An improvement on the above-named system of sub-irrigation has been invented and patented by Mr. L. M. Holt, of Riverside, and is in process of introduction. It comprehends a system of pipes as recounted, but dispenses with the vertical wells, which are referred to as objectionable. MESA IRRIGATION.- On the mesas it frequently happens that the irrigating stream is not large enough to allow of the first three methods named; or that the pitch of the ground is too abrupt and the soil too porous to admit of the running of water in open ditches at all. Here the most painstaking and economical methods are in vogue. The water is generally distributed in wooden flumes or in cement or iron pipes, and applied directly to basins made about the trees. With water confined in a pipe, under pressure, and a section of hose to apply it with, a man may do quite as good execution as with a considerable head flowing by gravitation in a ditch. The advantage of the pipe and hose method is in the direct and easy application and the avoidance of all wastage. MULCHING. - Some people apply a mulch of straw to the basin surfaces after irrigation and thus avoid cultivating. But this system has its drawbacks. There is almost certain to be enough grain in the straw to seed the ground, and bring forth a crop which requires more labor in the hoeing up than the thorough cultivation of the soil would have amounted to. Do NOT CULTIVATE Too SOON.-With clayey soils, and in fact with all of a stiff nature it will not do to cultivate directly after irrigating. A practiced eye is required to tell just when the ground may be stirred without danger of breaking it up into lumps and clods. CHAPTER XVI. PRUNING. OBJECTS.-In pruning the orange tree good and sufficient reason for every cut there are two objects in view 1st. To give it symmetry. 2d. To make it healthy and productive. No part of the orchardist's work is more entertaining than this, because it furnishes intellectual as well as manual occupation. Every tree is a study. I may go further, and say that every tree is a new study, for there is such an infinite variety in the combinations of stocks, branches and stems that novel applications of the general principles of pruning occur in each instance. A man who would prune successfully must keep up a constant thinking, and should be prepared to give a he makes. His employment is like that of the sculptor, for he is transforming an ungainly object into one of beauty; but unlike the sculptor, the pruner must cut deep, calculating to a nicety how nature may be relied on to round out the contour. It is necessary that the pruner keep an ideal constantly in mind, and that from the earliest stages of his work he strive for the accomplishment of his ideal. To this end he should thoroughly inform himself in advance of the general theory of pruning; of the various systems employed and the one that is best adapted to his own orchard. Two SYSTEMS OF PRUNING.-There are two systems in vogue, one known as high pruning, the other as low pruning. Low pruning is resorted to with lemons and the dwarf and semi-dwarf varieties of budded oranges. It consists simply in forming the head of the tree close to the ground-say within a foot or two of the surface and modeling the growth somewhat after a shrub. The high system prunes away the branches near the ground, exposing the trunk and forming a conventional tree top. This method is employed with nearly all seedling trees that grow to the standard size, and with a considerable portion of the lemons and budded oranges. THE LOW SYSTEM. - The advantages claimed for this method of pruning are 1st. That the head of the tree being brought close to the ground, the picking of the fruit is greatly facilitated. 2d. That the trunk is closely shaded, thereby preventing sunburn and other evils coming from too much exposure to the weather. 3d. That the soil immediately about the tree is shaded and the moisture thus pre served. With this method of pruning also the branches are usually "shortened in" and this results in a fourth advantage in that the fruit is borne closer to the body of the tree, and the branches being rendered stocky from the cutting back, are not likely to break down with their burden. The tree with low head and shortened branches needs no props in the fruiting season. This method of low pruning is much employed at Riverside, in San Bernardino county, where many of our most progress ive orange growers are to be found. The exemplification there given must certainly convince one of its advantages in the respects claimed. For semi-dwarf and dwarf-budded orange trees, low pruning is the system I would recommend. The objection usually urged against it is the difficulty of working close to the tree with the cultivator, by reason