133 934 THS THESIS SHE PEACH IN CENTRAL MICHIGAN BY SPEC bike) (cymes 4 \ THESIS [33 4 34 THS THESIS. THE PHACH IY (jae gGRAL LICHIGAN. Scattered about over Central iiichigan, are thousands of acres, ‘eanable of producing peaches of excellent quality. There are many farmers who are now following general farming with meagre returns, whose facilities are such that a large profit might be made from a smc2li well cultivated orchard. With the inercasing demand for fruit there is a bright outlook for peach growing ia Central ‘iichigan. It is true tnat a full Cror cannot be secured every year, but the proceeds from one full eron will amply reward the grower for an accassional failure. While it may cost more to produce a basket of pvneaches in central Michigan than in some morc favorable locality; it must be remen- bered that the expenses of transportation often amounts to more ‘than the producer originaliy received for the fruit. Thus the local grower is able to successfuliy compete with more favorable localities. Wheat are the quelifications necessary for successful peach ‘growing? The man. The grewer must be aman who is not discour- aged by one unsuccessful attempt but one whom failure only suprs ‘on to greater efrorts. He must be a man who will study his ‘rusia ness; he must take an interegt in his work. THESIS (33 934 THS x w @ The Location. In this climate tne situation ror a peach orchard must be such ac wiil give good air drainage. This may be obtained either on a hill-side or on an elavate ridge, sloning off to a large area of lowcr land, wili drain off the cold air which is heavier and thus do much to guard against late Spring frosts. % is surpris-— ‘ing to notice what a diffcrencc of temperature will be produced by an elavation of but a few fcet. In some localities inere the conditions arc favorable the next lower level wil. oftcn be as suitable as the more clevated ones. Some think thet a West or Northwest slope is much better than other, since on these slones the buds are not started by a warm ‘gpell in early Spring, afterward to be nipped by a frost. .While this slove mav be more desirehiec, a slove in anv other direction will often pive good rcsults. The soil wilsi often have ruch to do with the location. ior instance a sand or gravelly loam with good air drainage which has but a slight elevation will give better results than a well ele- vated hillside, the soil o8 which is ai impervious clay. The peach scems to be at home in a sand, gravel, or sandy loam altnouz, ‘certain varieties as the Hill's Chili often do well on a clay loan. The market. When commercial orchards are contemplated,it is well to look to the market facilities. If local markets are to be ' gsurrlied, a long distance from market wili be found to be indcs- ' drable. If on the other hand the grower contemplates shipring the 4 O2G32s° ©) ve crop, a location situated near a railway station wili save much trouble and expense. In our severe climate,perhapves, one of the most important questions that confronts the reach grower, is what varieties shall I plant? It is a live question sinc. each grower must to a large extent, settle mt by actual trial for his own location and soil. During the past SO years much hes becn done to secure hardier varietics. This work has becn revarded with success. The peach, originally a semi-tronical frmhit has by the selection of chance secdlings and by careful culture, come to be one of our hardy fruits. The exvremes of temperature that peach buds will stand has ‘been a matter of some dispute. it. J. H. Hale of Conn. a few years ago raised a good crop, the buds being exrosed to a temper- u ature of 1a0\below: zero. At other timcs the buds have all been Killed by a temperature of 180 above zero. ‘the general opinion of growers has becn that 150 to 180 would be a fatal is determin- ed largely by the condition: in which the buds enter the winter. Buds entering the winter in a firm well ripened condition will be ‘uninjured by a temperature that would kili the entire tree, if of a soft watery growth. This Srring tests were made of the buds in the College orchard to determine the per cent of buds kilicd by the severe winter. Comparisons were made by testing 100 buds of cach variety, two 4. ‘buds being taken from a twig, the twigs being chosen from differ- ent parts of.the trec. In most cases two trees of each variety were selected, 50 buds from each being taken. Of the tres select ‘ed some has borne fruit the previous season, while there was a i Marked difference in the difference in the age of the trees for which allowance must be made. In the following table is shown the percentage of the unin- 'jured buds of the varieties examincd. Early & Late Crawford, Alexander--------- 470, Old Mexan---~------ 5% Amsden------------ 326 Brunson----------=- 106 Barnard, E.-------- G2 : Crosby---~-------~-+ 06%) Rarnerd,L,--------: BBE) Crawford,h.------- 304 Cornet------------ 57 Crowford, Lyeeneoee 205, , Conkling---------- O87) Golddron---------- 28% Dennis------------ BA Hale-------------- ei Diamond----------- B2f Hilis Chili------- Df Kllison----------- 3B Jaques-—----------- 56%, Early Rivers------ 246 Lovetts White----- 73% Barly Louise------ 754 wis----------.