312 
vigor, while a tree allowed to bear an 
enormous crop one year and none the 
next may suffer the consequences of over- 
production. 
Securing Annual Crops Instead of 
Alternate 
A tree will produce quantity at the ex- 
pense of quality, and at the same time 
utilize plant food that should be used in 
making the fruit buds for the next year’s 
bloom. The law of Nature is to reproduce 
its kind and it tends to do it even at the 
expense of the welfare of the tree. An- 
nual thinning tends to throw a tree into 
annual bearing. When a tree has been 
in the habit of bearing alternate crops, it 
may take some time to induce it to bear 
attempted 
Ex. F. 
Ex. C. 
ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL HORTICULTURE 
every year by thinning. It has been 
demonstrated in the orchard where this 
experiment was carried on that by annual 
thinning the Jonathan can be made to 
bloom well every year. 
Fruit of Maximum Size, Color and 
Quality 
The total averages, as given in the table 
found in the different grades, illustrates 
the points of size and color, for apples 
have to be of a certain size and a certain 
color to be packed in the first two grades. 
The following table illustrates the com- 
parative values of the different erades 
The culls were selling at the cannery and 
evaporator at $7 per ton, or the equal of 
$0.175 per 50-pound box. 
Standard 
Cull | Goce of 
Boxes Boxes Boxes Boxes | mae o 
at $1.75 at $1.50 at $0.85 at $0.75 | Inning 
Thinned. ...........00. 5.34=$9.35 | 3.07=$4.61 | 3.2 =$2.72 | 1.11-$0.19 | $0.64 
Unthinned.............. 2.5 =$4.388 | 1 =81.50 | 9 =$7.65 | 5.08=$0.89 
Thinned................ Gain=$4.97 | Gain=$3.11 | Loss=$4.93 | Loss=$0.70 Loss=$0.64 
$8 .08-—$6 . 23=$1.85, total gain per tree. 
When trees are set 16x32 feet, there are 
85 to the acre. A gain of $1.85 per tree 
would make a total gain of $157.25 to the 
acre. 
This seems strong evidence that thin- 
ning the Winesap gives large returns for 
time and labor expended. The above fig- 
ures are conservative in at least two re- 
spects: Hirst. Many of the windfalls 
which were counted as culls could never 
have been sold for any purpose; espe- 
cially was this true of the early dropped 
windfalls. Also there is much doubt as 
to whether the amount received for the 
culls would have paid for the extra labor 
required in picking, hauling and sorting. 
Second. The extra amount of time that 
it took to grade the apples from the un- 
thinned trees for packing was consider- 
able. These two expenses would alone 
almost offset the cost of thinning. Uni- 
formity of size was very characteristic 
of the apples from the thinned trees, while 
the apples from the unthinned ones were 
of all sizes. 
Better colored fruit was always found 
on the thinned trees than on the un- 
thinned, due largely to the fact that the 
fruit on the unthinned trees was crowded 
and consequently more or less shaded. 
The lessened percentage of wormy ap- 
ples, due to picking and destroying the 
apples infested by the first brood of 
worms, would probably be a saving suf: 
ficient to largely bear the expense of thin- 
ning. 
How to Thin 
Study each tree individually and thin 
so that at picking time the tree will hold 
up well under a load of uniform, good 
sized and well colored apples. It takes 
experience and study to get the very best 
results from thinning. 
The experiment indicates that best re- 
sults in thinning the Winesap can be at- 
tained when the apples are thinned to a 
distance of from nine to ten inches. It 
is well to commence at the top of the 
tree and work down. Perhaps, if there 
is any difference in distance to be made, 
it would be better to thin the apples on 
the lower limbs next to the trunk of the 
