Vol. LXII. No. 2767. 
NEW YORK, FEBRUARY 7, 1903. 
81 PER YEAR. 
BRIEF TALKS ABOUT FERTILIZERS. 
Canada Ashes for Fertilizer. 
What do you think of Canada ashes for an orchard? 
I have 80 acres and as some of it is very steep shall 
have to try the Plitchings plan. a. s. a. 
Illinois. 
Canada ashes, if unleached and of good quality, are 
excellent for an orchard. They do not contain any 
nitrogen, and this must be supplied in some way. Some 
growers use ashes and plow under crops of cow peas 
or clover. What can you buy the ashes for? When 
you use a ton of ashes you put on about 100 pounds of 
potash, 36 pounds of phosphoric acid and 600 pounds 
of lime. You can buy that amount of potash in 200 
pounds of muriate, worth in New York a little over 
$4. The phosphoric acid can be obtained in 250 pounds 
of acid phosphate which should cost about $1.50. You 
may not need the lime—certainly not every year. It 
will be a big job to put wood ashes on 80 acres, for 
you ought to use at least 1,500 pounds per acre to 
obtain results. We would figure the cost of muriate 
of potash and acid phosphate carefully before buying 
the Canada ashes. If you can buy fine ground bone 
at a fair figure you can safely use three parts bone to 
one of muriate. 
Fertilizers for Clover. 
T have a piece of ground, clay subsoil, that has been 
run very heavily in corn and wheat for many years. The 
ground will produce about 30 bushels of corn per acre. 
I desire to set this ground in Red clover in March or 
April. Does it need a commercial fertilizer? If so, give 
the best known Red clover fertilizer and the amount per 
acre; also the best method of applying it. I wish to 
force the clover for hay and early pasture. y. f. 
St. Douis, Mo. 
It is never safe for a stranger at a distance to at¬ 
tempt detailed advice about fertilizing soil that he has 
never seen. In many parts of the West such soil has 
responded well to applications of acid phosphate alone 
—using 400 pounds per acre. As a rule the clays are 
seldom lacking in potash. The acid phosphate appears 
to make potash available, besides supplying phos¬ 
phoric acid. We hear of western farms where clover 
has been kept up for years by the use of acid phos¬ 
phate alone. On our eastern farms we should use a 
complete fertilizer containing about two per cent of 
nitrogen, eight of phosphoric acid and seven of pot¬ 
ash. While in theory clover does not need nitrogen, 
on poor soils we have found that it pays to use a small 
quantity. We find that many western farmers on 
heavy soils seem to think that potash is not necessary 
to keep up the clover. In the case mentioned we think 
it will pay to use 300 pounds of acid phosphate and 
75 pounds of muriate of potash per acre broadcast. 
When to Fertilize Strawberries. 
When Is the best time to apply fertilizer on straw¬ 
berries, Spring or Fall? Some urge that all fertilizer 
should be applied to strawberries in the Spring when 
the plants are set, and none the next Fall or following 
Spring. What does The R. N.-Y. think about it? 
Maryland. o. j, k. 
Considering the nature of the plant and its habits 
of growth the most natural times for fertilizing are 
when the plants are set and when the fruit buds are 
forming. The object is to obtain a strong, vigorous 
growth during the Summer. The roots of the straw¬ 
berry plant are comparatively short. They do not run 
all over the field like those of corn or potatoes but 
rarely run much over a foot away from the plant. 
Therefore the fertilizer should be put up close to the 
plant and kept there. We would put 75 per cent of 
the fertilizer on a narrow strip where the plants are 
to stand at the time of setting. The remainder may 
be used in late August or early September. At this 
time the fruit buds which are to produce the next 
year’s crop are forming, and extra fertilizer may be 
needed. Some growers believe that the buds and the 
fruit are both produced in the Spring. The buds are 
formed before the fruit goes into Winter quarters— 
they are developed in Spring. Using fertilizer in the 
Spring has not paid me except when small quantities 
manure are alkaline, and so, if the scab germs are 
present the disease will be worse when these sub¬ 
stances are used on the crop. 
N. J. BACHELDER. Fig. 33. 
Grange Governor of New Hampshire. 
of nitrate of soda were used. This did not give more 
berries but produced larger ones, and also pushed th.e 
plants along in a dry season. 
