Catoctin clarion. [volume] (Mechanicstown, Md.) 1871-1940, 1882-06-29

Mouse and Farm.
PEACH CULTURE.


any little AZ at cutting down the dead
ones close to the ground; and | we'll
remember the fat borers which had
bored the peach trees aesrly tc hon
evoomb. Butgt never occurred to me,
at that time that those peach trees
were killed by the borers. Farmers
averred that it was useless to attempt
to raise peaches, because the climate
was not right. Yet | remember well
that one tree which stood near the
leach tub, around which ashes kept
down all vegetation, and another tree
that stood near the great brick. oven
near which no grass or weeds were ev'
or allowed to grow, on account OF ash
x.s, both bore fine peaches for more
shan thirty years, unt,l they literally
died of old age, which showed that the
climate was not at fault.
In the spring of 1913 became the
owner of a farm in Central New York
and one of the first jobs was to procure
peach and other trees from Long Is
land. After the expiration of four OF
five years those peach trees bore abun-
dant crops Of excel en- t fruit; and when
! sold the farm, the trees being sixteen
wears old, every one was thrifty and
bore bountiful crops. The ground
where they grew was always kept free
from grass and weeds, and every tree
was examined carefully not less than
rhree times year, for the purpose OF
destroying the borers before they had
damaged the tree. Every borer was
DESTROYED with the knife before it had
bored through the thick bark. Besides
this, ashes, both coal and wood, and
some lime, were spread around the
reach trees, as far from the bodies as
xhe branches extended. IN 1879 saw
many OF those peach trees, which had
,ransplanted in 1913, still alive an
bearing a small yield Of excellent
fruit.
In 1878 | commenced fitting up a
new homestead on neg elected portion
Of an old farm in new Jersey. AS soon
49, the bushes, briar, ambles, AMI
Young trees had been removed lrolr
the wild and unoceupied ground, my
first step was to plant fruit trees. Ma
nv of my Interested nelsbbors warned
me not to try an experiment IN which
! would most certainl v fail. The ell
mate, they insisted, was no longer con
genial to the peach tree. In reply |
suggested that lf the climate had once
been congenial to peach trees, | did
not think it had changed.
suggested borers and grass as the
prime causes Of the failure. | went to
several large peach orchards, whore
every tree was dead and dry, and by
digging around those trees, | became
satisfied that the borers aud grass had
killed the orchards.
Feeling confident that the climate
was not at all faulty, procured some
peach trees from Wilmington, Del,
some from Red Bank n. J., another
lot from Lyons n. Y, aluaatity from
Mount Hope Nurseries, Rochester, n
Y, and small wagon load at Blau-
veltville, n. y. all of which were
transplanted i'll very poor soil. where
! cauld not make grass seed grow, and
where | could not raise crop of corn,
oats or potatoes worth the expense OF
of harvesting. In 1878 more than one
third of the trees that were planted in
1874 yielded a bushel each Of excel
lent fruit, and few produced two
bushels each. No weeds or grass were
ever allowed 10 grow around the trees.
The peach curcuie was headed off by
picking up the little premature peach
es, putting them all in barrels, and
soaking them in water until all eggs
and insect life mere completely de-
stroyed. Trees were procured from the
different localities mentioned for the
purpose Of ascertaining whether peach
trees fro n different parts Of the coun.
try, when all were cultivated alike,
would succeed equally we'll. | could
not perceive any difference. In 1879
l sold this farm. The present spring
l have been informed that these
peach trees are all dying from the raw
ages of burers. When | sold the prop
erty every tree was healthy and very
thrifty, and with my mode Of manage.
- ,,..,,lJ h., l,aI 70, ,i,, q