of the low-hanging branches. This can be obviated by choosing a cultivator to meet the special requirements. An evil to be guarded against is the thickening of the top-the great multiplication of branches as a reult of the shortening process . This difficulty may be overcome by a free use of the knife, keeping the top open enough to admit a circulation of air, and the tree will then be as healthy as though the top were four or five feet higher and proportionately broader. In the case of lemons, the theory has been advanced that they bear much better with low pruning than with high, as this manner of growth must closely conform to the natural habit of the tree. It should be borne in mind that low pruning does not contemplate an abandonment of the tree to its own sweet will and way in growing. Neither is it allowable to leave suckers from the roots or water sprouts from the lower trunk. As close and careful attention is required in low pruning as in high. HIGH PRUNING - YOUNG STOCK. - In pruning young stock by the high system it is well to make haste slowly-i. e., cut away the lower branches only as the tree thickens its stock and throws its vitality into the upper top. It is conceded that about the proper proportion for a standard tree is two-thirds top and one-third stock. With quite young trees the proportion of top may be greater than this with good advantage. Lateral branches growing close to the ground have a tendency to thicken the stock and make it upright and selfsustaining. Above all, avoid trimming young trees up to mere switches, with just a tuft of leaves at the top. There can be no more certain method of making them crooked and weakly. As good a general rule as I can lay down is, to keep the tree well proportioned and symmetrical at all stages of its growth. After the first year in orchard, the two-thirds rule as regards the top may be closely followed. The main forks of the tree may be established at the height of four to six feet from the ground with seedlings and at three to four feet with budded varieties. Remember that the trunk of the tree grows but very little longitudinally and that the height of the top must be regulated by cutting away the lower branches. If a standard tree is properly and reasonably pruned, the contour of the top when viewed from a distance will be not unlike the almost perfect sphere of the fruit it bears. able limb before it has made much growth than to let it grow on only to be sacrificed at last with greater shock and loss of vitality to the tree. But I would advise great starting. This is a critical time with the tree and it needs a breathing surface. If the leaves which it throws out for this purpose should happen to be in the wrong place, it is often better to leave them until the tree gets it breath, i. e., hardens its new growth and makes other leaves to elaborate its sap. Anything approaching a general pruning of an orange tree while making new growth should be avoided, as the operation is likely to check all further growth for that period and may stunt the tree. PRUNING-IMPLEMENTS REQUIRED.-A pair of gloves to protect the hands from the thorns; a sharp knife, a small saw, and some paint or wax to cover the stubs of large branches; this is the outfit for a conservatism in pruning young trees just pruner. The pruning shears are much in use, but I do not like them except for clipping the ends of branches. When applied to severing a branch at the trunk, they leave a stub which is not to be tolerated, and if this be pared away by the knife the work is doubled. If one prunes his trees from their youth up, he grows in knowledge with them, so to speak, and while they are never much at fault, he is never at great loss to know how they should be treated. But to undertake the pruning of older trees which have been allowed to grow half wild, and bring them to a state of civilization—there's the rub. It is vastly better, of course, that they should never reach that vexatious stage, but when such is the case there is nothing for it but systematically, however, and he will find heroic treatment. When Governor Stoneman purchased his estate in San Gabriel, fifteen or twenty years ago, the grove of old oranges on the place was almost unproductive. He sent his foreman into it with knife and saw, under instructions to prune out half of the tops. After performing his task the man reported to the Governor, stating by the way that he though he had ruined the trees. Governor Stoneman took a look at the orchard and sent him back to prune still further. The result was that the next year there was a fine crop of oranges. PRUNING YOUNG TREES.-The best plan is to go over them quite frequently-as much as three or four times a year-and prune lightly each time. TIME OF PRUNING.