Northern Nut Growers Association Report of the Proceedings at the Twenty Fourth Annual Meeting
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Northern Nut Growers Association >> Northern Nut Growers Association Report of the Proceedings at the Twenty Fourth Annual Meeting
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One of the most important developments during the past year is of very
recent occurrence. It is the fact that the 1933 season is opening with
the highest prices received during the last two years. This may in part
be due to reports that the outlook in the Tennessee--Kentucky--Virginia
and North Carolina district is for a light crop. According to Baltimore
merchants who have recently been consulted, consumption last year was
the greatest in history and, while prices reached the lowest level since
the depression began, relatively speaking, the total drop has probably
not been as great as for other food products during the same period.
These merchants look forward with confidence to a continuance of
increased consumption.
This forecast is encouraging, but it is based on the assumption that
there will be continued improvement in the manner of handling and
packing the kernels for delivery. At present, considerable overhead is
usually charged back to the farmers because of labor involved in
cleaning, grading, and sometimes curing, after the kernels reach the
city merchants. This handling is necessary with much of the output in
order that it may be made acceptable to the manufacturers. One of the
most desirable characteristics in connection with the sale of black
walnut kernels is brightness of color. This is a matter largely due to
the manner of handling during the process of harvesting, curing, and
cracking. Once the kernels become dark, they cannot be brightened except
by bleaching and removing the pellicles. However, the importance of
prompt gathering as soon as the nuts fall from the trees, removing the
hulls, and curing the nuts cannot be overestimated. These are matters
easily within the ability of the producers to adjust.
The Orchard Industry
On the orchard side of the industry, several developments may be listed,
although the majority are merely old developments newly emphasized.
Black walnut trees, seedlings and grafted trees alike tend to bear full
crops not oftener than during alternate years, and with conditions at
all unfavorable, full crops may be delayed for several years.
Grafted trees of many varieties begin to bear their first fruits quite
as promptly as with apples. Not infrequently walnuts appear by the end
of the second year after grafting. This is especially true with
top-worked trees.
Recent Adverse Weather Conditions
The spring and summer season of 1933 made an adverse combination in some
localities. In the Ohio and Mississippi River Sections, the result was
disastrous to a large part of the crop. In those sections, May was an
exceedingly rainy month. June was equally hot and dry. It is in May that
the blossoming periods of most varieties of walnut occur, also it is
then that most of the nursery grafting is performed. Insofar as
pollination was concerned, there were probably enough hours of sunshine
during the blossoming period for the distribution of pollen to have been
adequate and effective. On some of the trees the rains came at just the
right time to wash practically all of the pollen to the ground. Had it
not been for later pollinating trees either of the same variety, or of
other varieties, or even of seedlings in the neighborhood, it is
probable that no nuts would have set. However the actual set was about
normal, but the heat and drouth which followed resulted in a drop which
took the greater part of the crop. A pecan grower in southwestern
Indiana, with between 300 and 400 grafted trees now of bearing age,
recently reported that in August he was unable to find a single nut in
his entire orchard. The result has not been quite as serious with the
walnuts. Nevertheless, the crop prospects are reported to be not at all
bright.
Nursery grafting in southern Indiana had literally to be performed
between showers. Sap flow was excessive and the resulting stand below
normal. The heat and drouth which followed killed outright many of the
scions which had begun to grow. Thus, in that section the orchardists
lost most of their crops and the nurserymen most of their grafts.
Walnut Relationships
In regard to walnut relationships within the genus, continued studies
have led to certain conclusions which would appear to bear mentioning.
One of these is to the effect that not all so-called "butterjaps" appear
to owe their origin to staminate parentage of butternut but that they
may be due to chance crosses of either Japanese walnut with Persian or
possibly black walnut, or quite as often to reversion to the true
Manchurian walnut, _Juglans mandschurica_.
