, VOL. XVI.
I
IgoriicitliuraL
"Changes Effected In FlstlUated Varieties of
Strawberries by Fertll.zatlon."
Editor Willamette Farmer :
The abovo heads an able article in the
Rural New-Yorker of May 10, 1884, by
J. B. Rogers, of Milburn, N. J. The
views of the author, though new to the
masses, are not new to pomologists and
horticulturists generally; for, ill their
daily experience it is found that' pistil
late plants do better, and are often al
most entirely changed in size, color,
quality and even form by the stamens of
different hermaphrodites. As proof of
this, among my strawberrios are beds of
the Finch, Glendale, Jucunda, Big Bob
a worthless sort and Jersey Queen,
in alternate rows. The Jersey Queen and
Big Bob are pistillate varietios, and both
are easily fertilized. East of the Jersey
Queen are, in beds, the Miner, Warren,
and Duncan, west are Jucundas and
Glendales. East of the Big Bob, be
tween it and the-Jersey Queen is Finch's
Prolific, and west of the Big Bob are
Sharpless and Wilson. Thus these two
pistillate varieties were in proximity of
these various hermaphrodite kinds; and,
as a consequence, must have received
the pollen, more or less, according to
distance, sunshine, wind and bees, for
the pollen must be carried or blown
from the stamens of the hermaphrodites
to the capellum of the pestillatcs.
The pollen is contained within the
cells of the anthers, and is a dust-like
substance. When the anthers burst the
pollen escapes, and is easily blown some
distance, especially when the sun shines
brilliantly, and falling on the stigma
doscends the stylo to the ovaries, and
thus fertilization takes place. The pol
len is electric, and positively charged;
the pistil, or rather the stigma, is also
electric, butis magnetic, attracts or ab
sorbs the pollen, and these are the means
used to an end. The meanB used are
the process, the end the product, fruit or
seeds.
Now, in picking these two pistillates
Jersey Queen and Big Bob we ob
served many berries half made up,
seemingly abnormal. The Jersey Queen
near the Jucunda were the largest, and
most productive. Near the Glendale
were sour and smaller. The Big Bobs
near tho Sharpless, where they were
anything at all, were the finest. Near
tho Finch sour, smaller, less, little,
worthless. S", too, the Manchesters
pistillate fertilized by the Miner, wore
soft liltlo things. Impregnated by the
Sharpless were very fine, indeed. Tho
Golden Defiance, pistillate, fertilized by
tho Bidwell has nothing like as fine ber
ries as when by tho Marvin. The Gol
den Defiance is late, the Bidwell early ;
but the Man-in is late, similar to the
Golden Defiance. Here then seems to
arise another idea. Should not the two
pistillate and staminate be alike in
Bize, growth and time of ripening?
"Similis simili gaudpt." So, too, ''Similia
similibus curantur."
In all ages, throughout the Faunal
world, tho male has been observed to
have an immense influence in impressing
his progeny. If, then, this is true in
Faunal, why not in the Floral world?
If the -6tamanato" male "has no in
fluence on the pistilito" female in
plants why, I ask, tho dissimilarity?
Why this abnormality? If "like beget
like" in tho one phase of life why not in
the other?
Men assort "the staminate has no in
fluence on the pistillate." I deny it,
and challenge the proof. Does not corn
mix even across a river? The pollen
from the tasseU will blow hundreds of
yards and fall on the silks of a different
kind and others mix a white with a yel
low or other color. The cucumber will
mix with the muskmelon. But why
enumerate? The case is to explain.
The strawberry u affected, more or
SALEM, OREGON, FRIDAY,
less, by the kinds used as fertilizers
This wo have noticed for many years.
The stronger, as a rule, governs or con
trols the weaker. Hence, tho stamens
being heavily charged with vitality, pos
sessing all the qualities constituting that
berry, as -tho Sharpies', of course, tho
pollen mingling with the ovules and the
ovary of tho pistils has, to a greater or
less extent, a controlling influence.
