Mower County transcript., 1898-03-16
Talk On Horticulture at High
School.
F. W. KIMBALL.

School.
F. w. KIMBALL.
The term horticulture is commonly
applied to fruit growing, although it
has much wider application to that
OF flower culture and vegeta BILE
gardening, etc: it covers the ground
OF mans efforts to supply products to
meet his sense Of beauty, his health.
and his food supply.
ln propagation of plants from the
seed, it must be remem bered that all
fruit producing plants do not yield
both staminate and pistillate flowers,
and hence are not self propagating
For instance those strawberry plants
which produce flowers having stamens
must be planted in alternate rows
with those having pistils, in order
that the pollen, or flower dust, may
fall from the stamens of one plant to
the pistils of the other and so fertilize
the seed pods and insure a yield OF
berries. The insects which frequent
these flowers carry the pollen from
flower to flower. The wind also is an
agency FOR the same purpose.
1t is said that the first crop of clover
will not produce seed, because it is
too early for the bees to work, and SC
farmers depend on the second crop OF
clover for the production OF clover
seed. This same method of fertiliza.
tion applies TO apple blossoms, some,
like the King variety, not being
bisexual. To remedy this defect
apple growers graft branches of other
varieties, so that a tree may have
both kinds OF flowers. Plum culture
has, perhaps, been most successful in
this climate, because Of the hardness
OF the trees which have been developed
from the ordinary wild plum tree and
yet giving wide range Of variety il
color, size, quality and period o.
maturity from Jolly to October.
1t is difficult matter to develo,
fruit trees from the seed, because ou1
OF million OF apple seeds. for in
stance, perhaps not more than on.
may be OF the original stamp. Th.
pistils are fertilized by pollen brough
from many different kinds and so i
taints the seed and makes that al
most infinite variety in taste. size etc
Horticulturists are, however. be
ginning to 60 to work at this prc
blem more intelligently. They take
cluster Of blossoms and fertilize i
with pollen taken from some know
variety, and after contact they pro
tect it by cover Of paper bag. til
the time of fertilization is past. an,
so they can determine pretty nearl
what kind of cross they are likel
to get. This method is sure to greatl
improve apple culture.
Pollen for this purpose is gathere,
in bottles and sent thousands of mile
and kept long time. We have no.
yet secured a real hardy and valua bl
apple for this climate. The lat
growth Of the tree does not alloy
time for it to make preparation fo
the severe winter which often come
on suddenly. Then too. our falls ar
so dry that there is lack of wiute
moisture. Production of plants from
roots is easier and more successful
than seed propagation. The roots ar
gathered in the fall. and during tn
winter scions are grated in then
and laid away for spring planting
Grating is done by cutting wedg
shaped scion and inserting 1t into
slit of another kind, covering th
joint with smear of wax, to preven
the evaporation of the moisture b
contact with the air.
Budding is done in much the sam
way, inserting under the bark a bu
OF variety desired to be produced
This process is done in the fall an
ordinary grating in April. Slips {
plants will also grow independent
OF its parent stalk. II red raspberr
+ suckers, or shoots, from the roots, al
, are taken up and set out they wi
] grow as separate plants.
In Maryland and Virginia th
peach orchards are set on north {
> northeast slopes rather than on th
summer southern slopes, so that tt
= trees may not blossom prematurel
. and be killed by late frosts. TT
: cold nights and hot days start tt
$ sap in the trees before the sap of til
: roots begins to flow upward.
Mr.. Kimball exposed common mi
! conception that the sap OF the TIRE
flows from the roots upward first. an
. through the outside. He cited exper
ments to show that the sap that firs
acts is the sap in the tree and nc
I from the roots and that, when th
sap does flow, it is from the top dowl
r ward, after it has done it's work {
2 building up. The sap from the roo,
goes up farther in the tree. A tire
2 Qlr01p6 ca &C fa nrovop< tho 1ounpor