The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1902-06-04
FARM AND
GARDEN u
INTERESTS
Agricultural Thoughts.

Country Gentleman.
Tasmanian apples and pears are now cut
ting quite a figure in the London markets.
Ben Davis shows up well to the front, as
usual
From all reports we believe that the ship
ments of apples In boxes holding one
bushel or less will. be much more generally
tried this year than ever before.
New potatoes are coming to the city
markets rather rapidly. but the prices of
old potatoes have not diminished in the
least. 1t is probable that large acreages
of this indispensable vegetable will be
planted this year.
Thorough early cultivation in the orchard
is the central idea in the modern system.
This is the time Of the year when the
work is done.
Hairy vetch makes fine cover crop
so says Professor Craig. But the seed is
expensive. When a man once gets a start,
though, 1t is not difficult TO grow ones
own seed.
The Southern strawberry crop, now COM
ing 10 market, Is generally very good, and
the prospects at this writing are that the
Northern crop will be equally good.
Drainage is very important matter in
an orchard. 1t is too often neglected or
overlook altogether. Many orchards are
The Bismarck apple, very highly recon-
mended recently by the men who had the
trees for sale, has not proved a great boon
TO the planters. The fruit is coarse and
of rather poor quality. A hundred good
old American varieties could be mentioned
which are better.
At a recent horticultural meeting the
dear old crazy question was asked: What
Is the best time 10 prune? Mr.. II. Z. Van
Deman answered it by saying that he
thought June or July about the best
dc an he
tree and what one is trying TO do with ii.
High or low pruning used to be a live
question for discussion at all fruit-groW-
ers' meetings. 1t is not so much agitated
now. The reason is partly that we see
that 1t is to be settled by every man TO
suit himself. Still, ii seems certain that
the tendency in the Eastern states is TO
prune lower than formerly.
one of the most striking developments of
the current year has been the organization
or hundreds of large fruit-growing compa-
MES. These concerns are planting all sorts
OF fruit, but especially peaches and apples,
in nearly every State in the Union.
The Elberta peach has had a great boom.
Ii has been more excessively planted than
even the keffer pear was two years ago.
A day of reckoning will come, of course,
when all these trees come into bearing.
alberta is a fine variety; but, when any
variety is the fad, it is a good thing TO
plant something else.
Cantaloupes are every year coming to be
more and more of a factor in the fruit
market They are being more appreciated
by the general fruit-growers. too, who
md them an excellent catch crop.
The search for an apple which will have
the hardness of Duchess the prolihcacy of
Baldwin the vigor of Spy the keeping
quality of Ben Davis and the flavor of
Spitzenburg goes seriously forward. 1t is
safe TO say, though that the national ad-
mintstration will change before the apple
is discovered.
Iowa has more than FIVE times as many
plum trees as she had ten years ago-that
according figures. These
are mostly of the native varieties not
shown by the census. One man of whom
we heard the other day marketed go crates
last year, all natives. Prices were goOG.
The dewberry is a fine fruit. One reason
why the public knows little about it
is that dewberries are almost always sold
to the consumer as blackberries.
The Green Mountain is an ideal crane
for Northern States. For Southern lati-
tudes there are better ones.
We were recently told by man who
claimed to know that there is a growing
demand for homemade wines. Blackberry
wine, gooseberry wine. currant wine and
all those old-fashioned beverages which our
grandmothers used TO make are certainly
worth bringing back into use.
Okra is fine vegetable for those VINO
can grow II. That means for persons as
far south as New Jersey. In the North Il
does not do we'll Even lima beans cannot
be grown very far north, and sweet poIa-
toes are never worth mentioning north Of
New Jersey.
Canning factories are increasing every
year. They serve to take up the excess in
some lines and to make a crop of some
other things proftable but they do not
usually cut much figure in the general
fruit market. The really good marketable
fruit is not of the canning factory grade.
Root-kling of apple trees is being con-
stantly reported. Ii seems to be due. now
ese TO Eery iec 5c @
nave to look after closely. Damage AZ the
root of a tree easily escapes notice