Daily Republican., 1880-03-08

v
. naming $500, ons-third of whic
amount would be devoted for HON
missions. The members Of the churc
responded liberally ~ the request.
PEACH BUDS SWELLING.
The Trees BlOssOming q MOntl
Ahead Of Time-The Peach Pros
poets mt Present-The Earlinea
Unheard OF and the Danger Urea
: Lots OF Buds on the Trees.
With mild weather the peach tree
will be in bloom in ten days. In Ken
and Sussex counties they will be out il
a few days unless . cold snap comes
There Is always a difference of about
weeks time between the blossoming O
the trees lower down and those In thi
county. Last year around Seaford ant
Georgetown the trees were bsautifu
with bloom by April 18th. In tn
neighborhood OF Harrington and up to
wards Dover they came ont by ApEi
10Th and 20th.'s
In New Castle county they we're abou
eight or ten days later than this. Th'
mild weather that we have had thii
winter has had a wonderful effect, ,Se1
the peach trees, as we'll as on ey( (ky
thing else. The sap has almost started
running, and the buds have appeared
They are fullya month ahead OF time
Half dozen twigs were sent to the RE
PUBLICAN office on Saturday. They
were cut in the orchard of a farmer
friend near Chesapeake City, Md. M.
merous buds covered the twigs, and
they seemed about bursting into bloom
They were quite healthy. The gentle.
man who sent them said the trees were
unusually full of buds, and they were
a month in advance Of last year.
Mr.. M. II. PaxsoH, prominent farm
or in the lower part of the county, said
on Saturday that his peach trees were
full of buds, as were all the other trees
in his neigh borhood, and they were
unusually forward.
United States Marshal MoMullin ia
one of the leading practical fruit grow
ers of the county. On his New Castle
Hundred farm the trees appear very
forward, and will be in bloom quite
early. On Saturday the REPUBLICAN,
asked him:
"IIow does the cold weather affect
the young peach ?"
''The germ Of the peach" he replied,
sis in the centre Of the bud, and is
covered all over by it. Warm weather
causes the bud to burst. 1t gradually
unfolds until it is in full bloom. In the
centre Of the cup-like formation is the
little peach, and the blossom remains
around 1t until 1t is strong enough
to live by itself. There is always more
or less moisture around the blossom,
and If freeze or heavy frost comes,
the result is disastrous to the peach
or course the earlier the period of bios
soming the greater the dangers to be
encountered.
"Tell me about the outlook At this
timer" at is hard to tell whether the
weather will be against the peach or
not. II we knew what kind of weather
we would have and when we could
have it | could tell you at once
Should this kind of weather continue
for week the trees will all be out in
bloom. Then let a heavy frost come
and in my estimation the crop
will be hopelessly injured. If cold
weather comes in few days and re-
mains at the freezing point for several
days no great injury would come and
the peach would then be better able to
stand the cold after that.
''How far ahead Of tho usual time are
the peaches ?"
Certainly month, may be more. l
never knew the trees in this county to
bloom before April Goth. This year
they will be out before March 2Oth.-
Being earlier in the season of course
the danger from cold will be increased
"If the weather should continue and
the spring be mild throughout. would
this early blooming be benefit"
eyes, decided one. You see they
would have longer time between the
blossoming and the ripening in which
to mature. which would make the fruit
much finer. have generally noticed
that even great earliness in blooming
does not make the period of ripening
much earlier"
Sam Townsend the other day made a
critical examination of his orchards,
and gives it out that the peaches are
safe and there is no immediate cause
for fear.