The Apple Part 19

F. W. WILc.o.x, Corning, Nemaha county: I have resided in the state twenty-three years; have an apple orchard of seventy-five trees, all sizes and ages. For market I prefer Ben Davis, Winesap, and Wealthy. I prefer a dark, loose soil, on a hillside with a north and east slope. I prefer good, healthy three-year-old trees, set in holes dug two feet deep and three feet across. I plant my orchard to sweet corn, using a cultivator, and cease cropping when I think necessary and seed down to red clover. Windbreaks are essential--would make them of Osage orange. I prune my trees with a saw to give shape; I think it pays. I do not thin the fruit while on the trees. I fertilize my orchard with rotten stable litter, but would not advise its use on all soils. I pasture my orchard with horses, and think it advisable, and that it pays. My trees are troubled with canker-worms, tent-caterpillar and flathead borer. I do not spray. I pick my apples by hand in pails. Sort into three cla.s.ses--first, second, and cast out. I do not dry any. I store a few for winter market. I do not irrigate.

JAMES ANDERSON, Leonardville, Riley county. I have lived in Kansas seventeen years; have an apple orchard of 200 trees from one to sixteen years old, four to sixteen feet high. For market I prefer Winesap, Missouri Pippin, Jonathan, and Ben Davis, and for a family orchard Early Harvest, Missouri Pippin, Winesap, Jonathan, and Ben Davis. I prefer bottom land with black loam and clay subsoil, with a southern slope.

When setting trees, I dig holes four feet in diameter and three feet deep; put black loam in the bottom for the roots. I plant my orchard to potatoes for three or four years, using a plow. I cease cropping at the end of this time, and mow, and leave everything on the ground. Sow red or white clover in a bearing orchard. Windbreaks are essential on the north and south sides of the orchard; would make them of maple, cottonwood, or Osage orange. I have Osage orange on the north and a creek with native timber on the south. For rabbits I wrap the trees.

When I see a black spot on a tree I hunt for and dig borers out. I prune off all the interfering branches and watersprouts. I do this for fruit; it pays. I do not thin the fruit while on the trees. I keep the varieties together when planting. I fertilize my orchard by putting stable litter a foot thick on the north side, which is the highest, and when it rains the liquid from it runs all the way down and fertilizes the trees. I think it beneficial, and would advise its use on all soils. I do not pasture my orchard. It is not advisable, and does not pay. My trees are troubled with canker-worm, and my apples with codling-moth. I have sprayed with all the sprays recommended, and think I have reduced the codling-moth a little. I pick my apples by hand from a step-ladder, and sort into two cla.s.ses--sound, wormy and windfalls.

Put the sound ones in the cellar; make cider of the others. I sell apples in the orchard, mostly at retail. They sell the best in town in the winter. My best market is in towns west of here. I have tried distant markets, but it did not pay. I do not dry any. I store a few apples in boxes, barrels, and bulk, in a cellar. Those that keep best are Winesap, Missouri Pippin, Ben Davis, and Jonathan. Have to repack stored apples before marketing; lose about ten per cent. The average price has been fifty cents per bushel. I employ men at twenty dollars per month.

F. A. SCHERMERHORN, Ogden, Riley county: I have lived in the state thirty-eight years. Have an apple orchard of 4000 trees from twelve to thirty-seven years old. For market I prefer Ben Davis, Winesap, Missouri Pippin, and Jonathan; and for a family orchard Winesap, Rawle's Janet, Missouri Pippin, Maiden's Blush, and Early Harvest. I have tried and discarded Willow Twig and Smith's Cider on account of blight; and McAfee, Snow and Lawver on account of shy bearing. I prefer rolling land having a clay loam and clay subsoil. I prefer two-year-old trees, with heads twenty inches from the ground, set in the spring, about two rods apart. I cultivate all the time, even in bearing orchards, using an Acme harrow, planting corn; cease cropping after four years; put nothing in a bearing orchard. Windbreaks are not essential if the orchard is large.