Clearly, then, if we wish to improve a
fruit or an animal, we must select
those males having, in a remarkable de
gree, tho pre-requisites we desire to
spring from tho female, either of tho
Flora or Fauna. Equal care must be ex
ercised in the selection of tho female
parent or wo fail in our improvement.
This reason, liy judicious care, on both,
and immense labor, I grow strawberries
weighing two ounces.
'Talma non sine pulvore."
A. F. D wmso.v.
Orchard Frontal Bints for Beginners.
The fruit trees have shed their leaves.
The sap, which hitherto supplied their
life, has deserted them to thejrjlato, and
gone down into winter qikLrwfra in the
roots. The upper part jMjkc tree is
mil uiurcuv iu.u HurL ozruim. sraif
. . . ' .xh. . .v:3,7?r5i ; .9
wnerem, wwjKyeast, rai&tau, most ad
vantage, the jjjHkpofracnard may
be undertakeja.Wt thjseason of the
year ther 'irVlrt waSr3ru.js whl
the ground is too wet oither to plow or
plant, which can bo advantageously ap
plied to this most needful, but too often
much-neglected operation. It is gener
ally supposed that any man who can
wield a hatchet or saw is competent to
perform this job. There was never a
greater mistake, and tho ruin of many
a fine orchard before now has proved to
its unlucky owner tho fallacy of such a
doctiine, and taught him at least to
properly prune an orchard requires both
knowledge and skill on tho part of the
pruner. Thero is a right way and a
wrong way in this as in other things.
There is a reason why, for every clip of
the intelligent primer's shears, and even
to a man worthy of weilding these
shears, there are trees now and then
which have been neglected or badly
pruned, whereof it requires a mighty
deal of nice consideration to enablo him
to decide just what branches to take off
and what to leavo on to bring them into
proper and profitable shape. It is, in
deed, no easy job to "revise and correct1'
an abused orchard, and it frequently re
quires tho thoughtful planning and
pruning of several consecutivo years to
iiccomplish the desired end. It is well,
therefore, when one has found a man
who thoroughly understands this busi'
nens, to employ him, year after year, up
on the same trees, that he may have
time to carry out his plans, which can
really be only well begun in a first year's
pruning.
.Let us look into tho principles of this
pruning business, for they are so plain,
and the reason for them so obvious, that
we feel inclined to put forth a prunor's
primer, or catechism, for the benefit of
the thousands of young orchardists
scattered throughout the country who
have all their experience yet to gain
upon this subject, and to whom a few
timely hints now may save years of
trouble hereafter in the treatment of
their trees. Our catechism should pro
ceed somewhat on this plan:
What is the chief end of an orchard
tree?
To bear good fruit
Very well. Now, what shapo of tree
is best adapted to this purpose?
That which is trimmed into a round,
compact head.
Why?
Because in this shape the tree is less
apt to part or split from overweight of
long, unbalanced branch's, and tho bar
vetting thereof is a much easier matter
than if tho tree had been left with its
boughs sprawling around in every direc
tion, and rivalling those of the Lorn
hardy poplars in their height.
What, then, should be the object of
the pruner?
To keep the tree clipped back into
that symmetrical, globular fonn, which
will best facilitate thee ends.
How is this to bo accomplished?
By pruning, always with that end in
view : lor it would be remembered urn
no fruit is borne on the new year's
growth, but on that mado the year be
fore; and if the proper trimming has
been neglected at that timo, one may ho
obliged to sacrifice a large part of tho
next year's fruitago to atone for thoir
previous neglect.
How, then, shall one proceed who is
anxious to establish an orchard in the
shortest possiblo time, and tipon tho
best approved principles?
