1912. 
1247 
CANADIAN FRUIT GROWERS MEET. 
Tho annual convention and exhibition of 
the Fruit Growers’ Association of Ontario 
was held at Toronto on November 13 to 15. 
This is a very large and active association, 
having a membership of more than 1,700, 
and being allied with other agricultural 
branches with a total membership of over 
12,000. Large and exceptionally fine ex¬ 
hibits were made in fruit and also in 
flowers, vegetables and honey as well. The 
fruit exhibit, in which the writer was espe¬ 
cially interested, was extremely good and 
very extensive, especially in the box packs. 
There were no less than 3,227 boxes of 
apples, 35 boxes of pears and 24 boxes of 
peaches. Besides this, there were 130 bar¬ 
rels and 1,025 plates of apples, 148 plates 
of pears, 87 plates and 25 baskets of 
grapes, and 548 entries or canned fruit. 
From this array it will be readily seen 
that the box was the outstanding feature 
of the present show, and this pack seems 
to have reached a development in Ontario 
that is probably not paralleled east of the 
Rockies. This is doubtless connected with 
the fact that the box has been in general 
use for a longer time in that section than 
in other Eastern sections, and also to the 
fact that Canada, under her “Fruit Marks” 
Act, has had definite legal provisions and 
a definite standard for such packs for some 
years. In this connection it is of interest 
to note that they use only one size of 
box, 10 by 11 by 20, which is the so- 
called “Special” of the Pacific Coast, and 
they make all sizes of apples fit it by 
merely changing the styles of the pack. 
A new style of box, known as the Biggs 
box, from the originator, located at Bur¬ 
lington, Ont., was also present. It is at¬ 
tracting considerable attention, especially 
for shipments of less than a carload, or 
for foreign or other shipments that involve 
rough or severe handling. In the writer’s 
opinion, this box meets very cleverly a 
number of the objections that we have long 
since raised to the ordinary apple box. 
By a simple extension of the ends and 
slight widening of the sides, the bulge is 
largely protected from the effects of care¬ 
less piling or handling. The tops and bot¬ 
toms are shortened so as to fit inside the 
ends. The latter device enables the covers 
which are nailed on the insides of ends, 
to be pressed directly against the fruit, 
thus always holding it firm with less ex¬ 
pert packing than is required by the or¬ 
dinary box in which a fixed space always 
has to be filled exactly. The only material 
objection to this box that occurs to the 
writer is the fact that it will naturally 
appear less full when the fruit is exposed 
for sale, and this may operate against it 
if its extra depth is not realized. 
Mechanical and hand grading devices 
were also in evidence, probably the most 
prominent being the Schellenger “cheek-to- 
cheek” grader for apples. It is certainly 
an ingenious device, and with further im¬ 
provements it may become an important 
aid in box packing. At present, however, 
its chief faults seem to be insufficient ca¬ 
pacity and rather irregular grading in some 
of the sizes. 
The customary question of best varieties 
of fruits for planting came up for discus¬ 
sion. The preferences seemed to be as 
follows: Apples, Wealthy, McIntosh or 
Snow, Greening, King, Spy and Baldwin; 
peaches, St. John, New Prolific, Fitzgerald 
and Elberta ; pears, Bartlett, Kieffer, An- 
gouleme, Anjou, Bose and Clapp; plums, 
Burbank, Bradshaw, Reine Claude, Lom¬ 
bard, Monarch and Shropshire Damson; 
grapes, Concord, Worden, Niagara, Moore’s 
Early, Vergennes and Agawam. For 
strawberries, Prof. Macoun recommended 
Bederwood, Splendid, Warfield, Dunlap, 
Sample, Buster and Parsons Beauty. 
A number of excellent papers were pre¬ 
sented, among which may be mentioned 
two by Prof. J. W. Crow of Guelph, on 
nursery stock and the fruit for boxing, 
and also two by Prof. Caesar on orchard 
pests and the control of yellows and little 
peach. In the latter it may be of interest 
to note that Prof. Caesar reports good re¬ 
sults during the past season from the lime- 
sulphur and zinc arsenite combination. The 
writer would still advise caution in the 
use of this combination, however, on ac¬ 
count of certain unfavorable results else¬ 
where. He also reports a much higher per 
cent of success in getting seedlings from 
pits from trees diseased with yellows than 
has been reported heretofore. He reports 
about four per cent of such pits to have 
grown. Many other matters were taken 
up, including cooperative selling, but they 
were principally of local interest. 
