New Life For Trees

A correspondent writes frorn Onondaga couuty, N. Y. , to The Rural New Yorker as follows: Back in the fifties I visited a large orckard in the town of Clay, tuis county, and was surprised to find the trees, although they were very old, loaded with the finest of fruit of various kinds, nearly ripe for picking. The owner stated that five years before the trees, being very old, were nearly ralueless, but by a new treatment the whole orchard had boen restored to the then present condition of the most perfect fruitage. I found his treatment to consist in each year in removing three strips of old bark from the body of the tree, each strip abotit three inches in width, the most essential point being the right time of doing it. This time he found to be wheu the bark wonld peel easiest, and being when the materials for forrning the new grain of wood were in a condition of a soft pulp under the bark. He had removed the strips June 15 to 20. Dnriug the remainder of the season the grooves made by removing the strip oí bark veré nlled with new bark, the hidebound coiidition of the tree was relieved, and the new grain of wood was doubled in thickuess entirely around the tree. This permitted the sap to flow freely, aud the first auturan the fruit was greatly iinproved. The next season it was large and of the most perfect quality. The stripping had been continued five years, the old bark had all been replaced by a new and tender bark, and the farmer said that his orchard paid better than any other part of his farm. Spitzenberg trees and other kinds were restored to fie finest fraitage. The tree body should be scraped with a hoe to remove the loose bits of hare bark. Then with a sharp, strong knif make two cuts for each strip througJ the bark from the top of the body down to the ground, holding the knife a little slanting, so as to make the inner surface of the strip narrower than the outer to facilítate its removal. Let the cuts run together at the ends. They may be extended out upon the large limbs as far as they can be reached. From the upper end of each strip extend single knife cuts through the bark so far as the old bark is rough and hard.