102 STATE BOARD OF HORTICULTURE. 



severe and the tree will more quickly recover. These dormant 

 periods usually occur about four times in the year: from the 

 middle of March to the middle of April, in June, in September, 

 and from the middle of November to the middle of December. 

 The warmer season is the best for planting. Trees transplanted 

 in the winter when the ground is cold will remain until spring 

 without growing. It is therefore better to transplant when the 

 ground is warm. The nearer an orange tree is to starting new 

 growth the greater its strength and root power. This is the 

 best time for transplanting — after they have made their first 

 growth and before starting the second time in the spring. 



Trees designed for transplanting should be pruned a week or 

 ten days before they are removed from the nursery. This 

 enables them to recover from the shock of pruning before being 

 subjected to the shock of removal. 



In the selection of trees it will always be found most profit- 

 able to get the best, even though the first cost may be a little 

 more. Scrubby, neglected, ill-grown trees are dear as a gift, 

 and will never repay the care required in their culture. If the 

 trees for the orchard are to be purchased they should' be pro- 

 cured from some well-known and reliable nurseryman, who 

 will guarantee them true to name. Only clean, healthy, well- 

 grown trees should be accepted. 



Setting Out the Orchard. — In laying ofl' the orchard it is 

 desirable to have it symmetrical and to economize the land. 

 A little thought and care displayed at the commencement will 

 save much annoyance in after years, and it is no greater task 

 to have the orchard neat in appearance and symmetrical in 

 outline than to have it in a haphazard condition. There are 

 three objects to be considered in laying out the orchard: sym- 

 metry of appearance, economy of space, and facilty for future 

 care. Of course the first thing is to get the trees in straight 

 rows, at equal distances apart, and every one thinks he can 

 accomplish this. But there are various methods of disposing 

 of the straight row, and these methods all have their advocates, 

 and each one its advantages. The principal forms are the 

 square, the quincunx, and the hexagonal or septuple. The 

 methods most common in use are the square and the quincunx 

 systems. The most generally adopted is the square system, as 

 the orchard can be changed to quincunx after being planted, 

 even after a number of years of growth. 



