Part 18

H. DUBOIS, Burlingame, Osage county: I have lived in Kansas forty-one years. Have an orchard of fifty apple trees from ten to twenty years old. For market I prefer Ben Davis, Winesap, and Missouri Pippin, and would add for family orchard Early Harvest, Duchess of Oldenburg, and Maiden's Blush. I prefer a rich bottom having a red subsoil, and a northeast slope. I prefer thrifty, two-year-old, medium-height trees, set thirty feet each way. I cultivate my orchard as long as it lives with a shovel plow and cultivator, and keep the ground stirred. Plant potatoes in a young orchard, and cease cropping when the trees begin to bear; then sow oats and let the pigs eat it off while it is green. Windbreaks are not essential here, but some have forest-trees planted on the north side of their orchards. I prune my trees in the spring to give shape; cannot say whether it is beneficial or not. I fertilize my orchard with barn-yard litter. I pasture my orchard with pigs until the ripe fruit begins to fall; I think it advisable and that it pays, as the pigs eat all the wormy and worthless fruit that falls. My trees are troubled with tent-caterpillar, root aphis, round- and flat-headed borers, and woolly aphis, and my apples with codling-moth.

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A. J. KLEINHANS, Grantville, Jefferson county: I have lived in the state forty-one years. Have an apple orchard of 300 trees, twenty to twenty-five years old. For market I prefer Winesap and Ben Davis; and for family orchard Summer Astrachan, Bellflower, and White Winter Pearmain. Have tried and discarded Missouri Pippin, Russet, Baldwin, Red Astrachan, Little Romanite, and Pound Pippin. My orchard is situated in the Kaw valley. I plant my orchard to corn, until the trees get too large; then cease cropping and seed to clover and timothy. I prune lightly, to keep the limbs off the ground and let in the sun and light; I think it pays. I do not thin the fruit while on the trees. I pasture my orchard late in the fall with young dehorned cattle; I think it advisable and that it pays. My trees are troubled with canker-worms; and my apples with codling-moths. I do not spray. I sell apples in the orchard at wholesale.

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J. W. ATKINSON, Perry, Jefferson county: I have resided in Kansas seventeen years; have an apple orchard of 2100 trees from two to eighteen years old. For market I prefer Winesap, Missouri Pippin, and Jonathan. I have tried and discarded Ben Davis; the tree is not hardy. I prefer a porous, red-clay subsoil, and a northeast or east aspect. I cultivate my orchard to corn six years from setting, and cease cropping after twelve years. I seed the bearing orchard to clover. Windbreaks are essential on the south and west sides of the orchard; when possible, natural forest is best. I prune my trees sparingly to improve the grade of fruit; I think it pays when properly done. I do not thin the fruit on the trees. Can see no difference whether trees are in block [of one kind] or mixed plantings. I fertilize my orchard when it needs it with barn-yard litter and wood ashes; would not advise it on all soils. I do not pasture my orchard. My trees are troubled with root aphis, and my apples with codling-moth and curculio. I spray twice after the blossom falls, with Paris green. I can get rid of borers only by persistent effort. I sort my apples into four classes: No. 1, No. 2, drying, and stock and cider. Pack in twelve-peck barrels, and market in apple racks. I sometimes wholesale my apples in the orchard. Never tried distant markets. I do not dry any.

Am successful in storing in barrels in a fruit house which is built near the crest of a hill with a fall of 14 in 100 feet. Excavated twenty-three by fifty-three feet; depth at extreme back end, fourteen feet; at front seven feet. Tile ditch fourteen inches deeper than the excavation next to bank, filled with broken rock. Stone wall ten feet high; fine broken rock between wall and bank from ditch to top of wall around the entire building. The front end of the building stands three feet out of the ground, allowing two windows in the front with refrigerator shutters, also a refrigerator door. Heavy timbers, supported by posts covered with bridge lumber, constitute the framework, upon which is seven feet of earth. Through the roof are five sewer-pipe ventilators covered by thimble tops. In the front end are four small ventilators. In the extreme back end is placed an elevator building forming an opening six feet square; this extends eight feet above the top of the earth covering. There are three windows and one door in the elevator building. By means of small ventilators the house can be ventilated very gradually, but by the elevator opening in the back end of the building, and the windows and door in the front end, the air can all be swept out by natural draft and replaced by fresh air. Five minutes is sufficient to thoroughly ventilate. During all this extreme wet weather the floor of the building has been dust dry.

