1062 
A GASOLINE FED FARM TEAM. 
Last year we gave a picture of a gasoline motor used 
for plowing by H. B. Kean of Ontario Co., N. Y. Mr. 
Kean arranged this motor himself—mounting the 
engine on some old binder trucks. Since then he has 
put a larger and more powerful motor together. Pic¬ 
tures of this motor at work are shown on first page, 
and Mr. Kean sends us the following notes about it: 
“The cut shows the tractor at work drawing harrows 
in the orchard. This machine is made much heavier 
and stronger throughout than the one I sent you a 
picture of last year. It weighs 3,815 pounds as you 
see it in the photograph; it is equipped with a 10-horse 
power double cylinder motor of the two-cycle type. 
It draws the two three-horse spring-tooth harrows, 
when set, about as deep in the ground as they will go, 
at the speed of V/ mile per hour, covering about two 
acres per hour. As we have quite a good deal of 
fruit on our farms the principal work of the tractor 
has been just as shown in the picture, excepting that 
part of the time the harrow used is a four-horse 
double-action Cutaway disk, heavily weighted with 
large stone. We find the machine very advantageous 
for this work, as it goes steadily, and does not work 
to one side or the other, so that you can keep the drags 
right to within two or three inches of the trees without 
the danger of barking them. 
“We use the machine also in a great anany other 
kinds of work. It hauls a two-bottom Oliver gang 
plow (14-inch bottoms), seven inches deep at the saane 
speed, and with the steering arrangement we have I 
think we can turn arouaid on as narrow a headland as 
the horses can; can turn it in a circle a very little 
larger in diameter than its length. We grind our own 
feed, using the engine to run the mill. Our mill is not 
large but with this aanouiat of power we grind 30 
bushels per hour. The tractor is very handy for pull¬ 
ing out brush and youttg saplings in old fence rows, 
also for da-agging off bowlders, as it is so anuch 
stronger than a team of horses. It_ is also the best 
wire-fence stretcher we have ever used. You can draw 
the wire up to aaty teaision you choose and set the 
brake and the wire is held till stapled. 
“We have never kept accurate account of the fuel 
lased when plowing or dragging with the engine, but I 
believe it averages about $1.50 worth per day, which 
we do not coaasider much when it is taking the place 
of two teaaus of horses. From the use we have had 
of the machine we do not now feel as though w-e 
could possibly get along without it. I believe motive 
power in the future is going to revolutionize farming 
operations as greatly as it has the road travel in the 
past few years.” * harry b. kean. 
SUBSTITUTED APPLE TREES. 
About 12 years ago, I set out an apple orchard of 
300 trees. I bought about equal numbers of Baldwin, 
R. I. Greenings and Ben Davis. They are just coming 
into hearing, and I find I have Jonathan in place of 
Ben Davis and Northwestern Greening in place of It. 
I. Greening. I am satisfied that it is no use taking it up 
with the nurserymen from whom I purchased the trees, 
although they are a responsible firm. I know nothing 
about either of the two varieties named, except that the 
Jonathan is considered a fancy apple. Is it a good bearer, 
and regular? The trees are not very good growers. The 
Northwestern Greening, on the contrary, are large 
growers, but I do not see them quoted. What do you think 
about these vari'eties? f. l. 
Schodack Landing. N. Y. . 
I would advise F. L. to graft 12 year Northwestern 
Greenings to Rhode Island or Newtown. If the Jona¬ 
thans are growing vigorously I would probably not 
change them, but otherwise would work to Stayman 
or Rome Beauty. p. l. huested. 
I would take three years in which to top-work the 
Northwestern Greenings to varieties best adapted to 
this locality. I would be inclined to give the Jonathans 
a chance, with careful pruning, thorough spraying and 
liberal fertilizing. E. w. catchpole. 
Wayne Co., N. Y. 
I should first find out how each variety pans out in 
my own neighborhood and on the same soil as my 
orchard, and be governed accordingly. On general 
principles the Northwestern Greening should be top- 
worked. The Jonathan, while a fancy apple, is usually 
too small and crooked to bring a fancy price. If 
planted in the center of the orchard I would surely 
top-work with the best local sort, probably Rome 
Beauty. If on the outside the health and vigor of the 
trees would decide whether to dig or graft, e. w. b. 
Orange Co., N. Y. 
F. L. has had the same experience many others 
have had in getting varieties he did not buy. This 
may be an instance in which the nurseryman know¬ 
ingly substituted other varieties in place of those 
ordered, or else he had bought stock from a third 
party, which was not true to name. Northwestern 
Greening is not grown commercially in New York 
State, and is not as good an apple as the old Rhode 
Island Greening. Tree very hardy, used in the North* 
west, where less hardy varieties will not stand the 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
Winter. It comes into bearing late. Jonathan is an 
early bearer of apples of excellent quality and color. 
