Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1903-08-27
HINTS ON FRUIT GROWING,
A Jerseyman's Notions About Fer
tflizing, Thinning and Grading.

A Jerseyman's Notions About Fer
tflizine, Thinning and Grinding.
When it comes to fertilizing trees l
will say first put ON the fertilizer that
you have and save the expense of buy
ing. Barnyard manure, ashes and from
the hen roost are all good. If you have
to buy manure buy the ground bone
and muriate of potash. In this form
you can get potash and phosphoric acid
cheaper than in any other form.
/ think we can save phosphate and
chemical fertilizers largely by blowing
in green crops. Professor Voorhees,
taught me how to pillow in crimson clo-
yer and cowpeas and afterward under
took to explain to me that it was not
perfect fertilizer "Well,' l said, that
may be, but / know it gets there. |
know it turned my yellow peach or
chard into dark green one that bore
me six successive crops. That is what
green crop did for me-" | am very
partial to cowpeas, for l have tried
them IL few years, and they are work
ing wonders for me.
Old Orchards and New.
will say right here in regard to that
sod method there may come time
when it is proper. if your trees are
very thrifty. to put the orchard in sod
for two or three years for the sake of
checking its growth and to make the
trees fruit But if kept in sod long
time the trees will pay the penalty
Next year am going to take block
OF apple trees that are twelve or thir-
teen years old, pillow them in the spring
and sow them with cowpeas, let that
go down and do the same thing the
next year. In that way think ! can
keep up the fertility of the land and
grow good fruit. 1t is not thought good
to plant an orchard where you have
taken one out | have two peach or
chards growing, one three years old
that put right back after taking an
old peach orchard out l took care to
put lots of cowpeas on the ground, and
1 can tell you of my failure OF success
later on.
Thinning the Fruit.
Another point is thinning the fruit
We hear a great deal said about prun-
ing to thin the fruit well. There is
something In 1t, but not quite as much
as you read Of However, thin you
must or you cannot get the best re-
suits. l heard men in this hall say
you could not thin, as it was out of
the question. l have thinned Keiffer
pears, and know it paid me. have
thinned plums, and l knew it paid
me- My honest belief is I have never
done any work, not even excepting cul-
tivation. that paid me better than thin
ming did. One needs to know how to
thin as well as everything else. | do
not know that know how, but | know
l can pull a good deal more fruit off
than when l first started at it. You
want to pull off all your conscience will
let you and go through the next day
and pull off half as much more. 1t will
we'll repay you. On young trees pretty
good fruit can be grown for little
while without thinning, but if you don't
thin older trees you will certainly get
second grade fruit and later on not get
even as good as that. BY thinning you
get better fruit and save much of the
vitality of the tree.
Grading and Packing.
I will now briefly speak about the
grading and packing of fruit. Grade
your fruit, for it will pay you. Make
two grades, and if the third grade is
very poor don't send it to market at all.
There is too much poor fruit sent to
the market now. Pack it honestly, for
it doesn't pay to be dishonest. 'Honesty
is the best policy" If you put little
bad fruit in the center of the package
you may fool the man who buys the
first time, but not the second time, and
then you will get paid for second class
fruit and throw the best fruit in at
second price. If you cannot be honest
and do right for the sake of right, then
remember it will pay you to be honest
in putting up fruit. This is about the
best way to touch most people in the
world anyway. Touch their pockets
and you hit their feelings.-W. H. Skill
man Before New Jersey Horticultural
S0afnfy