AN APPLE ORCHARD SURVEY OF ORLEANS COUNTY, NEW YORK. 471 



Methods of sod treatment. Sod orchards pastured with sheep and 

 hogs have given a much better average yield than those not pastured, or 

 than those pastured by cattle (table 6). Probably one reason for the 

 extremely low average for those pastured by cattle is that in Orleans 

 county, cattle are not commonly allowed in any but neglected orchards. 

 Table 6 includes orchards that have been in sod most of the time as well 

 as those regularly in sod. By comparing with the corresponding* years 

 in table 4, it will be seen that none of the methods of sod treatment equals 

 tillage in average yields. The corresponding yield for tilled orchards, 



TABLE 6 

 Yield in bushels with various methods of sod treatment. 



Three-year average per acre : 



Pastured with hogs 312 bushels 



Pastured .with sheep 308 



Pastured with cattle 153 



Not pastured 217 " 



that is the three-year average for orchards that have been tilled five to ten 

 years and more, is 350 bushels. 



A few growers are trying the so-called mulch method of cutting the 

 grass and throwing it around the trees. Theoretically this would seem 

 to be undesirable since the great demands for water and plant-food 

 that are made by growing the hay come at the time when the apple-trees 

 need the moisture and food for their own growth. But practically there 

 is a much more serious difficulty. There are comparatively few orchards 

 in which anything like enough hay can be grown to furnish an efficient 

 mulch. For most orchards, additional straw and hay must be obtained 

 from outside the orchard. 



Does tillage pay? After examining tables 4 and 5, and the correspond- 

 ing tables from Wayne county, one is forced to the conclusion that if 

 there is a method of sod treatment that is as good as tillage, the average 

 farmer has certainly not yet found it. Both counties show that the best 



