American Pomology. Apples

All farm-houses should be provided with good deep and dry cellars, which will prove the best place for the storage of fruits. These may be placed in bins, or, still better, upon shelves, as it is not desirable to have too great a bulk together. When but one, or at most, but two layers of fruit are deposited upon each shelf, and when each of these is placed at a sufficient distance from those above or below it, the whole may be easily inspected from time to time, and defective specimens can be removed without disturbing the rest. These shelves should be made of narrow strips, separated from one another by a space that will admit of thorough ventilation. The whole apartment devoted to fruit, should be kept cool and dark, and free from moisture or dampness.

Many large orchardists prefer to select their fruit from the picking baskets, and pack at once in new barrels, which are made for this special purpose, and are not so tight as those used for flour. In packing these, it is desirable to place the fruit carefully in layers, filling the space completely as the work proceeds, putting each specimen down by hand, and when the vessel is filled to about an inch above the chine, the heads are put on, a follower placed upon them, and the whole brought under the pressure of a lever, which forces the mass together so that there shall be no possibility of motion among the fruit. It is better that the outer layers should be somewhat indented by the barrel heads, than that the whole should be spoiled by the bruising that would follow from loose packing. These barrels are often left under the trees for some time, or they may be placed under an open shed for protection, prior to transportation. It is a common practice, before barreling, to deposit the fruit in piles as it is gathered, giving it only a covering of straw to allow it to throw off a part of its moisture, a process generally termed sweating. Now it cannot be gainsaid that there may be an escape of the fluids by transpiration through the pores of the skin, and we know that there is a loss of weight and even of plumpness, in many varieties, by exposure in a dry atmosphere; but the excessive moisture observed upon the surface of fruits that have been exposed to a low temperature, when they are brought into a warmer apartment, is unquestionably the simple precipitation of atmospheric moisture, and entirely independent of the juices of the fruit itself. The advantages of this method of treatment are, that more time is given for the careful selection of the fruits before placing them in the barrels, and a better opportunity for selection, and the rejection from the packages of all those which are in any way defective. The disadvantages are the increased labor and the greater amount of handling to which the fruits are subjected. The surface of our seed-fruits, (pepins), is endued with a peculiar coating of a waxy nature, which is of great value for their preservation, and should not be removed, hence the less fruit is handled, the better it will keep, and it should never be rubbed nor wiped; if too wet, or "sweating," it should be exposed to a dry atmosphere, until the surplus moisture shall have quietly evaporated before it is transferred or handled.

It is often observed of particular varieties that they are more prone to wilt than other kinds: this is particularly the case with Russet apples, and is believed to result from a deficiency of this protecting outer covering or waxy exudation, which appears most plentiful in those that retain their plumpness.

In packing for market, besides the directions already given as to prevent motion, it is very desirable to have the packages, of whatever form, whether boxes or barrels, of a neat appearance and uniform full size. The fruits should be well selected, and of a like average quality throughout, and not fixed up for market with the best only at the ends or sides that are to be first opened, while the inferior fruit is concealed within. Honesty is the best policy everywhere, and dealers soon learn to discriminate in favor of the brands of honest packers. It is believed that any orchardists, who will take pains in the selection of their fruits, and in the excellence and honest measure of their packages, will soon establish a reputation that will be of great value to them in their future offerings.

Fruit-rooms.—For those who wish to reap the highest rewards and the greatest profits from a near and convenient market, as well as those who desire to preserve their fruits, prolong their enjoyment of them, and to bring them to the highest perfection, the fruit-room or fruit-house becomes indispensable. These should be so constructed as to meet the required conditions of an equable and cool temperature, with darkness, and a sufficient amount of dryness to insure freedom from mold and damp. To avoid the precipitation of atmospheric moisture, the apartment should be tight, and seldom opened, particularly in damp weather. To absorb the exhalations from the fruit itself, and that emitted from the burning candle or the breathing of the visitor, the introduction of certain chemical absorbents has been suggested; among these, freshly burned lime has been recommended and used, but Mr. Du Breuil advises the introduction of dry chloride of calcium, which has so great an affinity for moisture as to absorb it completely from the atmosphere. This is the material used by B.M. Nyce, of Cleveland, Ohio, in his patent fruit preserving establishments; and this mode of preserving a dry atmosphere is a leading, and indeed, the chief feature and element of his success.