In vicinity of Albany it does not get large enough to 
compete with the same varieties grown in more favor¬ 
able localities. In Westchester County, N. Y., and 
in southern Pennsylvania, it grows practically as 
large and well colored as in the Far West. v. B. 
I would not pull out these trees, but would prefer 
to top-work them, as Jonathan needs a special location 
and a wise apple man to make it a yielder of paying 
fruit at the East, and Northwestern Greening is not 
standard in our markets. I would hesitate to graft 
to R. I. Greening now, as being so liable to disfigure¬ 
ment by San Jose scale, but would substitute Spy or 
King, both more resistant. Ben Davis is very subject 
to scale injury, but by severe pruning back, high cul¬ 
ture and correct spraying I can grow clean, fine Ben 
Davis apples on trees previously scale infested. The 
Greening is not so easily handled in this way. 
Dutchess Co., N. Y. w. h. hart. 
Here is a case where the owner of the trees himself 
must rely largely on his own judgment. Persons hun¬ 
dreds of miles distant who have not seen the trees or 
their surroundings can only offer suggestions. I 
should, at least, “try out” those Jonathans, provided 
thej r are located on a fairly rich soil, and kept well 
tilled. For the selling side of the Jonathan is cer¬ 
tainly all right—after you once get them in the barrel. 
But if they are located on an elevated or rather poor 
soil there is probably not much hope for them, for 
they would be apt to run small in size. The North¬ 
western Greening I should also try out. Beach, in 
his “Apples of New York,” says: “It does not come 
into bearing very early, but eventually becomes pro¬ 
ductive, and is a reliable, biennial cropper.” I would 
suggest to give it good treatment, put the apples on 
the market in an attractive shape, and then if it proves 
a failure top-graft to the good old Rhode Island 
Greening, which the owner thought he was getting. 
Is it not about time a lot of these substitution nursery¬ 
men were blacklisted who are sending out trees untrue 
to name? Why are their names so carefully withheld 
from public print? Why not publish a list of them, 
same as you did of those New York Senators? Rather 
drastic, you will say, but don’t they need something 
of that kind to wake them up a little? 
Seneca Co., N. Y. w. a. bassett. 
This matter of nurserymen sending out trees, other 
than ordered, is a most serious one. This is the second 
case of the kind, which has come to my notice in a 
few days. The questioner is doubtless correct in his 
view, that it will not pay to try to get redress, but I 
believe if those who suffer in this way, would publish 
the name of the firm of whom they bought the trees, 
it would have a wdiolesome effect. One thing it is 
always wise to do, buy direct, or of an accredited 
agent rather than of some one who simply sells nursery 
stock, and labels his trees to suit the demands of the 
purchaser. But this is not an answer to the above 
question, only a comment of righteous indignation. 
I presume many people would say, that the Jonathans 
are more valuable than the Ben Davis. But from the 
position of one living not far away, I would bear 
witness, that the Ben Davis—although not to be com¬ 
pared with the Jonathan for quality, is a much better 
money-maker. The Jonathan is, as stated, a slow grow¬ 
er. Unless thinned, and highly fed, the fruit is under¬ 
sized, and commands a low price, neither will they turn 
off the quantity. I can make more money raising Bald¬ 
wins or Greenings for $2 a barrel, than Jonathans, at $4. 
If as is quite likely, you are satisfied the Jonathan will 
not pay you, I would advise grafting them to Duchess 
of Oldenburg, or Wealthy, both Fall varieties of which 
you have none—good quality, good sellers, productive, 
and not an over large tree, which will go well on the 
small Jonathan stock. If you are not satisfied that 
the Jonathans should go, fertilize, cultivate and prune 
them well, and be guided by results. They are very 
susceptible to apple scab, and must be thoroughly 
sprayed to prevent the fungus. The Northwestern 
Greening I do not know much of, but in certain quar¬ 
ters I hear it well spoken of. I would not advise 
setting them, but since you already have them, try 
them out thoroughly, and if they do not prove profit¬ 
able, graft with R. I. Greenings, which we know are 
profitable. If you decide to do this. I shall be glad to 
give you scions, off some fine trees, if you will come 
and cut them. edwakd van alstyne. 
CONCRETE WELL COVERS. 
I have three wells with the good old homemade 
pumps. The pumps are made from a large straight 
tree, not less than a foot in diameter, bored with a 
two-inch hole through the center. The wells range 
in diameter from 3(4 feet to 4(4 feet, and in depth 
from 14 feet to 23 feet, and are curbed with rough 
stone. They have always been covered with two-inch 
planks, but this way it was never tight and more or 
less dirt fell into the water; also when they were 
washed off the dirty water flowed mostly down, and 
December 11, 
they were also soon rotten, which made it dangerous 
to walk on. As it became necessary again to replace 
the old doors with new ones, a new idea struck me; to 
put a concrete floor on them. We went to work and 
made forms right over the wells; we took the best of 
the old planks and sawed them to proper lengths and 
laid right on the curbing of the wells. To get it tight 
enough so the cement will not flow r through between 
the planks we laid old bran bags over the planks. 
