nd where it is needed should result not only in better wood
growth but in the formation of vigorous leaf and fruit buds for the
following year.

Lime is not usually considered as a fertilizer except on soils
actually deficient in it. But it will usually be advisable to apply
from one thousand five hundred to two thousand pounds of fresh burned
lime or its equivalent, in order to correct any natural soil acidity,
to hasten the decay of organic material, to increase the activity of
the soil bacteria, and to improve the physical condition of the soil
by floculating the soil particles and helping to break up lumpy soils.
Lime also helps to liberate plant food by recombining it with certain
other elements in the soil. All these effects make a more congenial
medium for the leguminous crops to grow in, and it is frequently
advisable to use lime for this purpose alone. After this first heavy
application about 800 pounds of lime should be applied per acre every
four or five years.

CHAPTER VII

INSECTS AND DISEASES AFFECTING THE APPLE

It is a common saying among farmers who have grown apples on their
farms for many years that there are many more pests to fight than
there used to be. How often we have heard a farmer tell of the perfect
apples that grew on a certain tree "when he was a boy," before people
had generally heard of codling moth, San Jose scale, apple scab, or
other troubles now only too common. "We never sprayed, but the apples
were fine," he says. Is this the usual glorification of the mythical
past or is it true? In all probability it is a little of both, but it
is undoubtedly true that insects and fungous diseases have increased
rapidly of late years.

REASONS FOR PEST INCREASE.--When there is an abundance of food and
conditions are otherwise favorable, any animal or plant will thrive
better than when the food supply is scarce and conditions unfavorable.
As long as apple trees were scattered and few in number there was not
the opportunity for the development of apple pests, but as soon as
they became numerous the prosperity of bugs and minute plant parasites
was wonderful to see. Another factor which has been at least partly
responsible for the great increase in our insect life is that man has
upset nature's balance by destroying so many birds, and, by
interfering with their natural surroundings, driven them away. Birds
are great destroyers of insects, and their presence in the orchard
should be enc