128 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
[March, 
Watering should be done with a very fine 
rose. A few holes may be made in the false 
bottom for the escape of surplus. It will do 
no harm in the air chambers. 
[This is a simplification of the old Walto- 
nian Propagating Case, in which a reservoir of 
water is heated by a lamp. No doubt this 
will be found useful on a small scale. Too 
much heed cannot be given to our corres¬ 
pondent’s caution about fire. Wood sub¬ 
jected for a long time to even a moderate heat 
will bum like tinder, and this, certainly, 
should be constantly kept in mind.— Eds.] 
Pear Culture—Selection of Soil and Site. 
BY A PRACTICAL GROWER. 
A soil containing much vegetable matter 
is not a good one for the Pear, neither is one 
which will produce a rank growth, as more 
wood is produced than can be properly 
ripened. Such trees become diseased, or if 
they escape disease, seldom bear any fruit. 
A shaly, clayey (heavy), or very sandy soil 
is not at all suited to the growth of the pear. 
The soil best adapted to its growth is what 
is popularly known as “ good corn ground.” 
Any ground which will yield a good crop of 
corn will, under favorable circumstances, 
produce fine pears. We prefer a clayey loam, 
one well underdrained, to any other, as pears 
on such soil will be more profitable as well as 
more permanent than on any other. We 
have seen very fine pear orchards on sandy 
land, but they have invariably proved to be 
short-lived. When vegetables or other hoed 
and cultivated crops are grown between the 
trees, on the sandy land, the trees get plenty 
of fertilizing matter and, consequently, grow 
finely, and in some cases bear fairly for sev¬ 
eral years. If such lands have a good sub¬ 
soil, the trees appreciate it, and it increases 
their years of usefulness and fruitfulness. 
No matter what the quality or kind of soil 
may be, it must be thoroughly drained. The 
first orchard of pears we set out, twenty years 
ago, was planted on a fine plot of ground be¬ 
tween the house and the road. This piece 
had produced good crops of vegetables and 
grains, and we had every reason to believe it 
would yield good pears. For two or three 
years they did very well, but then came a 
wet spring and summer, and the trees did 
not grow as they should. In the fall the 
orchard was thoroughly drained with tile 
drains, and the following year, and ever 
since, the orchard has produced regular 
crops of fine fruit. Any land which cannot 
be cultivated the day following a rain is not 
fit for pear trees until it has been properly 
underdrained. Tile drains, while they may 
cost a little more at first, will prove more 
durable and more satisfactory than any other. 
As to a site for the orchard, that depends 
very much on circumstances. As a rule we 
do not like a southern exposure, as it is apt 
to cause the buds to start early in the spring, 
and, if a late frost should occur, the crop is 
liable to be seriously injured. In the Middle 
States, or other States in the same latitude, 
we would commend an eastern or even a 
south-eastern exposure. Where a western or 
northern exposure must be chosen, it is well 
to have wind breaks of evergreens. Many of 
our trees in such exposure, especially the 
dwarfs, have been destroyed, because they 
were not protected by evergreen screens. If 
the orchard is not protected in that way, a 
few rows of grape vines (if not trimmed un¬ 
til the spring each year), will materially pro¬ 
tect the trees. 
How to Make Gravel Walks, 
BY L. D. SNOOK, YATES CO., N. Y. 
It is not necessary to dwell upon the com¬ 
fort derived from having good, substantial 
walks leading from the house to the road and 
to the various outbuildings. The most sub¬ 
stantial walk is made of large flat stones, but 
in most portions of the country these are ex¬ 
pensive. Gravel and small round stones are 
obtainable for the asking or hauling in many 
localities. Next to wood, gravel should be 
the most common material used for walks. 
It is best to haul the gravel and deposit it 
near where it is needed, and before the trench 
is dug. Whether obtained from a lake, or 
stream, or at a gravel bank, the material 
should be screened before hauling, and all 
Fig. 1.— SECTION OF WALK. 
that will pass through a quarter-inch hole 
be rejected. Gravel on the beach or in the 
bank may look clean and free from dirt, but 
the operation of screening shows that ap¬ 
pearances are deceptive. 
