The Portland gazette. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1818-1824, 1822-05-07
AGRICULTURE.
More hereafter.

Mr.. Shirleyl noticed an article in your last paper
on the importance Of embarrassing apple trees This
practice, says the writer which contributes so es.
sentialy the rapid growth of fruit trees i too little
known among Our farmers" Here we perfectly agree
as we do in the whiewash he recommends Nv "A,
reason for addressing you springs from his declaration
that no salt should be used" AS this assertion i
psstiUe we must presume he has his vouchers for
And as 1t has given me great satisfaction in addng
soH TO composition for washing trees and az ba
given more than one hundred recipes the last winter
in which salt bears the ratio to lime as one to three
should 1t prove any scay deleterious, it would be a
subject OF deep regret feel almost as much attach
ed to tAe apple tree, as mother Eve did to the fruit
In travelling over large portion of Maine, during
the last three years, agricultural business NV at.
tenuon OF course has been attracted to many orchards
which, though in the prime of life are fast Fastening
to consumption Three years since, farmer in Dur
ham dressed large orchard with four articles Of nv
composition to which he added large portion OF sail
The increase of crop was astonishing as il was the
following year. when the old bark scaled off aud dsco
sed a new. green as the willow.
| Two years since, a farmer in Lewiston invited me
INTO his orchard to shew /" something SINGULAR y
lie had placed large piece of injured pork In the
crotch OF tree where many Of wise farmers who
forget to give their sheep con exhibit to public view
thelE unfortunate lambs. The drippngs of the pork
brought off the bark about eight inches wide; new
bark came on, and the increase of apples was great
The thought then struck me- that the ol beneft ari
4
generally throw to the limbs Of their trees was the
SAT-. have enquired of farmers for many wears why
they used rockweed, bst could never gain anv salts
factory information, and | never could conjecture \
reason till discovered the power of salt and surely
this must be all the benefit the tree receives from the
weed
Last April dressed old and very sickly orchard
IN Topsham. | dressed 90 trees and left Ii 70 trv
tar experiment. 1t was not the bearing year-and
the owner who has stepped in since began this arti
Gle, states that ne gathered double the quantity from
the dressed trees, he did the year before and that he
mad not hall as many from the undressed; therefore
difference OF more than four foldA farmer in TOPS
ham has two orchards in the full bearing state situated
IN the neghborhoed of forest, infested with wood
peckers lie dressed one orchard He states that he
mas watched ms orchard for hours that abundance
OIL woedpeckeTs struck the dressed trees and mmedi-
dtely abandoned them for the undressed where they
old mIch damage. Not a dressed tree was perforated
farmer IN Lewiston tried every other tree with the
same success.
1t has long been desideratum, with me TO defeat
TINS deadly enemy ofmy favorite Now supposing
me SAT- does injury and all the benefit from
the other ingredients, surely farmer would hesitate
to throw in little salt keep off such an hitherto
uncomfortable foe. perfectly satisfied that the
woodpecker, who is after the sap, is Disguised
with the taste SALT For these reasons, oanno,
give up this in Vftant article Till cogent reasons pro
duce conviction presume the motives of the writer
and myself the same-to diffuse all the inforn,s
ton IN power with dsinterested zeal for the pub
lie good. p
Brunswick, april 81.
n B. The proportion Of salt in the composition !.
as to IL.