Burlington hawk-eye. [volume] (Burlington, Iowa) 1845-185?, 1851-02-27
OSAGE ORANGE HEDGES-THE OTHER
SIDE.

We find in a late number of the Boston Gull
tvator, communication from Mr.. J. Wilkin-
son, President of Mount Airy Agricultural In
stitute, giving his experience and opinions of the
Usage Orange. The objections which Mr.. w.
urges should be well pondered by those who con-
concluding paragraphs of the letter, as they con-
tain all that is essential to the question.
Valley Farmer.
GAS have before said, I consider the macura
the best adapted Of any plant with which am
familiar, for the purpose of live fences; but there
are, what conceive insurmountabe objections
to its general introduction and use though there
are circumstances under which it would be an
economical; efficient and desirable fence-e. 2.
to enclose a vineyard, orchard, fruit yard or or
namental lawn, or boundary fence for small
farms suburban to villages of cities; in which
case the macura will form most etfectual fence
Also, upon prairie farms, where fencing mate
ais are scarce difficult to be obtained it will
be found to answer well, providing the latitude
will ensure temperature of climate congenal
to its growth and perfection. My opinion is,
that they will not endure the winters of higher
latitude than 43o. | am familiar with maclura
hedge of some fourteen years standing that has
been neglected and not headed down or trimmed,
and 1t Is now from twenty to twenty five feet in
height, and is so destructive to crops grown
along it that the occupant of the land adjoining
IT, told me that he would prosecute his neighbor
if he did not remove it, that the roots of it were
abundant III the soil at plowing depth, twenty
FIVE or thirty feet from the hedge. keep my
hedges we'll trimmed annually. and the growth
in year is from two to nine feet in length and
from to % of an inch in diameter, which rem
ders the labor of trimming and burning the brush
| annually, fully equal to that of making a new
post and rail fence, where the soil is of the ave-
rage freeness.
l have never produced full crop of any kind
| along hedge of sufficient size to form fence,
| from the fact that the roots occupy the surface
soil, to the exclusion of all cultivated crops, to
the distance of from ten to thirty feet on either
side, hence it may be perfectly obvious to all,
that maintenance of fences of this description,
must be exceedingly expensive. Yet when the
matter OF profit is not considered and the object
is to form an efficient, durable, immovable, and
at the same time really beautiful fence, be-
lieve the maclura stands unsurpassed as the ma
terial for it.
Having in the above remarks, relative to Usage
| Orange for live fences, only repeated the same
| sentiments that have advanced in previous ar
! tices on the subject, and knowing the opinions
that have advanced to be correct and well foun-
| ded, hope none Of your readers will be so un-
charitable as to misconstrue my statements or
| msrepresent me in their criticisms. | am we'll
aware that to decry the Usage Orange as hedge
| plant is ct the present time, treading very
sensitive toes, for there are number of indi-
vduals in the southern and middle States, en-
gagged i'll producing and vending plants and seeds;
| but the day has come, when the mass Of the peo-
| pie want something softer and more congenial
to their senses, than brush and thorns.