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regular crops. This variety will not unite with the peach, but 

 from the above experience it would seem that it needs a peach 

 root, but must have an intermediate plum stock of strong habit. 



There are several fruit growers in other States who believe 

 in and practice this plant breeding. Professor L,. H. Bailey 

 is planting Spy as the foundation for his apple orchard. S. A. 

 Heiges uses Ben Davis for the same purpose, top grafting on to 

 it all weaker varieties. Professor Van Deman recommends the 

 same practice, and has planted orchards in Kansas the same 

 way. S. D. Williard, in New York State, one of the largest 

 plum growers in the country, plants Lombard entirely as a stock, 

 and top-grafts all varieties on to it. George T. Powell uses 

 Keiffer as a stock for pears, and by this method Bosc, an excellent 

 pear, but one which is never recommended because of its poor 

 straggling growth, may become well known ; and so on with many 

 varieties of all classes of fruits which are poor growers. 



There are certain varieties which never make good trees, and 

 'no amount of care or manuring will remedy the defect ; the only 

 remedy is double working giving them a good foundation. There 

 are other varieties that are said to be more or less self-sterile, and 

 which need to be planted in the near proximity to other varieties. 

 Give these more vigour and strength, and the chances are they 

 will also become better bearers." 



WHAT TO DO WITH YOUR OLD ORCHARDS. 



It is certainly an important matter for those who are going 

 in for orcharding to consider what is best to be done with the 

 old orchards which are standing most probably on the farm. A 

 number of planters consider that the best way of settling the 

 question is to dig them out at once their reasons generally being 

 that they are in a filthy state, and composed of varieties of no 

 market value and a nest for all sorts of pests. We must say, as 

 the result of our experience, that this is not our opinion. An old 

 orchard on a farm is valuable in many ways. 



Firstly : the trees can be cut about and can be used as a 

 practice ground for the orchardist, who, if he is a South African, 

 has many new ideas from abroad to put into practice and experi- 

 ment with and satisfy himself upon ; and if he came in from 

 abroad with knowledge, he will find such trees of great value for 

 testing how far his former practice can be carried out in this 

 country. 



Secondly : Because if such trees are of worthless varieties they 

 can readily be top-grafted to sorts which have been proved to 

 thrive and pay well, and, more than this, and most valuable of 



