44 STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



the value of the property upon which they border but that they greatly 

 reduce the upkeep of the highways in preventing the erosional or wash- 

 ing out effect so common with out Michigan highway's. The washing 

 away of soil from the road bed is said to be checked by the masses of 

 deep tap roots sent out by the tree. 



Let us stand for better rural highways in IMichigan, better not simply 

 by improved road-beds, but better to the sense of sight, by being most 

 pleasing and satisfying to the eyes because of the plantings of beautiful 

 trees that characterize their boundaries. It is the hope of those persons 

 interested in rural improvement to see every county in this state take 

 up the tree planting slogan so that in half a century from now the high- 

 waj's of the state will be bounded by long rows of beautiful trees. 



ORCHARDS IN ALFALFA SOD. 



F. M. HAZEL, SOUTH HAVEN, MICH. 



Altho alfalfa has been grown for hundreds of years as a field crop, we 

 have no record of it being used as an inter crop or companion crop in 

 orchards. Therefore, we have no definite data in the history of Horti- 

 culture which can be quoted for evidence. 



Since alfalfa has come into prominence in Michigan and other states 

 as a field crop, and has given such good results, both from the stand- 

 point of a cash crop and as a soil fertilizer, it is not strange that experi- 

 ments should be started with alfalfa in orchards. 



Clean cultivation had been practised in the orchards of the Winachee 

 and Yakima valleys of the West so long that the supply of humus in the 

 soil was depleted or "burned out" to such an extent that the trees were 

 not doing well. Some way had to be found to increase the humus con- 

 tent. It was then that some growers turned their attention to alfalfa, 

 and as far as we are able to judge, their efforts have been a decided suc- 

 cess. They remove two crops for hay and leave the other two [for a 

 mulch, and it pays better than clover. 



In Michigan experiments were started along the same line, but more 

 particularly to find a crop that would answer the following requisites: 

 (1) a crop which would pay well while the trees were growing or before 

 they reached the bearing age, (2) a crop which would increase the supply 

 of plant food in the soil and not interfere too much with the growth of 

 the trees, (3) a crop which could be easily harvested. Alfalfa seems to 

 be the ideal crop. 



Ballard Bros, of Niles, Michigan, took a bold step and planted an 

 orchard in alfalfa sod. The young trees were well fertilized the first 

 three years with nitrate of soda and made as good a growth as trees 

 grown under ordinary field conditions. The trees have been standing 

 in this sod for seven years and arc fully as large and healthy as trees of 

 of the same age grown under oidinary nujthods of culture. Three 

 and four crops of hay have l)eon cut ench year and harvested, ^"ery 

 little mulching has been done in this orchard, so the hay crop has been 

 almost clear profit. At the same time the trees are coming to an age 

 ivhen they will bear fruit at a profit. The soil in Ballard's orchards is 

 a heavy loam and this i")artly accounts for their success. 



On the lighter soils of the state it would be advisable to vary their 

 method of culture to a certain extent. In the first place the soil must 



