WATER DRAINAGE 



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6. Subsoil. — Under this head there are two main points to be 

 considered : First, the ease of penetration by the roots of the 

 trees, and, second, the fertility of the soil. Lands with impervious 

 subsoils are not satisfactory for any fruits, and a good, medium, 

 gravelly subsoil is more fertile than a pure sand. A good subsoil 

 is a very important part of the orchard equipment. In the first 

 place a large part of the root system is in the subsoil, and in the 

 second place it is very difficult to improve a subsoil. Drainage 

 is about the only thing to which one can resort. 



Fig. 4. — A good orchard country. Rolling land that gives good water drainage and 

 atmospheric drainage. 



B. Water Drainage. — The score card divides this into surface 

 and sub-drainage. In reference to the surface we have to con 

 sider whether there is enough, so that the water will not stand on 

 the land. Even in winter standing water is objectionable (Fig. 

 4). Second, is there too much surface drainage so that the land 

 is subject to washing? By washing, both soluble plant food and 

 actual soil are lost. In times of drouth, the water from a chance 

 .^shower will run off before it can soak in. A sharp slope on light 

 lands is almost sure to suffer more from drouth than the more 



