1904 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
323 
DOES GRASS POISON THE APPLE? 
Something over a year ago The R. N.-Y. published 
an article on “Plant Relations” by the present writer. 
The gist of the article was that in nature there are 
definite associations of plants adapted to live to¬ 
gether; and that, on the other hand, some plants 
positively refuse to be neighbors. It was suggested 
that there may be poor combinations among culti¬ 
vated plants just as there are among the wild ones. 
That peach and potato roots will not intermingle 
without detriment to both, was cited as an example. 
Further experiments in the field and In pot cultures, 
both to be continued, have strengthened the writer’s 
opinion that there is much in the above theory. The 
third report of the well-known Woburn Experimen¬ 
tal Fruit Farm, conducted by the Duke of Bedford 
and Spencer U. Pickering, English experimenters, is 
just at hand. In it there is much to show that two 
specific plants, grass and apples, are by no means 
congenial neighbors quite aside from their competi¬ 
tion for food, moisture and air—that one poisons the 
other. The report shoves that the experiments as to 
the relations of grass and apple were carefully planned 
and have been well carried out both in the field and 
in pot cultures. The experiments began in 1894 and 
have been carried on without interruption up to this 
time, and are the most complete and satisfactory ac¬ 
counts of the behavior of grass and trees planted to¬ 
gether that have come to the knowledge of the writer. 
The conclusion reached should interest every one in 
this country who has taken part in the recent dis¬ 
cussion regarding grass-mulching orchards, even 
though English and American conditions may be 
radically different. The following paragraphs, taken 
from the introduction, give the gist of the report: 
“As to the general effect produced by grass on 
young apple trees, the results of the last few years 
have brought forward nothing which can in any way 
modify our previous conclusions as to the intensely 
deleterious nature of this effect, and we can only re¬ 
peat, that no ordinary form of ill-treatment—includ¬ 
ing, even the combination of bad planting, growth 
of weeds and total neglect—is so harmful to the trees 
as growing grass around them. The evidence which 
we shall bring forward will, we believe, be sufficient 
to dispose of the views that the grass effect is not 
due to an interference with either the food supply, 
the water supply nor the air supply of the tree, and 
that it must, in all probability, be attributed to the 
action of some product, direct or indirect, of grass 
growth which exercises an active poisonous effect on 
the root of the tree.” a. p. hedrick. 
Michigan Agricultural College. 
R. N.-Y.—Our own young trees planted in sod with 
a hoed space around them well covered with a mulch 
are certainly not “poisoned.” 
PEPPERS A PROFITABLE CROP. 
Hints on Their Production. 
The pepper crop has grown from its infancy In a 
comparatively short time; 25 years ago 10 or 15 acres 
of this fruit would have satisfied all demands, but 
year after year the acreage has been increased till 
now, and prices are quite as good as at the beginning. 
In this and other New Jersey counties as far south 
as Gloucester and Salem the pepper crop has reached 
thousands of acres annually. It is now one of the 
leading money crops of the New Jersey trucker. I 
have often seen from 2,000 to 3,000 barrels of this 
fruit shipped daily from this section late in the sea¬ 
son. The consumers of this fruit are mostly foreign¬ 
ers, principally Italians. These people consume vast 
quantities of the fruit. The pepper crop is one so 
easily raised and handled that it is well worth con¬ 
sidering. There are few enemies to disturb It, and 
no fungus diseases to fear. It is not a very gross 
feeder, and you have from early July till frost In 
which to gather your crop. The plant is not easily 
killed by light frost when fully matured, but on the 
contrary is quite easily damaged when young. The 
plant will grow almost anywhere, and produce some 
fruit, but will well repay good soil and good cultiva¬ 
tion. Any good corn or potato land will grow a crop 
of peppers if properly handled, and pay a profit most 
seasons, and I think a larger per cent of seasons than 
a number of other crops that are grown by truckers. 
HOW WE GROW THE CROP.—Plants are grown 
under glass similar to tomato and egg plants, trans¬ 
planted or not as desired, but one should have much 
earlier fruit from transplanted plants, and the early 
fruit is what pays best. The plant requires two weeks 
longer time in the bed, because it is slower to germi¬ 
nate, and of slower growth. The pepper plant should 
not be set in the field till weather becomes settled and 
all danger from frost is past. We usually set from 
May 20 to 25. 
PREPARING FOR THE CROP—After selecting a 
suitable piece of ground, which should be one that is 
neither too stiff nor too light, also one that hold3 
moisture well and does not bake, plow and prepare 
as for other truck crops; lay off in rows four feet 
apart, using a double moldboard plow to open rows. 
In rows spread well-rotted stable or barnyard manure 
worked fine before using at the rate of eight to 10 
loads per acre, using on top of this 300 to 400 pounds 
complete fertilizer. Make rows by throwing two fur¬ 
rows together over the manure and fertilizer with 
turning plow; rake off top, leaving row two or three 
inches above natural level when ready for the plants. 
When soil chosen for this crop is fairly light and 
naturally warm I prefer to use manure broadcast be- 
READY FOR MIXING GRAIN. Fig. 137. See Page:333. 
fore plowing, and only use fertilizer in the row; in 
this event I would use from 400 to 500 pounds fer¬ 
tilizer per acre. I set plants from 15 to 20 inches 
apart in the rows; the larger varieties requiring more 
room than do the small ones like County Fair. 
