1892 
63 
THE  RURAL  NEW-YORKER. 
quantities  of  nitrogen  in  an  immediately  available  form, 
must  exist  in  the  soil,  or  must  be  supplied. 
The  following  points,  at  least,  should  be  observed 
in  practice: 
1.  That  nitrate  of  soda  is  not  a  specific  against  drought 
or  flood,  poor  plants,  imperfect  setting  and  lack  of 
proper  cultivation. 
2.  That  whatever  the  previous  treatment  of  the  soil, 
or  the  yield,  phosphoric  acid  and  potash  should  be 
added  in  sufficient  quantities. 
3.  That  nitrate  of  soda  should  be  used  in  small  quan¬ 
tities  at  a  time,  and  that  the  total  quantity  should  be 
determined  by  conditions  of  the  soil  and  season. 
-  The  average  composition  of  the-  tomatoes  from  the 
New  Jersey  Station  plots  on  which  nitrate  was  used 
alone  and  those  on  which  it  was  used  with  phosphoric 
acid  and  potash,  is  as  follows : 
Carbohy- 
Averageon  Water.  Fat.  Fiber.  I’roteln.  Ash.  drates. 
Nitrate  plots .  94.10  .379  .527  .842  .  437  3.709 
Mineral  and  nitrate  plots  93. 33  .  433  .  554  .  772  .  524  3.792 
The  carbohydrates  and  moisture  are  practically 
identical  in  both  cases,  while  decided  differences  are 
noticed  in  protein,  fat  and  ash.  The  protein  is  10  per 
cent  lower,  the  fat  14  per  cent  higher  and  the  ash  20 
per  cent  higher  when  the  nitrate  was  used  in  connec¬ 
tion  with  phosphoric  acid  and  potash,  and  in  both  cases 
there  is  an  increased  percentage  in  all  classes  of  food 
compounds  over  those  found  in  the  sample  taken  from 
the  unfertilized  plot,  and  equal  in  every  respect  to  those 
from  samples  on  the  manured  plot.  • 
This  result  is  just  the  reverse  of  the  quite  general  belief, 
based  largely  upon  prejudice,  that  garden  produce  grown 
by  the  use  of  artificial  fertilizers  'is  watery,  tasteless  and  less 
nutritious  than  that  grown  without  fertilizers  or  with  barn¬ 
yard  manure. 
The  tomatoes  were  a  magnificent  crop  in  every  re¬ 
spect,  large,  smooth  and  solid.  Upon  cutting  the  toma¬ 
toes  at  the  time  of  sampling,  a  very  decided  difference 
in  the  appearance  of  the  pulp  was  noticed.  Those  from 
the  nitrated  and  manured  plots  were  much  more  solid 
and  with  less  seeds  than  from  the  unmanured,  or  from 
the  plot  fertilized  with  phosphoric  acid  and  potash. 
What  appeared  a  decided  difference  to  the  eye  was 
confirmed  by  the  chemical  analysis,  though  in  a  much 
less  marked  degree.  It  has  been  noticed  by  practical 
farmers  that  on  farms  where  tomatoes  have  been  grown 
for  a  number  of  years  as  a  field  crop,  the  succeeding 
crop — wheat,  for  instance— does  not  do  as  well  as  after 
a  crop  of  potatoe. 
Pounds  removed  from  the  soli,  of 
Kind  of  crop. 
Amount 
of  crop. 
Nitrogen. 
Phosphoric 
Acid. 
Potash. 
Tomatoes . 
10  tons. 
25.0 
13.0 
51.0 
White  potatoes . 
150  bu. 
15.3 
7.2 
25.7 
Sweet  potatoes . 
150  bu. 
10.0 
3.2 
20.4 
Corn . 
50  bu. 
44.8 
10.5 
10.7 
Corn  stalk . 
2,400  lbs. 
24.0 
13.2 
24.0 
Corn  cob . 
700  lbs. 
2.1 
1.9 
3.5 
Total  . 
70.9 
31.0 
38.2 
Rye . 
