276 THE PEACH. 



time cannot be stated, as seasons vary even in the same section of 

 country, but the watchful eye will soon learn to detect the period 

 when the young stock is about to form its terminal bud, and then is 

 generally the best time. If the bud is inserted too early in the sea- 

 son, on the peach stock, it is liable to overgrow and " gum." 



Budding the peach may also be performed in the month of June, 

 on trees of two or more years old. It is done in same manner as 

 that in common budding, except in selecting the buds, you select a 

 young shoot, of about one to two inches grown, and, cutting it back to 

 one or two leaves, you insert and tie as in the commoa mode. 



By Grafting. This is rarely performed at the North, but may be 

 made tolerably successful if performed very early on trees standing 

 in warm, light soil. A strong, sharp knife or spade should first be 

 used around, cutting off all the roots of the tree, at about one foot 

 from the body of a tree four feet high the tree headed back about 

 one half, and the lower limbs cut in to about two buds each the 

 graft inserted in the manner termed tongue or whip-grafting, tied 

 with soft bark, and covered with a ball of grafting-clay. When 

 the graft has made one foot growth, the ligature should be loosed, 

 and the lower limbs cut in smoothly to the body. Some cultiva- 

 tors in the Southern States graft into the crown of the root, and when 

 the stocks are small it is a good way ; but the cleft-grafting mode is 

 then best. 



Transplanting. In transplanting from the nursery to the orchard, 

 the limbs, or branches, should be shortened back to the form of a 

 pyramidal, rounded head, having the lower limbs within two feet of 

 the ground, and not exceeding one foot long. The side roots should 

 only have their ends smoothed with a sharp knife, all broken or 

 bruised roots cut away, and the tap root cut off to within one foot of 

 the crown. 



Distances apart. On light, sandy soils, twelve feet apart each way 

 is sufficient for the Peach ; but on good strong soil, the trees require 

 from eighteen to twenty-five feet, in order, when full-grown, to enable 

 them to mature their fruit with full exposure to the sun. 



Soil and Situation. The soil whereon to make plantations of the 

 Peach is a matter of great import, as thereby hang the main chances 

 of success or failure. The following analysis, made by B. Kirtland, 

 Esq., of Poland, Ohio, from three esteemed varieties, viz. : Yellow 

 Rareripe, Morris Red Rareripe, and Morrisania, will be found ex- 

 tremely useful to every planter, as it is easy to get an analysis made 

 of soils, and from the two the planter will know at once which par- 

 ticular manure is required to perfect his fruit, and give vigor to hia 



