THE NATIONAL NURSERYMAN 
293 
DISTANCE TO SET TREES 
In the North and East, opinions and practices vary, and 
trees are set from sixteen to twenty feet apart. Probably 
the latter distance is best where strong soil and good man¬ 
agement obtain. In the South, throughout Georgia, Ala¬ 
bama, Tennessee, twelve to fourteen feet is not an unusual 
distance. 
KIND OF TREES 
The tendency has constanly been toward the using of 
younger trees than formerly. A one-year old tree from the 
bud is better than an older tree. The commonest practice 
now is to head from one to two feet high. Following this 
comes the shaping of the top, and there are two general 
forms from which to choose. One is the vase form or open- 
centered tree, and the other the globe or close-centered tree. 
In the first, Hedrick 
says, “the framework 
of the tree consists of 
a short trunk sur¬ 
mounted with four or 
five main branches, 
ascending obliquely. 
In the second, the 
trunk is - continued 
above the branches, 
forming the center of 
the tree, and later 
being headed in, a 
globe-like trunk is 
formed.” In the On¬ 
tario Lake region, the 
vase-formed is the 
favorite. Some grow¬ 
ers err on the side of 
pruning too heavily. 
Excessive pruning in 
winter simply stimu¬ 
lates wood growth, 
and produces too much vegetative vigor. The shortening 
back of the main branches from one-third to one-half the 
second and third seasons will probably be as much prun¬ 
ing as is necessary. After the trees come into bearing, 
much less heading back is required. It often occurs, how¬ 
ever, that when the trees attain the age of eight or ten 
years, that a severe cutting back may be necessary, in order 
to lower the head and bring down the fruiting area. 
FERTILIZERS AND TILLAGE 
The prime requisite of the peach is moisture. This is 
needed to promote growth and swell the fruit. In fact, 
from eighty to ninety per cent of the fruit crop is water. 
Therefore, the important thing is to conserve moisture dur¬ 
ing the growing period. If the soil is in reasonably good 
heart, it is not likely that much nitrogen will be needed until 
the trees come into bearing. Undoubtedly as much nitrogen 
as will be required can be secured from a cover crop of some 
leguminous crop. When the trees come into bearing, it 
should be remembered that they make a considerable draft 
upon the soil, and the fertilizer requirements are much 
heavier. 
FERTILIZING PEACHES AND PLUMS 
A standard fertilizer containing say two per cent of am¬ 
monia and eight to ten per cent each of phosphoric acid and 
potash, may be employed on peaches and plums during the 
vegetative or wood-making period, that is, during the first 
two or three seasons. Ground bone, acid phosphate, and 
muriate of potash may be employed to furnish the mineral 
requirements. The second season it will probably be desir¬ 
able to use nitrate of soda in addition to this formula at the 
rate of 125 to 150 pounds per acre, which woiild mean some¬ 
thing like a pound per tree. 
If the ground is intercropped, the amount of the basic fer¬ 
tilizer should be very materially increased, and when the 
trees come into bear¬ 
ing, the basic fertilizer 
can be brought up to 
seven or eight hundred 
pounds per acre, and 
the amount of nitrate 
of soda to three hun¬ 
dred pounds per acre. 
This is on the assump¬ 
tion that the trees are 
bearing reasonable 
crops of fruit. 
CULTIVATION 
. In the matter of 
cultivation, the gen¬ 
eral opinion and agree¬ 
ment is that the peach 
orchard must not be 
neglected. This is 
largely due to the 
fact, previously noted, 
that the peach re¬ 
quires large amounts of water. More peach orchards have 
been destroyed by sod and “sod yellows” than by yellows 
itself; for with sod comes many other troubles, such as 
borers, which shorten the life of the tree. Plow, cultivate, 
cover crop; this is the gospel of peach tillage. 
THINNING THE FRUIT 
Of all the fruits upon which thinning has been practiced, 
the peach has given the largest and most satisfactory results. 
No up-to-date peach grower will attempt to develop a satis¬ 
factory crop of peaches without thinning, and this thinning 
should reduce the peaches so that they will stand not closer 
on the branches than four or five inches apart, and the wor 
should be done immediately after the June drop is o' 
Thinning before that time may be waste time. Th* 
after that time is allowing the tree to waste its energ 
VARIETIES OF PEACH^" 
There is no one variety which 
some varieties which approxirr 
