TOPICS OF INTEREST TO FRUIT-GROWERS. 533 
be able to understand, that what may be the immediate cause 
of the potato disease, is long since a settled question. 
It is desirable that in all accounts of fruit-growing in this 
State, the nature of the soil, and the situation of the orchard, 
so far as regards shelter and aspect, should be stated. My 
trees "were planted on a small knob, mostly on the north and 
west slopes. The soil is sandy, passing on the western side 
out of a stiff, rich, clayey loam. On the west is a thick grove 
of trees, but they do not afford sufficient protection against the 
usually strong winds from that quarter. 
I have hitherto applied to my trees, yearly, a small quantity 
of rotten stable manure, mixed, occasionally, with black muck. 
Last spring I had to burn a quantity of worthless wood and 
brush, and I gave to each tree about two-thirds of a pailful of 
ashes before they were w r ell cool, and forked them at once into 
the soil around the tree. I believe the trees derived great bene¬ 
fit from this application—they never looked more healthy, and 
the fruit they produced was very fair, rich, and high colored. 
It is common to recommend leached ashes for trees; but the 
alkaline salts, especially potash are probably the most valuable 
plant-food ashes contain, and any one who knows how rapidly 
caustic potash combines with carbonic acid, need be under no 
fear, I think, of injuring his trees by applying fresh ashes in 
moderate quantity, unless they are placed in contact with the 
roots. 
It is considered that injury has been done by applying ma¬ 
nure to fruit crees, and that a more sturdy and hardier growth 
would be the result of witholding it. This may be so on some 
soils, but I am disposed to try, cautiously, the opposite plan. 
Two years ago I broke up a piece of rich bottom land, so 
overrun with small brush as to be almost worthless as a pasture. 
On seeding this down to grass last fall, I collected and hauled 
off a quantity of refractory sods, plowed up round stumps, some 
clay and some black muck, both full of fibrous roots; these, 
when dry, I formed into a pile with sprouts from stumps, &c., 
and smother-burned them, so as to reduce the vegetable mat- 