20  bu. 
18.1 
9.0 
11.0 
Rye  straw .  . 
.  1,500  lbs. 
7.5 
3.8 
8.0 
Total . 
25.0 
12.8 
19.0 
Wheat . 
20  bu. 
24.0 
12.0 
fi.fi 
Wheat  straw . 
.  1,500  lbs. 
8.0 
1.0 
9.5 
Total . 
32.0 
13.0 
10.1 
Oats . 
50  bn. 
27.0 
11.0 
8.0 
Oat  straw . 
.  1,800  lbs. 
11.7 
4.0 
22.0 
Total . 
39.3 
15.fi 
30.0 
Timothy  hay . 
2  tons. 
45.0 
28.8 
81.0 
The  above  table  shows  the  position  of  the  tomato  as 
a  plant-food  gatherer,  as  compared  with  other  staple 
crops.  This  tabulation  may  aid  in  determining  its 
influence  in  a  rotation  on  soils  in  which  all  forms  of 
plant-food  are  not  present  in  excess.  It  is  assumed 
that  a  soil  capable  of  producing  10  tons  of  tomatoes 
will  secure  other  crops  as  indicated,  and  also  that  the 
vines  of  the  tomato  and  potato  are  not  removed. 
The  belief  and  experience  of  the  practical  farmer 
are,  to  a  certain  extent,  verified  by  chemical  analysis; 
for  a  study  of  the  table  shows  that  a  crop  of  tomatoes 
removes  twice  as  much  potash  and  over  50  per  cent 
more  nitrogen  than  either  a  crop  of  white  or  sweet 
potatoes  ;  nearly  twice  as  much  phosphoric  acid  as 
white  potatoes,  and  more  than  four  times  as  much  as 
sweet  potatoes. 
With  the  exception  of  rye,  the  other  crops  tabulated 
remove  much  larger  quantities  of  nitrogen  :  wheat  and 
oats  less  phosphoric  acid,  and  Timothy  hay  over  50  per 
cent  more  potash  than  an  average  crop  of  tomatoes. 
To  a  farmer  who  keeps  a  close  account  of  the 
amounts  of  fertilizing  materials  used,  a  careful  study 
of  this  table,  coupled  with  a  definite  knowledge  of 
weights  of  crops  grown,  will  materially  aid  in  deter¬ 
mining  rational  methods  of  manuring . 
As  to  varieties,  not  to  repeat  The  It.  N.-Y.’s  reports 
of  previous  years  in  detail,  we  may  summarize  the 
value,  as  it  has  appeared  to  us,  of  the  leading  kinds 
before  the  public  : 
New  Jersey,  (Thorburn.) — lied,  medium  to  large, 
smooth,  solid.  One  of  the  best. 
Atlantic  Prize,  (Johnson  &  Stokes.) — Among  the 
earliest  and  as  among  the  earliest  one  of  the  best. 
Red,  medium  to  large,  firm.  Productive. 
Golden  Queen,  (Livingston.) — Best  of  the  yellows. 
Large,  quite  regular,  mild,  medium  as  to  earliness. 
Productive. 
Paragon,  (Livingston.) — The  same  as  Mayflower 
and  Perfection.  Much  the  same  as  New  Jersey.  Weight 
of  six  selected,  two  pounds  five  ounces.  Regular,  yel¬ 
lowish-red,  sometimes  inclined  to  double  up  like  the 
grub  of  a  Maybeetle.  Ripens  with  Acme.  Solid  flesh, 
few  seeds.  One  of  the  best. 
Optimus,  (D.  M.  Ferry  &  Co.)— Yellowish-red,  smooth, 
ripens  all  over  fully.  Firm,  no  cracks,  medium  size. 
Ripens  its  main  crop  early.  Resembles  Paragon.  One 
of  the  best. 
Rochester,-  Beauty,  Essex  Hybrid,  Climax,  Hovey 
and  Early  Market  are  much  the  same. 
