LIBRARY OF CONGRESS,’ Chap. No. »> oP >. 2p 5 22. >), m2 >) >>" > a a> SS ib) > PP) >>) — td = TREATISE THE CULTURE AND MANAGEMENT FRUIT TREES; A NEW METHOD OF PRUNING AND TRAINING IS FULLY DESCRIBED. TOGETHER WITH OBSERVATIONS ON “THE DISEASES, DEFECTS AND INJURIES, IN ALL KINDS OF FRUIT AND FOREST TREES} a a AS ALSO, AN ACCOUNT OF A PARTICULAR METHOD OF CURE, MADE PUBLIC BY ORDER OF THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT. “BY WILLIAM FORSYTH, F.A.S.& F.S. A. Gardener to his Majetty at Kenfington and St. James’, TO WHICH ARE 4DDED, AN INTRODUCTION AND NOTES, ADAPTING THE RULES OF THE TREATISE TO THE Climates and Seafons of the United States of America. ¥ CUTOTCOe BOT OCOF OSES HH ee BY WILLIAM COBSETT. @ecwserszecresesebvarsenee ALBANY ; PRINTED FOR AND SOLD BY D. & S. WHITING, ATP THE ALBANY BOOK-STORE, NO. 45> STATE-STREET. ¢ SOLD ALSO BY THOMAS & ANDREWS, BOSTON; A. & A. STANSBURY, No YORK; O. PENNIMAN & CO, TROY; S. P GOUDRICH, UTICA; Jj, ; GLOVER & CO, OXFORD, AND H, CHAPIN, CANANDAIGUA. 1803. INTRODUCTION, ADDRESSED To Mr. Fames Paul, Senior, OF BUSTLETON, IN PENNSYLVANIA. DEAR FRIEND, Deke the many happy days which I paffed at youe hofpitable manfion, my obfervation was occafionally dire&t- ed to the ftate of your orchards, and your method of culti- vation ; and I have not unfrequently perceived, that you, as well as other perfons, in the ftates of Pennfylvania, New- Jerfey, and New-York, experienced no {mall difappoint- ment, vexation, and lofs, from the failure in the crops, and from the premature death of your fruit trees. The {mall- nefs and inferior quality of the fruit of the Peach-Tree, in particular, and the {wift decay of the tree itfelf, have, for many years paft, been a fubje&t of general regret in the middle ftates of America ; and, it appears to me, that who- _ ever fhall firft communicate to you a method of removing this evil, will render you no unacceptable fervice. Under this perfuafion it is, that I have, for a moment, withdrawn mylelf from the noife and ftrife of politics, in order to ad- drefs to you a few introdu€tory remarks on a work, which, I think, is extremely well calculated to afford you a grea¢ deal of new and ufeful information, on the culture and management of thofe trees, which are at once the comfort end the ornament of your country. Mui ( INTRODUCTIOND The work is, as you wiil fee by the title page, the pro- du&tion of Mr. For/yth, the King’s gardener at Kenfington and St. James’. He, fome years ago, made public his method of curing difeafed and decayed fruit and foreft trees, for which difclofure, after a very minute examination, made by men of great fkill, his Majefty, at the recommendation of both Houfes of Parliament, granted him a reward of four thoufand pounds. A full account of this examination, to- gether with its refult, you will find in the appendix to the prefent work, During the laft fummer, (1801) I went with a party of friends, to be an eye witnefs of the effets (of which I had heard fuch wonders related) of this gentleman’s mode of cultivating and curing trees ; and, though my mind had re- ceived a ftrong prepoffeffion in iis. favor, what I faw very far furpafled my expeflation. Mr. Forfyth, whofe book was not then publithed, did us the favor to fhew us the manu- {cript of it, and alfo the drawings for the plates, which are now to be found at the end of the work. After having read thofe parts of the manufcript, which more immediately re- ferred to the drawings, we went into the gardens, and there faw every tree which the drawings were intended ta repre- fent, and af which we found them to be a moft exaG repre. jentation. We examined thefe trees from the ground to the topmoft branches ; we counted the joints in the wood, afcertained the time and extent of its growth, and, in fhort, verified eve- ry fa€l that the book related. To raife fine flourifhing wood {rom an old cankered, gummy, decayed item; to raife as much weed on that flem, in three years, as could have been raifed-on the finefl young tree, in twelve years ; to take the yotten wood from the trunk, to replace it with found wood, aftually to fill up the hollows, and, of a mere thell, to make # Md es «-* Iwrropucrion. ~The a full, roundeaand folid trunk ; all this feems incredible 4 but of all this we faw indubitable proof. The fuperiority of Mr. Forfyth’s mode of pruning might have been very fairly inferred from the abundance and excellence of the fruit, with which every tree in his gardens was loaded, while thofe in other gardens had but a partial and {canty