890 
THE KURAIi NEW-YORKER 
August 24, 
SHORT STORIES. 
Old Leaves for Fertilizer. 
On page 828 you answered a question 
about swamp muck, and I would like to 
ask if old leaves are worth while gathering 
for fertilizer and if they need any treat¬ 
ment other than to pile them up and let 
them rot down mixed with dirt from the 
woods. I have a chance to draw probably 
30 or 40 loads of last year’s leaves that 
have matted down in the woods and are 
anywhere from one to three inches deep on 
the ground. Our farm is a sandy loam 
and it needs lots of organic matter in 
places to have good crops. g. h. v. d. 
Black River, N. Y. 
Such leaf mould contains more nitrogen 
than average stable manure, but it is 
usually quite sour. It is hard to scrape 
this refuse up and load it among the trees, 
and where labor- is expensive it would 
hardly pay unless the leaves were in some 
open field* where horse tools can be used 
for scraping and piling. We should handle 
these old leaves like muck, using lime and 
making a compost heap to be spread in 
Spring. 
Wood Ashes for Potatoes and Orchard. 
On page 797 I find this statement: 
“Wood ashes are good for all garden crops 
except potatoes." 1 have a few potatoes 
in my garden which were planted very late, 
but which have made nearly as much top 
growth as those of my neighbors. They 
were planted in fresh wood ashes. Am I 
going to find the evil effects of the wood 
ashes when time comes to dig them, or is 
mv garden an exception to the rule? Will 
you tell me whether you advise wood ashes 
for a well-grown apple orchard, and if so, 
in what quantity? My soil is fairly light. 
Massachusetts. E- c. 
The majority of our readers understand 
why we advise against the use of wood 
ashes on potatoes. The ashes contain lime. 
The scab disease of potatoes thrives in an 
alkaline soil, which lime tends to create. 
Therefore, the rule is—more lime more 
scab. These vines are no doubt very 
thrifty, but the chances are that the tubers 
will be quite scabby when dug. Wood 
ashes will give excellent results in an apple 
orchard—at least one ton per acre should 
be used. 
Trouble With Soil. 
After cultivating my garden, in a short 
time the ground gets greenlike in color. I 
apply plenty of horse manure every Spring, 
and the ground appears to be rich, but the 
crops are no success. As soon as the cu¬ 
cumbers are up and have leaves they die. 
Often they will not come up at all, with 
good seed. If I counted my labor, the ex¬ 
penses would be three times as much as 
the income. Under these conditions, it is 
better to go to market and buy all vege¬ 
tables. Other persons just plant in the 
fields and have fine truck. b. ii. l. 
Lorane, Pa. 
Answering such questions without seeing 
the land is always more or less of a guess. 
We think this green growth indicates the 
need of lime. We should use it at the 
rate of a ton of burnt lime per acre, well 
worked in after plowing. You ought to pro¬ 
duce your vegetables on such land. 
Salt in Fruit Growing. 
Every year we have dozens of questions 
from people who have been told that an 
application of common salt around fruit 
trees will help thgm. It is thought that 
quince trees are particularly helped by salt. 
We have never understood why this idea 
of the value of salt on fruit trees should 
be kept up. In the Philippine Agricultural 
Review is an article on "Soil and Location 
for Oocoanut Plantations,” which discusses 
this subject: 
"The old belief that the eoeoanut enjoys 
the proximity to sea water is gradually 
dying out. though it still remains in the 
mind of the average eoeoanut grower. It 
has been suggested that a eoeoanut re¬ 
quires the sea breeze to attain its best de¬ 
velopment. The fact is, all wind move¬ 
ment is more or less detrimental to plant 
tissues, since the strain thrown upon the 
separate cells of leaves and stems by the 
bending and twisting action of the wind is 
injurious to the steady circulation of sap 
and may easily result in shock to the very 
delicate, jelly-iike, protoplasmic contents of 
the growing cells. Students of biology and 
meteorology could readily tell us that the 
circulation of sap in plants does not to any 
appreciable degree depend upon the stretch¬ 
ing and straining action of their tissues 
but upon certain factors like osmosis and 
capillary diffusion, while ‘there is about as 
much need of the winds stirring up the 
atmosphere to prevent concentration .of 
oxygen over the surface of the leaf, for in¬ 
stance, as there would be in agitating the 
ocean to prevent an incrustation of salt 
over the surface on account of the evapo¬ 
ration therefrom.’ 
