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THE CONNECTICUT POMOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 



any quantity of orchards from 25 to 50 years old that are in 

 total or partial neglect. Is it possible to take these old or- 

 chards in hand and put them into good bearing condition? 

 Is it a profitable undertaking? To both questions I would 

 answer yes. 



Can one expect to get as good fruit from these reclaimed 

 trees as from newer planting-? I would answer that I had 

 no difficulty in doing so. Perhaps one or two qualifications 

 should be made : Where the trunks of trees were in a too 

 advanced stage of decay ; and where natural conditions made 

 it inadvisable. 



What is the best method of accomplishing this renova- 

 tion? I will speak of the methods, which, while they may 

 not agree entirely with your ideas, I have followed for some 

 years with a fair degree of success. 



It is quite a task to thoroughly renovate a thoroughly 

 neglected orchard, and it requires considerable time and pa- 

 tience. For the sake of clearness, let us consider it under 

 the following heads : Pruning, spraying, cultivation, fertili- 

 zation and thinning the fruit. 



Pruning. 



Most of the older orchards were planted with the idea 

 of harvesting a crop of hay first and apples second. This 

 caused farmers to prune off the lower branches so that the 

 teams would have no difficulty in working underneath. A 

 bad practice at best, it is absolutely fatal under present day 

 conditions. What we want now is a low-down spreading 

 tree with the ends of the branches touching or nearly touch- 

 ing the ground. We want to prune down, not up. These 

 low-down trees can be sprayed at much less cost, the fruit 

 can be picked at much less cost, the trees are much less wind- 

 racked, and the fruit if it falls, is not so badly bruised. Grant- 

 ing that I have stated the case correctly, most of the old or- 

 chards have been pruned up, how can we get them pruned 



