46 
FLORIDA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY 
nous crops in the wide space between the 
rows to shade and keep the ground moist 
and cool during hot summer and early fall 
months, to be plowed under during No¬ 
vember and December, followed by a 
thorough harrowing, burying as nearly as 
possible all vegetable matter, with clean, 
shallow cultivation during spring and 
early summer, re-seeding with leguminous 
crops the latter part of May or June is, 
in my humble opinion, ideal cultural prac¬ 
tice. 
Second. The flat woods grove. In 
DeSoto County and, in fact, in portions 
of all counties in the orange belt we find 
the old seedling groves on the little ele¬ 
vations affording the necessary drainage, 
which were during their earlier develop¬ 
ment chiefly or wholly fertilized by cow 
penning, the soil and natural conditions 
being almost the reverse of the sandy hill 
pine land grove. Naturally the soil is 
more moist and is supplied with a vastly 
greater amount of humus. Here the trees 
must be planted high and mounded or 
ridged, preferably ridged, with water fur¬ 
rows between each row, running in the 
direction of the general slope of land to 
provide a quick run off for excessive rain¬ 
fall. The general plan of culture need 
not vary much from that of the higher, 
lighter lands. The need of humus crops 
is not so imperative. No one need say 
that such land is not good grove land, as 
some of our finest and most profitable 
groves are flatwoods land. The high, 
sandy pine land and pine flatwoods con¬ 
stitute the greater portion of the area now 
used for orange and grapefruit groves. 
Third. The hammock, a high, light 
soil covered with hardwood growth, land 
that when first cleared is far more fertile, 
containing a greater amount of nitrog¬ 
enous matter, and well supplied with 
humus. Trees should be planted on the 
level and cultivated flat. While naturally 
full of humus, yet this will soon disap¬ 
pear leaving the land poor, thin and hard 
to rebuild to its former fertility unless 
means are provided to replenish the hu¬ 
mus supply from year to year. The same 
general cultural practice, with the excep¬ 
tion of keeping the leguminous crops 
cropped back or mowed once or twice 
during the season to prevent them from 
becoming too rank and heavy, and the 
use of purely mineral fertilizers and 
crushed lime rock, would apply. In the 
early days the high hammock was chiefly 
sought for grove planting, and today 
some of the state’s best groves are on this 
land. 
Fourth. The low, moist cabbage pal¬ 
metto hammock. Probably the richest, 
strongest soil used for grove purposes in 
Florida. Here cultural practice is more 
complex. Weeds and grass make rank 
growth and unless the planter exercises 
eternal vigilance the trees are soon cov¬ 
ered and hidden from view. The drain¬ 
age must be carefully planned and trees 
planted high and mounded. Soil is apt 
to be acid, requiring thorough preparation 
and heavy application of ground lime rock 
before planting, with a free use of hy¬ 
drated lime or hardwood ashes after 
planting and during cultivation. Humus 
crops are not so necessary, yet leguminous 
crops for the purpose of multiplying bac¬ 
teria as an aid in reducing the plant food 
locked up in the decaying vegetable mat¬ 
ter, may well be employed. The soil near 
