THOROUGH CULTIVATION. 81 



ing summer. If not manured later than June, 

 thorough cultivation will only hasten forward the 

 seasons of growth and ripening of the wood before 

 fall. Besides, vigorous health with well-ripened 

 wood is one of the best protections against damage 

 by frost. If the object be to prevent any winter 

 growth and suspend active circulation of sap during 

 winter, this can be better secured by seeding the 

 land heavily in oats. The growing oats will take 

 up all soluble manures in the soil and leave the 

 young orange trees to rest till spring. 



Various discussions have been entered into 

 throughout the State as to the relative value of deep 

 and shallow culture. The disputants on the differ- 

 ent sides have usually reached their conclusions 

 not by generalizing, but by "induction" from a 

 single experience or observation. One gentleman 

 who had met with marked success in orange -growing 

 wrote as the secret of success, " Deep plowing," 

 " Tear up the roots." Convinced that there must 

 be something unusual about the soil that would 

 produce fine trees and fruit under such a method, 

 I visited his grove, found it planted upon an oak 

 scrub with no fertility in the upper soil, but under- 

 laid a few feet from the surface with clay, on which 

 rested a stratum of marl. The mystery was solved. 

 There being no nourishment in the upper soil, the 

 roots had gone down to where they might find 

 food, and so were little disturbed by the deep plow- 

 ing. Indeed, the deep plowing only let in the 



