El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1910-03-05

Irult 10 be gathered from step ladder.
10 do this Will mean the occasional cut
ing back of the Maynard upper branch
es, which if left alone will soon pro-
duce the bulk of the crop at an altitude
100 great for economical harvesting.
Budding.
AS stated above. olive varieties are
nearly always prOpagated from cuttings,
and budding or grating is therefore not
necessary 1t sometimes happens, how
ever, that old trees of some undesirable
variety are to be top worked to some
more profitable variety. This is best ac-
complfshed by budding. The trees to be
top worked should be headed back the
previous year in order that a large num-
Der of vigorous shoots suitable for bud
ding viii have put out The tree from
which the buds are taken should also
have been previously pruned to increase
the vigor of the buds. a short twig an
inch or two long and bearing several
leaves is usually cut from a branch af-
ter the manner of a single bud scion.
The larger leaves are removed and the
twig inserted in the ordinary Tshaped
incision and bound with a string. In
three or four weeks the string should be
removed and the bud examined. If 1t has
taken" the stock shoot should be cut
back in order to force the growth OF
the scion. AS soon as the scion has
grown u or IA inches, the entire stock
shoot beyond the bud may be cut away.
Just after the sap has started in the
spring is considered the best time 10
bud. It is wise to avoid giving an old
tree too great shock by top working
it all at one time One-half of the
branches may be budded one year and
the other half the following year.
Cultivation.
Clean cultivation is very necessary
~ oil VII he careful POnSeT
vation of water is essential Continuous
clean culture however. will often de-
feat this very object. as the SOIL Will
gradually become so inert and devoid or
hl7mus as to be unable 10 retain water
in proper quantities. II should be the
aim to keep the soil in the best possible
physical condition by growing and turn
ing under occasional leguminOus cover
crops. such as sour clover (Meliloius IN
dica). or alfalfa. The cover crop should
be turned under and the land well irri-
gated Just before the trees blossom. as
an abundance Of water is necessary
for the proper setting of the fruit
Insects and Diseases.
The olive trees of Arizona are eXcep-
tionallr free from diseases and insect
pests. As yet no olive scale has gained
a foothold and trees are not only free
from scale but the foliage is clean and
thrifty. there being no sooVy moId
fungus tMelilea camellat), which lives
on the honeydew secreted by the scale
During blossoming time the flowers
swarm with several species of thrlps,
but as far a. has been observed they
in no way Interfere with the proper
setting of the fruit The only trouble
which is known TO affect the ollVe In
this region at the present time Is dry
rot of the fruit which occasionally oc-
ours in a mild form. This seems to be the
same disease as that described. but not
definitely named, on page 235 OF the !
California station report for 1S95-96, |
1861 Il differs from that, however.
in occurring more commonly on Column 1
bella than on Nevadillo olives. So far /
If has not been serious enough TO cause |
from growers
Yields.
The age at which olive trees come In |
TO bearing varies with the variety. In l
general however, if the trees have been |
we'll cared for, they will bear few scat
terfng fruits during their fourth and
fifth years When they are seven years
old the crop should amount to several
gallons per tree. After the age Of 10 /
years has been reached. the trees should [
WELD an average Of 100 pounds per tree, [
Or from three to four tons per acre Large
old trees may occasionally yield 700 or
SEQ pounds at one picking. Such large
crop is almost sure TO be followed by |
light crop the succeeding year. Very
heavy crops of olives are undesirable,
because the fruits are small and thus
the total percentage of pits to bulk OF
crop is much larger Olive wood is brit
tie and the branches are prone to break
to pieces under very heavy load. For
tfese reasons. olive growers should
strive by systematic annual pruning to
cause the trees to bear a medium load ,
Of very fine large olives every year. On
account of the labor involved, it is
if thinning the fruit by hand
can be done with profit. except per-
laps in the case of the very large fruit
ed varieties used in making high grade
pickles.
The Outlook for Olive Products.
The consumption Of olive products in
the United States IS far in excess OF tina
although there are facilities
In TINS country for growing an amount
Of olives greatly exceeding the consump-
ton. There are two chief reasons for
this state of affairs. In tie first place
the wages paid for the labor necessary