The status of nut growing in the Ithaca region was reported at the Washington, D. C. meeting of this association in 1932. Since that time there has been little change in the situation except that a few more of the varieties have come into bearing, and the severe winter of 1933-34 has injured the trees of many varieties.
The plantings in the vicinity of Ithaca are confined chiefly to those of the Department of Pomology at Cornell University, and those of Mr. S. H. Graham who is a member of this association and has been planting nut trees for many years. Other than these there are only scattered trees either native or planted around the dooryards by amateurs without any very keen interest in northern nut growing. The purpose of the plantings at Cornell University is primarily to test out varieties for their suitability for growing in the rather rigorous climate of the region. Farmers and others throughout New York state look to the experiment stations for information regarding the possibilities of nut culture and the varieties which might be planted to advantage.
As has been pointed out previously, the number of varieties adapted to the region is distinctly limited because of unfavorable climatic conditions. These climatic conditions are more fully described in Bulletin 573 of the New York State Agricultural Experiment Station at Cornell entitled "Nut Growing in New York State." The breeding of new varieties and other investigational work is being carried on at the Geneva Experiment Station where, as you know, Prof. G. L. Slate has been growing many varieties of filberts for some years.
The university plantings at Ithaca consist of about an acre set about 20 years ago, including a number of varieties of different nuts recommended for planting at that time. There is also about an acre of "butterjaps" which are growing vigorously but have shown little promise of value because of a lack of hardiness and generally poor cracking quality. The most important planting is about 5 acres of cleared woodland in which many hickories have come up naturally. These have been top worked to many of the leading hickory varieties. A considerable number of walnut stocks have also been planted in this area and top-worked to walnut varieties. Plans are under way to acquire 10 or 15 additional acres to be used for further variety tests as new varieties are brought to light in the various nut variety contests which are being carried on.
Up to and including 1934 the black walnuts that have fruited are the Thomas, the Ohio, and the Stabler. Of these the Thomas is the only one which is at all satisfactory. This variety has fruited 3 years in succession and has matured well-filled nuts every year. The Ohio and Stabler have been shy bearers and in addition the nuts have been small and not well filled. Both are evidently adapted to a longer growing season than that at Ithaca. In 1934 one Stambaugh graft matured about 40 nuts. This variety appears promising but needs further testing. In another year or two at least a dozen more of the promising varieties of black walnuts should come into bearing.
Among the hickories the Barnes, of which there are 3 trees, has fruited several times but in no case have the nuts been filled. The Brooks, the Stanley, and the Weiker have also fruited sparingly but the nuts have not been filled. During the past season, 1934, a few nuts were borne on the Taylor, Kentucky, and Vest hickory trees, which were well filled. It may be that these varieties will prove suitable for the region. The Kentucky looks particularly promising. The Beaver and the Fairbanks have borne a few nuts but the quality is not sufficiently good to make them worth growing. The Burlington hybrid pecan makes a very beautiful tree and has set nuts in several seasons, but they are not well filled. About half a dozen varieties of northern pecans have been fairly hardy but the seasons are too short to mature the nuts. They have always been frozen on the trees while still very green.
During the past winter the temperature went down to -35° F. at the University orchard. This killed most of the Persian walnuts outright. Even the hardy varieties, Rush and Hall, were killed back to a few buds on the trunks and larger branches. This experience has been quite general throughout New York where the temperature went down below -25° F. It is to be hoped that some of the new sorts being introduced from the Ukraine will be better able to stand the low temperatures experienced in New York. The low temperature very seriously damaged the 60 Chinese chestnuts growing in the University orchard, killing the terminals back for several feet and the sapwood all the way out to the combium and down to the snow line. The trees so injured made only fair recovery and it is doubtful if they are worth saving. Some Chinese chestnut trees nearer Cayuga Lake where the temperature only reached -27° F. were only slightly injured. It would seem, therefore, that around -30° F. was the critical temperature for the Chinese chestnut. The Japanese walnuts were not injured seriously by the cold weather of the winter. Many of the more tender seedlings had already been eliminated by the cold winters of the past. The Japanese walnuts were, however, badly damaged by the late spring frost which froze off the catkins and new shoots. This has occurred several times in the last ten years and is a serious drawback to the bearing of this species. Hickories and black walnuts for the most part showed no injury except in the case of rapidly growing grafts. All of the McCallister hican grafts were killed outright as were a number of grafts of the shellbark hickory (Carya laciniosa). At Enfield Park where the probable temperature was about -27° F. one McCallister pecan graft survived. The filberts were quite generally damaged both in wood and catkins, except the Rush, which fruited heavily. Northern pecans had their terminals killed back about 6 inches but were otherwise uninjured.
In my judgment the greatest need of northern nut growing is the discovery and testing of new varieties adapted to the different northern regions. To find and test these varieties is probably the greatest service that the Northern Nut Growers' Association can perform. We cannot expect that nurserymen will propagate commercially the new nuts which are discovered until they are sufficiently tested to establish the value of the variety for different regions. As has been pointed out, the Northern Nut Growers' Association is in much the same position as was the American Pomological Society 100 or more years ago when information regarding new varieties was the main interest of the fruit industry. In this connection it would seem to me well worth while to carry out the idea proposed by Dr. Deming last year which he called the Roll Call of Nut Varieties. The older sorts have now been planted sufficiently widely by members of the association to make it possible to get some adequate idea of their suitability for growing in various localities. Those who have the interest of the association at heart should do all they can to obtain and grow any new varieties that offer any promise of being adapted to their locality. It is only by carrying out such a program that we shall have any real basis for making recommendations as to varieties adapted to different regions.
I must confess that I am still skeptical about a commercial nut industry in New York on the basis of our present varieties. After more than 20 years of variety testing in Ithaca only the Thomas black walnut has shown any real merit. All the other sorts that were propagated and recommended have shown themselves to be quite unsuitable to the climate. A grower setting out a commercial orchard 20 years ago on the basis of our knowledge of varieties at that time would now have practically nothing to show, except as he happened to have the Thomas black walnut, or possibly some of the hickories of northern origin. At the present time the number of promising varieties known has been greatly increased. They are, however, not available in the trade, nor will they be until they have been adequately tested to establish their merit. Fortunately some of the nurserymen growing nut trees are willing to run test orchards as well. They are few in number and of course their work must be augmented by the work of others in the association. What we need more than anything else are test orchards in different localities in which the relative yield of the different varieties over a period of years will be kept. On the basis of such data recommendations as to varieties to plant can be made with some degree of assurance that the information given is sound.
Mr. C. A. Reed: