The Meridian times. (Meridian, Idaho) 1909-1938, 1912-01-05
BY JOHN U. MCPHERSON, Idaho
State Horticultural Inspector.
Oregon Short Line Demonstration
Train Lecture


Train Lecture
In selecting land for an orchard site
there are three things that should be-
taken into consideration 1.-The lay 81
the land. drainage, and depth OF soil
Land should not only be selected
which will give good soil drainage, but
air drainage should also be taken into
consideration. 1t liz q well known fact
That cold air always settles In low
places, and the planting OF orchards In
such places should be avoided, mas,
much as they are more susceptible
20 frosts II Ia also very important
that land selected for horticultural
purposes should be deep and we'll,
drained soil. 30 that at no time will
water be allowed 10 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 hest results cannot lie attained by
planting on shallow soil. Trees planted
on shallow soils are bound to be sur
face feeders and will not stand
drought and win require more water
and more frequent irrigation than
trees planted on deeper soil.
The varieties OF apples to be planted
In any section should be governed a
great deal by the length OF the grow.
Ing season and the elevation at which
they are to be planted Some sections
have a longer growing season than
others. and Ia selecting commercial
varieties TO be planted, the length or
the growing season should be taken
into consideration. The planter should
study his own locality. and the condl-
tons existing there before selecting
his varieties. Varieties should be Sd.
lected so that the fruit win reach d
good size, and have good color and
texture In the given number OF months
which will be the growing season In
that section. The growing Of fruit on
the western slope has reached such a
stage that no planter can afford 10
plant any fruit other than the com.
mercial varieties. and the fewer num-
Der Of varieties that are planted In
my one section, the better for the
grower when the fruit comes into
as too many varieties are
now raised on the western slope which
have no commercial value and are not
of good keeping quality
There II great deal OF difference
In the opinions Of various horticultur.
lists on the western slope as to the
age of trees used In planting. but the
best results have been attained by the
planting of one year old, well,deyel.
nped trees. As general rule, stock
from -four 70 slk feet, with good ton
and root IL used. and In purchasing
such nursery stock, II Is well to buy
from some reliable nurseryman as
near home AZ possible, Lin this way.
the planter can see Just what he Is
buying. Spring planting is generally
practiced IN Idaho. although some fall
planting Is done, In buying trees for
fall planting. the planter should be
certain that the trees are well ma.
tured before purchasing, In some
Eases, the nurseryman viii strip the
rees Of their leaves before selling
them TO the planter Such trees are
worthless and should not be planted as
tt is Impossible to form low headed
tree from such stock
The planting in the spring Is begun
Just as soon as the spring freezes are
over. and the soil il dried out. so that
Il Is mellow when handled. As a gen,
frat rule, the apple trees are planted
rom thirty 10 thirty three feet apart.
This distance gives them ample room
to build up good root system, and
hmple soil from which TO feed upon.
In planting. the holes are dug about
2x2, The first TO 10 inches of the
top soil is placed in one pile by itself
and the subsoil In another, The tree
is placed in the hole at about the
same depth. or possibly little deeper
than when 1t grew in the nursery.
The top soil Is then placed in the
hole first and Is we'll packed in
around the roots. by using some blunt
AASNa AAA1hN lHAt Will not nTula0 tnH
roots. AS coon as the top soil Is
placed In the hole, quantity of wa.
ter should be run In. and the trees
we'll settled by slightly pulling 1t up
and down while the water is sinking
away. As soon as this is done, the
sub-soil should then be added and well
tamped In. The hole should be well
filled and a dust mulch left on top
Before the tree is planted. the roots
should receive some slight trimming
cutting away any injured roots, OF
any root that has abnormal growth
and win not lay straight In the hols
when planted. The tree should be sci
with the larger roots toward the pre-
yaiIing wind The top should also bs
slightly leaned in this direction. Ii
this way. the tree win gain good roo
system before II Is bent over o.
thrown out Of line by the prevailing
winds. Another method used in som
Too Talkative.