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Vol. LIV. No. 2394. 
NEW YORK. DECEMBER 14, 1895. 
$1.00 PER YEAR. 
S. D. WILLARD TALKS PLUMS. 
TUB VIEWS OF 
VETERAN FRUIT GROWER. 
A Perfect Plum Pudding of Information. 
One of the best known men in New York State, is 
S. D. Willard, of Geneva, and thousands of our read¬ 
ers will recognize the shrewd and kindly face, pic¬ 
tured at Fig. 265. Mr. Willard was born near Cayuga 
Lake, and has spent a long and busy life in horticul¬ 
tural pursuits. “ Born and reared in an orchard,” 
would well describe his bringing up. Therefore, he 
is one of the best men in the country to go to for ad¬ 
vice about fruit growing Of late years, he has given 
much attention to plum culture. This has been 
developed to such an extent, that, in 1894, Willard & 
Co. shipped 40,000 pounds of this fruit. A picture of 
one of his bearing plum orchards is shown at Fig. 266. 
These orchards are models for thrift and clean cul¬ 
ture ; in fact, it is evident that the keynote to Mr. 
Willard’s success is the fact that he has 
learned that the only thing about orchard 
practice worth doing is doing things well f— 
and on time. The following facts and opin¬ 
ions were obtained in an interview with Mr. 
Willard : 
“ A good many every-day farmers who 
grow a variety of crops, have heard that 
there is profit in plum culture, and would 
like to try it. Can you advise them to start 
in plum growing ? ” 
“Yes ; provided they will work as intelli¬ 
gently in plum growing as they would in 
growing a corn crop. The growing of any 
fruit crop by many farmers, is made a second¬ 
ary matter. Trees are planted and allowed 
to grow for themselves; hence, the large 
number of failures that are noticeable 
throughout the entire country. Were the 
corn field or potato patch neglected in a like 
manner, bankruptcy would soon follow. The 
trouble isn’t half so much that the nursery¬ 
men sell ‘cull stock ’ as that the farmer gives 
cull culture.” 
“ But why plums rather than apples, pears 
or peaches ? ” 
“ Keep out of the crowd ! The majority of 
those who have land, are more strongly in¬ 
clined to the planting of the latter. Plums 
cannot be grown successfully over so large an 
area of territory as can the other fruits 
named: hence, in my opinion, where the 
climate and soil are suitable, the possibili¬ 
ties for profitable returns from the invest¬ 
ment are in favor of the plums.” 
“ What gave plum-growing its ‘ boom ? ’ ” L— 
“It has been well advertised! For the 
past 10 or 12 years, interest in this fruit has 
been growing all over the« country. This has 
developed some valuable new varieties. The Cali¬ 
fornia growers have greatly aided this ‘boom.’ Un¬ 
doubtedly, the choicest varieties of plums that have 
ever been introduced, have been brought out within 
a few years by Luther Burbank. So far as beauty, 
large size and luscious quality are concerned,J^they 
have never been equaled.” 
“ But won’t the business be overdone ? ” 
“ Yes and no. The markets are now frequently 
overstocked with varieties that are not wanted. By 
this, I mean those common sorts that are more gen¬ 
erally produced by careless growers ; but those choice 
and tempting sorts that are required for our city fruit 
stands, and are most valued by our best families for 
preserving, are not yet produced in quantities equal 
to the demand, and will not be for a long time.” 
“ What about varieties ? ” 
“ The following out of 50 or 60 sorts, 'after 'careful 
test, have proved -to^be*the most- satisfactory- to -me, 
because of their period of ripening and good quali¬ 
ties for long-distance shipments : Field, the Damsons, 
Burbank, Reine Claude, German Prune, Italian Prune 
and Grand Duke.” 
“ Any special rules for cultivating the plum ? ” 
“ The plum orchard should annually be thoroughly 
cultivated, so as not to allow the growth of weeds to 
rob the soil of the nourishment that the tree needs, 
and to which it is entitled. The plum is a surface¬ 
rooting tree ; hence, by thorough cultivation, I do not 
mean the deep plowing which sometimes is given 
young trees. My own plan is to keep the soil so con¬ 
stantly stirred that weeds shall have no chance for 
growth, and that in periods of protracted drought, 
such as we have had during the past summer, there 
shall be less evaporation of the moisture required for 
the health and vigor of the tree.” 