VARIETIES.—There are numerous varieties, and 
all have their merits and demerits. A great many 
are so near alike it would take an expert to see any 
difference. I have been using a sweet, also a hot bull- 
nose and a cow-horn called the County Fair. Some 
growers claim they can get more clear profit from 
the County Fair variety than any other, while others 
claim the reverse. I am using from two to four va¬ 
rieties, and am undecided which is the one above all 
others to recommend. 
CULTIVATION.—This should begin almost imme¬ 
diately after plants are set to loosen up soil that has 
become packed by horses and men while setting the 
plants. This should be kept up at necessary intervals 
the whole season. Remember we are growing a crop 
MOTHER’S LITTLE,WOOD CARRIER. Fig. 138. 
that produces fruit from late June till frost; no mat¬ 
ter how late the frost arrives you will have green and 
half-grown fruit. On so<ls poor in plant food an addi¬ 
tional application of nitrogen, usually in the form of 
nitrate of soda, when crop is fairly well set, Is of 
decided benefit in bringing out the crop. 
MARKETING.—We begin picking from June 28 to 
July 4, according to variety and season; pack in to¬ 
mato crates holding about 100 fruits or more accord¬ 
ing to variety. We continue this package till price 
falls to about 40 cents per crate; then we ship in 
barrels the remainder of the season. When the price 
falls much below $1 per barrel stop picking; It will 
rise again. This is one of the main advantages of 
this crop; we can gather it when we please, and 
should a part of the fruit get ripe all the better, they 
are worth more red than they are green. It is not 
advisable to allow any fruit to ripen, however, till 
crop is all set, because once a plant begins ripening 
its seed it fails to set any more fruit. 
YIELD.—I have known the crop to yield 400 barrels 
per acre, but this is the exception, not the average. 
It is not uncommon, however, to see whole fields 
yielding 300 barrels per acre. For several seasons the 
price for early pickings has reached $3 per package, 
and even more for that gathered in our more south¬ 
ern counties. The main part of the crop, which comes 
in September and October, usually sells from 80 cents 
to $1 per barrel in the New York market, ripe or 
red ones bringing from $1.50 to $2 per barrel, accord¬ 
ing to quality and variety. o. c. hulsart. 
THE EDUCATED FARMER. 
The following letter was written by W. H. Bowker to 
the New England Farmer. It is of special interest now 
that agricultural education is being discuss;!: 
My thought is that anyone is educated, in a sense, 
who can do any one thing well, but I suppose the 
broader definition of education means the seeing of 
things in the right proportion and perspective, which 
is not possible without knowledge of events, past and 
present, and without experience in life—a trained 
mind, which, like the trained hand, knows how to use 
the tools at its command, books, facts and experience. 
It is therefore true that one’s education is never 
complete. 
Education is a great subject, and our ideas of it 
change with changing times. A century ago the min¬ 
ister was thought to be the best educated man, and 
yet we think of him to-day as perhaps being the least 
educated, except along one line. I sometimes feel that 
the up-to-date, scientific farmer, if he knows how to 
express himself, that is, has been properly trained in 
English, is the most broadly educated man of them 
all; at least in all matters pertaining to material af¬ 
fairs. Just think what an educated farmer must 
know! 
To begin with, he should have some knowledge of 
geology, which deals with rocks, soils and their or- 
gin; in addition he must have some knowledge of 
chemistry to know their composition and their re¬ 
quirements, how to treat them and how to fertilize 
them. He must know something of botany to be 
familiar with the character and habits of plants, the 
things which he is to grow. Neither can he neglect 
biology, which concerns the lower orders of me, the 
unseen forces which are constantly at work to build 
up animal and vegetable life, or to destroy it—the 
bacteria in the soil, without which no living thing 
can grow; or the blights which are so destructive 
to life. He must have some knowledge of veterinary 
science to successfully deal with the diseases of ani¬ 
mals; likewise, some knowledge of entomology, to 
know the insect pests and how to combat them. When 
he comes to survey and drain his land he will find 
a knowledge of mathematics and engineering of great 
service to him; also a knowledge of mechanics to 
know how to deal with farm machinery. 
Then we have the business side and his relations 
as a citizen to the community in which he lives. 1 
believe the successful farmer would make a successful 
business man anywhere. As a land owner and em¬ 
ployer of labor he must be conversant with political 
and social economy, and as a citizen he must keep in 
touch with the affairs of the day. In short, he must 
be an all-’round man, and the up-to-date, successful 
farmer is such a man in my judgment. There are 
thousands of just such men engaged in farming all 
over the country; men who know a lot, and yet if 
they lack at all, it is in the ability to express what 
they know, either on their feet or on paper. In my 
extensive dealings with men all over the country I 
have found that the illiterate man, so-called, is not 
necessarily an uneducated man. 
There are many well-educated, all-’round men con¬ 
nected with our agricultural colleges and experiment 
stations, and more will be sent from these institu¬ 
tions. I believe more would have been sent up to the 
present time if the training in our country schools 
had been of a different character. We ought to have 
more nature studies taught in these schools, studies 
that will interest the boy and girl in the common 
things about them—rocks, soils, trees, bird, insects, 
etc., and these subjects would be so interesting to 
them that they would want to know more about them, 
and would turn to our agricultural colleges for ad¬ 
vanced information. If our ministers in the country 
parishes could first attend an agricultural college be¬ 
fore they went to the divinity school, I believe they 
would be better fitted to preach to their flocks. They 
certainly would be more in touch and sympathy with 
them than they now are. What better way to lead a 
man from “Nature up to Nature’s God” than through 
a knowledge of the sciences which deal with Nature 
in all its Infinite variety? 
