PROCEEDINGS OF THIRTY-THIRD FRUIT-GROWERS ' CONVENTION. 203 



eight days, and even then we could not keep them from showing need of 

 more water. We found it almost impossible to get the fruit on trees 

 on such ground up to size, and trees with any considerable crop of fruit 

 made almost no growth. 



Now, after five years of the system of plowing alternate middles on 

 alternate years, what is the condition of affairs? The physical con- 

 dition of the soil is altogether changed. It is as "mellow" as any 

 ordinary piece of new land. "We irrigate about once every month. 

 The quality of our fruit on 1 ' old ' ' land, thus handled, is as good as any 

 we ever produced on new land, and even with heavy crops our trees 

 make a vigorous growth and give every evidence of health and vigor. 



In laying off the land for plowing, we so arrange, as far as possible, 

 that these unplowed middles will lie crosswise to the flow of the water 

 caused by the winter rains, because, while the second object of this 

 system is to put more humus in the soil, the first object is to prevent; 

 the washing away of that which we already have. 



Now, when we plowed last spring I feel confident that we plowed 

 under an amount of natural grasses, including burr clover, easily equal 

 to fifty two-horse loads of stable manure to the acre. 



Our experience has proved beyond question that the covering of dry 

 grass which we have on the unplowed middles through the summer, and 

 the good physical condition of the soil amply offset the supposed 

 increase of evaporation due to its unplowed condition. This must be 

 so on account of the less irrigation required to get better results than 

 ever. As we get uniformly good results with all kinds of fruit we 

 grow, I feel confident that a careful, scientific study of the matter will 

 show that this system will enable nature to replace not only the nitrogen 

 required, but all other chemicals necessary. 



(The special session was thereupon duly adjourned.) 