-- 78% ' Engles aumath----30;' ot Rose---------- 304- Switzerland------- 04 Stanleys late----- 65d Snow's Orange----- 50% Stump------------- 205) Salwey------------ 16 , Wilder------------ 36% - Susquehanna------~- 60%, Wager------------- an Smack--~---------- B25 Wheat land--------— 514 - St e O}1 1----16% J Of the above list, Snow's Crange, Gold drop, Jaques, Early & Late | 1 1 'Barnerds, Nale, Wager, Brunson, Switzerland, Hili's Chili, Lewis, ‘Stanley's late and Smack, together with early Michigan furnish | the bulk of the Michigan crop. While the Susquenanna, Old iixon, iit. Rose and Stiesp are old standard varie- ities which are now being driven out of the new and hardier varie- l ties, ] d : De The Crosby, Liberta, Kalamazoo, St. John and Diamond are new varie ‘ties that are being pushcd py nurserymen, time alonc will tell if | they are whet they are claimed to be ar not. The Elberta was not included in the list as onlv one damaged at hend to secure data from. the Early itichnigan, a seedling of tne Hill's Chili is largely -plantea in some sections where it is thought to be better than the parent variety. On June 80 another was made to the Snow the rer cent of a full cron on the tree at that date. | Alexender--------- 5 Hale---------—— =--90%) Ansden------------ 2065 Hill's Cchili------ 60% Barnard 3,-------- 70%) Jaques------------ 20° Barnard L,-------- 15 Lovett'e White----- 5% Crosby------------ 40% Lewis-—--------- --100/; Crawford E,------- of Switzerland ------ 30%; Crawford L,---.----- 0° Snow's Orange----- 60"! Conkling----------- Li. Stump ——-—-—-—-----= a—— 15 3 Cornet—----------—- Ro Jilder------ -----—- 50%.) : Denhiss------------0)) Wager---—~ --- ---- 20-4 | LSON-—-——- eee ewe eee Oy. n412C , | Early Canada------ 53% Selway ) Dead. | Gold dropn--—------- 60" Brunson ) The change in the nercentage in the second table from that of the first may be accounted for by the severe frosts which occured just at the time of blossoming. When we take into consideration the fact tnat 150 to 180 below ' gero has been considered fetal to buds and remember that the ex- treme temperature reached past wintcr,was 20 below sero, the greatest fall being 50 dep. is. Proa 13 to 15 hrs, we see that the buds came through the winter in cxtvaordinary condition. 6. When the choice in varicties has teen made, sce to it that only good stock is set. The sccond size of trees wil: be found to do as well as the first size, cut second quality trees are dear at any price. beal cnilv with reliable nurscrymen as a large fer- centage of tree agents roaming about the country with brignt colored pvictures of fruits are frauds. They wili secure a job lot of trees not true to name from some unrrincibled nursceryman which they can furnisn to the vurchaser at a slignt expense and thus rob the buyer. The grower after three or four ywars of care will find that he nas becn duned witn a izonthless lot of trees, The nlanting may be done i. either Spring or Fall, perhapes the Srring planting is bcst ror most growers. The order for the trees should at least be Biven in tne Fali as the varietics wanted may not be obtainable in the Spring. As to distance there is some aifforence of orinion. The most successful growers velbive that twenty feet each way is the best distance. This will allow room for thorougn cultivation and will cause the trecs to make a more rmgcea growth. In orchards vhnich are closely palnted in strong goil, the trees have a tendency to shoot up like a young forest | reaching aheignt of 25 of SO ft. It is almost imros:ible to prune or nick fruit from such trees ina satisfactory mamer. There is a practice of planting mucn closer, say 12 by 16 fect 1 rt il ‘and then cutting out every other trce when the trees commence to cro.rd ecech otner. By this met:iod thre. or four cronms mav be 7, obtained before the thinning is required. ‘The objection against this practice is, there are but few nen wno have the stamina to thin out at the vroncer time. I% looks to them destructive to cut down thrifty trees. Besides this it must necessarily take a large amount of plant food from the soil to produce tne trees which are thinned out. Perhapes the one thing in raising fruit which is most often | 2 neglected cultivation. The prover tiliage of the soil consumes f the moisture and makes availabie more piaht food. These two subatances, moisture and food arc the oncs 110st oftem exhausted. The want of moisture cheeks the growth of wood and prevents the z | prorer detelopement of the fruit. It was the want of water that caused the death of trees during the rast Svring.after they had started to leave out. The ioam soil on the surface of any well cultivated field acts as a iulen in breakingtne capillarity thus preventing the cscare of all moisture raised up by the canillarity | of a lower level. A lack of moisture rrevents the plant food of | | \ the soil from being made available to the roots of the tree, The cultivation for 2 new orchard should be comienced before the orchard is planted. The plowing should be deer cnough to break un the crust which so often forms just below the usual derth of plowing. This will permait the roots of the tree to penetrate the soil to a greater depth thus falliating the evils of a drough. For the first two.ycars some head crop as corn or beans may be ! r oO Oe vlanted. If corn is used it will aid in shading the trunks of ‘the young trees. By thnis metnod the trecs wili receive thorough tillage without exnense while it would pe stonvred in season to allow the wood to become thorourshly ripened. In the early plant of the scason the soil shculd be worked to a derth of 3 or 4 in. 2 as the scason advances this derth shold be lcssened. Later « -ghallow cultivetion shoild be made csrecially after each rain and during a drouth