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Dr. CHAS. WILLIAMSON, Washington, Washington county: I have lived in Kansas forty years. My first planted orchard is thirty-eight years old and the second thirty years. For market I prefer Ben Davis, Winesap, Missouri Pippin, and Rawle's Janet; and for family use Ben Davis, Winesap, Jonathan, Rome Beauty, Rambo, Early June, and Romanite. I have tried and discarded Cooper's Early White, because it is a short-lived tree and a shy bearer. I prefer bottom land with a black loam and a clay subsoil, with a north and east slope. I plant trees thirty feet apart. I would advise cultivation for three years; seed bearing orchard to white clover. Windbreaks are essential; would make them of mulberries and cedar; plant seed for mulberries and set small cedars. For rabbits I use traps and dogs. I prune, but not very much; I cut out watersprouts and dead limbs, and thin out the top so as to let sun in. I never have thinned the fruit on the trees, but think it would pay. I keep bees to help pollinize the blossoms. I fertilize my orchard with stable litter; trees and plant life, as well as stock, need food. I do not pasture my orchard; it is not advisable. I have sprayed with London purple. I protect my trees from the sun, and the bark being full of sap the borers will not trouble them. I hand-pick my apples and pack in barrels in the orchard. I sell in the orchard at retail. My best market is at home. Do not dry any. I store some apples, and find Ben Davis, Winesap and Missouri Pippin keep best. When packing apples for storing I wrap each apple in paper and put a paper between the layers in the boxes; then put them in the cellar, and they keep well. I open the cellar door on warm days. Prices have been from 35 cents to $1.10 per bushel.

There is not a state in the union but what is profiting by the experiences of such men as friend Wellhouse, the "Apple King," and other horticulturists, who are leaving a legacy to future generations. My experience in orcharding has been as an amateur ever since 1856. My orchard has been for home use, but now, with my experience gained here in Kansas, I am planting in the Ozark country, near Olden, exclusively for market purposes (the same can be done in Kansas), but takes longer to come to maturity. Taxes are low in Missouri. The orchardist should not be assessed on his fruit-trees and pay the penalty for being energetic and a pusher in horticulture. In Kansas, thanks to the life work of the members of the State Horticultural Society, we have reached a point where the culture of fruit is an assured success; and there is more money in it than in hog or corn raising. The trouble has been, too many worthless varieties have been planted, and now that they are bearing are profitless; and the worst of it is they are repeating the same mistake each year. I have saved some valuable trees from the borers by taking a quarter-inch bit and boring a hole and putting in strychnine or sulphur, and the tree lived on while all others died; even in the black locust it was successful. I then plug the outside portion of the hole. Let some one explain the reason who understands the circulation of the sap.

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ERNST FAIRCHILD, Hiawatha, Brown county: I have lived in Kansas thirty years; have an apple orchard of fifteen acres, twelve years old. For market I prefer Jonathan, Ben Davis, and Rawle's Janet; and for a family orchard Snow, Winesap, and some sweet varieties. I prefer an east slope. I cultivate my orchard to corn or oats for eight or nine years, using a disc and harrow, and cease cropping at the end of this time and seed down to clover. Windbreaks are essential; would make them of forest-trees set in rows, on the north and west sides. I prune my trees to give shape. I pick my apples in square tin pails which have false bottoms; slide the fruit out at the bottom. I make vinegar of the cull apples. Prices have been from sixty cents to one dollar per barrel. I employ men and boys--men at one dollar per day and boys seventy-five cents per day.

