STATE FIORTTCULTURAL SOCIETY. 4 7 



the orchards that are rlosely planted, headed low, and |)runed hut little, 

 have best withstood both drought and cold, are we not admonished to 

 dismiss the idea of our onhanls lasting seventy-five or a hundred years ; 

 and i)lant more closely, and prune less ; expecting to secure the principal 

 ])rofit during the second decade of its existence. 



In the whole range of horticultural <|uestions, there is perhaps no 

 one upon which there is such a diversity of ()[)inion as the cultivation, 

 jMuning and general management of the orchard. One man favors con- 

 stant cultivation of the soil ; another says keej) the orchard in grass ; and 

 both can instance cases where their theory has proved to be correct. One 

 orchardist recommends constant and severe ])runing ; another says, keep 

 off the "vandal knife." One man surrounds his orchard with a dense 

 growth of evergreens and deciduous trees ; another |)lants in the most 

 exposed situation. 



The safe plan is to avoid both extremes ; to cultivate eight or ten 

 years, and then sow to grass, and mow and leave the gra.ss on the ground 

 as a mulch. During the early life of an orchard it may be expedient to 

 take off the first crop of gra.ss, but the second should neither be mown or 

 fed off under any (ircumstances, as it is imjjeratively needed to ];rotect 

 the roots of the trees from the fervid rays of the August sun, as well as 

 the frosts of winter. 



Our forest and wild fruit trees are mulched with leaves and grass, 

 which prevents deep freezing, the undue heating of the earth about the 

 roots, and the evajjoration of moisture in dry seasons ; and the nearer we 

 can approach to nature's i)lan, in this particular, the better we shall succeed. 



To pro])erIy prune an orchard, considerable skill and practical knowl- 

 edge is recpiired ; and the man who does not i)ossess both had better keep 

 his pruning tools out of the orchard. It is often necessary to prune out 

 the inside of the tree to such an extent that a man can get into it to 

 gather the fruit, remove branches that interfere with one another, and cut 

 back the lower branches that may be in the way. After this, the less 

 pruning that is done, the better. 



My own observation teaches me, that a wind-break on the north and 

 west is very desirable; even an Osage orange hedge, if permitted to grow 

 to the height of twenty-five or thirty feet, will be found to serve as a pro- 

 tection against the high winds, that so often bring down our apples by 

 hundreds of bushels. A wind break, or even an untrimmed hedge, on the 

 south and east may be considered a decided disadvantage, as the heavy 

 foliage prevents a free circulation of air just when it is needed, and thus 

 encourages scab, mildew, and insect de])redations. 



The experience of the past few years has demonstrated that no fruit 

 but the apple can be successfully grown, in commercial ([uantities, in 

 Central Illinois. Plums, even the iron-clads and curcnlio-])r()of \arieties, 

 have "been weighed in the balance, and found wanting." 'I'he finer 

 varieties of cherries, can not endure our cold winters, and the more hard}' 

 ones sell so low in the market that there is no margin left for profit. 



Last winter hf)pelessly crijjpled nearly all of oiu- peach orchards, and 

 it will, probably. I)e man\ \ears before this interest will recover from the 