For rabbits I wrap the trees. I dig borers out with a knife. I prune my trees, and think it pays. I do not thin the fruit while on the trees. My trees are planted in blocks--800 Ben Davis in one and 700 Missouri Pippins in another; all bear well. I fertilize my orchard some, but not much. I think it would be beneficial on poor soil, but would not advise it on all soils. I pasture my orchard with horses after the fruit is gathered; can't see any harm. My trees are troubled with canker-worm and root aphis, and my apples with codling-moth. I spray as soon as the bloom falls, and two or three times afterward, with a.r.s.enic, for insects. Think I have reduced the codling-moth. I wash young trees twice during the summer season with diluted soft soap for borers. Pick my apples by hand, and sort into two cla.s.ses. I pack in the standard apple barrel, fill with a head press, mark with variety and grade, and haul to depot on wagon. I sometimes sell apples in the orchard by the wagon-load. I s.h.i.+p my best apples, and sell the culls for what I can get. My best market is west. Have tried distant markets and found it paid. I do not dry any. I am successful in storing apples in barrels; Ben Davis and Missouri Pippin keep best. I do not irrigate. Prices last fall were two dollars per barrel or fifty cents per bushel to wagoners.

I employ men at one dollar per day and board.

A. CHANDLER, Argentine, Wyandotte county. Have lived in the state twenty-two years; have an apple orchard of 400 trees from one to nine years old. For market I prefer Jonathan, Winesap, Missouri Pippin, Ben Davis, and York Imperial; and for family orchard Huntsman's Favorite, Maiden's Blush, and Jonathan. Have tried and discarded Grimes's Golden Pippin and Smith's Cider on account of blight. I prefer hilltop, with a clay soil and a light subsoil, and an east slope, as it will get the morning sun and no southwest winds. I prefer two-year-old trees five to six feet high, well branched, set twenty-eight by thirty feet; I also have some twenty by thirty feet. I plant my orchard to corn, potatoes, tomatoes and cabbage for seven years, using a cultivator and harrow (I like the Acme and spading harrow). Cease cropping after seven years; plant bearing orchard to blackberries and raspberries, but this is not advisable; clover or cow-peas are better. Windbreaks are essential on the prairie; would make them of a double row of Osage orange or evergreens, on the south and west. For rabbits I wrap the trees with paper or veneering, and for borers I mound the tree up. I prune a little with my pocket-knife to remove dead and crossed limbs; it does not pay to saw and chop. I thin my fruit by hand when the crop is heavy, not later than July 15. My trees are in mixed plantings. I fertilize my orchard with ashes and bone-meal; both are beneficial, but not necessary in good potash soils.

I pasture my orchard with six-months-old pigs--think it advisable in an orchard that is over four years old. My trees are troubled with canker-worms, round- and flathead borers and tent-caterpillar, and my trees with codling-moth, curculio, and gouger. I spray with London purple and Paris green, using a hand pump. For borers I wash the trees with whale-oil soap, carbolic acid, and sulphur, and then mound the trees up. I pick my apples in baskets, from a ladder wide at the bottom and narrow at the top, and leave the apples in the orchard four to six weeks, then sort into three cla.s.ses, from a padded table 512 feet, sloping; pack into twelve-peck barrels, mark with variety, and haul to market on a spring wagon. Sometimes I sell apples in the orchard at retail; pack my best apples in one-peck baskets for stand trade, my second grade in barrels. Feed the culls to the hogs; cider does not pay.

My best market is Kansas City. Have tried distant markets, but it did not pay--too great freight and commission charges. I am successful in storing apples in barrels in an earth cave five feet deep, earth sides and roof; keep it open when not freezing; apples can be stored in bulk by leaving a s.p.a.ce of six inches at the sides and bottom. Jonathan and Gano keep best. I have tried artificial cold storage and lost fifteen per cent. of my apples. I found it too expensive and unreliable. I have to repack the stored apples before marketing, and lose from fifteen to forty per cent. of them. I do not irrigate. Prices have been: Jonathan, $3 to $5 per barrel; Ben Davis, $2.25 to $3 per barrel. I employ men mostly, at from $1 to $1.25 per day.

STEPHEN STOUT, Axtell, Marshall county: I have lived in the state nineteen years; have an apple orchard of 800 trees twelve to fifteen years old. For market I prefer Winesap, Ben Davis, Jonathan, Maiden's Blush, Cooper's Early White, d.u.c.h.ess of Oldenburg, and Huntsman's Favorite; and for family orchard, the first five varieties mentioned.

