736 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
November 3 
Farmers’ Club. 
[Every query must be accompanied by tilt 
name and address of the writer to insure atten* 
tlon. Before asking a question, please see 
whether it is not answered in our advertising 
columns. Ask only a few questions at one time. 
Put questions on a separate piece of paper.] 
Lawrence Pear on Quince. 
D. 7). C., Dayton, O .—I would like to ask 
you how the Lawrence pear succeeds on 
the quince? It is such a grand pear as a 
standard, but is so long in coming into 
bearing that it is very discouraging to 
plant in a commercial orchard. 
Ans. —Lawrence does very well as a 
dwarf. By setting the trees deep enough 
for the pear wood to send out roots 
above the quince stock they may be 
made to serve both as dwarfs and stand¬ 
ards; for, after they have borne abun¬ 
dantly as dwarfs the pear roots will give 
renewed vigor and continue their life 
and increase their size much beyond that 
of mere dwarfs. h. e. van deman. 
Apples for New Jersey. 
M. O. T., Redbanlc, N. J .—What do you 
know about the following varieties of ap¬ 
ples: Summer King, Oldenburg, Wealthy, 
Mammoth Blacktwig or Paragon, Sutton 
and Rome Beauty? Which, if any, of them 
are as productive, rapid growing, nealthy 
and hardy in tree and fruit, as fine a color 
and as profitable for a commercial or¬ 
chard in this section, as the Ben Davis? 
The Ben Davis, with us, bears well every 
year. 
Ans. —All of the varieties mentioned 
are good reliable bearers red in color, or 
much striped with red, and, generally 
speaking, profitable for northeastern 
New Jersey. Summer King is second 
early, and one of the most dependable 
of its season, although not extensively 
grown. Oldenburg is a little later, not 
high in quality but cooks well, and is a 
heavy and early bearer. It holds a 
strong place in market, and is excellent 
as a filler among permanent trees, ow¬ 
ing to its habit of early bearing. Mam¬ 
moth Blacktwig is a synonym of an ex- 
cellentseedlingofWinesap, that is called 
Arkansas and Arkansaw. Paragon is 
wrongly applied to this apple, because 
there is another seedling of Winesap 
bearing that name correctly. Sutton is 
almost untried in New Jersey, but it will 
probably do well there. Rome Beauty 
is proving to be well adapted to regions 
as far north as New York, and is rarely 
equaled in color, smoothness and general 
good qualities for Winter use. To com¬ 
pare these varieties with Ben Davis is 
hardly fair, because it is the leading 
market variety of to-day. I doubt 
whether any of the above will pay as 
well in dollars and cents. 
h. e. van deman. 
The Value of Wind-Breaks. 
R. D. L., Penn Yan, N. Y.—l have a young 
apple orchard, which is in a very windy lo¬ 
cation, and have thought of setting a thick 
row of maple, chestnut or some ever¬ 
greens, or else apple or pear, for protec¬ 
tion. I object to the forest trees owing to 
the amount of ground shaded and taken 
up. Which would be best, what varieties 
and how far apart should they be set? 
Ans. —The subject of orchard wind¬ 
breaks is one that is rather hotly dis¬ 
cussed among practical fruit growers. 
Their best use, so far as I have seen 
and heard from others, is not in keeping 
off the cold winds of Winter in the East¬ 
ern States, but in preventing the Sum¬ 
mer winds from shaking off the fruit. 
It is largely so in Kansas and other 
Western States south of the extreme cold 
regions of the upper Mississippi Valley. 
Mr. Weilhouse, the largest apple grower 
in the world, has repeatedly stated to 
me personally, and in public audiences 
also, that he “preferred to make the 
wind-breaks about his apple orchards of 
apple trees.” By this he meant and ex¬ 
plained that the first four rows of the 
orchard would break the force of the 
winds, and they have genuine winds in 
Kansas, as well as if they were forest 
trees. Of course, taller trees would be 
somewhat more effective as wind¬ 
breaks, but their non-bearing would 
fully offset their greater protective qual¬ 
ities. The first row or two of apple trees 
are of little value, because they are 
robbed by the forest trees, if one wishes 
to grow forest trees for their beauty, 
shade and timber and can afford the 
use of the ground it is all right to have 
wind-breaks of them. As to varieties, 
the Sugar maple. White elm, chestnut 
and tulip tree are excellent. Of ever¬ 
greens there is none better and few so 
good as Norway spruce. It is well to mix 
the kinds in making a plantation of 
them, and I would suggest using all of 
these, if any. h. e. van deman. 