In the construction of fruit-houses, the fluctuations of the outer atmospheric temperature must be guarded against by making double walls, and by filling the spaces with non-conducting materials. The floors and the ceiling should be similarly arranged—unless where the cooling is effected by a layer of ice above the fruit-room, when the ceiling should be metallic, so as to enable the caloric to be rapidly abstracted from the space below. The house, patented by Prof. Nyce, is essentially a large refrigerator, with the ice at the top, and provided with absorbents for removing from the air the moisture it has received from the fruit. Its construction will be understood from the accompanying diagrams and description. The lettering of similar parts is the same in all three diagrams; the description is that of the inventor.

Fig. 27.—NYCE'S FRUIT PRESERVING HOUSE. (CROSS SECTION.)

(A) Foundation walls. The ground floor is leveled off, and made solid, and even with the foundation walls. (B) A covering of tar and pitch, one-half inch thick, put over the ground and foundation walls, to prevent the entrance of moisture. The tar and pitch should be mixed so as to be only moderately hardened by the temperature of the ground. (D) The filling between the walls is composed of short dry shavings, chaff, or other poor conductors, 3-½ feet thick, on the bottom and sides. (C) Joist for plank floor, 3-½ feet above the ground. The floor is made level throughout. (F) Chloride of calcium, or dried waste-bittern, from salt works, spread on every part of the floor of the preserving room, to absorb moisture. (I I) Air-tight casings, made of common sheet-iron, No. 26; the edges thickly painted, and nailed to upright studding. The outer casing in some houses is made of brick. The inside of the brick wall is covered with roofing cement, or pitch, or some other air-tight coating. (K K) doors 6 or 8 inches thick, filled with chaff or shavings, and fitted tightly to the door-frames, by listing or cloth nailed over thin layers of cotton. (X) The ice-chamber. (L) Joists to support the ice floor, resting 2 inches on the posts at Q. (N) Iron bars, 1-¼ inches wide, and ¼ inch thick, gained ½ inch into the joists, and placed crosswise to them. A bar must always be put directly under the seams and rivets. Three bars are enough to be under a sheet 30 inches wide. (M) The galvanized-iron ice floor, No. 18 or 20; the edges joined with rivets not more than 1 inch apart, and very carefully soldered. The ice floor is put on the edges of the iron bars so as to expose every part of its surface, on which ice directly rests, to the air of the room below. (S) Sides of ice room made of upright planks. Better have it lined with zinc or galvanized-iron, inside of the plank. Scantling, 2 by 6 inches, are placed on the ice, 4 feet apart, made even with the ice. Wide plank (P) are placed loose across the scanting, the edges as close as may be put together, to prevent the filling falling on the ice. Saw-dust, 6 inches thick, is placed on the plank (P). Shavings are not compact enough on the top to keep the air from the ice. (O) A discharge pipe to conduct the water from the ice. (W) An ante-room with an ice-water trough, (Y), in which canned fruit is kept, in large stone crocks, for retailing by small measure.

Fig. 28.—NYCE'S FRUIT PRESERVING HOUSE. (LONGITUDINAL SECTION.)

Fig. 29.—NYCE'S FRUIT PRESERVING HOUSE. (GROUND PLAN.)

The following estimates are given by the inventor, for a house, with room 15 ft. square, 8 ft. high, 22 ft. square on outside, with capacity for holding 500 bushels. The cost would be about as follows:

The frame and roof being simple, their cost need not exceed that of similar structures.

