well firmed they fail. When I have used a tobacco planter I have had to
put my heel on every plant. Of course you know that newly planted June
varieties must have the blossom buds cut out, and everbears bearing must
also till July.
_Picking._ The man who has acres to pick must secure his boxes the
winter before and have at least part of them made up if they are to be
tacked. I have found a boy can make up boxes as fast as thirty pickers
can fill. If you use the folding box no tacks are needed. Too many boxes
made up ahead are liable to be damaged by the mice.
_Pickers._ Engage your pickers ahead; agree on the price and that a part
of the pay is to be kept back till the close of the season, which is
forfeited if quitting before time. If pickers are too far away,
transportation must be furnished--free boxes of berries are appreciated
by the pickers.
_Marketing._ Sometimes the marketing of the fruit is harder than the
growing of it. If enough is grown form an association to sell it, get
advice from a successful association how to form and how to run it.
Sometimes a well made wagon, a good team and a good man can sell from
house to house in the country and city and make good returns. In this
way you get back your crates and part of the boxes. I know a successful
grower in Iowa, who sold his crop of ten acres to the farmers and city
people, they doing their own picking and furnishing their own boxes, at
a given price. All the proprietor had to do was sit at the gate and take
in the cash. It is worth a good deal to know how to grow the best of
strawberries and often it is worth more to know how to turn them into
cash.
_What Varieties?_ Dunlap and Warfield have a general reputation for
profit, can be picked together and sell well; dark color, good canners
and good shippers. If you want a third variety take Lovett. Some of your
growers want nothing but Bederwood, but it is too light and too soft to
ship, though it is a good family berry. I expect Minnesota No. 3 will
soon be the only variety you will want of the June kinds.
_Insects._ Winter drouth often injures the roots and some lay it to
insects. The winter of 1899 was the worst winter drouth I ever knew; it
killed every thing. If you are troubled with the crown borer, root lice,
leaf roller or rust, grow one crop and plow under, or move your fields a
good distance from the old bed. What shall be done with the old bed? If
you have insects or rust plow under and get the best place to start a
new bed, and don't set any of your own plants if you have insects or
rust--and be sure you buy of a reliable grower.
_Old Beds._ If the first crop is big, plow under, if light and you have
a good stand of plants, no insects or rust, you can mow and teddy up the
mulch and in a high wind burn it over--a quick fire will do no harm.
Then you can plow two furrows between rows and drag it every way till
not a plant is seen. Soon, if the rows are left a foot wide, the plants
will come through. Then manure (better be manured before plowing), and
you may get a good second crop. Some mow and rake off and burn outside
the bed, then with a two horse cultivator dig up the paths and cultivate
and get the ground in condition. Put on the manure and hoe out part of
the old plants.
I like the plan of Wildhagen; mow, burn and then cover three inches deep
with one hundred big loads of manure to the acre and don't go near the
patch till picking time next year. He gets a nice early crop, and if
berries are a little small it pays better than any other way. Try it! I
have known some fields carried to fourth crop, and amateur beds kept up
for ten years. It takes lots of work to keep an old bed in good
condition. J.M. Smith, of Green Bay, Wis., almost always took one crop
and plowed under. If the first crop was injured by frost, he took a
second crop. He raised four hundred bushels to the acre.
Wm. Von Baumbach, of Wauwatosa, Wis., raised from five acres less ten
square rods seventeen hundred bushels big measure beside quantities
given the pickers. I have had beds and fields where I have timed my boys
picking a quart a minute. I had one small boy that picked 230 quarts a
day. But in all my sixty years growing strawberries I never properly
prepared an acre of ground before planting. I could take a five acre
patch now, as young as I am, and beat anything I have ever done.
_Mulch._--For mulch for small beds, if straw or marsh hay is not handy,
use an inch of leaves, then cut your sweet corn and lay the stalks on
three inches apart and your plants will come up between in spring and
give you clean fruit. Cut cornstalks are good for field covering, also
shredded cornstalks. I have used the begass from the cane mill, but it
is too heavy. Evergreen boughs are very good if well put on for small
beds.
In my paper, Vol. 1911, page 180 (Minn. Report), it should read five
bushels to the square _rod, not acre_. Who ever heard of five bushels an
acre!
