30 



for it is that one can cultivate in three 

 directions instead of in two as in the 

 square. However, in practice it does not 

 work out quite as well as it reads, and 

 the thoughtful American has gone back to 

 planting on the square, except, perhaps, 



G 



G 



O 



© 



© 



o 



© 









where the plantation is to be thinned. 

 Planting on the triangle is, however, well 

 suited for grass orchards, thus Bramleys 

 may be planted 36ft. apart on the triangle. 

 An ingenious plan of this is given, as 

 under, in " Better Fruit," published at 

 Hood River, Oregon, in the February 

 number for 1912. 



Interplanting. 



In the older fruit plantations in Kent 

 it is common to find plums and apples 

 alternating, and in others plums, apples, 

 and cob nuts, the idea being that different 

 trees take up different sized areas, and the 

 land is thus well occupied. There is now 

 a tendency in English and American orch- 

 ards to interplant alternately strong and 

 weak growing varieties. The following 

 diagram from the bulletin on " Growing 

 the Apple Orchard," is issued by the 

 Virginia Agricultural Experiment Station. 



In this case strong growing trees, such 

 as half-standard Bramleys, would be 



planted as permanent trees, say, 24 feet 

 apart, with weaker growing sorts, such as 

 Stirling Castle and Lane's Prince Albert, 

 as temporary bush trees, 12 feet apart. The 

 temporary would be grubbed up, after, say, 

 16 years, in order to give the larger space 



6 

 *- — -^ 



O^ 



o 



— !*■ 



Diagram Showing Method of Interplanting 



Apple Trees. 



X Permanent trees. Temporary trees. 



to the permanent trees. In America 

 attention is being given to planting trees 

 of two or more different varieties in an 

 orchard for cross-pollenation, preferably 

 choosing varieties to place tog'ether that 

 are in flower during nearly the same 

 period, early with early flowering, late 

 with late. In the Royal Horticultural 

 Society's " Journal " for December, 1911, 

 F. J. Chittenden, F.L.S., gives a record of 

 the order of flowering of some 224 of the 

 best known varieties of apple. He finds 

 the order of flowering of the different 

 varieties fairly constant year by year, not 

 only in England, but in America and 

 Australia. 



Lastly, a record should be made of the 

 varieties and date of planting, either on 

 a plan or in a notebook. One is apt to 

 forget these things, whereas a permanent 

 record is useful in case of change of men, 

 or of a new tenancy, or of a valuation 

 being made and is a great help for ready 

 reference. 



