Year: 1879

All over New England are hundreds
and hundreds Of orchards which are liter
ally ''on their last legs" Planted out fif-
tv. seventy and eighty years ago, they
show most plainly by rdlapidatcd APP
pearance the results of natural decay. rs
well rs in many instance, the evidences
of neglect on the part of their owners in
all those matters which constitute the good
care of an orchard-fertiizers pruning,
protection from insects and a prevention
from the depredations Of cattle. And il
one can suggest a more iorcible picture of
profitless. shiftless, don 't.care farming
than is presented by an old, moss-grown
orchard. with broken and decayed branch
es bare of foliage or fruit, giving no return
to the owner and being only IN encum-
brance of the ground. we should like To
see it. Still. there may be quite reason
able excuse tor even these old. neglected,
protitless orchards. Many farmers are
driven with other work, and have little
time to give to them; they dislike to cut
the trees down, and this we are glad of.
for it takes SO long tu grow an apple tree
till it becomes a foot through that it ought
10 stand. even if it does not bear much
fruit; Others are planting out young or
chards to take the place of these decreplt
ones. and some are trying to reinvenate
and improve these old trees These are
among some of the reasons why we see
so many of these old orchards all through
New England and it is to the last mode
of dealing with them that we have little
plea to make.


These old trees generally have n Won
derful amount of vitality. This is clear
from the way they manage to live in the
midst of all their misfortunes, carving old
age, broken and leahess tops. dead bark
an inch or so in thickness that should be
removed and numbered about as they not
unirequentlv are by forest of suckers
Now we believe. in many eases. it is better
to utilize this vitality and help it. or in
other words turn it to good account, than
it is to neglect it. or to put an end to it by
cutting down the trees. a little time
spent in clearing the trunk of worse than
cumbrous bark. saving away the dead
branches, possibly grating in some in
stances, thoroughly manuring the land
that the trees may receive abundant nour


shment, removing the suckers that rob
the tree of its proper food, will be well
spent, and in most of these old orchards
will put them in such good trim rs to
give them new lease of life and many
additional years of usefulness.


The manner in which Mr.. Alfred Smith
of Monmouth Maine. reiuvenates his old
trees is so successful, and contains so
much of encouragement for Others who
have orchards that are ION their last legs
that brief allusion to it comes in here
in good place. Mr. Smith does not des-
pise a sucker, but if the old tree is too
far gone to patch up profitably for some
years to come, he removes the old tree
and makes good tree of the sucker which
is grated. In many instances, upon his
grounds, good handsome treees may be
found that have been made in this way.
Then in grating, Mr. Smith has had won
dcrful success in renewing the tops of old
trees. though departing from the gener-
ally followed practices of grating, in so
doing. If he wishes to insert IL scion in
the side of tree. he does so; making
an opening in the bark, placing in the
scion and conning it in position. and it
grows. forming good limb, which bears
good fruit, rs many Of his old trees, with
tops renewed in this manner bear wit
ness. Then if Il tree seems TO be lacking
in vitality he removes a portion of root
from some more thrifty neighbor and
gratis it into the roots of the tree he is
trying to feed better, and the result is the
grated root goes on helping to supply
food to the old tree. This last may seem
almost fabulous. but 1t has been done in
several cases by Mr.. Smith. and with
such results as satisfy him it is better by
the above methods to try and save our old.
decaying orchards, than it is to wholly
abandon them as past all good. What
Mr. Smith has accomplished in tree sur
gerry may be done by others, of equal pa
tience and intelligence, and we shall be
if this brief mention of his practice but
leads Others to employ similar methods
in saving their old orchards.


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