592 THE PEACH. 
sandy soil in New Jersey and Delaware, has led many to believe 
that this is the best soil for the peach. But such is not the fact, 
and the short duration of this tree in those districts is unques- 
tionably owing to the rapidity with which the soil is impoverished, 
We have, on the contrary, seen much larger, finer, and riche~ 
flavoured peaches, produced for a long time successively, on mel- 
low loam, containing but little sand, than upon any other soil 
whatever. : ; 
It is a well-founded practice not to plant peach orchards sue 
cessively upon the same site, but always to choose a new one. 
From sixteen to twenty-five feet apart may be stated as the lim- 
its of distance at which to plant this tree in orchards—more 
space being required in warm climates and rich soils than under 
the contrary circumstances. North of New York it is better al- 
ways to make plantations in the spring, and it should be dona 
pretty early in the season. South of that limit it may usually 
be done with equal advantage in the autumn. 
In districts of country where the fruit in the blossom is liable 
to be cut off by spring frosts, it is found of great advantage to 
make plantations on the north sides of hills, northern slopes or 
elevated grounds, in preference to warm valleys and southern 
aspects. In the colder exposures the vegetation and blossoming 
of the tree is retarded until after all danger of injury is past. 
Situations near the banks of large rivers and inland lakes are 
equally admirable on this account, and in the garden where we 
write, on the banks of the Hudson, the blossoms are not injured 
once in a. dozen years, while on level grounds only five miles 
in the interior, they are destroyed every fourth or fifth season. 
With regard to the culture of peach orchards, there is a. 
seeming disparity of opinion between growers at the north and 
south. Most of the cultivators at the south say, never plough 
or cultivate an orchard after it has borne the first crop. Plough- 
ing bruises the roots, enfeebles the trees, and lessens the crop. 
Enrich the ground by top dressings, and leave it in a state of 
rest. The best northern growers say, always keep the land in 
good condition,—mellow and loose by cultivation,—-and crop it 
very frequently with the lighter root and field crops. Both are 
correct, and it is not difficult to explain the seeming difference 
of opinion. : . 
The majority of the peach orchards south of Philadelphia, it 
will be recollected, grow upon a thin, light soil; previously rather 
impoverished. In such soils, it is necessarily the case, that the 
roots lie near the surface, and most of the food derived by them 
is from what is applied to the surface, or added to the soil. 
Ploughing therefore, in such soils, wounds and injures the roots, - 
and cropping the ground takes from it the scanty food annually 
applied or already in the soil, which is not more than sufficient 
for the orchard alone. In a stronger and deeper scil, the roots 
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