CHAPTER XIII. 



CULTIVATION. 



fHE orange will live with almost no cultiva- 

 tion, but it will only be a sickly existence. I 

 know no plant, shrub, or tree that will pay better 

 for good cultivation ; none that will respond so 

 certainly to thorough cultivation. 



The ground in the grove should be kept level, the 

 surface light. As far as the roots have extended the 

 surface should not be stirred deeper than three 

 inches. The more frequently it is stirred the bet- 

 ter. Beyond the reach of the roots it is well to cul- 

 tivate deep and frequently, but as the roots extend 

 themselves this area of deep cultivation should be 

 lessened. After the roots have extended themselves 

 well over the ground, the best plow to be used is 

 the sweep. A single thirty-two-inch sweep, or a 

 gang plow, the middle or front plow twenty-two 

 inches wide, and the two side plows fourteen inches 

 each, does excellent work. It is better than the 

 turning plow or cultivator. The sweep is much 

 more uniform in the depth of its cutting than either. 

 It is much more rapid in its work than the single 

 plow. It is more apt to cut off the weeds below 

 the surface and destroy them than the cultivator. 



