246 Report oj State Board of Horticulture. 



COYER CROPS IN THE ORCHARD. 



PAPER READ BEFORE THE MIDSUMMER MEETING OF THE STATE 



HORTICULTURAL SOCBITY, NEWBERG, OREGON, 



AUGUST 10, 1901. 



By L. T. Reynolds. 



For several years the writer has been interested in the subject of cover 

 crops in the orchard, and has become convinced that the sowing of some 

 crop which would occupy the ground during the winter season would 

 prove of great value in nearly all the bearing orchards of the "Willamette 

 valley. 



Our long summer season, during which the ground is kept fallow, and 

 the nitrogenizing organisms are storing available plant food, is followed 

 by a long, rainy season, which must result in the loss of much of this 

 food unless we can succeed in growing some crop during this period when 

 the trees are dormant, which will take up and hold these fertilizing ele- 

 ments until they can become available for the use of the tree. The stunted 

 growth and sickly, yellow appearance of the trees in many of our culti- 

 vated orchards, bear witness that there is need for a nitrogenous fertilizer. 



The constant summer fallowing of the orchard soon results in the 

 destruction of the humus and the soil is no longer loose and moist, but 

 we find it baked and dry, usually covered with large clods which cannot 

 be easily reduced. In our experiments we have tried crimson clover, 

 turnips, rape, and vetch. Our first sowing of crimson clover was in 

 September, 1896. By November 1st, we had a fine stand in the orchard 

 and were anticipating a crop to plow under. Our hopes were doomed lo 

 disappointment, for the severe frosts in the latter part of November did 

 not leave a plant. Our next trials were turnip and rape. While these 

 flourish and give a large amount of green vegetable matter to turn under, 

 yet they have not proved desirable, since we can obtain from some of ttie 

 leguminous plants an equal amount of foliage and at the same time suc- 

 ceed in making available an increased amount of nitrogen. 



On further trial of the crimson clover, we found it possible to obtain a 

 fine growth in time to plow in, early in the spring, but it is rather difficult 

 to obtain a good stand. The common vetch, however, has been bound to 

 meet all the requirements. It can be sown later than crimson clover, is 

 nearly always a good stand, makes a good growth during the winter and 

 pushes forward rapidly in the spring, so that one can have a growth of 

 two or three feet in height to turn under by the first of May. 



A single vetch plant taken May 1st from the field of a neighbor, who 

 sowed his vetches after his potatoes had been dug, stood over three feet 

 high and being carefully reihoved, was found to have roots which had 

 penetrated the ground twenty-seven inches. 