CHAPTER XIV

INSECTS

When the preparation of this work was undertaken, the author desired to make it as perfect as possible in all its parts. He very soon discovered, from his own observations in the orchard, that one of the greatest difficulties we all have to contend against in fruit-growing, was the ravages committed upon our fruits and fruit-trees by hosts of noxious insects.

Here then was a new branch of investigation, a new field of study to be entered. He was not an entomologist, nor could he gain any assistance from his friends who were such, because, though they were scientific, and able to assist him in names and descriptions of the insects presented, still they were not practical entomologists; their knowledge of these creatures was purely scientific, and while they could descant learnedly upon the systems set up by the great masters of the science, for the most perfect classification of insects, they could render us practical men but little aid in combatting our insect foes. Great assistance they have rendered, however, in providing names for all these wonderful creatures, in describing their habits and their economy, and in assigning them places in the beautiful classification that has been provided for them.

On turning from men to books, but little more assistance or encouragement was met with; these too would only give the names, the places, and the descriptions, in the most approved language of the science, but they are not attractive nor intelligible to the unlearned. Any person can soon acquire the language of the science, with a little study, but these scientific books do not give us directions how to rid ourselves of the pests.

Among the books that are accessible and that are adapted to the general reader, and to the student of practical entomology, two were found of eminent utility as far as they went. These are the excellent reports to the Massachusetts and the New York Agricultural Societies, by Messrs. Harris and Fitch, which are clothed in popular language, and which treat particularly of the insects injurious to vegetation, and they put us in the way of combating our foes. The former, which has been reprinted and illustrated in beautiful style, is worthy of a place in every farmer's library, and will prove a valuable aid in the study: the latter is printed in connection with the Society's reports. To both of these, the author acknowledges his indebtedness, and from both has he drawn liberally.

Other popular treatises, though attractive, have proved of very little practical value, and the student will find even the reports above referred to imperfect, as they were prepared for a limited region, and do not mention several insects that are common in other parts of the country than the States for which these reports were prepared. It were much to be desired, that every State Society would have similar reports, respecting the insects, peculiar to its state.

Thus the author found himself compelled to investigate this broad field of study for himself—it became necessary to grasp the elements of the classification, and to go into the field and the orchard, to use his eyes, and to observe for himself. This was a labor of time, and required considerable effort; but it brought its own reward in the pleasure attendant upon this delightful study. At the same time there was great satisfaction in the thought that all these facts, gathered from the works of men of science, confirmed by personal observation, and rendered useful and applicable in practice by his fellow laborers in the garden and orchard, would be a valuable contribution to them, and would constitute a useful portion of the American Pomology he was then preparing.

Unfortunately for himself, he has discovered that his collections, in this department, covered several hundred pages of manuscript, and that, if printed, they would render his volume too cumbrous. Upon consulting with his publishers, it was concluded best to lay the matter aside, for the present at least, and to prepare anew a brief account of some of the insects most injurious to the orchard, with short suggestions as to the best methods of combating their ravages. This conclusion has been the more readily yielded to, because the public now have a medium of communication with the scientific entomologists, which well supplies the great want we had begun to experience. I refer to a monthly publication, issued by the Entomological Society of Philadelphia, in which the questions, that are constantly occurring to farmers, are answered in the most simple, clear, and satisfactory manner.22 Besides this, we find in our best agricultural journals, a page or a column, devoted to the consideration of insects injurious to vegetation.23

For the sake of convenience and system, these notes will be presented in the order of the approved classification of insects. Omitting further introduction or discourse upon the wonderful instincts and habits of insects, and explanation of their metamorphoses and the principles of classification, and confessing my poor qualification for the task, let us proceed at once to the catalogue.