Hybrids and Intermediate Forms
It is generally known that natural hybridity occurs so frequently
between almost any two species of _Juglans_ when growing together and
blossoming simultaneously that it is unwise to plant the seed of either
if pure types are desired. Intermediate forms, evidently between Persian
(English) and black are fairly common throughout the East. The James
River and O'Connor hybrids are well known typical examples. Such hybrids
are most apt to occur in vicinities of Persian walnut trees. Crosses in
which the Persian walnut is the staminate or pollen producing parent may
sometimes occur but if so, they have never come to the attention of the
writer. Crosses between these two species commonly have the Persian
walnut as the pistillate or nut producing parent.
The most commonly seen forms which appear to be due to hybridity are in
the case of certain Japanese walnut seedlings in the East. The offspring
of these trees frequently takes on much of the character of the American
butternut. Nuts of this type have been recognized by this Association
and other authorities as "butterjaps." In his Manual of American Trees,
Dr. Albert H. Rehder of the Arnold Arboretum, Jamaica Plains, Mass.,
recognizes crosses between the Japanese walnut and American butternut
under the technical name of _Juglans bixbyi_ after the late Willard G.
Bixby of the Association by whom the matter was called to his attention.
However, it is not certain that nuts definitely known to represent a
cross between these two species have yet been brought to notice.
Butterjaps
It has been commonly assumed that nuts of the butternut type, from trees
grown from Japanese walnut seed are due to butternut hybridity, but the
theory is clearly open to reasonable doubt. Nuts of this identical type
are common in the orient where the butternut does not occur and also
they sometimes occur in this country on trees grown from imported
Japanese walnut seed. The late Luther Burbank wrote the Department of
Agriculture in 1899 that in California where he had grown many thousands
of seedlings from both imported and California grown seed, he was unable
to detect the slightest differences in foliage, yet the trees were apt
to produce nuts of any one of three types then known as _Juglans
sieboldiana_, _J. cordiformis_ or _J. mandschurica_. He wrote that "They
all run together and are evidently all from the butternut family."
An authentic case of butterjaps from imported seed was made public
during the first annual meeting of the Pennsylvania Nut Growers'
Association which was held in Harrisburg on January 11 of this year.
Butterjaps were on display during that meeting which had been grown by
Mr. Ross Pier Wright of Erie, Pa., from seed which he had imported
directly from Japan. His trees are growing in the outskirts of
Westfield, Chautauqua County, N. Y., and within a mile of Lake Erie.
In July of this year, Dr. E. A. Scott of Galena, Md., called the
attention of the writer to a number of fine trees in his small town, all
of which had been grown by him from _J. sieboldiana_ seed obtained from
a tree nearby and "every one" of which was bearing "butternuts," as he
and his neighbors call them. The American butternut does not occur in
that part of Maryland which is on the upper end of the Chesapeake
Peninsula, probably 10 miles from Chesapeake Bay. Both black and Persian
walnut trees are very common in that region. The tree which bore the
original seed is a typical Japanese walnut. It stands at the end of a
row of Persian walnut trees along the driveway of a private country
lane. There are several black walnut trees, perhaps 500 yards to the
southwest, but no butternuts for many miles. As the Persian and Japanese
walnuts blossom at about the same time and the black walnut considerably
later, it would seem altogether probable that if any cross had taken
place it would have been Japanese x Persian, rather than Japanese x
black. The chances of a Japanese x butternut cross would have been so
remote as to be altogether improbable.
Many years ago, Judge F. P. Andrus of Almont, Mich., planted one tree
each of Persian and Japanese walnuts in his dooryard. Both soon came
into bearing. Squirrels planted nuts in the ground and presently the
yard was filled with offspring, the majority of which were of the type
now called butterjaps. The trees were extremely vigorous but the nuts
were of so little value that all were finally cut down. Butternut trees
are common in Michigan and butternut pollen may have been responsible
for these crosses but circumstantially the evidence pointed much more
strongly to Japanese x Persian crosses than to Japanese x butternut
crosses.
Other cases of these sorts might be cited, but the evidence which the
writer has been able to bring together up to the present month,
September, 1933, strongly indicates that butterjaps may be due to either
an actual cross with a Persian or black walnut and possibly with
butternut or to reversion to a parent oriental type. So far, it has been
out of the question to hazard a reasonably safe assumption as to the
staminate parent of all particular crosses by merely studying the
botanical characteristics of the butterjap offspring.
