The Caucasian. (Clinton, N.C.) 188?-1913, 1906-05-10
prsnarfnxa Peach Orchard,


II the land Is fresh and has just been
cleared. It should be cultivated at least
two years In cotton or some other crop
adapted to the locality. Should this
new land be too rich for peaches, the
fertility should be reduced by planting
corn or some other exhaustive crop
for a year IL II is old and worn out,
It should be restored to n state OF fer
tility before setting out the trees. The
land should be broken up to the proper
depth with n two-horse pillow. followed
with a subsoiler IL necessary. Grim
son clover, cOwpeas, potatoes or other
crops which will require fertilization
are excellent as cover crops TO turn
under.
After the land has received the
proper blowing and subsoiling, I rec
ommend broadcasting or drilling in
peas in May, using one bushel to the
acre; 80 TO 200 pounds good fertilizer
per acre will materially increase the
growth. In February or March l break
| up the peavines by running over the
| ground with a cutaway harrow. then
turn under with a good turn-plow. AS
| the depth of the top soil has been in
creased, the land can be plowed to
greater depth than at the previous
blowing. l subsoil again, if necessary,
and in November the land is ready for
| the orchard.
Another excellent mode of prepara-
| tion is to SOW crimson clover In Sep
TENDER, first broadcasting with stable
manure or applying good commercial
| fertilizer. The clover is plowed under
i'll May and peas sown. All peach
lands should be deeply and thoroughly
| plowed. because after the trees are
planted and are in growth. they can
not be plowed deeply. All places in
| the orchard where the top soil has
been washed away should receive care
full and special attention: such places
are devoid Of humus. This must be
supplied by a liberal application of
stable manure or compost. Peas or
clover, which must be plowed under
in March, should follow in two years
by treating as above mentioned, these
depleted parts of the orchard can be
made very fertile.
The land is checked off at the proper
distances with a good two-hOrse turn
pillow. At the intersections holes two
feet square are dug, the top soil is
thrown to one side. l use a liberal
amount of wel-decomposed stable ma
nure in each hole. and have this thor
oughly Incorporated with the soil. If
stable manure is not available, then
use from one to two pounds bone-meal.
or the same quantity of mixture of
two parts acid phosphate to one cotton
seed meal. When using chemical fer
tiliZers the best results are obtained by
first setting the tree. filling up the hole
one-half its depth, and then applying
the fertilizer, but mixing it thoroughly
with the SOIL The earth must be firmed
we'll about the roots of the tree and
leveled off.
After the trees have put out n growth
of one and one-half to two inches.
rub off all but three growths, so dis
tributed that the tree will be we'll bal
anced. The early rubbing off can not
be too thoroughly emphasized; a great
saving of time is effected by rubbing
off before the young growth becomes
tough. The trees should be gone over
once or twice during the growing sea-
son to remove all superfuous growth.
If these are allowed to attain some
length it is then necessary to use the
pruning knife, a slow and more expen-
sive operation.-L. A. Berkmans.