Ciiemin  Market,  (J.  C.  Vaughan.) — Medium  sized, 
red,  shapely  and  uniformly  so.  Productive,  but  rather 
late. 
Beauty,  (Livingston.) — One  of  the  best  of  the  Acme 
class. 
Dwarf  Champion. — See  Notes  from  the  Rural 
Grounds,  Salzer’s  La  Crosse. 
Ignotum. — Yellowish  red,  productive,  medium  as  to 
season  of  ripening,  quite  regular,  solid,  round  or  ob¬ 
long-flattened.  Generally  prized  for  home  use  or 
market. 
Matchless  (W.  Atlee  Burpee  &  Co.) — It  is  rather 
late  at  the  Rural  Grounds,  but  otherwise  one  of  the 
best  varieties.  Oblate,  rather  deep  basin.  Uniformly 
medium  to  large  size,  smooth,  sometimes  fluted  about 
stem,  ripens  evenly,  red  in  color,  not  inclined  to  crack, 
solid.  A  good  shipper. 
Prelude. — Very  early,  irregular,  small  to  medium. 
Earliness  is  its  best  quality. 
Challenge  (Robert  Buist) — An  immense  bearer,  yel¬ 
lowish-red,  generally  smooth,  sometimes  ribbed.  Large 
average  size.  One  of  the  best. 
Belle  (Robert  Buist) — Yellowish-red,  firm,  large, 
shapely,  rarely  with  prominent  lobes  or  seams.  Does 
not  crack,  free  from  rot.  A  fine  tomato. 
Livingston’s  Potato-leaf  is  smoother  than  either 
the  so-called  Mikado  or  Turner’s  Hybrid  which,  The 
R.  N.-Y.  was  first  to  discover,  are  the  same. 
Shah  (Henderson) — The  first  yellow  tomato  with 
li  potato-leaf  ”  foliage.  Variable  in  size  and  form  and 
color.  Not  desirable. 
Stone. — This  is  described  as  having  originated  jyith 
A.  W.  Livingston.  It  originated  with  A.  M.  Nichol 
of  Granville,  Ohio.  See  Notes  from  the  Rural  Grounds. 
Peach  Trees  and  Their  Culture. 
Living  at  the  southern  portion  of  the  great  peach 
belt  of  the  Eastern  Shore  of  Maryland  and  Delaware, 
I  can  give  some  experience  that  may  be  beneficial  to 
those  intending  to  set  out  an  orchard,  in  the  way  of 
planting,  trimming,  cultivating  and  fertilizing  the 
peach. 
First:  select  a  high,  well  drained  piece  of  ground  of 
the  yellow  clay  order,  20  or  22  feet  each  way.  In  set¬ 
ting  1,000  or  more,  divide  them  into  four  or  six  varieties, 
according  to  your  facilities  for  marketing,  etc.  We 
plant  trees  one  year  from  the  bud,  preferring  fall  for 
planting,  as  the  ground  gets  settled  around  the  roots  of 
trees  planted  then,  and  when  spring  opens  they  are 
ready  to  grow.  Trim  every  thing  off  to  four  or  five 
buds,  about  3  to  3  )4  feet  high.  You  can  plant  corn 
for  one  or  two  years  in  the  orchard.  After  that  you 
can  plant  peas  or  keep  the  ground  perfectly  clean.  In 
plowing  among  the  trees,  you  can  plow  two  furrows 
on  each  side  towards  the  trees  in  spring  and  then  com¬ 
mence  a  back  furrow  in  the  center  of  the  rows,  then 
harrow  in  the  opposite  direction  so  as  to  level  every¬ 
thing.  The  orchard  can  be  treated  in  this  way  two  or 
three  years;  then  one  should  reverse  the  system  and 
leave  the  ground  higher  about  the  trees.  An  experience 
of  10  years  while  living  with  my  father  and  three  years 
since  while  working  for  myself,  convinces  me  of  the 
need  of  White  Oak  ashes,  muriate  of  potash,  kainit,  or 
some  good  fertilizer  for  the  peach  tree.  Last  spring, 
I  applied  two  shovelfuls  of  White  Oak  ashes  to  each 
tree,  being  careful  to  distribute  them  evenly  around 
the  stem  not  closer  than  two  feet.  The  trees  were  one 
year  old.  Besides  this,  I  applied,  the  next  fall,  four 
shovelfuls  of  well  rotted  manure  to  each  tree,  keeping 
it  away  from  the  trunks,  thinking  it  very  essential  to 
get  a  good  growth  of  tree  as  soon  as  possible,  for  if 
neglected  the  first  four  years  it  will  be  very  hard  to 
secure  a  thrifty  and  paying  orchard.  My  orchard  is  in 
a  very  thrifty  condition;  the  growth  of  wood  was  from 
three  to  five  feet  last  season. 
