Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1854-04-01
Mi.mnnaxemen. with Apple Trees.

Four-hfths of the apple trees that have died
in northern New York during the last twefs-
ty years, have died of starvation ana inaprep-
er pruning. There is scarcely man that has
followed husbandry ten years, who does not
know that it viii not answer to take off more
than five or six crops Of grain in succession
from a piece of land without manure but
he will take off fifteen crops Of apples from his
orchard in succession without adding any ma
nure, and when the crops begin to grow light,
the fruit SMALL and of inferior quality, he be-
gins to inquire for the cause of such light
crops He asks his neighbor what is the mat
ter with his orchard. He tells him it needs
pruning. He being very much afraid of
present cost, strives to find man that will do
it cheap. (Most farmers if they are obliged
to have a leg cut off, employ the most skillful
surgeon they can tind who performs the OPP
Grafton with the sharpest of instruments; but
the, same men generally employ the cheapest
bunglers they can find to cut off the limbs Of
their apple trees.) He soon finds a cheap
bungler, who knows scarcely enough about
pruning to tell live branch from dead one
when the leaves are off, and to make it come
cheaper, he hires him by the job, and gives
him all the branches to pay for the labor. This
induces him to cut off twice as much as he
otherwise would. He now commences the
work of death upon the orchard, and with an
axe or dull saw cuts or haggles off about half
of the branches. The next year the apples
being much larger, Mr.. Unthrifty thinks he
has accomplished the great object. The Feas-
on why the apples are larger is, the few
branches receive the same nutriment that the
whole received before. The branches being
improperly cut off, the stocks do not heal over,
but soon die, rot, and form holes into the
trunks of the trees; these holes letin the wat
er, which soon destroys the inside of the
trunk this, together with the want of food.
acts so powerfully upon the vitality of the
trees, that after yainly struggling for few
years, they give up and die; and who blaInes
| them No man of good sense can.
This man now finds his plans frustrated,
and again inquiries of his neighbor what has
caused the death of his orchard. He tell him
it must all be laid to the climate, and the only
| thing that he can do is to set out young or
| chard. He says to himself, ssthis will be of no
use to me, for | am now sixty years old; but
as have children who are fond of apples, I
will set out a few trees to crafty them" The
first step he takes is to find where he can get
the trees cheapest, without any regard to the
manner in which they have been trained
Unthrifty being q man who deals mostly in
cheap articles, he employs man to furnish
the trees and set them by the job. This he
does for l6 cents apiece. 1t is frequently the
case that people who work by the job, Sigh,
their work; he is therefore very careful not to
dig the holes too deep, nor too large. He digs
them about as large as a peck measure; into
these small cavities he Grams in the roots Of
the trees, and if he cannot get them all in the
hole, he cuts off part of them with his shovel.
He then throws back the sods and Jumps
around the trees, and pronounces them set in
frst-rate order. He then receives his money
and is off in haste. Unthrifty soon expects to
see thrifty orchard, but is greatly iisappoint-
ed The trees being improperly trained and
improperly set, one half of them die the first
season. The remainder being sickly, lam
guish for three or four years, during which
time one half of them die. OfalI the trees
set in this way, not more than one in ten is
is ever profitable. About this time, Mr.. I'm
thrifty dies, leaving his unthrifty orchard for
his children, who are not very thankful for
the orchard which their father has left them.
at the same time thinking him to be nearly as
wise as any man in the United States. This
is the way many men manage with their or
chards, who boast of being enlightened, and
who are living in these free and enlightened
States Of North America. / would like to say
more on this subject, but will defer it till a
future period, well knowing that the minds
of men are much like their stomachs-
If cramm'd too full, they throw out the whole
But fed by degrees, they digest all with ease.
ELIHu Cross.
Hoosick, Rens. Co., N. Y.