THE DRY FARMING CONGRESS. 



263 



anywhere. It is always winter killing that does the damage. Trees 

 around the house should not be potholed, but should be treated in the 

 same manner as the orchard trees; for a single row a strip should 

 fcie plowed twenty feet wide. The rule of cultivating is, of course, break 

 the crust, fill up the pores, hold the moisture. 



Dry Land Orchards Resist Cold. 



"We cultivated the orchard twelve times last year, and also after 

 Ihe thaw this month to bottle the big snow. Trees winter best in medium 

 dry soil and do not winter-kill as much in the dry orchard as they do 

 in the irrigated orchard. In 1896-9 when so many apple trees were 

 winter-killed in different parts of the West, I did not lose a tree. The 

 trees that winter-kill are those which become too sappy in the warm 

 spells from excess of moisture about the roots. The sap cells fill up 

 Jtnd when a freeze comes, the expansion ruptures them. Nature gives 

 us a dry fall, which is best for trees, as they become more dormant 

 and the sap cells not being gorged, leaves plenty of room for expansion. 



Altitude Effect. 



"Altitude increases winter-killing, on account of lack of air press- 

 ure, the weight of the atmosphere being quite an important factor in 

 holding down the expansive power of frozen sap. Therefore, we find 

 that at a high altitude,, too much moisture is worse than not enough 

 and for this reason seepage, or even too much flood water late in the 

 Siummer are very dangerous things for all fruit trees and even for 

 upland shade trees. But cottonwoods, boxelders, soft maples, willows 

 and most of the poplars will stand seepage. These of course should 

 all be cut out by the dry farmer. 



Dry Land Trees. 



"The following can be raised on the dry farm in localities where 

 they do not winter-kill: Locust, elm, black walnut, silver poplar, 

 catalpa, live oak, black oak and the yellow pine and red spruce or 

 Douglas fir. Evergreens must be transplanted with a ball of earth, — 

 exposure of the roots is fatal. Under two feet is the best size. 



Best Dry Land Fruit. 



"The best cherry tree is the Montmorency, — Morello bears more 

 and is good to plant, although a little less hardy. 



"Plums must be very low headed to do well, some of the best are 

 the Italian prune, German prune, Tatge and Lombard. 



"Apples are very hardy in the dry orchard, and almost any va- 

 riety can be pJanted. My favorites are Yellow Transparent, Jonathan, 

 Bonne Beauty, Wealthy and Winesap. 



"The best trees are those that can pass the warm spells in winter 

 without starting the sap. Missouri, southern Nebraska and Kansas 

 trees have done the best with me. The northern trees need steady, cold 

 weather, and are not always suitable to our hot and oold winters." 



