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ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL HORTICULTURE 



Orchard Brush Burner 



When I was in Southern Oregon not 

 long ago I saw what was to me a new 

 implement. It was a home-made affair 

 that was the outgrowth of the necessity 

 for getting rid of orchard prunings. H. 

 F. Header, of Jackson county, Oregon, 

 who is an up-to-date orchardist, conceived 

 the plan of building a portable brush 

 burner, in which the refuse left after 

 pruning could be got rid of without the 

 trouble of hauling it out of the orchards. 

 He made a frame or running-gear of 

 four poles about six inches in diameter, 

 using two for axletrees about seven feet 

 long, and on top of these two others about 

 ten feet long were bolted near the ends, 

 forming a rectangle. To the under side 

 of one was fastened a round iron rod, 

 whose projecting ends were used as 

 spindles for two old farm implement 

 wheels about a foot in diameter. These 

 wheels were held in place by linchpins 

 that were put through holes made in the 

 ends of the spindles at the blacksmith 

 shop on the farm. The burner proper 

 was a huge iron basket or crate, about 

 six by ten feet on the bottom by two 

 feet deep, made of old wagon tires rivet- 

 ed together. The meshes of this crate 

 were nearly a foot in diameter, which was 

 sufficiently close to hold the brush. The 

 bottom was covered with old sheet-iron 

 scraps to keep the coals from falling 

 through and thus hold the fire. 



On one end, which was the front, and 

 next where the team was to be hitched, it 

 was sided up to the top with sheet iron, to 

 prevent too much radiation of heat in 

 that direction. Chains or iron rods were 

 fastened to the front end and extended 

 about ten feet forward to put the team 

 a proper distance from the fire. 



This crude apparatus, made on the 

 farm out of old scraps, served a most 

 excellent purpose. It was taken into the 

 orchard where the brush was on the 

 ground; a fire kindled in it, and as the 

 brush was piled on and consumed it was 

 dragged forward and more brush added, 

 until one row after the other v/as burnt 

 and out of the way. 



Mr. Header told me that some of his 



neighbors made fun of it, and thought 

 it was not practical, but a few borrowed 

 it of him, and now there are several in 

 the vicinity. 



There is lying about almost every farm 

 some material, such as old iron wheels, 

 axles, wagon and buggy tires, that might 

 be made into one of these handy brush 

 burners, with the aid of a blacksmith 

 and at little expense, provided there is 

 no forge on the farm to lessen the cost 

 still more. The frame should not be 

 weak, or it might heat and sag to the 

 ground. I^et thei'e be hundreds of these 

 brush burners made without delay by 

 our orchardists and put to use. Several 

 neighbors might own and use one to- 

 gether. This will turn the brush into 

 ashes and spread them in the orchards, 

 where they should be, and save about half 

 the expense of getting rid of the brush. — 

 H. E. Van Deman in Rural New Yorker. 



Oregon 



Oregon has an area of 94,560 square 

 miles and is seventh in size of the states 

 of the Union. 



There are three great ranges of moun- 

 tains dividing the state fx^om north to 

 south with cross ranges here and there 

 running east and west. There is what 

 is called the Coast range, from 10 to 30 

 miles from the Pacific ocean; the Cas- 

 cade range, from 110 to 150 miles inland; 

 and the Blue mountains in the eastern 

 part of the state. 



The extreme altitude of the Coast 

 range is about 4,000 feet; the Cascades 

 are nearly 7,000 feet, with several peaks 

 rising far above the general range, like 

 Hount Hood, 11,500 feet; HcLaughlin, 11,- 

 000 feet; and Jefferson, 10,500 feet. The 

 Cascades are heavily timbered to the snow 

 line, and all that part of the state west 

 of the Cascades is forest. Eastern Ore- 

 gon is a high tableland, embracing about 

 two-thirds of the state. The rainfall of 

 this section is light, about enough to 

 grow wheat, but there are fertile valleys 

 along the lakes and rivers in the Blue 

 mountains and in the southern portion 

 of the state. There is about 300 miles 

 of coast line, rugged and precipitous, ex- 

 cept a few bays and harbors like Tilla- 