Have tried and discarded Willow Twig and White Winter Pearmain, because the trees are not healthy. I prefer hilltop, with a black loam, and a clay subsoil having a reddish color, and a northeast slope. I prefer two-year-old, low-head, heavy, stocky trees, set in big holes, leaning the tree a little to the southwest; fill the hole half full, and then pour in a pail of water and fill up with earth. I have always plowed and cultivated my orchard, but I will have to quit soon, as the trees are getting too large. I use a stirring plow, spring-tooth cultivator, and a harrow. Plant corn in a young orchard, and leave the stalks standing all winter; cease cropping after ten or twelve years; grow great big weeds in a bearing orchard, and plow them under in July. Windbreaks are essential on the south and west sides of the orchard; would make by planting Osage orange seed very thick, and tend well for three years.

For rabbits I paint the trees with a mixture of sulphur, soap and lard the first fall after planting, then every alternate year for three or four times; it will also keep off insects, mice, and bark-louse, and the trees will be slick and smooth, with no place for insects to harbor. I prune very little; keep out watersprouts, and let the sun into the top.

I do not thin the fruit while on the trees.

My trees are in mixed plantings, but cannot see any benefit from it. I fertilize my orchard by plowing under the green weeds. I think a vegetable mold is what the trees require; think it beneficial, and would advise it on all soils. I pasture my orchard in the spring with sows and pigs; think it advisable, and that it pays. Codling-moth troubles my apples. I spray right after the blossom falls, and a few days later, with London purple, for the codling-moth, and we are getting away with him. For borers and other insects I allow the birds in the orchard, and do not allow the boys to go in with guns, or disturb them at all. I pick my apples by hand from a step-ladder, and pile them under the tree. I sort in two cla.s.ses from a long, wide, sloping board with sides. I pack in barrels from the piles in the orchard. Wagons come from the west and buy the apples from the orchard at wholesale; sell the second grade to apple peddlers; make cider for vinegar of the culls. My best market is at home; never have tried distant markets. Do not dry any. I store apples for our own use, and have apples the year round. The Little Romanite keeps best. I do not irrigate. Apples wholesale at twenty-five cents per bushel in the orchard. I employ men at $1.25 per day.

I had twenty-four very fine Siberian crabs--Hyslop, Transparent, and Whitney. They were affected with blight. Nearly all of the Siberian trees were dead from the effects of it, and one day, while in the orchard watching the movements of the birds and boys, I saw a striped woodp.e.c.k.e.r fly to one of the trees, and he found what he supposed to be a grub, but when he got through the bark he was very much disappointed, wiped his bill, and flew to another tree, where he continued to wipe and clean his bill; so I went to the tree mentioned, and found the bark very loose and sour where he had punctured it. I compared the smell and taste with the blighted twigs and found them the same. I cut the bark that was loose from the tree, and found the rapid growth of the bark and the flow of the sap had bursted the bark from the wood, and this sap had soured and been taken up by the other sap and poisoned the ends of the new growth; hence, it blighted. It was sap poison, like blood poison. I then used the knife freely, splitting the body and limbs. I saved twenty out of twenty-four of the trees. I then went over the orchard and cured all the trees in one season; never been bothered since. The woodp.e.c.k.e.r taught me a lesson, and I relate it to show the value of birds in the orchard.

A. C. MOORE, Wanamaker, Shawnee county: I have lived in Kansas thirty-three years; have an apple orchard of 400 trees, from twelve to seventeen years old. For market I prefer Winesap, Jonathan, Missouri Pippin, and Ben Davis; and for a family orchard Red Astrachan, Early Harvest, Maiden's Blush, Smokehouse, and Winesap. Have tried and discarded Tulpehocken; it rots on the tree and will not keep. I prefer bottom land, with sandy loam and clay subsoil, and a north slope. I prefer two-year-old trees, with full top and roots, set fifteen inches deep, in furrows checked with the plow; plant where furrows cross. I plant my orchard to corn eight years, using a plow, harrow, and cultivator; cease cropping at the end of this time and seed to clover.