Lime on Potatoes. 
When the potato crop has been planted in sandy loam, 
would you advise using 25 bushels of lime to the acre 
by harrowing in? Would this increase the yield? 
Philadelphia, Pa. -p. p. h. 
Lime will usually increase the crop of potatoes, yet 
it is not desirable to use it. The disease known as 
Potato scab is spread from one tuber to another by 
tiny germs. These germs are most active when the 
soil is alkaline. In a sour soil these germs are slow 
E. B. NORRIS. Fig. 34. 
Master New York State Grange. 
to grow and spread, but when lime is added the soil 
is neutralized or sweetened and thus the scab becomes 
much worse. The germs of the scab are often on the 
seed. They are also in most soils which are used fre¬ 
quently for potatoes. Lime, wood ashes and stable 
APPLE CONSUMERS’ LEAGUE PROBLEMS. 
An Apple Man Who Eats Oranges. 
H. S. Wiley; Dear Sir: I learned from The R. N.-Y. 
that you have been elected president of the American 
Apple Consumers’ League. I suppose you stand ready to 
explain all the workings of the League. How many 
baked apples do you think advisable to eat at one sitting? 
What would be the result to people of nervous tempera¬ 
ment? What variety of apples would you recommend 
for baking? But of course the variety which you have 
most largely in stoch would undoubtedly be the most ad¬ 
visable. Please explain everythin}? in minute detail, as 
I think some of becoming a member of the League.' Of 
course Grant Hitchings would recommend the Rome 
Beauty and a great many other varieties for baking. H. 
L. Brown* would simply say, “Just Baldwins.” Come to 
think of it, I am glad to say that I wasn’t in that deal, 
for I have just received from one of my old commission 
men a lovely box of navel oranges. albert W'ood 
Carlton Station, N. Y. 
President Wiley Talks Back. 
You cannot imagine my astonishment when I read 
the above letter. To think such a distinguished apple 
grower should ask to be instructed in relation to the 
principles of our League; a man who annually grows 
$5,000 to $7,000 worth of apples should be familiar 
with the customs and practices of the Apple Consum¬ 
ers’ League, and I am so sorry I cannot explain to 
you the benefits of our Order. Why? Because you 
are not eligible to membership. Any person who 
would accept and eat oranges instead of apples is ab¬ 
solutely disqualified to become a member. I fear 
Brother Brown, our secretary, and by the way, one 
of your townsmen, is not doing first-class missionary 
work, and by virtue of my office 1 have called him 
down. He writes me he will be more faithful. Mr. 
Brown aforesaid knows that commission man who 
sent you the oranges, and has given him to under¬ 
stand that apple is king in Orleans County. Treasurer 
Hitchings notifies me that you have sent in your 
membership fee, and suggests trying you on proba¬ 
tion, but this is not in accord with the constitution. 
_H. S. WII.EY. 
PLATFORM FOR FRUIT PICKERS. 
That agricultural drudgery has been wonderfully 
lightened by mechanical invention is evident to all. 
There is constant seeking for further means to sim¬ 
plify operations requiring hand labor, and devices, 
some of an obviously impractical nature, are con¬ 
stantly being worked out. The elevating platform 
for fruit pickers shown in Fig. 35 seems to belong to 
this class, although the picture makes it out a very 
taking “proposition,” judging from the comfortable 
attitude of the individual in the cage who is leisurely 
removing apples almost the size of his head from near 
the top of a tree about 50 feet high. One of the chief 
claims for this contraption is that fruits may be 
picked directly into the barrel or package and thus all 
further handling avoided, but a matter-of-fact market 
demands more rigid grading than would be practicable 
under such conditions unless the trees should be re¬ 
peatedly gone over. One may imagine such an ap¬ 
paratus effective on solid, level ground, and about 
widely separated trees, but it would seem rather un¬ 
certain on steep hillsides where the finest apples are 
wont to grow, or among closely planted or unsym- 
metrical trees. The tendency among commercial fruit 
growers is to head their trees low so that the fruit 
may be largely picked from the ground, or from short, 
easily managed ladders. If this elevating platform 
has a place at all it is about old-fashioned high-headed 
trees such as shown in the cut. 
