FRUIT PLANTATIONS AND THEIR CARE 37 



"A common mistake is in letting cover crops 

 grow too late in the spring. We sometimes forget 

 that we are raising fruit, not clover. The time to 

 plow is when it will do the fruit the most good ; 

 generally this is before the clover has made much 

 growth in the spring. But we do not accomplish 

 all that we expect when we leave the clover so 

 long. Before it blossoms it has in it about all the 

 plant food that it is going to take up. But no 

 matter how small the clover is, the ground should 

 be plowed at the time the trees need tillage. 



" Perhaps the following is as near to a general 

 rule as can be given. It agrees closely with the 

 present practice of many of our best growers. Plow 

 the land deep before planting; raise corn or other 

 tilled crops for two or three years, plowing as 

 deep as possible without injuring the roots. Each 

 year a larger space should be left so that corn will 

 not interfere with the trees. Crimson clover may 

 be sown in the corn at the last cultivation and be 

 plowed under early in the spring before it has 

 made much growth. 



" After the second or third year the land should 

 be given over entirely to the orchard. It should 

 be plowed early, before the weeds or clover have 

 grown very much, plowing shallower than in the 

 first years. Continue tillage with a cutaway or a 

 spring-tooth harrow until the middle of July or 

 August I, then sow 15 to 20 pounds of crimson 

 clover seed to the acre, or the summer grass and 

 weeds may be allowed to grow. It is not always 

 necessary to sow clover every year. If the trees 

 are tilled too late in the season, there is danger 

 that they will make too much growth in the fall 

 and be more likely to winterkill. On some of the 

 sandy soils it is not necessary to plow every year. 



