Pecan Seedlings and Care of the Native Grove 27 



cultivation. The first breaking should be shallow so as to 

 destroy as few of the lateral roots as possible. When the 

 groves are uncultivated and the trees crowded, there is usually 

 great damage from lack of moisture. This is shown prin- 

 cipally in the shedding of immature nuts and in greatly 

 reducing the size of those that do mature. 



The improvement of the grove as suggested above will un- 

 doubtedly reduce the ravages from insect pests and diseases 

 and will enable the trees to secure more moisture and plant- 

 food, thereby enabling them to produce much heavier and 

 better crops of nuts. It is, therefore, a very conservative 

 estimate to state that the native crop of seedling pecans could 

 be increased by several million pounds if the groves were 

 given proper care and attention. Plate III shows a native 

 grove of pecans owned by Senator T. H. Ridgeway of San 

 Antonio, Texas, located on the Medina River. Plate III, lower, 

 pictures a group just across the fence that is still in the virgin 

 state. Senator Ridgeway cleared his grove in 1918 and he 

 states that '^The production from the fifty acre tract since 

 1918 has been sufficient to pay the purchase price of the land 

 and the clearing, and the improvements thereon. This grove 

 produced a crop of nuts in 1922 while all surrounding native 

 trees failed. '^ 



The pecan tree, in order to function properly, demands a 

 constant and abundant supply of moisture. The oldest and 

 most productive groves stand where nature gives them this 

 supply. 



SEEDLINGS PLANTED BY MAN 



A large percentage of the older pecan orchards set out by 

 man are seedlings. Even though the choicest nuts may have 



