646 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
Sep^embor 23 
“ A BUSINESS ORCHARD.” 
The R. N.-Y. very seldom copies an 
entire article from other publications. 
The following article, however, taken 
from the Vermont Watchman, written 
by our respected friend, Dr. T. H. Hos¬ 
kins, can hardly be cut, as it gives the 
results of many years of careful study 
and observation. Let our readers re¬ 
member that Dr. Hoskins describes the 
situation in northern Vermont. 
“ As to whether the proposing orchard- 
ist should grow his own trees, that will 
depend upon his conditions If it will 
take him two or three years to prepare 
his orchard ground, and if he knows 
how, he might as well raise his own 
trees ; for it is a growing conviction with 
men of experience that it is better not to 
have the young trees—root-grafted or 
budded—of more than two years’ growth 
when transferred to their permanent 
positioi s in the orchard. Whether they 
are root-grafted or buddeds is a matter 
of minor importance, other things being 
equal. Good trees are grown in both 
ways ; hut in the cold North, where 
there is danger from tender stocks, the 
root-grafting of long scions upon short 
roots seems to be preferable. With 
stocks surely iron-clad, budding has some 
advantages ; but is not without its disad¬ 
vantages. At any rate, we should select 
the very best location, and the very best 
soil, for the nursery. It cannot be too 
well selected, or too carefully prepared ; 
and it must be as nearly level as is con¬ 
sistent with thorough surface drainage. 
In very heavy soil it must also be thor¬ 
oughly underdrained. A very slight 
slope, to the east or south, with an even 
grade and surface, is important in any 
nursery. Stocks may be home-grown ; 
but they can usually be bought cheaper, 
where iron-clad stocks are not needed. 
For iron-clad stocks, plant Duchess of 
Oldenburgh seeds in rich, deep, well- 
worked, garden soil. 
“ As to the ground for the orchard ; if 
the soil is strong and well suited to 
apples, the planter need not be very par¬ 
ticular about any other point than good 
drainage ; though a smooth site, free 
from surface impediments, is always to 
be preferred for very obvious reasons 
connected with setting, cultivation, and 
other essential work in connection with 
the culture of the trees and the handling 
of the fruit. 
“It is scarcely necessary to say that 
much gocd fruit has been and can be 
grown upon pretty rough land, and 
pretty steep hillsides. But it is always 
done at a disadvantage in various ways, 
and with increased expense. 
“ When the orchard has been carefully 
set with good trees, on a good location, 
accessible to a market, a great and im¬ 
portant part of the work is accom¬ 
plished ; yet it is but a beginning. If 
the site allows, there should be constant 
and clean culture. If this cannot be 
given, then the alternative is a heavy 
and often renewed mulching of the trees; 
and this means a contest with mice. 
Common strip laths, cut in halves, and 
bound about the trunks of the trees with 
a single turn of cotton twine, each 
autumn, have always proved a perfect 
protection, in my orchards, against mice. 
Use as many strips as are needed to cover 
the trunk. It is not a great job. Two 
smart boys can protect 200 or 300 in a day. 
Soon after the snow is gone, remove the 
strips, and rub them and the trees, to 
kill all insects harboring there. 
“ The best crop to grow in a young or¬ 
chard is bush beans. They can be grown 
continuously for as many years as re¬ 
quired, without any rotation, up to the 
time when the trees are bearing well. The 
bean straw makes an excellent mulch for 
the trees, as mice do not nest in it. lhe 
bean crop will pay for both the cultiva¬ 
tion and the manuring of the orchard. 
Potatoes are a good crop for a young or¬ 
chard, but require much more manure 
than beans, and are more injured by the 
shade of the trees as these increase in 
size. Stack the beans on ground outside 
of the orchard after the trees begin to 
make much shade. Currants and goose¬ 
berries may be grown successfully in the 
rows between the trees, quite as long as 
the beans ; and they will yield a good 
profit where there is a market for the 
fruit. Growing these crops in the orchard, 
with suitable tillage and manure, is a 
positive benefit to it, as the growth of the 
trees will be quite as strong and the 
ground crop will pay for free manuring. 
This is not ‘ theory.’ It has been my 
constant and successful practice for 
nearly 30 vears, in all my orchards, up to 
the time when they come into full bear¬ 
ing, and even beyond that. Under this 
method the orchard is profitable almost 
from the start, which is of importance to 
many, and may be the turning point be¬ 
tween success and failure. Another point 
is also of some consequence. Such a cul¬ 
tivated orchard is so constantly under the 
owner’s eyes that insect depredations are 
immediately noticed and attended to; 
and anything needing to be done for the 
benefit of the trees is seen without de¬ 
lay. It is impossible to defraud the trees 
of nutriment by this process, for the sim¬ 
ple reason that unless the ground is kept 
rich enough to give a free growth to the 
trees, these secondary crops will be a 
dead failure. Nothing can keep the 
trees from getting their full 6hare of the 
manure. I give a dressing of stable ma¬ 
nure every second or third year, and run 
in about 1,000 pounds of commercial fer¬ 
tilizer per acre with the beans, every 
year. The shade of the trees is a benefit 
to the currants and gooseberries, and a 
grateful protection to the berry pickers 
The whole ground is kept clear of weeds 
by cultivating the bean crop and hoeing 
the berry bushes. 
“As to the proper varieties of apples to 
be grown, this must be determined by 
the location. But do not waste time and 
money in experimenting with new sorts, 
when any old sorts are known to do well 
in your locality. 
“A man without much capital, aside 
from his land, can do best by selecting 
a site for his orchard and planting one 
or two rows of trees each year ; growing 
meanwhile annual crops, and getting his 
ground ready for more trees. But no 
man has any business with an orchard, 
or any other sort of fruit-growing, who 
has not a love for the occupation.” 