COLEOPTERA.—Beetles

In this class of insects we find both, friends and foes. The former assist us by their voracious appetites, that can only be satisfied with gourmandizing upon other insects, particularly the juicy bodies of their larvæ. The latter embrace some of our most troublesome pests, especially as they consume vegetable matters, in the perfect as well as in the larval condition, and in both stages are exceedingly voracious. Moreover, they generally commit their depredations under cover, or at night. Some live in the soil and consume the roots of our plants, and others mine their way into the solid wood of the stems of our finest trees; while some only affect the twigs and smaller branches, and others devour the foliage, flowers, and fruits. A few of the most familiar and troublesome of these will now be introduced; and allusion will also be made to some of those which befriend us by their destruction of other insects.

Saperda bivittata. (Say.)—The Apple Tree Borer.—This is a nocturnal insect, which has been found very destructive to our orchards. The female deposits one egg in a place, generally low down on the stem of the tree; this hatches, and enters the tissues of the bark, where it feeds for a time, a footless grub. As it grows, it burrows deeper, and upward, until it reaches the sap wood, upon which it feeds. When half grown, it burrows still deeper, and upwards into the heart of the tree, and then outward through the sap wood to the bark, but retires again toward the centre, as to a place of safety, to undergo its transformation, after packing the hole with shreds of wood and with its castings to make its retreat secure. In the spring, the perfect insect opens its way outward, and emerges to the light of day.

Remedy.—Observe the bark of young trees very closely during the summer, to discover the castings that are ejected; notice the discolored or depressed portions of bark, and cut into them to find and destroy the worm—if it has penetrated the solid wood, pursue it with a piece of stout but flexible wire.

Preventives.—Alkaline washes have been highly recommended, as a means of driving away the mother beetle; soft soap may be used, and a portion of soft or hard soap, placed in the forks of the branches, will dissolve with the rains, and wash down on the bark. These applications, to be efficacious, should be made in May or June. In August, the bark should be examined, and when the worms are cut out, the soap suds may be injected with advantage, especially if the larvæ have not been reached. Birds should be encouraged, particularly the Picæ tribe, which destroy many grubs of the wood-boring insects.

Chrysobothris femorata, or the Thick-legged Buprestris, is another kind of apple-tree borer, very common in some parts of the West. The perfect insect may be seen running up and down the stems of our trees, in June and July. It is a blackish beetle, about half an inch long. The hole, bored by the grub, is flat, and not cylindrical like that of the Saperda. This beetle attacks the stem higher up than the Saperda, but burrows under the bark, and then sinks into the wood much in the same way.

Remedies and Preventives are similar to those above mentioned. Seek for the young worms in their shallow burrows in August, before they have gone deeply into the tree.

Dicerca divaricata, (Say.), or the Cherry-tree Borer, is similar in its habit of boring in the sap wood under the bark, and may be combated in the same way. The perfect insect appears in June and July.

Prenocerus supernotatus, or the American Currant Borer, feeds upon the pith of the stalk. The larva is a small, white grub, which changes into a slender, long-horned beetle; black, edged with chestnut-brown. The wing covers are marked with two small grey dots, anteriorly, and a crescent-shaped one behind the middle.

It is very injurious to the currant bushes in many parts of the country, and constitutes a serious obstacle to growing the plants to a single stem, tree fashion. In the bush form of this plant, the constant reproduction of new shoots compensates for the destruction caused by the borer.

There is another currant borer, an European, which is confined to young shoots; as it is not the larva of a beetle, but of a butterfly, it will be treated in its proper place.

Bostrichus bicaudatus, or the Apple-twig Borer, affects the small twigs, and when numerous, will produce an effect like that called twig-blight, by causing the death of the part and the withering of the leaves, at mid-summer. A small hole will be found near the axil of a leaf; this turns with the twig, and often extends several inches along the pith. The insect is a small, chestnut-brown beetle, 0.25 to 0.35 of an inch long, and is characterized by two projections or horns at the hinder end. Has been found rather common from Michigan to Kansas.

Remedy.—Kill, when found.

Scolytus pyri, or the Pear-blight Beetle, affects twigs of pear, apple, and other fruits, which wither and die at mid-summer. Small perforations, like pin holes, will be found, and issuing from them small cylindrical beetles of a deep brown or black color.

