©02 
December 14 
dilating by getting up a few colts and acting as 
schoolmaster. The lively ones will be sure to make 
a little excitement for us, and we shall be none the 
worse for the exercise of those faculties necessary in 
a good trainer. a horse wrangler. 
Illinois. 
APPLE CULTURE IN WESTERN NEW YORK. 
CULTIVATION OR MULCH ? 
An Important Experiment. 
Part V. 
Thus far the evidence in this experiment has been 
decidedly in favor of cultivation. Remember, how¬ 
ever, that this is the record in an orchard which was 
in cultivation when the experiment started. We 
shall see that in the orchard of Mr. Hitchings near 
Syracuse there was a quite a different result. Hitch¬ 
ings does not believe in cultivation. His trees are 
planted in sod, and the grass is cut and piled around 
the trees. You can readily see that there is a great 
different in keeping a tree in sod from the start as 
against giving it culture for a time and then seeding 
the ground to grass. The soil of the Hitchings or¬ 
chard is different from that in western New York. I 
judge it to be rather more natural grass land, 
moister, with the water table near the surface and 
more rolling. Good fruit growers who cultivate thor¬ 
oughly have been to see the Hitchings orchard and 
were amazed at the thrift of the trees. They attribute 
this to some peculiar condition of the soil, since they 
say, like those western New York growers, that they 
cannot get such results from mulching. I have not 
seen the trees this year, but have a report from Mr. 
Hitchings. He says he took 10-year-old trees that 
were planted in sod, with all the vegetable matter in 
the grass permitted to rot on the ground. These trees 
were plowed early and cultivated thoroughly up to 
August 1, when a cover crop was seeded. In 1904 they 
were plowed once and cultivated seven times. In 1905 
plowed once, cultivated seven times and hoed twice. 
In 1906 plowed once, cultivated 10 times and hoed 
three times. On the mulched plot of equal size the 
grass was cut with a mower and left to rot on the 
ground. Each plot occupied 3J4 acres. In reading 
the results remember that the trees are young. Prof. 
Hedrick gives me figures for this year. 
All told there are 25 Wealthy, 24 Northern Spy, 26 
Alexander, 25 Fameuse, 34 Wagener, 136 R. I. Green¬ 
ing and 102 Sutton. The following figures are given 
by Prof. Hedrick: 
HITCHINGS ORCHARD—EXPENSE OF MANAGEMENT. 
Sod Tillage 
Year 
1004 .$ .80 $10.01 
1005 . 1.40 17.00 
1000 .70 29.09 
1007 .80 26.90 
Here we have the sod method at its best—not a 
new sod with grass seeded, but a few years ago, but 
a thick turf 1.5 years or more old, growing on natur¬ 
ally moist and strong soil containing the decayed re¬ 
mains of many crops. Remember also that this or¬ 
chard is on a hillside too steep to be properly culti¬ 
vated, and much heavier than the Auchter orchard. 
During Spring water seeps from the soil and living 
water flows from several parts of the hillside. Prof. 
Hedrick’s statement of yield is as follows: 
Sod Tillage, 
bills. bbls. 
1904 . 20.8 18.6 
1905 . 19.8 13.8 
1906 . 26.9 38.3 
1907 . 47.7' 20.1 
We must remember that the above items of expense 
do not include pruning and spraying, as the figures 
for the other orchard do. In this Hitchings orchard 
it has cost, on an average, about 75 cents a year to cut 
the grass on one acre, while the average cost of culti¬ 
vating an acre is $18.82. 
As for the effect of the culture upon these trees 
Mr. Hitchings says that it produced a spongy growth 
of wood and soft fruit. He thinks this was caused 
by the cultivations setting free too much nitrogen. 
The soil was full of decayed vegetable matter, and 
naturally this culture helped “break it up.” Some of 
the trees are Alexanders, a variety somewhat inclined 
to blight. The cultivation has increased this blight, 
while the sod trees were but slightly affected. Mr. 
George T. Powell saw these trees in early September. 
He told me that he feared these Alexanders were 
greatly injured by cultivation, and he is an advocate 
of the highest culture. Mr. Hitchings also claims that 
this year the fruit on the cultivated ground was dull 
in color, decayed rapidly and dropped much worse 
than that growing in sod. 
Now please understand two things. I am not try¬ 
ing to make an argument for either side. I am try¬ 
ing to give the facts as I saw them, and as they are 
given me, confident that when they are all presented, 
these apparent differences can be explained. Remem¬ 
ber also that those western New York growers stand 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
for cultivation because it pays them, while Hitchings 
stands for mulch, because it gives him results. 
Now, I told Mr. Hitchings that there can be no ques¬ 
tion about the fact that in the Auchter orchard the 
cultivated side is far ahead of the mulched. 
How can you account for it? 
Here is his answer : 
My impression is that they have taken an orchard of 
nearly mature age, whose roots must occupy nearly the 
whole surface of the ground, cultivating part of it, thus 
burning up the supply of humus already at hand, and of 
course the trees will respond at. first. To maintain tills 
vigor vegetable matter must be returned to the soil, and 
1 question their ability to do this with cover crops in a 
A BUNCH OF TOULOUSE GEESE. Fig. 460. 
mature orchard. The so-called mulch method part, ns I 
understand it, they reseeded and are growing a quite heavy 
crop of grass in tin's mature orchard. Common sense ought 
to teach anyone that the strength of the ground would 
go into the grass, and the trees at first would suffer under 
these conditions. To observe the principles in the case of 
the mulch method they should have built up the sod al¬ 
ready formed by the addition of stable manure or other 
vegetable matter to the surface of the soil. In an orchard 
just planted it is the proper thing to do to grow heavy 
crops of grass at first between the rows, and draw it 
around the trees as a mulch to accumulate a good supplj 
of vegetable matter for later use of the trees. This sup¬ 
ply also acts like a sponge to hold moisture, which, of 
course, is very important. As the trees mature a lighter 
growth of grass with the aftermath going back will main¬ 
tain the ideal condition better than a rank growth of 
FLOWER SriKE OF KNIPHOFIA CAULESCENS. MUCH 
REDUCED. Fig. 461. See Ruralisms, Page 906. 
grass. T trust this explanation will make clear to you 
where they have erred in their so-called mulch method 
experiment. I presume that (his entire plot was culti¬ 
vated at time of planting, which is wrong for an ideal 
mulched orchard. 
