64 



The apple is not nearly so hard to please in the matter 

 of soil as most other fruit trees. Provided its moderate 

 requirements of lime, potash arid phosphates are supplied, 

 the nitrification going on in all soils under culture, with the 

 ordinary stable manure in moderate supply, is amply suffi- 

 cient to supply nitrogen. The present fashion of heavy 

 top-dressing with guano and other ammoniacal manures is 

 to be deprecated. They have a tendency to produce wood 

 and foliage instead of fruit. The only soils in which the 

 apple is not likely to repay culture, (if the climate suits), 

 are thin dry sands and sodden clays. A strong loam may 

 be a good apple ground if it has plenty of lime naturally, 

 or if lime be artificially added. Even heavy granitic clays, 

 derived from the decomposed felspar, will grow apples when 

 well limed to set free the potash which they contain in an 

 insoluble state, and to flocculate the otherwise impervious 

 mass. Probably the magnesia derived from the mica par- 

 ticles in these soils has an influence, for no fruit contains 

 so much of that substance as does the apple. I o the recogni- 

 tion of this fact is due the modern practice of giving an oc- 

 casional light dressing of Kainit to the apple orchard, that 

 mineral supplying both potash and magnesia. But in all 

 cases a quick ready drainage is essential, and in clayey 

 loams it has to be expressly provided. Probably it will 

 not be long before a demand arises for orchard drain-tiles. 

 Drains laid with these are less expensive to dig and lay 

 than any other sort, and if the bed is evenly cut to the 

 given slopt^, they never fill up. The 2^-inch size is suffi- 

 cient for branches and 4 -inch for the main run. With 

 similar machinery to that which is now turning out excel- 

 lent bricks for the main drainage of Cape Town streets, 

 there would be no difficulty in producing Cape-made drain- 

 tiles in any quantity and at a reasonable rate. 



PROPAGATION. Seedling stocks are raised from the pips 

 of known sorts which have been recognised as strong 

 growers. In England the crushed pulp of the cider-press 

 is washed over and the pips separated. The special cider- 

 apples are all strong vigorous sorts, hence there is the less 

 need for particular selection. Some growers prefer the 

 pips of crab wildings. But of late years the convenient 



