The Bulletin. 19 



loupes, tomatoes, sweet or Irish potatoes, snaps, etc., or peanuts 

 would be as good or better for pecan growing, and the middles could 

 be cropped successfully until the pecan trees needed all the land. 

 As soon as they did need it all they would be paying a revenue for 

 it that would far surpass the profits from the annual crops. By this 

 gradual transition from cotton, truck or peanut crops to the pecan 

 orchard it is possible to change a precarious annual crop into a 

 permanent paying investment without the loss of the land for a single 

 season. 



In setting pecan trees, cut back the taproots to about 2 or 2^ feet 

 in length. This can easily be done, for, though large, the roots of 

 pecan trees are almost as soft as a turnip. The mark on the root 

 in Fig. 11 shows where the taproot should be cut in transplanting. 

 At the same time shorten back the side roots and with a clean, smooth 

 cut remove all broken, torn or dried roots. Even after this shorten- 

 ing back, deeper holes will be necessary than for other orchard trees. 

 As the lateral roots are slight, wide holes are not necessary unless 

 the soil is very firm. One of the handiest tools I have found for 

 making holes for pecan trees is a post-hole digger. The trees should 

 be set in the holes not deeper than they stood in the nursery. Fill 

 in the hole with surface soil, being . careful to ram it in tightly so 

 as to leave no crevices or air holes. If water rises in the hole when 

 you are planting the tree you can make up your mind that the land 

 is too wet for pecan trees, and unless the water table is lowered the 

 planting will be in vain. Unless with large trees it will not be neces- 

 sary to cut back the tops at planting time. I have found by ex- 

 perience that it pays better to set 3 foot to 4 foot trees rather than the 

 larger 5 foot to 7 foot trees- — provided, of course, that the trees are 

 smaller by reason of youth and not because they are the "runts" from 

 older stock. The younger trees, if they are vigorous, will give a 

 greater number of living trees than the larger nursery grades. They 

 also cost less, and I find that on the average they do better in the 

 end. 



A planter who has not had experience with pecan trees will almost 

 invariably be disappointed with his first planting. They do not all 

 start off evenly and make a uniform orchard like peaches, apples 

 and pears. All pecan trees are notably slow in starting after trans- 

 planting. When established trees are leafing out the transplanted 

 ones will not show a sign of budding. Some of the trees will start 

 out later and make a vigorous growth, others will pass through the 

 summer and even on to fall before leafing out. Still others will go 

 right over into the next season without pushing a single bud, even 

 though the inner bark may be fresh and green all the while. These 

 latter almost invariably die the second season. 



