Union and American. [volume] (Greeneville, Tenn.) 1875-1877, 1875-12-23
Old and New Apple Orchards.

continue my old apple orchard, of
which some OF the limbs are dying,
or cut the trees down and plant a
new ODe? And shall 1 plant on
the same ground?" In answer
keep the old orchard as long as
you can get anything from it. Do
not plant on the same land; but
while you keep the old trees in
good condition as long as practi-
cable, haye q young orchard COM
ing on IN another place.
Ii you cut down your old trees
and plant a young orchard, you
will be without fruit for several
years. Old orchards, well man
aged, win grow and bear good
fruit for some twenty years longer
than if entirely neglected. At the
west, apple trees at forty years
have seen their best days, and can
not be relied On very much longer.
AT the cast they are usually
good till sixty years, and under
favorable influences will often last
till seventy or eighty. We have
seen o tree known to be about one
hundred years old, but this was an
unusual exception. The oldest
thrifty and bearing trees we have
known, stood on the borders of
gardens where at least half the
roots were in q cultivated and
constantly enriched soil. Those
standing neglected in grass and
weeds, ut the same age, were de-
clinIng, the limbs dying, and some
had gone to decay
For an old orchard standing in
grass, we would not recommend
Internationally blowing up the
sod. A portion Of the roots is nee
essarily cpt Or torn more or less
by the pillow; and while such a
root-pruning (performed of course
while the trees are dormant,) may
do no harm at all to a young and
thrifty orchard, it might tend to
check the growth Of old trees, un-
less the meilowing of the surface
might c0unterbalance tue effeAt.
1t is safest therefore to top-dress
the ground where old or decaying
trees stand, with manure in autumn
or winter, and to keep the grass
grazed short in summer with sneep,
these animals also destroying the
coding moth IN the fallen fruit.
Cut out all the dead limbs Mt the
same time, and reduce the amount
OF the top by thinning out evenly
the small shoots or branches. By
thus reducing the number of
shoots, those that remain will
make a vigorous growth, and bear
as good fruit as younger trees
We have known some which had
already lost a part of their branches
old age, restored to vigor and
to . moderate degree of productive-
ness. by stimulating the roots and
thinning the top. 1t is important,
however. to continue annually the
they receive, or they will soon
fall back again.
All this care is not great, and is
well repaid by the crops which the
old trees will continue TO afford
the young trees are coming
forward into bearing.
When it is not practicable to OBJ
tam large supplies of manure for
t~op-dressing, it may be best to
break up the grass sod under the
trees by a shallow blowing, early
in spring before the buds swell;
and by Keeping the surface clean
and mellow through the summer,
a small application of manure
will afford important as
sistance. A dressing of ashes,
leached or unleached, if not more
fifty bushels per acre, will be
To most soils. If the soil in
which the trees stand is deep, and
the roots extend downward several
feet, the blowing may be done
without fear of injury. II, on the
contrary, the sod happens to be
quite shallow, aud nearly all the
roots are near the surface, greater
caution must be used with old
trees, although with younger orch