The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1895-09-03
Clemson College.
REPORT OF PROF. J.. r. G. DUpRE,
HoBTIoULTURIsT.

Dear Sir lin the matter of Hor-
ticultural work at this Experiment
Station, and referred to in your let
ter of 9th May, l would say:
The work was begun in the Spring
of 1892, under very unfavorable con-
ditions, that is to say, as TO soil and
location.
The only available land was a
high ridge, sloping South, East and
West. The soil was poor, thirsty
and a portion of it washed into gull
lies. 1t has, however, been success
fully terraced, and is very much i'm
proved. Almost the whole area is
swept by the Westerly winds, to
which there is no obstruction with
in two or three miles. These winds
do great damage by drying and bak-
ing the soil and whipping the
plants. On these lands, in the
Spring of 1892, we planted about
one thousand fruit trees, and eight
hundred grape vines. These have been
added to from time to time, until we
now have about twenty three hundred
fruit trees and two thousand grape
vines. The trees consist of apples,
pears, peached, plums, ounces,
cherries, figs, pecans, walnuts, chest
nuts, filberts, etc., in variety; of
grapes, we have thirty-six varieties.
Both trees and vines have made
good growth and are comparatively
free from disease. They are so interlo-
Gated and alternated as to give each
kind and each variety the benefit of
the different exposure and soils.
The freeze Of 9th March, 1894,
did great damage to all, but espe-
cially to the figs, ounces and the
so-called oriental varieties of pears
the LeConte, Garbe and Kieffer
being killed to the ground.
Memoranda has been made of the
growth, date of bloom, damage by
frost, Yield, ETC., of the different va
rieties on the several exposures.
The trees being young, and the
frosts continuing into May, have
borne little fruit as yet. A majority
Of the peach trees have a very fair
crop this year. The grapes, after
recovering from the freeze in 1894
bore a few scattering lunches nt
the crop of this year promises 70 he
very fine, with the exception of ore
variety-the Nortems Virginia.
We have used the Cordea1x mix.
copperdine and some otherfnn.
Sign Of aisease/ or rot upon eithel
sprayed or u~hsprayed vines.
In the matter'of experiments with
the vegetables, we have grown the fol.
lowing: 2 varieties asparagus, 81
varieties beets, including sugar beets
and mangolds; 50 varieties of dwarf
or bunch beans; 10 of pole beans
including the limas Z; 49 Of cabbage
ID of carrots /; 9 of celery /; ~ of Gu.
cumbers; 26 of lettuce; 81 of onions
Z of pumpkins; SO of Irish potatoes
15 of radishes of 3 satisfy 10 OF
squashes; 16 of turnips 4 of spin.
ach; 4 of okra Z of p~arsnips; 2:
of pepper SO of tomatoes and sun,
dry others /; together with 63 varie
ties of cantelopes, and 81 varities Of
watermelons. Also popcorn, millets
SOFA beans, German coffee, ct. al.
None of these experiments have
as yet, u through more than two
years, except dwarf beans, tomatoe.
and Irish potatoes bulletins as to
the result of these last are now be
ing prepared. The result of tn,
first years test has already been pub
lished. In addition to these variet,
tests, fertilizer and cultivation ex
periments are also being carried OF
with various vegetables, but espe
cially with tomatoes, beans, cabbage
onions, and Irish potatoes-there be
ing thirty-four different fertilizers
and combinations of fertilizers or
potatoes alone.
In small fruits we have raspber
ries (forty varieties), Strawberries
forty-two varieties), c%urrants, goose.
berries, ect. These were all more OF
less injured by the freeze of March
1894, and none Of them have fully
recovered except the strawberry.
We gathered of these, this season
over four thousand quarts from
three acres of old and poor land
Of these forty odd varieties the Blu.
back No. 5, the Haverland and The
Candy, in the order named, deserve
special mention for yield, size and
flavor.
We have needed and used very lit.
tie and but few insecticides, except
to test their relative merits. small
boxes, elevated on poles, at the rate
of five to the acre, have been the
nesting and brooding places of the
common blue bird (sialla slalis) and
other insectivorous birds, and these,
with the aid OF tho common toad,
have kept all noxious insects subju-
gated, except the harlequin bug
(strachia histrionica). No bird or
fowl, so far a we have observed,
will kill OF eat this bug. Our rule
is to encourage and provide for (by
furnishing nesting places and food
and water) all birds of every kind
except the jay bird and the So
called English sparrow. These two
last we kill on sight.