The Leader, enterprise and press. (Fitzgerald, Ga.) 1915-1921, 1917-12-10
soILs ADAPTED TO PEACHES

product Of the desired fruit or crop.
1t will be noted in most books on
peach growing that the light and
sandy soils are recommended for the
production Of this fruit. In many
sections these types Of soil seem to
produce the earliest and best colored
/ peaches. IT is also that the the trees
growing on soils Of this kind are
! shorter lived than on the heavier type
OF land. Some Of the finest young
! peach trees that the writer has ever
had the pleasure OF seeing were trees
on the light soils around Albany, Ga.
These trees were making an exceed
ingly thrifty, exubcrant growth, and
were bearing large crops Of fruit at
an early age, They had been we'll
cared for and well fortified and
sprayed. How long these trees will
remain in a healthy, vigorous condi-
ton is yet question but it is prob
ably true that they will live the av-
erage life Of peach tree in Georgia.
The great objection to the growing of
peach trees on light sandy soils in
Georgia is found in the prevalence
Of the nematode wcrm in these soils.
This tiny worm attacks the roots
Of the trees and produces thereon the
ailments known as root knot" This
root-knot prevents good growth Of
the trees and makes good the condi-
tons for the entrance of other troub-
! les into the roots Where one expects
to grow peavincs between the trees
Tor cover crops and for green ma
nures, root-knot or ncmatodc worm is
serious trouble, as it not only at
tacks peaches but the pcavines, excep-
ting the two varieties Of Iron and
Brabham Cotton is also attacked
by this nematode worm, and for that
reason it is not recommended that
large commercial paintings of peach
es be made on light and sandy soils.
In Georgia the soils seemingly best
adapted to the production of peaches
arc the Orangesburg loans and clay
and the Cecil Clay, or the common,
rcd clays OF our state These are
good, substantial, strong soils, which
retain the fertilizer and manure that is
put on them. They are susceptible
OF being built up and produce vigor-
Gus, healthy fncgrowing peach trees.
| Old, worn out cotton lands Of the
red clay types can be built up into
fine peach orchards, which yield
abundant crops Of finely colored good
fruits. There is many an old, worn
out orchard. OF course, if the land
is fertile to begin with, the trees will
grow better and the return be more
rapid than where one has started with
a rundown soil
In some sections Of North Georgia
stony lands make excellent orchard
soils. It is believed that the high
iron content of certain soils in north
west Georgia tend to produce highly
coIorcd peaches in these sections
In looking over the peach orchards
Of the state, one can safely say that
the peach is pretty we'll adapted to
any Of the more common types of soil
in Georgia, and that leaving out the
very light and sandy lands, good
peach orchards can be grown On any
soil that will retain the organic mat
ter and fertilizer that is put on it that
is well drained and susceptible of be-
ing built up to high filth. Do not
set peach trees on land that is soggy
and wet. Peaches will not stand
wet feet"
In picking out the site for the or
chard, care should be taken to avoid
setting trees in bottoms where they
are apt to be frosted in the late spring
as the late spring frost is the great
trouble with peach growing in the
South. Rolling lands where there is
an opportunity for the circulation of
the air among the trees, are in all
probability better than perfectly fiat
areas Level lands can be success
fully used if on one side of them
there is a stream or ravine that will
draw off the colder air on the frosty
nights in the spring.
Land that has slight slope to the
north and northwest is considered
better for peach orchards than land
alopirg to the south or east Trees
! growing on the southern or eastern
Slope come into bloom earlier in the
spring than those which grow on the
northern and wexern Slopes. By re-
tarding the bloom of the trees
through planting on the cooler slopes
there is less danger from spring frost
injury. The influence OF slope is more
important in the mountainous regions
than in the comparatively level OF