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NEILS HANSON, Willis, Brown county: I have resided in the state thirty-two years; have an orchard of 200 apple trees twenty years old. For all purposes, I prefer Ben Davis, Jonathan, Willow Twig, and Strawberry. Have tried and would discard Willow Twig and Lawver. I prefer bottom land having a clay soil and a north or east slope. When planting trees, I dig a hole two feet deep and four feet square. I cultivate my orchard eight or ten years, using a plow, and spade around the trees. I plant corn or oats in a young orchard. Windbreaks are essential; would make them of maples or willows and cultivate the same as a crop. I prune to thin the tops, and think it beneficial. I thin the fruit when small, if the trees are overloaded. Can see no difference whether the trees are planted in blocks of one kind, or mixed up. I fertilize my orchard, but not close to the trees; would not advise it on bottom land. I pasture my orchard with calves and hogs, but it is not advisable; it does not pay.

I do not spray. I am experimenting with my trees; I make a hole two inches deep, one-fourth inch in diameter, put in medicine and plug up tight with grafting wax over it. It is claimed to kill all the insects on the tree for four or five years to come. I can tell the results this fall. It costs $10 to try it. [Hear! hear!] My neighbors spray their trees when in blossom, and say it pays. I pick my apples by hand, sort into two classes, and pack in barrels, filled full, and marked with consignee's name and hauled to shipping place on wagon. I never sell apples in the orchard, because they [the pickers] ruin the trees. I wholesale my best, second and third grade apples to the one offering the most for them. I feed the culls to hogs. Hiawatha is my best market. I never tried distant markets; it would not pay, unless in car-load lots. I dry apples, put them in sacks and hang in a dry place, and find a ready market for them; it pays. Am successful in storing apples in boxes--made of lath an inch apart--in an arched cave. I find Ben Davis and Rawle's Janet keep best. I have to repack stored apples before marketing, losing about one-tenth of them. I do not irrigate. Prices have been about one dollar per barrel. I pay eighteen to twenty dollars per month and board for help.

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ISAAC M. TAYLOR, Richmond, Franklin county: I have lived in Kansas thirty years; have about fifty apple trees eight years old, ten feet high. For market I prefer Jonathan and Ben Davis; for a family orchard, Romanstem, Gilpin, Rawle's Janet, Winesap, and Hubbardston's Nonesuch. Have tried and discarded McAfee Nonesuch, Belleflower, and Missouri Pippin. I prefer a gentle east slope at the bottom of a hill, with a deep sandy loam or four feet of red land on lime rock. I prefer two-year-old trees set thirty by thirty feet apart, in holes dug eighteen inches deep, and filled one-third full of surface soil. I cultivate my orchard as long as it lasts with a twelve-inch plow; throw the dirt away first of June, and back in August; then harrow it. I plant potatoes and corn in a young orchard, and cease cropping after ten years. I plant nothing in a bearing orchard. Windbreaks are essential; would make them of rows of Osage orange on the north and south sides of the orchard. I prune as little as possible. I fertilize my orchard with cow-stable and horse-stable litter mixed; I think it beneficial, and would advise it on all soils, unless very rich. I pasture my orchard once in a while with hogs without rings in their noses, so they can hunt worms. My trees are troubled with borers. I do not spray. I pick my apples in sack from ladders. Sort into three classes, and peddle them. I use Topping's driers and Williams's parers; they are satisfactory. After drying I pack in fifty-pound boxes. I find a ready market in Kansas City for them, but it does not pay. I am successful in storing apples in small boxes and barrels in a cellar; Gilpin and Ben Davis keep best. I have to repack stored apples before marketing, losing about five per cent. I do not irrigate. Prices were thirty-five to fifty cents in the fall; seventy-five cents to one dollar in the spring [1897].

