1914. 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
903 
SCIENTIFIC PRODUCTION OF FINE APPLES. 
From Plowing to Packing. 
Part III. 
A HANDY PACKING TABLE. Fig. 373. 
perature, as we know, constitutes of itself a most 
important weather factor. Another and equally im¬ 
portant weather factor is rainfall. But to obtain 
rain it is necessary first to evaporate water from 
the surface of the earth, and this, as everyone 
knows, requires heat. Still another important weath¬ 
er factor is the direction and force of the wind, and 
this. too. requires heat, for the winds will not blow un¬ 
heat sent to the earth by all the planets and also by 
(he moon is insignificant in comparison to the 
amount that comes from the sun. Hence we could 
not expect either the planets or the moon appre¬ 
ciably to affect the weather. They do not supply 
enough heat, the one thing that causes all our weath¬ 
er changes. 
“To most people the above reasoning may seem 
quite sufficient and conclusive, but there is still 
another and an entirely different method of testing 
the whole question. We can observe the positions 
of the planets and the kind of weather during each 
position and see whether the same sort of weather 
always comes when the planets are in the same 
position. This kind of examination has often been 
made, both for the planets and for the moon, but 
not the slightest influence of either upon our weath¬ 
er has ever been found. To sum up: We have every 
reason to believe that neither the planets nor the 
moon can have any appreciable effect on the weather, 
because they furnish so little heat upon which all 
weather changes ultimately depend, and this belief 
is fully supported by weather records. The belief, 
still to be found in all countries, that the planets 
and the moon do affect the weather never had any 
scientific basis whatever: it is only a remnant of 
the many superstitions generated and fostered by 
that other and greater superstition, astrology.” 
COVER CROPS IN VIRGINIA. 
I have just read the article on page 812, entitled 
“Why Not Cover Crops?” and for the en¬ 
couragement of T. W. K. and others will give 
a little experience to show what we may do with 
vetch and clover in Southern Virginia. We bought 
this farm January 1, 1912, at which time it was as 
badly run down as shiftless tenants could run it. 
In the Spring of 1912 a field of gray loam, under¬ 
laid with red clay, was lightly manured with 
stable manure: 300 pounds bone meal per acre ap¬ 
plied broadcast, and corn planted. Crimson clover 
was sown at last working of corn in August. Corn 
made 40 bushels per acre, of shelled corn. Spring 
of 1913 clover was plowed down when about two 
feet high; 300 pounds per acre of 16 per cent acid 
phosphate was applied and corn planted again. 
One of the driest season on record ensued, and 
only 45 bushels of corn per acre was harvested. 
Crimson clover, Virginia gray oats and vetch were 
sown at last cultivation of corn, in August. May 
30. when the vetch was in full bloom and the bloom 
just falling off the oats, 
it was cut for hay, and 
four two-liorse loads of 
fine hay per acre was 
secured. The oats were 
not strong enough to 
hold up the vetch, and 
in consequence much of 
it was run over by the 
mower on account of be¬ 
ing sprawled out so flat 
on the ground. I think 
close to one-third of the 
vetch was left on the 
ground. 
Our county demon¬ 
stration agent, D. D. 
Sizer, visited this field 
shortly before it was 
mowed, and we straight¬ 
ened up a number of 
vetch vines that were 
six feet or more in 
length. I also have 
vetch and rye growing 
in a young orchard in 
red clay land which has 
never received any ma¬ 
nure and no fertilizer 
except an application of 
300 pounds per acre of 
bone meal in the Spring 
of 1912, which is nearly 
as heavy as that de¬ 
scribed a b o v e. The 
first-mentioned field was 
plowed as soon as the hay was removed and again 
planted to corn, with an application of 400 pounds 
per acre of 16 per cent acid phosphate, and I see 
no reason why a bumper yield should not result. I 
believe the roots and part of this vetch crop which 
was too flat on the ground to be caught by the 
mower are equal to an application of manure. The 
soil was literally filled with the root nodules of the 
vetch. JOHN B. lewis. 
Brunswick County, Va. 
