12 SOIL—ROCKS—WATER—TIMBER 
will be almost certain to show in divers ways the effects 
of the dryness which is incidental to such a gravel- 
patch. 
Warer.—Marshy ground, and, in fact, any low-lying 
spot in which stagnant water stands for any length of 
time, are alike places to be avoided. To plant an orchard 
in such situations is to condemn it to failure from the 
start. On the other hand, water is a prime necessity. 
In a district in which irrigation is absolutely essential to 
the production of fruit, as, for instance, in most of the 
Okanagan Valley, water is, of course, a sine qua non. 
When buying land in such a district, it is every bit as 
important to make sure that there does exist a good 
water-supply, and to see that it is adequate for all pur- 
poses, as it is to satisfy yourself that the land itself is 
right. And even in districts where irrigation is not 
absolutely essential to the production of fruit crops, or 
is not indeed needed at all, it is a wise thing to make 
sure that water can readily be obtained if it is needed. 
This does not mean that there must be a running stream 
through the middle of the orchard. It is sufficient if 
there is one not very far distant, or else some kind of a 
supply stored up for possible use in the height of the 
summer. In several cases a good well is all that is 
required. Ina non-irrigated country the natural drainage 
off the mountains, known to fruit-growers as “‘ seepage,”’ 
is as a rule all that the trees require in the form of sub- 
soil moisture. But in this respect the conditions vary. 
In some localities it is found that the quite young trees 
need more moisture than Nature supplies; in other 
localities—e.g., in Hood River, Oregon—it is the older 
