Public Ledger

Apple Culture.
The Independent.

Prescott Williams, of Williamsburg, Mass., who has given a quarter of a century to apple culture, and now has twenty acres in the fruit—1400 trees in all—has one of the largest crops this year the orchard ever produced. It reached 800 barrels. These trees are expected to reach a bearing capacity of 2000 barrels. In the next ten years the income from the twenty acres is estimated at $2000 a year. The land is like all that adjoining and Mr. Williams considers it all good for apple culture. The peculiarity of this method is that he digs a hole five feet square in which the young tree is set, and it is then filled with good soil and well made compost. The orchards are never plowed, for he has found the little roots come to the surface for nourishment. The windfalls and decayed fruit are all removed. The trees are cut to grow low with wide spread branches thus avoiding much of the danger of high winds. Mr. Williams has this year observed, for the first time, a difference in the shape of the Baldwin trees that bear in the odd and the even year. The difference is quite noticeable when it is once pointed out. The even year has long and slender branches reaching out in all directions, while the odd tree is more scrubby, the branches growing closer together in the top. These facts may be of much importance to those who wish to graft the Baldwin. Like many other fruit raisers, Mr. Williams has come to the conclusion, as a result of his long experience, that only a few varieties of both apples and pears are profitable to raise. He would not get more than three varieties of peach and, if he were to set an orchard of 1000 apple trees, he said he would get only the Baldwins and the Large Sweeting. The latter is a widely sweet, light red in color, very handsome and profuse bearer.