The ranch., December 15, 1905, Page 5, Image 5

About The ranch. (Seattle, Wash.) 1902-1914

Image provided by: Washington State Library; Olympia, WA

                
Island, in Kitsap county, and the other
at- Custer, in Whatcom county. I have
consented to go. We will be at Wins
low December 18, and at Custer the
20th and 21st. It will afford me much
pleasure to meet the fruit growers in
these sections at these institutes.
Whatoom county sent some fine fruit
to Portland the past summer. It was
a surprise to me. I know that some
of the islands of Puget Sound pro
duce fine apples, and I suppose that
Bainbridge will be no exception in
this respect. I have been with Prof.
Elliott before in institute work and
found him a congenial companion.
Orchard Problems
We have reached a point in these
papers when we are ready to set our
trees. We must see to it that the
ground is in good condition. If the
land is to be irrigated we must see
that it is properly smoothed. The
method of doing this need not be de
scribed here. If the land is not in
good shape when the trees are set
it will be very difficult, if not impos
sible to put it into proper shape after
wards If the land to be set is in
clined to be swampy it must be drain
ed. Trees cannot thrive when their
roots stand in water.
If the triangular system is pursued
it is best to dig the holes as you pro
ceed, unless there is hardpan near
the surface. If that is the case the
hardpan should be broken up in some
way The writer knows of a case
where the man laid off his orchard
and then, where each tree was to be
planted, he drilled through the hard
pan, and with a small battery and
a wire a few rods long he exploded a
small stick of dynamite at the depth
of three feet. That orchard made a
wonderful growth and the owner sold
his forty-acre orchard when it came
into bearing for $24,000. It pays to
do things well and in nothing else is
this truer than in planting an orchard.
When we are ready to set our trees
an important point to decide is how
to trim them. This applies both to
the roots and the top. There is a
method commonly known as the
Stringfellow method that has had
some favor. This consists in trimming
the roots all off to a mere stub and
cutting the top back to one foot high.
Mr Stringfellow claims great things
for" his method, and it is believed that
with him it worked well. The experi
ment stations took the matter up and
gave it a thorough sifting. The re
sults are given in the annual report
of the experiment stations for the
year 1903. In a few cases Stringfel
low's method was fairly successful,
but in most cases it proved quite un
satisfactory. It cannot be recommend
ed except in such localities as have
been proven to be adapted to this
method Its success depends on soil,
climate and water supply and only
where these are right should this
method be practiced. Any one may
try this method on a small scale, but
till its success is assured In his lo
cality it would be unwise to use it
extensively. Even where it is a com
plete success but little is gained over
the old method.
The old method referred to is to
trim the roots only as much as may
be necessary to remove all bruised
parts. In many cases it has been
quite satisfactory to even trim back
to five inches long. The hole for the
roots must be large enough to receive
them and allow them to straighten
out in their natural position. If the
ground is compacted firmly it is well
to dig the hole much larger and es
pecially much deeper than the tree
is to be set and then to fill it up to the
proper depth for the tree. It is bet
ter as a rule to set the tree irom
two to four inches deeper than it stood
in the nursery.
How to trim the top at the time of
setting a young tree has been a mat
ter of much discussion. Some would
not trim it at all, but this is almost
universally condemned. The experi
ment stations have given this subject
much attention. These experiments
show that it is best to cut off about
one-half of the top of the young tree.
If there are any side limbs below the
point of cutting let them remain at
least for a year or two. Whether the
whole top is to be cut off down to a
given point or not depends on what
kind of top is to be grown. There are
two methods of shaping the top of the
tree. One is known as the goblet
shape and the other as the pyramidal
shape. If the goblet shape is to be
adopted then cut your tree off where
you want your top to begin and then
allow three or four limbs to start out
on different sides of the young tree
and as nearly as opposite each other
as may be. How to cut for this gob
let-shaped top will depend on how
long you want the trunk of your tree.
From two to two and a half feet is a
very good height. These three or
four limbs will at first grow laterally,
but then will turn upward, thus giving
your top the shape of a goblet. If
the pyramidal shape is desired, then
the center of the young tree is not
to be cut off. The side limbs are to
be grown not opposite each other, but
are to be strung along up this centei
stem. This makes an ideal tree for
the inexperienced. One factor in its
favor is that this shape makes a very
strong tree. Such a shaped tree Is.
less likely to split than the goblet
shaped. The writer was once a strong
advocate of the pyramidal-shaped tree,
but he has undergone a change and
now would not grow such a tree at
all. What has brought about this
change? Experience!
The pyramidal tree looks well on
paper and it looks well in the orchard
for the first five years. If it would
stop growing at that age it would be
ideal in shape, but it will not, and it
