1901 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
Dutch, while others do not think so. It is doubtless 
somewhat changed by the climatic and other condi¬ 
tions under which it grows. 
The Vigorous Ben Davis. 
Why do you recommend top-grafting the Rome Beauty 
on Ben Davis roots? My experience is that Rome Beauty 
root dies first, while Ben Davis dies first at top. Is this 
your reason? Would you advise me as to the profitable¬ 
ness of planting Stayman apple in southeastern Ohio? 
Newport, O. r. p. d. 
The Ben Davis tree is so strong and vigorous that 
it makes a good stock upon which to graft almost 
any variety of apple; and as Rome Beauty is deficient 
in hardiness of trunk and roots I recommend it for 
insertion upon the Ben Davis. Yes, I think Staynian 
will be a very good apple to plant in southern Ohio 
and anywhere that Winesap is profitable, because it 
is a seedling of that variety and much like it in all 
respects, except that the fruit is larger, and the tree 
much better in habit of growth. 
Transiflaiitiiig Large Peacli Trees. 
On the south side of the old house at my home are two 
old peach trees, whose fruit is admired by all who see it. 
The trees must be removed to make room for another 
house. Can I get them to grow again, by resetting in 
another place? Some have said eut off their tops. What 
is your opinion? a. m. 
Wolcottville, Ind. 
If these trees are not very old they are probably 
worth the trouble and expense of transplanting. 
This can be done by cutting back the tops to where 
the branches are an inch or two in diameter, and 
digging up a large ball of earth with the roots. Very 
large trees of various kinds are successfully moved 
in this way, and if great care is used the branches 
need very little heading back. As the cost of a new 
tree is very little, and it will soon grow into bear¬ 
ing, it is doubtful as to the profit of transplanting 
large ones, unless for the preservation of a variety. 
These trees may be seedlings which ought to be pre¬ 
served, but if not, and the variety is known, young 
trees might be better than the old ones. 
Girdling Apple Trees. 
Is it desirable to girdle apple trees to make them bear? 
It has been so advocated, but I have not seen anything 
regarding it lately. I was always led to believe that 
girdling a tree kills It. If it is a good thing, how is It 
done and what time of year is best? j. s. 
Salamanca, N. T. 
Girdling some kinds of trees will cause them to 
bear very soon, and is not injurious to them if it is 
done at the right time and in the right way, while 
others would be killed by the same treatment. The 
apple and pear I have sometimes girdled with good 
effect, but the peach, cherry and other stone-fruit 
trees would have died outright. The time to do the 
work is in June, when the bark peels readily, but in 
no case must the tender, sticky growth under the 
bark be scraped or shaved off. A ring of bark several 
inches wide may be taken off entirely around the 
tree, or several longitudinal strips removed, with 
intervening spaces of bark left between them. Rings 
cut to the wood without removing any bark are some¬ 
times effectual in causing tardy trees to bear early. 
A Talk About Chestnuts. 
I should like some Information concerning chestnut 
culture. I have about 10 acres grafted with Paragon, 
McFarland and Coe on native sprouts. Some of the 
Paragons are bearing. The nuts are large and of fine 
quality, but the coarse growth is objectionable, being apt 
to blow out, also making too large a growth for the 
native stock. How is the quality of McFarland and Coe? 
Do you think that there are any better varieties for this 
purpose? a. c. s. 
Pattenburg, N. J. 
The Paragon is one of the best of the foreign class 
of chestnuts to unite with our native species, so far 
as experience has gone, but other varieties may prove 
better in time. I feel quite sure that if the stumps 
were cut at an angle of 45 degrees or more, and the 
scion set at the top, instead of the old plan of a 
square-cut stump, the wound would heal over much 
more quickly and lessen the danger of breaking off. 
I set all of my scions that way. McFarland and Coe 
are of the Japan class and are thought to be very 
good for the purpose mentioned. I do not how know 
of any that are better for uniting with our native 
stocks than those mentioned. 
Some So-called New Apple.s. 
Would you Inform me about the following varieties of 
apples? They are catalogued by a certain firm, but I 
do not see any account of them elsewhere; Chicago, 
Champion, Black Ben Davis, Apple of Commerce, In¬ 
gram, Senator, Delicious, Stayman, and Aikin. Are 
they all right, or are they old varieties under new names? 
Bonaparte, Iowa. H. w. 
Collins is the approved name of the apple which is 
called Champion by some. Black Ben Davis may be 
distinct from Gano, but it surely resembles it so 
closely that there is no observable difference. Last 
December I tested several specimens under both 
names grown by the same person in southern Illinois, 
and they were all alike in every particular. This 
was the unanimous opinion of several persons who 
tested them. Reagan is another name that has been 
given the variety in Arkansas. Commerce is called 
Beach in the official list of the Arkansas Experiment 
Station. Oliver is the correct name of the variety 
called Senator. Ingram has no other name, so far 
as I know, and is a promising Winter apple. Stay- 
man is another very good Winter apple that will 
probably prove better than its parent, the Winesap. 
