The Fulton County news. [volume] (McConnellsburg, Pa.) 1899-current, 1906-10-25
PECAN CULTURE
IN THE SOUTH.
BY RENE BoUcHELLE.


an equitable climate, and the pos.
sibilities along horticultural lines are
| practically unlimited. The South
| Atlantic and Gulf States are particu.
larly blessed in these climatic con.
ditions, of which fact landowners are
slowly beginning to avail themselves
For the past few years, pecan cul.
ture has been receiving attention, but
1t Is yet In It's infancy. The main
prejudices against |. have been the
impression that 1t required genera.
tioa to attain growth and tina. II
was delicate and hard to cultivate
Both ideas are entirely erroneous. II
attains nut-bearing age in from
eight to ten years, is quite hardy
and tenacious of life.
1t thrives on any except exceed
ingly sandy soil, and seems to have
no preference between the lowlands
and the hills, doing equally we'll
from the Blue Ridge range to the
coast. Like any other tree, it re-
spends to cultivation, though 1t does
not require much fertilization. In
fact, the best plan is to plant other
crops in the orchard until the trees
reach nut-bearing age, which is in
from eight to ten years. This keeps
the soil well stirred, and enriches the
land sufficiently for the best growth
of the nuts. The growth for the
first year or two seems slow, as the
tree goes more to root than top, the
roots growing almost straight down,
and sending out ve:v few surface
runners.
A good crop to plant in pecan
orchard is the common field pea,
known throughout the South as the
cow pea The roots of this are rich
in nitrogen, and no other fertilizer
will be necessary, while the hay from
the vines can be marketed at a good
profit. Two crops of this are made
a year.
The trees should be planted about
forty-five feet apart, or from sixteen
to twenty to the acre, to get the best
results. Budded stock is lest, and
Frotscher is one of the most popular
varieties.
When from eight to ten .'ears old,
the trees may be expected to bear
from twenty to forty pounds of nuts,
this amount increasing yearly until
the trees reach their full growth,
when the average yield is one hun
dred and fifty pounds to the tree A
net profit of 5000 can be safely
counted on from an acre of paper
sheel pecans that have attained their
maturity. This is a low estimate,
as this variety brings high prices,
and the supply is never equal to the
demand.
The nuts ripen about the middle
of October, and may be gathered
from then until December. The
smooth, hard bur in which the nut
is enclosed cracks open, and 1t is
easy work to shell the nuts out end
prepare them for market.
One of the few enemies of the
pecan is the fall web-worm 1t is
best to watch for this carefully, re-
moving the webs as they appear,
thereby preventing any harm to the
tree.
The much dreaded San Jose scale,
so prevalent among fruit trees in the
South, does not trouble the pecans
at all. In one instance a pear
orchard, badly affected with San
Jose scale, adjoined a pecan orchard
without the latter showing the slight
est signs of becoming infected
Rabbits sometimes gnaw the bark
of very young trees, but this is easily
prevented by tying around the root
of the trees handful of broom
sedge, which grows so plentifully
along the fence corners in this sec
tion.
The pecan stands high among the
list of ornamental trees also. The
leaves are glossy, dark green,
somewhat similar to the hickory, and
the trees are as stately and symmet-
rical as the beautiful live oaks that
abound throughout the South. Many
of the smaller towns are beginning
to use them as shade trees in place
OF oaks, and in few years they will
become source of revenue to the
far-sighted municipalities. A few
nurseries have been started and some
groves planted, but there is still
much undeveloped territory that
might be made to yield a good in
come at minimum outlay of ex-
pense and labor. The soil is pecu-
liarly adapted to their culture
New England Grocer.