The ranch. [volume] (Seattle, Wash.) 1902-1914, 1909-03-15

R. P. Dempster, Alfalfa, Wash, asks
for information about sowing wheat in
ten acre orchard of apples and pears,
five acres in apples planted three years
and five acres planted in pears two
years. He wants to seed 1t down per-
manently. In answering these inquir-
les would say that some vetches are
classed as perennials and some as an
nuals. The common vetch (vicia sat
iva) is an annual and is to be sown
in the spring. Some forms of the
vetch, the hairy vetch (vicia villosa)
for instance, are what are called by
some winter ANIMALS, that is, they are
sown during the fall, winter over and
make fine growth the following sum-
mer and then die. There are many
kinds of vetch that grow wild in many
parts of the United States. They are
perennials but are not used generally
for growing by cultivation. One of
the problems that the Department of
Agriculture, Washington, D. c., is try
ing to find out, is what vetches and
other legumes will reseed themselves.
That has not been fully done. l am
carrying on some experiments for the
Department. 1t begins to look like
the hairy vetch would reseed itself
Unless a vetch will reseed itself it will
prove to be quite expensive to buy
seed every year. White clover (mel-
ilotus alba) will reseed itself and
spread to surrounding lands, but many
find it a nuisance as weed. 1t is,
however, valuable legume and en-
riches the soil with nitrates. Alfalfa
is valuable legume, but is perennial
and is hard to get rid of among trees.
Red clover (trifOlium pratense) re-
seeds itself and is valuable plant to
grow in an orchard for the replenish
ing of the used up nitrogen.
make the following clipping from
report from the Colorado Agricul-
tural College at Fort Collins. l have
never found this tendency to rot at
the core among the Jonathans raised
in Washington. Such condition may
arise:
Core Rot of the Jonathan Apple.
A year ago specimens of Idaho
grown Jonathan apples were received
at the Colorado Agricultural College
for inspection. To all outward appear
ances these apples were sound, but
when cut in two there were varying
amounts of discolored tissue, from
slight discolorations to those speci-
mems where nearly the entire apple
was involved. To all appearances the
specimens had been slightly frozen.
This year we have received complaints
of a similar nature from various
sources in regard to this variety
1t seems that this trouble has been
noted in Idaho for several years, and
in Bulletin No. "a, of the Idaho Elk
pertinent Station, by Professor Judson,
issued in 1906, we find the following:
Much of the complaint recently
lodged against the Jonathan because
of rotting at the core is doubtless at
tributed to late picking. Unless this
trouble is corrected, the sale of this
valuable variety is sure to be hurt
The purchaser is completely deceived
by the perfect appearance of the fruit,
not a sign of decay being visible until
it is cut open, when the flesh for some
distance about the core is discovered
to be brown, radiating in narrow rays
toward the skin, which, however, it
seldom reaches. 1t is worse than a
worm hole, for that can be cut out. A
box containing even few of this sort
of apples makes the consumer dis
trustful of the variety, while half or
more sickens even the most enthusiast
tic friend of Brother Jonathan
'To get an idea of the effect OF early
and late picking upon this trouble,
requested Mr.. c. G. Eiffe, of Payette,
in the fall of 1904, to pick box
week for several weeks, beginning as
soon as the seeds turned, and keep