Several years ago Mr. Bixby planted a number of butterjap seed nuts,
hoping that under the Mendelian law, the characteristics of the two
parents would segregate themselves. The trunk and bark of some of the
trees resembled black walnut quite distinctly, while none resembled the
butternut. So far as is known to the writer, none of the trees have yet
fruited. One of the several butterjap trees in Galena, Md., previously
referred to, produced nuts rather more like black walnuts than
butternuts. These two instances therefore, would suggest Japanese x
black walnut parentage.
Black Walnut Root Toxicity
On several occasions discussions of root toxicity between the black
walnut and certain of its neighbors have taken place at Association
meetings. The theory that black walnut trees give off toxic properties
from their roots, which are fatal to other plants, is therefore not new.
Some years ago the Virginia Experiment Station definitely isolated a
toxic substance which was held responsible for the death of tomatoes,
potatoes, alfalfa, blackberry plants and apple trees when these other
plants were grown in close enough proximity for their roots to come in
contact with those of the black walnut. This work was reported in
various publications and was written up by several different authors.
Since then, as well as before, the writer has looked for similar
evidence, but, so far, in vain. Each of these crops, including tomatoes,
potatoes, alfalfa, blackberries and apples, have been seen growing in as
close contact with black walnut as they could possibly be placed.
Oftentimes they have been found much nearer to black walnut trees than
would have been wise to place them to oak, hickory, ash or other species
of large growing trees. This does not mean that when the roots are in
actual contact the toxic agent of the black walnut roots would not prove
fatal to the other plants but it does indicate that in the great
majority of cases there is no practical danger.
Anyone who has doubt about the healthy condition of these other species
when grown close together with black walnut trees, may obtain evidence
for himself by noting the frequent combination of this sort easily found
in fields and gardens of the country and small towns. It is surprising
how often these combinations of black walnut and other species are to be
seen. Any unprejudiced person could hardly fail to become convinced
that, in the great majority of cases, the danger is of small practical
consequence. The roots of the black walnut run deeply under ground and
it is entirely conceivable that in deep soil they do not ordinarily come
up to the shallower levels of the roots of most other species.
Summary
A summary of the year's developments might be arranged about as follows:
(1) More black walnut kernels were harvested and consumed during the
year than ever before.
(2) Prices to the farmer reached about the same low level of the year
preceding, but the total drop during recent years was probably not in
proportion to the drop of most other food products.
(3) Crop prospects in 1933 are unfavorable for another large crop.
Prices are starting out considerably higher than for several years.
(4) Production of black walnuts from grafted trees under cultivation is
altogether insignificant in comparison with that from chance seedlings
receiving no special cultivation.
(5) Grafting and planting are taking place at too moderate a rate to
materially alter the ratio of production from seedling to that of
grafted trees in the near future.
(6) There has been considerable improvement during recent years in the
manner of preparing and packing black walnut kernels for market, but
there is need for further advance along this line.
(7) Merchants engaged in handling black walnut kernels predict that
there will continue to be a normal steady increase in consumption, now
that the market has become established, trade channels opened up, and
consumers habits somewhat established.
(8) Walnut hybrids occur frequently in nature. So far, none have
appeared which were of special value because of the character of nuts
which they produce. So-called butterjaps appear to be possible from
either certain crosses or from reversion to parent oriental types.
(9) Ordinarily, other crops may be interplanted with black walnuts with
as great safety as with most other equally large growing and deep-rooted
trees.
Is the Information We Have on Orchard Fertility of Value in the Nut
Grove?
_BY_ PROF. F. N. FAGAN, _PROFESSOR OF POMOLOGY
THE PENNSYLVANIA STATE COLLEGE_
Many of the association members present are also general fruit orchard
owners of this state. I am glad to meet with you and must confess that
it has been many years since I have had the pleasure of attending the
annual meeting of this association. To be exact, the last meeting I
attended was the annual meeting held in Lancaster some seven years ago.
It is not that the Pennsylvania Agricultural Experiment Station lacks
interest in nut culture that keeps it from doing work along nut
investigational lines, but because the older and more extensive apple,
peach, cherry, grape and berry industries have called upon the
resources of the station to its working capacity.
