274 STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



when the ground reinaics soaked with water for several weeks at a 

 time.- Such conditions as these prevailed in several western states some 

 five or six years ago. Many large bearing trees suddenly turned yel- 

 low and died, and whole rows of young nursery trees were lost, and 

 in consequence the price of cherry trees was advanced materially. 



So then we should remember that the cherry, above all fruit trees,, 

 should have a dry location. The varieties that I have named as suc- 

 cessful in this State should always be budded on Mahaleb stock as near 

 the ground as possible. The cherry is said to be a difiScult fruit to 

 bud, and it is true that the efforts of new beginners usually result in 

 utter failure. It is not a difBcult matter to get cherry buds to take if 

 they are inserted late in the season — not before September first — and 

 from then on as long as the stock is growing. All stone fruits take 

 much more readily if budded late. Indeed we are informed on the 

 authority of the Texas experiment station that budding can be suc- 

 cessfully performed in the winter on dormant stocks. It is done 

 as follows: "After cutting off a bud with some wood attached,, 

 cut a slip of bark with some wood attached to it also down about one 

 inch, leaving it still attached to the lower end. This cut must be made 

 about the size of the cut bud so that the bud will fit evenly over the 

 cut place. Part of the loose slips should be cut off and the bud 

 slipped down between the wood and the slip. Tie the bud tightly with 

 raffia or corn shuck." We have had success with this method in Jan- 

 uary. The buds soon knit firmly, and can be forced out in spring- 

 This method can be used to advantage in dry weather when the bark 

 refuses to slip, or on stock which failed to take when budded in the 

 usual way during the summer. We have budded roses and many kinds 

 of trees in this way successfully. This method greatly prolongs the 

 season of budding and will to that extent somewhat lessen the cost of 

 the work. 



The cherry tree, after planting in the orchard, is exceedingly lia- 

 ble to bark burst or iojury from the sun on the south and west sides 

 of the trunk, greatly detracting from the looks and usefulness of the 

 tree. To avoid this the trees should be made to branch out very near 

 the ground. Two-year-old trees are generally planted, but as they are 

 usually headed too high as they come from the nursery, and as it is 

 difficult to start the branches lower on such large trunks, I would ad- 

 vise planting trees one year from the bud. If the lower branches of 

 these have been removed by the nurseryman, others can be forced out 

 by cutting back the main stem to 18 inches from the ground. " This 

 will give the tree branches 12 to 15 inches from the ground, and, by 

 the way, it is a good practice to have all kinds ot fruit trees branch 