Two talks, given by the writer, on the 
results of fertilization and cultural meth¬ 
ods in orchards may have spine general 
interest. These experiments have been 
running six years. They involve 10 soil 
types, over 2,200 trees, ranging from 10 
to 40 years, and over 34,000 bushels of 
fruit. Some of their more important re¬ 
sults are as follows. The experiments have 
shown : 
(1) That in some orchards the yield can 
be greatly influenced by proper fertiliza¬ 
tion, the most important elements of which 
have been nitrogen and phosphates. With 
all other conditions uniform, the gains 
from such fertilization have run as high 
as 17 times the amounts of fruit produced 
on the adjacent checks or untreated plots, 
and net profits have been as great as $420 
per acre on a single season. Under these 
conditions, tillage and cover crops have not 
been the equivalent of fertilization. The 
gains from the former have averaged about 
100 bushels per acre annually, while the 
latter without cultivation was giving 452 
bushels. 
(2) In the absence of nitrogen, as a rule, 
applications of phosphates and potash have 
not been profitable. On some soils, and in 
the presence of sufficient nitrogen, however, 
moderate amounts of these minerals are 
often profitable. Neither has had any ma- 
THE RURAh NEW-YORKER 
terial influence on color. On size, the in¬ 
fluence of potash has been favorable. 
(3) Nitrogen has had greater influence 
in increasing yield than any other element. 
It also has materially decreased color. This 
is due primarily to delay in maturity, and 
may be overcome by later picking, which is 
advantageous in Pennsylvania with such 
varieties as Baldwin. The delay on it in 
one locality in 1911 was three weeks. 
(4) Contrary to a prevalent notion, 
growth and fruiting are not antagonistic, 
unless either occurs in abnormal amount. 
The best growing plots, as a rule, have 
been the best fruiting plots. 
(5) Manure has usually proved profitable, 
doubtless essentially because of its nitro¬ 
gen content. In most cases where it has 
been beneficial, however, its net profits 
have been approached or surpassed by cer¬ 
tain combinations of artificial fertilizers. 
(6) In a few orchards, however, no form 
of fertilization has yet produced a material 
response. This is considered to be due to 
the presence of other limiters, of which 
improper moisture supply is frequently im¬ 
portant. The existence of such orchards 
emphasizes the need of local tests before 
making large and regular expenditures for 
fertilizers. Simple methods of making 
these tests and a good general formula for 
preliminary use were indicated. 
(7) In the long run, any orchard that 
is actively producing and growing is likely 
to require fertilization, since the total 
plant food draft of such an orchard is 
quite heavy—more per acre for every con¬ 
stituent except phosphorus than is required 
by a 25-bushel crop of wheat. 
(8) Color in apples is essentially de¬ 
pendent on maturity and sunlight. Con¬ 
ditions increasing one or both of these 
factors such as late picking, light soils, 
open pruning, and sod culture, increase 
color. Opposite conditions decrease it. 
Iron applications to the soil have not been 
shown to improve color. 
(9) The average size of apples is gov¬ 
erned primarily by the number of fruits 
on the tree, after the number has passed a 
certain “critical point.” This point is rela¬ 
tively high, the data showing that, even on 
trees up to 15 years of age, little or no 
correlation appeared until the number of 
fruits reached 1,400 or more per tree. 
Below this point, size can be markedly af¬ 
fected by moisture supply, cultural meth¬ 
ods, manures and fertilizers—especially 
those rich in potash; and these factors 
may also cooperate in such a way as to 
materially raise the critical point. 
Penn. Expt. Station. j. p. stewart. 
Bird Tenants in Orchard Trees. 