soon gets too thick in the top, and then
begins the trouble. If it is loaded with
fruit the limbs bend down somewhat
like a folded umbrella and shut out
both sunlight and air. Fruit cannot
color properly under such conditions.
If we try to remedy this by cutting
out part of the top the tree becomes
ill-shaped and large wounds are left
on the center stem and may ruin the
tree. The advantage of the goblet
shape is that we can keep the top
of our tree open, and when the fruit
orop is heavy the limbs bend apart
instead of folding together. It is nec
essary to decide at the time the trees
are set, which of these two methods is
to be pursued, hence, this matter is
considered here.
Another matter of importance must
be settled at this time; and that is
whether the orchard is to be set in
solid blocks of the same kind or the
varieties are to be mixed. There is
no question among well-informed fruit
growers on this point. Cross pollina
tion is receiving much attention at
the experiment stations and the re
sults are conclusive that mixing vari
eties is decidedly beneficial to the
fruit, both as it pertains to quantity
and size. By all means, do not plant
your orchards in solid blocks. But
how shall the mixing be done? The
writer, after much experimenting, and
observation, has adopted the two-row
system. What is meant by this is, he
plants two rows of one kind and then
two rows of another, and so on
through the whole orchard.
If the trees were planted alternate
ly in the rows it would be somewhat
better so far as cross-pollination is
concerned. But this makes trouble
in picking. It is surprising how many
inexperienced hands there are that
cannot tell the different kinds of apples
apart. The writer has had Rome Beau
ties and Missouri Pippins put into the
same box by men of ordinary intelli
gence, because they thought them to
be the same apple. Where there are
two rows of the same kind they can
be picked and the boxes strung along
each row. The hauler can drive drown
the middle and load from each side.
This prevents confusion. The more
apple trees can be mixed without this
confusion in picking, the better. It
is no doubt true that it is better to
plant near together such kinds as
bloom so nearly together, but with
us in our orchards all varieties bloom
so nearly together that we do not
count much on this suggestion. The
government experts have given much
attention to this subject of cross pol
lination and their suggestions are
worthy of our careful consideration.
They recommend the mixing of vari
eties but have not, so far as the writer
knows, told how the mixing should
be done. If they were running a large
commercial orchard, as the writer
does, they would probably see some
things that they have not considered.
It is conceded on all hands that the
dirt must be firmly packed around the
roots. This is done to exclude the
circulation of air among the roots.
Air, if allowed to circulate among the
roots, either before or after the trees
are planted, works injury to them. A
good course to pursue is to place the
tree at the proper depth and then fil
in one-half or more of the dirt and
then tramp it firmly about the roots.
This filling up and tramping may be
continued until the dirt is all In, but
THE RANCH.
AFTER THE HARVEST
Is all In and time hangs heavy on your hands, spend part of the day oleanlnf
your unimproved land.
ONE HAN AND A HORSE
Can work to great advantage when using the "BABY VULCAH" (our smaller
sized stump puller). Stumps just naturally know they have to come out
when the Vulcan gets after them. Its special advantages He in Its sim
plicity, compactness and strength. We also make a larger sized machine
for heavier work.
IF INTERESTED, write for information.
The VULGAN IRON WORKS «SS?
HOPE FARM
R. F. D. NO. 2, BLAINE, WASH.
OTDlll/DCDDV Dl ANT? clark's seeding, magoon, sam
olnAffiDLnni rLAIiIO ple, jucunda, late Washington.
All Varieties Well Grown and True to Name. Write for Prices.
C. E. FLINT, Proprietor, Blame, Wash
the top layer of dirt should not be
tramped.
If the trees are set at right angles
the ground may be laid off and the
holes dug before the planting begins.
The writer has tried running water
along near these holes and filling each
and then allowing the water to seep
away into the soil before the planting
begun. He has also tried setting the
trees and then watering after, and
could see no advantage, except that
the latter method is much more ex
peditious.
If the triangular method, which the
writer much prefers, is used, it is
best to have just two hands and no
more at the work. Each man moves
one of the boards described in this
method, and one digs the hole while
IsHard, Round and Sweet—
Lilly's Glory Cabbage
We perfected this variety on our own experimental grounds, and
it has proven a wonderful success, pronounced without a doubt the
best cabbage for this coast. It
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the other one prunes the tree. One
holds the tree while the boards are
returned to the right position so that
it can be known that the tree is just
at the point of meeting of the boards.
One fills in the dirt and the other does
the tramping. Trees can be set very
fast and very correctly in this way.
Early planting, if in the spring, is
to be insisted on. Fall planting In
preferable. The experiment stations
have proven that in the case of fall
planting the roots have made some
growth before cold weather sets in.
A tree in that condition is ready to
begin growing when spring opens.
Perhaps the most ridiculous persons
are those who have arisen from abso
lutely nothing to something worse.
5