An Ailinq Plum Tree. 
D. L., Killingworth, Conn.— What made my 
three year old Abundance plum tree get 
all over soft gum this Fall at all scars? 
It has all fallen off now. The tree is 
healthy-looking, grew about two feet this 
year, and can find no borers or anything 
at work on it. I did not prune it this 
year, nor did it bear this year. 
Ans. —Just why this tree was affected 
by gummy excrescences I am not able to 
tell, more than to say that this seems to 
occur with the Abundance and some oth¬ 
er varieties of the Japan class, and 
sometimes with those of other classes. 
Nothing can be done to prevent or stop 
it, so far as I know. It is simply a con¬ 
stitutional derangement of some kind 
that causes the sap to exude, and when 
it does so it dries into a gum. As no 
evil seems to have resulted in this case 
I could not advise any other course than 
such good treatment as any tree ought 
to have. h. e. van deman. 
Hard to Kill Moles. 
W. B. E., Edgewood, Park, Pa .—Kindly in¬ 
form me how I can get rid of small 
“moles,” or what they call here “dibler.” 
They are too small to spring a mole trap; 
at least, I have failed to catch any that 
way. Can they be poisoned, if so, how? 
They are doing considerable damage in my 
strawberry bed. 
Ans. —It depends on whether these lit¬ 
tle animals are true moles or shrews, 
and therefore carnivorous, or grain and 
root-eating rodents or mice. The lat¬ 
ter can be poisoned by soaking seeds and 
grain in a strong solution of strychnine 
which may be sprinkled in their run¬ 
ways. There are several species of small 
shrews, including the Star-nosed mole, 
but they are usually found in low 
grounds or near water courses, and do 
but little damage to vegetation. As their 
food is composed almost entirely of liv¬ 
ing insects and earthworms it is diffi¬ 
cult to poison them. The common gar¬ 
den moles can be greatly reduced in 
number by persistent trapping. 
Volunteer Tomatoes . Ridging Up. 
G. C. G., Neioport, N. Y.— Under Ruralisms 
(page 658) an article on dwarf tomatoes 
prompts me to make some inquiries. Near¬ 
ly 20 years ago, while working in a Florida 
orange grove, Just set out, I found plenty 
of tomato plants bearing fruit and no 
vegetables had been planted thereon, so 
where did these tomatoes come from? If 
the seed was carried thither by birds or 
animals why did it not produce full-sized 
fruit? The natives declared it to be the 
wild tomato, p.nd asserted that it was 
poisonous, but as I gathered and ate two 
quarts of the fruit, as a supplement to my 
regular dinner, and am still alive, the as¬ 
sertion seems to be unfounded. Another 
thing in regard to tomatoes: Is it ever ad¬ 
visable to plant them on a ridge or on top 
of a mound when the soil is heavy? 
Ans. —Volunteer tomatoes, or those 
springing from seeds which survive the 
Winter in the open, are generally small 
and of inferior quality regardless of the 
variety that produced the seeds. The 
supposition is that only the seeds hav¬ 
ing a tendency to reversion, and there¬ 
fore containing the greatest vegetative 
power, can survive repeated frosts. To¬ 
matoes from such volunteer plants are 
often bitter and disagreeable, but not 
really poisonous. When the soil is in¬ 
clined to be heavy and moist it is a good 
plan to plant tomatoes or any other 
warmth-loving vegetables on ridges or 
mounds, where earliness is desired. 
When moist soil is ridged up it dries out 
and warms up much faster than when 
lying flat. For this reason early sweet 
corn is frequently planted in high ridges 
or hills, and germinates much more 
readily than if planted in the usual 
manner. Of course there is an increased 
danger of damage frofti drought should 
the season prove unusually dry, but that 
can oe greatly lessened by frequent cul¬ 
tivation. 
Fertilizing Glass-House Tomatoes. 
A. L. J., Chateauguay Basin, P. Q .—Will 
you tell me how the tomatoes were fertil¬ 
ized that fruited during the Winter in the 
Rural glass-house. Is the process diffi¬ 
cult? I have some planted as an experi¬ 
ment, and should like very much to know 
how to get them to fruit well. 
