THE DRY FARMING CONGRESS. 



343 



During that rortion when the rain does not fall and a crusted sur- 

 face is not developed, three times a month will oft-times secure fair 

 results. 



It is our belief, based on 35 years' experience, that the areation of 

 soil, that goes with frequent cultivation, helps to develop an increased 

 amount of plant food. This, when coupled with an abundant amount of 

 moisture, gives ideal conditions for the proper development of the tree, 

 or plant, and the most rapid growth attainable by any method. 



Our own orchards have been cultivated 10 to 20 times yearly and 

 where orchards were overladen with fruit and season was very dry, we 

 have sometimes cultivated the surface as often as once each way weekly. 



Depth of Moisture. 



"In the extremely dry season of 1894, we secured a crop of 400 bush- 

 els of apples per acre in one of our orchards, maintaining a suitable degree 

 of moisture by frequent cultivation. Although that season was entirely 

 dry, the last days of August, we found, on examination, a good degree 

 of moisture up to within two inches of the surface. 



"At Benton Harbor, Michigan, during a certain season, there was 

 not enough precipitation to wet the ground to a depth to exceed an inch, 

 from the 20th day of May till the 14th day of September. 



Results of Methodical Work. 



Mr. Roland Morrill cultivated his 80 acre peach orchard 40 times in 

 40 consecutive working days using Breed's weedens. Four teams culti- 

 vated 80 acres of the orchard once each day, six days in a week for 40 

 days, the results were miost happy and entirely satisfactory to Mr. Mor- 

 rill. His neighbor's orchards suffered seriously from the unnatural 

 drouth. His own orchard went through in such form that his trees re- 

 tained their full measure of vitality, and the next year gave him a crop 

 that sold for 35,000 dollars. His peach trees averaged eight bushels per 

 tree. 



When to Cease Orchard Cultivation. 



"The object of this intensive cultivation is to carry an orchard as 

 the railroad runs an express train, at full speed; and then, by the appli- 

 cation of the brakes, the momentum of the train is stopped at a proper 

 point at the station; so the orchard is pushed to a vigorous growth until 

 the first of August, then as a rule cultivation should cease. 



"Sometimes the conditions as to weed growth or moisture are such 

 that it is advisable to continue cultivation until the middle of August; 

 other seasons it is wise to check cultivation by the middle of July and 

 allow the development of light weed growth, which shall assist in check- 

 ing the rapid or unripe growth and cause the tree to ripen in season to 

 be ready for the first Autumnal freeze. In a general way trees should 

 be cultivated later the first season after planting than after they have 

 attained such a vigorous root system, as to create liability to too late 

 growth and unripe wood. 



