secretary's budget. 351 



ORNAMENTALS. 



PECAN CCLTURE. 



Mrs. Shrewsbury, of Sherman, Texas, writes the following to the 

 Hoine mnd Farm: 



There are twenty or more varieties growing here, about four of 

 which comprise the best, and all that is desired. To grow these it is 

 necessary to secure fresh nuts, as they cannot be relied upon to ger- 

 minate after being thoroughly dried; they should be planted as soon 

 as received. Plant shallow — say three inches — in open ground ; this 

 for the Southern States. In more northern latitudes I would recom- 

 mend putting the nuts in boxes of moist sand. Freezing is not neces- 

 sary, as with the walnut. The continued moisture will open the shell, 

 and if transferred in the early spring to open ground a few warm days 

 will cause them to germinate. When convenient they had better be 

 planted where they are to remain; or if planted in nursery rows they 

 should be reset in permanent position after the first season's growfh; 

 they will then be ten or twelve inches high, and if the soil was luose 

 and deep, the tap-root will probably be longer than the top. The sec- 

 ond year they will grow three or four feet, and the third year from 

 seven to ten feet. They will then be nicely branched and well estab- 

 lished. After this they will require very little care j in fact, it has been 

 my experience that they do as well, and bear sooner, when the land is 

 sown to pasture than when continued cultivation is given, tor their 

 long tap-roots seem to render them independent of the seasons, and of 

 surface scratching. I have found that good mulching for the first two 

 or three years is about all these require, and the best way to treat them. 

 Any one who has grown a walnut, a hickory or a peach pit, will have 

 no difiiculty in growing the pecan. 



The cultivation of the pecan is not a new enterprise by any means, 

 nor is it confined to as narrow limits as many suppose. It is found 

 growing naturally in the Indian Terriiory, Kansas, Missouri, Illinoip, 

 Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas and Louisiana. During the past two or 

 three years 1 have sent nuts and trees to nearly every State and Terri- 

 tory in the Union. 



It has been repeatedly suggested that the pecan should be grafted 

 ou the hickory. While it is well enough to experiment we should bear 

 in mind the fact that this being a success has not been demonstrated, 

 and in the absence of more reliable methods, planting the nuts will be 