once cvecry weex oe ten days. The continued aski ‘action of the moisture working up from below tends to form cap- -illarity to the surface and allow its cscare unless the surface is kert stirred so as to form a dust Mulch, After the first two scasons it is weli to give un the entire strength of the soil to tne trees. Thorough and frequent tiilage ‘should be given until the middle of July or August,according to the scason and other conditions. It is best to comience as the “growth of wood is made during the first helf of tne scason and to ‘stor in time for the wood to get thoroughly rivencd for the winter Sod should rarely if cver be allowed in a peach orchard. It furnishes a brecding ground for insect pests and affords thousands of little tubes to lift the water out of the soil. All the nitrogen necded try the trees cen be furnished by sow- ing rye tefore the last cultivation in the fall and turning this under in carly Syring. The ingredéents i: the soil most heavily ‘drawn upon when the orchard comes into bearing, are rotassium end ce oe hosrhoric acid. These two substances must be furnished to the i recs in suflricie:nt quentities the potash may be furnished in the r forn of asnes or the Gcrman pataBh salts and the phosnmhoric acid in the rorm of ground bone. It has becn iiv good fortune to sec cultivated end unclitivated trees growing sidc py side. The latter were about two thirds the size of the former, while at the end of a drouth the leaves on the uncultivaicd trees were of a yellowish nue, one-nalf hav- ing fallen from the trees. The little fruit that ranained on the trees was so sinall and withered as to be almost worthless. On the cultivated trees the leaves were of a dark green color and the eruit WES Well detelonred. The uncultivated had produced but 1its tle fruit'since the archard began to i:ear, while the cultivated trees had bourn several good crops. It has becn urged that the buds could be retatded so as to escape the Spring frosts by Itulching. Bailey of Cornell in B 11 59 conslusively disproves this theory. He found that mulching has no crZect in retarding buds excert in plants wherc the stems and buds themselves are covered by the mulch. x | ‘| \ At the time of planting the tree should be pruned back to the whip 2 1/2 to 3 fect long, in this way the roots wili have time to start befroe eny dencnd for sap is made by the tree. The one ; great fault of nearly all ameteurs in setting young trees is to leave too much in porportio: to the root surface. | 10. In ~runing usually one of the three following methods is followed: The spreading form, heading in or natural head, 7 First by thinning out the lateral branches the principle growth is faced into the ends of the Lranches,producing a spread- ing with well open head. Second, by heading in previous years growth of wood is cut back from 1/3 to 1/8 vroducing a thick compact head. Lastly the natural head is produced by cutting out those limbs which crosse eack other thus leaving the peach to its natural method of growth. Of these tnree methods it may be said that each of them has its advantaze. The sprawling method is rrobablyv the least used of the three. It gives good color to ‘the fruit and is used .aost on light s@ils. The cutting back ‘netnod is gaining Favor. It gives a rugged tree Which oceuries léss srace and will carry a larger load woth- out injury. 3sSy its judicious use the fruit can be to a large extent in rruning late in the Srring, the neading in being dome while the tree is in blossom, Iv is used on both lignt and heavy soils; on light soil it tends to make the tree nore thrifty since it increascs the anount of root surface in pprp- portion to the top; on heavy soils it is necessary to cut back in order to check the growth of the wood and turn the strength of the tree into producing fruit buds. ‘The natural head is thought ‘py many to be best on soils that produce just about a sufficient ‘quantity of wood. 11. The Svtring is rerhnavces the rest time to prune. The wounds will heal over morc quickly at the time of blossomtng or when the leaves are just out. It also gives the workman a chance to see a@l1 dead branches and if the neading in process is used, judici- ous thinning can be done at this time. The remainder of the thinning should be done tne last of June, this is after the curculio nas ceascd its ravages and before the pits have meade a demend for potash and vhosrnoric acid. Thinning prod::ces a imch better quality of fruit, and lessens the drain on the tree and soil. The principle insects ingurious to tne preach are the curculio | and the peach borer. The curculio (cana, trachelus, neuvphar) stings the young peach leaving its cheraetertic# cresent g@haped marking. laris green, one pound to 500 gallons of water will ysually check the work of this insect if it fails, jarring must be resorted to as the only sure remedy. | The reach borer (Saunina exitiose ) is a wasplike moth which lays its eggs on the back of the tree near the ground,occassionly higher uy on the trunk during the laticer p.rt of Jume. The borers when hatched bore down into the bark just below the ground where a guary secretion will ooze out in large masses,showing the locat- of the intruder. When the tree becomes thus efrected the borers must be cut out with a Knife or they will often girdle the entire | tree, When pruning it well to remove all and keen the 12. ‘trunk as smooth as rossible as a number of small suckers gives the native moth an exceilent place to deposite her eggs.