The Canadian Horticulturist. 193 



PLANTING AND CARING FOR YOUNG TREES IN AN 

 APPLE ORCHARD. 



(Concluded from May Number.) 



Mulching. — When the tree is planted, spread around it as far as the roots 

 ■extend, or a little beyond, a five or six inch covering of coarse stable manure, or 

 other loose material which will act as a mulch. This is particularly necessary 

 in dry soil or in a dry season. It prevents baking and cracking of surface soil 

 and consequent escape of soil moisture from below, and at the same time main- 

 tains a uniformity of heat and moisture which is highly favorable to the formation 

 of new roots. 



Cultivation and Cropping. — One of the most important factors in determin- 

 ing the profits from an orchard is good cultivation. Sod should never be allowed 

 around young trees. For the first five or six years, some hoed crop, such as 

 roots, potatoes, beans or corn, may be grown in the orchard. The cultivation 

 required to grow these profitably will keep the ground in good condition for the 

 trees, while such crops Avill yield a return from the land until the trees themselves 

 begin to bear. Never sow a grain crop in a young orchard unless a strip, at 

 least as wide as the height of the trees, is left on each side of the rows and kept 

 ■well cultivated. 



The roots of a tree generally extend as far below the ground laterally as the 

 top spreads above it, and they should be the sole occupants of the ground so 

 far as they extend. Cropping between the rows, therefore, must gradually 

 decrease as the trees increase in size, and should be discontinued altogether as 

 -soon as the trees fully occupy the ground. 



Cultivation about the trees should never be so deep as to interfere with the 

 roots. Shallow, level cultivation is much safer than plowing. By using the 

 spring tooth cultivator to loosen the ground, and the broad share cultivator 

 to keep the weeds down, plowing may profitably be dispensed with altogether. 



Cultivation should commence in the spring as soon as the ground is fit to 

 work, and be continued as often as is necessary until about the middle of 

 August. If cultivation is stopped at that time the trees are more likely to cease 

 growing and ripen up their wood so that it will not be injured by severe freezing. 

 The frequency of cultivation necessary will depend much upon the soil and 

 season. The aim of the cultivator should be to keep the surface soil loose and 

 open, thus providing as a natural mulch and enabling the trees to withstand the 

 injurious effects of drouth at any time. 



Manuring. — Manuring an orchard in order to obtain good crops of fruit is 

 often just as necessary as manuring a field to get a good crop of corn or roots. 

 In a young orchard, where hoed crops are grown, the manure applied to grow 

 these profitably will be all that is required by the young trees, as they will get 

 their share of it. The vigor of the hoed crop will be a good indicator of the 



