48 The Principles of Fruit-growing. 



pose that the reason of it is that winds there find 

 free course. The truth is, however, that several 

 features conspire to , render these lands congenial to 

 fruits. Some of these characteristics are the follow- 

 ing : Good atmospheric drainage ; the avoidance of 

 still air in frosty weather ; good water drainage ; 

 earliness or lateness, according as they are southward 

 or northward exposures. High or strong winds are 

 always to be avoided, if possible, for they blow off 

 the fruit and injure the plants. 



As a rule, winds are beneficial to fruit planta- 

 tions only when they bring warmer air, or when 

 they keep the air in motion in frosty weather. If, 

 therefore, high lands could be protected from winds 

 without endangering atmospheric drainage or expos- 

 ing the plantation to frost, much should be gained. 



In dry regions there is a special reason for de- 

 siring to abate the winds, from the fact that they 

 abstract so much moisture from soil and plants. 

 Even a slight impediment in the path of the wind 

 may give marked results in the conservation of 

 moisture. Upon this point, King* writes as follows: 



"In arid or semi-arid countries, and in districts 

 where the soil is light and leachy, but especially 

 where there are large tracts of land whose inco- 

 herent soils suffer from the drifting action of winds, 

 it is important that the velocity of the winds near 

 the ground should be reduced to the minimum. 

 We have in Wisconsin extensive areas of light lands 

 which are now being developed for purposes of 



*The Soil. 204. 



