388 



GAKDENIXG FOE THE SOUTH. 



fruit, is added before drying. The firm, yellow fleshed 

 are the best for drying. Peaches thus prepared are only 

 inferior to the fresh fruit, as they retain much of the 

 flavor. Dried in the usual way from unripe fruit, exposed 

 to the sun, much of the flavor is dissipated. Peaches are 

 excellent preserved in self-sealing cans, which now can be 

 purchased at reasonable prices. 



Lime, potash, and the phosphates, are the chief elements 

 the peach requires in the soil. Bone-dust and wood ashes 

 are valuable applications, much more suitable than com- 

 mon animal manures. They may be dressed with com- 

 post of woods' earth, or swamp muck, if the soil is very 

 poor. 



When the trees are planted, the holes may be made 

 large, and enriched with well-decayed manure, to give a 

 good growth of wood. For this purpose guano is an ex- 

 cellent application ; but it is fatal to the tree if it comes in 

 contact with the roots. I have applied it with success to 

 all kinds of fruit trees. After the holes are dug, a little 

 guano is sprinkled in them; this is then covered with 

 about two inches of good mould, on which the tree is 

 planted. When the tree is planted, another sprinkling of 

 guano may be added, and covered with a little more 

 earth; two or three tablespoonfuls are sufficient for a 

 tree, and but a small quantity is required for a large or- 

 chard. For this purpose, as well as for manuring most 

 shrubs, rose bushes, etc., few applications are so cheap 

 and satisfactory. After the tree begins to fruit, applica- 

 tions of lime, ashes, or leaf mould are much better than 

 those which excite growth, as they do not impair the 

 flavor of the fruit or induce decay. 



The peach is best propagated by budding and grafting 

 upon seedling peach stocks. There are, however, many 

 varieties of the clings, particularly, that reproduce them- 

 selves from the seed, especially if the tree from which the 

 stone is taken stands apart from other varieties. It is be- 



