The Middlebury register. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1850-1882, 1873-05-20


try condemns them, except as garden
trees, aud even for that some have dis
carded them. We say the pear qro,cs
upon the ounce, yet this rule is not uni
versal many varieties Of the pear re-
iusing to unite with the ounce stock so
as to make tree, or grow more than a
few years, it at ALL Aud it is the same
with the apple upon the Siberian crab.
Several varieties, 10 our certain knowl-
edge, utterly refuse TO grow upon the
crab stock, thus demonstrating, if any
demonstration of an uuchallenged botani-
cal fact were needed, that these two spe-
cies are unsuited to each other in the re-
lations Of stock aud scion.
The uusuIableucss of distinct species
of fruit trees, however closely allied, to
serve as stocks for one another in graft
ing and budding. is becoming better un-
derstood by nurserymcr every year.
When it was first found possible to graft
many nearly allied species upon one an
other, it was hoped that some desirable
ends of dwaifing, early fruiting, &C.,
might be obtained The peach has been
budded upon the plum, the pear upon the
ounce, and the apple upon the Siberian
crab for many years, but up to this mo-
ment there does not exist upon the face
Of the earth single successful orchard
Of any one OF these trees SO grated. This
is clinching proof, which cannot be sue
cessfully denied, or the force of it as a
warning to orchardists broken,
We state, as our first objection, that
the crab stock makes the apples grated
upon it less rather than more hardy. This
is universally admitted to be the case
with the pear grated upon the ounce ,
and the reason is manifest, since all de.
grees of imperfection in the union of the
two species exist, and imperfect union is
certain cause Of tenderness in the tree.
Some varieties of the apple make a pref
ty good union with the crab, and, like a
few varieties of the pear on the ounce,
are tolerably hardy; but in even the best
cases the roots show marked difference,
when grown side by side and after a
few years the checked growth and i'm
perfect fruit demonstrate the evil when
it is too late for remedy, except through
the loss of years of time and much money,
patience and courage. The statement so
often made that the crab root " mparts''
hardness to the apple grated upon it,
is so ridiculous that only the most credu.
lous can be made to believe it. If this
were so, what would hinder us from
growing the Baldwin, Rhode Island
Grcening, acknowledgement many other
excellent but tender varieties in north.
eastern Vermont? We should only have
to graft them upon Siberian roots and
hardness would be impaired" to them.
Is it done? Never and there is not a
single variety now growing upon the crab
stock which cannot and is not showing
equal or greater hardness upon the ap.
pie stock, as investigation will abundant.
ly prove.
That apples grated upon crab stocks
arc short-lived, like pears upon the quirce
unless they are planted deep enough to
throw out roots above the point of union,
is admitted by all the best pomologists.
The Siberian apple is short-lived spe-
cies, the tree rarely growing to one-fourth
Of the size attained by the common apple
and showing every sign Of age by the
time its trunk reaches diameter of six
or eight inches.
Abundant examples in proof of this
fact can be shown while on the other
hand very large or very old Siberian crab
trees have never been recorded, as We
are constantly seeing in the case of tho
common species. Now root will not
live any longer because its top has beer
cut off and another species grated upor
it. The crab root will follow the habit o.
its own species, living out its life in 6
comparatively few years, and then dying
and when the roo: dies, what will become
of the top? 1t seems highly probable
that that will die too
That stocks used for grating and bud
ding affect the quality of the fruit ha
been so often demonstrated that every OBJ
serving orchardist is thoroughly wei
aware of the fact. Mr.. Donegan, o
Troy, the best orchardst in this section
said to US last fall "If anybody doubt
what you say to them about the evil eff
feet of the crab stock upon the fruit ,senc
him to my orchard in apple time and
will prove it to him in five minutes,
Cole, the best New England authoriti
upon fruit growing,in his american Frui
Book, says 1--WE have never read vari
Gus articles by any writer, nor converse,
much with an intelligent cultivator, VIII
has acknowledged, directly or indirectly
that the stock affects the fruit of tn
scion. We could quote numerous author
tiles and hundreds of cases showing tina
the stock affects the fruit for better O
for worse 1t affects the size, form, CO.
or, quality. time Of ripening, production
time of bearing, year of bearing, and O
; to health and perfection, or defects an
decay" These views are, as Mr.. Col
states, universal among intelligent fru
2 growers, and indeed it is impossible
have to do with orcharding for any nun
Der of years without seeing the fact stant
: ing out Enthusiastically among the differeI
:. trees of each variety in the orchard.
j The fact then, that the stock does a
e I. feet the scion being admitted, land we b
IT lievc that no body, not even the advocat
}, of the crab stock, denies it, the questiC
l. is-Iioo docs the crab stock affect Il
IS common apple lohen grated upon Al
it This can be answered only by Observable
and experience /; and unfortunately the
C are no large or old orchards of that XII
T. in the country, where the matter can
d tested. We must mainly be guided
G experience gathered from experiment
D with common apples, used both as sto
!; and scion And here we find that ste
re | rradnnina. Larl cnaal La-ch ca,,E o.. y