Milford chronicle., 1922-04-21
PEACHES, PLUMS,
AND CHERRIES FOR
THE HOME ORCHARD
By F. F. Rockwell, Horticultural
Editor of Farm and Fireside." j."

your family I'M ~ Aes'N
goodly supply of peaches' plums ana
cherries for the home table.
If YOU should ask this question OF
the Youngest member of the family,
his probable response would be Lead
me to 'em."
And that is exactly what we are go
ing to try to dO-at least to try to tell
YOU how easily you can have a supply
OF peaches. and plums, and cherries
for YOUR own table, if you are any
kind of a hand at all at growing
things.
It is a small place, indeed, that has
mt room enough for at least a few
trees of these delicious fruits. Partic-
ularlv so. becauset hey are almost as
valuable as ornamentals as they are
for fruit.
In Japan where they have almost
worsbjpped beautiful flowers for cen
turtles. the cherry is considered the
most beautiful of all Towering trees.
Not Necessary To Wait Long For
Results-SOme Fruit Second year
Some people are deferred from set
ting out their own fruit trees because
thew think they will have to wait for
several years before they get anything
for their trouble.
This is not the case with any of the
fruits mentioned above.
Peach trees under fairly good condi-
tions will make such a vigorous
Growth that they will bear consider
ahIe number of fruits the second year
after planting.
Plms and cherries are almost as
generous in the rapidity with when
they reward the planter Flums WIZ
begin bearing the second summer al
ter planting, and by the Iourth year
will be loaded down. Cherrles also
will very often bear a little fruit the
second year after planting ana quite
a crop the third year.
Isn't it worth an eighteen or twenty
four months to wait to begin to enjoy
these delicious fruits from your own
trees. .-.... :. = 20
take home a box of beautifully packed
cherries that look as though they
would melt in your mouth (and cost
Won almost as much as a young cher-
nv treeN only to find that they are
hard and bitter, because they had 10
he Diclxed so green in order to stano
un"9 Or to take home a basket OF
niums only to find them bruised ana
half decayed from the handling ana
shaking upth ey have had? And It IS
almost as hard to get good peaches
THE Lord never intended any of these
fruits to be shipped any great dls-
tance tn market; and if you want TO
be sure of getting them IN ldeal COIL
ditions, as we'll as an abundant quan-
tity, the only sure way Is 10 srO"
your Own!"
To Get Best Results, Have a
Regular "Little Orchard"
While it is true that any of the
Fruits we have been discussing are eX-
tremelv ornamental, as we'll as pro-
viders of delicious fruit, it is always
the greatest mistake to think that you
can stick them out on the lawn or IN
the back yard and have them drop
crops of fruit into your lap! ,.
Set your trees out IN iilLle oi7
chard by themselves where they can
he kent cultivated and properly pruh-
ed and sprayed. .o,d
good Young peach tree will yield
anywhere from five to ten sixteen
mart baskets of peaches Il have seen
twenty baskets from a single tree)'
Fieuring only five baskets, however
voI, can see that half dozen trees
when thew begin to get their CROWN
will give a pretty generous supply Iof
n family The same number of plums
and cherries will give an equally gen
aro,,s SUNNY of their delicious fruits.
In fact no more than three OF each,
If there is not room for more, Woulu
be very we'll worth Wnlle.
IN a space so small as 0OxSO you
can set out a half dozen peaches,
half dozen plums, and three cherry
trees-enough for very good supply
of fruit over long season.
To be sure to get during the nrst
season a good, strong growth, such as
will make the foundation for some
fruit the second season, three thlngs
are necessary. First, plant as early
as possible. Second, give the young
trees plenty to eat. Third, keep the
surface around the newly set trees
well cultivated to conserve moisture.
To plant early, you must have your
trees early. To make sure OF that
order them now. And decide where
YOU are going to put them, so that you
can get ready for them the minute the
frost is out of the ground.
To provide plenty of plant food, use
three or four forkfuls of well rotted
manure. and a couple of shOvelfuls of
wood ashes (or if these cannot be OBJ
tanned. three or four handfuls of bone
meal for each tree. The manure or
fertilizer must be mixed most thor
oughlv with the soil, before setting
the tree. Sprinkle handful or so OF
nitrate of soda around each tree, af-
ter growth starts. Vegetables may be
grown between the trees for the first
two or three years. This not only
saves space but helps keep the sur
face thoroughly cultivated.
The following varieties are all good
standard, satisfactory Sorts Whlch
will give a succession of fruits:
Peaches-Mayhower; June Elberta
(Arp. Beauty; Hiley; Belle OF Geor-
gia: Elberta; Krummel; October.
Plums-Red June; Abundance'
Gold. a.-,S. Mont
morency Large; Black Tartarlan.