398 THE APPLE 



sodium nitrate, ammonium sulphate, dried blood, etc. produce a 

 vigorous growth and should be used only where rapid wood growth 

 is desired. The production of too much wood results in a soft, 

 succulent growth that will not ripen up well in the fall, and is 

 likely to be injured by winter freezing. As a rule it is not safe 

 to apply nitrogenous fertilizers during the first season of the ren- 

 ovating process, except in some such form as raw ground bone 

 that will become available very slowly. 



Stable manure. Stable manure is not suitable, for the reason 

 that it contains a large proportion of nitrogenous material, and 

 applications carrying the required amount of mineral elements 

 would furnish an excess of nitrogen. If it should be necessary 

 to use stable manure during the first season of renovation, it should 

 not be applied in large quantities, and its use should be accom- 

 panied by a quick-growing cover crop to utilize the surplus nitrogen 

 in the fall. 



Potash and phosphoric acid. While it is seldom necessary or 

 expedient to apply nitrogenous fertilizers, it is usually advisable 

 to give a liberal feeding of potash and phosphoric acid. Hard- 

 wood ashes, when they can be obtained and when their composition 

 is known to be up to standard, are suitable for orchard use. They 

 contain about 5 per cent of potash, from 30 to 40 per cent of 

 lime, and a small amount of phosphoric acid. Potash may be 

 obtained in the form of muriate or sulphate of potash. Where 

 immediate results are required, a readily available form of phos- 

 phoric acid, such as acid phosphate, will give best results. For 

 subsequent use, however, one of the slower dissolving forms, such 

 as raw ground bone, may be more economically applied. 



Applications. In the renovation of an apple orchard the follow- 

 ing formula is suggested for the first year : 



Pounds per Acre 



Muriate or sulphate of potash 200 



Acid phosphate 300 



Raw ground bone 400 



When the phosphoric acid in the raw bone becomes available, 

 the amount of acid phosphate may be reduced one half the second 

 season and omitted entirely the third and subsequent years. In 

 view of the beneficial effect of lime on most soils, 400 pounds of 



