i74 
March 14 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
PREPARING THE SOIL FOR PEACHES. 
HOW TO GET IT READY. 
I have a piece of land which I wish to get into the best pos¬ 
sible condition for setting-peach-trees and currant bushes in the 
spring of 1897. Part of it is corn stubble, and part sod, both 
plowed late last fall. It is a stony clay loam with a hardpan sub¬ 
soil, in fair condition as to fertility. I wish to get as much vege¬ 
table matter in the soil as possible before the fruit is set, and 
while it is young, as I use only fine bone and muriate of potash 
on my young peach orchards in which I also grow currants. My 
idea is to harrow and cultivate' thoroughly the coming spring as 
soon as the ground is fit to work, and sow field peas and oats 
together, or either one or the other alone, and plow under deeply 
in July. Then, after thoroughly preparing the surface soil, sow 
Crimson clover, which either plow-uuder very late in the fall, or 
early the next spring. Or would it do as well or better to harrow 
and cultivate the ground until July, and then sow with Crimson 
clover, as, perhaps, it might insure a better catch of clover, 
especially if the weather were dry? Do you think that it would 
be a benefit and a profit to subsoil this ground, and when would 
be the better time to do it—tiiis next summer or fall, or when I 
set the fruit? Of course, in the spring-it is hard to do any extra 
work. a. b. c. 
Milton, N. Y. 
What W. F. Taber Would Do. 
A. B. C. has outlined, in my opinion, the proper 
course to pursue in the preparation of his land for the 
planting of a peach orchard. In fact, it would fit even 
quite poor land so that it would produce a paying 
crop. Vegetable matter is what most of our soils 
lack, and I am very much in favor of plowing under 
green crops for such a purpose, as I have had excellent 
results by so doing. 1 do not think it necessary to 
subsoil his land. I would plow as deep as I could the 
coming spring, which would, probably, turn up some 
of the clay soil not heretofore disturbed, which only 
needs the action of heat and moisture to liberate the 
mineral elements that have accumulated in it. 1 
would fit the ground thoroughly, and apply a dressing 
of wood ashes or 300 pounds of a good fertilizer per 
acre ; then sow the oats and peas, getting the peas 
covered two or three inches deep, to insure germina¬ 
tion. I have found that it pays well to apply fer¬ 
tilizer to such a crop, for such a purpose, giving a 
quick, rank growth. Plow under this crop before the 
grain has hardened (as this takes from the soil), as 
deeply as possible, and if the weather be hot and dry, 
or the ground quite dry, be sure to roll, so as to com¬ 
pact the green matter plowed under, else it might dry 
out the moisture in the soil above it, and do the suc¬ 
ceeding crop more harm than good. Having com¬ 
pacted this green matter, harrow and fine the surface, 
sow the Crimson clover, harrow and roll. If the sur¬ 
face soil be very dry and light, the roller will cover 
the seed without harrowing. As the object is to get 
all the value possible out of the crop for green manur¬ 
ing, it is necessary to sow more seed than when it is 
grown for hay, and I have found that double the 
quantity is required, and have sown from 12 to 15 
quarts per acre. Do not plow this under in the fall, 
but keep the ground covered to prevent the loss of 
nitrogen by exposure during the winter. If the clover 
live through the winter, it will add much to its 
growth before you need to plow it under. If the top 
should die, you still have the roots and the nitrogen 
which they have stored up, which will repay you well 
for your labor. If A. B. C. follow out this course, I 
would like to hear from him as to the results in the 
spring of 1897 or before. Walter f. taber. 
Dutchess County, N. Y. 
Messrs. Barns, Wygant and Dwyer Talk. 
In preparing the soil lor a peach orchard, if the 
land was plowed last fall, harrow it thoroughly the 
coming spring, cross-plow as deep as possible (not 
subsoil) then sow it with some quick growing crop 
such as buckwheat, oats or peas, and turn this crop 
under just before it blooms. Then sow again and 
turn under the same as before. This is to get as 
much humus as possible in the soil and grow other 
crops between the trees. If I intended to plant.an 
orchard, I would set the trees this spring, and keep 
the ground in good order up to the first of August; 
then I would sow it with Crimson clover and plow 
this under the following June (or before it bloomed). 
Then some other green crop may be sown and plowed 
under in the fall. J. F. wygant. 
Ulster County, N. Y. 