The  borer  is  taken  out  in  June  or  at  any  time  when 
its  appearance  is  noticed  ;  the  glue  will  form  where  it 
has  been  working.  After  removing  the  pest  I  have 
thought  it  a  good  plan  to  apply  unleached  hard- wood 
ashes ;  then  mound  earth  about  the  trunk.  I  have 
been  very  fortunate  in  buying  peach  trees,  something 
very  essential  in  peach  growing.  Some  people  make 
a  big  mistake  in  ordering  many  varieties  and  only  a 
few  of  each.  My  experience  suggests  from  200  to  400 
of  one  variety,  as  the  canners  in  Baltimore  prefer  as 
large  a  supply  of  the  same  sort  as  possible,  and  will 
pay  more  for  them  received  in  that  way. 
Our  best  varieties  for  planting  are  Mountain  Rose, 
Crawford’s  Early,  Reeves’s  Favorite,  Red  Cheek  Melo- 
coton,  Oldmixon,  Cooper’s  Mammoth,  Magnum  Bonum, 
Globe,  Crawford's  Late,  Beer’s  Yellow,  Brandywine, 
Beer’s  Smock,  Garey’s  Hold-on,  Chair’s  Choice  and 
Mobray’s  Heath  Cling.  We  all  leave  too  much  wood 
in  the  center,  and  don't  trim  severely  enough  when  the 
trees  are  one  and  two  years  old.  ciias.  s.  .tackson. 
The  Green  Mountain  Grape. 
There  seems  to  be  considerable  discussion  in  refer¬ 
ence  to  the  origin,  etc.,  of  this  grape.  As  we  have  had 
the  vines  growing  on  our  grounds  since  1885,  and  are 
the  only  parties  who  have  the  right  to  propagate  it 
under  the  above  name,  we  feel  that  we  are  entitled  to 
a  hearing  on  the  subject.  Mr.  J.  M.  Paul,  of  North 
Adams,  Mass.,  an  amateur  in  grape  culture  (who  died 
in  February,  1889),  deserves  the  credit  of  having 
brought  it  before  the  public  more  than  any  one  else. 
He  found  it  growing  in  the  garden  of  Mr.  Clough,  and 
recognizing  its  great  merit,  purchased  the  vine  and 
commenced  propagating  it  on  a  small  scale.  From  the 
original  vine,  he  started  several  cuttings.  These  he 
reset  for  propagating  it  by  layers  and  for  fruit.  In  1885 
he  sent  us  samples  of  the  latter,  with  samples  of  the 
Hartford  Prolific  and  Concord  to  show  the  earliness  of 
the  Green  Mountain  in  comparison  with  the  two  latter. 
To  thus  raise  fruit  and  layer  plants  from  his  first 
stock,  he  must  have  started  its  propagation  as  early  as 
1880.  It  is  quite  doubtful  if  Mr.  Paul  had  not  discov¬ 
ered  this  grape  and  started  its  propagation,  if  it  would 
ever  have  been  known  to  the  world. 
In  the  fall  of  1885,  after  receiving  the  samples  of  the 
Green  Mountain  Grapes,  the  excellence  of  which  im¬ 
pressed  us  highly,  we  went  to  North  Adams  to  see  Mr. 
