The Delta independent., 1911-02-24
Putting Out a New Orchard.

A new sandy loan that is warm
and liable is the best for all
around orchard purposes and hoids
moisture better than anything we
have here in Colorado. Ii this
kind of raw land is selected its
reclamation is very easy because
there is no greasewood or other
trush to grub out. In preparing sod
Ur lew land of this kind We obtain
the best results by pIowing SIX or
seven inches deep as early in the
spring as possible and then thor
oughly tearing up the sod, If any.
with harrows. We then mark OH
the ground and plow three deep
burrows where the rows are to be,
then we make a round trip in the
bottom of the burrows thus made
with a sub-soiler so that we have
the ground beneath, where the
trees are to go, well torn up for
twenty to twentyfour inches be-
low the surface. After all this is
done We dig large tree holes with
shovel and are ready to plant.
We put two men in eacn gang,
one to hold and set the tree, while
the other shovels in the dirt. In
the meantime another man, who
can keep several gangs supplied,
has cut open a bunch OF trees and
with sharp knife or hatchet and
block, has trimmed off all broken
or bruised roots and put tree in
each hole for a short distance ahead
of the planters. so as not to have
them exposed long to the sun and
wind. The boss planter then sights
the tree in by posts previously set
both ways and holds it in place,
gently sitting it up and down, while
his helper throws in two or three
shoveltuls of good top soil. so as
to leave no airholes around the
roots.
Then he jumps into the hole and.
with the heavy boots he wears for
the purpose. tramps it down solid
y and hard and goes on to the
next. leaving the helper to fill up
the hole heaping full. Now, the
boss of all the gangs should follow
them along and trim up all limbs
as severely as the roots have been
trimmed. but taking care to leave
as many as possible on the side
toward the > o clock sun. AT this
point the water should be ready
and turned into the trench TO set
tie the dirt around the roots and
start them growing and they should
be irrigated every three or four
weeks during the summer. according
to the conditions and again after
the wood is ripened in the fall.
1t is a good plan to plant corn
or vine crops between the trees
for the first two or three years.
leaving six feet on each side of
the trees for cultivation. This takes
OF the intense glare of the sun and
helps to hold the moisture in the
ground. Cultivation and irrigation
should be the motto from now on,
not forgetting to protect the trees
during the winter from the rabbits.
II is difficult to answer the question
so frequently asked as to how often
a young orchard should be irrigated.
on account of the varying conditions
but our experience is that an or
chard on land that has never been
cultivated before will require five
or six times as much water as one on
old land. The late fall irrigation
is of the utmost Importance and
should never be neglected. because
thousands of trees die for lack of
moisture during the dry. warm days
of our beautiful winters and a goo1
wetting right now is needed by most
orchards. The work necessary to
grow a young orchard savors consid-
erably of a continuous performance
but in country like ours. where
1t begins to bear in three or four
years and never fails. the reward
is sure and large and compared
with the eastern states is much
more quickly realized.-W. Z. Allen.