20 THE KANSAS PEACH. 



the tree and the perfection of its fruit are found away from its base ; 

 hence the fertilizer should always be applied broadcast over the entire 

 orchard. The practice of piling up manure around the base of the 

 tree is about as sensible as it would be to apply a poultice of bread 

 and milk on a man's stomach to alleviate hunger. 



X — MISCELLANEOUS POINTS. 



Distance. — The matter of distance probably demands a little more 

 attention than Mr. Miller has given in his directions. It is certainly 

 one of the most jDerplexing j^roblems confronting the peach grower. 

 While the standard distance for this section is 20 x 20, there can be no 

 question but that this is a waste of ground, and consequently a reduc- 

 tion of the profits in a "crop year." Peach trees are short-lived at 

 best ; their wood is brittle and easily broken, and when they become 

 so large as to require a distance of 20 x 20 feet to prevent interference 

 with each other, the probability is the orchard will be found, from 

 other causes, to be no longer profitable, consisting, as it doubtless will, 

 of a lot of one-sided, malformed, gangling trees — most of them in- 

 fested, also, with fungous diseases or scale insects. 



Therefore a lesser distance is advisable. What this distance should 

 be depends on many factors which each grower must reconcile for 

 himself. For instance, Mr. S. H. Kumph, of Marshallville, the orig- 

 inator of the Elberta, and one of our "peach kings," believes in ex- 

 tremely close planting (15 x 15, or 16 x 16 at most), and claims to 

 make much larger profits, all things considered, at this distance, than 

 where more .space is given. Yet many of his immediate neighbors, 

 themselves successful growers and practical men, are equally positive 

 in advocating greater distance, claiming that it will pay in the "long 

 run" by reason of the increased longevity of the trees. To this the 

 answer comes readily that it is easier to establish a new (and thrifty) 

 orchard than to care for an old (and decrepit) one. 



As a general rule, for commercial planting, it is certain that 18 x 18 

 will not be found too close, and even 17 x 17, especially on thin land, 

 will iDrobably bo found anqjly sufficient. Many growers plant 18 x 16 ; 

 but on level land, for several reasons, square checks are preferable ; 

 for terraced lands, however, 18 x 16 will be found quite convenient. 



Where a crop "hits" within three or four years after planting, 

 18 X 10 will be found to realize a maximum profit. After four years 

 every otlier tree must of course be cut out, and the orchard thus re- 

 duced to a permanent distance of 18 x 20. If even one full crop can 

 ' be secured before this is done, it is evident that the yield ( and pre- 

 sumably the profit) will thus be doubled. It is true that in this 

 method there is apparently an element of "gambling," but then so 

 there is in fruit-growing generally, where it's "hit or miss" all 



