budding : the buds should in all cases be taken from 

 bearing trees. He thought it best to bud when the 

 stocks were young. In regard to the varieties of fruit 

 to be selected, every farmer must be his own judge. 

 We have now a good succession of fine apples, and the 

 same may be said of pears. The plum, he said, did 

 betler near the sea-shore and in the cily (Boston,) than 

 it did farther back in the country. A large reward had 

 been offered by the Horticultural Society for some mode 

 of destroying ihe Curculio, but as yet nothing satisfac- 

 tory h.id been presented. It is a very destructive ene- 

 my, and its depredations are discouraging to cultivators 

 of this fruit. He had pretty much coine to the conclu- 

 sion that, with the exception of the caterpillar, which 

 might easily be destroyed by one of" Pickering's brush- 

 es," it was about as well to let the insects remain undis- 

 turbed, and commit their depredations in quiet— for he 



same rule would apply to all other trees. He thoui 

 it a good practice to put stones under the roois of a tr 

 Mr Gray said he had been troubled with cani 

 worms, and liad iritd all manner of experiments to • 

 rid of them. He had rais.d up little heaj.s of sand roil 

 the tree ; the grubs would crawl up part way and th 

 tall down, and thousands might be caugia ; but t 

 mode was not elfeciual ; some would succjed and go 

 the tiee. Tarring injures ihe tree, and if a st.ip of ci 

 vass IS put round first, when the tar is applied, if ii 

 warm, it snon hardens ; if it rains, it chills, and in eiil 

 case, the grubs will find their way over. Lead gutt 

 are expensive, and will soon be filled up; and llie wi 

 will sometimes dash out the oil, There is an unc 

 taint'- in all ihese ex|iedients, and they cost more tli 

 they come lo. He thought the cheapest and most th 

 ough mode was to make a wooden boot or square h 

 round the tree, with projecting eaves ; then tar in I 

 angle under the piojeclnm. In this way the lar w 

 protected Iroiii the sun and rain, and would remain s 

 much longer. The spare between the box and ti 

 should be slufi'ed or wadded, so that the few grubs tl 

 may be iri the ground between the box and Iree, cam 

 get up. The grubs will noi undermine. The boji 

 will cost but abi.ul one shilling each. 



He said Dr. T. M. Harris, of Cambridge, recommer 

 cd swine, whose scent is very acote, to be turned ii 

 an orchard, as a preventive against the canker-wor 

 as they would root about the trees and devour the gru 

 Mr Gray said, in regard to the distance to set api 

 trees from each other, some thought two rods was abt 

 right, hot he had them set out 40 feel : he remark 

 that Mr riiinney ihoughl40feet loo small a distam 

 In England, liO feet was the customary distance, but 

 this counlry wo have more sun and heat, and a less d 

 lance would be sulKcient. Pruning should be do 

 when the tree is young. 



Mr G. said Ilie apple would be our staple fruit, a 

 that no investment near Boston could bo made bet; 

 than in fruit trees. He thought a pear orchard won 

 be more profitable than the apnie : they live longer 1 

 come into bearing later. He 'referred to the Endic 

 pear Iree at Danvers, which is now more than loO yet 

 old, and still in hearing. We have much encouras^ 

 meni in having so much sun. He thought standf 

 fruit belter than that from trained trees : there may 

 exceptions in some delicate varieties which need t 

 wall. As lo the Peach, we are just in the line where* 

 may be cultivated: did not know whether it is best ' 

 prune at all: it is not long-lived, and at best is bill 

 sickly shrub, and must be treated as such. Our winte 

 are rather loo cold for it. The great enemies to tl 

 I luin are the Curculio and warts. The origin of the 



had found all attempts to banish or destroy ihem, useless wans is attributed by some to the burslin^ of tl: 



and futile. He said, in conclusion, that industry and 

 perseverance were indispensible in establishing good 

 and flourishing orchards. 



Mr John C. Gray, of Boston, said he had been engaged 

 in agriculture for the last 20 years ; but his attention 

 had been direclerl in a particular manner lo the culliva- 

 lion of fruit trees, in which he had been deeply interest- 

 ed. It has been a question whether the spring or fall 

 was preferable for transplanting. He had been in the 

 habit of settling out in the spring, and thought that to be 

 the most suitable time. He has suffered much from 

 drought after planting, but found that by placing moss 

 around the trees, the difti.uliy was in a measure obvia- 

 ted. He said, in England the climate was so diflircnt 

 from ours, that it might be best there to plant in the fall, 

 as the roots, perhaps, would grow — but not with us. 



Another qutslion was, whether the ground for an 

 orchard should be broken up and kept in cultivation, or 

 suffered to lie in grass. No doubt the fruit would be 

 better where the ground was perpetually tilled; but he 

 thought it a great sacrifice : the extra quantity and qual- 

 ity of the fruit would not make up for the loss of the 

 grass. He has an orchard which has always been in 

 grass, and which has always done well ; but he keeps 

 it rich, and the ground dug up to the distance of 6 or 8 

 feet from the trees. His trees were planted near the 

 surface. He said that gardeners agree about the grape 

 vine, that the borders for ihem should be wide and not 

 deep, as the roots would run near the surface. The 



1 vessels— by others, to an insect— but he did not kno 

 that there was any remedy. He was of opinion th 

 swine would be beneficial in the destruction of the cu 

 colio, by turning them in among the trees. Tliere w 

 very little, however, lh:it could he done to prevent the 

 ravages. But with the caterpillar it was diB'erent : 

 person was inexcusable, who suff'ered caterpillar wul 

 to disfigure his trees : they could be easily taken o 

 with a conical brush. Borers did not trouble him: I 

 suggested that it was owing to his clayey soil. Th 

 Quince IS a valuable fruit; he had observed great quai 

 titles planted in West Cambridge, near Fresh Pond. I 

 was easily cultivated, and he recommended il to the fi 

 vor of the farmer. 



Mr Gray was asked, whether canker worms woul 

 be so likely to annoy when the orchard was in tillag 

 as when in mowing. He replied thai he thought not.° 



[We must defer the remarks of other gentlemen unt 

 next week.] 



SEEDS FROM THE PATENT OFFICE. 



We acknowledge the receipt of a number of package 

 of seeds from the Hon. II, L. Ellsworth, of ihe Paten 

 Office, as follows: Etrurian wheat, (winter) ; Elos 

 White Blue Stem Winter do. ; While Flint Win'er do. 

 Tuscany Winter Wheat; Calcut:a Flax-seed; Mulli 

 caulcRye; Prolific White Bush Beans; Improved Ma 

 ryland .Melon ; Improved Black Water Melon ; Bird'i 

 Eye or Nancemond Wat.?r Melon ; Twin Corn ; Calici 

 do.; White Flint do. ; and a variety of garden seeds 

 We shall either try them ourselves or hand them t( 

 some of our agricultural friends who will e.tpetiineni 

 with them and give an account of the produce. 



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