176 



ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL HORTICULTURE 



cause a greater wood development and 

 must bs taken into account. 



William Stuart, 



Burlinston, Vt. 



Vermont Experiment Station. Bulletin 141, 

 1909. 



Distance and Climate 



The distance at which to plant apple 

 trees varies with the variety and with 

 the climatic and soil conditions. Apple 

 trees in states where they attain large 

 size and are long-lived are planted from 

 35 to 40 feet apart. In New Mexico and 

 especially in the warmer valleys the ap- 

 ple tree is not very long-lived nor does 

 it attain a very large size. Most of the 

 orchards now growing in New Mexico are 

 from 25 to 30 feet between the trees. 

 Because of the fact that orchards must 

 be sprayed economically, trees ought to 

 be planted at least from 30 to 35 feet 

 apart. 



Fabian Garcia, 

 Santa Fe. N. M. 



Thirty to Forty Feet Best 



A decision as to the proper distance 

 apart to set trees varies with different 

 planters. Some plant 16 by 32 feet— 

 that is, the trees 16 feet apart in rows 

 32 feet apart. The object of this method 

 is to obtain a crop from the trees until 

 they begin to interfere with each other, 

 when ever alternate tree in the row is 

 cut out, leaving the trees in the entire 

 orchard at a distance of 32 feet each way. 

 The trees to be cut out should be early- 

 bearing, short-lived varieties. This sys- 

 tem has the advantage of more fully uti- 

 lizing the land for fruit production until 

 the thinning out becomes necessary. 



Other planters adopt a distance between 

 trees of 20, 24, or 30 feet apart each way, 

 claiming that by the time the trees inter- 

 fere with each other they will have fin- 

 ished their growth and the orchard will 

 begin to decline. But it is generally con- 

 ceded that 32 to 40 feet is the preferred 

 standard distance. If the distance of 40 

 feet each way is adopted, it will afford 

 ample space between the rows for growing 

 any crop which requires cultivation, such 

 as corn, beans, potatoes, etc. Such culti- 

 vation is highly important and necessary 



for the maintenance of moisture in the 

 soil and for the health and vigor of the 

 trees. This distance will afford free cir- 

 culation of air and abundance of sun- 

 light, both of which are essential to the 

 growing of well-developed and highly- 

 colored fruit. Small grain should never 

 be grown among fruit trees, especially 

 when the orchard is young. 



G. B. Brackett. 

 Washinsrton. D. C. 



Close Planting and Fertilization 



Closely connected with the subject of 

 the fertilization of orchard lands, is the 

 subject of close planting. Close setting 

 is the rule, and the use of peach trees 

 as "fillers" — a practice to be deprecated — 

 is common. Various distances for plant- 

 ing are advocated by different growers, 

 and in use. There has hitherto been a 

 tendency to decrease the distance rather 

 than increase it. The method of close 

 planting, so common in connection with 

 early and heavy bearing, calls for especial 

 attention to the matter of fertilization of 

 orchard lands. Such lands are commonly 

 fertile in the beginning, but it is only a 

 matter of a few years when trees under 

 the conditions mentioned begin to feel 

 the need of additional plant food. If our 

 orchards are shorter-lived than trees in 

 other regions, the practice of close plant- 

 ing of fruitful kinds, coupled with neglect 

 of cultivation, and of proper fertilization 

 of the land, offers an adequate explana- 

 tion. Some large and successful orchard- 

 ists advocate and practice close planting, 

 but they give proportionate attention to 

 the matter of maintainin.g the fertility of 

 the land. 



.7. H. Hale, so widely known in the hor- 

 ticultural world, plants peach trees 13x13 

 feet and makes it pay — but as Van De- 

 man remarks.* "he feeds them like a lot 

 of pigs." 



In close planting, early bearing kinds 

 like Duchess. Missouri Pippin. Wealthy, 

 and Wagener are frequently used as "fill- 

 ers." the idea being to cut out the super- 

 fluous trees before they do harm to the 

 permanent ones. but. as practical growers 



• H. E. Van neman. "Plans for Orchard 

 PlanfiniT." Tiural New Yorker. March 6-13. 1897. 



