The Mena weekly star., 1918-02-07
MAKE YOUR SHADE
 IREES PECAN IREES
This Is the Advice Given To Arkansas People By J. s. Knox, of the
 Extension Division.

and a good supply of oceans for tho winter This is the advice given to Arkansas people by J. S. Knox, hor- iiculturist for the Agricultural Exten- sion Division of the University of Arkansas, who says
 Many Of the farm homes over Ar kansas that do moi have shade trees could be made far more attractive by the planting of several pecan trees about the pf misses, Not only do the trees make excellent shade trees, but they twill also furnish an abundance of delicious nuts, which. according to different authorities. are the richest in food value of all the nut fruits The writer bas been very favorably impressed with the possibility for pe- can growing in this State because of the fact that in many sections thou sands of wild pecan trees seem to fhrive and bear crops of nuts The wild species is, however, so far infe- rior to the cultivated varieties that 1t does not pay to plant them for commercial purposes.
 Pecan Trees Demand Fertile Soil.
 The soil best suited to pecan cui- ture seems to be the rich bottom lands where the drainage Is good, but as Is the case with other fruits, it can be grown on a great diversity of soils, provided the soil be made fairly fer t'le Trees have been seen growing on soils that were far from the rich est in fc~iility, but as a rule trees planted on such soils make a very slow growth. It will pay the grower, therefore, to see that the soil is put in good shape, so far as fertility and cultivation are concerned, before the trees are planted.
 Plant Trees Three to Four Years old.
 It is generally considered best to plant trees from three to four years old, and some nurserymen would plant them even five to seven years old It seems, however. that for trees so large, damage done to the root sys- tenn in digging would be hard to over. come. It makes little difference where trees are bought, so long as they are we'll grown trees that are true to name. This means, of course. that they should be secured from a reliable nurseryman.
 Do Not Plant Pecan Seed.
 It is not considered advisable for the amateur to try to bud or graft his own trees, because pecan trees are more difficult to propagate than the average fruit tree One should not plant pecan seed and expect the trees which they produce to bear nuts like the ones planted At the South Car olina Experiment Station about 30 nuts from single pecan tree were planted and not one of the trees grown from these nuts bear fruit like the original tree As rule the seed ling trees are far inferior to the budded or grafted ones.
 How to Plant Pecan Trees.
 The distance apart to plant the trees depends uron the kind Of soil upon which they are to be grown. On the thinner soils from 45 to 30 feet aparf each way may not be too close. but on the rich lands they should not be planted closer than 65 to 70 feet each way. If planted 65 feet each way 1t will require only about ten trees to plant an acre. or twelve trees | f planted 60 feet apart. Since there are only few trees for each acre, | clao Al the trees are planted just right. Each tree that dies means one-tenth of an acre to plant over.
 How to Care for Pecan Trees.
 Pecan orchards should be kept cul- tivated, and for the first few years of their growth the orchard may be in- tercropped, using truck crops or any of the farm crops that do not inter- fere with the growth of the trees. It should be remembered, however, that 1t does not pay 10 get closer than four to five feet of the young trees with an intercrop. and as the trees grow older the distance must be in- creased from the trees The question Is often asked how old pecan trees are before they begin to bear Here no definite answer can be made, but usually few nuts are borne in from for to five years after the trees are planted, provided trees are three to four years old when they are set. have known trees to reach an age of 'en to twelve years before beg ming to bear. The fact that it takes the frees so long to come into bearing is one of the principal reasons why the trees are not more generally planted. It should be remembered, however, That after an orchard once reaches a bearing age it is ordinarily good for long period of years Pecan trees seldom pay any profit until they are ten to twelve years old
 1 Varieties to Plant.
 AS to varieties, there are several that do well in our State. The Van Denman, Stuart, Schley. Russell and i f'rochter are aii good. and for safety in pollenizing, it may be we'll to plant several varieties in the same field.
 Take Care of the Orchard.