APPLES 



255 



and harrowed in February, a granite loam, 

 drilled in 100 pounds to the acre the 1st 

 of March. Plants broke surface in three 

 weeks, began to bloom in the middle of 

 May and had ripened seed and were dying 

 by July 1st. 



It is most important to Inoculate the 

 seed as the test plot represented a failure 

 — plants pale, small leaved, 18 inches long, 

 shed bloom. Inoculated plants luxuriant, 

 dark green, five feet long in places and 

 well fruited. 



Our season was wet and the orchard 

 young, so plants were allowed to mature 

 and harvested. Thrashed out 700 pounds 

 of seed to acre and had a ton of straw, 

 which made good horse feed for wintering. 

 This crop could have been turned under 

 the 1st of May when it averaged 30 inches 

 in height. Volunteers followed this crop 

 appearing mostly in late September and 

 growing 12 inches. The severe winter 

 killed all, and the native weeds, turnip 

 and alfllarea also winter-killed. 



When planted in the fall and if rains 

 come early one would have a good crop of 

 vines to plow under even if it winter- 

 killed. 



With irrigation it would be a splendid 

 crop to sow in spring, then irrigate and 

 plow under in May or June. 



Geo. B. Dean 



INTERCKOPPIJfG 



There can be no objection to the grow- 

 ing of crops between young trees and 

 thus utilizing the land which is unoccu- 

 pied and likely to remain so for several 

 years provided care is taken not to crowd 

 the trees and not injure them by culti- 

 vating too closely and peeling the bark, 

 and provided as much is put on the land 

 in the form of fertilizers as is taken off 

 by the crop. The average man will not 

 do this, but will take off crop after crop 

 and put little or nothing on in return; 

 however, if he will make proper use of 

 manure he can grow crops between his 

 young trees, make a living off the crop 

 and improve the soil at the same time. 

 Cropping is not injurious to the land any 

 more than milking is injurious to a cow, 

 but to crop the soil without fertilizing it 

 Is like milking the cow without feeding 



her. This process may be kept up for a 

 while without visible exhaustion, for the 

 soil is a storehouse of plant food which 

 has, in some cases, been hundreds of 

 years in accumulating, but if it is kept 

 up too long exhaustion is sure to follow. 

 It must, therefore, be understod that if 

 we are not to rob the soil of its produc- 

 tivity and deprive the coming gener- 

 ations of their right to a living from the 

 land, we must conserve the fertility of 

 the soil which they will in the future cul- 

 tivate. 



Plan for Yakima Valley 



The following plan is suggested for 

 North Yakima. Washington. It is subject 

 to modification for varying conditions and 

 with new information. 



First, we would plant apples as the 

 permanent crop to live and to bear for 

 one hundred years. This may seem a long 

 time to expect trees to bear, but in New 

 York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, New England 

 and Canada there are bearing apple trees 

 one hundred years old. It must be re- 

 membered, too, that these trees have 

 never been properly sprayed, cultivated 

 or pruned. They have simply happened 

 to be where the soil and moisture condi- 

 tions are good. In a country where the 

 soil is deep, where there is plenty of 

 water, and where trees receive proper 

 pruning and care, there is no question 

 but that they will bear profitably for a 

 long period of years. We would select 

 winter apples because they will find a 

 wide market. We would select three or 

 four varieties to insure fertilization. 



We would, at this point (North Yaki- 

 ma), select Spitzenburgs. Delicious, New- 

 towns and Winesaps. At a higher alti- 

 tude we would select Jonathans, Delicious 

 and Rome Beauty. At a lower altitude 

 we would select Winesaps, Newtowns and 

 Arkansas Blacks. However, it is impos- 

 sible to please others in selections, and 

 with more information, we might change 

 our own views. 



Distances to Plant 



We would plant the apples two rods 

 apart each way. This may seem like a 

 waste of land, but remember that these 

 trees are expected to stand a long time. 



