Vermont farmer. [volume] (Newport, Orleans County, Vt.) 1870-1877, 1876-10-13
Orchard Cul ture.

j. j. Thomas, in his paper on this sub.
ject read before the American Pathological
Society, at its last session, says:
The question often occurs aud is frequently
discussed, which is the best, to manure n
grass surface or to give clean cultivation
without manure On very shallow soils
manure may be the most effective. But even
then, shallow and thorough cultivation may
answer all the desired purpose. The addi-
ton Of moderate top-dressing to such u
cultivated soil will accomplish more than
heavy mauuring on a sod. The question
will resolve itself into one Of economy. Plow-
ing once and narrowing five times subso-
queutly will not usually cost more than five
dollars per acre altogether. An equal effect
produced by manure would require at least
fifteen two.horse loads. At dollar per
| load, aud half as much more for drawing
and spreading, these would amount to more
than four times as much as keeping the
ground clean by cultivation. la many in-
stances the cost Of manuring would be much
greater; in few possibly less.
In some cases where cultivation is diff
fcult, manuring may be used to advantaged
aud where valuable crops Of several hundred /;
dollars worth OF fruit per acre are obtained,
as for example with the best pears, the an-
nual cost of twenty or thirty dollars for
manure would be a small portion Of the net
profit.
On soils OF moderate fertility, the prac-
tice of allowing grass to grow with young
or newly set fruit trees, is one Of the most
common causes or failure. All plants when
crowded arc checked in vgor. Weeds and
grass lessen all garden crops. Indian corn
thickly sown will not bear ears. For the
same reason where trees and grass occupy
the same ground, the evils of a crowded
growth occur, and the trees cannot flourish
so we'll as where they have the sole occupacy.
The exception (partially) is where roots Of
the trees, as they become old, run far below
the grass in the deep, rich, and porous sub
soil.
have usually found the shoots Of young
peach trees which stood in mellow, clean
soil, or with we'll cultivated hoed crops, as
corn, potatoes or beans, to grow two and a
half to three feet in single year. When
allowed to stand in grass, l have never seen
the shoots foot long while tho trees were
young, unless within reach Of manure OF
cultivated ground through their long roots,
Quackery has been defined as the applica'
tion of the same remedy to all diseases. II
: should never be never be adopted in the cul'
: tivation of fruit, but the treatment should
vary with the condition of the soil and To-
cality. The planter who succeeds well with
his trees in grass, in land of great fertility
or with high manuring, should not prescribe
grass for orchards in al other soils aud pa
. ces. The man who has q shallow soil, anC
. who has injured his orchard by severely mu'
tilating the roots with the plow. because they
are all near the surface, should not ebjec
3 to the thorough plowiug of deep soils.
!. have seen an orchard which was plowed
2 early in the spring, after lying long in grass
? and the roots SO severely cut that at leas
a., one cart load per acre was picked up an(
drawn of after the operation. Yet, as thi
was done in spring before growing had begun
Q aud as there were plenty of roots remainin
4 deeper in the soil positive benefit was de
rived from the plowing, the cultivation over
= balancing any injury by mutilation of tn
Q roots, aud greatly increasing the quantity q
i well as improving the quality of the croT
a But if this deep and thorough plOwing ha
been performed alter the trees were 10 lea
: or if the soil had been so shallow as to thro'
most of the roots within six inches of tn
z surface, the result would doubtless have bee
:. disastrous.