THE GILBERT SYSTEM 
 
 OF 
 
 ORCHARD PLANTING 
 
 BY 
 
 RALPH D. GILBERT 
 
 BOSTON 
 COPYRIGHTED S913 BY RALPH D. GiL.BLRT 
 
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THE GILBERT SYSTEM 
 
 OF 
 
 ORCHARD PLANTING 
 
 BY 
 
 RALPH D. GU.BERT 
 
 II 
 
 BOSTON 
 1913 
 
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The Gilbert System of Orchard Planting 
 
 BY 
 
 Ralph D. Gilbert 
 
 The advantages of this system of planting are that it allows 
 the land to be more fully occupied all the time than when the 
 trees are planted in squares, and that the thinning ma}" be done 
 as needed, without spoiling the final symmetry of the orchard. 
 On the scale shown the original trees are planted so that each 
 is 20 feet distant from six others, thus forming a hexagon and 
 in the mature orchard each tree will be 40 feet distant from six 
 others. In square planting forty feel apart there are 21 trees to 
 the acre while in hexagonal planting there are ZZ trees. If the 
 six additional trees produce three barrels of apples each it adds 
 18 barrels to the acre which at $3.00 per barrel means an increase 
 of $54.00 per acre per year; an item worth considering. It 
 makes provision for cross pollenization of two varieties, which 
 is very important, and is so arranged that the number of trees in 
 the permanent orchard may be equally divided between two 
 varieties, or if one variety proves to be much more profitable 
 than the other, the trees of that variety may predominate. No 
 man can say today, which variety would be the most profitable 
 to grow in 1930, and planted in this way, you have an option on 
 varieties until about 20 years after the orchard is planted. The 
 "fillers" may cost 30c. each and 20c. to set them, but in 8 3"ears 
 they have paid for themselves, and the following 8 years they 
 should be very profitable. 
 
 A setting board like the one shown on the following page 
 from bulletin #141, of the Vermont Agricultural Experiment 
 Station will be found convenient to use to make sure that the 
 tree when set, shall stand in exactly the place indicated b}" the 
 stake before the hole was dug. 
 
 In staking out the orchard, the stakes for a certain number 
 of units should be stained or painted to correspond with colors on 
 circles of diagram to insure against confusion and misplacing of 
 varieties w^hen setting the trees. It is also advisable to set all the 
 trees of one variety in a given area before bringing the other vari- 
 eties into the field, planting varieties indicated by red and blue 
 circles before planting green. 
 
LOCATING PLANTING BOARD STAKES 
 
 LOCATING TREE BY PLANTING BOARD 
 
Digitized by the Internet Archive 
 in 2010 with funding from 
 The Library of Congress 
 
 http://www.archive.org/details/gilbertsystemofoOOgilb 
 
DESCRIPTION OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 
 
 The planting board is used to insure planting the trees in 
 exactly the place where the stakes stood when laying out the 
 orchard. The notch should be cut half across the board and in 
 line with the end holes and exactly half way between them. 
 After staking out the field place the planting board against the 
 stakes as shown in the upper cut and drive two stakes of the 
 same color through the end holes. The board and center stake 
 may now be removed and the hole dug or dynamited. After 
 the hole is ready to receive the tree, slip the planting board back 
 in place and by holding the tree in the center notch where the 
 original stake first stood you will get the tree located exactly 
 right. Instead of having holes in the ends of the board and 
 cutting all marking stakes to a small diameter it is often more 
 convenient to cut a notch in each end of the board and drive the 
 marking stakes in the notches but in that case be sure that the 
 notches come exactly in the center of the board and not nearer 
 to one edge than the other. 
 
DIAGRAM SHOWING LOCATION OF STAKES 
 AND METHOD OF STAKING. 
 