_Big Yields._--You all know of Friend Wedge's 74-3/4 quarts from one
square rod of Everbearers the season of planting. I believe that can be
beaten. Let our society put a few hundred dollars in premiums for best
yield of square rod of everbearers and of June varieties, and of a
quarter of an acre; also the best product of one hill, and the best
product of one plant, and its runners fourteen months from planting. I
believe one plant of everbearers can produce a quart the season of
setting. I know of the five bushels to the square rod, and the other
fellow had four and a half bushel of Wilson.
Surprise Plum a Success.
C. A. PFEIFFER, WINONA.
I realize at the outset that I am treading on delicate ground in
undertaking to defend the Surprise plum, on account of it having been
discarded by our fruit list committee, but after seeing our young trees
producing this year their third consecutive heavy crop I feel justified
in taking exception to the action of the committee. My first experience
with the Surprise plum dates back to 1897, when Mr. O. M. Lord, of
Minnesota City, probably the best authority on the plum in the state in
his time, presented me with one tree, which at that time were being sold
at $1.00 each, and I was cautioned against giving it too much care or I
would kill the tree, and that is just what happened to it.
[Illustration: C. A. Pfeiffer, Winona.]
The following year, 1898, I bought twenty-five trees from Mr. Lord and
planted them late in March, on very sandy land on a southerly slope,
pruning the trees back almost to a stump. These trees were very slow in
getting started but made a satisfactory growth before the season was
over. They commenced to bear the third year after planting, and are
still producing good crops, but it is my more recent experience with
this variety that finally induced me to prepare this article. In the
spring of 1909, we set out 160 plum trees, on rich, black, loamy soil on
low land, nineteen of them being Surprise, the other varieties being,
according to numbers, Terry, Ocheeda, Stoddard, Hawkeye, Bursota, Wolf,
Omaha also a few Jewell, DeSoto, Forest Garden, American and Stella. The
Surprise trees bore a crop in 1913, again in 1914, and 1915, making it
to the present time not only the most productive but the most profitable
variety on our place. While we did not keep an accurate record of the
exact yield in 1913 and 1914, some of the trees produced fully five 16
quart cases in 1913. A fair average would perhaps be about four cases
per tree. In 1914 the crop was somewhat lighter, yielding an average of
three cases per tree. This year we picked and sold eighty-five cases,
which brought us a gross revenue of $79.60. We lost part of the crop on
account of continual rain in the picking season, or we would have had
fully 100 cases. Nine of the trees being in a more sheltered location
than the other ten held their fruit better during the growing season,
and produced a relatively heavier crop than the ten that were exposed to
our fierce winds all summer.
We have never been able to supply the demand for them, at good prices,
while other varieties went begging at any kind of a price. Among their
good qualities with us are productiveness, good size, extra fine quality
and attractive color. They are delicious to eat out of hand just as they
are ripe enough to drop from the tree. They are fine for canning,
preserving or jelly. They are practically curculio proof, and have never
been affected with brown rot as have some other varieties. Aphis never
bothers them, while Terry and some other varieties nearly had the whole
crop ruined by this pest in 1914. The branches form good, strong
shoulders at the trunk and do not split or break down in heavy storms or
under their heavy loads of fruit, as the Terry and Forest Garden do. The
flower buds and fruit form as freely on the new growth as on the old
spurs. The crop is therefore about evenly distributed all over the tree,
and while we picked almost eight cases from one tree this year it did
not appear to be overloaded, as some varieties frequently are, the
Surprise tree always being capable of maturing all the fruit that sets.
We have shipped them 300 miles by freight with perfect success, but we
pick them from the tree before fully ripe. If allowed to ripen on the
tree they drop badly, which bruises and damages them. The trees are
thrifty, vigorous growers with beautiful glossy foliage that can be
distinguished from all other varieties.
You would note on examination of the buds that we have promise of
another crop next year, but this will depend somewhat on the weather
during the blooming season. We attribute one of the reasons for our
success with the Surprise plum to the fact that they are planted among
and alongside of varieties that have the same season of blooming, and
which undoubtedly are good pollenizers, namely the Bursota, Wolf,
Ocheeda and Omaha. The bloom of Surprise being almost sterile, they
will not be a success planted alone.