Remedy.—not known.

Lucanus dama, or Horn-beetle, is a large insect, the larvæ of which are said to feed upon the trunk and roots of old apple and other trees. The perfect insects are of a dark mahogany color, smooth, and polished. Like other Stag-beetles, they fly at night, are not very harmful, and are believed to be several years in reaching the perfect state.

Leptostylus aculiferus, bores under the bark of apple trees. It is a short, thick, brownish-gray beetle, with thorns upon its wing-covers; hence, the scientific name of needle-bearer. Length, 0.35 inch; season, August. The larvæ are small worms, occurring in multitudes under the bark, and making long-winding burrows.

Tomicus mali, or the Apple-bark Beetle, is described by Dr. Fitch as new. He says, it is a small, smooth, black or chestnut-red, cylindrical beetle; the larvæ feed under the bark, and then enter the wood, killing the young tree.

Conotrachelus Nenuphar, (Herbst), is the noted and notorious and yet little known Plum Weevil, that is such an abomination to plum planters, and which has proved very injurious to our peaches and is even accused of producing deformities in our pears and apples.

The egg is deposited in the fruit, where it soon hatches and feeds, approaching the stone. This causes the fruit to fall, and when the grub has attained its full size it descends into the ground to perform its transformation. The perfect insect, a small, dark-gray beetle, either crawls up the stem, or flies to the trees. Mr. Walsh reminds us that Dr. Trimble has found these insects hybernating in sheltered places.

Remedies.—It is lamentable that we have been able to do so little to prevent the ravages of this insect. The plan of shaking off, and destroying the affected fruits, promises the best results, by diminishing the next crop. It was suggested by David Thomas, of New York, but is most successfully practised by Dr. E.S. Hull, of Illinois, who has invented an inverted umbrella on wheels, which receives the insects, as well as the defective fruits, when it is bumped against the trees. By the use of this, he is enabled to harvest splendid crops of stone-fruits.

Pomphopœa Sayi, (or Cantharis pyrivora, of Fitch), is called by him the Pear Blister-fly. He describes it as a long blistering beetle, of a green-blue color; found on a pear tree about the first of June, eating the young fruit voraciously.

Euryomia Inda, or the Indian Cetonia, is a beetle about six-tenths of an inch long. The head and thorax dark, copper-brown, thickly covered with short, greenish-yellow hairs; wing-cases light yellowish-brown, changeable, with metallic tints. These are called flower-beetles, because they consume the pollen, and bury themselves in our flowers; but in the autumn, they consume our choicest fruits, especially peaches.

Lachnosterna fusca, (Frœlich), is the White Grub, or May Beetle. A heavy brown insect, an inch or more in length, which makes its appearance with the first warm evenings, when the Black Locust begins to open its fragrant blossoms, to which these beetles are attracted. They also attack the foliage of other trees, particularly the cherry, which they entirely strip of leaves and fruit. Though very destructive in the perfect form, these insects are most to be dreaded while in the larval condition, which is supposed to continue for some years. They then work under cover, and can only be traced by the ravages they commit. Every strawberry grower is familiar with the large White Grub that so often destroys his hopes of a crop, by killing the plants when in full growth and fruitage, by cutting off all the fibres.

Remedy.—The full-grown insects are very busy in the evening, but become stupid and lethargic before morning, clinging to the leaves and twigs, when they may be shaken down, caught on sheets, gathered, and destroyed. If let alone, they will fall to the ground toward day break, and secrete themselves in the grass and soil until night. All that can be killed in this stage of their existence, the better, as this will prevent the deposition of innumerable eggs. The White Grubs must be destroyed one at a time in cultivated grounds; kill them whenever found. Encourage chickens and birds to follow the plow and spade, as they will consume great numbers. Hogs will find and eat them greedily, and may be allowed to root them out even from a meadow, if badly affected; for, though a harsh remedy, it is not so bad as the disease.