The Advocate and news., 1897-12-29
An Apple Orchard.

of land, asks information as to varie-
ties and what changes would be sug-
gestetl in the following list: 10 Wealthy,
10 Buckingham, 10 Red Winter, 20 Brad
ford, IS Winesap, so Ben Davis, 10 Gano,
10 Texas Red, 100 Arkansas Black, 30
Kinnaird, so Shockley, rs Shirley, rs
10y, so Mammoth Black Twig, 10 Yates.
Here are fifteen varieties in 500 trees
for ten acres of land, which are twice as
many kinds as should be planted. Many
of these varieties it would be worse than
useless to plant In this part Of the coun-
try. Arkansas Black and Wealthy we
would not plant at all. The former
blights badly and is of poor quality and
the latter is summer apple here and
useless.
II for commercial orchard we would
not plant anything earlier than Grimes
Golden and Jonathan, and we would
select the 500 trees as follows: 100
Crimes Golden, 100 Jonathan, 100 Nam
moth Black Twg, 100 Winesap, 100 York
Imperial. On ten acres this would make
the trees thirty feet apart each way and
we would then fill in the rows north
and south so they would be fifteen feet
apart with Missouri Pippin, Gano,
Rawles Janet and 10y. The trees would
then be fifteen feet apart north and
south and thirty feet apart east and
west and there would be about 100 to the
acre. The tops will eventually grow
together north and south, but the rows
will be far enough apart east and west
to NOW between them and to drive
team through when gathering the ap-
pies. The Missouri Pippin Is an early
bearer and short-lived tree and can be
cut out when the trees get old. The
Gano Is an improved Ben Davis, not so
large but much better in quality and
color. The Janet grows small top
and does not take as much room as some
of the others. The 10y is an early and
annual bearer. These are all red apples
excepting the Grimes Golden and
Rawles' Janet, and red apples always
sell the best. Grimes Golden is excel
lent in quality, good size and a good
bearer. Rawle's Janet is medium size,
a long keeper and an excellent apple in
the spring.
II for home orchard we would also
put in 100 trees of summer fruit as fol-
lows: 10 Red June, 20 Early Harvest, 20
Yellow Transparent, 25 Maiden's Blush
and rs Cooper's Early White.
The foregoing varieties, with good
treatment, will furnish apples the year
round. The trees should be set in
straight rows so that team can work
close to them. A corn lister Is good
tool to make burrows in which to set the
trees. The ground should be worked
up deep and mellow. Two-year-old trees
are the best size to plant and the spring
is the best time to set them. Corn or
potatoes can be raised between the trees
for the first five or six years and then
the ground should be seeded down to
clean red clover. No small grain or
alfalfa should ever be grown in an or
chard Until seeded in clover it should
he worked and kept clean and mellow.
Keep the trees branched low and trim
only where necessary to keep limbs from
rubbing or to cut out water sprouts or
to keep the top balanced. The best and
sllrest protection against mice, rabbits
and borers is wire screen, such as is
used to keep out mosquitoes. Buy 1t in
rolls, eighteen inches wide, and cut 1t
across into strips six inches wide, roll
these tightly around an old broom
handle, then spring the roll around the
tree and sink the lower end an inch
into the ground 1t will cost about a
cent tree besides the trouble Of putting
1t on. It should be left there winter and
summer and will expand as the tree
grows and will also be a protection
against sun-scald. Never put grease,
axle grease or anything greasy on fruit
trees, as it is sure to injure II it does
not kill them outright. After seeding
to clover the ground should be moved
twice each summer, about the last of