68 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



near it, is often better than higher ground where the rise is 

 more gradual. Our last planted orchard of uearlj- six thousand 

 trees is on the highest ground of any we have, but flat and level 

 land lies all about it. An examination of the fruit buds just 

 before coming here shows that they were all killed by the extreme 

 frost of ten daj's ago, while in our next orchard a mile away on 

 similar soil, not as high but bordered by a deep ravine, many live 

 buds are to be found. It is the same on the liome grounds ; 

 there are no live buds on the flat or low laud, but a few are left 

 on the abrupt knolls and elevations. Warm, dry soil, not too 

 rich in nitrogenous manure, is also a requisite for them. With 

 such a soil we can to some extent aid in growing or manufactur- 

 ing a tree that will be in condition to withstand frost better than 

 one grown on a heavier, richer soil. Let the cultivation be early 

 and often during Majs June, and July, and then quit, weeds or no 

 weeds. Crowd the growth of wood early in the season that it 

 may stop early in the fall and have an abundance of time to ripen 

 up thoroughly and well both the wood and fruit buds, and they 

 will stand several degrees more of freezing than is usually 

 thought possible. 



Avoid the use of stable manure or any commercial fertilizer rich 

 in nitrogen ; such manures stimulate a too rapid and too soft wood 

 growth, which is late in forming fruit buds, and these are usually 

 immature and not as hard}' as those on more mature wood. 



Phosphatic and potash manures are best for a perfect wood 

 growth, nitrogen being required onl}' to stimulate unhealthy' or 

 slow growing trees or in seasons of abundant fruitfuluess when 

 we wish to make sure of a sufficient growth of new wood, for it is 

 only on new wood that the fruit buds for the following year's 

 crop are formed. Never trim the trees till after freezing weather 

 is past; the^more bushy the head the better the protection against 

 frost, and the simple tying of a few pine boughs up among the 

 branches of a tree has often saved man}- of the buds when those 

 on unprotected trees have been entirely killed. While trimming 

 the trees in no way adds to their hardiness I wish to speak of it 

 here as one of the essentials to success. 



Charles Downing once told me that to trim a peach tree suc- 

 cessfully' a man needed to have his bump of destructiveness 

 bigger than his whole liead, and I believe it. Annually thin out 

 all crowding branches so as to form a fine open head, and shorten 

 in all new wood at least one-half, excepting of course small 



