Winter Mcctinf^. 133 



him and lock over his forty acre commercial orchard (nearly all Ben 

 Davis) and about thirteen years old. I accepted his invitation, went out 

 and found a most magnificent orchard loaded down with a fine crop of 

 very nice apples. The ground was a stift sod, but very pretty and green, 

 having been close cut. After looking it over, the owner w^anted my 

 advice as to how best to treat it from that time on. I told him that, 

 after harvesting the crop he should break up the sod, and what he could 

 not reach with the plow to dig up, and cultivate the entire surface like 

 a garden, to keep the surface clean of weeds and grass, and in a mel- 

 low and finely pulverized condition two or three inches deep. With a 

 look of surprise lie wanted to know wliy he should pursue such a course 

 when he had an ideal crop in the sod that sold for five thousand dollars? 

 I replied by admitting that it was a splendid crop and the price, five 

 thousand dollars, was a very handsome income from forty acres in one 

 year. "But," said I, "your orchard can't possibly continue to grow and' 

 produce such crops if left in the sod," and that the time had come to give 

 the orchard extra care and cultivation; that if he would do so, he might 

 yet gather larger and better paying crops in the future. He followed my 

 advice, broke up the sod and cultivated in true garden style (fifteen times 

 the next summer) and the ensuing year sold the crop for twelve thou- 

 sand dollars. It seems to me that this is sufficient evidence to convince 

 the most doubting Thomas in horticulture that we should cultivate our 

 orchards. But just how, and wdien to cultivate, the best implement to 

 use, how deep to stir the soil, when to commence, and where to^ leave 

 off are questions that each individual grower must determine from his 

 practice and experience with his own trees and on his own ground. 



Let us remember that fruit trees, like people, have individuality, and 

 we must learn to know the wants and requirements of each tree. For 

 this reason the same care and cultivation that will bring success in one 

 case m.ay fail in another. While the apple, pear, peach, plum and cherry 

 should all be cultivated, yet their cultivation must vary tO' suit each,^ 

 not only so, but, to at least some extent, the individual variety of each 

 species will require diiferent treatment, and some -should be cultivated 

 more than others. Again the cultivation of all must vary to suit the 

 season, whether it be wet or dry. During a severe drouth the culti- 

 vation should be frequent, and done with such implements as will keep 

 the entire surface of the orchard in a fine, pulverized condition two or 

 three inches deep. With the peach, cherry and plum, it is a bad practice 

 to permit them to cease growing in mid summer, if so, they are liable 

 to mature their growth, shed their leaves, and then start a sap late in 

 autumn, thus endangering, not only the fruit buds, but the health, and 

 possibly the life of the tree. 



