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APPENDIX 



THE SOIL REQUIREMENTS OF NUT TREES 



Willard G. BLvhy, Baldxoin, N. Y. 



There are some subjects on which a person can best express his 

 knowledge by saying, "what I don't know about tliis subject would fill 

 a book." I felt this way when asked to' present a paper to this con- 

 vention on this important matter and feel so yet, but have gone ahead 

 and prepared one in the hope that a most profitable discussion will fol- 

 low. Dr. Morris has said that frequently the discussion will bring out 

 much more than the pajjer. Necessarily much of what I present in this 

 paper has been what has been shown at Baldwin, N. Y., checked more 

 or less by observations elsewhere. 



The first requirement for nut trees is to have the soil rich and so 

 maintained. While we see results once in a while from land being too 

 rich for best results with apples, I have never seen evidences of soil 

 being too rich for nut trees. Like rhubarb and asparagus, they seem 

 to be able to put to good use all the plant food you can give them. The 

 I^articular plant food used at Baldwin has been largely stable manure 

 (horse and cow principally) for fortunately so far I have been able to 

 get what was required by buying what was offered whether I needed it 

 at the time or not. It is all right to jjlant nut trees in waste 23laces.- 

 around buildings, etc. but be sure that the places where they are planted 

 have rich soil or that you are j^repared to supply materials to make it so. 

 It is possible that an excei^tion in the rich soil requirement may have 

 to be made in the case of the chestnut, for that tree is found native on 

 soils that are poorer than that where other nut trees are native. The 

 jn-oni])tness with which the blight attacks chestnuts at Baldwin, how- 

 ever, has given little opportunity for observations on this point. 



When we get beyond the fact of rich soil being needed and ask 

 whether clay, loam, sandy loam, sand, etc. are best, evidence so far is to 

 the effect that the material which makes up the bulk of the soil is of less 

 importance than the requirement that the soil be rich in plant food and 

 humus. An example in the case of a black walnut planted in sand is 

 evidence on this point. There was in the field at Baldwin when I went 