crop, and that much inferior in quality ; but Forfyth has left the merit . of no part of his fyftem to be gathered trom inference, and, therefore, not content with fhewing the effe€ts of his art by the contrait exhibited between his own garden and thole of other perfons, not content even with this contraft as exhib. ited between different trees in his cwh garden, and flanding clofe to one another, he has moft fuccefsfully exhibited it between different branches of the fame tree. By turning to the chapter on Pears, and by referring to plate 7, you will fee the portrait of a Pear-Tree, one branch of which we found pruned in the common way, and the other branches according to the method taught by this book. The fruit on the former we found fmall, hard, knotted, and tafling almoft as bad as the frutt, which, in America, is called the Choahs Pear ; on the other branches, the fruit was large and clear, and of an excellent flavor. . ‘To enter into an analyfis of the feveral parts of the work is by no means my intention. Indeed, all I intend, by this introduétion, is to call your attention to a work, which, I am fully perfuaded, you will find a moft valuable affifiant, in your rural purfuits. The detail of my remarks, altera- tions, and additions, you will find fcattered through the fev- eral chapters of the book ;- but, I cannot, even here, refrain from recommending to your particular notice, the dire€lions for planting, reftoring, and perpetuating your Apple Orch- _ards; for preferying your Peach-Trees from thofe mifchiev- Vill | INTRODUCTION. ~ ous infefts, which now render them fo very fhort-lived ; and for the propagating and training of your vines; on which three important heads, you appear to me to ftand in need of the very information that is herein communicated. That Providence may fmile on all your labors, give abundance to your fields and happinefs to your family, is the fincere and earneft prayer of, Dear Sir, Your moft faithtul friend, And moft obedient Servant, WILLIAM COBBETT: PREFACE | : THE AUTHOR. Tos the many publications that have appeared on the maiis agement of Fruit and Foreft Trees, it may be thought fuperfluous to add ; and, indeed, fo little am I accuflomed to the praétice of writing, that I feel no fmiall degree of re- Juftance in offering any thing to public infpeftion; but an + entire convidtion of the advantages to be derived from the __», cbfervations and dire€tions contained ini the following pages, _ joined to the importunity of mariy of the mof competent " judges, has determined me to make my method of pr uning and training, and thefuccefs attending it, as publicas po! le. _. Having long obferved the ie crops, both on wall and -flandard trees, that have followed the ufual mode of prun- ing and training, I was led to make many experiments, in order to Bicagee if it were poflible, a more fuccefsful method. Nor have my endeavors been in vain; for, after following a new mode for fevera! years, I can ih pleafure affirra, that the quantity of fruit has been remarkably in- creafed, ahd the quality greatly improved. I have, in the following pages, fated many tats, to evince the utility of the compolition recommended, and to inducé others to make a iair trial, which may be done at a very trifling expence. Ton nly requeft of thofe who Pili any doubts, that they will make choice of two trees of the fame kind, as. near as may be in the fame ftate of health or decay, and having equal advantages of foil and fituation; let the dead, decayed; and pe parts be cut out ; then to one of the trees apply the compofition as direfted in this treatife, and leave ile B x PREFACE. ; ce a j other to nature: if proper attention be paid to the former, no great length of time will be neceffary to fhew which method ought to be purfued in future. I hope the candid reader will pardon me for dwelling a little on this fubjeft. It has been faid, that there is nothing new either in the compofition or its application. It is cer- tainly true, that compofitions of various kinds have been tried ; but no one has been attended with fuch great fuccefs as that which is defcribed in the following pages: Indeed, they were generally made up ina flovenly manner, and ap- plied without properly preparing the trees; fo that little good could have been expected, evenif the compofition had con- fifted of proper materials. In thefe particulars I am per- fuaded, that every impartial perfon will acknowledge that I have made great improvement. Former compofitions have been made up of loam and cow or horfe-dung, of