[Illustration: A Surprise plum tree growing on the place of Prof. A.G.
Ruggles. It bore in 1914 four bushels, having been well sprayed with
arsenate of lead and bordeaux mixture.]
You will perhaps ask if there are no faults or diseases they are subject
to, and we will state, for one thing, the fruit drops too easily when
ripe, and you will either have to pick them before fully matured or find
a good many of them on the ground. They are also occasionally subject to
blossom blight, which was rather a benefit, as it thinned the crop out
to about the proper proportion. We also had considerable plum pocket and
fungous growth one season about ten years ago. Such has been our
experience with the Surprise plum--and will again repeat that until the
society finds a plum equally as good or better, instead of discarding it
on account of unproductiveness and recommending such poor quality
varieties as Wolf, DeSoto and some others, our learned horticulturists
should make a special study of this variety and ascertain the cause of
its unproductiveness, and also to what localities in the state it may be
adapted.
Mr. Pfeiffer: Right here I will say to those gentlemen who are looking
for a cure for brown rot or curculio, they had better plant Surprise
plums. (Applause.)
Pres. Cashman: I am glad the Surprise plum has at least one good friend
in this audience. I think it has several.
Mr. Ludlow: What has been your experience with the Ocheeda? I see you
mention it.
Mr. Pfeiffer: The Ocheeda at the present time, I am sorry to say, I am
disappointed with. I planted some fifteen years ago, and they were nice
large plums, as you have described, and they were on sandy soil. I have
twenty Ocheeda trees now, and they are quite badly subject to brown rot.
Their quality is very nice to eat from the tree out of hand, nice and
sweet.
Mr. Street: I want to second everything Mr. Pfeiffer has said. I joined
this society about twelve years ago, and it was through studying the
reports of this society that I got interested in the native plum. The
Surprise plum does very well with us in Illinois. Professor Hansen is
one of those that are responsible for my starting in with the Surprise.
It was years ago at our state meeting that he mentioned that as one of
the good plums for Northern Illinois. Well, I put it alongside of the
Wyant and the native plums that are of the same sort. I may state the
conditions under which we grow them. We always cultivate before bloom,
cultivate thoroughly. Before the growth starts we give them a very
thorough spraying with lime-sulphur spray; then just before the bloom,
just before the blossoms open, as late as we can wait, we use about 1 to
40 or 50 of the lime-sulphur solution, also put in three pounds of
arsenate of lead. Then after the blossoms fall we use the same spray
again, perhaps two weeks after that again, and we keep that up for about
four times. We have had abundant crops, and they have been very
profitable.
Pres. Cashman: I am very glad to know that the Surprise plum has friends
in Illinois, and we are also pleased to know that Mr. Street is with us
and we hope to hear from him later. The president of the Wisconsin
Horticultural Society, Mr. Rasmussen.
Mr. Rasmussen: I will say the Surprise plum has given just about the
same results with us--it is the most profitable we have.
Mr. Sauter: I was over to the Anoka county fair; it was the first part
of September, and all the other plums weren't ripe, all the stuff they
had in was green. But all the Surprise were ripe, so that certainly must
be an early ripener.
Mr. Pfeiffer: Not especially early.
Mr. Hall: I was certainly glad to hear Mr. Pfeiffer so ably defend the
Surprise plum. The Surprise plum was the only one I got any good from.
The DeSoto, Wolf and Stoddard and all those, the brown rot got them, but
the Surprise plum had perfect fruit. I am surprised that it has a black
eye from the society.
Mr. Pfeiffer: Your location is where?
Mr. Hall: Sibley County.
Mr. Kellogg: Thirteen years ago I set out a root graft that made about
five feet of growth and just as quick as it got big enough to bear it
was loaded with Surprise plums, but since then it hasn't been worth a
cent.
Mr. Miller: If Mr. Pfeiffer had been in my orchard he could not have
given us a better description of it than he did, of the Surprise plum. I
set it out about fifteen years ago. I think I paid sixty cents for those
seedlings, they stood about three and one-half feet. I never had brown
rot in them. When I set them out I put them with other varieties and set
them so the inside ones would fertilize the outside ones. Afterwards I
set these on the east side of the orchard, where they got protection
from the west wind. They have borne almost every year, and this year
they are the only ones we had a crop on.
