474 



Journal of Agriculture, Victoria. 110 Aug., 191G. 



Soils. 



Throu,e;hout the State there 

 are lar^e tracts of country 

 eminently suitable for the apple, 

 but the deep sandy loams plenti- 

 fully supplied with humus and 

 overlying; a permeable clav sub- 

 soil offer ideal conditions to the 

 production of this particular kind 

 of fruit. It is always to be re- 

 membered that the apple does 

 not adapt itself to soils of a wet 

 or sour nature, and, unless sub- 

 drainasfe is effectively carried out 

 under such conditions, one cannot 

 hope to be successful in the 

 cultivation of the apple. 



It is found by experience that 

 the character of the soil plays a 

 most important part, not only 

 on the trees themselves, but also 

 on the orolificacy and quality of 

 the yield. Soils of granitic origin 

 offer a genial home for the apple, 

 where, under proper manage- 

 ment, the trees are thrifty 

 throughout a long series of years, 

 yielding generous crops of fruit 

 of excellent quality and colour. 

 A remarkable feature of orchards 

 established in soils of this char- 

 acter is the evident precocity of 

 the trees, as it is not uncommon 

 to gather considerable quantities 

 of fruit three or four years after 

 planting. Orchardists favored 

 with this class of soil have no 

 dread of the root-borer, which 

 plays such sad havoc in many 

 fruit-growing centres where the 

 soil is suitable to its depreda- 

 tions, nor is t!ie root-fungus 

 (Armillaria mellea) much in evi- 

 dence in soils of granitic origin. 



Generally speaking, granitic 

 soils are rich in potash, and this 

 may account for the advantages 

 in colour, quality, and produc- 

 tion of orchards therein estab- 

 lished. 



Silurian soils are also much 

 favoured by growers, and yield 

 heavy crops of fruit of good 



