670 



AMERICAN FORESTRY 



dustrious, practical farmers who will 

 come here to be permanent residents. 



When Mr. Cranberry tackled his 

 piece of stump land, he began in the 

 southeast corner, just beyond the north 

 line of houses in Bon Ami, and worked 

 northward. His first trees were planted 

 there in 1907. These trees are Elberta 

 peaches, now five years old and bearing. 



Each year, some new portion of the 

 tract has been set out, but not all of it 

 for trees or vegetables. Part of it is 

 used for forage crops, being unsuited 

 to the growth of fruit. Mr. Cranberry 

 has found peanuts profitable, both for 

 forage and for enrichment of the soil. 

 As far as practicable, the ground is kept 

 busy all the time. If trees of a certain 

 species or variety are set out and do 

 not seen to thrive they are removed and 

 a different species or variety substituted. 



"I use fertilizer, generally speaking, 

 while the trees are young," said Mr. 

 Cranberry, when the farm was recently 

 visited, "and plant the ground between 

 the tree rows with some sort of crop. 

 This fertilizer helps these crops, and at 

 the same time the trees get their share. 

 After they are well started, the trees do 

 not need any fertilizer. In fact, some 

 of them never get any of any sort. For 

 instance, these plum trees, the Japan 

 Wonder, have never received any ar- 

 tificial aid." 



The trees to which he referred were 

 a mass of white blossoms, and the 

 ground beneath them looked as though 

 it was lightly sprinkled with snow. 

 "This plum," he said, "is a splendid 

 plum for shipping. It does not fall 

 from the tree, when it is near ripe, at 

 every breath of wind. Now those over 

 there," he continued, "are the Conzales 

 plum. It has a fine flavor and is a pro- 

 lific bearer, but falls easily from the 

 limb. It takes a good, stout tug to pull 

 a Japan Wonder from its parent stem, 

 even when it is fully ripe. Insect 

 enemies do not trouble it." 



Between the two varieties of plums 

 was a strip about 60 feet wide, with 

 rows of small shoots at regular inter- 

 vals. "Duncan grape fruit, budded on 

 trifoliata," explained the superinten- 

 dent. "I tried them once before, but 

 the shoots, which came from Florida, 



arrived in bad condition, and did not 

 do well. I am going to give them an- 

 other trial. That piece of ground be- 

 yond is idle now. I am going to put 

 it in strawberries next year, and will 

 try the eflfect of tile drainage on them. 

 No, I am not an especial advocate of 

 tile drainage, but we give everything a 

 fair trial. That is what we are here 

 for." 



FRUIT TREES EVERYWHERE. 



From Supt. Cranberry's comfortable 

 home, nearly midway between Bon Ami 

 and DeRidder, one can get a bird's eye 

 view of the whole farm and obtain an 

 idea of what a transformation has been 

 wrought in less than six years upon 

 this one-time stretch of stumps and half 

 decayed tree limbs. Row upon row of 

 fruit tres, of different species and varie- 

 ties stretch on either side and in front, 

 standing as straight and regularly 

 spaced as soldiers on parade. The fig 

 trees are planted 15 feet apart and there 

 are 193 trees to the acre. The peaches 

 are 20 feet apart and run 108 to the 

 acre. 



With the peaches are planted paper 

 shell pecan trees. Every third row 

 north and south and every other row 

 east and west is made up of the precious 

 nut. When the peach trees have lived 

 beyond the age of usefulness the pecan 

 trees will be just coming into bearing, 

 and the peach orchard will become a 

 beautiful pecan grove, with the trees 30 

 feet apart one way, and 45 feet the 

 other. 



Among the attractions of the Experi- 

 ment farm is a grove of Satsuma 

 oranges on trifoliata stock. Approxi- 

 mately 250 Satsuma trees are bearing, 

 being four to five years old, and 2,000 

 more are a year old. "The trees are 

 in fine condition and came through the 

 hard winter without injury," said Mr. 

 Cranberry. "They are free of disease 

 and I see no reason why cut-over land 

 will not grow oranges as well as figs 

 and peaches." There are also a goodly 

 array of Kiefer pears, four years old 

 and budding out well. In fact, all the 

 trees are so heavily laden with buds 

 that Mr. Cranberry expects a strenuous 



