138 AGRICULTURE FOR COMMON SCHOOLS 



scape Horticulture, or the growing of plants for their use in 

 the landscape. These terms will be explained more fully as 

 each is taken up. For our purpose the last two will be con- 

 sidered under one head, that of landscape gardening. 



Pomology is the term used to cover the growing of all 

 kinds of fruit. Now fruits may be classed as tree fruits, 

 like apples and cherries; vine fruits, like grapes; and small 

 fruits, like raspberries and strawberries. Instead of the term 

 pomology we shall use the more common name — fruit- 

 growing. We shall first speak in a general way of the loca- 

 tion of orchards and fruit gardens. 



The orchard and fruit garden should be planted on sloping 

 land whenever possible. A hillside with a stream along its 

 foot is a very desirable place to plant fruits. A hillside is a 

 good place because it allows air-drainage. By air-drain- 

 age we mean that air will have a tendency to settle to the 

 lower ground and move off down the valley. It is a known 

 fact that it gets colder in the valleys and low places than it 

 does on the hillsides. Frosts and fogs occur in the valley 

 before they do on the hilltops. So trees and bushes planted 

 on a hillside are less likely to be injured by frosts and the cold 

 of winter than if they were planted in the low places. It 

 takes only a few feet of a rise in the land to make a good 

 deal of difference in the temperature. Furthermore, it is not 

 desirable to have the orchard surrounded by a thick growth 

 of forest trees, as it hinders the movement of the air. 



The direction in which the land slopes is an important 

 item. A north or north-west slope is good for apples, pears, 

 plums, and cherries, but not for peaches and grapes. How- 

 ever, fruits with the most brilliant colors are raised on south- 

 ern slopes. While it is not necessary to have wind-breaks to 



