THE ORCHARD. 185 



have the heads of his trees at once out of their vray. Few- 

 people, liowever, follow such a practice. In very elevated 

 and exposed situations, low trees are to be preferred, as 

 the wind does not strike them witli such force as it does 

 the tall ones. 



; 7th. Arrangement of the Trees. — The distance between 

 Hihe trees in an apple orchard should be thirty feet from 

 tree to tree, in all directions. In a very strong and deep 

 soil, where the trees attain the largest dze, forty feet is 

 not too much, especially aft«r the first fifteen or twenty 

 years. There is a great difference between the sizes that 

 different varieties attain, and also in tlieir habits of 

 growth. One will attain nearly double the size of another 

 within ten years. Some ai-e erect in their habits (as fig 

 3), others spreading (as fig. 5) ; and it will add greatly to 

 the symmetry of the plantation if the trees of the same 

 size and habit of growth be planted together. Varieties 

 that ripen about the same time should also be planted 

 together, as the maturity can be more easily watched, 

 and the fruit gathered with much less inconvenience. 

 The largest fruits, being most liable to be blown off, 

 should be placed in the least exposed quarter. 



The ordinary arrangement of orchard trees is the 

 square or regular form, in rows, the same distance apart, 

 and an equal distance between each tree. Thus, in plant- 

 ing a square of one hundred feet, for example, the trees 

 to be twenty-five feet apart, we commence on one side, 

 laying a line the Avhole length. On this line we measure 

 off the distances for the trees, and place a stake, indica- 

 ting the point for the tree. Thus, in fig. 96, w^e have five 

 rows of five trees each, making twenty-five in all, and all 

 twenty-five feet apart. This is the simplest, and probably 

 the best for very small orchards. The better plan for 

 large orchards is what is called quincunx (fig. 97), in 

 which the trees of one row are opposite the spaces in the 

 next. In this way, although the trees are at equal dis- 



