THE NATIONAL NURSERYMAN. 
89 
PIECE ROOTS AGAIN. 
The Old Controversy occupied but Brief 
Attention at the St. Louis Convention- 
Suggestion FROM E. J. Holman. 
The whole and piece root question occupied the attention 
of the American Association for a brief time at the St. Louis 
convention last month. It was precipitated by the following 
paper read by E. J. Holman of Leavenworth, Kan : 
It would ill become me to undertake to teach this body in 
the art of grafting and that is not our purpose. We believe 
nurserymen are and should be educators and we all know that 
the art of grafting, though it be the art that doth mend nature, 
is to the practical nurseryman a very simple act, but to the 
world'at large it is a mystery supposedly dangerous to attempt 
and one of the impossibilities except to the initiated. With 
this the normal situation it is one of the easy things to add 
mystery to mystery by skillfully playing on the mind, or if 
you please, want of mind of the over credulous every dayman. 
We all know what piece root grafting is, but how many of 
this body know what whole root grafting is, save by the way 
of experimentation to confirm their skepticism concerning any 
advantage of this method. 
We do not believe arguments are needed with this body to 
prove that the people need information on this subject from so 
high a source as the American Association of Nurseryman. 
But a few months ago a party wrote to one of our leading 
horticultural journals asking which made the best tree, one 
from a piece or whole root. Surprisingly the answer was : 
“ There is not much information on this subject.” 
Will not the association furnish the information and enable 
the horticultural press to inform the people. 
I offer the following resolution : 
Resolved, by the American Association of Nurserymen, 
that the piece root method of propagating apple trees is best 
for the following reasons : First, it secures the tree on its own 
roots sooner, thereby making a more even growth in nursery 
and orchard. Second, the tendency of the seedling is back to 
the wild tree and lacking in the thrift of our improved varie¬ 
ties. Therefore, the more there is of it than sufficient to well 
start the scion the more it impedes thrift. Third, the use of 
piece root trees by our large orchardists, and tests by experi¬ 
ment stations and individuals, all confirm the advantage of 
piece root propagation. 
As soon as Mr. Holman had read his resolution N. H. 
Albaugh said : “ This association has discussed some weighty 
questions which have troubled man from time immemorial, 
but such difficult problems as ‘ Who killed Cock Robin ?’ and 
‘ Who struck Billy Patterson ?’ we have not been able to solve. 
If this body is to lift the veil now for the first time revealing 
the answer to the piece and whole root question, then it will 
be one of the most important rulings we can ever hope to make. 
“This question of whole root and piece root is not new. I 
was foolish enough fifteen years ago to write a paper on the 
subject. We in Ohio have had some experience as nursery¬ 
men. I am not saying what they know out in ‘Kansaw ’where 
they produce everything from a peach-root to a populist. But 
in Ohio we have discarded the old plan of cutting an apple 
root in three or four pieces and grafting upon each piece. 
Mr. President, I move that this resolution be laid upon the 
table.” 
C. N. Dennis, Hamilton, Ill.—“We used the whole root, 
cutting it shorter and shorter, and now we use the piece root. 
We get better roots on the piece root.” 
Mr. Holman—“ I would like to ask Mr. Albaugh what 
length of whole root he uses.” 
Mr. Albaugh—“ We do not use the long tap root. We 
select roots shorter and well-branced and we trim them down. 
We look for many branch roots and as little tap root as 
possible.” 
Mr. Holman—“ But the gentleman has not answered my 
question. How long are the roots ?” 
Theodore S. Hubbard, Fredonia, N. Y.—“ Perhaps you 
don’t want to tell, Mr. Albaugh.” 
A. L. Brooke, North Topeka—“ We know who struck Billy 
Patterson and we also know a whole lot of things that they 
don’t seem to find out in Ohio. Now, I’m from the Buckeye 
state, but I live in Kansas, lively Kansas. And I want to say 
that Kansas grit discloses many things.” 
Mr. Albaugh—“ I bought a farm in Kansas once. By hard 
work I succeeded in getting crops above the surface, but then 
the wind began to blow, and it blew and blew and blew until 
I had nothing left. I got my eyes and clothes full of Kansas 
grit and I want to say I was glad to get back into Ohio.” 
The resolution was tabled. 
SEED TRADE ASSOCIATION. 
The fifteenth annual meeting of the American Seed Trade 
Association was held at the Ebbitt House, Washington, June 
8, 9 and 10. 
The following officers were elected : President, Jerome B. 
Rjce, of Cambridge, N. Y.; first vice-president, E. B. Clark, 
Milford, Conn.; second vice-president, J. Bolgiano, Baltimore, 
Md.; secretary and treasurer, S. F. Willard, of Comstock, 
Ferre & Co., Wethersfield, Conn.; assistant secretary, C. E. 
Kendall, Cleveland, O.; executive committee, T. W. Wood, 
Richmond, Va.; S. F. Leonard, Chicago, Ill.; A. L. Don, New 
York ; Albert McCullough, Cincinnati, and W. Atlee Burpee, 
Philadelphia 
TO INSPECT ONTARIO ORCHARDS. 
At a large gathering at Hamilton, Ont., June 21, of fruit 
growers of Western Ontario, held for the purpose of discussing 
the San Jose scale. Professor Craig and Professor Panton laid 
before the meeting the results of their inspection of the Nia¬ 
gara orchards. 
A unanimous resolution was passed calling upon the govern¬ 
ment to appoint a regular inspector of Ontario orchards and 
the inspection of all nursery stock coming into the country 
from the United States As the remedy for the disease is the 
uprooting and the burning of infected trees, the meeting con¬ 
sidered that the government should recompense the farmer 
losing his stock. 
M. J. Henry, Vancouver. B. C.—“ I enclose renewal for your 
paper and think that any person that tries to run a nursery without it, 
is behind the times.” 
