Progress Report on Kellogg Nut Cultural Project of the Michigan State College
Reading edition
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, Ohio2nd $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
Butternuts
Claude Mitchell, Scotland, Ont.1st $10.00
M. E. Alverson, Howard City, Mich.2nd $ 5.00
Frank Luther, Fairgrove, Mich.3rd $ 3.00
Heartnuts
Claude Mitchell, Scotland, Ont.1st $10.00
Fred Bourne, Milford, Mich.2nd $ 5.00
J. U. Gellatly, Gellatly, B. C.3rd $ 3.00
Chestnuts (Hybrids)
John Dunbar, Oshtemo, Mich.1st $10.00
D. N. Dean, Shelbyville, Mich.2nd $ 5.00
J. W. Jockett, Hart, Mich.3rd $ 3.00
Jap. Walnuts
Harold English, Chatham, Ont.1st $10.00
Harold Evers, Petoskey, Mich.2nd $ 5.00
Bob Cardinell3rd $ 3.00
If and when another contest is held a larger number of prizes will be given provided sufficient funds are available. The experience gained in the 1929 and 1932 contests indicates the desirability of holding at least three contests and five would be better, and to have the contests held annually. It is very difficult to advertise a nut contest so that every person in rural sections knows of it and moreover, even if it were thoroughly advertised in any one year, it would not be possible to get nuts from all good trees because of the irregularity in fruiting habit of nut trees. The experience of others who stage contests will substantiate this opinion.
It is a great satisfaction to record the discovery of some promising pecan trees near Vandalia on the farm of Clyde Westphal. These trees were reported to me by Mr. Harry Burgart of Union City, and at the first opportunity I went with Mr. Burgart to examine the trees. There are 19 trees in the grove and the largest and best fruited tree is about 45 feet tall and nearly one foot in diameter at the base. The nuts are of medium size, crack easily, and contain kernels of good quality. A good crop was borne last year and other satisfactory crops have been secured for several years. It is quite likely that this tree would not mature nuts in a short growing season or in a season of low heat units, but the fact that it has done so well in recent years in growth and nut production is very encouraging, indeed. Plans are being made to propagate this strain.
Another good pecan sample was received from Mr. B. B. Dowell of Paulding, Ohio. This tree is hardy and produces nuts slightly larger than the Westphal tree. The nuts have good cracking quality and flavor of kernel and are worth propagating for northern regions.
Propagation
The propagation of selected strains of nut trees is not primarily the function of an Experiment Station, with the exception of such work as may be necessary to establish on Station property a sufficient number of trees to furnish scionwood for experimental purposes and to supply interested parties with what they require. We believe that nut tree nurserymen should undertake the propagation of new varieties of proven merit and we have endeavored to furnish our local nurserymen and others with scionwood of our best native selections or introductions. Such propagation as we have done is with established trees and can properly be considered as top-working. This feature of our project is discussed under that heading.
Topworking
Our programme of top-working was carried on in 1933 to the full extent of time and funds available and a special effort was made to top-work some of the worthless pignuts and bitternuts with scions of hicans and hybrid hickories. In a former report, reference was made to the difficulty in grafting shagbark and shellbark scions onto pignuts; and here again I want to say my first observation still holds especially with the shagbarks. I do not have a single shagbark scion left on pignuts out of several hundred set during the last four seasons.
Our results with hybrid hickories and with hicans have been much more encouraging in so far as the set of scions and growth is concerned. The following varieties have done well on the pignut or bitternut—Burlington, Beaver, Cedar Rapids, Creager, Dennis, Des Moines, Fairbanks, Kirtland, Laney, Lingenfelter, McCallister, Stratford, and Shinnerling. It is definitely known that most of these varieties are of hybrid origin with the exception of Cedar Rapids and Kirtland. The buds of the variety I have labelled as Cedar Rapids do not look like pure shagbarks and it is possible that a mix up has occurred in the labels.
