Practical Orcharding On Rough Lands. 79 



"Dig three feet deep, each planting hole, 

 Fix 'plumb' each stem with twine and pole, 

 The loose sward underneath you cast, 

 Fill up with earth and tread it fast; 

 Then leave your tree, but don't forget 

 How much the loosened soil will set, 

 To catch the rain the earth about 

 Should like a dish be hollowed out.''' 



There are some sites which are so very steep 

 that the plow can not be used to advantage in 

 their preparation. If these soils are filled with 

 stone or gravel so that the roots of the trees may- 

 penetrate it easily the planter may succeed by 

 digging the holes without plowing the surface 

 at all. This method will require more hand 

 labor (or digging around the trees) than if the 

 surface had been plowed. This plan does not 

 succeed so well in tight clay soils, as the water 

 frequently gathers in the holes on account of; 

 lack of drainage. 



It will be found advantageous when digging 

 the holes to pile the top soil to itself, so it may 

 be at hand when setting the trees. On steep 

 land it has proven to be a good plan to pile the 

 dirt on the upper side of the hole, so that the 

 washings may be caught in the hole below. We 

 should not lose sight of the fact that it is the 

 lightest and best of the soil that is carried away 

 by the washing, (erosion), and when once out- 

 side the boundaries of our deed it is gone for- 

 ever, so we should be very careful about its loss. 