Procure from some reliable nursery
man a choice lot of fine, he.ilthy, two-year-old
trees, straight as an arrow from
root to top; plant them twenty feet
apart, using every possiblo care in tho
preparation of the soil, and spreading
tho roots evenly with tho hand in all
directions. Then water thorn well and
settle the earth firmly around them
with the pressure of tho foot, on ay
sides, to prevent any possible "air cham
bers" being left about their roots. Next,
as tho first step in tho future pruning
of tho tree, cut off tho top with a sharp
knife at the height from which tho fu
ture branches of the tree are desired to
start, 6ay at four feet above the ground.
Why at four feet? Why not lower?
Because this height will permit the
cultivation of your orchard (which
should always be kept clean and free
from weeds or other growth of any kind
to be done by horse power, which would
be impracticable by and by, if the limbs
branched nearer to the ground.
What is the next step?
With the coming of spring the young
tree will burst forth into buds, from the
root clear up to the top. Bub oft with
the band, whilst yet but a tendr green
tip, every one of these buds but the
three nearest tho top. This rubbing off
prevents a loss of sap expending itself
upon useless wood and the formation of
ugly wounds by and by if these shoots
are left to absorb the vigor of the tree
until they require the knife to remove
them. By tho end of the season your
tree will have become a stout standard,
branching into three long prongs.
Why were but three buds lef tto form
the future troo? Why not more or loss?
Because experience has proved that
the triple crotch is the strongest form of
tree growth. Had you left two or four
buds, dividing the treo into two equal
divisions, in their aftergrowth their
weight would always have been apart
from each other, and in some, year of
heavy fruitago your treo would havo
split in twain, losing you the time as
well as your reward for tho care be
stowed upon it; whereas, the three
limbs interlock their strong fibres around
each other, and give a triple strength to
this foundation of your future tree,
which insures it against any such after
catastrophe.
Shall we not leavo theso three prongs
their full growth, so a to taste the fruit
of our treo in tho coming year?
No; work for tho year beyond that;
clip them back to half their length,
when from each will spring three other
lateral shoots, as in your first year's
pruning, giving you nino limbs in your
second year instead of tho three you
would havo had, besides placing your
crop upon short, stout branches, where
it has greater security from sudden
gusts of wind. In tho next season clip
back your nino shoots to half thoir
growth, as you did the threo of tho pie-
vious year, and under your careful train
ing your treo will grow on in beauty,
symmetry and strength, and thereafter
repay you a hundred-fold for all the care
bestowed upon it ; nor ever requiro tho
dangerous experiment of taking off
limbs tlm sizo of a man's arm hero and
there, with tho consequent loss of sap,
to bring it into proper shape.
Is the process of pruning alike bene
ficial to all trees?
No. Some enduro the operation much
better than others. Our experience has
been that cherry trees are particularly
averse to pruning of any kind, and seem,
from the exuding gum, never quite to
recover the taking off ot a large limb,
even though the wound was instantly
covered with a coat of shellac dissolved
in alcohol, which preparation wo keep
on hand to uso for tnis purpofo when
such amputations are unavoidable.
I'each trees, on tho other hand, serin to
ronow their youth and vigor all tho
inoro for tho pruning they rrcrivo. In
deed, without thiii, u poach tree only lives
from eight to ton years, whon, by con
stantly renewing its growth, pruning off
tho old and letting the new wood take its
place, they havo been known to thrive
for thrice that time.
But sunposo ono comes into possesion
of an old, neglected orchard. What
then?
