94 MINNESOTA STATE HORTKTLTURAL SOCIETY. 



worked into the ground every spring, you will get as good results, 

 and the ground will be in better condition to gather the fruit than it 

 would be otherwise. Then another thing, the older the tree gets 

 the more roots it has, and the more you cultivate the more injury 

 you do to the roots, but if the trees are cultivated while young you 

 can cultivate up to them without injuring the roots. 



Mr. Underwood: I do not want the impression to get out from 

 this society that the old tree can be left to itself. I do not want the 

 idea to go out that old trees can be left to themselves, and my ex- 

 perience does not conincide with that of Mr. Leach that mulching 

 will take the place of cultivation. 



Mr. Leach: I do not cultivate the old trees with the team, be- 

 cause I cannot get in on account of the limbs. The most of the 

 trees are not far enough apart so a team can be driven through 

 with a wagon. I consider that my trees are equally well culti- 

 vated as I cultivate them as though they were treated like my 

 yuung trees. They are clean from weeds for a radius of six to 

 eight feet, and the ground is thoroughly worked. 



Mr. Underwood: The roots of the trees go out further if they 

 are twenty feet apart. I claim the bearing trees need every foot of 

 the room, six or eight feet is not enough. They should have all 

 the room there is, and there should not be a weed or any grass or 

 clover grown in the orchard. 



Mr. Leach: I shall have to differ somewhat with Mr. L T nder- 

 wood. All the success I have attained has been in the orchard 

 seeded down when the trees came well into bearing. 



Mr. Underwood: I venture to suggest that if you had taken 

 care of your trees as you ought your trees would have borne more 

 than they did. 



Mr. Leach: I don't know that 1 have any fault to find with my 

 trees; I was satisfied anyway. 



Mr. Gibbs: Speaking about young trees, we often find in the 

 fall after the ground begins to freeze it cracks, and that opens up 

 the soil to exaporation just when the moisture should be conserved. 

 They way I overcome that is to take my wheelbarrow and put 

 about half a load of fine manure over those cracks; that stops the 

 waste and helps the trees to get through the winter without suffer- 

 ing. 



Mr. Elliott : I think that could be done with the harrow and 

 cultivator. 



Mr. Gibbs: But I do this after the ground is frozen; it could 

 not be harrowed or cultivated after it freezes. 



Mr. Underwood: If you were to cultivate before the ground 

 is frozen you would not see any cracks. 



Mr. Yahnke: Both gentlemen are right. (Laughter.) I want 

 to say that when we were first married I told my wife that when we 

 were both of the same opinion she was right, but if we differed in 

 opinion, I was right. (Great laughter.) The gentleman savs he 

 likes mulch; but then he says his orchard is in such condition tint 

 the only thing he can do is to mulch, while the condition of Mr. 

 Underwood's orchard is such that it is better for him to cultivate. 