Paul  and  arrange  for  its  propagation.  Mr.  Paul  that 
fall  sent  us  80  vines  he  had  raised,  he  having  also  sold 
a  few  to  his  neighbors.  He  named  the  grape  Green 
Mountain.  Later  on  we  desired  to  change  the  name 
to  the  Canaan  Grape,  but  he  seriously  objected  to  this. 
We  discussed  the  question  with  other  horticulturists, 
and  they  advised  us  to  keep  the  name  Green  Mountain. 
We  did  so  and  in  July  1889,  made  application  to  the 
Commissioner  of  Patents  to  have  Green  Mountain  regis¬ 
tered  as  our  trade-mark  name.  This  trade-mark  name 
was  granted  us,  and  it  holds  good  for  30  years.  The 
suggestion  of  Dr.  Hoskins  and  of  others  in  a  late 
Rural,  that  its  name  be  changed  to  Clough,  is  prepos¬ 
terous.  As  soon  as  the  name  is  changed  and  it  is  sent 
out  under  any  other  name  than  the  one  which  now 
protects  it  and  is  a  guarantee  to  all  who  purchase  a 
vine  that  they  have  the  genuine  article,  there  will  be 
plenty  of  chances  for  irresponsible  parties  to  palm  off 
other  varieties  which  they  may  have  or  can  purchase 
for  less  money. 
The  Green  Mountain  Grape  has  come  to  stay.  Its 
name  will  not  be  changed,  'for  by  that  name  it 
has  been  advertised  and  sold  all  over  the  country  for 
the  past  five  years.  Our  trade-mark  seal  will  be  at¬ 
tached  to  each  vine  sent  out  by  us  as  a  guarantee  of  its 
genuineness.  To  send  it  out  under  any  other  name  is 
to  remove  the  guards  which  protect  the  grape  in  its 
great  merits,  as  well  as  the  public  from  imposition. 
STEPHEN  HOYT’S  SONS. 
About  New  Fruits. 
It  is  very  important  that  we  should  have  a  new  and 
more  reliable  way  of  promptly  determining  the  value 
of  a  new  fruit,  tree  or  vegetable.  At  present  we  can  do 
no  better  than  to  test  it  ourselves  first  for  several  years, 
then  send  it  out  to  be  tested  by  others.  Results  are 
then  doubtful ;  for  it  is,  unfortunately,  possible  to  find 
nurserymen  who  will  boom  a  new  thing  for  the  sim¬ 
ple  purpose  of  profit.  So  it  is  that  about  three-fourths 
of  our  ventures  in  novelties  fall  flat.  The  Jessie  Straw¬ 
berry  is  not  at  all  an  extreme  case  ;  but  it  was  over¬ 
praised  and  we  are  all  disappointed  and  out  of  pocket. 
Now  I  hear  of  the  Excelsior  Beach  as  a  very  hardy 
acquisition  capable  of  enduring  our  ordinary  Northern 
winters  without  loss  of  fruit  buds.  If  this  be  true,  it 
is  one  of  the  most  important  facts  of  recent  date 
in  the  history  of  fruit  culture.  It  is  what  should  be 
known  at  once  and  not  by  guess,  but  as  a  certainty. 
Can  we  have  a  National  Test  Garden?  Or  can  we 
have  an  examining  board  connected  with  the  Agricul¬ 
tural  Department?  In  some  such  way  testimony  could 
be  taken  on  the  ground  and  the  truth  be  laid  before 
us  inside  of  a  single  year,  or,  at  most,  of  two.  The 
Rural  Experiment  Grounds  have  done  immense  good. 
Will  not  the  Editor  have  a  committee  sent  to  secure  the 
exact  facts  as  to  this  Excelsior  Peach,  and  some  others 
perhaps?  We  need  a  hardy,  first-rate  peach  for  the 
Northern  States.  I  had  40  very  fine  peach  trees  last 
year;  but  I  cannot  rely  on  any  variety  I  have  to  give 
me  a  crop  of  them  one  year  in  five.  e.  p.  p. 
