The Richfield recorder. (Richfield, Idaho) 1909-1931, 1911-12-14
PLANTING AND CARE OF Or
CHARDS UP TO TIME OF
BEARING

By John u. Mcpherson, Idaho state
horticultural inspector.
In selecting land for an orchard
site, there are three things that
should be taken into consideration
the lay of the land, drainage, and
depth of soil. Land should not only
be selected which will give good soil
drainage, but air drainage should be
taken into consideration. 1t is a well
known fact that cold air always set
ties in low places, and the planting
of orchards in such places should be
avoided, inasmuch as they are more
susceptible to frosts. 1t is also
very important that land selected
for horticultural should be
a deep and well-drained soil, so that
at no time will water be allowed to
stand around the trees, and the soil
should be of good depth, so the trees
will have ample room to develop
their root system. The best results
cannot be obtained by planting on
shallow soil. Trees planted on shall
low soils are bound to be surface
feeders and will not stand drought,
and will require more water and
more frequent irrigation than trees
planted on deeper soil.
The varieties of apples to be plant
ed in any section should be governed
a great deal by the length of the
growing season and the elevation at
which they are to be planted. Some
sections have a longer growing sea-
sen than others, and in selecting
commercial varieties to be planted,
the length of the growing season
should be taken into consideration.
The planter should study his own To-
calily, and the conditions existing
there before selecting his varieties.
Varieties should be selected so that
the fruit will reach a good size, and
have good color and texture in the
given number of months which will
be the growing season in hal section.
The growing of fruit on the
western slope has reached such a
stage that no planter can afford to
plant any fruit other than the COM
varieties, and the fewer mum
Der of varieties that are planted in
any one section, the better for the
grower when the fruit comes into
bearing, as too many varieties are
raised on the western slope
WHICH nave no cOulluercld1 value a0O
Ire not of good keeping quality.
There is a great deal of difference
n the opinions of various horticul-
on the western slope as to
he age of trees used in planting, but
he best results have been attained
~ the planting of one year old, we'll
developed trees. AS a general rule. s
took from four to six feet, with a
top and root is used, and in pur-
such nursery stock, it is well l
o buy from some reliable nursery {
nan as near home as possible. In q
way, the planter can see just |
he is buying. Spring planting S
) generally practiced in Idaho, al l
hough some fall planting is done. In a
uying trees for fall planting, the Q
lanter should be certain that the I
rees are well matured before pur- I
hasing. In some cases, the nursery Z
ian will strip the trees of their L
before selling them to the p
Such trees are worthless 5
nd should not be planted as it is y
npossible to form a low-headed tree &
ON such stock.
The planting in the spring is be-
IN just as soon as the spring freezes
re over, and the soil is dried out, B
that it is mellow when handled.
s z genera! rule, the apple trees are