I think that A. B. C. is right in getting as much 
vegetable matter into the soil as possible, befoi e the 
trees are set. 'With the weather as dry as it was 
the past two summers, there is danger that the 
Crimson clover might fail to make a satisfactory 
growth. Bather than take the risk of depending on 
it alone for adding humus and nitrogen to the soil, I 
would grow a crop of oats and peas. When this crop 
is plowed under, if the weather continue dry, prob¬ 
ably it would be unwise to incur the expense of seed¬ 
ing with Crimson clover. But if the soil be moist at 
the time the first crop is plowed under, the growth 
would soon decay so that the soil could be brought 
into good condition for seeding with the clover. 
Unless the crop of oats and peas be well decomposed, 
the surface soil would be so porous and dry that the 
clover could hardly be expected to succeed. There¬ 
fore, I think that it would be advisable to sow oats 
and peas early, as they would be reasonably sure to 
make a good growth, and depend on circumstances to 
decide whether to follow with Crimson clover. Sub¬ 
soiling in a stony clay loam is a tedious and expensive 
operation. If the surface soil above the hard pan is 
eight or ten inches deep, I would not incur the ex¬ 
pense of subsoiling. For I know that in similar 
situations in the Hudson Biver Valley, peach trees 
make a fair growth and bear good crops where fre¬ 
quent shallow culture is given. If the surface is of 
such shape that the water collects on any part of the 
ground, and it remains too wet for working, a few 
underdrains judiciously located would, in my opinion, 
pay better than subsoiling the whole. In opening 
these drains, A. B. C. will find a ditching plow a great 
labor-saver. With a strong team, it will break the 
hard ground finer and faster than 10 men with picks. 
Orange County, N. Y. w. d. barns. 
I would harrow thoroughly as early in the spring 
as the ground is fit to work, sow the land to oats, then 
harrow and use a heavy roller to firm the seed in the 
ground. I would plow the oats under as soon as of 
the right size ; then harrow thoroughly again, and 
sow with clover, using the roller again until the 
ground is well firmed. I would not subsoil such land 
as this man has ; in fact, it is not profitable to sub¬ 
soil any land for the purpose named. I would much 
rather use the money so spent in good stable manure. 
Orange County, N. Y. t. j. dwyer. 
THE COLUMBIAN RASPBERRY AT HOME. 
HOW IT LOOKS ON ITS NATIVE HEATH. 
During the past two years, The B. N. Y. has had 
quite a little to say about the new Columbian rasp¬ 
berry, and we have tried to make clear the exact 
points of difference between the Columbian and the 
Shaffer as grown at the Bural Grounds. In order to 
see the berry as grown on a larger scale, I visited the 
grounds of Mr. J. T. Thompson (the originator) at 
Oneida, N. Y., last August. The season was nearly 
over, but I was able to see the growth made by the 
canes, and the general characteristics of the berry, as 
well as to talk with those who have sold and used it 
for canning. 
The original bush is still growing on Mr. Thomp¬ 
son’s place. It is an immense affair—more like a tree 
than a bush. The berries had not been picked, but 
had been permitted to dry on the bush in order to 
show how tenaciously they hang on. This is one point 
claimed for the Columbian—that it sticks to the bush 
closer and longer than the Shaffer, and here were 
these berries dried to the canes in evidence of it. The 
value of the habit was quite evident when we came 
to the field and saw the dead-ripe fruit still clinging 
to the bushes. A light blow would have knocked 
Shaffers of equal ripeness off into the dirt ; but the 
Columbians hung on for dear life. The Columbian is 
generally compared with the Shaffer because the two 
berries are much alike in several particulars. The 
Columbian appears to possess all the good qualities 
of the Shaffer, and, in addition, to be somewhat firmer 
in texture, to hang closer to the stem, and to be later 
in ripening. It is of a little higher flavor, and gives a 
heavier growth. 
Mr. Thompson had sold over 20,000 quarts of berries 
at the time of my visit. He did not make personal 
shipments to commission merchants in New York and 
other cities, but went to a fruit dealer in Oneida, and 
made arrangements with him to handle the entire 
crop of Columbians at a fixed price per quart. All he 
does is to deliver the berries, and the dealer attends 
to all details of shipping and selling. This dealer 
told me that the Columbians had been in great 
demand. At first, people objected to them on account 
of their color ; but after fairly testing them, espe¬ 
cially for canning, they always wanted more. He said 
that he had not lost a quart through failure to “stand 
up” properly, neither had there been any complaints 
about those shipped in crates. He claimed that he 
could have sold three times as many if he could have 
secured them. 
