56 One Thousand Questions in Agriculture 



Young trees have a natural disposition to produce outside sizes 

 of fruit, and this is sometimes aggravated by excessive use of fer- 

 tilizers, sometimes by over-irrigation. We would cease to fertilize 

 for a time and to regulate irrigation so that the trees will have 

 enough to be thrifty without undertaking excessive growth. Such 

 soil as you describe is sometimes very rich at the beginning in 

 available plant food, and fertilization should be delayed until this 

 excess has been appropriated by the tree. 



Budding or Grafting in Orange Orchard. 



/ have land nozv ready to be planted to oranges, but it is impossible 

 for me to buy the necessary budded stock now or even later this year. 

 Would you advise me to plant the "sour stock" as it comes from the 

 nursery and have it budded or croivn-buddcd later? Are there any real 

 objections to this method, and, if so, what are they? 



It is perfectly feasible to plant sour-stock seedlings and to graft 

 them afterward to whatever variety of oranges you desire to grow, 

 but it is undoubtedly better to pay a pretty good price for budded 

 trees of the kind you desire rather than incur the delay and the ir- 

 regular growth of young trees budded or grafted in the field. There 

 is also danger of an irregular stand from accidental injuries to new 

 growth started in the field without the protection which it finds in 

 the nursery row. 



Budding Oranges. 



Hozu late in the fall can budding of orange trees be done — plants that 

 are two years old — and zvhat advantage, if any, is late budding? What 

 shall I do zvith some old trees that zvere budded about two months ago 

 and are still green but not sprouted yet? The budding was done on young 

 shoots. 



Late budding of the orange can be done as late as the bark 

 will slip well; usually, however, not quite so late as this. Such buds 

 are preferred because in the experience of most people they make 

 stronger growth than those put in in the spring. Such buds are not 

 expected to grow until the lowest temperatures of the winter are 

 over. The buds which you speak of as green but still dormant are 

 doing just what they ought to do. They will start when they get 

 ready. 



Under-pruning of Orange Trees. 



My Washington Navels have a very heavy crop on the lozver limbs, 

 as is usual. These branches are so lozv dozvn that many of the oranges 

 lie on the ground, and it takes a good deal of time to prop them up so 

 that they will not touch the ground. What would be the result of pruning 

 off these low branches, after the fruit is off? Will the same amount of 

 fruit be produced by the fruit growing on the limbs higher up? 



Certainly, raise the branches of the orange trees by removing 

 the lowest branches or parts of branches which reach to the ground. 

 A little later others will sag down and this under-pruning will have 



