110 ORCHARDS. 



North Carolina. When the ground over the roots is exposed 

 to the broad sunshine, then by all means cover the soil — two 

 or three inches is deep enough — and, if you have no leaves or 

 straw, use litter, bark, or any saitable covering that can be ob- 

 tained. 



The ''■Rural South Carolinian'' says, in regard to mulch- 

 ing — "If mulching is employed at the time of planting trees, 

 they will never need watering. Uniform temperature and a 

 constant supply of moisture, are the prime elements of suc- 

 cess in fruit culture. Mulching enables us to accomplish this. 

 Mulching acts beneficially in other ways. It prevents, in a 

 great degree, the cracking of fruit, and causes those va- 

 rieties which are spotted and defaced, to become clean and 

 covered with a rich bloom." Mulching young trees obviates 

 the necessity of watering them, but in case of a long, dry 

 spell, after planting, it may become necessary to give them 

 water to save them. One pail of water, with the mulching to 

 retain it and keep the ground from baking, will be of more 

 service than six applied to the naked baked soil, exposed to 

 the hot sun. If the mulching material is light and liable to 

 be blown away from the roots, it is best to throw on a little 

 soil to keep it in place. 3Iulching may sometimes interfere 

 with cultivation. In that case it is only necessary to remove 

 a portion of the litter, when the fork or mattock may be ap- 

 plied, and a portion of the mulch worked into the soil, which 

 will be all the better for the growth of the young trees and 

 for the thrift, health, and maturity of fruit of the old. The 

 mulching should be immediately replaced.* 



Among the improvements and arts of cultivation, all expe- 

 rience proves the great benefits derived from mulching the 

 ground around fruit trees, as a means of fertilization and a 



* A writer in the Country Gentleman says, ''The last Spring I set out 

 one hundred apple trees, part of which I mulched with about fo ;r inches 

 of coarse hay and straw, and the rest, in pursuance of an article in the 

 Country Geyitleman, kept nicely hoed. Of the one hundred, all are liv- 

 ing except one, but those not mulched have made the best growth, over 

 a foot, notwithstanding the drought." 



A near neighbor, who set last year, has lost nearly half of his trees 

 this summer; but then he had the pleasure of harvesting & poor crop of 

 oats, sowed close up to the trees. " A word to the wise," etc. 



