Orchard Management Cultural practices in orchards have changed greatly over time. In many orchards livestock was allowed to graze among the trees. Hopewell Furnace records of 1858 indicate that potatoes, oats, and corn were planted in the orchard. Although there are several references in the furnace records of paying for pruning apple trees, this may have been an infrequent practice rather than the annual chore it is today. Older orchards characteristically had large trees.
Modern trees are intentionally dwarfed so that they are easier to manage.
Orchard spraying did not become common in Pennsylvania until after 1889. Until that time pest control was limited and losses were high. The National Park Service recognizes the potentially harmful effects of pesticides and strives to reduce or eliminate their use. We attempt to control pest and disease damage in the orchard by pruning to allow more rapid drying of the trees, timing spraying with the weather and tolerating more fruit damage than a commercial orchard would. A small percent of apples will show insect damage.