146 AGRICULTURE OF MAINt. 



or commercial fertilizer. Supplying available plant food at 

 thiis season tends to force a wood growth in June. I make a 

 practice of plowing my orchard early in the spring and sow- 

 ing the fertilizer broadcast. This is harrowed in well and I 

 continue to harrow at least once a week until July ist. when I 

 believe cultivation should cease except in extremely dry seasons 

 when cultivation should be continued through July to conserve 

 moisture by aid of a dust mulch. 



In many orchards after cultivation has stopped wild grasses 

 and weeds come up which form a substitute for a cover crop; 

 if not, a light cover crop should be sown. This tends to check 

 wood growth so the new growth may ripen up early to prevent 

 winter-killing. 



The orchard should be well pruned, and the early spring 

 seems to be the most favorable time for the average grower 

 to do this work. The ever-increasing orchard pests make spray- 

 ing a necessity, and this should be carefully and thoroughly 

 done. 



I have a one-acre orchard containing fifty-eight mature trees 

 that under this system of culture has yielded in the last three 

 years as follows : 



1910 125 bbls. 



191 1 250 " 



1912 160 " 



making a total of 535 " 



which I consider a good yield for a shy-bearing variety like the 

 Northern Spy. 



In closing, I want to add just a word of caution: Do nnt try 

 to force the orchard too hard with nitrogen. Learn to control 

 this element of plant food and feed as near a balanced feed as 

 passible, otherwise you will get quantity at the expense of qual- 

 ity. 



I earnestly believe the Maine orchardist who adopts this, or 

 some similar system of orchard management, will in a com- 

 paratively short time be harvestiing annual yields of fruit, the 

 quality of which would be second to none in the world. 



