CHAPTER III 

 TRENCHING (Reports, V, 56; IX, 65; XIV, 33) 



IN the natural course of events, the preparation of the ground 

 for planting must precede the planting itself, and a description 

 of any investigation of the former may, therefore, claim priority 

 over matters dealing with the trees themselves. 



The subject of trenching has occupied attention at the Fruit 

 Farm since its foundation, though, perhaps, it is one which is 

 of more importance to the market gardener than the fruit grower ; 

 for in fruit growing, at any rate when on a large scale, the 

 trenching of the ground is not usually attempted. It is, how- 

 ever, occasionally done, and still more often a substitute for 

 trenching is adopted, in the form of subsoiling by plough 

 cultivation, often at considerable expense. 



In considering the results obtained, it must be borne in mind 

 that bastard trenching in which the layers of soil are broken 

 up, but replaced in their natural order is alone dealt with, and 

 that no manure or other matter was buried in the trench. When- 

 ever anything is thus buried, whether it be manure, turf from the 

 surface, or the top spit of the soil itself, it is clear that the whole 

 character of the soil must be affected, and to an extent which 

 must vary so greatly with its original character, and with the 

 nature of what is buried in the trench, that no investigation 

 of any particular cases would form a guide as to the results 

 likely to be obtained elsewhere, or under other circumstances. 

 Such a subject, in fact, is hardly amenable to investigation, and 

 bastard trenching of arable land, without the addition of dung, 

 was alone examined, the two upper spits being dug, moved, and 

 then replaced in their natural order, the third spit having been 

 broken up, but not moved. 



There is one special case where such trenching must, presum- 

 ably, do good ; namely, where a hard pan has formed under the 

 surface soil, preventing the roots of plants from extending down- 

 wards, and thus restricting their supply of nourishment. No 

 such case, however, was included in the Woburn work, the 



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