bees-wax, pitch, tar, chalk, rofin mixed with greafe, gums, &c. It is granted, that fuch as thefe may fometimes be of ufe, but not in general ; moft of them being liable to become hard, and to crack and peel off. I have tried them all, with but very little fuccefs. I have alfo tried a compofition of tarras (which is ufed as a cement for building under water :) This alfo cracked and peeled off after it became hard. Some of thefe compofitions become fo hard, that, inftead of giving way to the new bark as it is produced, they cut and tear it, 4o the great injury of the tree. The compofition which I recommend is not liable to thefe inconveniences ; it poffefles an abforbent and adhefive quality, and is moreover of {uch a nature as not in the leaft to hurt the new and tender bark ; for it eafily gives way to it and to the new wood as they advance. On applying it to trees which contain a flrong acid, fuch as oaks, apple-trees apricots, &c. when infe&ted with the canker, that avis may be feen oozing through the compofition and adherin to the outfide, like copper duft, or ruft of iron, and may be eafily rubbed off with the hand. This appearance I never could obferve on the application of any other compofition ; which confirms my beliet that it a€ts as a ftrong ftimulant.. ! When the wounds in fruit trees are fo large as not to heal Up in the courfe of a twelvemonth, I renew the compofition & é PREFACE. cians xi anaually, wh ch, on its application, invigorates the trees, and feems to have the fame effect on them as a top-drefling of dung has on land. Wigs I have been folicited by fome of my friends to add a chap- ter on forcing grapes, peaches, and nectarines; and to give a defcription ot a houfe tor that purpole ; but as it would {well the book to too great a fize, and as the fubjeét is fully treated ot by many others, it feems unneceffary to fay any thing farther here, than juft to obferve, that the method of pruning and training recommended in this book, is equally applicable to trees in a forcing-houfe as to thofe on a natural wall. Whenvines are trained ftraight up the rafters of hot- houfes, they throw out a few eyes only at top, and all the reft of the branch becomes naked.; but when trained in a ferpentine manner, they break equally. _ Dwarf peaches and ne@arines planted in the pits of forc- ing houfes fhould be trained horizontally ; in which mode they will produce much move fruit than when they are trained fan-fafhion. It muft be obferved, that the direétions, &c. in the fol- lowing pages are calculated tor the neighborhood of Lon- don ; it will, therefore, be neceflary to make allowance, in other climates, for the earlinefs or latenefs of their feafons, both with regard to the time of fruit being in perfe@tion, and alfo for planting, pruning, &c. For the information of thofe who are not acquainted with practical gardening, the following explanation of what is called heading-down is given. : When young trees are planted out from the nurlery, as _ foon as they begin to break in the {pring, they ave cut down to three or four eyes, according to their ftrength, to furnifh them with bearing wood : If this were not done, they would run up in long naked branches, and would not produce one quarter of the fruit which they do when this operation is properly performed. The fame holds good in heading all Kinds of old trees. _An opinion prevails, particularly in thofe parts where ap- ple-trees are cultivated to any confiderable extent, that trees never bear well after heading-down, and that it frequently ; kills them. This may, no doubt, fometimes happen wher me Sil PREFACE, ‘they aré improperly headed-down all at once, by giving a fud- den check to the fap, the few weak fhoots not having firength to draw up what is fupplied by the roots; and moreover, not being capable of fheltering one another, they are chill- ed by the cold, and fo rendered at leaft unproduétive, if they ' are not totally killed, But it heading were done gradually, that is, if every other branch all over the tree were headed at a proper length, cutting as near to thofe parts where the foots appear as pofible, in the month of February cr March, or even as late as May ;* in the courfe of the farmer thee would throw out fine long thoots. Thefe fhould not be _ fhortened the firft year, unlefs it be neceflary to fhorten a few_to fill up the head of the tree with bearing wood, and that fhould be done in the following {pring ; cutting them to fix or eight inches long, according to their flrength.” In the next {pring after the firft branches are headed, the remain- ing old branches may be cut out; and thefe will foon fill the head of the tree with fine Bearing wood. In three years, if properly managed, trees fo headed will produce a much reater quantity of fruit, and of a better quality than they did before the ep taion was performed. * In the Middle States of America this operation faould never be pera et med till the middle of March,’ ang not later than the 20th of April, » TREATISE ge “THE CULTURE AND MANAGEMENT OF ’ | FRUIT TREES, Ge. CHAPTER I, OF APRICOTS.