THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST AND BEEKEEPER

The Core of the Fruit
VERY    apple grower knows that       dIalts upon th
the core has five sections, each   -while care to
bearing a   well-matured plump      with the excep
seed when the fruit is ripe. This core   the tree in a
is the centre of reproduction., The      condition. Bu
surrounding fruit that we value so       A man may b
highly is but a camouflage, some. say,   overtax lis s
to assist animals in distributing the in-  not have a be
nernost 'seeds when the ripened fruit   plantfood tha
has fallen.   Now the oreharding in-     ing and fishir
dustry has a core essentially like that  tions, he is una
of the fruit which it markets.    This   mum energies.
core has to do with the essentials to the chard. The g
production of best crops. It, like the   sceems a much
apple core, consists of five distinct    flowering plar
parts  to wit, first, proper variety of  tomato of the
fruit; second, proper mechanical con-    cells just the
dition of orchard soils; third, the effec-  plants. These
tive control of insects and   diseases;  tially the sa
fourth, proper supply of orchard plant   crops, and re
food; fifth, proper marketing of the     they are to th
produce.                                 in foliage and
Granted that each of these essentials
is given   its merited  attention, the
growth, blossoming and fruition of a       A notable
satisfactory fruit industry is assured.  vation is repo
Space will not permit our discussing     meat Station.
each of these 'essentially important ago inaugurat
factors, but we shall confine our re-     ive orchards
marks to that factor which has to -do    which orchard
with the early   feeding  of the crop,   a satisfactory
which function latest orchard investi-    blossonied in
gation  has shown    absolutely  deter-  was beautiful
mines the strength of "set" of fruit     cane to the s
and the development of the fruit itself.  not sufficient
'The long-time orchardist will pos-    draft upon ti
sibly 'be inclined to ask why the or-    disappointiiei
chard should need feeding. Its trees     thriving   Ore
send out their extensive root systems    Wio Experin
far and deep into well preepared soils.  the shoitcoi
Proper piuning prevents excessive lack of plat.

Industry
e root system of the tree,
other essential factors,
tion of plantfood, keeps
comparatively healthy
t t'his is the very point.
e healthy and may not
trength, but if he does
tter balanced supply of
i lie can get from hunt-
ig under normal condi-
ible to keep up his maxi-
Just so with the or-
rowing tree, although it
stronger plant than the
it of the home or the
garden, is built up of
same as are the tender
cells are equipped essen-
e as the cells of other
uire like nourishment if
rive and reproduce both
fruit.
rved Orchards
nstance of orchard star-
rted by the Ohio Experi-
This station some years
ed a study of the exten-
of  the   Ohio   Valley,
s had ceased to produce
return. The fruit trees
profusion. Their foliage
to behold, but when it
etting of fruit there was
strength to maintain the
he soil. The result was
it and loss instead of a
harding   industry. The
ent Station found that
ing of this section was
ood. In view of this fact

This orchard shows the results obtained from the use of a well balanced fertilizer. Each row
contains 12 Ben Davis apple trees. The row at the left received complete fertilizer and yielded
49 bbls. of large marketable apples. The row at the right, unfertilized, produced 20 bbls. Note
article on this page.

it inaugurated an extensive fertilizer
denionstration, which, in the course of
a little over seven years, brought back
many of the orchards, reviving them,
and in fact developing them far be-
yo'nd the former important orchard-
ing industry of that territory. Two
systems of orchard practice were in-
vestigated, the sod and the cultivated
orchard.   In both   instances, What
were considered suitable fertilizers
were applied in sufficient quantity to
materially nourish the apple trees. In
fact in 1914 the rows of Ben Davis
apple trees shown on the front cover
of this issue of The Canadian Horti-
culturist, containing  12  trees each,
produced 49 barrels of large market-
able apples, where fertilizer was ap-
plied, but only 20 barrels of inferior
fruit where nothing was added. In
1915 these same rows yielded as fol-
lows: Fertiliezd, 46 barrels; unfer-
tilized, 9 barrels.
Maintaining Humus.
There were two things to which the
orchardists  paid   special  attention.
One was the upkeep of humus, Which
was accomplished by the -addition of
one bale of straw   around each tree
annually and a proper supply of plant-
food, which the station supplied in
1212 lbs. of a mixture of fertilizer
made up of 5 lbs. of nitrate of soda, 5
lbs. acid phosphate, 2  lbs. of potash.
This same quantity ,of plantfood is sup-
plied by 12  lbs. per tree of a fertilizer
analysing 6 per cent ammonia, 6.4 per
cent phosphoric acid and 10 per cent
potash.   Quickly available ammonia
caused rapid tree growth, along with
vigorous twig and 'bud production.
Phosphoric acid hastened ripening and
helped the setting of fruit, while
potash assisted in laying down starch
and gave general vigor to the tree.
The Ohio Station, in speaking of the
effects of fertilizing this orchard, says:
"The first noticeable effects of fer-
tilization in these starving orchards
were discovered within two weeks
from the date of application where the
quickly soluble, promptly available
nitrate  of soda   had   been  applied
around the trees, either alone or in
mixture with other forms of plant-
food. Dark green cireles or "belts"
around the trees caused by the thin
mixed 'growth of weeds and grasses,
taking on a much deeper, richer shade
of color were distinctly outlined. . . .
These changes were remirkably notice-
able within a month, as the fertilized
riows or plants were compared with
those left unfertilized."
Orchard fertilization has also been
exteilsively examined by Pennsylvania

March, 1919.

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