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Show Pollination of the Martha. Thiro has been n rntber ctetiRlo planting of tho Martha Crab throughout through-out tho northwest, and, since tho trees have got Into bearing age, an almost equally gcncinl complaint thnt whllo It blossoms freely It Is n shy bearer. t was told a few data ago of ono rase whero a Minnesota man had been Induced In-duced to plant n large orchard of the Martha and wns now considering tho project to cut them nil down or top work them entirely to other Borts. Ho told mo that thoy would como out full of bloom and then hnMi Uttlo or no fruit. Mr. I). C. Hnzelton of Nichols, Aitkin Co., Minn, north of SL Paul, camo beforo the Minnesota Horticultural Horticul-tural Society at Its December annual meeting with n statement of his experience ex-perience with tho Martha that seems to demonstrate that all this variety requires to conert It Into a good cropper crop-per Is to be neighbored closely by other nrlctlcs to pollcnlzn It, and It confirms what many of ub suspected for many years, and perhaps somo liao known that we huvo other varieties varie-ties that may bo benefitted by tho use of pollen, not their own. Mr. Hazel-ton Hazel-ton Is a man of excellent standing In tho Minnesota society and any statement state-ment of tacts ho makes on his own knowledge can bo relied upon. His statement as to tho Martha Is as follows: fol-lows: Threo Marthas set In spring of 1883 always blossomed full, but did not benr anything to speak of till 1900; then they bore about soven bushels each; this Is In his plat No. 1. In tho samo plat Is a Martha sot In 1892 that has borno a fair crop for four years; this tree has had for a pollonlzer an old early Strawberry crab twenty feet cast that bears every ev-ery year; these Marthas always bear heaviest on the side next to other bearing trees. In that year, 1900, he had six swarms of bees that worked hard on the apple trees especially on the Marthas. In his plai No. 2 about 200 fet away from tho others wero two Marthas sot tn 1883 one of these stands In an opon spaco between tho rows; fourteen feet cast Is an old Wealthy that has been bearing since 1893; another, twenty foot southeast, and an old oarly Strawberry forty-flvo forty-flvo feot nearly southeast. This Martha commencod bearing beforo ho had any bees and has borno heaviest on the south and cast sides. Standing thirty-flve feet west is another Martha set in 1883. This stands In tho center cen-ter of a squaw of four trees, two early Strawberry and two Hibernal, so close thnt tho limbs touch. They all began bearing nbout tho samo tlmo and that Martha bears heavily on all sides. Plat No. 3 has three Marthas In tho centor of a row, nil set In 1897. TIilso Marthas commenced bearing in 1900; thero Is a Whltnoy on ono side, Hlbcrnnls and Hlslops on tho other. If tho Martha can bo made au annual an-nual good cropper, Mr. Lyman may hao to look out for his laurols with his Prolific, and possibly tho reputation reputa-tion of my favorlto crab, Mr. Porter's Glbb, may bo enhanced. Oliver GIbbs, before Wisconsin Horticulturists. |