Photo 81. 



Photo 82. 



choose a bud on the side toward that open- 

 ing. You cut, say, about an eighth of an 

 inch above that bud with a slanting, draw 

 cut. You will be surprised to see how 

 such an opening will fill in. 



NOW FOR PLANTING. 



Before you can prune or train a tree 

 you must have one, and before planting 

 we should know something about the 

 soil. The grape vine, raspberries, black- 

 berries and some strawberries do well 

 in light, porous soil. The apple grows well 

 on light soil, but is apt to throw its fruit in 

 hot weather for the want of moisture. The 

 apple will do well on rich, gravely land 

 with a firm sub-soil, but the best fruit often 

 comes from trees planted in a good clay 

 loam, but it must be well drained. The peach, plum and 

 cherry will generally thrive where the apple will. The 

 pear, however, must have clay. This is demonstrated by 

 the object lessons that you get up in Wood and Fulton 

 Counties, Ohio, and away down the western part of the 

 state. In Mercer, Darke, Miami, Preble, Montgomery and 

 other counties where the land is level, with dense clay sub- 

 soils, the pear does well, but apples are stunted and sickly 

 and some places look like a lot of old stub brooms. Photo 

 97 shows one of the best grown on this low, wet, heavy 

 clay soil. Any place, however, in those counties, if you 

 come to a knoll or little hill, you will find the apple trees 

 having the vigorous, healthy appearance as seen in photo 

 98. It is use- 

 less to waste 

 money and 



fool time away trying to grow apples in 

 those level, clay counties, unless you select 



some elevated place 

 or specially prepare 

 the orchard on the 

 level portions. The 

 preparations would 

 consist in plowing, 

 sub-soiling, manur- 

 ing well, and then 

 " back - furrow," 

 setting the trees on 

 the highest part. 

 Where the "dead- 

 furrows" come, put 

 in underdrains, us- 

 ing 3 or 4 inch tile. 

 (The socket tile is 

 the best.) Of 

 course, to drain 

 Photo 83. 



Photo 84. 



40 