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 To stake out a field for planting, lay out a row, being very careful to have 
 it straight and exactly at right angles with one side of the field. Drive small 
 stakes along this row, one every twenty (20) feet. Three men with a wire or 
 chain forty (40) feet long with a ring on either end and a ring in the middle can 
 then lay out the next row very easily by the end men holding their rings on 
 stakes in the first row, the third man simply pulling both chains ti.eht and driv- 
 ing his stake. Repeat this operation for all the rest of the rows. If the land is un- 
 even, care should be taken to hold the chains level. Occasional "sighting" may be 
 necessary to keep the rows exactly straight in every direction. The lines in 
 the lower left hand corner illustrate how the field may be staked out. The 
 straight lines in the center of the diagram show how to sight the trees to get the 
 rows straight in every direction It pays to spend time to have all the rows 
 of trees straight in every direction not only because the^^ look better but they 
 are much easier to cultivate. 
 
COMPLETE ORCHARD AS FIRST PLANTED. 
 
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 The outline represents a square acre. Dashed lines represent boundaries of 
 units. This plan is drawn to scale so that every tree is twenty (20) feet 
 distant from six other trees set on the corners of a hexagon. Each unit contains 
 six (6) blue and six (6) red and four (4) green. The acre contains one hundred 
 and twenty-six (126) trees. 
 
 Let the blue represent Baldwins, the red Mcintosh and the green some early 
 maturing variety, like the Wealthy; or the poorest trees of both Baldwin and 
 Mcintosh maybe set in the green circles as these are removed in :he first thinning, 
 so have no permanent place in the orchard. 
 
ORCHARD AFTER FIRST THINNING 
 15 TO 18 YEARS FROM PLANTING 
 
 
 
 
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 Trees fifteen (15) to eigrhteen (18) years old. In removing- the trees represent- 
 ed by green, we have removed a tree from two sides of every tree that is left. 
 
 Each unit now contains six (6; red and six (6) blue. The acre contains 
 ninety-six (96) trees, now is the time to decide which variety you want to _ have 
 predominate. When thinning this arrangement if you know which variety is the 
 most profitable for you to grow, cut so that \(ju can have an orchard with that 
 variety predominating, or with an equal number of each variety if there is then 
 no difference in their value. You must decide this question now as further thin- 
 nings are along distinctly different schemes as you will note as you read along. 
 Compare page 7 with page 10. 
 
ORCHARD AFTER SECOND THINNING. 
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 This arrangement may be thinned to half and half, or to three (3) blue to 
 one (l) red as shown on pages 8 and 9. 
 
 Each unit contains three (3) red and five (5) blue. 
 The acre contains sixty- three (63) trees. 
 
MATURE ORCHARD. (Thinked to an Equal Number of Each Variety, 
 Following the Second Thinning as Shown on Page 7.) 
 
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 Mature orchard in full bearing-. Each tree is forty feet distant from six 
 other trees set on the corners of a hexagon. 
 
 Each full unit contains an equal number of trees of each variety that is two 
 (2) blue and two (2) red. 
 
 The acre contains thirty (30) trees. 
 
MATURE ORCHARD. (Thinned to Proportion of 3 to 1 
 Following the Second Thinning as Shown on Page 7. 
 
 Mature orchard in full bearing. Each tree is forty feet distant from six other 
 trees set on the corners of a hexagon. 
 
 Each full unit contains three (3) blue and one (l) red. 
 The acre contains thirty-three (33) trees. 
 
ORCHARD AFTER SECOND THINNING. 
 (OPTIONAL THINNING AT SAME PERIOD SHOWN ON PAGE 7) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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 This arrangement may be thinned to half and half, or to three (3) red to one 
 (1) blue. 
 
 Each unit contains three (3) blue and five (5) red. 
 The acre contains sixty- three (63) trees. 
 
 10 
 
MATURE ORCHARD. (Thinned to an Equal Number of Each Variety, 
 Following the Second Thinning as Shown on Page 10.) 
 
 Mature orchard in full bearing-. Each tree is forty feet distant from six 
 other trees set on the corners of a hexag-on. 
 
 Each full unit contains two (2) blue and two (2) red. 
 The acre contains thirty (30) trees. 
 
 11 
 
MATURE ORCHARD. (Thinned to Proportion of 3 to 1 
 Following the Second Thinning as Shown on Page 10. 
 
 Mature orchard in full bearing-. Each tree is forty feet distant from six other 
 trees set on the corner of a hexag^on. 
 
 Each full unit contains three (3) red and one (l) blue. 
 The acre contains thirty- three (33) trees. 
 
 12 
 
PB 9 1911