Windbreaks are essential on the south; would make them of Osage orange fifteen rods distant, to protect the orchard from the hard and hot south winds. For rabbits I wrap the young trees with paper. I prune my trees after they are eight years old, with the saw, to give light and thin the top. I think it beneficial. I do not thin my apples; enough fall off. I fertilize my orchard by mowing the clover, and think it beneficial to young trees, and would advise the use of clover fertilization on all soils. I do not pasture my orchard; is not advisable. My trees are troubled with borers, and my apples with some insect that stings them and causes them to fall off. I do not spray. I pick my apples by hand with care. Sort into two cla.s.ses, pack in barrels, in layers, by hand, mark with variety, and haul to s.h.i.+pping place or market in lumber wagon.

I wholesale my best apples; make vinegar of the second and third grades and culls. Topeka is my best market; never tried distant markets. I do not dry any. I am successful in storing apples in barrels in a cellar; I also bury some. I find Romanite keeps best. I have to repack stored apples before marketing, losing about one-eighth of them. I do not irrigate. Price has been fifty cents per bushel.

THOMAS BUCKMAN, Topeka, Shawnee county: I have lived in the state twenty-nine years. Have an apple orchard of 1300 trees from six to twenty-seven years old. For market I prefer Ben Davis and Jonathan; and for family orchard Rare Ripe, Maiden's Blush, and Winesap. I prefer black soil with a porous subsoil, and a northeast slope. I prefer two-year-old, small-size trees, with good roots, set in holes dug with spade in well-cultivated ground. I cultivate my orchard six years with a five-tooth cultivator; plant corn in a young orchard, and cease cropping when six years old, and sow clover in the bearing orchard. Windbreaks are essential; would make them of Osage orange, by setting the plants twelve inches apart. For the rabbits I use traps and wrap the young trees with corn-stalks. I dig the borers out with a knife. I prune to remove crossed limbs and to keep the tree well balanced; I think it pays. I do not thin the fruit while on the trees. I do not fertilize my orchard, but think it would be beneficial on all soils. I pasture my orchard with hogs, but do not think it advisable; it does not pay. My trees are troubled with roundhead borers, and my apples with codling-moth and tree-cricket. I spray, after the blossom falls, with London purple. Pick apples into a sack over the shoulder from a slide ladder; sort under the tree, and put the best in crates made to hold one bushel level full; we let them remain in the shade of the tree until danger of freezing; then sort and store in the cellar, one box on top of another. I sell apples in the orchard, wholesale and retail to customers in Topeka; make cider of the second and third grades, and give the culls to hogs. Topeka is my best market. Have tried distant markets, but they do not always pay. I do not dry any. I am successful in storing apples in bushel crates. I find Rawle's Janet and Winesap keep best. I have to repack stored apples before marketing, losing about one-fifth of them. I do not irrigate. Prices have been from thirty cents to one dollar per bushel.

M. SANDERS, Broughton, Clay county: I have lived in Kansas thirty-eight years. Have an apple orchard of 400 trees, three to ten inches in diameter. For market I prefer Ben Davis, Winesap, Grimes's Golden Pippin, and Red Astrachan; and for family orchard Ben Davis, Winesap, and Missouri Pippin. I prefer bottom land having a sandy subsoil, and a southeast slope. I prefer two-year-old, low-headed trees. In the spring I open deep furrows both ways with a plow, and plant the trees at the cross, fill the hole with good soil. I cultivate my orchard for six or eight years, using a common plow till four years old, then use a shovel plow, and plant early corn, potatoes, etc., in the young orchard; cease cropping after six or eight years; plant nothing in a bearing orchard, but keep up shallow cultivating with a disc or plow. Windbreaks are essential; I would make them of three rows of box-elder or Osage orange.