* Different Sorts defcribed—Planting and Heading —The Man- agement of decayed Trees—Pruning of Apricots, and how te fhelter them from cold. i HE Apricot, we are told, came originally from Armenia whence it takes the name of Armeniaca, and was introduced _ into this country in 1562. Linnzus, according to the Sexuel Syfiem, arranges it in the twelfth clafs, lcofandria Monogynia ;+ and comprehends in . the genus Prunus, ihe Apricot, the Cherry, and the Bird-Cher- ty; making them only different f{pecies of the fame genus. Although the above-mentioned plants are arranged under the fame genus, yet the Cherry and Plum will never take upon * We {hall enumerate, under their refpective heads, the principa! forts of fruit that are propagated in this country ; with the time of their ripening, as near as poffible. [tis to he obferved, however, that the diverfity of fea- fons, together with that of fail and fituation, will fometimes make a month _ of difference in the ripening of the fruit. _ markable, that there is not one puifonous fruit to he found in it, + Moft of our catable fruits are arranged under this clafs; and it is ee 14 TREATISE ON THE CULT each other, nor the Apricot upon the Cherry ; but the Apricot will take upon all forts of Plums, except the Bruffels. The Names and Qualities of Apricots commonly cultivated in England, with the Time of ther Ripening. — & 1. The Mafculine. This is a fmall roundifh fruit: It is the earlieft of all the Apricots, ripening about the latter end of July, and is chiefly efteemed tor its tart tafle; when fully ripe, — it is of a red colour towards the fun, and of a greenifh yellow — on the other fide. highs 2. The Orange. This is pretty large, but rather dry and infipid, and fitter for tarts than for the table. It is of a deep yellow colour when ripe, which is about the latter end of Au- guft. This is confidered as the beft for preferving. 3. The Algiers. ‘his is a flatted oval-fhaped fruit, of a flraw colour, juicy and high flavoured. It ripens about the middle of Auguft. 4. The Roman. This is larger than the Algiers, round- he er, of a deep yellow, and not quite fo juicy. Itis ripe about ~~ the middle or latter end of Auguft. iz ie? 5. The Turkey. This tsa larger, and of a deeper colour, than the Roman; its {hape more globular, and the flefh firmer and drier. It ripens about the latter end of Auguft. | 6. The Breda (brought from thence to England) is orig= inally from Africa. It is large, round, and of a deep yellow colour; the flefh is fottand juicy. This is an excellent fruit, efpecially if ripened on a ftandard. It ripens about the latter end of Augult. 7. The Bruffels. This is held in very great efleem on account of its bearing fo well on flandards, or large dwarfs. It is of a middling fize, red towards the fun, with many dark f{pots, and of a greenifh yellow on the other fide. This has a brifk flavour, is not liable to be mealy or doughy, and is pre- ferred by many to the Breda; but when the Breda is planted as a flandard, the fruit is more juicy and of a richer flavour. - This ripens in Auguft on a wall, but not before the latter end ot September on ftandards. ‘ 8. The Moor Park, called alfo Anfon, Temple, and Dun- more’s Breda. ‘This 1s a fine fruit, and ripens about the latter end of Auguit. g. The Peach Apricot. This was introduced fromParis, by his grace the Duke of Northumberland, at Sion-houfe, in 4767. Itisthe fineft and largeft of all Apricots, and is gener- ally thought to be the fame as the Moor Park; but upon a & Ae 10. The Black Apricct. This has been very lately in- troduced, by Sir Jofeph Banks, from France, in which coun- try itis highly eiteemed. : Say The trees that Sir Jofeph planted at his feat in Spring Grove, near Hounflow, bore fruit laft feafon, tor the firft ime in this country ; but, in confequence of the wet and unfavour- able weather, it did not arrive at perfeétion.