Ans. —The tomato plants in question 
were grown from seeds planted in early 
September. By November 1 they were 
well established in four-inch pots, and 
were transferred to a border in the 
greenhouse, eight inches deep and 15 
inches wide, filled with a compost 
of two-thirds good garden soil and one- 
third fine old manure, well mixed to¬ 
gether. They were placed 20 inches 
apart in the borders, trained to one stem 
and given no additional fertilization un¬ 
til several clusters of fruit had been set; 
then applications of liquid made by 
steeping chicken and stable manures in 
water were made weekly, alternating 
the kind each time. The manure infu¬ 
sions were made in the proportion of 
one bushel of solid matter to a barrel 
(33 gallons) of water. Two or three 
times during the Winter a surface 
dressing of wood ashes was applied, and 
on one occasion a small handful of 
ground bone was sprinkled about each 
plant and dibbled in the soil. The idea 
was to give all the soluble plant food 
that could be assimilated without over¬ 
doing tne matter. The large plants, 
eight to 10 feet long, loaded with toma¬ 
toes and heavy foliage, required a great 
quantity of water, which was given with 
an unsparing hand. 
For the land’s sake, use Bowker’s Fer¬ 
tilizers. They enrich the earth.— Adv. 
SEED POTATOES. 
FULL LIST. PURE STOCK. 
We want good reliable Agents to take orders. 
LIBERAL COMMISSIONS. Address 
LECLARE & MANNING. Farm Seeds, Brighton, N.Y. 
"peach Trees.—One year from bud. 2 to 
* R. S. JOHNSTON. Box 4, Stockley, I)e). 
TRCCC at Wholesale prices. Apple, Plum 
I ntCw and Pears at $8 per 100. Don’t buy any 
kind of stock until you get our prices. Catalogue 
Free. RELIANCE NURSERY, Box 10, Geneva, N. Y 
Look and Read This! 
We save you money on all kinds of FRUIT TREES 
and Plants. Apple Trees, tine, at $0 and $10 per 100. 
Peach Trees, $2 per 100 and up. Send us list of your 
wants, and ask for price list. 
ERNST S NURSERIES, Moscow, Ohio. 
200,000 Peach Trees. 
We offer a choice lot of Peach trees, grown from 
Tennessee pits. These trees are healthy and fine. 
Address STEPHEN HOYT’S SONS. New Canaan. Ct. 
K TREES SUCCEED WHERE 
Largest Nursery. OTHERS FAIL. 
rut/ Rook Free. Result of 76 years’ experience. 
IK BROS., Louisiana, Mo.; Dansville, N.Y. 
YORK IMPERIAL - KIEFFER. 
One tree to a carload. 
Business trees at business prices. (They are bear¬ 
ers.) Inducements to Peach buyers Let us 
quote you on your want list. 
WOODV1EW NURSERIES, Box 100, Uriah, Pa. 
Trees. Plants. 
We have all kinds of Nursery Stock. 
Catalogue Free. 
JOS. H. BLACK, SON & CO., 
HIGIITSTOWN, N. J. 
Paragon Chestnut Trees. 
A large and fine lot. All grafted on Paragon 
Seedlings. Address 
H. M. ENGLE & SON, Marietta, Pa. 
ni IUTC-C ABB 4GE. New Early H. Succes- 
■ LBH I w sion, Early and Late Flat Dutch, 
Charleston, Jersey Waketield, etc. $1 per 1,000 ; 75c. 
per 10.000. LETTUCE.— Big Boston, Boston Mar¬ 
ket. White Loaf. Tennis Ball, etc. $1 per 1,000; 7 c 
per 10,000 Cash with order. 
J.S. LINTHICUM, Woodwardvllle, Md. 
I am now booking orders for 
LUGRETIA DEWBERRY PLANTS 
1 grow sixty acres of this trult for market, and find 
It the most profitable of all the small fruits. Inci¬ 
dentally, in growing so many for market, 1 have a 
verv fine lot of plants (no finer can be produced', 
which lam selling for from one-third to one-half 
less than most nurserymen offer them, and I could 
not sell at these prices were 1 not growing them 
largely for fruit. November is the best time to plant. 
Correspondence solicited. Catalogue free. 
W. E. ALLEN, Salisbury, Md. 
Seed Potatoes^ 
-Thegreat Irish Cobbler, Ea. White 
5 Maule's Commercial. Early Harvest 
and others. Sample lb., 16c. postage, tuber, !0c.. barrel 
or car lots. Smith’s Potato Farm, Manchester, N. Y. 