Aikin is rather small, not a late keeper, but very 
bright red and of excellent quality. Chicago and 
Delicious I have never seen. It would be unwise to 
plant more than a few trees of any of these kinds, 
except Stayman, until more is known of them. 
Grafting Cliestimts and Peaches. 
Which method is best for grafting chestnuts and which 
for peaches? Would it be better to bud them? Also, 
is it better to wait until the buds are pushing (having 
kept the scions dormant), or graft same time as apple? 
2. Will you recommend a list of apples for succession in 
the latitude of southern Pennsylvania or northern Mary¬ 
land? G. E. w. 
Goshen, Pa. 
1. In my own experience I have found one of the 
bark methods of grafting best for the chestnut. The 
first thing to do is to cut the scions and store them 
v/here they will be kept so cool that they will not 
start in the least until the stocks to be grafted have 
begun to show green leaves, and the bark will peel. 
Then the stumps are cut as for cleft or split graft¬ 
ing and the bark slit with a sharp knife on one side, 
instead of splitting wood and all. The scion having 
been sharpened into a long wedge, and from one side 
only, it is pressed down between the bark and wood 
of the stock where the slit was made. It should then 
be tied firmly in place with a small string and the 
entire wound thoroughly waxed. Some have suc¬ 
ceeded with cleft-grafting at the ordinary season, 
as with apples, but I have done well that way. 
Peach trees are exceedingly difficult to graft, and 
should be budded instead. 2. As it is probably a 
family orchard that is desired the list should be very 
NEW HAMPSHIRE BARNYARD IN WINTER. Fio. 9.5. 
different from one for commercial purposes. There 
should be but two trees each of some of the Summer 
and Fall kinds, and a larger number of the Winter 
varieties. The following will be a fairly good family 
list: Summer Rose, Early Harvest, Benoni. Lowell, 
Fanny, Jefferis, Fall Wine, Grimes, Jonathan, Hub- 
bardston, Winesap, York Imperial. 
Apple.s for Marylaiul. 
1. I wish to set out about 75 apple trees as a starter 
for orchard, and wish your advice as to varieties best 
suited to this climate (lower Maryland) on what is known 
as “White oak” soil. I wish about 60 Winter and Fall 
varieties and the other 15 of Summer kinds. What is 
the best cider apple for this section? Is Stayman’s 
Winesap a good keeper and reliable bearer? Is the 
Albemarle Pippin the same as what Is called the New¬ 
town Pippin? Is there likelihood of losing any consider¬ 
able nunber of apple trees If set in Spring? The Pall is 
usually, of course, deemed the best time. 2. How are 
conifers propagated? 3. Is any special preparation of 
seed necessary in planting pecan or English walnut? 
St. Mary’s Co.. Md. J. F. c. 
1. To plant any kind of apple, especially for cider, 
seems to me unwuse, because there are more wind¬ 
falls from the Fall and Winter varieties than can 
now be profitably utilized. Winesap makes excellent 
cider. The richer the apple the richer the cider. 
Stayman is a good bearer and keeps as late as Wine¬ 
sap. Albemarle is merely a synonym of Yellow New¬ 
town, although there are some who contend that they 
are different. Scions from Yellow Newtown trees in 
New York have been taken to Virginia and grafted 
into trees besides those called Albemarle there, and 
when the grafts produced fruit the two were identi¬ 
cal. Spring setting of apple trees is all right. In many 
sections, where the Winters are cold and dry, it is far 
better than Fall setting. 2. Conifers are usually 
propagated by sowing the seeds in beds under lath 
sheds, and when the plants have grown about two 
years they are transplanted to a place where the 
shade is not so dense, and finally into open ground. 
The oftener they are transplanted the better roots 
they will have, and the more confidently they may 
be set in their permanent places. 3. The most im¬ 
portant thing about planting pecans, or any other 
nuts, is to have them fresh and to prevent them from 
getting dry. They should be planted only about two 
inches deep. 
22? 
IVEEDER OR HARROW ON SPRING GRAIN. 
One of our readers says that he has a field of wheat 
that is seeded with Red-top and Timothy. He wishes to 
know whether it would be an advantage to go over the 
field with a weeder before sowing clover in the Spring, 
or whether it would tear up the grass too much. We 
have seldom seen mention made of the use of a weeder 
where wheat was seeded to grass, but there are some ad¬ 
vantages in such an operation. What do you think about 
this matter? Under what circumstances do you think it 
would pay, and under what conditions would it not be 
advisa’ole? 
