Prune Growing in Willamette Valley. 75 



As a crop of fifteen tons of green prunes, while above the average 

 is not at all uncommon, it can easily be seen that the soil that grows 

 them must be very fertile in the first place and well and regularly fer- 

 tilized or it will soon be producing small unprofitable fruit. 



In planting prunes the ground should be well and deeply plowed in 

 the fall or early winter, preferably after having plowed under a crop 

 of clover or vetch the preceding summer, and left rough tili the follow- 

 ing spring. At any time after the trees are entirely dormant they may 

 be dug and set in the orchard whenever the ground is in fit condition 

 to be worked. On very loose soil it is, perhaps, better to set as early 

 as possible, so that the dirt will settle well around the roots before the 

 dry weather comes, while in more compact soils, later will probably do 

 quite as well so the soil will not pack too tight about the roots, thus 

 increasing the work of cultivation. As early as the soil is in right con- 

 dition to be worked, and it should never be touched while wet, the top 

 should be broken down with the harrow and worked from that time 

 until the latter part of July so as to keep it finely pulverized on top 

 to retain the moisture. If any crop at all is grown between the trees 

 it should be one that can be "laid by" in time for the trees to harden 

 up the wood so as to be ready for the winter; otherwise, there may be 

 serious injury from early frosty weather. It is hard to recommend 

 any crop for growing between the trees as the crop must be one that 

 can be profitably used or one that can be readily marketed at a profit. 

 Hay or grain is not to be considered if one expects to give the trees the 

 care they should have. Personally, I consider potatoes very objection- 

 able, on account of the great amount of potash they remove from the 

 soil. While our agricultural chemists teil us that our soil is very rieh 

 in potash, having enough to grow wheat for two hundred years, one only 

 has to look at the spot where a brush pile has been burned and com- 

 pare the growth of Vegetation on it with that on the surrounding ground 

 to realize that there is none too much of it available. If cqws are kept — 

 and cows and orchard make a splendid combination — and the soil is 

 sufficiently rieh to make it worth while, com may be grown for ensilage 

 and the fertility returned to the land in as readily available form as it 

 was before. Poss'bly cabbage may be profitably grown if the soil is 

 rieh enough and there is a good market near. Beans can be grown 

 with benefit to the land, rather than injury; though they are seldom very 

 profitable. 



Just as the buds begin to swell the trees should be headed to the 

 desired reight and on this point there is some divergence of opinion, 

 the usual height being from twenty-four to thirty-six inches high. After 

 the leaves have started all should be stripped off to within about a foot of 

 the top and the following winter all of these but three should be cut back 

 to within four to six inches of the trank and these should be distributed 

 as nearly even as possible around the tree and at some little distance 

 apart so that as the trees grow older they may not be too near together. 

 The following year all limbs growing from these should be cut off 

 except not to exceed three on each primary branch and these should be 

 cut back to fourteen to sixteen inches. The prune tree should always 

 be cut to inner or upper bud as it has the habit of drooping with the 

 weight of fruit and if the branches come from the lower side they will 

 usually soon droop so they are in the way of cultivation. 



