226 



THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST. 



of location. Speaking generally, a soil that 

 is very good for corn is the best peach soil. 

 A fairly light, warm and deep sand is proba- 

 bly most suitable, and especially if the sub- 

 soil is gravelly or of a fairly porous charac- 

 ter. The peach, of all trees, demands a well 

 drained soil, and with no kind of fruit will 

 underdraining pay so well. 



Distance of Planting. — Growers differ, 

 widely as to the appropriate distance be- 

 tween peach trees ; as near as 14 feet, and 

 as far as 20 feet apart being advocated. 

 The trees in the famous Hale orchard are 

 only 13 feet apart, but the most thorough 

 pruning and manuring are practiced, and 

 the plan is not generally advisable. When 

 spraying, cultivating, proper ripening and 

 coloring of the fruit are all taken into ac- 

 count, it will be found that a generous space 



FIG 88 





FIG, 30 



BuLLeriN 

 f /kORt. COLL ri/CH/GAA/ 



PbUMIMG by thinning OCT. 



between the trees is preferable. Al least 18 

 feet each way is strongly advised. 



Cultivation. — To secure the best results 

 the cultivation of the peach must be thor- 

 ough and constant. No tree will so soon 

 suffer from neglect in this respect. Hoed 

 crops alone should be allowed in the peach 



orchard, and these 

 should be discon- 

 tinued after the 

 third year. The 

 practice of growing 

 berries between the 

 trees can only be 

 followed at the ex- 

 pense of the trees. 

 For the first two 

 years strawberries 

 might be allowed, 

 but the amount of 

 moisture evapor- 

 ated by the plants 

 and fruit is incredi- 

 ble to those who 

 have not studied 

 the matter, and 

 there is always the 

 tendency to crowd 

 in on the tree rows. 

 If raspberries are 

 placed amongst the 

 peach trees one row 

 is enough with a row 

 of roots or potatoes 

 each side. The root 



