The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1883-11-08
Preparing the Soil for an Orchard.

Many people do not think that an
orchard needs any special care. They
do not grow fruit as they grow other
crops, for which they carefully prepare
the soil and carefully cultivate for the
purpose of making the crop better and
more abundant. The orchard, in too
many instances, is set out without care
and never has any care afterward. 1t
is true that an apple orchard will often
do well even under such neglect, but
care in the preparation of the soil and
good care afterward will pay a fine per
cent. of profit for all the time and labor
that is expended. The subject of drain
age will be the very first to present it
self in the consideration of site for an
orchard. Everybody knows that wet
land will not answer; and nobody would
select low wet field for an orchard
site. Many times, however, portion
of a field which elsewhere is all right
for an orchard, is too wet for trees, and
it is folly to plant trees on that portion
unless it is drained. 1t is of no use to
think that, perhaps, they will amount
to something, even if they are not as
good as the balance of the field will pro-
duce. Either drain or do not plant the
trees; and whenever drainage is at
tempted for an orchard, or for other
purposes, it should be thorough and
systematic. No fruit grower should be
content with surface drainage. Under
draining is expensive, and much more
so than it ought to be, but as we have
said so many times, it will pay to under
drain. On our level prairies we can
hope for success in apple culture only
by thoroughly draining. In many por-
tions of the West, as we all know, the
soil is often too wet to grow anything.
Millions of dollars are lost every year
because drainage has not yet been as
extensively adopted as its merits would
warrant.
Having selected the site with a view
to dryness, put the soil in good condi-
ton, remembering that when the soil is
not too thin, it may be plOwed deep
with good results. The orchard should
never be set on uncultivated land; and
that so many orchards have done rea-
sOnably well by setting the trees in a
space dug in a pasture, is no argument
that this is the way to set trees. Thor
Oughly cultivate the soil, and when it
can be done just as well as not, cult
waite it deeply, as we said before, al
though we do not attach so much i'm
pOrtance to trench blowing or subsOil-
ing as some do. The roots viii pene-
tTate anyhow, and will at least in a
measure prepare the soil for the use Of
the tree. If there is in the ground in
available shape what the tree wants, the
roots will find it.
Whether or not to apply manuIes will
depend upon the condition of the soil,
and no intieXible rule can be laid down.
1t must be remembered that trees are
great feeders. If the soil is worn out,
lime with clover as a green manure, will
prove very valuable? If on such soils
from twenty-five to fifty bushels Of
Stacked lime are applied to the clover,
it will both improve the clover, and act
directly upon the soil itself No one
thing viii do as much to prepare a field
of comparatively poor land for an or
chard as clover. Its roots penetrate deep
into the earth, and disintegrate the soil
besides drawing up a vast amount of
hidden treasure. Wood ashes will be
found valuable either when the soil is
being prepared or afterward. Besides
these, cohpOsts and stable manures are
valuable at least in bringing up soils
that are comparatively poor. If there
is a necessity for planting such soil inn
mediately, thoroughly decomposed COM
post, mixed with the soil, should be ap-
piled about the trees, but the entire sur
face of the field will also have to be
manured afterward several times. Fresh
stable manure should never be placed
about the young trees
Now we come to digging the holes for
the trees. If the ground is well pre-
pared, as we have indicated, the holes
need not be very large either in width
or depth. Some lay great stress upon
wide and deep holes, but such holes are
a matter of great expense, and when
they are not needed, the expense should
not be incurred. IF the field is in grass
the holes should be wide, about as wide
as the field, we think. And where a
few trees are to be set in grass, why of
course, make the holes large. The
holes prepared, take the tree, and care
fully examine the roots, cutting away
mats of tibers and any roots that are
bruised or ragged. Now set them out,
spreading out the roots carefully, and
packing the soil about them firmly
Then cultivate for several years. West
eTH RaErdi.