Summer Meeting. 47 



have changed my opinion on bottom lands and now I had as Uef have 

 an orchard there, near the water as in any other location. In ten years 

 an over rich bottom soil will produce more crops than any other except 

 fine hills. The high ridges with mulatto soil, as in Arkansas, are the 

 finest orchard lands. The keeping quality of apples grown on bottom 

 lands is surprising, as was proved by the Maiden Blush grown there. 

 When the spring is late and there are severe frosts the bottom is dan- 

 gerous. The experience of last year in this regard cannot be taken into 

 a business account. There are two desirable locations, the bottom lands 

 and the best in elevated situations. 



My cannon No. 2 is, buy trees near' your own place. 



It pays to mulch in order to start the young trees and keep them 

 growing. We do not regard enough the needs of the young growing 

 tree. The question as to what crop to put in the orchard is a grave one. 

 Experience leads me to believe that we ought to give high and con-' 

 tinuous cultivation, but cropping in corn is often a mistake. I would 

 never put more than one crop of corn in a new orchard. It is a virtue 

 only because of the cultivation given, but it is not the better way. Po- 

 tatoes are a good crop for about two years, only they are too much 

 ■work. Clover would keep two years in a young orchard and one of 

 the cheapest and best ways is to keep it in clover for a period of two 

 years, and use hoeing around the trees. This is a cheap way for ex- 

 tensive planting and in hard years it is safe to put in clover and hoe. 

 Western orchards may not need cultivation every year, especially where 

 there has been washing and erosion. We have often made a scientific 

 mistake by over cultivating. It is better to keep a bearing orchard in 

 clover half of the time and use commercial fertilizers. Besides cultiva- 

 tion during the period when the new leaves need stimulants, use com- 

 mercial fertilizers which are prepared in a scientific way. 



As to pruning we need to cut more than is the usual habit. Missouri 

 has grown too much wood. Few of us can show successive crops, and 

 we need to change the methods now used. The business of apple orch- 

 arding is, as we have it now, a weak business, and from a scientific stand- 

 point, a monumental failure. I do not doubt but that most of you, and 

 I know for myself, that I have made serious mistakes. I use clover 

 a number of years and then cultivate for a season or two and then put 

 in clover again and hoe by hand around the trees, and I use commercial 

 fertilizer to stimulate the fruit production on my trees. 



In the matter of varieties, judging from my own experience, I would 

 dissent from the choice of only from one to four varieties. For our 

 pocketbook's sake we should have at least eight. Different years are 