* It ripens about the fecond week in Avguft. To the foregoing may be added : The Great Apricot, The Dutch Apricot, Holland ditto, Grover’s Breda, Provence ditto, Perfian, Alberge, _ Royal Orange, Angumoue, Tranf{parent, Blotched-leaved, Portugal Apricot, (a {mail Nancy Apricot, (a fine fruit.) large fruit,) y For the accommodation of thofe who have {mall gardens, “and yet wifh to have a regular fucceffion of fruit, we fhall give abftracis of the larger feleftions ; retaining thofe kinds only which are beft adapted for that purpofe ; and of which one or more trees of a fort may be planted, according to the fize of the garden, or the demand of the family. _ A Selection of Apricots for a fmall Garden. The Mafculine, the Roman, the Orange, the Breda, and the Moor Park. | Of the Planting, Pruning, and Ti raining of Apricots. The beft time for planting Apricots is in Autumn, as foor as the leat begins to fall. The perfon who goes to the nurfery * [have had the honour of paying Sir Jofeph a vifit at Spring Grove, where I had the pleafure of tafting one of thefe Apricots; and I think it will prove an acquifition well worth cultivating. The black colour of the fruit may, pethaps, prejudice fome peérfons againft it; but the flavour, in my opinion, is very gocd ; and if it be confidered, that the wood of 1799 was not well ripened, owing to the wet feafon, there is little doubt, that, next year, if the feafon fhould be favourable, the favour of the fruit will be greatly im- proved, and continue improving till the tree comes to maturity, The feants inefs of the prefent crop of Apricots, Peaches, Nectarines, &c. may be attri- buted to the wood not being properly ripened lait year, In Mayer’s ‘Pomona Franconia,” will be found a very good figure of tae Black Apricot, called alfo the Alexandrian Apricot, 16 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND for the plants fhould make choice of thofe which have the ftrongeit and cleaneft ftems; and if he can procure fuch as have been headed down, (to ufe the phrafe of the nurfery- men) of two or three years growth, they will bear and fill the walls much fooner than thofe which have not been fo treated. He fhould make choice of trees with one ftem; or, if they have two, one of them fhould be cut off ; for by planting thofe with two ftems the middle of the tree is left naked, and, of courfe, one third of the wal! remains uncovered. ' I know that it is the pra€tice of many to make choice of trees with the {malleft ftems ; but thefe always produce weak- er fhoots than the others. On preparing the Borders.* If the borders wherein the trees are to be planted be new, they fhould be made two feet and a half, or three feet deep, of good light frefh loam. If the trees are to be planted in old borders, where the earth has been injured by the roots of the former trees, it will be neceffary to take out the old mould at leaft three feet deep, and four feet wide, filling up the hole with frefh loam, and taking care to plant the trees about eight inches higher than the level ot the old border, to allow for the finking of the earth, that they may not be too deep in the ground; but this will be more fully treated of in the chapter on Pear-trees. - ‘When the trees are planted, they fhould by no means be headed down till they begin to throw out trefh fhoots. Strong trees fhould be cut a foot from the ground ; and thofe that are weak, about half that length. ~ In backward feafons, they fhould not be headed down fo early ; never until the buds are fairly broken ; always obferv- ing to cut floping towards the wall, and as near to an eye as pofhible, that the young leading {hoot may cover the cut; | See Plate 1. Jig. s.| which operation fhould be again performed in the next March or April.t The fhoots that are then thrown out mutt be trained horizontally, to cover the wall. The num- ber of thefe to be left out ought to be from three to fix on each * The American reader will not readily know what is here meant by the word Borders; it is therefore neceflary to obferve to him, that the finer kinds of fruit trees are, in England, trained againft walls, and that there is general ly a walk goes round the garden, running in a parallel] line with the wall, a¢ the diftance of about ten feet from it; the fpace between the walk and the wall, is called the Border; fo that, when the author fpeaks of the foil and tillage of the Porders, he is merely {peaking of the foil and tillage of the land, in which the feveral trees are, or may, be planted. + The fame feafon will do for the Middle States of America, MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &. 