I have an old orchard that I wish to 
reconstruct. Among the trees that should 
come down are three that appear to have 
a prior lien on them, being tenanted by 
a family of blue birds, a family of king¬ 
birds, a large brown bird, a wood-cock or 
near relative. How am I to get rid of the 
rotten, scaly trees and not lose the ten¬ 
ants? While I am new at the farm it 
looks as though the three families were 
doing a lot of work for me. reader. 
Connecticut. 
These birds would probably build new 
nests in other apple trees. If these trees 
are not too bad you can cut off the tops 
and soak them with oil or lime-sulphur. 
Scrape the trunks and if not too badly rot¬ 
ted you can cut out the cavities about as a 
dentist cleans out a decayed tooth. Get 
out all the decayed wood, smear with some 
antiseptic and fill the cavities with con¬ 
crete well tamped down. This is part of 
what is called “tree surgery,” though it 
may not pay on these old trees. 
When you write advertisers mention The 
R. N.-Y. and you’ll get a quick reply and a 
“square deal.” See guarantee editorial page. 
NEVER TIRES 
Of the Food That Restored Her to Health. 
“Something was making me ill and I 
didn’t know the cause,” writes a Colo, 
young lady: “For two years I was thin 
and sickly' - , suffering from indigestion 
and inflammatory rheumatism. 
“I had tried different kinds of diet, 
and many of the remedies recommend¬ 
ed, hut got no better. 
“Finally, Mother suggested that I try 
Grape-*-Nuts, and I began at once, eating 
it with a little cream or milk. A change 
for the better began at once. 
“To-day I am well and am gaining 
weight and- strength all the time. I’ve 
gained 10 lbs. in the last five weeks and 
do not suffer any more indigestion, and 
the rheumatism is all gone. 
“I know it is to Grape-Nuts alone 
that I owe my restored health. I still 
eat the food twice a day and never tire 
of it.” Name given by Postum Co., 
Battle Creek, Mich. 
The flavour of Grape-Nuts is peculiar 
to itself. It is neutral, not too sweet 
and has an agreeable, healthful quality 
that never grows tiresome. 
One of the sources of rheumatism is 
from overloading the system with acid 
material, the result of imperfect diges¬ 
tion and assimilation. 
As soon as improper food is aban¬ 
doned and Grape-Nuts is taken regu¬ 
larly, digestion is made strong, the 
organs do their work of building up 
good red blood cells and of carrying 
away the excess of disease-making ma¬ 
terial from the system. 
The result is a certain and steady re¬ 
turn to normal health and mental ac¬ 
tivity. “There’s a reason.” Read the 
little book, “The Road to Wellville ” in 
pkgs. 
Ever read the above letter ? A new one 
appears from time to time. They are genu- 
ine, true, and full of human interest. 
We are as 
careful in 
every operation 
to make the 
South Bend 
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handsome timepiece 
as we are to make it accu 
perfect time¬ 
keeping ser¬ 
vice. Any 
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records of the South Bend. 
rate in time. South Bend owners A South Bend Watch is always 
proudly show their watches, for sold through expert retail jewelers 
they knowthe time is rightand that because every watch needs that 
the watch is stylish in appearance. 
You want such a watch if you 
want entire satisfaction. 
Six Months Building 
personal regulation by an expert 
watch man. We will never sella 
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cause mail-order watches do not 
get this expert service. 
It takes six months to build a 
South Bend Watch and sometimes 
six months more to adjust and reg¬ 
ulate it in the factory. There are 
thousands of separate operations 
and 411 inspections. Then the 
watch is run for 700 hours in an 
accuracy test; then in a refrigera¬ 
tor; then in an electric oven. 
When a jeweler sells it to you 
he gives it his expert regulation to 
your personality. That insures a 
Ask for Book 
You ought to have our free 
book, How Good Watches Are 
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Ask a jeweler to let you see a 
South Bend. But first get our book. 
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12 Rowley Street South Bend, Ind. 
^gjoirth Rend ” 
- I 9 Watch 
(1193 
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CHANDLEE & CHANDLEE, Patent Att’ys 
Established 16 Years 
P. Street, Washington, D« C. 
