The Palatka news and advertiser. [volume] (Palatka, Fla.) 1902-1905, 1903-10-30
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I The Farm and Grove.
4 Copyrighted by Rural Press Syndicate
\ Ii. F. STOCKBRIDGE, Phi. D., Editor.
OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES
HARDENING MOon.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
HARDENING WOOD.
In our latitude all growth of citrus
trees should have stopped in October
There is, however, sometimes a ten.
dency to put on late growth, which
i it followed by cold weather, will be
caught in an immature condition and
suffer injury or be killed. If this
wood can be made to mature anC
harden, very great advantage il
gained. This result is very largely
within the control of the grower, anC
may be easily effected
Before considering means toward
this end it is well to recall the fact
too often entirely overlooked, thai
the tree is Il highly organized living
thing, and it's vitality, strength OF
thrift may be seriously diminished by
conditions which do not apparently
result in immediate injury. A tree
therefore, which undergOeS u shock
is subjected to unhealthy conditions
or is caught unprepared by Excess
Sively cool weather, even though not
actually defoliated or perceptibly in
jured, uudergOeS u drain upon its
strength which renders it just that
much less able to resist future at
tacks, or with that much less reserve
strength for future productiveness.
1t becomes important, therefore
to protect the tree from this loss
even if more serious damage were
not to be considered.
Late fertilizing and late working
of the grove have very distinct ten
dency to prolong growth and thus in.
crease the danger. This is particu-
larry true of fertilizers containing
amnoniates in any form. FERTILE.
ing and working should not continue
later than the middle of September,
and from the application of fertilizer
nitrogen and all ammoniates should
be vigorously excluded. Ripe, hard
wood will be the result, with proper
tionate immunity to cold. This pre-
caution, if not already practiced, is
not now available for the present
season. There is, however, q very
simple practice, commonly neglected
which has almost equal influence on
results.
A very large number of growers
constantly transgrcss the very first
principle of fir, st action and prutec-
tion against cold. They are milsed
Icy the talk of "wind-breaks," "shel-
| I er" and climber protection" On
the superstition that if these things
ire good, hedges and rank vegetation
which furnish Shelter by checking
he force of the wind, must protect
against cold. the followers of this
;heUry forget to apply fact which
hey constantly observe: Frost may
be severe on Il still night, when if the
wind blew, even much lower tenn
Jerature would be harmless. The
very men who quote the fact most
often that frost comes on still nights,
have done their best to artificially
create "still'' nights" in their groves
" allowing hedges, weeds and rank
| vegetation to accumulate and inter
fere with the free movement of the
air through the grove and among the
trees.
What is true later in the season as
to protection against frost is now APP
plicable to the object of rirening and
hardening late growth, aud the rem
dering of the same less susceptible to
cold later in the season. Now, how
ever, the object to be attained is not
prevention of frost, but ripening OF
wood. Cool weather is conducive to
this end. The practice should, there :
fore, be reversed from that followed
for frost protection. In other words
the conditions to be avoided later III
the season are desirable at the pres
ant time.
The rule of practice, therefore, to
| We formulated ON these principles Is
IS follows: Stop working the grove
.arly in September. Exclude all
nitrogeuous fertilizers from the last
application. Let the hedges around
the fences and the vegetation in the
grove grow as rank as they will dur
ing the early fall. When early frost
may naturally be expected NOW the
hedges and groves. leaving free ac-
cess to the movement of the air.
which is the surest and most natural
prevention of frost.
SAVING CASSAVA SEED.
The continued growth of the live
stock industry, with the recognition
of cassava as the best feed stuff for
fattening purposes, together with the
certain erection of one or more ad-
ditional starch factories next year,
| indicate an increased demand for cas-
sava seed, which those having grown
crops this year should prepare to
supply. 1t may be mentioned, as IL
Illustrating the conditions to be met,
| that single party in west Florida
who has no crop from which to draw
his seed supply, has already con-
tracted to grow 800 acres of cassava
next wear for starch making.
Saving the seed is one of the SIM
plest matters in the world. Yet
thousands of dollars have been lost
by growers through failure to follow
the simple precautions necessary to
success. Other thousands have been
wasted in useless labor, performed
under erroneous ideas of the require
meuts of the case. Here are the sim
ple rules which if followed will result
| in almost perfect success. | may add
that have grown from ten to TWEEN
tV-five acres annually for the past
six wears. have saved all for seed and
never lost any whatever Let the
crop get as ripe as possible before
frost. The leaves will then. largely
have fallen off. Cut the stalks with
a hoe about six inches above the
ground. Pillow strip, or strips, SIX
| feet wide and as long as necessary on
convenient. Do not remove the FOL
iage, more than naturally breaks of
Law the stalks as fiat as their branch
ed condition will allow, across the
Dlowed bed. Stick each butt an inch
or two into the soft soil. Lay con-
tinuous rows across the bed like the
shingles of roof. Cover with hay,
litter or pine-straw about four inches
thick. Throw soil over the bed to
the depth of about four inches. The
secret of preservation lies in having
ali butts of stalks in direct contact
with mellow soil. Select dry place