A common walk or foot-path should be not 
less than three feet in width, and before ex¬ 
cavating, it should be laid out by a line or by 
spading along the edges. For a permanent 
walk, the trench should be not less than 
Fig. 2. —SIDE STONES IN WALK. 
twenty inches in depth. A section of a walk 
is shown in fig. 1. The bottom is filled in 
with cobble-stones as large as two inches in 
diameter, or with broken slate or flat stone, 
as is most convenient, and at least eight 
inches of the top are covered with gravel. 
The utmost care must be exercised that earth 
does not become mixed with the gravel, or 
in a few years grass and weeds will grow up 
through the walk. To prevent this as much 
Fig. 3.— WALK WITH A TILE DRAIN. 
as possible, flat stones may be placed along 
the side of the trench, as in fig. 2. These 
form a nearly perfect barrier between the 
gravel and the bank. Frequently a walk 
must be laid through springy or water-soaked 
soil. In this case it will be advisable to lay a 
tile drain at the bottom of the trench, as 
shown in fig. 3, observing that it has a proper 
outlet at some convenient point. In a walk 
three feet wide, the middle should be two 
inches higher than the sides. Unless the 
walk is built through a stiff sod, it is best to 
remove a little earth along the sides, and re¬ 
place with a ribbon of sod six or eight inches 
in width. Clip this edging as often as the 
grass obtains a length of four inches, and, 
when necessary, pass along the edge of the 
walk, and with a sharp spade remove any 
turf that has encroached upon the gravel. 
Should weeds or grass appear in the walk, 
remove the gravel three or four inches in 
depth and extirpate the trespasser with an 
application of common salt, strong lye, or 
anything that will destroy plant life. 
Injury from Rabbits and Mice. 
A correspondent, “ J. B. A.,” Durham, Pa., 
writes us that he does not like the applica¬ 
tion of blood, so much used, especially at the 
West, for keeping off rabbits, as he thinks it 
makes the trees all the more attractive to 
mice. Having had a young orchard de¬ 
stroyed some years ago, he replanted, and 
on the approach of winter, applied tar-water 
to the trunks. This was so successful that 
he has used it each year since. He makes a 
strong tar-water, and on a warm day paints- 
the trunks with it from the ground as high 
as the rabbits can reach, even upon a heavy 
fall of snow. He does not state how “strong” 
the tar-water should be, but that used 
medicinally, would probably answer. This 
is made with one quart of tar to four quarts 
of water, stirring well for some minutes 
and using the clear water after the tar has 
settled. Our readers will do well to “stick a 
pin ” here, for reference next autumn. 
To anticipate the inquiries as to what shall 
be done when the damage is discovered, we 
would say that the treatment will depend 
upon the extent and character of the injury. 
Frequently a good share of the outer layer 
of new wood, the “ sap-wood,” is not re- 
mqved, and sometimes a portion of the inner 
bark will be left. If such a wound can be 
kept moist, it will often heal over with sur¬ 
prising rapidity. If the wound is close to the 
ground, covering it with earth will answer. 
The earth should be drawn up to form a 
broad mound that will not readily dry out or 
be washed away. Where the injury is too 
high for this, make a plaster of clay and 
cow-dung—the last being used, because it is 
so retentive of moisture. These should be 
well beaten together with sufficient water to 
form a mass like stiff mortar. Surround the 
trunk with a thick mass of this, letting it 
extend well above and below the wound, and 
bind over it a piece of old bagging or other 
coarse fabric. In a dry time this should be 
moistoned occasionally. When the injury 
is so thorough that all the sap-wood is re¬ 
moved, and there is nothing to connect the 
bark below the wound with that above it, the 
only remedy is to bridge over the space with 
cions of the same kind. These are cut sloping 
at each end, and the ends inserted, one under 
the bark below, and the other under that 
above the injured place, openings to receive 
them being made by means of a chisel. 
“Where many trees are injured and there is 
not time or the skill to do the work, it may 
be cheaper to replace the injured trees by 
new ones, and take better care of the 
orchard hereafter. 
