Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1859-05-20
5f.rnlers' Column.
sause Of Failure Of orchardss

IN the last number Of the farmer is
an article from correspogjeht in Madi-
son county Va, on '<pples Rotting
before Ripe" and a1fng to be zen
lightened as to the sause and remedy,
The editors saw 1dn insect is the cause.
To this talSsM exception. and as po-
mology is 6methine of hobby with
me / pvPose to give my reasons for my
dissop5 and when duly considered, |
toHit that it will account for nine
Sentks, if not ninety-nine hundreths of
tke failure of orchards. 1t is now the
regular cultivation" that this cores
pendent says he has given his orchard
We may rest assured, that when we dis
regard natures laws, she will exact the
penalty-there is no getting clear of it.
What are natures laws, in relation to
the growth of trees? Look at the for
est, where man does not interfere, and
what do we find? There every tree
throws out circle of roots, just below
the surface, where they obtain the bene-
fit Of the decayed vegetable matter from
the leaves, etc. How is it with what are
called well regulated orchards? The
ground between the trees is regularly
plowcd more Or less deeply. The sur
face roots are torn off and not allowed to
grow; the roots that do grow, are fore
ed down into colder and unproductive
soil, devoid of vegetable matter, tha!
great promoter Of growth, and without
which no man in his senses would at
tempt to grow crop Of grain. 1t is
true the surface soil is manfred, but that
is used up in the crops. The tree roots
are not allowed to reach it, unless CARR.
ed down by heavy rains, and even then
the solutions from vegetable matter is
stopped by the clay beneath the surface
soil. Even the DRAWINGS from the ma
nure heap, if filtered through few inch
es Of fine, compact clay, will come oui
nearly pure; hence, but little can reach
the roots, and in the moderate showers
Of summer, none at all. That is absorb.
cd in the cultivated soil, and supports
the vegetables on the surface only.
The editors in alluding to the cultiva-
ton Of corn, advise, and rightly too, t.
beware of disturbing the surface roots
Of corn, particularly when Of some heigh
of stalk Would not the same reason.
apply to fruit trees; are the laws tina
govern one different from that of the
otheri Common sense says there is ne
difference, but where is the person thai
applies common sense to the cultivation
Of his fruit trees? They generally fol
low what their fathers followed, withou
taking thought whether it is right OF
wrong the object seeming to be to gel
of the ground as much as possible, and
then complain that the trees do not ma.
turc their fruit. Can We expect any 9th
CT result?
The best remedy that your correspon.
dent can apply, would be to cease cult
waiting the orchard with crops, merely
scratching the surface with cultivator
or some such instrument, very shallow,
only to keep the grass and weeds from
growing. 1t will take some years to in
duce supply of surface roots to put
birth, aud until they do, he need not ex-
pect perfect fruit as regular crop.
D | am myself a sufferer from this COM
mon practice, and having learned some
thing, give it for the benefit of others.
The President Of the fruit convention,
held at New York last fall, said; :" He
would mention an orchard he knew in
Massachusetts, that yielded large crops of
fair ana fine fruit for market, in which
there had been neither grass nor plow
for forty years, the surface merely scratch
cd" Other instances might be mention
ed in support of this theory. A word to
the wise is sufficient. Amer. Far.