When Mr. Hershey wrote asking me to speak before this meeting I felt
that the only information we had at the station that would fit into the
picture was the information we have regarding orchard fertility. I
therefore gave him the subject, "Is the information we now have on
general orchard fertility of value in the nut grove?"
First, let me touch upon some of the papers given this morning. I think
it would be well for the nut meat industry to look into the department
of health's requirements governing the health inspection of workers
handling food products. I also suggest looking into the possibility of
the selling of nuts and nut meats by interested high school boys and
girls in our many towns and cities.
The question of annual bearing of nut trees is a subject needing
investigation. I rather expect we shall find that this factor is closely
connected with over-production of a tree one year, fertility and
moisture supply, or, in other words, the nuts may be much like apples.
While the nature of tree growth may tend to cause trees to be alternate
producers, man may upset this natural habit to some extent by proper
cultural practices and thus cause the tree to produce, not a full crop
in the off year but at least some fruits that will be on the profit
side.
As to the toxic effect of some of our nut trees upon growth of other
plants growing near by, I rather expect we shall find as time goes on
that instead of the trees having a toxic effect they have a robbing
effect upon soil moisture and food. One thing that leads me to this
belief is that years ago we taught that one reason for seeding a cover
crop in the orchard was to have the cover take the moisture from the
soil in the fall of the year and in that way check tree growth. We now
know that a mature apple or peach tree will reverse this during the
growing season and will take its full share of moisture and food from
the soil and really take these away from the cover crop. We saw this
occur during the dry years of 1929 and 1930 with covers that had been
seeded in June. During both these years, in our orchard blocks where the
water holding capacity of the soil was low, the cover died over the tree
root feeding spaces. Some may have said that the trees were having a
toxic effect upon the soil. This was not the case for, in 1932 and 1933,
both years of plenty of moisture supply, the covers have grown well
around the trees in these blocks.
I shall now ask you to refer to the conclusions on page 3 of our
Bulletin No. 294, issued by The Pennsylvania State College, which has
just been distributed to you. These conclusions are, of course, based
upon our work in an apple orchard but I believe they will apply closely
to the management of nut orchards.
Lessons from Fertility Studies in the Experiment Orchard
Most of the experiments in this orchard have now completed 25 years;
there have been few changes and these minor ones. Certain lessons may be
drawn from this quarter century of research:
1. The fertility of an orchard soil is more than its plant food content.
It involves the nature of the soil, its depth and topography, its
previous treatment, the use of fertilizers and manures, the amount and
nature of the cultivation and the covers or sods grown. Fertilizers are
only part of the problem of soil fertility.
2. In this orchard any treatment that has influenced the trees at all
has done so in the following order: first, the cover crops; perhaps
several years later, leaf color; shortly after, branch growth and
circumference increase; and last of all, yield.
3. The reason for this sequence of results is that the treatments,
whether chemical fertilizers, manure, or cover crops, have influenced
yields chiefly by changing the organic matter content of the soil; that
is, those treatments which have resulted in the production of larger
cover crops have ultimately resulted in the production of more fruit.
4. The organic content of the soil has been a considerable factor in
determining the amount of water in this soil. Those treatments which
have built up the organic content have kept the soil in condition to
soak up rainfall rather than to lose it by surface run-off. A larger
water supply, in turn, has produced more cover crops.
5. The site of this orchard seems nearly level to the casual eye; yet
slope, with its accompanying erosion, together with differences in depth
of soil, have created nearly as large differences in growth and yield as
any treatment. Good treatments have nearly offset the initial
disadvantage of poor soil; but it is more economical to plant the
orchard on good soil than to attempt the improvement of a poor soil.
6. A short, non-legume sod rotation is an efficient means of building up
a depleted orchard soil. After a sod of any kind becomes thick tree
growth is checked and yields decline. Orchard sods should be turned
under or partially broken, frequently.
7. Moisture conditions often are more favorable in the sod orchard than
in the cultivated orchard. Runoff is checked by a sod and less water
is used by a sod in mid-summer, after it has been mowed, than by a heavy
cover crop.
