Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1868-06-16
BloomiB gton Nursery-Harger

DAY through parts OF the country. a
few years since in unbroken prairie
sod, we came across the well known
Nursery Il mile or so south Of Bloom.
ington. Dir. G w. Harger, the own
er, was present and we followed
him through the old and new nurse
ries, he pointing out what was ofin>
terest Mr. Harger's land is not fa-
vorably situated for orchard trees,
the exposure being rather warm and
favorable to late fall growth and to
immaturity OF wood, consequently
the trees are liable TO what is called
'g8ster- killing. Many Of his old trees
show signs Of decay directly caused
by the late fall growing Of wood in
1865. The event so discouraged Mr.
Harger that he thought Of giving up
the nursery business. But, finding
out since that such disasters may be
remedied when they happen, and al
SO prevented oy timely treatment OF
trees, he has recovered more than
his fermer confidence in orcharding
and now feels able to raise trees that
will stand through such adverse sea-
sons as that Of 1865 lie however
discards most Of the kind formerly
popular and propogated at the nurse.
ries, and has taken TO graltiug only
few of the known hardy sorts. We
designed copying his half a dozen
favorites but neglected it. Mr.. Har
ger also speaks highly Of several
kinds Of Siberian crabs, and two of
the cherry kind His three year olds
(apple.) of which he has 10000,
will be ready for market next spring.
They are as thrifty lot Of trees as
we ever saw Mr.. Harger says that,
upon this same lot of ground, he lost
in 1865 several thousand trees by
freezing down. but charges such re-
suit to his own mistreatment in
blowing and hoeing them too late in
the season, in harvest time or later.
Nursery trees and growing orchards,
be says, should not be worked later
than May or June. Mr.. Harger
thinks orchard lands should slope to
the north or as near to the north as
can be found upon mans place, such
situations being cooler and causing
trees to stop growing early in the
fall the better to mature their wood.
Trees on south exposures are heated
as in ovens by the fall sunshine, and
our very deep rich soils act as hot
beds for forcing trees to grow .un-
seasonably. OF course they fail to
ripen their body wood and branches,
and the tenderest parts, crotches and
terminal shoots, are killed the ensu-
ing first freeze, the killed parts the
following spring sending through
the circulatory organs 4 sour liquid
which poisons and destroys the tree.
We classify the kinds Of trees, call
ing some hardy, some unhardy-the
latter being such as are most liable
to late fall growth. The hardy |
kinds are more like forest trees in |
making their wood in good season,
and then taking rest and preparing
Tor the winter. The Siberian crab
kinds are known to thus make early !
preparation for winter by taking
near a month longer rest than most
apple kinds. They are hybrid DO.
tween the cultured and the original
wild Siberian apple, and bear SINH,
lar relationship to the apple species
that the mule does to the animule- |
horseback species, and of course are
very hardy-ditfering only from the
mule kind in being q prolific bearer,
which the mule is not.
Mr.. Harger is a close observer, but
like most nurserymen has too much |
work on his hands to be book stu>
dent. He draws largely upon that
which is worth the most, his mine of
experience. Still, ne would be more
useful to the public were he also to
make his business q study from the
published records, so as to be able to
herald abroad his sound stock Of
knowledge for the public benefit
In our great Countrywide acquisition
Of wealth is an easy matter and
natural result OF industry and practi-
cal good sense. But there is high
err duty than delving for riches, and
that higher duty is to be useful to
the eople And especially may the
nurserymen be thus useful at school
ing the masses in this wide field
wherein is the orchard, the garden
and the shady forest.