10 JiTNE, 1919.] Orchard and Garden Notes. 381 



ORCHARD AND GARDEN NOTES. 



E. E. Fescoft, F.L.S., Pomologist. 



The Orchard. 



Planting. 



The time has now arrived for the general planting of deciduous 

 fruit trees. The soil should have previously been well ploughed and 

 subsoiled, and, as far as possible, drained. To ensure satisfaotory 

 results, it is essential that the orchard be subsoiled. Where expense 

 is a consideration, drainage may be left for subsequent years, but once 

 the orchard has been planted, it will be impossible to subsoil. 



When planting out, the distance between the trees will be determined 

 by the kinds to be planted. For ordinary deciduous fruiting trees it is 

 the custom in this State to plant them 20 feet apart in the rows, the 

 rows also being 20 feet apart. Results have proved this to be a satisfac- 

 tory practice. Almond trees may be planted 15 or 16 feet apart each 

 way, while walnuts, owing to their spreading habit, require a distance of 

 30 feet. 



Deep planting is not advocated, the general practice being that the 

 depth of planting in the nursery should be followed. If holes be dug, 

 they sliould be sliallow, the bottom being merely loosened lo allow a 

 comfortable friable bed for the tree roots. A good practice is to dig the 

 whole strip along which the trees are to be planted, merely removing 

 sufficient soil afterwardb when planting. Another satisfactory custom 

 is to plough furrows 20 feet apart, and to plant the trees in the furrowS; 

 filling in the soil over the roots and trampling well down. 



Before planting, the roots of the young trees should be well trimmed, 

 shaped to an even form, and cleanly cut. As the result of their removal 

 from the nursery beds, the roots are generally more or less damaged, 

 and numbers of the fibrous roots, becoming; dry, shrivel and die. These 

 all require a clean trimming. Then it is often desirable to remove some 

 of the roots so as to balance the root system. The trimming of the roots 

 gives the young tree a clean root system, and it is enabled to establish 

 itself with young, vigorous roots. 



After planting, the top should be well cut back, so as to leave three 

 or four arms, with three or four buds on each. Where it is not possible 

 to have this number of arms or limbs it is frequently advisable to cut back 

 to one stem, allowing the buds to break out strongly and frame the tree 

 after planting. In some countries, the custom of not cutting back the 

 trees the first year is favoured. Local experience has not resulted in 

 favour of this practice, as it is found to be inadvisable to unduly strain 

 the young tree by leaving a heavy top to be supported by the weak- 

 growing root system. 



A number of good commercial fruits have been found to be either 

 wholly or partially self-sterile, requiring other varieties near them to 

 enable them to set their fruit. For this purpose it is necessary that 

 the bloom periods should be somewhat coincident. 



Spraying. 

 Spraying should now be done to combat scale insects, woolly aphis, 

 and bryobia mite. Any oily eumlsion, or the lime-sulphur spray, 

 may be used, and for woolly aphis it will be necessary to apply the spray 



