GROWING PExiCIIES FOR iMARKET. 145 



And as the measure of profit and success will depend largely upon tlic care and 

 intelligence manifested in the management of the trees, and selection of varie- 

 ties, I Avill endeavor to present a few ideas on those points, as they appear to 

 mo after several years of exj)erience and observation in the business. iJut as 

 my exi:)erience has been confined almost entirely to one locality, viz. : on the 

 eastern shore of Lake Michigan, near tlie mouth of the Kalamazoo River, my 

 remarks, especially on varieties, Avill undoubtedly apply more particularly to 

 that point, and perhaps adjacent and similar ones. 



LOCATIOIT. 



As before intimated, a favorable location is indispensable to one who would 

 expect to succeed in growing ])caches profitably. A place having convenient 

 facilities for shipping to a good market, and that is capable of bringing forth 

 the largest number of crops, and the least failures, in a term of years, undoubt- 

 edly possesses the most important advantages to be obtained. After tlie general 

 locality has been decided upon, the particular spot chosen should be high and 

 elevated enough at least, so tliat frost and cold air will not be inclined to settle 

 over it, as it would over a low piece of ground, and it must not bo wet, as 

 peach trees positively refuse to submit to wet feet and thrive. They will oc- 

 casionall}', when standing on ground that could not bo called more than very 

 moderately wet, at most, appear to be doing quite well, for perhaps several 

 years, yet they idmost invariably fail before giving any satisfactory returns, 

 unless proper drainage is furnished to such soils. 



SELECTIOX OF TREES. 



Having the ground in order, or rather some time before it v.'as prepared, we 

 should have attended to getting good trees, of suitable varieties, and this is a 

 task which we find beset with dilificulties on every side, yet upon its successful 

 accomplishment depends to a very great extent the future profits of our orchard, 

 and severe, indeed, will be our disappointment if, after spending years of toil 

 and care, we discover that our varieties are worthless, and we were either mis- 

 taken as to the kinds best adapted to our location, or cheated by those from 

 whom we obtained our trees. One thing which may help to avoid this latter, 

 is, never to i)urchase from a traveling tree agent until we are first satisfied 

 that he is employed by some responsible, careful, and honorable firm, who 

 have a business and reputation which they cannot afford to lose or injure, or 

 allow to be injured, by misrepresentation on the part of their agents. If we 

 should happen to be so unfortunate as to deal with one who is willing to beatns 

 if he can, the chances are greatly against us. But after having done all we 

 can to ascertain that we are dealing with honest men, and if such is really the 

 case, still our varieties should be selected by description, and not by name, for 

 it frequently happens that a peach Avhich is known in one locality by a particn- 

 lar name, in the second locality, is applied to an entirely different j^each ; but 

 by having the nurseryman give a description of what he sells under any name, 

 we will be enabled to judge — having, of course, first learned for ourselves the 

 description of such varieties as we wisii to plant — whether or not that is the 

 variety we want. It makes no difference what they are called, provided we can 

 only get the actual variety we desire. Another and more certain way to do this 

 is to get some pits from good healthy seedling trees, plant and bud them our- 

 selves, taking from trees buds we have seen in bearing, and hence know to be 

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