The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1874-09-09
How to Treat Fruit Trees.

In considering the growth Of
organisms, the action of alkalies is to
be looked upon as scarcely less
important than that Of air and water.
\ Lime is the great animal alkali, and
potash the vegetable one; its old
name of vegetable akali expressed
that fact, and all the potash of COM
merce is well known to be derived
from wood ashes. The Importance OF
potash as manure has been fire.
quentlv overlooked by farmers, who
rarely know the amount Of this ma
terial found in grass, grain crops,
leaves, barnyard manure, roots and
fruits. How potash acts on plants,
in conjunction with carbon and silex,
to form woody fibre, starch, sugar
and Gil, is vet unknown to chemical
observers, but the fact of its action
is beyond doubt. Leibig long since
pointed out that the chief cause OF
barrenness is the waste of potash car
ried off by rich crops, especially to-
bacco, with no replacement by pro-
per manure. How many millions OF
pounds of potash have been sent to
Europe from the forests of America,
and in the grain, tobacco, and hemp!
Luckily one alkal may be replaced
by another, and we have received a
considerable quantity of soda from
European seaweed, and in the shape
of salt. Latterly nitrate ofsoda from
natural deposits in South America
is brought to US at a cheap price.
The point to which we now call
attention is that our farmers and
fruit growers have ignored, or are ig-
norant of the Importance Of wood
ashes as vegetable stimulant, and
as the leading constituents OF
of plants. Even coal ashes, nov
thrown away as useless, have been
shown: both by experiment and ana
lysis, to possess a fair share of aka
line value. According to our obser-
vation if the practice Of putting a
mixture of wood and coal ashes
around the stems of fruit trees and
vines, particularly in the spring, were
followed as a general rule, our crops
| of apples, grapes, peaches, etc, would
be greatly benefited in both quality
and quantity and the trees and vines
would last longer. We would relate
only one experiment. Some % years
ago we treated an old hollow pippin
apple tree as follows: The hollow,
to the height of eight feet, was filed
and rammed with ashes, garden
mould, and little waste lime (car-
bonate) This filling was securely
fastened in by boards. The next
year the crop Of apples was sixteen
bushels from an old she'll of a tree
that had born nothing of any account
for some time. But the strangest
mart was what followed. For seven
teen years after filing, that old pippin
tree continued to flourish and bear
well.
Let us call attention to still anoth-
er point of Importance in fruit rails
ling. This is the bearing year tol
/ apples. and fruit trees in general il
New England; probably it is also il
some other parts. Now when such
years come, our farmers rejoice
too much in their prosperity and
abuse it, as nearly all people do the
gifts of forteue. We should be tenn
pered as to the quality of cur fruit as
we'll as to our fruit juices. BY prop
er trimming and plCcking, the apple
crop in bearing years may be reduc-
ed to but little more than half a crop as
to number, bat the Improvement in size
and in price in the future effect will
more than balance the loss. Next
February, March and April, aecor-
ding to latitude, let the tree trimmer
stimulate and nourish his trees and
vines with fair supply of ashes; and
in nearly every case he will have a
good crop in the non-bearing ear
Scientific american.