Huntsville gazette., 1885-10-03
PLANTING FRUIT TREES.
The Autumnal Selection of Young Trees TO
he Made AS Early as Possible.


The Autumnal Selection Of Young Trees to
he Made AS Early as Possible.
Landowners sometimes make the
mistake of doing all their planting of
fruit trees in single season, supposing
that no further care is necessary for
long years to come. A part of these
trees come into bearing in few years,
but vacancies are found in the success
sion for supply; some improvement is
suggested in the selection, and years
must elapse before these vacancies,
made by omissions, or by occasional
dead trees, can be supplied by bearing
trees. The man who does not feel in
terest enough in fruit culture to make
yearly or frequent additions to his as
sortment, and to inform himself rela
tive to the best sorts, will never have
anything better than an imperfect
supply.
The period in the seasons approach
ing when selections are to be made for
autumnal orders on the nurseries, and
excellent opportunities are presented
now, in the time of ripe fruits, to make
additions to former lists. Better selec
tions of trees may be had before the as
sortments of nurserymen are reduced
by whole season of autumn sales, and
the trees, if not set out when received,
are easily kept till spring by heeling-
in-remembering the two precautions
of filling in compactly with mellow
earth every possible interstice among
the mass of roots, and surrounding the
trees with mound of compact, smooth
and clean earth, to exclude mice.
In purchasing trees do not make the
mistake of selecting large trees from
the nursery rows. These will be sure
to have the roots more cut and multi
ated than smaller ones, 1t will be
more difficult to brace them against
the wind. Small trees may be taken
up with smaller proportion of un-
injured roots. They are more easily
and perfectly set out. They cost less,
in the first place; they are more easily
packed in bundles or boxes, and are
less liable to injury in transit; the
freight or express charges are less, and
they are more readily trained into a
proper shape at the beginning. With
due care the smaller trees will be
thrifty at the start, and will, in few
years, overtake the larger ones, which
have been checked by removal. The
difference between the crops, when
they bear, will be handsome, thrifty,
well-grown fruit on the one, and small
fruit of second quality on the other.
This will be the tendency, although
there may be exceptions. To obtain
the most satisfactory results, the best
care must of course be given, and
without care it would be better not to
plant either large or small. As the
terms large and small are indefinite, it
may be well to state that apple. cherry
and pear trees two years from the bud
or graft, of thrifty growth, and peach
trees one year, are as large as some of
the most skillful cultvators wish to
purchase. Trees another year older
may succeed well if great care is taken
to secure long roots in taking them up,
and in shortening back the yearling
shoots when setting out.
| The owner who makes frequent or
| yearly additions to his fruit grounds,
even with only few trees at a time,
| will acquire knowledge of fruits and
their management, and will not be
liable to the impostions often reported,
of extravagant prices and eXtravagant
claims on the part of unreliable vend-
ers, and they will be able to discrimi-
nate between imposters on the one
hand and trustworthy agents of reli-
able nursery men on the other.-In-
dianap0lis Journal.