I prune with a small saw or knife, to thin the top. I fertilize my orchard with yard litter and ashes, scattering it all over the ground; would advise it on all soils. I have pastured my orchard with hogs, but have quit it. I now pasture with cows; I tie their heads down, but do not think it advisable; it does not pay. My trees are troubled with tent-caterpillar, bud moth, and twig-borers, and my apples with codling-moth. I do not spray. I pick my apples by hand in a basket, and sort into two cla.s.ses. Sell my apples to storekeepers and Indians; make cider and vinegar, and give away the second and third grades; feed the culls to the hogs and cattle. My best market is at home; never tried distant markets. Don't dry any. I have stored apples in boxes and barrels, and find Ben Davis and Winesap keep best. I have to repack stored apples before marketing, losing one-third to one-half of them. Do not irrigate. Prices have been from twenty cents to one dollar per bushel.

JOHN REED, Oak Hill, Clay county: I have resided in the state twenty years; have an apple orchard of 100 trees six years old. For market I prefer Ben Davis and Winesap; and for family orchard add Jonathan and a few early varieties. I prefer low land with a porous subsoil, and a northeast slope. I prefer two-year-old trees with branches one foot from the ground. When setting I dig big holes and loosen up the subsoil about a foot. I find this gives the best satisfaction. I have always cultivated my orchard, and intend to do so three or four years longer; I plow twice a year--in spring, and the middle of June; I keep the ground well stirred. I planted corn the first three years, listed it in, but would not recommend it, as the trees will do better if the land is plowed. Windbreaks are essential on the south and west sides of the orchard; would make them of two rows of cottonwood trees planted zigzag with one another. For rabbits I wrap with corn-stalks. I dig borers out and wash the trees with lye water twice a year for the first three years; it keeps the tree nice and clean and the borers out. I prune my trees, by cutting out the limbs that cross, and to keep the trees from leaning to the north, and it pays. I fertilize my orchard with decayed corn-cobs. I think it beneficial, and would advise it on all soils, as I think too much straw mulching is an injury to the trees when they get old. I do not pasture my orchard; it does not pay. My trees were troubled with canker-worms last spring. I do not spray. My best market is in the neighborhood. Prices last fall were fifty to sixty cents per bushel.

GEO. R. BARNES, Chapman, d.i.c.kinson county: I have lived in Kansas twenty-seven years; have an apple orchard of six acres old enough to be at their best. For market I prefer Ben Davis, Missouri Pippin, Jonathan, and Winesap, and for family use Early Harvest, Red June, Maiden's Blush, and Missouri Pippin. I prefer a low bottom with a black loam, and a north slope. I prefer two-year-old, well-balanced trees, set in holes large enough to receive them, twenty-four by twenty-four feet. I cultivate my young orchard to corn and potatoes, using a disc harrow, and cease cropping when they begin to bear. I plant nothing in a bearing orchard. Windbreaks would be beneficial on the south to protect the orchard from the hot south winds. I would make it of walnut trees, because they sap the ground the least. To protect them from the borers, I leave the branches low down, and when we see any sawdust I dig him out with a knife. I prune very little with knife and saw to balance the trees. I do not thin the fruit on the trees. Some say if you expect to get a load of apples from a tree you must give it a load of manure every time it bears, and I think this is right, but don't put it too close to the tree. I pasture my orchard with nothing but poultry; it is not advisable; it makes the ground too hard. Codling-moth troubles my apples very much. I do not spray. I sell apples in the orchard; peddle the best ones; make cider and vinegar of the culls. Don't dry any for market--just enough for family use. Prices have been from forty to seventy-five cents per bushel.

A. M. ENGLE, Moonlight, d.i.c.kinson county: I have lived in Kansas nineteen years. Have an orchard of 600 apple trees ten to eighteen years old. For commercial orchard I prefer Ben Davis, Rawle's Janet, Missouri Pippin, and Winesap. I prefer bottom or low land with a dark loam, and a north or northeast aspect. I prefer stout, low-headed, two-year-old trees, planted sixteen or eighteen feet east and west and thirty or thirty-two feet north and south. I think an orchard ought to have as much cultivation as a corn-field. I grow early corn in my young orchard, using an Acme and cutaway harrow, and cultivate as for corn. I cease cropping when fairly bearing. Plant nothing in a bearing orchard unless for fertilizing, but keep cultivating. Windbreaks are essential; would make them of evergreen, box-elder, Osage orange, maples, cottonwood, etc. For rabbits I rub the trees with axle grease, or tar and fish oil, or old lard, mixed; apply with a cloth. For borers I wash with lye or strong soap-suds. I prune my trees severely when planting, and watch them for several years, and cut out all branches that rub or crowd, and cut out buds so that the tree will not have too many limbs for foundation; I think it pays. I thin the fruit while on the trees; begin early when the trees are full, and continue all through the season, whenever I see imperfect fruit; think it pays big. My trees are mixed plantings. I fertilize my orchard with well-rotted stable litter and wood ashes; I would especially advise the use of wood ashes. I pasture my orchard very little; would put hogs in if the limbs were not too low and full of apples; I think it would pay. My trees are troubled with flathead borer and canker-worm, and my apples with codling-moth. I intend spraying this year with Paris green and London purple for the worms, and Bordeaux mixture for blight and fungous diseases, as soon as the blossoms fall.

