378 State HorticiiUural Society. 



peach crop to mature during such a drouth ? The fact that it did has 

 demonstrated fuhy that it does not require much rain to make a fruit crop 

 if we husband the moisture below by clean and thorough culture. 



One man, a fellow-nurseryman, visitctl us in July, who has fort> 

 acres of peach orchard, with apples planted between in about one-haif 

 of it. His apple grafts had all died, his peaches were small and he said 

 could not make anything. He was very much disheartened and felt that 

 he must give up, but he had cultivated and cared for his trees, had done 

 his part well and his reward was nearly $3,000 worth of fruit 

 marketed. 



Passing to the apple crop, we will say that while the rainfall was 

 very light all through the season in which our apples were growing and 

 maturing, yet we have had a good apple crop in the south section of the 

 State. The fruit was not large as usual, due to extreme dry weather, 

 which decreased the quantity fully one-third, yet the quality, as a rule, 

 was very good, and the fruit has brought very good prices. While our 

 loss from failure of corn and hay crop is quite heavy, we believe it is 

 fully made up by the fruit harvest in this section and will result in more 

 extensive planting and better care of orchards. 



We have made the following observations which hold good as a 

 rule in successful orchard growing : 



First — The selection of soil adapted to the kind of fruit that is to 

 be planted, is most important. 



This was a season in which we could learn how much assistance we 

 could render nature in doing her work, by cultivation, and where the same 

 help on a plat of orchard failed while it was a success with an adjoining 

 plat is pretty good evidence that the plat failing was not adapted to the 

 growth of the trees planed on it. 



Second — While cultivation is always best, in our opinion, this year 

 was one that thorough surface culture brought an especial reward. 



Third — As a rule, sprayed orchards were freer from Codling 

 Moth than unsprayed orchards. 



Fourth — While there was but little Bitter Rot we found it worse 

 in crowded orcliards, where trees were grown together, the lower limbs 

 lying on the ground, the orchard grown up with weeds and grass, or sur- 

 rounded with thick brush, or any condition that would hinder the free 

 circulation of air and sunlight necessary to dispel the dampness from 

 dews during the night or early in the morning before the sun became 

 hot". We only packed one orchard afifected with bitter rot that was 

 sprayed for this disease. This orchard was sprayed only once, and 

 that after the rot had developed. It was sprayed under the super- 



