The Black Hills union and western stock review. [volume] (Rapid City, S.D.) 1904-19??, 1906-03-09
IMPROVING THE ORCHARD BY
GRATING,

middle lie is found to be no longer prOht-
able mainly because a mistake was made
in the selection Of the varieties in the be-
ginning: in such cases the orchard may be
made profitable again by top-graft.ng the
trees. This is not a difficult task provided
1t Is properly done and the union between
the branch and the scion is perfect. AS
a rule branches not over an inch in diam
eter are the best to work in this way. OF
course 1t is understood that the sc.ons
would be much smaller in diameter than
the parent stock so that plan is to insert
two. one on each outer edge. The main
thing to observe is to be sure kat the
bark OF both scion and parent stock are
In perfect line so that the flow of sap may
be perfectly free. Care must also be
taken that the space between the scions
and the parent stock made by the chisel
be filed with the grating wax as well as
any other spaces in which the air may
get. 1t is not customary to leave both Of
the crafts but to cut out the weaker one
If both grow. This work is interesting and
really very simple If one gets the knack
of it and it certainly pays with an ORCH
ard that it not too old If care is taken to
obtain sc.ons from known bearing trees of
the best sorts.
VALUE IN WOOD ASHES.
A number of correspondents have writ
ten that they are in a position to obtain
unleached hard wood ashes at very low
prices. ranging from 81 to 81 a ton and ask
for advice regarding them. A man who
can buy first class ashes at the figures
given would be justified in obtaining the
money to buy them, in any honest way for
the value of q ton of wood ashes that are
first class IS much more than the figures
named-a ton of wood ashes, according to
the best authorities. contains about GOO
pounds OF lime 100 pounds OF potash and
40 pounds Of phosphoric acid. Almost any
soil would be benefited by the wood ashes
and it would pay to apply them at the
rate of ton and one-half an acre. They
would be especially valuable as top
derssing for the meadow applied early in
the spring or late in the fall. Many mead
ows have been kept in a most profitable
condition by the use of wood ashes alone.
BE careful in buying wood ashes that they
are from hard wood and that they are
really ashes else their value is question:
able.
WORKING HARD PAN SOIL.
There are many soils where the subsoil
pillow would result in making them grow
crops of great value where now the pro-
duct is of little use. Such soils have q
hard under strata which the ordinary pillow
will not pierce, but which the subsoiler
will loosen up and make porous, but not
incorporate much Of this soil with the
more 1rlaDle part near the surface. To
operate the subsoiler, let the regular pillow
go through the field and follow in each
furrow with the subsoil pillow. In this
way, with two men and teams. field may
be put in excellent condition so that the
plant foods applied will work down deeper
as well rs loosening and making available
to the crops some of the food elements in
the lower soil. Crops with deep root
growth may then be grown where it was
not possible to do anything of the kind be-
fore. 1t will pay to experiment on any
field of the nature described with the sub
soiler to be sure that 1t works we'll before
going to the labor of covering an entire
field.