Pres. Cashman: I think we get as near to agreeing on this question as on
most others. It is suggested that we find out how many have had success
and how many have had failures with the Surprise plum. All those who
have been successful in raising Surprise plums will please raise their
hands. (Certain hands raised.) Now, hands down. Those who have been
unsuccessful will please raise their right hands. (Other hands raised.)
It seems there were more successes than failures.
A Member: It has been mentioned that the frost this year killed the plum
crop. I noticed in my orchard previous to that frost when we had a snow
storm, I noticed that the blossoms dried up and fell from the trees
before that hard frost. I think the question of success or failure with
the Surprise, as with other plums, is sort of comparative. I don't know
of any plum of the Americana type that we have a success with every year
any more than any other. So it is relative. I would like to ask if
anyone had the same experience with the blossoms drying and falling off
the trees before that frost.
Mr. Crawford: Perhaps the gentleman will recall the fact we had two
nights in succession of quite severe frost. The first night it was
almost a freeze, and the second we had the snow storm which is given
credit for the plum failure.
Mr. Anderson: The gentleman who read the paper, he is from Winona, where
he has a very much better location for any kind of fruit than the
general run of the state. The other gentleman is from Illinois. Now,
this good location near Winona and the temperature down in Illinois,
does that favor the Surprise plum, and has it anything to do with their
success and our failure?
Pres. Cashman: We will have to leave that to the audience.
Mr. S.D. Richardson: Down in Winnebago I got three trees from the
originator of the Surprise plum, and while I was at the nursery I never
saw any plums, but I propagated some from there and a man in our town
has some Surprise plums from it, and since I left the nursery I think
the man has had some plums from them. I got them from Mr. Penning when
they were first originated, but they never bore plums for me. I had no
other plums around there. Perhaps if they need pollen from other plums
they didn't get it, and this man that has had the first success with
them he had other plums near them. Perhaps that is the secret. The tree
is hardy and good, and if you can get a crop of plums by having
something else to fertilize them, the Surprise plum is all right.
Pres. Cashman: I think Mr. Richardson has struck the keynote to a
certain extent, we must put them near another variety to pollenize them.
Northeast Demonstration Farm and Station.
W. J. THOMPSON, SUPT., DULUTH.
Last May the Station orchard was set out, the same consisting of about
516 apple trees with a fringe of cherries and plums. The apples
consisted of year old stock (purchased the year preceding and set in
nursery rows) and included these six varieties: Duchess, Patten's
Greening, Okabena, Wealthy, Hibernal, Anisim. Good growth was made the
past season and the stock went into winter quarters in good shape.
However, 20 per cent died, the loss being in this order: Wealthy,
Anisim, Hibernal, Pattens' Greening--Okabena and Duchess were tied for
smallest loss. In addition to the above, we made a considerable planting
of small fruits, principally currants and gooseberries, together with a
limited quantity of blackberries and raspberries. Twelve varieties of
strawberries were set out, each including 100 plants. All made a
splendid growth this season. An interesting test is under way in the
dynamiting work. Alternate trees have been set in blasted holes, a stick
about one and one-half inches long being sufficient to make a hole three
feet in diameter and perhaps twenty inches in depth. It is yet too early
to measure the results of this work, but owing to the nature of the
subsoil in this region, we are looking for splendid results. With regard
to the stock secured from the Fruit Farm, we have not been uniformly
successful. Much of the stock seems to be weak and dies readily from
some cause unknown to us. Next season we should be able to render a more
complete report, as our work will then be fairly started.
Annual Report, 1915, West Concord Trial Station.
FRED COWLES, SUPT., WEST CONCORD.
[Illustration: Fred Cowles at home.]
Of the new varieties of plums that I received from the Fruit-Breeding
Farm most all have done well. The only one that has borne is No. 21.
This one had two plums on last season, and several this. They were a
medium size red plum, very good flavor, and seem to come into bearing
very young. No. 17 is a very thrifty grower, but when it bears that will
tell what it is worth. Hansen's plums are doing well, but we believe
they are more adapted to a better drained soil than we have here, as we
are on a heavy prairie soil. But these varieties are very thrifty and
bear so young.
