1863. 



XEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



123 



LEGISLATIVE AGRICULTURAL MEET- 

 IN a. 



The sixth legislative agricultural meeting was 

 held Tuesday evening, Feb. 24th. The subject 

 for discussion was "Fruits and Fruit Culture." 

 . We are indebted to the Adcaiiser for the follow- 

 ing report : 



Col. Wilder presided and opened the discus- 

 sion. Fruit he said is an article of daily con- 

 sumption ; an eminent physician had remarked 

 that health can scarcely be preserved without it. 

 The failure of a crop, as in 18(J1, is a calamity. 

 The crop of fruits the past year was unpai'alleled 

 in our history. He rejoiced that fruit the past 

 season has been within the reach of the poorest 

 families. Five towns near Boston furnished 20,- 

 000 bushels of pears for the city market, pro- 

 duced by trees planted within 20 years. The or- 

 chard product according to the last census showed 

 50 per cent, greater increase than any other from 

 crops except the grape. The increase of the vine 

 crop was 740 per cent. There are more than 100 

 varieties of American apples and about 60 varie- 

 ties of American pears in cultivation. The Flem- 

 ish Beauty and the Buffum pears succeeded in 

 27 of the States, as do the Harvest apple, As- 

 trachan and Sweet Bough. He spoke of the ad- 

 vantages of planting evergreen trees for the pro- 

 tection of orchards, and the importance of drain- 

 ing grounds for fruit trees, to the depth of three 

 feet, and working the tilth of the soil to the depth 

 of eighteen inches. He believed ground had been 

 tilled too deep, especially for grapes. The best 

 way of getting good, hardy varieties is to raise 

 fruit from seedlings. Plant none but good seeds, 

 reference being had to hardiness of habits, as well 

 as productiveness. In regard to pruning, he 

 would do it early in the spring before the sap be- 

 gins to move : also in midsummer, but then it 

 should be skilfully done ; should be done when 

 the trees are small, and a jack-knife should be 

 the instrument used. Pruning is often done with 

 an axe and saw ; the ignorant man pruning ij-re- 

 spective of the bearing shoots. He spoke of the 

 importance of thinning fruits. This done, and 

 fruit trees will bear every year. Overbearing is 

 the cause of the alternation in bearing, or of a 

 tree's bearing every other year. Tlie vital powers 

 of ti'ees are overdone as soil is exhausted by over- 

 cropping. He spoke of the importance of sorting 

 apples for market ; also of ]ncking apples that ri- 

 pen first in order to give the others a chance to 

 mature. 



Mr. Wilder mentioned twelve varieties of the 

 pear, agreed upon by the Farmers' Club of this 

 city. The first six are the Bartlctt, Louise bonne 

 de Jersey, Urbaniste, Beurre d'Anjou, Vicar of 

 Winkfield and Merriam. The second six are the 

 Seckel, Onondaga, Sheldon, Beurre Bosc, Law- 

 rence, Doyenne Boussouck. Mr. Wilder sold his 

 Beurre d'Anjou pears for $3 a bushel the past 

 season, when Bartletts sold for $1 a bushel. 



John Brooks, of Princeton, spoke of the im- 

 portance of draining orchard land. He had in- 

 creased both quantity and quality of apples by 

 drainage, which also served to lengthen the season. 



Mr. Flint spoke of New England apples as 

 superior to what be saw abroad. On the Conti- 

 tinent, fruits were very plenty the jiast season, as 

 here. He spoke of grapes as being produced in 



abundance. The best grapes he tasted were in 

 Hungary. He spoke of :j0 varieties produced 

 there. He saw nothing of the wart or black-knot 

 in Germany. He spoke of the vine disease, and 

 the suffering caused by the cutlmg oflf of the 

 grape crop. 



Col. Wilder said, in reply to an inquiry wheth- 

 er the smaller fruits, as the currant, can be grown 

 with the api)le, they could, stating that Mr. Clanp, 

 of Dorciicster, realized >!1200 per acre from his 

 currant crop among his a|)ple trees. He manured 

 thoroughly. 



Mr. Tower, of Lanesboro', said much atten- 

 tion is given to fruit culture in his town. One 

 nurseryman recommends to set trees 16 feet apart; 

 another 2d feet apart. He grew roots among his 

 trees. In eleven years his Greening trees have 

 grown to 24 inches in circumference, the best 

 growers he has ; they bear well ; the Baldwin is 

 the earliest bearer. He sets out about 10 plum 

 trees every year, and when the knot shows itself 

 he cuts it ofl', no matter when it appears. He 

 has plums plenty. 



Mr. Chase, of Haverhill, spoke of the impor- 

 tance of the graj)e culture, indorsing Rogers' hy- 

 brids, as also did Col. Wilder. 



The seventh meeting was held on Tuesday eve- 

 ning, March 3d, Mr. W.VRREX, of Andover, pre- 

 siding. We are again indebted to the Advertiser 

 report : 



The subject of discussion M'as "^Lnnures and 

 their Applications." Mr. Warren did not believe 

 in applying green manures to the soil. He com- 

 posted his manure and had better results. This 

 was his ex])erience. 



.Mr. Hubbard, of Sunderland, did not agree 

 with the chair in the application of manure. Ex- 

 perience and observation taught him the reverse 

 of what the chair stated. In compost manures, 

 more, he said, is applied per acre, than when un- 

 composted. Labor is high and it requires much 

 to compost it. He spoke of superphosphates as 

 being too uncertain for farmers to use. He re- 

 commended turning in clover, as a fertilizer, as a 

 cheap way of enricliing soil. 



Mr. CiwsE, of Haverhill, did not believe in 

 sand as a fertilizer. He mentioned a farmer that 

 had a farm of 39 acres on which a few years ago 

 he cut 10 tons of hay ; it now produces 100 tons. 

 Muck, he deemed a good fertilizer. One cord of 

 manure to two cords of muck, makes a good ma- 

 nure, equal to 3 cords of manure. He recom- 

 mended the use of ashes. 



John Brooks, of Princeton, deemed the mak- 

 ing of manures more important than the applying 

 of them. He said farmers lose from one-half to 

 two-thirds of their manures. Farmers should try 

 to save their manures, for barnyard manures are 

 the best fertilizers. He spoke favorably of sand 

 as a fertilizer. He gave up composting some 

 years ago. It costs too much. Manure does not 

 go down in the soil. Sand is not an absorbent 



Mr. MosELY, of Springfield, said that he is pre- 

 pared to say that sand is a fertilizer. Sand is an 

 absorbent and is used in the stable us an absorb- 

 ent. Solid cow manure 'n a poor manure l.j had 

 been told. Sand holds ammonia better thaa 

 muck, as proved by experiment. The fineness of 

 manure is an important quality. He had muck 