9 fide, acedrding to the ftrength of the main (hoot ; taking caré io rab off, with the finger and thumb, the fore-right fhoots all over the tree, except a tew which may be wanted to fi)l up the wall, neat the body of it. [See Plates. Fig. a*] | In the fecond year, the Korizontal fhoots muft be Miort- énéd in the famé manner, dtcording to their growth ; and fo on every year till the wall fliall be completely covered from foptepottom. 8 It ig a frequent pra€tice with fome gardeners, to head down the treés at the time of planting; which very often proves fatal to them. Of old and decayed Trees. When a tree becomes thin of beating wood it will ke neceflary to ciit down the whole of it, as near to the place Where it was budded a3 poffible; remenibering always to cut at aneyé ora joint. It there fhould be any young {Koots on | the lower part of the tree, it will be proper to leave them, training them horizontally, which will cneck the flow of thé fap, and thereby render them much more fruitful. : Very frequently, when large branches have been cut off in a carelefs mariner, and the wounds left to nature; the whole tree is infeéted wiih tlie gum and canker; which, if not check- ed, will in a fhort time totally ritin it. : The befl remedy in this cafe 15, carefiilly to paré off the cankered part of the bark with a knife, or other convenient in- flrument, You will tredquently find the white itiner bark ina feted, which muft alfo be cut away, till no appedrance df in- fe&tion remains; this may be eafily known by the brown ot black fpots, like dots made with a pen; of which not one muft be fuffered to remain. ne All the branches fo cut and pared thould be immiediately covered with the compofition ina liquid flate; the preparation and application of which will be particularly defcribed in ane other place. ae W/hen trees are in d very bad condition; they fhould be cut in a partial manner, taking off the worft branches firft, par- ticularly thofe in the middle of the tree, always cutting as near to the gralt as poflible ; or every other branch may at firfi be * The direGions which are given for trees againft a wal!; will apply, wish €qual force, to flandard trees, excépe that the items, or trunks, «f thefe Jatter fhould be higher, and, confequentiy, they fhould not be héaded down fe near the ground. The Apricots, which I have feen ia America, are hard, and nog above one-third part as large as the fame fruit in England, a difference which is tntizely owing fo want ef attention to ries fuch as are hete laid down, Te ‘ ag TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND taken out, leaving he reft to bear; by which means there will bea fupply of fruit while the other parts of the tree are reno- vating. It fhould be remembered, however, that all the cank- ered bark muft be cut off without lols ot time; otherwife the new wood will be infeéted. Old trees thus headed down will fometimes throw out very ftrong and vigorous {hosts, which it may be neceflary to top, as it will caufe them to throw out fide- fhoots; but they fhould nev- er be fuffered to have any fore-right {pu: 's, except little dugs. The topping fhould be done in the beginni ng of June, which will caule the tree to produce fine bearing wood for the next year. Thofe trees muft be pruned in March following,* fhort+ ening the fhoots from fifteen to fix inches, but according to their ft: rength, always leaving the ftrongett thoots longeft. Wherever the knife has been ufed, tae compofition muft be immediately applied. I have a great diflike to Autumnal pruning of fruit trees ; of all kinds of {tone truitin particular; for by pruning at that feafon you feldom fail to bring on the canker ; and no fruit trees are more liable to this difeafe than the Apricot. _The rea- fon is obvious : The great acidity in thefe trees, the expofure of the Gone and the dormant ftate of the fap, pre-difpofe to mortification ; whereas, in fpring, when the fap is beginning to flow, and i follow the knife, the lips will quickly grow. If the branches are {mal!, a frefh bark and frefh wood will in one feafon completely cover the wound; but if large, a time proportionate to their fize will be occupied ; this procels, how- ever, is manifeftly much accelerated by the application of the compofition, which excludes the air and wet from the air and fap vefiels of the tree. Of the Sores. The Breda is the beft and richeft flavoured for a ftand- ard, although the Buflels 1s frequenily preferred. The Breda, the Rruffels, and the Moor-Park, fhould al- ways be planted on an Kait or Weft ee Others may have a South afpeé.t * The latter end of June and March fhould be taken, in