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JOHN GREGG, Willis, Brown county: I have been in Kansas since '68; have an apple orchard of 120 trees about twenty years old. For a commercial orchard I prefer Ben Davis, Winesap, Gano, and Dominie; and would add for a family orchard Red June, Holland Pippin, and Yellow Transparent. I have tried and discarded Willow Twig on account of blight, and Missouri Pippin on account of blight and shy bearing. I prefer high land with a porous clay subsoil, and a north, northeast or northwest aspect. When planting trees I dig deep, wide holes, lean the tree to the southwest, apply water, then fill and tramp well. I cultivate my orchard for five years with an orchard disc; plant corn and potatoes. Seed bearing orchard to clover. Windbreaks are essential; would make them of honey-locust, maple, ash etc., on the south and west sides of the orchard. For rabbits I wrap the trees with corn-stalks. I prune mostly in June, to give the trees shape; I think it pays. I do not thin my fruit, but think it would pay. I do not fertilize my orchard to any extent; think clover is good left on the ground. I do not pasture my orchard; it does not pay. My apples are troubled with codling-moth. I do not spray. I pick my apples by hand into a basket or sack. The shippers do the sorting. I wholesale, retail and peddle my apples; sell the best to shippers, culls to neighbors or make cider of them. My best market is at home; never tried distant markets. Do not dry or store any. Prices have been from seventy-five cents to one dollar per barrel.

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WILLIAM CUTTER, Junction City, Geary county: I have lived in Kansas twenty-eight years; have an apple orchard of 4000 trees. For a commercial orchard I prefer the list recommended by the State Horticultural Society. I prefer a rich bottom with a north aspect. I prefer two-year-old trees four or five feet tall, branched low. I cultivate my orchard as long as it lives with a disc harrow or plow. The first five years I plant a crop that requires cultivation, and plant nothing in a bearing orchard. Windbreaks are very beneficial; would make them of two rows of Russian mulberries set ten feet apart in a row. I prune very little when young to balance the tree; I think it pays. I do not thin my fruit while on the trees, but think it would pay if I had time. I fertilize my old orchard with stable litter, and think it advisable on all soils. If you do not do this you must prune. I do not pasture my orchards. My trees are troubled with canker worm, root aphis, flathead borer, roundhead borer, woolly aphis, and leaf-roller, and my apples with codling-moth, curculio, and gouger. I spray for canker-worm and codling-moth--the oftener the better. I think I have reduced the codling-moth. I dig the borers out, and kill the rabbits. I carefully pick my apples by hand from a step-ladder, into half-bushel baskets, and sort into three classes--first, second, and culls. Pack in barrels rounded up and marked on the head; then send to market by rail. I sell some apples in the orchard, usually at wholesale. My best markets are south--Texas. I do not dry any. I am successful in storing in boxes, barrels and bulk for home market; I find Fink keeps best. Never tried artificial cold storage. I have to repack stored apples before marketing, losing about one-fourth of them. I do not irrigate. Prices have been from fifty cents to one dollar per bushel. I pay my help one dollar per day and board.

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A. H. GRIESA, Lawrence, Douglas county: I have lived in the state thirty-one years. Have an apple orchard of 1000 trees, from six to eighteen years old. For a commercial orchard I prefer Missouri Pippin, Ben Davis, and Winesap; and for a family orchard Yellow Transparent, Early Melon, Jonathan, and Gano. I have tried and discarded Gilpin, Lawver, and McAfee; they were not productive or good. I prefer a sandy river bottom. I prefer one-year-old trees, set as they grew in the nursery. I cultivate my orchard to small fruits, using a disc or cultivator; cease cropping when the trees spread too much. The more cultivation the better. Windbreaks are not essential. I trap the rabbits; and dig the borers out in May and September. I prune my trees a little each year, to let in sunshine; I think it pays and is beneficial. I thin the fruit while on the trees a very little; but it would pay to while the fruit is small. My trees are in mixed plantings. I fertilize my orchard with barn-yard litter and ashes; and would advise their use on all soils. I do not pasture my orchard; but think it would pay, with calves and young pigs. My trees are troubled with borers and aphis, and my apples with codling-moth. I do not spray. I pick by hand, and sort into three classes; pack in three-bushel barrels, facing the bottoms, and ship to market by freight or express. I sell apples in the orchard; sell the second and third grades to evaporators. I have tried distant markets, and found it paid. I do not dry any. I am fairly successful in storing apples in boxes and barrels, in a barn cellar, for market and family use, and find the Fink and Cullins keep best. Never tried artificial cold storage. I have to repack stored apples before marketing; the per cent. lost depends on the variety. I do not irrigate. Prices have been from seventy-five cents to two dollars per barrel. I pay my help one dollar per day.