-Whenever the tree is in a dormant condition it may be pruned advantageously. December is a popular time for this work; also late in the spring before the heavy July August growth commences, and just following the gathering of the oranges. THUMB PRUNING.-This consists of rubbing off with thumb or finger shoots before they form any woody fiber. The practice is quite allowable, and indeed to be commended under certain restrictions. On general principles, it conduces more to the welfare of the tree to stop an undesir PRUNING OLDER TREES. - The novice looking at a neglected tree, with its tangle of branches, is dumbfounded with the task of pruning. Let him but go at the work the plan of the mighty maze. A FEW RULES FOR PRUNING.-1st. Begin at the ground and cut away all suckers growing from the crown of the roots. Dig, if necessary, to the place where the sucker issues from the root and cut away the little protuberance from which the sprout grows. from the trunk of the tree. Remove the 2d. Cut away all water-sprouts growing knots or little protuberances here also, paring smooth with the trunk. 3d. Work along the trunk into the top of the tree, and cut away all small, dwarfed branches which have neither vitality to make a large growth nor room to make it in. 4th. Lop off such main branches as throw the top out of equilibrium or destroy its symmetry. 5th. Cut away all minor branches that are superfluous. Consider a branch superfluous (a) when it crosses another or conflicts with another in any way; (b) when it grows directly above another, and would at some future time, conflict it; (c) when there are parallel branches too close together, a part must be taken away; (d) when a number of branches have put out from the end of a shortened limb, one, two or three only should be left. 6th. Having thinned the top sufficiently from within, survey it externally and lop off the ends of such branches as destroy the regularity of outline. A tree thus thinned out admits a free circulation of air, which is as good in a sanitary point of view as fresh air for an individual. The tree is then able to cope with its enemy the scale and smut, and its fruit is cleaner, larger and better therefor. HINTS ABOUT THE WORK.-In cutting a limb of good size, the neatest method is to saw it from below, raising the limb gradually so that it shall not pinch the saw. In this way a smooth cut may be made close to the body of the tree and there is no dan ger that the limb in falling may strip off a portion of bark from the trunk. If the limb must be sawed from above, first cut the bark below to avoid the tearing away referred to. Do not leave a stub of a limb protruding from the trunk or a main branch. Cut smooth and close up in order that the bark may readily close over the wound. In cases where limbs of half an inch or more in diameter are sawed, it is a good plan to daub the cut surface with paint or grafting wax to prevent it from drying out and checking. CHAPTER XVII FERTILIZING.. In one respect the orange growers of California are behind the times. They cultivate thoroughly, irrigate scientifically and appreciate the value of good pruning; they know the book of insect pests from Genesis to Exodus; they grow, the best fruit of the best varieties known; they gather freely and in riches increase and multiply, but they do not replenish the earth. By this single dereliction they approve themselves short-sighted, improvident gathering for themselves to impoverish their children; building for a day, not for all time. There are old orange groves in Los Angeles county that scarcely pay the cost of cultivation;-trees in a semi-dormant condition the greater part of the time, with leaves of a sickly yellow color and fruit small, leathery of pulp and lacking in flavor. These trees have been undergoing a process of starvation for ten, fifteen or twenty years. It is a wonder that they have maintained the unequal struggle so long. Indeed, had it not been for the degree of fertilization which comes from the application of water in repeated irrigations they would probably have succumbed long ago. It is not in reason that any soil can sustain the continual demand made upon it for the formation of a larger tree and the annual production of a crop of fruit without becoming exhausted. Groves in this impoverished condition need to be renovated, first by a heavy pruning of the trees, and second by a thorough renewal of the soil. With this stimulus the trees will make a new start and regain their former productiveness. In Florida, and in most other countries where orange growing is prosecuted as a scientific industry, much attention is paid to fertilizing. Rev. T. W. Moore, in his work on orange culture in Florida, says: "No crop feeds more ravenously than the orange, and none will convert