A satisfactory start was made in propagating the prize-winning shagbark hickories of our 1932 contest and further work will be done with these kinds in the present season.
Good progress has been made in propagating our best varieties of black walnuts, English walnuts, and Chinese walnuts. We now have several trees some of which are quite large that have been top-worked to scions of Wiard, Allen, Grundy, Rowher, Ohio, Creitz, Carpenter, and Stambaugh black walnuts. In English walnuts we have Carpathian No. 1, 2, and 5—Crath, McDermid, and Broadview. This latter variety is above the average in size, cracks easily and has a good kernel. Still more important it is believed to be hardy and is definitely known to have endured 25° below zero F. This variety was sent by Mr. J. U. Gellatly, our enthusiastic nut tree hunter from British Columbia. Mr. Gellatly has brought to light a considerable number of heartnuts and a few English walnuts. One of his latest finds is an English walnut that produces very large almost round thin shelled nuts. This tree grows on high bench land near Okanogun, B. C. and is a seedling of a tree growing in the high altitudes of Kashmir in Northern India. Some of the heartnuts sent by Mr. Gellatly are amongst the largest I have ever seen and possess good cracking and extraction qualities. Scions of these varieties have been ordered from Mr. Gellatly and we hope to establish at least one good tree of each kind as a source of propagating material. We also have several grafts of an excellent Chinese walnut which we obtained from Mr. George Corsan of Islington, Ontario. This variety bears a large nut with a thin well sealed shell and a first-class kernel, and has been named Corsan.
New Plantings
The planting programme for 1933 included the planting of about 40 acres on the Collver part of the Kellogg Farm near Augusta, but this had to be reduced by 50% because of financial troubles caused by the closing of the banks in which Mr. Kellogg was a depositor. In addition to the new plantings a considerable number of replacements had to be made particularly in the chestnut groves. The following table shows the number of each species and variety planted:
(a) Black Walnuts
VarietyNumber
Allen2
Wessell5
Thomas20
Beck2
Bohamin2
Edras3
Grundy3
Homeland3
Howell2
Grabill2
Hauber1
Heplar3
Mintle2
Patuxent7
Ruddick1
Stanley1
Tasterite1
Stover1
Worthington1
McMillen1
Hunter1
Birds Eye15
Carpenter10
Miller5
Ten Ecyk10
Ohio10
Stabler15
(b) Chinese Walnut
Seedlings20
(c) English Walnut
Seedlings (Crath)21
Alpine10
Mayette10
(d) Butternuts
Seedlings50
Hickories
(a) Hybrids
Stratford5
(b) Shagbark
Glover5
Romig3
(c) Shellbark
Stephens2
(d) Pecans
Indiana1
Niblack4
Greenriver5
Kentucky5
Butterick6
Posey5
Carlyle3
Jeffrey3
Seedlings50
(e) Hicans
Des Moines7
Gerrardi5
Burlington4
Wright3
Burton2
Norton2
Hazels
(a) Turkish Hazels
Seedlings40
(b) Jones Hybrids
Seedlings14
(c) Corylus Vilmorinii
Seedlings1
Chestnuts
(a) Chinese
Seedlings251
(b) Japanese
Seedlings20
Good results were secured with all of the above mentioned kinds except the Chinese and Japanese chestnuts. The reason for this failure is given elsewhere in this report.
Demonstration Work on Grafting
This feature of our programme has not received as much attention as should be given to it owing to lack of scionwood of local origin and to a desire to work over nearly all the trees on the Kellogg Farm before attempting much outside work. We now have a fair supply of scionwood on our station trees and are in a position to proceed with a modest top-working programme out in the state.
The principal object of this scheme will be to establish sources of scionwood at various places in the state and to instruct interested parties in the art of grafting. A total of 25 demonstrations have already been given and in nearly every case improved varieties were established and local interest was aroused. It is a matter of satisfaction to report that at least four men have made a commendable start in top-working ordinary seedling trees with scions of superior sorts and one of these men, Mr. Charles Pepper of Berlamont, proposes to establish a small nursery of Allen black walnuts.