In picking I use foot ladders and one-half-bushel baskets, unless the variety is very hard; then I use sacks. Sort into three cla.s.ses. Pack in barrels shaken and pressed down, then headed, and marked with name of variety, and haul to s.h.i.+pping point on wagon. Sell some apples in the orchard; let the grocer have the best to sell on commission; sell second and third grades the best way I can; make cider of culls. My best market is at Abilene; never tried distant markets. Dry only for home use. Am successful in storing apples in barrels and tight boxes, in a cave; find Winesap and Rawle's Janet keep well till June. Put my apples in the cave when the weather is cold, and keep it open cold nights, but am careful to not let it freeze. Think it best to repack stored apples when kept late. If they are well managed you will not lose five per cent., probably not two per cent. Do not irrigate, but would if I had water facilities. Prices last fall were from forty to fifty cents per bushel in the orchard, but the apples I kept over netted me $1.25 to $1.35 per bushel. I employ men and women; think women best and cheapest for sorting. Pay fifty, sixty and seventy-five cents per day.

I do not consider myself a successful horticulturist, but believe, if I had known as much about the nature or necessity of the orchard when we came to Kansas nineteen years ago as I do now, I could have made a success of it, even here in central Kansas. I would especially say that I do not believe there can be success with an orchard exposed on upland.

There might possibly be some success as a family orchard, with a good windbreak planted around it, especially on the south side, but I would not take ten, twenty or thirty acres of exposed upland, with apple trees enough to plant it, as a gift, if I must plant and tend it, for the produce of it for ten or more years. I do not know of a single such orchard that is worth having. I would advise selecting low ground, sloping north and east, with an elevation or good timber protection on south and west; land inclining to bottom or good "draw." My belief is that, with a good selection of varieties, and the proper kind of land and location, apple-raising could be made quite profitable here. Keeping the apples in cellars is a mistake; a good cave kept as cold as possible without freezing is far better. I think apples should be placed on the north side of some shed or building before being put in the cave, and kept cool, and put into cave before freezing. Last fall I sold my choice apples at the orchard at from forty to fifty cents per bushel. I kept some in barrels in the cave. They were in good demand later. About the holidays I got $1.25, and since then $1.35. I had a contract with a grocer to sell them for fifteen per cent., and they netted me as above.

I have some in very fine condition in my cave yet [April 27]. I still open the cave on cold nights.

THOMAS E. TAYLOR, Pearl, d.i.c.kinson county: I have lived in the state seventeen years. Have an apple orchard of seventy trees, fifty of which are twelve years old, and the other twenty are eighteen years old. I prefer Maiden's Blush, Missouri Pippin, and Winesap. Have tried and discarded Lowell, Jonathan, Grimes's Golden Pippin, and Willow Twig, on account of blight. I prefer bottom land having a sandy soil and a clay subsoil, with a north slope. I prefer two-year-old healthy trees, set in ground which has been plowed very deep. I water the tree well when I plant it. I have cultivated as long as it was possible to get between the trees. I generally use a common plow and disc harrow during the summer, where I have no crop in. I grow corn, Kafir-corn and potatoes in a young orchard. Cease cropping my orchard when twelve years old. I mow the weeds with a machine. I think windbreaks a benefit; would make them of box-elder, ash, or red cedar. I use a pruning-knife on my trees every year, leaving the branches quite thick on the south side. I think it pays. Never have thinned the fruit on the trees. I fertilize my orchard every two or three years with stable litter. I think it beneficial. I do not pasture my orchard; it is not advisable, does not pay. Do not spray.

Prices at picking time are forty to fifty cents per bushel.

H. DUBOIS, Burlingame, Osage county: I have lived in Kansas forty-one years. Have an orchard of fifty apple trees from ten to twenty years old. For market I prefer Ben Davis, Winesap, and Missouri Pippin, and would add for family orchard Early Harvest, d.u.c.h.ess of Oldenburg, and Maiden's Blush. I prefer a rich bottom having a red subsoil, and a northeast slope. I prefer thrifty, two-year-old, medium-height trees, set thirty feet each way. I cultivate my orchard as long as it lives with a shovel plow and cultivator, and keep the ground stirred. Plant potatoes in a young orchard, and cease cropping when the trees begin to bear; then sow oats and let the pigs eat it off while it is green.

Windbreaks are not essential here, but some have forest-trees planted on the north side of their orchards. I prune my trees in the spring to give shape; cannot say whether it is beneficial or not. I fertilize my orchard with barn-yard litter. I pasture my orchard with pigs until the ripe fruit begins to fall; I think it advisable and that it pays, as the pigs eat all the wormy and worthless fruit that falls. My trees are troubled with tent-caterpillar, root aphis, round- and flat-headed borers, and woolly aphis, and my apples with codling-moth.

A. J. KLEINHANS, Grantville, Jefferson county: I have lived in the state forty-one years. Have an apple orchard of 300 trees, twenty to twenty-five years old. For market I prefer Winesap and Ben Davis; and for family orchard Summer Astrachan, Bellflower, and White Winter Pearmain. Have tried and discarded Missouri Pippin, Russet, Baldwin, Red Astrachan, Little Romanite, and Pound Pippin. My orchard is situated in the Kaw valley. I plant my orchard to corn, until the trees get too large; then cease cropping and seed to clover and timothy. I prune lightly, to keep the limbs off the ground and let in the sun and light; I think it pays. I do not thin the fruit while on the trees. I pasture my orchard late in the fall with young dehorned cattle; I think it advisable and that it pays. My trees are troubled with canker-worms; and my apples with codling-moths. I do not spray. I sell apples in the orchard at wholesale.

J. W. ATKINSON, Perry, Jefferson county: I have resided in Kansas seventeen years; have an apple orchard of 2100 trees from two to eighteen years old. For market I prefer Winesap, Missouri Pippin, and Jonathan. I have tried and discarded Ben Davis; the tree is not hardy. I prefer a porous, red-clay subsoil, and a northeast or east aspect. I cultivate my orchard to corn six years from setting, and cease cropping after twelve years. I seed the bearing orchard to clover. Windbreaks are essential on the south and west sides of the orchard; when possible, natural forest is best. I prune my trees sparingly to improve the grade of fruit; I think it pays when properly done. I do not thin the fruit on the trees. Can see no difference whether trees are in block [of one kind] or mixed plantings. I fertilize my orchard when it needs it with barn-yard litter and wood ashes; would not advise it on all soils. I do not pasture my orchard. My trees are troubled with root aphis, and my apples with codling-moth and curculio. I spray twice after the blossom falls, with Paris green. I can get rid of borers only by persistent effort. I sort my apples into four cla.s.ses: No. 1, No. 2, drying, and stock and cider. Pack in twelve-peck barrels, and market in apple racks.

I sometimes wholesale my apples in the orchard. Never tried distant markets. I do not dry any.

Am successful in storing in barrels in a fruit house which is built near the crest of a hill with a fall of 14 in 100 feet. Excavated twenty-three by fifty-three feet; depth at extreme back end, fourteen feet; at front seven feet. Tile ditch fourteen inches deeper than the excavation next to bank, filled with broken rock. Stone wall ten feet high; fine broken rock between wall and bank from ditch to top of wall around the entire building. The front end of the building stands three feet out of the ground, allowing two windows in the front with refrigerator shutters, also a refrigerator door. Heavy timbers, supported by posts covered with bridge lumber, const.i.tute the framework, upon which is seven feet of earth. Through the roof are five sewer-pipe ventilators covered by thimble tops. In the front end are four small ventilators. In the extreme back end is placed an elevator building forming an opening six feet square; this extends eight feet above the top of the earth covering. There are three windows and one door in the elevator building. By means of small ventilators the house can be ventilated very gradually, but by the elevator opening in the back end of the building, and the windows and door in the front end, the air can all be swept out by natural draft and replaced by fresh air. Five minutes is sufficient to thoroughly ventilate. During all this extreme wet weather the floor of the building has been dust dry.

