The Home Fruit-garden 363 



peach with expectation of profit on low land, the trees cost 

 but little, the buds sometimes escape and a single good 

 crop from a peach-tree in the home garden will well repay 

 the labor and care of growing and the long years of waiting. 

 Peach-trees cannot be expected to live very long in any sec- 

 tion of the country; the average life of the trees throughout 

 the country is probably not more than ten to twelve years. 

 If the land on which the trees are planted is very rich, it will 

 be well to plant some other crop among the trees to check a 

 too-rapid growth, or grow in turf especially while the trees 

 are young, though when a crop of fruit has been set there 

 is little or no danger of making the soil too rich. A moder- 

 ately vigorous growth from the beginning to the end of the 

 season gives the best and most hardy wood and the finest 

 flavored fruit, and the latter should always be ripened on the 

 tree, if possible, as it is much better flavored than if picked 

 before ripe. 



The best distance for planting is 15 feet apart, and the 

 varieties that probably will give the best satisfaction are 

 Mountain Rose, Crawford Early, Crawford Late, Elberta, 

 Oldmixon and Carman. 



THE PLUM 



Although plum trees are found in most home gardens, 

 there is but little profit or satisfaction in their growth 

 unless one is skilful in caring for them. To succeed in 

 their growth, the trees should have an abundance of room 

 15 by 15 feet or 15 by 20 feet and be planted where 

 there shall be a good circulation of air about them. The 

 trees must be sprayed in the spring before the buds 

 start, then again as soon as the blossoms have fallen, 

 with lime sulphur i to 50, and arsenate of lead 3 pounds, 

 and also when the fruit is about one-half grown with the 

 Bordeaux mixture, one-half strength, i.e., 2 copper sulphur, 



