90 THE MONTHLY BULLETIN. 



PROPAGATION. 



The best way to produce a paying orchard of walnuts is to plant nur- 

 sery grafted trees. A few years ago it was thought the proper way was 

 to plant three or four nuts in the spots which the trees were to occupy 

 in the orchard, pick out the most vigorous tree that started from these 

 nuts and graft to the desired variety of English walnut later on. Theo- 

 retically this sounds very well. However, I know of no instance in 

 which this method proved satisfactory, as in some places there would be 

 no trees developed and in others each nut would produce a good tree. 

 Another method which is better, but yet unsatisfactory, is planting the 

 Black walnut seedlings in orchard form and top grafting later. The 

 disadvantage of this method is one common with that of planting the nuts 

 in place, namely, that it is impossible to obtain a uniform stand by graft- 

 ing the first year, and it will probably take three or four years before all 

 the trees have good tops, thus making your orchard uneven. Then, 

 too. with top grafting on vigorous roots the grafts grow very rapidly 

 and thriftily, making them top heavy and easily blown off by the winds, 

 adding considerable expense and much work to keep your grafts from 

 blowing out. The best way to top graft in the fields is to let the trees 

 grow a few years until they attain considerable size, then graft about 

 one-third of the tree each year. It will take three years to work your 

 trees over, but you will not have the trouble of their blowing off and will 

 not shock your tree. It is not nmch of a shock to a one-year-old tree to 

 cut it off and graft it, but the older the tree the more shock it produces 

 to cut off all the top by grafting. "When you figure the time and expense 

 of top working your trees in the field you will find that they are much 

 more expensive than planting nursery grafted trees. Then, too, the 

 scientific nurseryman does not graft any but his best trees, and if they 

 do not make a good growth after being grafted in the nursery they are 

 rejected. T know of several besides myself who have tried top grafting 

 in the field, as well as planting nursery grafted trees, and I have yet to 

 find the man who has tried this on any large scale who would plant any- 

 thing but nursery grafted trees. Of course, a small percentage of 

 nursery grafted trees that are transplanted will fail to grow and will 

 have to be replaced the following season. These failures are so few 

 under proper conditions that they are not noticeable in the orchards. 



PLANTING. 



After choosing your variety on the proper root stock, have them 

 shipped to their destination, obtain and heel them in as soon as possible 

 after their arrival, even if you do not intend to plant them at once. 



To heel your trees in, dig a trench deep enough to receive the entire 

 root, so that they may be covered thoroughly at the same height they 

 stood in the nursery. Remove all i)acking and lay the tops all one way. 

 Cover thoroughly with moist dirt and pour water over them to settle the 

 dirt between the roots. Then pul more earth on top. Trees should not 

 be left lying around witli the roots exposed. 



DIGGING. 



If possible, tlic holes should be dug just ahead of your planters. If 

 this is not possible, the sides of the holes should always be freshly pared 

 off before the trees are put in. and the soil in the bottom of the hole 