D#U<***A*- EarI y Ohio,Hebron, Rose, Fortune, 
I UIClTUwS Hurvest, Bovee, Queen. Irish Cob¬ 
bler, ttood News, Stump the World, Thoroughbred, 
Uncle Sam. 85 kinds. C. W. Ford & Co., Fishers, N. Y 
Dill DC forfal l 
DULDO PLANTING. 
Hyacinths, Tulips, Crocus. Narcissus, Lillies, &c. 
Our New Bulb Catalogue is sent free to all. 
Besides giving much interesting information this 
book is bound in beautiful covers, showing the 
Spanish Iris. Jonquils and Narcissus in their natural 
coiors. Write to-day for a copy 
HENRY A. DREER, Philadelphia. Pa. 
The Counter Edition of our 
Garden and Farm Manual 
contains besides the very complete line 
of GARDEN AND FLOWER SEEDS a 
Great Variety of GARDEN AND FARM 
TOOLS and SPRAYING OUTFITS. Send 
for it. Send also for out Poultry Supply 
Catalogue. 
JOHNSON &, STOKES , 21 ‘ PHILADKLPH fA rCel 
ForestTrees, ForestTrees. 
Sugar. Norway, Sycamore, Silverleaf, and other 
Maples by the 1,000 or 10,000. Also Lindens, Poplars, 
Elms, Willows, Mountain Ash, Birch, etc., in large 
quantities, and Shrubbery by the acre. We can fur¬ 
nish trees from one to three inches in diameter. 
Address STEPHEN HOYT’S SONS, New Canaan, Ct. 
October Purple Plum Trees. 
The best of all of Mr. Burbank’s Plums. We offer 
a large stock of fine trees, one and two years old 
Address STEPHEN HOYT’S SONS. New Canaan, Ct. 
FREE 
Illustrated Catalogue 
of « hotce Evergreens, 
__Shrubs, Fr lilt and other 
Trees. If<>«i», Wutcr Lillies, etc. I'rioes 
low. Beautify your home at small expense. 
E. S. PETERSON t SONS, Box 15, Montrose, New York. 
Grape Vines 
Descriptive and Price List free. 
Currants, Gooseberries and other Small 
Fruit Plants. Extraquality. Warranted true. 
T. S. 1IUBBABD CO., FKEIJONIA, N. Y. 
SCRAPE VINES 
100 Varieties. Also Small Fruits, Trees, Ae. Best root¬ 
ed stock.Genuine, cheap. 8 sample vines mailed for 10c. 
Descrinti. e price-list free. LK1V18 KOKSCI1, kredonia, N. I. 
| UCITWfS-Bookall'aboutIt 4c. Tellshow to 
lall*WkIlU grow this great money maker. 
U Write to-day. AMERICAN GINSENG GARDENS, Rose Hill, N.X. 
AUL 8FLOWER SEED 
High grade Danish seed by mall, direct from the 
grower in Denmark, to your address, postpaid. 
Danish Snowball, X oz. 50c 1 oz. #1.60 1 lb. #18.00 
Dwarf Erfurt . X oz. 05c 1 oz. #1.85 1 lb. #22.00 
KAItLKOLLK. 840 E. Fullerton Av. Chicago, Ill. 
California Privet Hedge 
-100 strong plants for 
#2.50. Two samples 
for 10 cents. T. C. KEV1TT, Athenia, N. J. 
THE STORKS A: HARRISON CO., EAINESVILLE, OHIO. 
Leading American Nurserymen, offer one (if the Most Complete Assortments of 
FRUIT AND ORNAMENTAL TREES, SHRUBS, ROSES, BULBS, ETC. 
47 Years. 44 Greenhouses. lOOO Acres. Correspondence Solicited. Cut .aloe Free. 
For $5 
I will send, by express or freight, 1 Paragon, 1 Alpha, 1 Parry’s 
Giant, 1 Early Reliance, 1 English Walnut, 1 Japan Walnut, 
1 Pecan, 1 Bismarck Apple, 1 Dwarf Rocky Mt. Cherry, worth $8.20. Full line of 
Nursery Stock. Certificate. ARTHUR J. COLLINS, Moorestown, Burlington Co., N. J. 
Fall is the Best Time 
TO PLANT all the Trees, Plants, Vines and Shrubs, both Fruit, 
and Ornamental, that are listed. See our Autumn Catalogue. 
Send for it at once. The prices are right. 
T. J . DWYER & SON , 
Orange County Nurseries. Box 1, CORNWALL, N. Y. 