Put it into proper training as oon as
possible, for the fooiicr this end is at
tained the sooner you will reap your re
ward. Take, for nittance, an old, neg
lected apple treo, which has hod no clip
AUGUST fe-iSft.
from tho pruner's shears since the day it
was planted (and ono may see n sainplo
of these in almost any drive of a mile
throughout the country) ; havo your
saw, shears and shell.ic; all ready. Now
stand back from the treo and take n gcod
look at it from all four sidos, through
an imaginary circle held up between
yourself and tho tree. Have tho cen
ter of the circle exactly over the trunk,
and lot it includo tho main averago of
the tree's circumference. Note, now,
what limbs extend boyond that circlo,
and take them off at once. Step" back
again. Go all around the tree, applying
tho circlo on all sidos, and shear off all
tho straggling boughs to tho limits it
proscribes. This being done, take an
other good look at your subject. Wherev
er you soo limbs interlnpping, crossing
and interfering with each other, cut
them out, coating over tho wound with
shollac, if it bo a largo one. Condemn
at onco all old, half-dead or diseased
wood, leaving as far as possiblo only now
and healthy stock from which to train
your future troo, thinning out oven
thoso where they are too thick, for thero
must bo freo ventilation for both sun
light and air throughout the tree to en
able it to bring its fruit to perfection.
Do not be afraid to trim severely in this
case for fear your tree will not bo able
to bear, in tho next year, a crop suf
ficiently large to satisfy your desires.
Herein 'lies tho fault of most all orch
ardists. They let their trees bear too
much, losing in quality every timo moro
than they gain by the increased quanti
ty tho treo attempts to bring to perfec
tion. Tho result of this short-sightedness
tells upon tho fruit-grower's pocket ma
terially whon ho comes to dispose of hL
crop. The small, stunted apple from
the overloaded tree, being a drug in tho
market, finds no purchaser, and fails to
repay even the cost of picking, to say
nothing of boxing and shipping ; whilst
the largo, poifoot fruit from tho well
pruned tree, whero it has had a chanco
to develop all its lusciousnoss, will al
ways bo in active demand, command the
highest price, and pay a fair profit to
the producer. Rurl Press.
The French Camp Mines.
The Silverton Appeal says that Al.
Woodington, a well-known resident of
tho Waldo Hills, has found tho old
French Camp mines, in limiting for
which much timo and money has boon
spont. In searching for them he follow
ed tho description given him by an old
Indian woman living on French Prairie.
Ho started from Mt. Joffenon, and
when his eyes fell on a frying pan and
an old broken shovel ho know that he
had found what ho wanted. By pros
pecting in the placer bed ho filled two
phials with yellow dust and returned
home, lie has since stakod off a claim
and feels satisfied that ho has struck tho
true business. Tho locality of theso
new mines is about twenty-five or Unity
inilcH from tho Molalla mines, and about
sixty miles from Silverton, just north of
of ML Jefferson, and on or botwcmi tho
headwaters of tho North Santhim and
and Molalla rivers.
Crops la the Big Bend Country
The results of this season's fanning in
the Big Bend Country prove conclusively
that that region will in tho years to coino
be tho great agricultural ccntro of
Washington Territory, and justifies nil
the flattering newspaper descriptions of
tho vast section that havo been publish
ed, says the Spokano Falls Review.
Early this year there was a heavy travel
to the Big Bend and a gioat many farms
wero located, but tho early spring was
phenomenally dry, and a largo per cent,
of tho settlers liecamo discouraged and
abandoned their claims. Tho drouth
did not last long enough to permanent
ly injure tho crops, however, and tho
timely and abundant moisture that ex
tended throughout Eastern Washington
has insured an iinmeii-so yield wherever
tho soil has been cultivated.
f!ln(l;.ini!in rnnntv. linn tP.2(i pliililrrn
drawing pchool money. Only four
counties in tho Stale havo moro children
than Clackamas, .Marion, Linn, Mult
nomah mid Umatilla. The amount to
lin flmu'ti from tliri Irmtirili1ft fund tar
this county is $3161, The number of
school children reported in tho State in
1683 was 09,070, showing uu increase
during the year of 4701, while tho
amount distributed tbowH an increase of
7(U7 O.V nr nt tlm rn In nf 7ii rontu iwr
-, . ... , . ... ..... ...... w. . WV...W ,r-.
scholar, to that of 70 cents per scholar
in i-yyi.