G RADING TABLES AND GRADING.—There are 
two forms of grading or packing tables in more 
or less general use, namely, the horizontal and 
the sloping. The former consists of a canvas or bur¬ 
lap-covered wooden frame about four feet wide and 
six to eight feet long. In most cases the different 
grades are selected by persons standing along the 
sides, placed in baskets and emptied directly into 
the barrels. This form of grading possibly offers 
the least opportunity for injury to the fruit, but in 
general will not take care of as many bushels in a 
given time under the present general standards for 
grading barrel apples as is possible with the sloping 
table. The latter should have the same dimensions 
as the horizontal table, is elevated at one end, has 
six to eight-inch side and end walls, either a solid 
or slatted bottom, which should be padded, and a 
10 to 12-inch opening at the lower end, through 
which the fruit passes to the barrel. It should be 
high enough so that a barrel will set under the 
lower end opposite the opening, with five to six 
inches to spare. The fruit is generally lowered into 
the barrel by means of a strip of burlap, which is 
fastened to the table and held across the open end 
of the barrel. With the table properly padded, and 
care in lowering the fruit into the barrel, this 
equipment will give very practical results. This 
table may be modified, as is shown at II of Fig. 362. 
page 8S2, so that both first and second grades can be 
barreled directly therefrom. A place is also pro¬ 
vided for the “facers,” which may be selected as 
grading proceeds. 
GRADING.—Notwithstanding the urgent need of 
improvement in the standards of grading, the great¬ 
er bulk of barreled apples are sorted into but. two 
grades. For standard varieties like Baldwin, Green¬ 
ing and Spy, No. 1 or firsts, should include no fruit 
under 2*4 inches in diameter; and No. 2, or sec¬ 
onds, no fruit under 2*4 inches in diameter. Excep¬ 
tions to the above are found in the case of Roman- 
ite and varieties of similar size and shape where 
214 inches is usually recognized as the minimum 
diameter for No. 1. A further exception sometimes 
occurs with varieties which have many specimens 
running over three inches in diameter, in which 
case a third or "fancy” grade might be made of all 
fruit over three inches. In any case, however, none 
of these grades should contain fruit which is in¬ 
fested by insects or fungus disease, or which bears 
any form of injury 
which would impair the 
keeping quality or gen¬ 
eral appearance. In ad¬ 
dition, any specimens of 
No. 1 size which are 
very poorly colored or 
are especially ill-shaped, 
should go as No. 2, pro¬ 
vided, of course, they 
a r e otherwise sound. 
All fruit which does not 
come up to the above 
standards should b e 
sent to the canning fac¬ 
tory, made into cider or 
fed to live stock. A siz¬ 
ing board should be 
used until the graders 
have the sizes of the 
different grades well in 
mind. Any thin board 
about five inches wide 
and two to three feet in 
length in which round 
holes of the proper size 
have been made, will 
answer the purpose. A 
further guide may be 
provided by keeping spe¬ 
cimens of the proper 
size constantly before 
the graders. 
INCREASING EX¬ 
ACTNESS.—In case a 
grower has a special 
trade for strictly fancy barrel apples, grading 
to more exact uniformity in size and color 
will prove profitable. We are of the opinion, how¬ 
ever, that the increasing demand for more exactness 
in the grading of all kinds of agricultural products 
will make such a practice imperative before many 
years. Recent legislation in the form of the so- 
called “Sulzer Bill" has laid down certain rules for 
the standardizing of barreled apples. All growers 
who sell apples in barrels should become familiar 
THE DAY LOADER IN OPERATION. Fig. 374. 
less the temperature is different at one place from 
what it is at another any more than the air will 
draw up a chimney when there is no fire in it. 
“Since then the heating of different parts of the 
earth and its atmosphere to different temperatures 
is the real cause of the winds and of all weather 
changes it follows that the moon and the planets can 
affect the weather only so far as they supply heat. 
“Now, according to accurate measurements made 
with the most delicate instruments, the amount of 
with this law even though they do not wish to sell 
their fruit under “United States standards.” Copies 
of the bill may be secured from the Secretary of 
Agriculture, Washington, D. C., or from Senators 
or Representatives in Congress. r. ii. bell. 
THE MOON AND WEATHER CHANGES. 
VERY season we have many letteis from people 
who have been told that the moon has some 
direct influence upon crops or upon the 
weather. The Agricultural Department has now 
taken this matter up and gives the following opinion : 
“As a matter of fact all weather changes depend 
ultimately upon temperature differences. The tem- 
* 
Vi; 
4 ^ .- 
