The Birmingham age-herald., 1905-10-09
HORTICULTURAL.

must be largely governed by local ane soil conditions in the planting of an or chard. Our readers nearly all live where the soil is heavy clay or has clay
 subsoil. so that what I may say here
 will apply for such soils. Out in sections
 of the west where the soil is deep sandy one, different methods of planting
 may be required. Only few days ago
 ! was reading advice given by nursery
 man out west, who recommended taking
 large hammer or post mall and packing
 the dirt hard around the tree, as we
 would do for setting fence post This
 plan might work all right for the sands or
 his section, but it is not the plan for our
 clay soils in the east, where the soll will settle around the roots of the tree
 without any packing.
 These heavy clay soils should be broken deep by subsoiling, the soil made very fine, and the holes for the trees dug so that the trees may set just a little deeper
 than they grew in the nursery. The holes should be dug large enough so that the roots of the trees may be set out straight and not doubled up. All broken roots should be cut off, and often some of the longer roots will need to be cut back. Setting the Trees.
 
 the trees, both roots and tops are needed set the tree in the hole, spreading the roots out then fill in around the tree with fine rich dirt from the surface. When the holes are filled, the soil may be pressed firmly around the tree with the feet As tsated before, much of the sue cess will depend upon the right start planting right and cultivating right a1ter | the trees are planted.
 | Last spring I set sixty apple trees, nli- | ing in my orchard where trees had died | out from neglect I have ffty-seven oi the sixty still growing, and l think 1T | had selected the trees myself at the nur- | sery I could have saved every one. IL IS much more difficult to get trees to grow 1 in an old orchard than where we are commencing anew. This instruction Is all right for all varieties of fruit trees There is quite an advantage in planting | in the fall or early winter. but trees should not be taken up until they finish the seasons growth and the wood has hardened. Some of the advantages of planting in early winter or late fall are: First, it then does not have to be done | in the spring, when there is always a rush of work, and there are generally | spring rains which either cause delay or cause the trees to have to be planted in the mud, a thing that should never be | done; second, when trees are properly pldIteu III tnt lstlt lail oi NoiiS | they will start a good growth during the | rainy winter season and be more able to | resist the summers heat and drouth In | case we should have dry summer fol- | lowing; and, third, the planter can gen
 erally have his pick of trees in the fall,
 which advantage he does not always get when buying in the spring.
 Tree Protection. 1 After the trees are planted they will | have to be watched carefully. and pro- l tected from stock. rabbits, mice and in- | sects. Heavy building paper should be used around the trees to prevent the rab- I bits and mice from gnawing the bark and
 killing the trees. The orchard should be
 gone over every week to see that the pa-
 per is all right and that nothing Is dis
 turbing the trees. Fruit growing, like
 any other class of work on farm, will | pay in proportion to the amount of work | and care given the trees.
 l Now, also, is the time to see to the
 orchards that were planted last season | and see that no worms or other insects l are stored away on the limbs under
 the bark. I have just attended tot mine
 have cleaned out all caterpilars and webs
 from the trees, and have taken away al | trash and rubbish which might harbol | mice or insects. This is also a good time
 to fertilize the soil for the growth of tho trees. My orchard is planted in COW peas | Wn1cn nave Snaueu the Soil ana HdN' 1 helped the trees to make wonderful
 growth. The COW pea is the plant to b. grown in a young orchard.
 This subject Is more fully covered fl
 my bulletin, Apple and Peach Grow ing' which will be mailed free on appli
 cation.
 I want to repeat that if we want tt | make fruit growing a success. either fol | home or commercial use, we must takt care of the trees.
 Few SeasonabIe Hints.
 The fruit orchard is not the only mat ter that should be looked after at thi.
 season. Soils for asparagus beds should | be prepared and the garden soil as fast
 as crops are taken off should be cleaned 1 fertilized. plowed. and made ready for ar I early garden the next spring. Then
 again, now is the time for sowing a line
 of clovers and grasses. as we'll as grains | for winter pastures. Rye and barley for winter pasture should have been sown some weeks ago. yet it may still be sowr
 to good advantage. Crimson clover should
 now be sown as soon as possible.
 This Is, or should be, the busiest time | on all farms. There are crops to har- vest, new crops and orchards to plant
 and the supply of winter vegetables to | be looked after. Stock, especially the dairy cows, will need special attention at this season. Western Crops.
 1 l am now touring the two Territories, | Indian and Oklahoma. holding farmers l meetings and giving lectures from our Frisco Educational and Grain Exhibit car. The attendance has been large at | most places, and the farmers are taking great interest in our work The crops in this country are very good. The corn crop is one of the best ever grown in this section. The cotton crop is late and
 needs time yet to mature. However,
 picking Is now in progress in nearly all cotton growing sections, and the gins are starting up. This years crop will fall short of that of last year. There has
 been an abundance of rain and there are plenty of fruits, vegetables and grasses all over the county.
 I was with the people at Shawnee at their fair one day last week and was very much surprised at their exhibits. Stalks of corn twenty-two feet high were shown and many stalks measuring thir- teen feet to the first ear. The exhibit of corn and cotton was very fine, also the exhibits of both sweet and Irish po- tatoes.
 l had the pleasure of addressing the people Thursday and Thursday evening. The attendance was very large. great many samples of grains. grasses, pota-