Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1892-12-09


Hsving IN resenf number Of de JnrE-
xaI givea the vieus Ut ) writer il DIR RaFsl
New Yorker On The praciiee Of pianiing neu
Of young apple trees 10 old orchards. We
no~ copy From the same paper. the remarks
Of Dr.. 7. H. Hoskins of Vermont, upon
the same subject. DR.. Hoskins Il widely
known throughout New England - one of
the best Informed and mast prartieal fruit
cuIfurists and orchard writer's in the entire
northern section Of oar country His
views will he read With great interest by
all:
AS to planting young trees in an old
orchard, and the prospect Of their
profitable growth there. very little
depends, think. upon what sort
Of trees preceded the new orchard
On the groun.i One Of the most
suecessfui orchards IN Maine is planted
smong the stamps OF removed forest trees.
| an aware that there is some SORT of super
stition about trees poisoning the ground
for trees of the same or other species sue
| ceediny the old sorts; but / am not aware
that the propoaniers of this notion have
ever gone far on the road toward proving It,
II seems to keiong 10 that class of PROPOSE
tons bordering on the supernatural, which,
for that reason, perhaps. are supposed 10
stand independent of evidence.
NV experience. and the experience OF
the great majority II sncfessful orehari-
| t.ts. I think, il that, If the land Is SUIT
able in other respects, the presence " OLD
| fruit trees on il osfers no other disadvantage
than arises from the necessity of removing
them ia order ru give suitable preparation
10 ti,s. ground, and an equal chance for all
Bnt this disadvantage. if there are many DIG
trees, may he, and often is, a serious ob1ec-
ton, suff.i MT in some eases. to determine
the sel.,t i.sn of another site.
AS TO the prese zee of the roots of dead
trees in the ground offering an impeachment,
it il true that they do impede blowing; but
farther than that. ! have long regarded them
rs being positively beneficial. especially on
heavy or har,.-pan soils. These old roots go
deep into the ground. and when dead, AS
they siowl, decay. they act efficiently for
wears as unIerdrains and ! believe that
very oft.n, where such land has AT length
Sc .n,ei TO have entirely lost lts producty"
power. or life. AS some Old farmers say.
il is because the decay of these old roots.
and the closing of their cavities by plow-
ing, have cut of the action of these drains
Here. might refer to an experience of m,
own. Several years ago, while the snow
was going off, my ''hired man" came in.
quite excited, and sail he would bet that
he had found a smugglers cave. we
live near the Canada line | went out
with him iuto plowed field, part,
covered with fast-melting snow. Their
he showed me what was truly ,
curious sight--quite a strong stream OF
water in nearly level field pouring into
and disappearing through small hole il
the ground. When the land dried off,
little digging on the spot revealed not
smuggler's cave, but a deep cavity, extend
ing far below the frozen surface, which re-
ceye,i and absorbed the stream referred TO
1t was evidently produced by the decay OF
the enormous roots of an ancient monarch
of the primeval forest.
..As to old orchards in which only "A few
trees are gone, if the remainder are thrift,
and productive, il would have to be prett,
large vacancy where | would undertake I,
plant any young trees. Some 20 years ag'
was taken, by the late Charles Glib o.
Montreal. to see the ample grounds then fol-
sale, of one of the On city fanilies,in which
there were many things of horticultural in.
terest. They were in charge of an old gar
dener. who had the produce for his care (:
and he showed us II enormous Fameusc
trees. which had one acre all to them
selves. They were loaded as | never saw
trees loaded, with the finest fruit, the outer
limbs bending to the earth: aud when one
got under them and looked up, it was lik'
a great circus tent. This gardener told M
that he had just sold these apples just as
they were, on the trees, for $500 do moi
think there would have been the least hops
for trees planted in the open spaces between
these monarchs of the orchard. These Ia
trees doubtless fully occupied all the ground
allotted to them The earth was erased
about them, and the grass was never re-
moved; nor wa, the land manured. But
it was the deep, rich limestone soil of the
Island of Montreal