Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1886-05-25
DaiIu Ksnnehfr 3ournal.
Planting New Orchards.

A correspondent of the American Cutl-
vator gives the following sensible advice.
which every farmer interested will 90
we'll to heed. He says, Of late years. In
the older States, fruit. especially apples,
has paid so poorly that the tendency has
been to decrease the amount OF orchard
| ing rather than to increase it, In too
MANY cases trees justcoming into bearing,
and which, with the care and use OF the
land to grow them. have entailed heavy
expense, have been cleared away to re-
store fields to ordinary cropping. That
this policy is generally unwise. is tolerab-
Ily certain. A tree of bearing age has
cost too much money to be sacrificed, and
if thrifty and well located it will pass. on
the average, better interest on the land
it occupies than is likely to be got by any
other use of it.
1t is less encouraging to plant new
apple orchards, but to those well located
and on not too expensive land, the result
OF such planting will prove profitable.
1t needs good land for orchards. While
the trees are growing, rich soil lnsures
thrift and rapid growth. While trees
that are stinted by poverty will bear earli-
err, it is at the cost of vigor and usefulness
later on. II is easy to understand why
the settlers in the West should rejoice at
the first show of fruit. even on small trees
but when fruit can be had otherwise, it is
better to leave the young orchard to grow
twelve or fourteen years without trying to
force it into fruifulness.
Farmers planting orchards now will not
make the mistake so common formerly, OF
planting a great variety only moderately
productive and therefore not profitable.
The mistake now will be the other way,
in restricting varieties to one or two. 1t
is often said that there is no apple so prof
table as the Baldwin. This is true of
many but not all localities. but it will soon
cease to be true anywhere if all new
paintings are of the Baldwin variety. IT
man cannot live by bread alone it is not
likely that the world will be always or
long satisfied with only one kind of APP
pies, and that not the best.
AS far as possible the same varieties of
apples should be planted IN solid blocks.
This is much more convenient in gather
ing than where trees are scattered through
the orchard. 1t often happens that apple
trees have less than full barrel in sea-
son, and in fall crops there are parts of
barrels left over from single trees. Hav-
ing varieties by themselves, enables the
apple pickers to finish one variety before
beginning another. The summer and
early fall apples, as we'll as varieties kept
mainly for home use, should be near the
house and as much in bunch as possible.
Much of the success of certain orchards
depends on the kind of stocks on which
varieties are grated The Baldwin
makes one of the very best stocks on which
to graft other varieties. AS most nursery
stock is not grated, a tree of Baldwins is
OF that variety from top to bottom. If
Northern Spy, Twenty Ounce and other
varieties that do not succeed on their own
roots are top grated on Baldwin stock,
the result will be a thriftiness and pro-
ductiveness almost equal to the Baldwin
itself. 1t is probable, also, that there
would be great increase in vigor, but OF
this there have been few practical exam
piles. Few have cared to run the risk of
spelling thrifty Baldwin by changing it
into one of these feeble sorts. Yet the
Spitzenberg, Fall Pippin and Swaar are
so excellent that it is worth while graft
ing over even a Baldwin to grow enough
at least for home use.