20 
Sherman Nursery Company, Charles City, Iowa 
PREPARING THE TREE FOR PLANTING 
No. 1 is the tree as it comes from the nursery. To insure its growing 
and becoming a well shaped tree, it should he trimmed back as shown 
in picture No. 2 before planting. All bruised and injured roots should 
also be cut off. 
The Orchard 
Varieties—Location—Soil—Protection—Etc. 
The choosing- of varieties for any particular 
section should be given considerable thought 
and attention. For a home orchard, several 
varieties maturing- at different seasons should 
be selected, using largely such sorts as you 
know have proven their value in your imme¬ 
diate section. If it is to be a commercial 
orchard, either for local trade or for car lot 
shipments, limit the number of varieties to 
three or four, as the added cost of handling- 
many different varieties is prohibitive. Often¬ 
times certain varieties are of value only in 
restricted areas, due to climatic and soil con¬ 
ditions and proximity to large bodies of water 
which temper the climate in spring and fall. 
Every one of our salesmen should make him¬ 
self familiar with the varieties that are giving- 
best results in his territory. One good source 
of information is the planters about you who 
have succeeded. 
Where to Plant an Orchard —The most im¬ 
portant thing in selecting the location is good, 
well drained soil. If high land of this nature 
is available it should be used. A northeast 
slope is preferable. Such a location is not as 
subject to late frosts that will kill the blossoms 
in the spring as is the lower land, and there 
is usually a circulation of air on the higher 
locations which many times saves a fruit crop 
from late frosts, while on the lower ground 
or in spots which are known as “air pockets,’’ 
where there is practically no circulation of 
the air, the entire crop will be ruined by frost. 
The ground on the north slope is also a little 
slower in thawing out, slightly retarding the 
blossoming period. Also soil on such slope is 
not as apt to heave with severe changes of 
temperature, thus not as apt to cause root 
injury. 
Soils—A light, sandy soil or a very heavy 
clay soil with rock close to the surface are 
not considered very good orchard sites. A 
deep, sandy loam with a good, porous sub¬ 
soil is the ideal for orchard trees although 
many orchards have been reasonably success¬ 
ful with good care on some of the poorer soils. 
In short, any soil that will raise good farm 
crops will usually be found well adapted to 
orchard purposes. 
The Preparation of the Soil —For fruit trees 
the soil should be well drained, either natur¬ 
ally or made so by tiling, as they will not live 
or thrive on a soil constantly saturated with 
stagnant moisture. It should also be well pre¬ 
pared. On new, fresh lands, manuring will 
be necessary; but on lands exhausted by crop- 