“Many years ago eoeoanut planters in 
some countries believed that the use of 
salt around the roots of cocoanuts was 
beneficial, especially at a distance from the 
seaeoast, the idea being that the palm de¬ 
lighted in sodium chloride, which is with 
few exceptions a violent poison to the 
more highly differentiated plants—the nipa 
palm happens to be a striking exception 
to the rule. The only sensible reason, in 
the experience of the writer, which has 
been given for the use of salt about young 
cocoanuts is that it might temporarily pre¬ 
vent the attacks of injurious insects. The 
real reason for the apparent preference of 
cocoanuts for the seashore location is based 
upon the fact that all heavy clayey soils, 
which hold moisture throughout the year 
and upon which falls a comparatively large 
amount of rain, naturally foster a far 
greater number of weeds and grass; thus in 
hilly countries or on comparatively high 
ground cocoanuts frequently give a light 
vield. but not because of distance from the 
'seashore. In fact, some of the best cocoa- 
nut plantations the writer has seen were 
located manv kilometers from the seaeoast. 
where no breath of sea wind could reach 
them.” 
CROPS 
The Apple Crop. 
Late apples and peaches seem to be a 
fair crop; no pears; plums fair. No price 
offered on apples or peaches as yet. 
Barnard. N. Y. w. h. a. 
ludications for apples and pears are less 
than last year, although a good showing 
for Baldwins, Kings and some Fall varie¬ 
ties; a good supply of Ben Davis; compari¬ 
son not up to last year's yield. No prices 
that I have heard of. J. e. b. 
Macedon, N. Y. 
I should say that the applecrop in this 
immediate vicinity is about 75 per cent of 
a full crop, with the quality above the 
average year; small fruits of all kinds are 
fair to good with pears a very short crop. 
I have heard no price as yet for apples, ex¬ 
cept a few' early ones have sold for about 
.$1.50 per barrel. *>• 
Churcliville, N. Y. 
Present indications are that the apple 
crop will not be a heavy one. The fruit 
appears to be bunched considerably, es¬ 
pecially in Greenings, and believe they 
will be light. Baldwins are a little bet¬ 
ter, but think prices will be about the same 
as last year, although very few prices are 
as yet being made. A. N. C. 
Newark, N .Y. 
The peach crop along the line of the lake 
and river is very good, but inland is quite 
shy; also the plum crop is not heavy. Pears 
anil apples are generally a good crop; apples 
are hit some with aphis, but the crop is 
what you would call good. I have heard 
of no price on Winter apples yet; price on 
early apples .$2 to $2.25. J. e. b. 
Youngstown, O. 
There has been no price made for apples 
as far as I have been able to find. There 
will be a good crop of red apples, mostly 
Baldwins in this section, four times as many 
as last year. Greenings are less, about half 
as many as last year. Some apples were 
hurt by hail. Peaches are scarce. Pears 
have improved in a month and there are 
manv more than was expected; grapes are 
a full crop. w. e. b. 
Sanborn, N. Y. 
Pears very light, not 25 per cent of a 
crop, and growing less, as the fourth brood 
of pear psylla is showing up; spraying with 
oil only lessened first brood. Peaches hard¬ 
ly 10 per cent of a crop. Apples, Baldwins, 
150 per cent of a crop and looking fine 
after they have been thinned, which I and 
my brothers have done. Some Fall apples, 
such as Wealthy, Fall Pippin and llubbard- 
stou, no Greenings to speak of. I have not 
heard of any price on apples here as yet. 
Grapes fine and heavy, only will be small 
unless we have rain soon. It is difficult to 
judge, only I do not think that we have 
over 50 per cent of last year’s crop in the 
Hudson Valley, at least this part. Rain is 
needed for all kinds of crops. G. S. C. 
Milton, N. Y. 
The Weather and Crops 
The brown rot has struck the grapes in 
this State very hard, fully 40 per cent of 
the entire crop is already gone, and the 
damage stil continues. J. d. c. 
Schoolcraft. Mich. 
Ilay and wheat are scarce in this region, 
as the drought of 1911 killed the clover and 
last Winter used up the wheat. We sowed 
40 acres, but did not raise a bushel. 
Bronson, Mich. s. d. h. 
We are just getting a little rain and 
think the drought may be broken. It has 
been pretty dry here and most crops aside 
from the hay crop are light. Potatoes may 
do something yet, if the weather is right. 
Corn is something of a possibility I sup¬ 
pose. H. H. L. 
Chenaugo Co.. N. Y. 
We are having the best growing season 
ever. The cherries r. e just gone and 
peaches will soon begin to ripen. They 
grow later ones mostly here, to miss the 
big flood in the markets from the southern 
sections of the country. Potatoes are grand 
and corn, oats and all garden stuff. 