A NEW FRUIT COUNTRY. 
“LAND OF THE BIO RED APPLE.” 
It may not be safe to assume that Mis¬ 
souri is new, because the word suggests 
only the Dakotas and western Nebraska 
and Kansas, but a new industry has been 
developed within the past 10 years in the 
Ozark region of Missouri and Arkansas, 
that is attracting the attention of fruit 
growers throughout the country. As a 
land of b : g red apples, south Missouri is 
new ; and the northern part of the State 
is almost if not quite as well adapted to 
horticulture as are the Ozarks, among 
whose hills every fruit of ’he temperate 
climate seems destined to find a con¬ 
genial home. 
List December an opportunity was 
offered for making a thorough examina¬ 
tion of the southern part of Missouri, 
and, as I had but recently come to the 
State, my impressi ms may be of interest 
to Eastern readers. 
The extreme southeastern part of Mis¬ 
souri is low and swampy, and lumbering 
is the great industry. About 50 miles 
back from the Mississippi the Ozark re¬ 
gion begins, and reaches along the south¬ 
ern boundary of the State to the west 
line, thence northeastward to St. Louis, 
and this vast area is called by enthu¬ 
siastic Missouri fruit men “ The land of 
the big red apples.” The soil of the fruit 
lands is a red clay, intermixed with 
stones that vary in size from mere peb¬ 
bles to 10 inches in diameter. I entered 
the fruit region from the south, arriving 
at Olden, which is merely a fruit station, 
early in the morning. As we approached 
the station, a very large orchard of young 
trees was observed. The land was so 
covered with stones that the soil was al¬ 
most invisible, but the trees were grow¬ 
ing strongly and vigorously. Later sev¬ 
eral of these large orchards were care¬ 
fully examined. A peach orchard cover¬ 
ing over 200 acres was a wonderful ex¬ 
ample of the fertility of this stringy soil. 
The trees were remarkably thrifty, es¬ 
pecially on the high lands. Those set in 
very low places showed injury from frost, 
but as the land about Olden is nearly all 
high, the average condition of the trees 
was remarkable for thrift and vigor. The 
product of six acres of Olden peaches 
netted SI,800, and the owner considered 
that the orchard had not reached its 
limit of productiveness. I visited one 
orchard of Ben Davis apples covering 100 
acres, trees seven years old, the average 
crop of which was 30 barrels to the acre, 
and the fruit was sold at $3 per barrel on 
the cars at Olden. 
One firm has now over 1,000 acres in 
orchards, none of which is more than 
nine years old ; and all through southern 
Missouri orchards of 160 ac es are not 
uncommon. Everybody is planting trees, 
and while there is evidence here and 
there of carelessness or ignorance in toe 
cultivation of the young orchards, the 
trees throughout the region show a 
growth that proves the soil to be pecul¬ 
iarly adapted to their culture. I was 
impressed with the great number of 
Northern men whom I found examining 
the country with a view to locating. 
Every one had words of praise for the 
natural resources of the region, and the 
evidences on every hand of its adaptabil¬ 
ity to fruit growing on a large scale. 
And so it seems to me that this is 
destined to be one of the great fruit-pro¬ 
ducing districts of America. Land is 
cheap, the climate mild, the water deli¬ 
cious A few years only will see all these 
hills covered with apple and peach trees. 
C. A. KEFFER. 
THE LEVIN PRUNER. 
This appears to be the best thing yet offered in pruners, and is strongly indorsed 
by horticulturists. Although the patent was secured only in June last, yet thou¬ 
sands have been 
sold. The only size 
yet made will take 
in a %-inch branch, 
and cut through 
dry oak of that size. 
Made of the finest 
steel; cuts as 
smooth and clean 
as a knife and much 
faster and easier. Price, $1.25, postpaid. With a yearly subscription only #1.90. 
With a renewal and a new subscription for $2.75. Free, for four new subscriptions. 
THE CHRISTY KNIVES. 
These knives are well named “ Wonderful,” as they are far and away the best 
things in kitchen and carving knives that we have seen. Use in our own house has 
demonstrated their quality. There are three in a set: a bread knife, sharpened 
only on one side so that, with its reflex curves, it cuts even warm bread in thin 
slices without crumbling ; a cake knife cuts the finest frosting, and a paring knife 
that is perfect in paring or cutting fruits and vegetables. All are nickel-plated and 
handsomely finished. Price of the set 81, express prepaid. With a year’s subscrip¬ 
tion, $1.75. Given as a premium for a club of four new subscriptions. 
The 
Educated 
Horse 
picks out a ^ horse blanket 
every time ; lie knows that it 
keeps him warmer and his 
master soon learns that it 
lasts longer and costs less 
than the other kinds. Made 
in 250 styles. 
Ask your dealer for them. 
WM. AYRES & SONS, Philadelphia. 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER POCKET KNIFE. 
•RICE, 
$1 .OO. 
So many knives are called for by subscribers 
that we have made a careful search 
and believe that we have found as 
good a farmer's knife as there 
is made. It is so good 
that we have named it 
the “ Rural New- 
Yorker” knife 
It is brass- 
lined, with 
German 
silver bol¬ 
ster, han¬ 
dle buck- 
horn, blade 
of fine ra- 
or steel. Price, by mail, prepaid, $1. With a year’s subscription only 51 85 With 
, renewal and a new subscription, $2.60. Free, for a club of four new subscriptions. 
THE RURAL PUBLISHING CO., Cor. Chambers and Pearl Sts , New York. 