so large an amount of suitable fertilizers into fruit so profitably. Much of our Florida land will produce and sustain fine trees for a few years without the aid of manure; but after some years of fruiting the leaves will begin to turn yellow, indicating a deficiency in the soil." He then discusses the various fertilizers in use, naming the commercial compounds of ground bone, potash and sulphuric acid, Peruvian guano, land plaster, green crops turned under, stable manure, and swamp muck. In California not one of these fertilizers is in use, unless it be stable manure in exceptional instances. The reason that our fruit growers have paid so little atten tion to this subject is mainly due, I think, to their unwitting renewal of the soil by irrigation, making it possible for trees thus sustained to flourish and bear good crops for a number of years. No attention was paid to the matter of fertilizing per se and so cultivators thought, if they thought at all on the subject, that their trees were doing well enough without manures and would never require them. Had the renewal of the soil been a more marked necessity it would have elicited more attention. FERTILIZATION BY WATER.-Irrigation fertilizes the soil in two ways: 1st. By the mechanical action of the water, which takes up the fine particles of vegetable matter in passing along the ditches and deposits them as a silt in the basins about the trees. 2d. By the chemical elements contained in the water itself. A propos of this subject I here present an analysis of the water of the Los Angeles river, made by Prof. E. W. Hilgard, of the University of California: Total residue of sample tested 17.53 grains per gallon, of which 8.37 grains consisted of common Glauber's salts, etc., and 9.16 grains carbonate of lime, magnesia and silica. The detailed analysis is as follows: caution them against the plan somewhat in vogue of allowing water to run in channels along a row of trees, the portion not absorbed flowing away as waste. By this method the mechanical fertilization previously referred to, is entirely lost More than this, the very soil about the trees is robbed of some of its best elements, all being carried away to enrich some adjoining field, or mayhap, the roadside. When we consider irrigation in this light, the basin method is by far the more preferable. WATER FERTILIZATION NOT SUFFICIENT. -While I am disposed to allow full measure of importance to the fertilizing which comes from irrigation, I would enjoin the fact that this alone is not sufficient. The old groves alluded to, which have exhausted their partially renovated soils, are proof of this theory. SUBSTANTIAL FERTILIZERS REQUIRED.-A full grown orange tree maintains a wealth of foliage, forms new wood and leaves five or six times annually and pro duces from one to five thousand oranges. The organism from which all this is re quired deserves good food and plenty of it. MANURES AT HAND.-Nearly every fruit grower has at hand the means of fertilizing his orchard properly if he will only devote sufficient attention to the subject. Chloride of sodium (common salt)... 1.004 Sulphate of sodium (Glauber's salts).. 7.369 Instead of allowing the refuse of his barn Carbonate of lime.... 0.382 yard to dry out and burn out through the 4.287 long summer and to leach away in winter, 1.171 he should have it preserved and applied 2.182 to the orchard ground. Carbonate of magnesia. Silica......... Sulphate of lime...... Phosphate of lime Iron and magnesia carbonates Alumina....... ......... 0.776 The water of the Los Angeles river is primarily derived from the mountains, the same as nearly all of the irrigating water used in Southern California, and while there may be a great variation in the chemical constituents of different streams and springs it is probable that all are more or less charged with fertilizing elements. 0.259 A COMPOST HEAP.-A good way is to 0.100 establish a compost heap at some place 17.530 convenient for wetting down during the summer. A water-tight vat, built in the ground or slightly depressed is best, but a mere excavation where the earth is compact will suffice. Into this let all the barn yard refuse be thrown, together with all the bones that are available, and all the ashes from the house. In lieu of a plentiful supply of ashes muriate of potash may be used, which will thoroughly decompose the bones. Let the compost heap be wet occasionally to facilitate decomposition, and if too much heat is generated let the mass be forked over. In this way a large quantity of the best fertilizing matter may THE FERTILIZING TO BE CONSIDERED IN IRRIGATION.-Orange growers, if they are wise, will consider the fertilizing effect of water in irrigation and strive to make the most of it. In this connection I wish to |