For some time the writer has planned to interest the Future Farmers of America in planting nut trees, but was too busy with other duties to make the proper contact. Just recently arrangements were made with Dr. Gallup, the State Supervisor of Vocational Agricultural Education, for a presentation of the scheme of nut tree planting to these enterprising and energetic young men. My object is to interest at least one member of each group in either top-working local seedlings with the best hardy varieties or in planting good nut tree varieties. Plans are also made to interest the members of the State Horticultural Society in planting some of the best varieties of Michigan origin.
Educational Work
This feature of our project has not been given a great deal of emphasis because it was believed we did not have enough information of local nature to justify us in conducting an extensive educational programme. We now believe we have enough information to make a start and I have arranged a series of meetings with county agents at their regional conferences in the southern part of the lower peninsula. Each regional conference includes the county agents and associated workers in several counties and affords one an opportunity to present our programme to State officials who can give us most effective cooperation. This project along with a similar one for the Future Farmers of America should create more interest in nut culture.
General Notes
The establishment of hardy blight resistant chestnuts of good quality is an important objective in our nut cultural project, and one in which only partial success can be reported. Approximately 700 Chinese and Japanese Chestnut trees have been planted but only about 260 of these trees are living. Some of these casualties were due to dry weather, rabbits and woodchucks, but the major part were due to unsuitable soil conditions. Our observations show that the Asiatic chestnuts will not thrive in an alkaline soil, as nearly all the losses occurred on an area that had a heavy application of marl. On the area where the trees are now growing well the soil is acid and supports several acid tolerant plants.
A superior strain of Chinese Chestnut was found in a lot of about 60 trees which the writer sent to Mr. W. R. Reek of the Experiment Station at Ridgetown, Ontario, in 1927. The best tree has made a good growth, and bears large nuts of good quality. Scions of this tree were obtained last spring and grafted onto several Chinese seedlings at the Kellogg Farm. An attempt will also be made to graft a few large—unfruitful Japanese chestnuts at various places in the State with scions of this good Chinese strain.
An interesting bit of information on the hardiness of the black walnut and butternut has just come to hand from Col. B. D. Wallace of Portage, La Prairie, Manitoba. Col. Wallace reports the occurrence of a seedling black walnut in his nursery that is quite hardy and which bore fully matured nuts at an early age. He also has a fine grove of butternuts that are entirely hardy and which bear good crops of nuts. These butternut trees grew from nuts secured from France about twenty years ago. The trees are quite hardy but other butternut seedlings from Ontario seemed to lack hardiness. No data are at hand to show where the French butternut trees came from, but inasmuch as the butternut is not a native of France it is almost certain that the trees came from North America and probably Quebec Province. In any case the trees are hardy and are reported to give satisfaction to the people in the Prairie Provinces.
Mr. Kroodsma, Extension Forester, reports the occurrence of a moderately large black walnut which bears nuts of good quality and fair size at Houghton in the extreme northern part of the Upper Peninsula. These accessions to our knowledge of the hardiness of the walnut and butternut are valuable and would suggest that these species can be grown much farther north than their native range.
In a former report reference was made to an attempt while in the service of the Ontario Department of Agriculture to interest the members of the Womens' Institute in Ontario in planting nut trees, but not much progress was made until last spring. The writer had in Ontario about 800 fine seedling heartnuts which he was unable to sell and which had to be moved. It seemed regrettable to destroy them and finally the trees were given to Mr. Geo. Putnam, Supt. of Institutes for distribution in my old home county and in another county where I worked for some time. The trees were readily accepted and much interest was aroused. So much in fact that I was kept busy writing letters to people who wanted to share in the distribution. Unfortunately, I did not have enough trees to meet all demands and so had to refuse many an Institute member who was anxious to try these heartnut seedlings.