Mighi Pay in fhe West. 
There is no doubt as the value of using the harrow 
or weeder as soon in the Spring as the ground is dry 
enough to admit of this being done, both on wheat 
and rye crops sown in Fall. The chief advantage is 
in the fact that it breaks up the capillary attraction 
and prevents the too rapid evaporation of moisture 
from the soil before the plant has pushed out and 
down roots sufficient to sustain the full growth. If 
the wheat has been sown in drills, the grass has no 
doubt been deposited in the drill furrows for the most 
part, and the weeder will not pull them up, and if 
they are not covered up too much by the rigid use 
of the weeder they will not be harmed. If, however, 
the wheat has been sown broadcast, the grass plants 
being small, and as they spread out many roots near 
the surface and nave no top roots, there is much 
danger that they will be injured by the use of the 
weeder if its work is effectual enough to be of service 
to the wheat plant. IE clover was sown aliead of the 
weeder it would be well covered. k. e. cii ester. 
Illinois. 
Conditions in Central New York, 
It would seem to be best to secure a good foothold 
for the plant, and that would require some system of 
covering of the seed. Properly to cultivate the .seed 
bed for the grass, and to cover the seed, without in¬ 
juring the wheat, is a difficult matter, and without 
injuring the Red-top and Timothy impossible. Had 
the inquirer not sown the other grasses last Fall, and 
sown all together this Spring, he could have given the 
wheat one good harrowing after sowing the seed, and 
either brushed or rolled it in. Except in such cases 
as soft, mellow or mucky soils, free from stone and 
not compacted by Winter rains and snows, the weeder 
will not loosen or stir the surface soil enough to do 
any good, and will do some injury to the small grass 
plants, especially if used more than once over. On 
many wheatflelds once over would leave hardly a 
visible scratch. Cultivation, to be of value, must 
break up the crust, and a smoothing harrow is much 
better. The seed should always be sown first, and 
be covered by the first harrowing, for not many have 
the nerve to give the second and third ones, although 
I do not believe it will injure the wheat on our hard, 
stony fields. Wheat harrowing is not popular here, 
one reason being that so many stones are turned up, 
and rolling them down leaves some of them on the 
wheat. I find more surety of success sowing both 
clover and Timothy in the Fall on all upland fields 
that do not heave, and sow on more in the Spring as 
the fields seem to require. 
The ideal time to sow grass seed is when bare 
ground is frozen enough to cause it to crack open in 
an immense number of crevices, and early enough in 
the morning to get done before it is thawed out. When 
the seed falls on the hard ground it rolls into the 
cracks, which close and cover the seed. I have sown 
clover seed in March where the field was more than 
half covered with snow, and had good results. I pre¬ 
fer to sow in a cold time, and let the thawing carry 
the seed downward, distribute and cover, to sowing 
in a warm spell which causes the seed to germinate 
on top of the ground, and freezes it to death, the first 
time the weather changes. Early sowing gives the 
plants a better start and a better chance to withstand 
the Summer drought. My wheatfields were fairly 
seeded last Fall, and I shall watch for a chance about 
April 1 to put on some more seed, with a wheel seed¬ 
er, some cold snap, when ground is frozen. I believe 
nearly all good seed sown at any time grows, but is 
killed afterwards by frost, drought and the other 
crop growing at the same time. The better the plant 
is protected from these disturbing causes by better 
covering, earlier growth and thinner seeding of the 
wheat, the better the seeding will be. Rather than 
to sow on a hard, dry surface in warm weather I 
would harrow in the seed and roll the ground, pre¬ 
ferring to lose some of the Fall-sown seed to losing 
all the Spring-sown. c. e. chapman. 
Tompkins C!o., N. Y. 
SNOW IN THE BARNYARD.—On page 150 a “One 
Horse Farmer” in New Hampshire told us about some 
of his operations. A picture of his yard as he found 
it one morning in early February will interest some 
of our southern readers, who at tnat season were 
basking in warm sunshine. See Fig. 95. 
MACHINES FOR PICKING STONES.—The only 
tool that I have seen used for picking stones was a 
stone picker with six teeth or prongs, like those on a 
hand-potato digger. Fig. 94, with a handle about the 
same length. If you would take one of those diggers 
and bend the shank so that it would hang about like 
a hay fork it would resemble one of these pickers. 
I never would use one of them, as it looks like a lazy 
man’s tool, but these pickers are used on the highway, 
some by men following the road machine when repair¬ 
ing the roads. I have seen men use a manure fork 
to do the same work. There are some places in the 
highway where we have used a steel garden rake to 
gather the small stones in small heaps and then shovel 
them out one side. p. c. 
Milford, N. H. 
