SOIL PROFILE AND ROOT PENETRATION BY APPLE TREES 6 



developed drainage ways and the underdrainage is poor, even a 

 small increase may have been, and doubtless was, seriously harmful. 



In Virginia, in the Ozarks, and in some other commercial apple- 

 growing districts, where the rainfall is as great as in western New 

 York but evaporation is higher and the soil is less retentive of mois- 

 ture, serious injury results from drought. 



In such districts trees of the same age and variety in the same 

 orchard differ markedly in size. Trees in small depressions and on 

 the lower gradual slopes, where the soil is deepest and has the greater 

 moisture supply, have larger trunks than those on the steeper slopes 

 where the soil is shallow and dry. Orchards 50 or 60 years old are 

 unusual in such districts, and trees having trunks 6 feet in circum- 

 ference are rarely seen. In the lake-shore district of western Xew 

 York, in contrast, the trees of each orchard are nearly uniform in 



Figure 1.— A typical old orchard in the lake-sho.-o district of western Xew York. 



size regardless of soil conditions. Many orchards are producing well 

 at 50 years of age; some are still bearing well at 75 years of age, and 

 there are said to be a number of bearing apple trees in Monroe 

 County more than 100 years old. In many of these old orchards the 

 average circumference of the trunk, 30 inches above the ground, is 

 more than 6 feet; numerous trees have trunks more than 7 feet in 

 circumference, and several measure more than 8 feet. 



One highly productive old orchard of the lake-shore district, 

 planted in 1865 on soils having good surface drainage and well- 

 drained subsoils, has one tree with a trunk girth of 105 inches, which is 

 said to have a record yield of 32 barrels of apples in 1 year. Roots 

 in this orchard were found to penetrate the subsoil to a depth of 

 about 8 feet (fig. 1). 



From the age of these orchards, uniformity of growth, and size of 

 the trees the conclusion is reached that orchards of this district are 



