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Show I FRUIT WITHOUT I IRRIGATION. Remarkable Orchard in Colorado De- scribed by a Ulnlui. I TWENTY ACRES OF BEARING TREES. I Apples, Pears, Plums, Cherries and H Small Fruits Prove I Successful. I Tbo following' desorlptton of au I arid fruit fnrm was written for tbo Dosorot Fnrmor by Job. E. Wllosn of I Loguu : . - Wbilo in Douglas county, Colo rado, in tbo year 190.1, tbo writer was told of a successful orobnrd whicb had beou grown without Irrigation, and determined to visit tbo plnco. Somo miles west of Pnrkor, and twonty miles south of Denver, this orchard was found. Tbo gonial prop ' riotor is au Euglishmnu by tbo nnino of E. R. Parsons, a man with uu idoa aud porsovornuco enough to put it to tbo tost. In a, locality wboro thcro is considerably lees precipitation than in Cncho or Salt Lnko valleys ( ho had twonty acres of trees in hour- iug, and new plantings coming on. Nono of tbo trees had received arti ficial watering, oxcopt n barrolfyll to a hundred trees, at tbo tlmo of plant. i lug. Tbo treoB lookod houlthy uud h robust, and uppoarod as if thoy woro li capablo of enduring hardships Ik through many years. Tboy had ki lt ready, at loats a portion of thorn, I' stood uiuo years of what might bo I culled drouth. Mr. Parson was I talkatlvo, aud showed no hesitcnoy mj ' in giving nway tbo bouoflts of his K. years of oxporlonce. Froo nuotslon- I v Tho soil wns blook loam eovoral' I foot dcop, located in a kind of basin I adjoining tho foothills, formation I gran i to. ji. At first tho now lnnd was plowed r and workod two yoars to pluco it in a I, flno condition boforo sotting tbo I troos. Later ho found breaking it up t in tbo rough and allowing it to stand and gathor molsturo during tbo ' winter, then going ovor it with a disk harrow to finish tho work of pul- vorlzlng not accomplished by tho froozlng and thawing procoss, gave good rosults. No nttompt was mado to grow any " kind of crop botwoon tbo troes. In- s stead tho surfaoo wns kopt llko lino dust by tho froo uso of a cultivator, especially uftor ruins. In tho fall holes woro dug wboro I troes woro to bo planted tho following jl spring. Tboso holes accumulated I molsturo in which to plant tho young troos. By plowlug a dead furrow in I tho fall botwoon tbo rows, snow was I causo to' lodgo aud gutbor in much 1 larger quautitiosthau on surrounding 1 lauds, thus adding to tho storugo of 1 molsturo. Loss of troos by drouth wns umail only two or throfc per cont. In that regard tho porcontago of loss would soom to bo much in favor of tho arid cultivation. Loss by rabbits had ( i boon overcome by tbo uso of n pioco ! of wovon wiro around ouoh troo wbilo I tboy woro small, snob wlro us is used for soroou doors. As to results, thoy J might bo oonsidorod vory oncourng- K iug , Land, boforo counted worth but I tbroo to flvo dollars nn aero, was demonstrated to bo proiltablo at fifty j to ono .hundred dollars por uoro. H Profits on about ton uoros tbo ninth H year woro ovor sovuu hundred dollars, not, with prospect of a steady incrouso. B Applos, ponrs, plums, oborrlns aud Wt small fruits woro suoaoBsful. Ghor-H Ghor-H rios provod most profitable. Lurgo 'H applos, ospooially winter vnrlotios, H droppod badly, making thorn least H proiltablo. |