Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1914-02-10
Remarkable Demonstrations
by Northern Maine Man.
Orchard Life Prolonged for One
Thousand Years II Desired.
And $40 Bearing Trees on Single
Acre, Yield TOO Bushels.

| firm of Sharp & Shea, Woodstock, N.
| B. How I happened to meet him was
| this way: 1 was was attending a
meeting of the Board of Agriculture
held in the thriving town of Houlton,
several years ago and put UP over
night with Henry f. Wingate, form
erly resident of Hallowell. In the
morning Mr.. Wingate asked me if
would like to ride out to the big farm
and ranch of Hon. Parker P. Bur-
leigh situated in the town of Lineus
| five miles away. / said, Certainly
should be pleased to do so" and
accepted the kind invitation. Arriv-
| ing at the place we found Mr.. Bur-
! leigh and his accomplished wife, al
ready there at the Ranch House. I
was surprised and delighted to meet
/ such man, for I could see at a
| glance that he was man of no or
! binary parts, but one to command
| respect and admiration anywhere; a
man of unusual force and ability He
owned a large tract of cleared land
enclosed by strong cedar fence, six
! feet high, and in which he could herd
and pasture horses. There were ce-
| dar logs in that fence that would
| have made good sized shingles and
wouldn't be surprised if that fence
stood for centuries.
! But what Interested Mr.. Burleigh TO
show me at that time was a new way
1 of northumberland from Mr.. Shea
whereby one could keep an orchard
! going almost forever. In a small en-
/ closure he was experimenting to prove
| the theory might be made practical
and in evidence he showed me a
/ growth of four to six feet high from
/ scions set in a circle in old apple trees
/ cut close to the ground. L was so
much interested in the idea that
| concluded to visit Mr.. Shea and did
| so in the afternoon of the same day
| Mr.. Shea received me very cordially
| and entertained me during the eve
/ ming with some of his unique and or
| iginal ideas in fruit culture, one of
/ which was that you need never let
an orchard die out, that you could
| keep 1t going a thousand years or
more by cutting off the old tree close
| to the ground-when you had no fur
| Their use for it-and in setting scions
| in the rim Of the stump, then, as
| they grew and began to interfere, cut
! ting out till two or three were left
| and eventually one only. In proof of
| this theory and practice he pointed
out to me the next day quite an or
chard grown almost to maturity in the
way described.
Snow lay on the ground from six to
eight inches deep, affording good
sleighing and, as we passed by the
J
! he pointed to the right and said he
| had six acres of plum trees close by.
1 was astonished, for there wasn't a
tree in sight He laughed and said
they were there only buried out of
/ sight under the snow. BY allowing no
roots on one side of the trees and Dig
! ging a little he could bend them close
to the ground and pin them there by a
crotehed stick, then raise them back
/ to life and business again in the
spring The process was simple for
/ the peculiar character of the soil en-
abled MIN to do so and by this method
i he had the reputation of being a ia
nous plum raiser.
! Now" he says, II will take you
across the st. Johns river and show
! you something 1 know you will be in
/ terested in So we rode down to the
4 ice-locked stream, followed the west
i bank for short distance, then crossed
to the east side and gradually rose to
| the top of a very high bluff skirted
and crowned with beautiful deciduous
and evergreen trees, through which
we rode till we came to cleared
space wherein he had four acres of
/
trees to the acre, making in all 1850
trees, set eight feet apart each way
end of eight years growth, SO that the
tops were approaching dangerously
near. 1t was a sight, but he says,
| you ought to have seen these trees
when in full bloom 1t was the most
beautiful sight he ever saw, worth
going miles to see.
But l said, what are you going
to do when the tops crowd each other
too closely ?" "Cut out he said land
keep cutting out as they grow.
What do you call the VARIETY" II
call it the New Brunswick 1t was
an apple similar to the Duchess of Old
enburg only somewhat larger. Il
had" he said, ZOO barrels of apples
from tnal OrCfdTu last Idll anu THAT
paid me for all my work and trouble"
His market was in st. John and Bos
ton. The trees looked to me like the
Duchess and I suggested that pos
sibly the apple was that variety, but
he was quite positive they were not
and so named it the New Brunswick.
l have never seen that name mention
ed in any catalogue or shippers cir
cular But that does not matter: the
idea of setting and growing $40 apple
trees to the acre was certainly unique
and profitable in one instance at least,
and the idea of keeping an orchard 60
ing for 1000 years was still more uni
que and original. Mr.. Shea said he
was going to write a book upon the
subject some time, but I have never
e.cl.., ha hook