SIXTF.HNTU ANNUAL MEETING. 91 



ground. C'ulti\atit>n nnist 1)C kept up coutinuousl}'. to save 

 soil moisture and make more plant food axailable, by bringing 

 the partieles of soil in contact with the air. 



Priiitiiii^. — We prune at any time during tlie dormant 

 period, preferal)ly in March, after the hardest freezes are OA'er. 

 Many claim to get good results by spring or even summer 

 pruning and one (^f the most productive orchards I have ever 

 seen has always l^een pruned in tlie fall! Howe\'er, I am in- 

 clined to attribute the results in the latter case to the severity 

 of the priming rather than to the time when it was done. Much 

 of tlie tliinning can be done by se\ere |)runing, but even after 

 that lias been done, the expense of picking oil the surplus 

 peaclies by hand will often be considerable. This thinning is 

 essential and must be done before the pit hardens. The pro- 

 duction of seed is a most exhaustive process and the tree 

 should be given all possible relief, by reducing the number of 

 fruits. This results in stronger and longer lived trees, larger 

 sized fruits and doubled ])rotits. 



Diseases and Insects. — Curl leaf develops during cold, moist 

 weather, 1)ut a thorough spraying of the dormant trees in 

 March with a solution of tw^o pounds of blue vitriol (copper 

 suli)hate) to fifty gallons of water is a sure preventive. "Yel- 

 lows" and "Little Peach" are deadly diseases, the cause of 

 whicli we know^ absolutely nothing. There is no known cure 

 and the only safe course is' to cut down and destroy by fire all 

 (lisea.sed trees as soon as discovered. This course has held 

 tliese diseases in check. Do not waste time with these dis- 

 eased trees, if you desire to stay in the peach business. Ex- 

 perimenting with tliem lias cost many a grower his entire 

 orchard. The annual "grubbing"' of the base of the trees, to 

 destro\- the l)orer, is also necessary — sometimes twice in the 

 year. 



fertilizers. — Stable manure is all right to secure rapid 

 growth, but its continued use in large quantities produces wood 

 that is soft and tender. However, in our exclusive fruit sec- 

 tion we do not ha\e enough stable manure on our farms to do 

 any great damage. Fertilizers tliat are rich in potash and 

 phosj)horic acid are most valuable, such as unleached hard 

 wood ashes and sj-round l)onc. We ]ia\-e had to resort to the 



