The Elbert County tribune., 1907-03-14
setting Young Trees.

Extract from Bulletin No. 11s. Colo
rado Agricultural College, Western
Slope Fruit Investigation, 1906; Report
of Field Horticulturist." by o. w.
Whipple:
Practically all the systems OF laying
out orchards and planting young trees
are used in the fruit sections OF west
ern Colorado. The distance of
setting varies from 16x16 feet to
30x32 feet for apples and from 12x12l
feet to 20x20 feet for peaches, but the
experienced growers are giving the
greater distance
The practice of setting Missouri Pip
pin. as filters, in with the standard va.
rieties OF apples is quite common. In
the peach districts peaches are often
used for the same purpose. hardly
think the practice is to be encouraged.
as the average grower will not take
them out before they crowd The ten
dency is to leave them in until the
shape OF the other trees is ruined.
Trees as rule are not handled care
fully in transplanting and a larger per
cent. is lost than is necessary. The
most common method of setting is to
plow furrow and with a little addi-
tional digging, set the trees in this. For
the first watering, the water is gem
orally run through this furrow. 1t is
then filled, or left open for other wa
terings. Many leave it open the whole
season. but 1t is generally thought best
to fill 1t with water from the sides be-
fore the sun gets too hot. The practice
OF leaving this furrow open for most of
the summer seems to give good results,
but there is tendency. | believe, to
set too deep. | think II a very good
method If the furrow is very shallow.
The most common method of watering
is to fill this furrow after the watering
at planting time, and run new furrows
on either side of the row and as close
as possible. This system will give ex-
cellent results If the man who is irri-
eating sees that water passes all the
trees properly. 1t is possible to water
trees too often however. and the man
who is inclined to water too heavily
should keep his bitches at some dis
tance from the trees. With a scant
supply of water, the system of water
ing in the original furrow in which the
trees were set will give the best re-
suits. Young orchards are either cul--
tivated, or planted to secondary crops.
The most common secondary crops are
cantaloupes. potatoes. corn and white
beans. Cantaloupes do well on the
lighter soils, but other crops are gen
orally sown on heavy soils. Oats is
poor crop for tine young orchard, as 1t
is generally cut just in time to force
the grasshoppers to eat leaves and
bark from the trees before frost. The
cutting of any noticeable growth in the
orchard at mid-season is a dangerous
practice on this account. On sandy
soils cantaloupes are proving a fav7
orite crop. The burrows for watering,
the cantaloupes should be as far from
the tree rows as possible that late wa
tering of the trees may be avoided.
This is very important in young peach
orchards. Many inexperienced grow
ers water their peach trees too late,
and as a result. have them killed
back during the winter.
Young trees are seldom pruned care
fully enough after the first year, and
long, willowy branches which bend
to the ground with the first load of
fruit is the result. Greater distance
in planting should be urged and more
care in regard to the forming of the
young tree. Too many second-class
trees are set, the growers failing to re-
alize that a poor tree is dear at any
Drice