RENOVATING OLD 



APPLE ORCHARDS. 



217 



the orchards in this region are pastured or mowed for 

 hay, and little or no fertilization is applied, and not one 

 of these, so far as I know, has this year produced any- 

 thing like an average crop. They all bloomed very 

 freely, but the failure came in the setting of the fruit, 

 or in its wholesale dropping soon after. The orchard 

 under consideration dropped an unusual proportion of 

 its fruits, but retained enough to make an average of 

 three barrels to the tree, and the quality was finer than 

 has been attained for ten years or more. 



In addition to the treatment specified, the trees were 

 sprayed May 28th and 29th, eleven days after full 

 bloom, with the ammoniacal solution of carbonate of 

 copper ; also, a little later on the same dates, with either 

 Paris green or London purple. June gth and loth, and 

 again June 27th, the same applications were made, only 

 the ammonia was omitted and the undissolved copper 

 carbonate was used at the same time with the arsenites. 



I am aware that there is nothing in all this that will 

 throw any light upon the cause of the general failure of 

 the apple crop. Indeed, the crop in this case was by no 



means a full one, with the exception of the Graven- 

 steins only. Hubbardstons yielded three-fourths of a 

 crop. Greenings one-half, and Baldwins somewhat less. 

 It is my custom systematically to thin the apples on the 

 trees, but the prospect looked so meagre that I entirely 

 neglected the operation, thereby making a mistake. 

 The thmning was carried to an extreme by nature's 

 forces, but it was not intelligently done, 



I can attribute this partial success to nothing else 

 than the fact that the trees had previously been, and 

 were this season, fully supplied with the substances that 

 they needed for fruitfulness. The copper carbon- 

 ate, by preventing fungous development, might have 

 exerted some influence in the setting of the fruit, yet 

 other orchards that were similarly sprayed yielded 

 no crops. Reason tells us, and hard experience demon- 

 strates, that something cannot come out of nothing, and 

 yet we are apt to go on in a kind of blind way, hoping 

 that we may be able to reverse this condition of things 

 and "reap where we have not sown." 



iVoi-t/wrn Mass. Jabez Fisher. 



t RENOVATING OLD 

 ^HE QUESTION is often asked 

 N m if buildings are worth repair- 

 ing. Of course, it depends 

 \/jA upon the excellence of the 

 5^ structure in question. So the 

 question of rejuvenating indi- 

 vidual trees or old orchards depends upon the in- 

 herent health, preparation and actual value of the 

 trees in question. An orchard which is composed 

 of ill-shaped, half-decayed or leaning trees is not 

 worth the trouble, labor, time and worry which 

 would be involved in anything like a fair attempt 

 at restoration. An orchard which has been 

 trimmed by sawing off branches six to nine inches 

 in diameter, and where such wounds have gone 

 through the premonitory stages of rapid decay, can 

 never be restored to its full vigor and healthful- 

 ness. 



Looking at orchard planting from this standpoint, I 

 should make these points : 



ist. Plant only the best trees attainable, the cost 

 being a very minor consideration. 



2d. Prune so completely at the start, and subse- 

 quently, that no large branches will ever need to be 

 sawed out, thus averting the damage resulting from 

 mechanical injuries to the tree, which are greater than 

 ever estimated. 



3d. Pursue an even, uniform system of management, 

 which shall secure good, but not excessive growth and 

 development year by year. 



Such is my ideal of what an orchard should be, but 

 such orchards are few, and we are obliged to take them 



APPLE ORCHARDS. 



as they are. Do not lose time on loose, leaning, or 

 heart-rotten old trees, but dig them out at once. On 

 the other hand, if you find old trees in fair vigor and 

 sound to the core, you may make something of 

 them. After removing worthless trees, scrape and 

 prune the rest, being careful not to saw off too large 

 branches, for decay is quite apt to follow. It is better 

 to suffer some inconveniences than inflict too large 

 wounds upon a tree. After pruning, which is better 

 done in November, so that the wood may be well 

 seared, plow the orchard carefully, so as not to break 

 large roots, and thence on for a time cultivate the 

 ground. 



Now comes another question which nearly always 

 confronts us in an old neglected orchard, and, indeed, 

 too often in young orchards — worthless varieties. 

 Therefore, a necessity arises of re-grafting many trees, 

 but do not mistake again by working in novelties ; take 

 varieties suited to the locality, soil and market. In re- 

 grafting, a great deal of judgment is needed. I dislike 

 to graft stocks more than two inches in diameter, and 

 never cut off more than one-third of the top to re-graft 

 in one year. The importance of a skilled grafter will 

 be apparent. If two scions start well in one stock, one 

 should be cut back and eventually sawed off. Remove 

 suckers early, so the scions may have full chance to 

 grow well. Finish grafting the succeeding year, and if 

 fair success has been reached, the tree will now be well 

 re-topped, but do not hesitate to remove strong scions if 

 they promise to be too numerous. 



If old trees are at all inclined to be mossy, a thorough 

 scraping will be needed, which may be followed by a 

 wash of soap and lime, using a pint to a quart of soft 



