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THE ORCHARD 



'; ; 



EARLY BEARER. 



This apple tree is being injured by being 

 allowed to bear too soon. 



224. The management 

 of an orchard includes 

 the cultivating and the 

 spraying of the trees, 

 and the harvesting, stor- 

 ing, and marketing of 

 the fruit. 



Many orchards are left 

 in grass, but cultivation 

 is certainly the better 

 practice, except on steep 

 hillsides where sod may 

 be continued for periods 

 of a few years to avoid 



soil wash. The usual method of cultivation is to plow 



between the rows in the spring, and to harrow at intervals 



afterward to the middle 



of July. Between July 



15 and August 1, cow 



peas or crimson clover 



may be sown as cover 



crops. These grow dur- 

 ing the late summer 



and fall, and are plowed 



under the following 



spring to enrich the soil. 

 The advantages of 



cover crops are three : 



(1) They check un- 

 due wood growth, and 

 so stimulate fruit de- 

 velopment ; 



(2) They add humus 

 and fertility to the soil ; 



BROKEN CROTCH. 

 The result of bad early pruning. 



