Fruit-growing 



257 



Systems of planting. Three systems are in use for laying out 

 orchards for tree-fruits. These are (1) rectangular, in which 

 the trees occupy the corners of a rectangle, usually a square : 

 (2) quincunx, in which the trees are planted in squares with 

 an extra tree in the center of the square; often this center 

 tree is planted as a filler to be removed when the others have 

 attained a certain size ; (3) triangular, or hexagonal, in which 

 the trees stand equidistant throughout the field. Fig. 106 

 illustrates the three systems. Each of these systems requires 

 a different number of trees for a given area when planted cer- 

 tain distances apart. The quincunx and triangular systems 



FIG. 106. Rectangular, quincunx, and triangular systems of setting 

 orchard trees. 



permit of more trees and are often used when land is limited. 

 The rectangular system permits of easier tillage than the others 

 and is often preferred for this reason. 



Trimming the nursery trees. Both roots and tops of nursery 

 trees require trimming. The tree when removed from the 

 nursery has lost much of its root system ; if planted with too 

 much top the reduced root system would fail to care for the 

 foliage and the newly planted tree would soon die. The 

 trimming of the roots consists in removing any ragged ends, 

 and if there are one or two long roots they may be cut back. 

 No very specific directions can be given as to how much to trim 

 the tops. The amount will be modified by the age, the shape, 

 the species of the tree, and by the climatic conditions of the 