Benzie Co., Mich. H. e. v. d. 
Baldwins are a heavy crop, many trees 
overloaded, some "clusters.” Pretty good 
fruit; lice have been worse than ever be¬ 
fore. Few Greenings; no Maiden Blush or 
Twenty Ounce; not much Fall fruit. A fine 
peach crop here; no prices on apples that 
I have heard of. Recent rains have been 
very beneficial after a dry Summer. No 
plums, few pears. 1 happen to have a fair 
crop of Bartletts, but tiling it the excep¬ 
tion. S. J. T. B. 
Morton. N. Y. 
Just now plenty of rain, but early part 
of season. June and part of July, was very 
dry. Pastures are good. Hay was a big 
crop and secured in good shape. Wheat 
the poorest in 10 years. Late sowing last 
Fall, small plants when Winter began, a 
rather hard Spring, dry weather about 
time of heading, and the Hessian fly. all 
contributed to make the crop a failure. 
Many pieces will not produce five bushels 
per acre. OaiS are big: much of them are 
down, but are late. I do uot believe they 
are very well filled ; just beginning to har¬ 
vest them. Barley is good, but -not much 
sown. Beans spotted and late; small acre¬ 
age of cabbage, not very satisfactory. Corn 
is uneven, few good fields, poor stand, 
weedy: I do not think it is over 00 per 
cent of an average. Potatoes came up 
poorly owing to dry weather and inability 
to fit laud properly, and I. believe a good 
deal of poor seed. Fields are spotted, small, 
very poor stand and late. It will take a 
long growing Fall without frost if crop is 
to mature. I canuot see how we are to 
get even an average yield, even if every 
condition is favorable. The outlook is the 
most unsatisfactory of any year in the 
past 10. In our part of Monroe county 
there are few orchards of any size. The 
few small ones oeem pretty well fruited. 
Mouroe Co., N. Y. C. I. 
A Note From Brazil. —An agricultural 
paper of the first order such as yours 
comes to us with refreshing power in this 
far-off hot and strange land. The Ameri¬ 
cans are coming down here in squads now, 
and seem to be taking possession of the 
land, going into cattle raising, lumber busi¬ 
ness. cotton raising. Coffee is too much of 
a gamble. Call off the politicians up there, 
and save the reputation of the country. 
Brazil. clixtox d. smith. 
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make it.” 
The superior character of the materials used in E. FRANK COE’S 
FERTILIZERS has been proven during over fifty years’ use by the best 
farmers and vegetable growers. 
Insist upon getting GENUINE E. FRANK COE BRANDS, not something 
said to be “just as good.” 
Yeu will get some helpful suggestions from our literature, which is sent free if you mention 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
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You know what you are getting when you buy 
fi-Rl LAND 
as it is sold under a guaranteed analysis. Every bag has attached to it a tag 
stating this guaranteed analysis. Anyone planning the use of lime this year will 
find it to their advantage to secure a copy of our free illustrated booklet. 
Write today to our nearest office. 
ROCKLAND €> ROCKPORT LIME CO. 
Boston, 45 Milk St. 
Rockland, Me. 
New York, Fifth Ave. Bldg. 
Your Fields 
Permanently 
Use Hubbard’s “Bone Base” Fer¬ 
tilizer for Seeding Down and Fruit 
(formerly called “Grass and Grain 
Fertilizer”) and you won’t have to 
plow your grass fields every few 
years. 
Gentlemen: I am just cutting a nine-acre hay field and am sending you an account 
of the way this field has been treated. It was an old field which had not been plowed for 
about thirty years. In the Summer of 1909 it produced three two-horse loads of very poor 
hay. I plowed it in the Fall of 1909 and the next Spring it was planted to potatoes using 
1500 lbs. of Hubbard’s “Bone Base” Soluble Potato Manure to the acre. It produced 2,400 
'bushels. In the Spring of 1911 it was seeded to grass and oats without further dressing of 
Fertilizer. This Spring it was top dressed with 300 lbs. of Hubbard’s ‘Bone Base 
Fertilizer for Oats and Top-Dressing and it produced forty two-horse loads ot hay. 
People who have seen it say they never saw so much hay on ground before. 
Freeport, Maine Yours truly, 
July 24,1912 G. E. BARTOLL 
Our Almanac and “Soil Fertility” sent free to any address 
THE ROGERS & HUBBARD CO. 
MIDDLETOWN, CONN. 
Seed Down 
Trade Mark Reg. U. S. Pat. Office 