New hay f 20 per ton at Olympia.
NO. 3frr n
orrtgj0nilent
Inrormated wanted.
I.OCKI-ORT, Ind., July 24, 1SS1.
Editor Willamette Farmer:
I want to ask you n few questions
about Oregon and Washington Territory.-
I want to know about Willow creek,
Umatilla county, Oregon, if thero is any
good government land to toko up thoro;
is thero any timber; is tho water good?
Plcabo send mo a copy of the Hcppnor
Gazette. I want to know something
about tho Palouso Country, Washington
Territory ; I want to know whore I could
find a good part of tho country to farm
in that is with limited means. I moved
to tho Willamette valley last winter and
liked it, but my wifo could not stand tho
wot climate, and I camo back to Indiana.
I nm not satisfied and want to go back.
I want you to lot mo know tho best placo
to como to, in your opinion. I think
tho western part is too wet for good
health. My trip cost mo $500. Last
winter I was in Portland, Salem, Albany,
Corvallis, Eugono and Glendale ; so you
see I havo seen some of Western Oregon.
Ploaso give me your viows of Eastern
Oregon and Washington, and oblige an
old ex-soldier. T. M. Black.
itKPLY. To begin with, wo will not
take upon ourselves tho responsibility
of encouraging anyono to come to Oro
gon. Wo like it, and that is no reason
othors may. Tho Willow Creek Coun
try is a good location ; land was plenty
thero a yoar ago, but now good claims
aro th exception rather than the rulo ;
yet thero remains considerable good til
lable land to bo pro-empted or homo
steaded. The climato is good and
healthy ; crops turn out well. Our friend
says ho has been in tho AVillametto val
ley, so wo need sny nothing about it.
Tho man with limited nicanB should go
to tho Big Bend. Palouso, Umatilla, and
othor such sections, where land is cheap
and crops return income soonest. Thoso
who havo means como to tho Wil
lamctto valloy and invest in improved
farms and mako a liandsoiuo living off
of them. Our soason last year was wot
but salubrious, and whon his wifo could
not keep her hoalth when it was such,
ho had boat stay wiioro ho is. Wo fear
our friend expects to find a magnificent
farm laying in wait for him. Farms
must bo mado tho U. S. Go eminent
furnishes tho "cloth" and tho inhabitant
must '-cut tho pattern and sow it up."
Eastorn Oregon is decided a healthy
country, and hind is to bo had for tho
taking, but thoso who aro considering of
pi-o-cmptiiig land must act soon or thoir
chances will lie slim for procuring n
homo freo. Emtok.
Weather Report for July 1884.
, E01.A, August 1, 181.
Kihtor'Willamette Farmers
During July, 1881, thero wero 8 doys
during which rain fell, and an aggro
gate of 2.29 inches of water, 9 clear, 7
fair and 7 cloudy days other than thoso
on which rain fell.
Tho mean teinjieraturo for tho month
was 01.02 deg.
Highest daily mean temperature foi
the month, 08 deg. on tho 30th.
Lowest daily mean temperature for tht
month, 55 deg. on tho 10th and 17th.
Mean tciiijieratiiru for tho month at
2 o'clock i'. m., 70..'IO deg.
Highest tempeiaturo for the month, 82
deg. at 2 i i. on thu .'10th.
Lowest teiujK'raturo for tho month, 52
deg. at 7 a. m. on tho 17th.
Tho prevailing winds for tho month
wero from tho north during 10 d.iys,
south 5 days, southwest 10 days.
During July, 1683, thero was no rain,
1 clear, 2 cloudy and 2.' smoky days.
Mean lemjieraturo for tho month,
00.82 deg.
t Highest daily mean temperaturo for
tho month, 71 deg., on tho 0th and 23d.
Lowest daily mean lemjHjraturo for
tho month, 59 deg. on tho 15th and 2Sth.
T. Vnxuar,