VOL. LIII. No. 2335. 
NEW .YORK, OCTOBER 27, 1894. 
1.00 PER YEAR. 
IMPROVED CHESTNUT CULTURE. 
A NEW INDUSTRY—WASTE PLACES MADE OLAD. 
[KDITOBIAL CORBKSPONDENCB.] 
Part IT. 
Last week, reference was made to the experiment 
of n. M. Enffle in ^'rafting the Paraj?on chestnut on 
sprouts from the stumps of native trees. This can 
hardly be called an experiment any longer, for this 
year’s sales have shown that it is a practical and suc¬ 
cessful business enterprise. Mr. Engle is a very prac¬ 
tical and observant man, and we feel sure that his 
experience in forestry will be of interest to many of 
our readers. 
“ Will you tell us, Mr. Engle,” I asked, “ just how 
you proceeded 
to start a Par¬ 
agon chestnut 
grove 7" >% ^ 
“Well, sup¬ 
pose we wanted 
to start this fall 
on a hill now 
covered with 
wood. We 
would go in 
this winter and 
clear the land 
of all trees just 
as though we 
were simply 
cutting it off 
for firewood. 
Next spring, of 
course, sprouts 
would start up 
from the chest¬ 
nut stumps. 
We let them 
grow, though 
the underbrush 
and sprouts on 
stumps of other 
trees should be 
cut down. In 
the spring of 
1896, these 
chestnut 
sprouts will be 
large and 
strong. We 
would then go 
in and graft 
the Paragon 
scions on these 
sprouts in much 
the same way 
that fruit trees 
are grafted. 
That is all. 
There is noth¬ 
ing more except pruning the young trees to give them 
the right habit of growth, and keeping down the 
growth between the trees.” 
“ How many sprouts on each stump do you graft ?” 
“Two or three, in order to provide against acci¬ 
dents, and give at least two to select from later. Of 
course the other sprouts (not grafted) are cut off. 
At two or three years from the graft, we can tell 
which grafted sprout will make the best tree, and the 
others can be cut away.” 
“ What kind of grafting gives the best results ? ” 
“ We generally use what is known as splice graft¬ 
ing. Sometimes on larger sprouts we use the cleft 
graft.” 
“ When is the best timcito graft?” 
“The best grafting time with us ccmes in April. 
No exact time can be given—it depends on the condi¬ 
tion of the buds.” 
“ Do you ever bud chestnuts ? ” 
“We have tried it, but have never succeeded.” 
“ At the Rural Grounds the union of one Paragon 
with the stock is not perfect. Does this often 
happen ? ” 
“ In our grafting on a large scale we can count on 
85 per cent of successful unions.” 
“ When do these grafted sprouts begin to bear ? ” 
“Usually at three years from the graft. Then, as 
I have said, the best one at each stump is selected for 
the future tree, and the others are cut out. Next 
spring will make our sixth season of grafting. This 
fall we are picking nuts from the four and five-years 
grafted trees, besides a few from the three-year- 
olds.” 
“ Can the chestnut be grafted on other nut trees ? ” 
“ No; not so far as our experience goes.” 
“ How thick should the trees stand ? ” 
“We shall finally cut them out to about 35 to the 
acre. At present, growing as they do on chance 
stumps, they probably average 60.” 
“ Can you estimate the probable yield from an acre 
of well-grown trees ? ” 
“ It would be difiieult to make a fair estimate. My 
original Paragon tree, 14 years old, averages, one year 
with another, 13^ bushel of nuts. It has had but one 
off year. In full bearing, the trees on this hillside 
ought to average 75 to 80 bushels of nuts per acre. 
At ordinary market prices, this means a larger income 
than farmers obtain from an acre of potatoes, while 
the expenses are much less.” 
“ What are the expenses ? ” 
“ Taxes on the land, which you can see will not 
amount to much, the cost of keeping down under¬ 
brush, and picking.” 
“ What is the best time to cut the underbrush ?” 
“ In August or early September. We can then do it 
with a brush-scythe and thoroughly remove the sea¬ 
son’s growth. This is a very important point, for if 
the underbrush be permitted to grow, it will prevent 
the full growth of the chestnut trees, and make it 
very difficult to pick the nuts.” 
During my visit, picking was going on. The burrs 
were taken from the trees like apples, thrown in a 
pile and shelled 
—the men wear¬ 
ing thick gloves 
for this opera¬ 
tion. In this 
way two men 
will pick five 
bushels of 
shelled nuts a 
day. Who can 
pick one bushel 
of wild ones ? 
The growth of 
nuts on some 
of the trees 
was enormous. 
On one five- 
year - old tree, 
over 300 burrs 
were counted. 
Here I may 
call attention 
to the little tree 
shown at Fig. 
179, page 679. 
This Iree is 
four years from 
the graft. It 
grows on the 
grounds of the 
Michigan E x- 
periment S t a- 
tion at South 
Haven, Mich. 
The man stand¬ 
ing by the tree 
is our venerable 
friend, T. T. 
Lyon. 
“We pick 
these nuts be¬ 
fore they fall,” 
said Mr. Engle, 
“because, as 
you see, it 
would be al¬ 
most impossible to find them on this rough ground— 
in the underbrush. The Paragon holds its nuts closely 
to the burr, and that is a great advantage on such a 
rough field as this. The Numbo is an excellent chest¬ 
nut, but it would not do here because the nuts shell 
out so easily. Near the house in cleared ground, it 
would do nicely, but not here where the nuts would 
be lost at once if dropped too soon.” 
“ What is your advice to others about grafting chest¬ 
nuts in this way ? ” 
“ Well, we consider that we have gone far enough 
with it to call it a success. Here is this steep and 
rocky hillside good for nothing besides nut culture, 
and you can easily see for yourself what the trees are 
already doing and what they promise to do. It seems 
to me that this is about the most practical forestry 
Edible ^Working Force. -OxEN ONfA New Yobk^ State Hill Farm. Fig. 177. See Page 685. 