“ In a few words, what is the history of your ideal 
tree from planting to picking? How do you care for it?” 
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S. D. WILLARD. A VETERAN FRUIT GROWER. Fig. 265. 
“The annual cultivation last referred to, coupled 
with such liberal applications of plant food as may 
seem to be required to produce a healthy growth, and 
insure the development of a vigorous foliage that will 
be carried through the season; the latter is an im¬ 
portant essential in the production of quality in any 
fruit. Annual pruning is equally as important as the 
other features named, and should be performed only 
during the seasons of the year when the tree is in a 
dormant condition. The choicest peaches, apples or 
pears are produced only by such judicious thinning of 
the fruit as may be required at the proper season of 
the year. Our most practical and best fruit growers 
have all learned this lesson, and the wise men practice 
it. If essential in connection with the fruits named, 
it is doubly so in the production of good plums.” 
“ How far apart should the trees be in the orchard ?’’ 
“ As a rule, I think about 16 or 18 feet apart is a 
safe distance to be recommended ; but while this is so, 
I would myself, on high-priced land, set them closer. 
However, when doing so, I would resort to such high 
feeding as, in my judgment, would be required to 
promote the best results.” 
“What insect pests and fungous diseases trouble 
you ? ” 
“ We rarely suffer from any insect pest except the 
curculio, and I have never found anything equal to 
the jarring process for disposing of this enemy of the 
plum grower. The process is very simple, and if fol¬ 
lowed assiduously for a few days after the fruit is 
formed, will virtually insure the crop.” 
“ What is the best soil for plums ? ” 
“ Had you asked me this question 10 years since, I 
would most assuredly have said a heavy clay loam ; 
but within a few years past, I have seen some of the 
best plum orchards that have ever come to my notice 
grown upon a light, sandy loam ; hence, previous 
theories in regard to this, have been upset.” 
“ What is the best plant-food—stable ma¬ 
nure or fertilizer ? ” 
“ A fair proportion of each in my opinion 
is best adapted to the needs of this fruit. I 
think that, in most stable manure, we are 
likely to get too much nitrogenous matter ; 
hence, I am a believer in the use of such fer¬ 
tilizers as will give us potash and phosphoric 
acid. In my own experience, I have found 
wood ashes of more value than anything else 
I have ever used for plant food. By this, 1 
mean in combination with a reasonable 
amount of stable manure.” 
. “ Now tell us, in a paragraph, the story of 
a successful plum tree.” 
“The successful plum tree is one of mod¬ 
erate growth in the nursery, on a sMl that 
has not been over-stimulated for its produc¬ 
tion, has been planted with care, cultivated 
and grown intelligently by a man of suffi¬ 
cient liberality to bestow upon it the same 
liberal treatment that would be given to a 
thoroughbred animal; i. e., protected, cared 
for and fed with consideration up to such 
time as a bounteous crop of fruit may have 
matured ready for harvesting. This should 
be picked and handled carefully, in baskets, 
provided especially for this purpose, and in 
them transferred to the packing house or 
barn, where it should be assorted and graded 
carefully as regards size and quality, all 
being so nicely done that the producer would 
feel proud to have his name appear upon the 
package on whatever market it might be 
shipped. The product thus handled, finding 
^ its way into the hands of an honest city com¬ 
mission man, of which, I believe, there are 
35 ... 
many in all of our cities, will furnish con¬ 
vincing proof of the fact that there are 
successful plum trees. In fact, plums and currants 
make a good fruit team ; but it must be remembered 
that both require the best of care.” 
A Talk About Currants. 
“What has been your experience with currants? 
What variety do you advise ? ” 
“ Some 20 years since, I began the cultivation of the 
currant for fruit in a small way, starting with the 
Red and White Dutch, and following with the plant¬ 
ing of Cherry, Versaillaise, Victoria, White Gondouin, 
White Grape, Prince Albert, and some others, and 
later on, with Fay’s Prolific, Moore’s Ruby, President 
Wilder, and White Imperial. Many of the first crops 
that were raised were sold as high as 10 and 12 cents 
per pound; but I soon learned that the market de¬ 
mands were for certain specific varieties to the ex¬ 
clusion of others ; hence, several were discarded after 
due experiment, either because they did not posses 