At the Oneida Community, I examined many cans 
of the Shaffers and Columbians for comparison. The 
contrast was quite remarkable. The Shaffers were, 
for the most part, crumbly or broken, while the 
Columbians were firm and solid. There was also a 
slight difference in color and flavor, both in favor of 
the Columbian. The superintendent of the canning 
factory promptly said that the Columbian is the nest 
canning berry he had ever seen. In fact, the chief value 
of this fruit will evidently be for canning, for home 
use and for supplying a near-by market, where the 
berries can be promptly delivered and the grower can 
have a chance to “educate” the consumer’s taste. It 
also does well for evaporated fruit, giving a sauce of 
rich flavor and high color. The odor of the dried 
fruit is quite remarkable. 
Mr. Thompson has quite an ingenious raspberry 
sorter. It is like a miniature potato sorter, with a 
small wire screen over which the berries run. The 
berries are poured in at the top, and they roll slowly 
along over the screen, the operator using a feather or 
wing to push the good ones into the box. The fingers 
are used only to take out leaves, or soft and imperfect 
fruit. _ h. w. c. 
THE PARKER EARLE STRAWBERRY. 
A FAIR STATEMENT OF ITS MERITS. 
For the past two -or three years, much has been 
written in regard to the Parker Earle strawberry. 
On the whole, it has been very highly spoken of, and 
is giving pretty general satisfaction wherever planted. 
It is now one of the standard varieties, and the stock 
may be had at very reasonable prices. It is, therefore, 
within the reach of all. I have fruited the Parker 
Earle on light and heavy soils. It is a very strong 
grower, the plants having a tendency to make 
enormous stools or, rather, to grow in hills. Many of 
these hills will have as many as 300 berries and blos¬ 
soms on them, rarely less than 100. In order that 
the plants may be able to bring this fruit to maturity, 
two things are essential: food and water. 
The Parker Earle should be planted on heavy, rich, 
moist land. The plants should be set four feet apart 
between the rows. I do not recommend fruiting 
strawberries in hills, but if any variety will do better 
in hills than in matted rows, it is the Parker Earle. 
Whichever way it is to be fruited, the rows should 
not be allowed to be over 12 inches w ide, for the 
reason that, in order to obtain moisture enough to 
bring all the fruit to maturity, shallow cultivation 
should be kept up at intervals of a few days until the 
berries have formed. Of course this cultivation must 
bo done by a careful man, and the cultivator must 
not go near enough to the plants to disturb the roots. 
Where it is possible to irrigate, or where there is 
abundance of rain, this cultivation is unnecessary ; 
but it is of absolute necessity in a dry season, and 
even in an ordinary season, it will materially increase 
the yield, and the berries will be larger and better in 
every way. 
The foliage is compact and abundant, giving the 
plants a good appearance. The fruit is large and even 
in size, all the berries being much alike. It is exceed¬ 
ingly productive. The flavor is good, but not the 
best; as good as Bubach, Haverland or Downing. In 
shape, it is nearly round, with a short neck. The color 
is a glossy, light red, giving the fruit a very inviting 
appearance in the market. It ripens late in the season, 
and continues in fruit as long as any variety I have, 
with one or two exceptions. I do not wish to be 
understood as advising the planting of this variety in 
preference to all others ; for those who can give it 
the requirements named, it will be one of the most 
profitable market berries of the day. T. J. dwyer. 
NEW IDEAS IN CURRANT CULTURE. 
Where in this country is an expert on currant cul¬ 
ture ? Where is the man who makes a specialty of 
growing currants, and is an authority on this subject ? 
I confess that I do not know of such a man. Probably 
Jacob Moore, of this State, has given currants more 
attention than any other person, but not on a large 
scale for market. I am satisfied that there is some¬ 
thing radically wrong in the treatment generally 
given to currant bushes. I have started experiments, 
and hope to discover some of the errors now practiced. 
I saw not long ago in Belgium and Holland, currants 
of different varieties nearly as large as cherries. I had 
never seen anything to compare with them in size 
and beauty. They appeared to be twice as large as 
the Fay or Cherry currants grown in this country. 
Each cluster was intact, with scarcely any berries miss¬ 
ing on the stem. At first I thought that these must be 
varieties of which I had never heard, and I spent some 
money in endeavoring to get scions for propagation. 
I wrote President P. J. Berckmans, who used to live 
in Belgium, and he tells me that the varieties I saw 
were, doubtless, ordinary varieties grown under 
special cultivation. I do not doubt that these cur¬ 
rants were irrigated and mulched, and the ground fer¬ 
tilized to its highest capacity. Bushes were also, 
doubtless, cut back and thinned out in order to in¬ 
crease the size. After seeing these immense currants, 
1 can but think that we in this country scarcely 
understand the question of growing large currants. 
In olden times no one thought of planting currant 
bushes where they were to be cultivated. They were 
invariably planted along the side of the garden fence, 
where the ground was never disturbed. I can remem- 
