210 FRUIT 



GROWING 



spread over the tree, affording ample protection 

 to the tender buds. 



Care must be taken that the covering is not so 

 warm as to force the buds prematurely. In some 

 comparative tests it was found that while in un- 

 protected trees about 50 per cent, of buds were 

 killed, only 10 per cent, of the buds of protected 

 trees were destroyed. When they begin to open, 

 the covering is loosened to admit light and air, 

 but should not be removed except by slow 

 degrees. 



The trees are raised in the same way that they 

 were laid down, softening the soil with water. In 

 Colorado the trees are raised about the middle of 

 May; in the East the season must determine the 

 raising. Trees so treated will not stand unsup- 

 ported, but are usually propped up at an angle, 

 with two props to keep the wind from swaying 

 them. 



When this treatment is begun while the tree is 

 young and persisted in each year, there is little 

 or no injury to the root system, but it is not wise 

 to try it on old trees. Indeed many practical 

 farmers say that very few growers could use this 