The grapes have all stood the winter with no protection and have not
killed back any. We expect some fruit next season.
The raspberries that we received have all done well. No. 4 seems to take
the lead for flavor and is a good grower.
Notwithstanding the cold season our strawberry crop was very good, and
we are much impressed with No. 3, it is so strong and healthy; it is
just the plant for the farmer, as it will thrive under most any
condition. I believe it will fight its way with the weeds and come out
ahead.
We reported very favorably on the Heritage when it was in bloom, but it
does not set enough fruit to pay for its space. The berries are large
but very few on my grounds. I will discard it.
Our apple crop was very good, especially Duchess, Wealthy and
Northwestern Greening. We have been trying some of the tender varieties
top-worked. Northern Spy gave us five nice apples on a two year graft.
We also have Jonathan, Talman Sweet and King David doing well. Delicious
grafted three years ago has not fruited yet.
This has been a splendid summer for flowers, and they seemed to enjoy
the damp, cool season, especially the dahlia. If you have not tried the
Countess of Lonsdale you should; it is a cactus dahlia and a very free
bloomer. Everblooming roses did well--we had them in October.
* * * * *
PLANT LICE ON BLOSSOMS.--Aphids infesting the apple buds
appeared in serious numbers during the present season in the Illinois
University orchards when the buds began to swell. They were also
observed in neighboring orchards. In 1914, apple aphids caused serious
damage in certain counties in Illinois, and some damage was reported
from many sections of the state.
The aphids attack the opening buds, the young fruits, the growing
shoots, and the leaves, sucking the plant juices from the succulent
parts by means of long, very slender, tube-like beaks, which they thrust
through the skins of the affected organs into the soft tissues beneath.
They weaken the blossom buds by removing the sap; they dwarf and deform
the apples so that varieties of ordinary size frequently fail to grow
larger than small crab apples, and the fruits have a puckered appearance
about the calyx end; they suck the juice from the growing shoots,
dwarfing them; and they cause the leaves to curl, and if the insects are
present in large numbers, to dry up and fall off. They are more
injurious to the growth of young trees than of old trees. In old trees
their chief injuries are on the fruit.
This species of aphids are easily killed in the adult stage by certain
contact sprays. Winter applications of lime sulphur cannot be depended
on to destroy eggs. Poison sprays such as arsenate of lead are not eaten
by this type of insect, and consequently are ineffective remedies for
aphids. Kerosene emulsion is effective but is uncertain in its effect on
the foliage of the trees. The best available sprays are the tobacco
decoctions, of which the one most widely in use is "Black Leaf 40," a
proprietary tobacco extract, made by the Kentucky Tobacco Products
Company, Louisville, Kentucky. This material is used at the rate of one
gallon in one thousand gallons of spray. It may be combined with lime
sulphur, lime sulphur arsenate of lead, Bordeaux, or Bordeaux arsenate
of lead, not with arsenate of lead alone.
The ideal time to spray for these aphids is just as soon as all or
nearly all the eggs appear to have hatched. Observations made in the
University orchards this season indicate that all the eggs hatched
before the blossom buds began to separate. After the leaves expand
somewhat and the blossom buds separate, the aphids are provided with
more hiding places and are more difficult to hit with the spray.
Unfortunately, spraying at this time would require an extra application
in addition to the cluster bud (first summer) spray (made for scab,
curculio, bud moth, spring canker worms, etc.), and would thus add
seriously to the cost of the season's operations. Spraying for aphids at
the time of the cluster bud spray is, however, highly effective, and in
general it is advised that this method be followed. If, however,
previous experience has shown serious losses from aphids, or if they are
present in extremely large numbers, the extra application may be well
worth while.--Ill. Agri. Exp. Station.
Annual Report, 1915, Duluth Trial Station.
C. E. ROWE, SUPT., DULUTH.
[Illustration: A rosa rugosa hybrid rose grown by C. E. Rowe, Duluth.]
Although this was an off year for apples, results were probably as good
here as in other sections of the state. The spring gave promise of an
unusual crop, but the constant dropping of fruit during the summer
months left us with about two-thirds as many apples as were harvested in
1914. The quality was much poorer, owing to extremely cool weather and
the presence of scab in many localities.