The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1899-11-08
Nut CULTURE
IN THIS STATE.
How to Protect Young Pc.
cans From Several Pests.

To the Editor of the News and
Courier have read with interest
and prof. the letter of Mr. Woods on
"Not Culture in this State" aud your
editorial on the same
| will ask the privilege of giving
my experience with pecaus. 90 it
may be of some help to those con
templstiug planting. and also of
agreeing in the main with what Mr..
Woods says.
We planted our orchard in the
spriog Of 1892. about Is acres We
bought the nuts from Texas in the
early winter. aud just buried them
in the ground. fret putting them in
box 10 February We took them up,
soaked 10 water for . few days and
planted. would ssy We got over
80 per cent to come up
hardly think the plan of soaking
in liquid manure 10 necessary. The
amount taken up by the hard shell
wcu!d be bot little and If it reached
the kernel would probably kill it.
The plan We used. as advised, was
simply to soak % we would chutas.
the purpose being to hasten sprout
ing and not to fertilizs. The hole in
which the nut is planted should be
made ct least two feet across and
that deep, filled 10 with rotted earth
from fence corners or the woods
Plant the nut three or four inches
deep We bad fine success with
above method
BY the advice Of the man we
bought the seed from we put three in
. hill, 10 order to insure q stand.
This We would not do again, a. it Isl
"a waste. Pot one in hill and whore
tssy do not come gil in with trees
from nursery or plant again.
The spring Of 1898 l took up and
set ont from the extra ones which
came up IS. This is big JOB. for,
ss Mr. Woods says, the root will the
bret year average twice the length of
the tree. We read everything we
could get about this time for and
against the necessity of the tap root.
Cor conclusion was this, that those
who have nuts TO sell advocate the
tap root Those who have trees to
sell do not think it necessary
Col W r Stuart, of Mississippi,
who, up to now, has produced the
Huest nuts, sod both, and said either
wonld do. The general opinion was,
however, that seedlings varied so
much that i. was best to graft or bud
the trees The pecan has few and
very email lateral roots We were
advised that il would be we'll to cut
the tap root of those We were going
to transplant about lS inches below
the surface and let it grow another
year. giving the iaterals q year 10
develop
In 1891 we got from the depart.
ment at Washington the names of
those growing the best pecans
Among them were: Col. Stuart.
above mentioned, aud Dr.. 0 D
Faust, Of Bamberg They both cen.
us sample nuts. which were very fine
indeed. DR. Faust ct that time could
not supply us with seed.
] understand be has continued with
great success heard with pleasure
. paper from him on the subject at
Clemson in 1898, and would advise
any one to consult him before going
into the business.
What l stsrted out to write spe.
cially has to do with the tree after it
comes up and tell Of some OF the
enemies to su orchard Of pecaus 40
We have found them.
After the little trees had shed their
leaves in the fall Of the fret year we
would end lots of them cut of "siick"
just above the ground sometimes
the tree would be cot in several
pieces This We laid to some little
negroes st 6rss, but found out i. was
done by rabbits The second year
these s,umps put up sgain. as did
also the roots of several that had
apparently died This put these
tress one year behind. That fall the
rabbits did not bother them, though
We TOOK no precautions
The next two years We had to fight
. little worm which destroyed the
bud OF the young twig in the spring,
causing growth to stop, until tie
young leaves already put out had
fully grown. then . new Dud would
form end the limb proceed to grow
We were cut out Of nearly a years
growth on this account. The only
remedy suggested by the department,
when consulted, was spraying before
the bud opened and afterwards.
After the second season of spraying
the trees got larger. aud % there was