Next we put four six-inch boards around the well 
to form a square box in which we put the cement or 
concrete. We put the concrete right to the pumps on 
three sides and on the other side we left a manhole 
for which we also made a form before we started with 
the concrete. This form we filled with concrete and 
made it a little thicker in the middle than at the out¬ 
side, so that it slopes toward the edges. On the man¬ 
hole. we put a wooden lid. We laid a buggy axle in 
the concrete across each well to reinforce the floor. 
It is about six to eight inches in thickness, and is very 
strong. Now’ we have our well covered forever, tight, 
strong, and cheaply. About one dollar’s worth cement 
was used to each well. Two men did the job for the 
three wells in a day. c. K. B. 
Bethel, Pa. _ 
COAL ASHES ON POTATOES. 
A neighbor reports a potato experiment which you 
may think of interest. In the furrow of ground not 
otherwise fertilized, he strewed wood ashes and 
planted potatoes. Alongside, he treated a furrow with 
coal ashes, same quantity in the same way. Both 
rows yielded well, potatoes of the same size and quan¬ 
tity. Those grown on wood ashes were very scabby, 
while the others were clean and white, as though 
grown upon phosphate. What substance could have 
been in the coal ashes to make such a crop? There 
could have been no admixture of wood ashes, or these 
too would have been scabby. g. s. p. 
Maine. 
R., N.-Y.—All anyone can do in such a case is to 
speculate or guess at the causes. The reason for the 
scab where the wood ashes w'ere used was evidently 
the lime. In addition to lime the wood ashes contain 
potash and phosphoric acid. As there was no increase 
of yield over the other we should conclude that neither 
of these elements was particularly lacking in the 
soil. The coal ashes contain practically no plant food 
whatever, yet we have known them to increase the 
yield of fruits' and vegetables. Put around currants 
or strawberries they give us better vines and fruit. 
We have though this was due to their holding mois¬ 
ture by shading and compacting the soil. We notice 
that a pile of wood ashes will dry out faster than 
an equal sized pile of coal ashes. One may 
be almost powder dry, while the other is pasty. 
Our guess would be, therefore, that the coal ashes 
in that furrow held moisture, and during the past 
dry season there was greater need of that than 
of plant food. If there was more or less half-burned 
coal in the ashes it was acid rather than alkaline, 
and this acid condition would prevent or delay the 
development of scab. 
WHY PEACHES DROP IN JUNE. 
We have a young orchard containing several hundred 
trees, mostly Liberia, Champion and Stevens Rareripe, 
planted in Spring of 1907. Trees have been well culti¬ 
vated. sprayed, have made good growth, and are in a fine 
healthy condition. They blossomed heavily in Spring, and 
quite a few set fruit and held it until some time in June, 
or when the peaches were as large as an ordinary hickory- 
nut, when they dropped. Upon examining the drops, we 
found most of them full of small holes and each one of 
these holes covered with gum. Upon cutting open some 
of them we found a small white worm about one-quarter 
inc-b long and about as thick as a pin. Is this the "joker” 
that is causing the peaches to drop? I have been told by 
an experienced and very successful grower that the reason 
for the dropping is that the trees are too young; that it is 
nature’s way of taking care of tlie tree until it is old 
enough, and strong enough to mature its crop. If this is 
so, what about the stung or gummy drops? We do not 
expect to get a crop of peaches in three years, but we 
would like to know why what few peaches were on the 
trees dropped off in June. a. l. v. 
Essex County, N. ,T. 
Probably curcttlio, the gumming occurring where the 
egg-laying and feeding punctures were made by the 
insect. '1 he eggs hatch into a small borer or worm, 
which feeds upon the inside of the fruit which drop 
to the ground, the larvae go into the ground, where they 
transform to the adult stage. It is usually most com¬ 
mon in uncultivated orchards, or if injurious in well- 
tilled orchards usually are most plentiful in that part 
of the orchard in close proximity to wood lots or 
old fence rows, which furnish excellent hiding places 
for them to pass the Winter. It can be quite largely 
controlled by a thorough application of arsenate of 
lead, five pounds to 50 gallons of water, applied at 
the first appearance of the insect, shortly after blos¬ 
soms, followed by another application 10 days to two 
weeks later. Many growers depend upon the jarring 
process, in which screens covered with cotton cloth 
are put beneath the trees, and trees then iarred with 
a padded stick, the insects which drop being swept 
up and destroyed. The jarring should be done in early 
morning, and continued every morning until but few 
curculio are being caught. b. d. v. b. 