Dr. CHAS. WILLIAMSON, Was.h.i.+ngton, Was.h.i.+ngton county: I have lived in Kansas forty years. My first planted orchard is thirty-eight years old and the second thirty years. For market I prefer Ben Davis, Winesap, Missouri Pippin, and Rawle's Janet; and for family use Ben Davis, Winesap, Jonathan, Rome Beauty, Rambo, Early June, and Romanite. I have tried and discarded Cooper's Early White, because it is a short-lived tree and a shy bearer. I prefer bottom land with a black loam and a clay subsoil, with a north and east slope. I plant trees thirty feet apart. I would advise cultivation for three years; seed bearing orchard to white clover. Windbreaks are essential; would make them of mulberries and cedar; plant seed for mulberries and set small cedars. For rabbits I use traps and dogs. I prune, but not very much; I cut out watersprouts and dead limbs, and thin out the top so as to let sun in. I never have thinned the fruit on the trees, but think it would pay. I keep bees to help pollinize the blossoms. I fertilize my orchard with stable litter; trees and plant life, as well as stock, need food. I do not pasture my orchard; it is not advisable. I have sprayed with London purple. I protect my trees from the sun, and the bark being full of sap the borers will not trouble them. I hand-pick my apples and pack in barrels in the orchard. I sell in the orchard at retail. My best market is at home. Do not dry any. I store some apples, and find Ben Davis, Winesap and Missouri Pippin keep best. When packing apples for storing I wrap each apple in paper and put a paper between the layers in the boxes; then put them in the cellar, and they keep well. I open the cellar door on warm days. Prices have been from 35 cents to $1.10 per bushel.

There is not a state in the union but what is profiting by the experiences of such men as friend Wellhouse, the "Apple King," and other horticulturists, who are leaving a legacy to future generations. My experience in orcharding has been as an amateur ever since 1856. My orchard has been for home use, but now, with my experience gained here in Kansas, I am planting in the Ozark country, near Olden, exclusively for market purposes (the same can be done in Kansas), but takes longer to come to maturity. Taxes are low in Missouri. The orchardist should not be a.s.sessed on his fruit-trees and pay the penalty for being energetic and a pusher in horticulture. In Kansas, thanks to the life work of the members of the State Horticultural Society, we have reached a point where the culture of fruit is an a.s.sured success; and there is more money in it than in hog or corn raising. The trouble has been, too many worthless varieties have been planted, and now that they are bearing are profitless; and the worst of it is they are repeating the same mistake each year. I have saved some valuable trees from the borers by taking a quarter-inch bit and boring a hole and putting in strychnine or sulphur, and the tree lived on while all others died; even in the black locust it was successful. I then plug the outside portion of the hole. Let some one explain the reason who understands the circulation of the sap.

ERNST FAIRCHILD, Hiawatha, Brown county: I have lived in Kansas thirty years; have an apple orchard of fifteen acres, twelve years old. For market I prefer Jonathan, Ben Davis, and Rawle's Janet; and for a family orchard Snow, Winesap, and some sweet varieties. I prefer an east slope. I cultivate my orchard to corn or oats for eight or nine years, using a disc and harrow, and cease cropping at the end of this time and seed down to clover. Windbreaks are essential; would make them of forest-trees set in rows, on the north and west sides. I prune my trees to give shape. I pick my apples in square tin pails which have false bottoms; slide the fruit out at the bottom. I make vinegar of the cull apples. Prices have been from sixty cents to one dollar per barrel. I employ men and boys--men at one dollar per day and boys seventy-five cents per day.

NEILS HANSON, Willis, Brown county: I have resided in the state thirty-two years; have an orchard of 200 apple trees twenty years old.