If I understand Mr. Hifchings he claims that the 
ideal way to start a mulched orchard is to plant the 
trees in sod and keep the grass piled around them 
from the start. I know from my own experience that 
good apple trees can be grown in that way. We see 
from this how different the two methods are. In 
mulching we aim to accumulate all the vegetable mat¬ 
ter we can in the soil. It not only feeds the plant, 
but holds moisture. Under cultivation the object is 
to burn this organic matter rapidly and add more 
in the “cover crop.” One is like piling up money 
in a savings bank. The other is like keeping the 
money constantly on the jump in business! The 
experiment in Auchtcr’s orchard deals with conditions 
as they exist in western New York—not with young 
trees, but with old ones. Hitchings infers that stable 
manure on that sod would have made a fairer experi¬ 
ment. They might have put the amount which the 
cultivation cost into manure. Albert Wood claims to 
have tried this plan, and has abandoned it. Bearing 
in mind what Mr. Hitchings says, let us now see 
what Prof. Hedrick claims for culture. h. w. c. 
STARTING GRAPE CULTURE. 
Take the cuttings from the vines now, the sooner 
the belter. Cut the trimming of the vines into cut- 
ings eight to 10 inches long, or with three or four 
eyes, leaving the lower eye just at the bottom end, 
and at top end about V/ 2 to two inches of wood above 
the eye. Tie in bundles of 50 to 75, having the lower 
ends all level with each other. Select a dry spot and 
dig out a trench one foot or more in depth and 20 
to 24 inches wide, more or less, according to quantity 
of cutting to be buried. Place the bunches butt end 
down, solid on bottom of trench, and fill in all va¬ 
cancies with soil, and cover all with earth, eight to 
12 inches deep, leaving the dirt highest in middle of 
trench to shed the water to the sides. Cover all with 
a thick mulch of leaves or any coarse litter or horse 
manure, to keep out frost, and leave until middle of 
April, when take out and plant, being careful not 
to let the cuttings dry. Plant them with top eye 
only out of ground about one inch, and four to six 
inches apart. Take up in Fall to reset as desired. 
The cuttings will strike best in a sandy soil, or fine 
black soil of any kind is good, the richer the soil the 
better. Seventy-five per cent or more should grow. 
If ground is frozen when cuttings are ready for pack¬ 
ing away, put in cellar on ground bottom and cover 
with damp sawdust, damp dirt or sand. 
Connecticut. _ edwin hoyt. 
THE PURE FOOD LAW AND PRICES. 
It has been stated that high retail prices for various 
food products are due to the passage aiul enforcement of 
the Pure Food law. Dr. II. W. Wiley of the Agricultural 
Department sends us the following statement. We helleve 
that eventually farmers will be helped by this law, since it 
will drive out adulterations and make a better demand 
for pure goods. 
I repeatedly said during the discussion which pre¬ 
ceded the enactment of the food bill that, in my opin¬ 
ion, the farmer would be greatly benefited thereby. 
My reason for this was based on the fact that the 
farmer offering pure and wholesome food products 
upon the market was often met by the competition 
of debased and inferior products. The result was 
that the pure products were disposed of at less than 
their real value, and for this reason the farmer did 
not secure a legitimate profit. No one who is a true 
student of economics denies the right of the farmer, 
as well as the merchant, to a legitimate profit, but I 
believe no one will claim the right to cut this profit 
off by offering debased or adulterated articles of the 
same kind. If the consumer pays higher prices, as he 
probably will in some cases under the law, he is com¬ 
pensated for this extra cost by receiving, and know¬ 
ing that he receives, a pure and wholesome product. 
For instance, it is far better that the consumer should 
pay 12 cents per quart for wholesome milk than to 
get unwholesome milk at six cents per quart. Again, 
the consumer who can secure pure preserves made of 
the best selected fruits and the best sugar should be 
willing, and doubtless would be willing, to pay a 
higher price for it than for preserves made with some 
apple juice, glucose, artificial colors land flavors. 
It is, I believe, undisputed that probably a great pro¬ 
portion of the buckwheat and rye flours which have 
been sold in this country in the past few years have 
been mixed with other flours than that of the one 
whose name they bear. If the consumer is informed 
upon the label of the character of the mixture, he will 
not grumble if he pays advanced prices for these 
mixtures which contain the most of the high-priced 
flour. These are only illustrations. That the Pure 
Food Law has been the cause of the general rise in 
prices of products of all kinds is, of course, not open 
to serious discussion. That it has secured a better 
price for certain products of a better kind there is also 
small field for discussion. In the end, in my opinion, 
the farmer must be benefited by this law. The con¬ 
sumer will also be benefited, although for many ar¬ 
ticles he may pay a higher price. The only persons 
who will be hurt will be those who make money out 
of selling a debased and adulterated article under the 
guise and name of the genuine. h. w. wiley. 
