New York AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION. 293 
tained an abundant supply of plant food during the earlier period 
of the growth of the plants. After several clusters of fruit had 
set and the soil had become well filled with roots, a thin coating 
of well rotted stable compost was given. 
Temperature.— A temperature suitable for tomatoes was main- 
tained throughout the experiment. The night temperature aver- 
aged 60°-65° F.; the day temperature ranged from 15°—25° 
higher, depending on outside conditions. 
Training the plants—Al\l plants were trained to single stems 
which were tied to vertical wires as growth developed. Laterals 
were removed as occasion required. Toward the end of the ex- 
periment the lower leaves of all plants were removed as fast as 
they developed the yellowish tinge which indicates that they are 
reaching maturity. 
Ringmg.— The plants were divided into three groups. The 
members of the first group, Numbers 1, 4, 7, etc., were ringed as 
soon as the second cluster of fruit had set. Those of the second 
group, Numbers 2, 5, 8, 11, etc., were ringed when the blossoms 
of the fourth cluster of fruit had set. Plants in the third group, 
Numbers 3, 6, 9, etc., were unringed and were the controls. 
The first group was ringed on October 18. At this time nearly 
all blossoms in the second cluster had set and the first blossoms 
of the third cluster were opening. The second group was ringed 
on October 31. At this date the fourth cluster had set fruit and 
several blossoms of the fifth cluster were open. 
The plants were ringed directly below the leaf which devei- 
oped under the first fruit cluster. A five-eighths inch circular 
strip of the outer layer of tissue was removed, cutting through - 
to the hard woody tissue. In making the cut a curved two- 
bladed knife was used, so that the width of material removed 
would be the same in every case. As the stems of tomatoes are 
irregular in outline, the knives cut slightly deeper at the ridges 
than at other places. The cut surfaces were examined from time 
to time during the experiment and all callus which formed in 
the effort to heal and bridge over the wound was removed. The 
wounds dried very quickly after the removal of the bark and 
callus began to form almost at once. In no case could any 
immediate ill effects to the plant from the ringing be discovered. 
The appearance of the ringed stems at the close of.the expert- 
ment is shown in Plate XXI. The stems of all plants were more 
or less enlarged directly above the point of ringing. 
