22 HENRY LEUTHARDT NURSERY 

Sweet Soil 
May be changed to acid by adding sulphate of 
potash or super-phosphate to the soil. Often the ad- 
dition of leafmold, peat or saw dust, all of which 
possesses acid-producing effect, is all that is required. 
Clay or Sandy Soil 
Add Cow Manure. 
Winter Care 
Rabbits, Cats, Rodents and their control: 
1. To protect a tree in winter from depredators, 
it would be advisable to wrap several thicknesses of 
newspapers around the trunk and lower branches of 
the tree in the fall. The paper should not be tied too 
tightly and it should be removed in the spring. 
2. Another method to prevent damages by animals, 
is to treat the trunk with a repellent solution. The 
copper Soap Rodent Repellent is a dark green paint- 
like material which can easily be applied to a tree or 
shrub, giving a repellent protective coating. Has fine 
lasting qualities, and will remain on trees throughout 
the winter and spring. This is endorsed and used by 
the Michigan State College. You may obtain this solu- 
tion from M. J. Beck, 510 N. Cedar Street, Lansing, 
Michigan. 
Pruning — Peaches and Nectarines 
There is a general opinion among the public that 
the peach tree is very short lived and therefore, not 
worthwhile planting. This is decidedly wrong. The 
peach and nectarine trees are some of the most rapid 
growing trees and reach their ultimate height within 
4-5 years. 
Now, since peaches or nectarines grow young wood 
and fruit only on wood that has been grown the previ- 
ous year, the tree dies or withers away in such a short 
time if not pruned. 
It is absolutely essential to prune the trees severely 
every spring in order to obtain the necessary young 
wood and fruit. If this pruning is applied correctly, 
a peach tree can live from 18 to 30 years and produce a 
full crop of large fine fruit every year. Such a pruning 
is neither complicated nor difficult to apply on dwarf 
peach or nectarine trees. 
The first step which is most important, must be ap- 
plied to all peach and nectarine fruit trees, regardless 
if they are dwarf or not, at time of planting. A one 
year old tree must be pruned back radically to about 
15 to 24 inches above the graft. 
On two or three year old trees, no branches should 
remain that are higher than 2 or 3 feet from the ground. 
Young side branches that have been grown the previous 
year, should be reduced back to one or two buds, | 
