Muscatine weekly journal. [volume] (Muscatine, Iowa) 185?-1890, 1864-07-08
For the JournAl.l
Tho ADDlc Orchard.

MESSRS. EDITORS l have Just been
examining my big orchard. My record
shows, land every one ought to record
their orchard that in the spring OF
1857, commenced setting this orchard
by planting 400 trees. have been adj
ding to it every spring and fall since.
like fall planting best. First, we have
more time to attend to it and theground
is generally in better order. Plow deep,
ridge up and set the trees in the ridge,
about Is feet apart. Second, the trees
do better-more of them live, and they
get a much better start the first summer,
much drOuth. Pillow, plant and hoe
grain or grass until the trees are large
enough to bear five bushels of apples
each. Then it may be sown down to
timothy grass for a few years. 1t will
do for hog and calf pasture.
A few Early Flargest for the earliest.
Then comes the Red June and Sweet
June either of them among the most
productive and early bearers that is,
they bear large crops when quite small.
For fall apples, my Maiden's Blush suits
me about the best, a handsome tree,
young and good bearer of a very hand
some and tart apple. The Fall Vine is
also first rate. l am gettinga good stock
of the Warfields," the handsomest OF
all apples, ripens in August and Sep
TENDER, is between the Red June and
Maiden's Blush. For early winter the
Fulton and Striped Pippin are good /;
mid winter-J onathan, White and Vel
low Belltlower. l have 81 Yellow Bell
flower, mot an extra quantity in one Or
chard of over 5000 trees,) about the
most beautiful and thrifty growing trees
in the whole orchard, but they do not
bear when young. By the side of these
l have the Jonathan, Roman Stem and
Virginia Greening, bearing full at only
five years set. My Hartford Sweet-let
me say word for them again-are bear
ing full again this year, every year full
a long keeper, handsome red apple, and
not sweet but between sweet and sour.
Virginia Greening and Ben Davis. This
is comparatively new variety intro
duced few years ago in the Illinois
nurseries, by the name of New York
Pippin, most highly recommended in
Illinois and Ohio.
If trees have got to be of good size and
do not bear, prune now-early in July,
then cut the top and get step-ladder,
then get hold of the top and all the long
limbs and shorten of. This checks
their growth and causes them to set
fruit body. Do not manure the orchard
unless it is on piece of ground too
poor to bear half a crop of corn. Hard
clay land deeply plowed is best. A
high prairie ridge, rolling land, and
well worn out fields will do.
I am not little surprised at the adj
vice in catalogue, from one of our
Iowa nurseries, about 100 miles west of
this. It is these words: advise that
in our bleak, exposed lands, we set our
trees one rod apart each way, and in
some cases less rather than greater
distance"
Since writing the above, have STEP
ped out to my orchard near the house,
Vine "a feet across it's top. This is rath-
er slow grower. A Striped Pippin is
now 90 feet from tip to tip of it's limbs.
Ifthey are only Zone rod or less" apart,
the lower limbs will die off in time. w.
McWharter, Of Mercer county, Illinois,
is laying the axe to one half his fine
trees, planted 16 and Is feet apart, and
the remaining half are greatly injured
by close proximity. Messrs. Robt. and
Henry Avery, Burlington, do the same
as McWharter. These men say, by sad
experience, "do not plant the orchard
too close"
My practice and my advice is to set
row of rank growers, such as Yellow
Bellfower, Little Romantic and Sweet
Romantic, only six or eight feet apart,
on the north and west sides, and if the
orchard is on ridge such a row might
be set on the top of the ridge. Also sur
round the orchard with a good live
hedge. 1t is far better to ruin one row
by close planting than the whole or
chard. Look forward to the condition
of large trees. SUEL FOSTER.