Whether the top-working shall be done by budding or grafting depends largely upon the wishes of the grower and the skill of the workman. Grafting will give a new tree more quickly than budding, because by the latter method a year is lost in growing a supply of new wood on the stubs into which the buds must be placed. By grafting, the new scions may start growing the first spring without any delay. Ordinarily the best method is to graft the trees the first winter and then, where the grafts fail to grow, buds may be inserted in the new growth which will come from the stub. During the first two seasons especially, great care must be exercised to keep out the sprouts that interfere with the growth of the scions. At the same time, all water-sprouts should not be removed during the first summer or there will not be sufficient leaf surface to perform the necessary functions of the tree. In addition, the scions tend to grow so rankly that they will be top-heavy and much more liable to be blown out by the wind, as shown in figure 6. This may largely be prevented by pinching the ends of the new scion growth during the early summer to force lateral branching. At the end of the first year all water-sprouts should be removed leaving nothing but the growth from the scions. [Illustration: Fig. 6.—Twenty-seven-year-old trees deheaded two years before, showing the break-off of the new growth by strong winds.] PLANTING The usual preparation given land for orchard purposes prior to planting should be applied to land being prepared for almonds. Special care must be given to insure thorough aeration of the subsoil by breaking up all hardpan, plow-pan or other compacted layers in the soil, where possible. [Illustration: Fig. 7.—Almonds planted twelve feet apart. Trees in very weak condition and almost entirely defoliated by mites before harvest. The few nuts ripening on the trees are small “sticktights.” Photo taken September 21, 1915.] _Distance._—Almonds in most soils should be planted 30 × 30 feet on the square. In rich, deep soils the trees quickly fill the intervening space, the roots occupying the entire soil area long before the tops touch. In poor, shallow soils, or soils deficient in available moisture, the trees may not occupy the entire area above ground, but the roots will require more horizontal feeding space to enable them to make the size trees and bear the crops that they should. Trees planted too close together often abstract the moisture from the soil before the growing season is completed. This shortage of moisture, with the aid of mites, commonly called red-spider, causes the loss of the leaves long before they normally should drop. Under such conditions the fruit buds are unable to make the vigorous growth which they should. These weak buds are unable to endure the degree of frost or other unfavorable conditions that stronger ones withstand without serious injury.