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WILLIAM BOND, Rossville, Shawnee county: I have lived in Kansas twenty-one years; have an apple orchard of about 300 trees, from five to twenty-five years old. For market I prefer Ben Davis, Missouri Pippin, and Winesap; and for a family orchard would add Chenango Strawberry and Maiden's Blush. I have tried and discarded Rawle's Janet on account of rot, worms, and shy bearing, and Smith's Cider on account of blight. I prefer bottom land having a deep, porous subsoil and an east or south slope. I prefer two-year old trees, set in rows thirty feet apart each way. I cultivate my orchard with corn or potatoes for six or eight years, using a common cultivator, and cease cropping at the end of this time; plant the bearing orchard to clover. Windbreaks would be beneficial; would make them of forest-trees or Osage orange, by planting in three close rows on the south and west sides of the orchard. For rabbits I tie split corn-stalks around the trees. I prune very little; just enough to keep the head open and the watersprouts off. I do not thin the fruit while on the trees. My trees are planted with one variety in a row. I do not fertilize my orchard. I do not pasture my orchard; it is not advisable. My trees are troubled with canker-worms and flathead borers, and my apples with codling-moth. I do not spray. I pick my apples by hand. I sell apples in the orchard; also wholesale, retail and peddle some. The home market is best; never tried distant markets. I do not dry or store any. I do not irrigate. Apples were fifty cents per bushel in the fall of 1897. I paid my help one dollar per day.

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REUBEN WALTON, Aurora, Cloud county: I have lived in Kansas twenty years. Have an apple orchard of 200 trees from six to eighteen years old. For a commercial orchard I prefer Ben Davis, Late Emperor, and Maiden's Blush; and for a family orchard Winesap, Cooper's Early White, Late Emperor, Maiden's Blush, and Rhode Island Greening. I prefer a north slope with a rich black loam and limestone subsoil. I prefer two-year-old, well-rooted trees, set twenty feet apart. I cultivate my orchard to potatoes for ten years, using a double shovel plow, and cease cropping at the end of this time, planting the bearing orchard to grass. Windbreaks are essential; would make them of evergreens. I dig borers out. I prune to give the trees more air and better shape; I think it pays. I do not thin the fruit while on the trees; the hail and dry weather generally do that for me. My trees are in mixed plantings. I have one apricot tree which never bore until a swarm of bees came and lit on it, and it has borne every year since then [??]. I do not fertilize my orchard; our soil does not need it. I pasture my orchard all the time, with hogs and pigs. It is not advisable, as they injure the trees, but they pick up the wormy fruit. My trees are troubled with canker-worms, and my apples with codling-moth. I spray with London purple and Paris green three times, when we have the time and water to spare. Think I have reduced the codling-moth. I pick my fruit by hand and sell some apples to the neighbors in the orchard. I feed culls to pigs. I never tried distant markets. I have apples dried on shares for family use. It does not pay to dry for market. I am partially successful in storing apples in barrels in a cellar under the house. I find Rhode Island Greening, Ben Davis, Duchess of Oldenburg and Emperor keep best. I have to repack stored apples before marketing, losing one-fourth of them. I do not irrigate. Prices have been from twenty to thirty cents per bushel.

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