STATE POMOLOQICAL SOCIETY. 35 



of hay, and my trees were thrifty ; but this coarse began to tell upon 

 m^- trees, and from A-ear to 3'ear they made less growth and it became 

 a serious question how I could manure the orchard and not starve 

 other portions of m}- farm. 



Still I knew something mustbedone for the orchard. I finally decided 

 to pasture with sheep and swine, and last year, although an off 

 year, with the fruit crop nearly a failure in the State, this orchard 

 paid me fift}' dollars per acre net, besides being a good sheep pas- 

 ture. The trees Avere set thirty feet apart, and set both fall and 

 spring with equally good results. 



But I will not tire you with the detail of my work in this direc- 

 tion, but simi)ly say that, as a result of some thirty odd years since 

 commencing orcharding for myself, I find myself in possession of 

 about twenty acres, a larger part of which was set by my own hands. 

 The first orchard I set, the trees were set thirt}- feet apart, but I 

 now set them twenty-five feet. 



In starting an orchard, the first thing to be done after the selec- 

 tion of the site, is to decide upon the varieties to grow and in 

 this one can not be too careful. The first question should be : Is 

 the fruit good? I mean, among the best ; and if so. Is the tree 

 a shy bearer? and if so, j'ou can not afford to set it. Then, 

 is it known and appreciated in the markets? If not, although 

 you may think it among the best, being juicy, melting and 

 delicious, an abundant bearer, and there is not a call for it in 

 the markets, do not invest largelj' in it, as life is too short to 

 risk in this direction, too short to think of building up a variety 

 that is but little known, no matter how good it may be. Better, by 

 all means, cultivate those varieties like the Baldwin and Russet, for 

 which there is always a demand in all markets. 



Before setting your trees, plow and pulverize your ground deeplv, 

 and then before the tree agent comes along decide upon the varieties 

 you will set, being sure not to have too many. Then make a 

 l)lan of your orchard, so that you can see at a glance where every 

 variety is, that when a tree dies it can be replaced with the same 

 variety. In this wa}' you can have each variety 1)}' itself, and you 

 will not only add beauty to your orchard, l)ut it will add much to 

 the convenience in getting the fruit. Above all things, fight shy of 

 new varieties. Think how many varieties have been placed upon 

 the market witliin the last two decades with high-sounding names, 

 and for which great prices were asked, but which ai'c now hardly 



