The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1908-12-24

VI BiAs VN lllS pdlI VI lbSN anu lOoN-
ess to the members of the Stark
County Horticultural society, at their
regular monthly meeting at the coun-
ty workhouse, Wednesday. Every mo-
ment of the day passed by so enjoy
ably that all of the members were
unanimous in declaring that the meet
ing ranked prominently among the
many successful ones held during the
year. Along with the general order
of business and social entertainment
the annual election of the officers was
held and the reports of the past year
were heard, the interest in which at
tracted more than the usual attend
ance.
The greater part of the morning was
devoted to a trip of inspection about
the institution. The visitors were
conducted about the building by Sup
erintendent Boyer. Following the in
spection of the building. dinner was
served to ninety members of the soci-
ETY., their friends and other visitors.
In the afternoon the members of the
society. got down to real business.
One of the first matters disposed of
was the annual election of officers,
which resulted as follows: President,
G. w. Faust, Canton; vice president,
E. S. Graybill, Canton; secretary,
Mrs. S. o. Eggert Massillon; treasurer.
w. H. Hershey, Canton The follow
ing members will compose the execu-
tive committee for the coming year:
William Ritter, Canton; D. M. Mic
wander, New Berlin; S. P. Killinger,
Massillon
The subject of discussion for the
meeting was "The Planting of Vines
and Trees" upon which G. E. Sutton,
of Paris O., prepared an excellent es-
say. Following the reading of the es-
say by Mr.. Sutton, number of the
members INDUCED in a discussion of
the subject, which resulted in the ex-
change of many valuable ideas.
The essay of Mr.. Sutton in part,
follows: Believing that every farm
er, or l should say every man that
owns enough of land to have the
room, should plant at least few trees
of some variety, preferably fruit trees
for the farmers. | will give the fol-
lowing reasons why tree planting
should be encouraged:
a They increase the value of the |
property as we'll as add to the beauty |
of the same. Nor does 1t stop there |
for they increase the value of the |
surrounding property. 2. They add |
beauty and comfort to the city streets |
and to the farm yard and lawn. |
g. They protect the house, the walks
and the lawn from the heat of the
sun in the summer. and from the cold
winds in the winter Last but not
least, they are a source of income
to the owner which many fail to real
ize and which few fail to appreci-
ate
Every farmer should at least plant
enough of fruit trees and vines to
supply his family with plenty Of good
wholesome fruit, and my planting diff
ferent varieties. he can have it fresh
from the tree or vine, for the table
about half of the year.
But do not think that I would have
every farmer to be a fruit grower for
the market Far from it. Leave that
to the specialist.
"The first question to consider in
the planting of trees, and one which
is often asked is when Is the best
time to plant My experience has been
mainly with spring planting, and from
actual observation l believe that to
be the best time.
''The next question to be settled is
the location. In selecting a location,
several things are to be considered.
lst. For convenience to the house |
plant as closely to the house as pos
sibIe, and to the west. as the trees |
will then serve as protection from |
the strong winds. End. The ground |
should be high with natural drain |
age, if possible, and If not, it should |
be underdrained. And if the ground |
slopes to the north or east, so much
the better. for the trees will not be
forced out quite so early in the spring
and there will be less danger from the |
frost.
Having decided when to plant
and selected a location, we are now
ready to begin operations. Appeal to
some nursery agent to assist you in |
making a selection of a tree. Order |
your stock early. The nursery agent |
will ship the trees as soon as the |
weather will permit. If they arrive |
before you are ready to plant, place
them in the cellar and keep the roots |
damp. If this is done they can be
set at any time.
Next is preparation of the ground. |
First give it a coat of good manure; |
then plow early, and as soon as the
earth is fit, harrow and work until |
it is in good condition to plant any |
kind of a crop. We are ready now |
to begin setting the trees. Some ad- |
wise blowing a furrow or ditch to |
plant in. for trees or vines that are set |
some distance apart / prefer to set !
stakes to go by and dig the hole
where the tree is wanted. And pre-
fer to plant the tree as soon as the
hole is dug. BY so doing the ground
has but little chance to dry out. Care
should be taken to have the hole large
enough to receive the tree with its
roots in their natural position, with
out crossing or bending. Some place
manure in the bottom of the hole,
but this is not advisable. If the sea-
son should be a dry one. the roots
would be injured to some extent by
this practice.
Now take the tree in hand and cut
on all of the broken or bruised roots,
using a sharp knife. Occasionally it is
advisable to shorten a long root. Be
careful to save as many of the tiny
feeder roots as possible. for 1t is from
these that the tree gets its life.