THE HOME ORCHARD 
“An Investment in Beauty, Pleasure and Profit” 
The typical Wisconsin farm orchard consists 
of 20 to 60 fruit trees. Because the McKay Nurs- 
ery Co. believes that every farm owner should 
grow a more or less complete line of fruit trees 
as well as small fruits, we present our plan of a 
“Complete Home Orchard.” This orchard will 
keep the average family supplied with home- 
grown fruits of various kinds and _ varieties 
through the different seasons of the year. This 
plan can be modified to suit the individual fam- 
ily’s wants, tastes, and needs. We present it to 
you as a guide to work from. 
McKAY’S “COMPLETE ORCHARD”’ 
30 APPLES 
5 Summer Apples 3 Crab Apples 
7 Fall Apples 15 Winter Apples 
6 CHERRIES 
3 of one early variety. 3 of one late variety. 
(If you live in a section of the state where 
Cherries do not grow, substitute ““McKay’s Hardy 
Cherry Plums.”’) 
5 PLUMS 
1 each of 4 varieties which will ripen in succes- 
sion through August and September. 
1 pollenizer Plum tree to be planted in center 
of above group. 
4 PEARS 
1 or 2 each of several varieties suitable for your 
locality. 
100 RED RASPBERRIES 
25 of an early variety. 
75 of a standard midseason variety. 
25 BLACK RASPBERRIES 
6 GOOSEBERRIES 
3 each of 2 varieties. 
9 CURRANTS 
6 of one standard juicy variety for jellying. 
3 of a variety for pies, marmalades, etc. 
12 GRAPES 
Made up of several varieties. 
200 STRAWBERRIES 
150 June berries. 50 Everbearing berries. 
SUITABLE PLANTING 
NUMBER OF TREES 
DISTANCES OR PLANTS 
Feet PER ACRE 
An plegemtca nee Zoe toms © 1 5 
Pearsin erect Ney {eoy PX0) ne: Z : i F pkg ai ae 
Cherricsie: ase 16 to 20 Z a ees Pa 
Plums j. eye. « 16 (tOMSaen3 x5 Shane, eee 2904 
Peachegaenn mrs « LOCO SUS mee: 35 GUE ees 2420 
Currants tans Av byiO% Salat) fey ee eee 2074 
Gooseberries 4 by 6 
Grapes mean te SHORT se SEINE eo a care 2178 
Raspberries Bese asus Baws sen wc 1815 
Strawberries > by Aron se4exa 1 UCM enn rercets 5) 
Seatac: (ne les aor eR ED 908 
distance in feet between Oc ugie 680 
the rows by the distance See MO een oe 545 
the plants are apart in the Bes ASS Ee 
rows and the product wiil i Gigul Ott aoe ae 170 
be the number of square 18x18 ft. ....... 135 
feet for each: plant or hill: 20-90 4:. ..... 8. 110 
which, divided into the 
number of feet in an acre 24x24ft. ....... ie 
(ZOO, wall wigs wos Ds QE oon sao 60 
number of trees. SOs. BOM a5 ook 48 
7 
4) 
oF age 
APPLES 
6 CHERRIES ) cicke 
oe 
> ~ — 
ERRIES~ 6 GOOSEBERRIES~ 
NROEERGOOL LAGGED OO OOCOD 
3 CURRANTS 
a On ge eo VF OOOOD OOO 
12 GRAPES —~ 
Caen 
OO STRAWBERRIES 
THE COMPLETE HOME ORCHARD ‘scate 7.50 
ORCHARD SITE 
The complete “Home Orchard” 
should be laid out on a piece of land 
close to the farmstead. This makes 
it easier to care for it and encour- 
ages you to do the work at the prop- 
er time. It is also more convenient 
for the various members of the fam- 
ily to eat and enjoy the ripe fruits. 
CULTIVATION 
Young fruit trees grow best if 
the ground is cultivated the first few 
years. This is best done by planting 
Potatoes or Corn between the rows 
of fruit trees. If new trees are set 
out in an old orchard, spade the 
ground for a 2-foot radius around 
the tree and then cover ground with 
a 6 to 8-inch mulch of straw, hay, 
or strawy manure. Even a heavy 
mulch alone on the sod will soon 
kill out the grass and conserve the 
moisture for the benefit of the tree. 
Small Fruits. Our orchard has 10 
feet of headland at the ends of the 
small fruit rows to allow for horse 
cultivation. Because farm help is 
scarce, the small fruits should be cul- 
tivated by horse power, not hand 
labor. Several good ground stirrings 
with a one-horse cultivator will keep 
the ground loose, keep weeds down, 
conserve the moisture, and keep the 
Raspberries and Strawberries from 
running all over the patch. Like- 
wise, a 12- to 15-inch mulch of straw 
between the rows of Raspberries, 
Currants, Gooseberries and Grapes 
will answer the same purpose. 
RASPBERRY CULTURE 
Since Raspberries bear only on last year’s 
canes, it is customary to cut out all the old 
canes (canes that bore fruit) every fall. 
This throws the strength of the roots into 
growing new canes which will again bear 
the following year. 
Since Raspberries spread by suckers, cul- 
tivation or mulching as described above will 
also keep the rows narrow—not over 18 
inches wide. Suckers coming out beyond 
such a width should be destroyed by the 
cultivator or choked out with the deep 
mulch. In this way Raspberries are kept 
manageable and productive indefinitely. 
STRAWBERRY CULTURE 
Note that our “‘Complete Home Orchard’’ 
plan shows 2 settings of Strawberries. The 
one as a l-year bearing bed, the other as 
a newly set bed. The best practice of grow- 
ing Strawberries is to set out a new bed 
every spring. This newly set bed can be 
cultivated conveniently with a 1- to 2-horse 
cultivator while the plants are making run- 
ners. The following year it will bear fruit 
heavily, whereupon it is plowed up in the 
fall. After being manured in the winter it is 
ready for a mew plant setting in the spring. 
This rotation makes for the easiest growing 
and care of a Strawberry bed, and gives you 
the maximum of fruit with the least labor. 
[46] 
PRUNING FRUIT TREES 
First Year. (Read planting instructions on 
page 41.) In general, prune fruit trees to a 
single leader or main upright branch on 
which are left 3 to 5 side branches well 
spaced up and down the trunk, as well as 
growing out in all four directions of the 
compass. 
Second Year. Further build up the branch 
formation of your trees to form the above 
skeleton. Cut out cross branches as well as 
new sucker side branches. Better to have 
fewer side branches than too many. If a 
tree lacked a branch coming out in one 
direction the first year, leave a sucker that 
comes out the second year to perfect the tree 
skeleton. Hold back vigorous growing side 
branches to gain uniformity in branch 
growth all around the tree. In succeeding 
years prune just enough to keep tree bal- 
anced and open in growth. This produces 
larger and better colored fruit. 
RODENT PROTECTION 
It is advisable to wrap fruit trees with 
burlap or tar paper the first winters against 
rabbit and mice injury. Again, ordinary 
fly screen can be circled around the trunk 
loosely and left on for several years, or until 
it rusts off. Be sure to place wrapping 
below ground, so mice can’t get inside it. 