8. Under a non-legume sod the soil nitrate supply becomes very low in
late May or early June, necessitating early applications of nitrogenous
fertilizers. Annual applications of 10 pounds of nitrate of soda per
tree, or its equivalent in sulphate of ammonia or other forms, have
proved profitable in this orchard. Superphosphate, in light
applications, has increased sod and cover crop growth.
9. Trees receiving annual tillage with July seeding of cover crops have
not done as well as those under sod rotations. If the cover crops are
seeded in early June, as has been practiced since 1929, the difference
may not be marked.
10. To maintain equal yields, Stayman and Baldwin must make longer
branch growth than York.
In addition to these conclusions I will say that any grower who will
keep his orchard soil in a state of fertility (by use of manure, proper
farm crop fertilizers--nitrate, phosphate or potash alone or in
combination with each other--liming and, if necessary, drainage) which
will permit growing clovers, alfalfa, soy beans, cow peas, vetch, or any
of the legumes, and who really does grow them as covers in his grove or
orchard, turning them back into the soil with a minimum period of spring
cultivation--just enough to prepare a seed bed--will never need to worry
about his soil fertility or water holding capacity.
You note that I say a minimum of cultivation. We taught twenty years
ago that cultivation should continue during June, July, and August. We
now feel that this teaching was wrong. We can see no benefit from this
long summer cultivation but do see some harm. Cultivation during the hot
weather of June, July, and August will only aid in burning out the
organic matter in the soil, just the very thing we plant a cover for.
Many of the covers such as alfalfa, sweet clover and non-legume grasses
can be harrowed very heavily in early spring after the frost is out of
the ground, thus checking their growth for several weeks, and it is in
early spring before the first flowers open, and while open, that the
tree needs its nitrogen to aid in the set of fruit, and season's tree
growth; the checking of the cover's growth in early spring gives the
tree the chance to get its food.
* * * * *
Dr. Zimmerman: I am very grateful for the address of Prof. Fagan.
* * * * *
Dr. Smith: I want to express my appreciation of Prof. Fagan's paper. I
want to call to the attention of this convention of people that this
young man has actually admitted his hard headedness, that he has been
willing to let a tree compel him to change his thinking.
Progress Report on Kellogg Nut Cultural Project of the Michigan State
College
_By_ J. A. NEILSON, _M. S. C., East Lansing_
The Nut Cultural Project so generously supported by Mr. W. K. Kellogg of
Battle Creek made good progress during the season of 1933. The various
phases of this project are briefly discussed under their separate
headings as follows:
Search for Superior Trees
This feature of our nut cultural programme is of the utmost importance
and will continue to be so until the entire state has been thoroughly
explored. In our search we have been greatly helped by interested people
throughout the state and elsewhere who report the existence of good
trees or who send specimens of nuts from superior trees. This voluntary
help is very useful and is much appreciated.
Of the various methods of searching for good trees, nut contests are the
most efficient and economical. Through the medium of national contests
this Association has discovered many good varieties, and several of
these new varieties are now being propagated. In view of the discoveries
resulting from the Association contest in 1929 and our state contest in
the same year, it was deemed advisable to stage another contest in 1932.
An article setting forth the terms of the contest was sent to all the
daily, weekly, and agricultural and horticultural journals and was given
very wide publicity by these press agencies. A great deal of interest
was shown in our contest and more than 1600 exhibits were entered by
approximately 700 exhibitors.
Several good strains were brought to light by this contest, most of
which were unknown before the contest was staged. The prize winners and
the awards are as follows:
=Black Walnuts=
Daniel Beck, Hamilton, Mich. 1st $15.00
Harry Webber, Cincinnati, Ohio 2nd $10.00
E. Gray, Williamston, Mich. 3rd $ 5.00
=Hickories=
Mrs. Ray D. Mann, Davison, Michigan 1st $15.00
D. Miller, North Branch, Mich. 2nd $10.00
Lyle Hause, Fowlerville, Mich. 3rd $ 5.00
=English Walnuts=
Harry Larsen, Ionia, Mich. 1st $10.00
D. B. Lewis, Vassar, Mich. 2nd $ 5.00
J. W. Jockett, Hart Mich. 3rd $ 3.00
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