America for this bufinefs, I will here obferve, once for all, that I confine my obfervations to the Middle States of the Union. + Apricots bear pretty well as ftandards, even in England, and it cannot be fuppofed, that, if the above directions were well attended to, they would mot produce great quantities of fine fruit in America, uy a MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 39 CHAPTER It. OF PLUMS. Different Sorts of Plums cultivated in England—Of Plant- _ heading and training them—Of Standards in Orchards, and Dwarfs in Gardens—The Management of old decayed Trees. a Tue Plum is generally fuppofed to be a native of Afia, and the Damafcene to take its name from Damafcus, a city of Syria. This Genus of Plants is arranged by Linnzus in the twelfth clafs of his Syflem. The Names and Qualities of thofe Plums which are commonly cultivated in England, with their Time of ripening. 1. The Jaunhative, or White Primordian, is a {mall plum, of a yellow colour, and mealy. It ripens in the latter end of July, or beginning of Auguft. One tree will be fuf- ficient for a garden. ORS 2, The Early Damafk, commonly called the Morocco Plum, is middle-fized, and the flefh good. It ripens about the beginning of Auguft. Ene 3. The Little Black Damafk Plum is a rich fruit, a good bearer, and is ripe about the latter end of Auguft. 4. The Damafk Violet of Tours. This is a fine’ rich plum of a bluifh colour, and is ripe in Auguft. : 5: The Red Orleans Plumis large, of arich juice, and is ripe in the latter end of Auguft. eS i: 6. The Fotheringham 1s an excellent plum, of a dark red, and the juice rich; there is hardly any plum that excels it. 7. ihe Blue Perdrigon Plum is ot a very good tafte, and ripensin Auguft. » ca, hal wo ; ~ 8. The White Perdrigon Plum is a pretty good frnit, and has a fweetifh tafte mixed with tartnefs. It ripens in the be- ginning of September. ‘pecan Aree Se g- The Red Imperial Plum, or Red Bonum Magnum, is a great bearer, and moftly ufed tor baking. It is ripe about the latter end of September. ig a * i 4 $0 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND 10. The White Imperial Bonum Magnum, or Egg Plum, White Holland, or Mogul Plum, is a large fruit, and, like the red, mofily ufed for baking. This is a great bearer, and rip- ens about the beginning of O€tober. . 11. La Royal isa fine plum, equal to the Green Gage, buta fhy bearer. It is of a yed colour, and ripens in the lat« ter end of September. — es 12. Little Queen Claudia is a {mall rich fruit, ripe in September. 2 Tbe. : 13. Large Queen Claudia, or Dauphiny. This is an ex- cellent plum, of a yellowifh green, and ripens about the be, ginning of O&tober. Ms 14. The Green Gage Plum® is of an exquifite tafle, and eats like afweetmeat. Its colour and fize fuficiently diftinguith it from any other. It ripens in Auguft and September. 15. Draps d’Or is a good plum, and a plentiful bearer. Tt is ripe about the Jatter end of September. - oe The Chefter Plum is rich, anda great kearer. It is ripe about the latter end of September. ae 17. The Apricot Plum 1s large and {weet, and is ripe in the beginning of Oftober. _ Se Dini ot 18. The Maitre Claud is a large round whitifh plum; the juice is very brifk, though fweet. It 1s accounted among the beft white plums that we have, and ripens about the be- ginning of O&tober. "1g. The Myrobalans, or Cherry Pium, is a middle-fiz. ed {weet fruit, and ripens about the beginning of September. This plum is freguently planted for ornament, as it bloffoms early. fae So sie iey hy i ai ! So La Mirabelle, of an amber colour, and {mall, is full of juice, and excellent for {weetmeats. It bears well, and 1s ripe about the beginning of September. : 21. The Brignoje Plum, This is efteemed the beft plum of any for fweetmeats; the deh is dry, bat of a rich flavour. kt is ripe about the latterend of September. 4 22. The Red Diaper Plum is large, and of a very high flavour. It ripens about the beginning of September. 29. The Saint Catharine Plum is one of the beft, and is much ufed for confettionary ; it is alo very good for the ta- ble, having a rich fweet juice; and is a good bearer, hanging the longeft of any upon the tree. I have had them in gathex- ing fix weeks. It ripens about the latter end ef September. 24. The Imperatrice, or Emprefs Plum, has an egreeable flavour, and ripens about the middle of Ofiober. This is one * There are feveral varigties of this plum, and all goad. a : ( MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 24 of the lateft plums, and fhould not be gathered ill it begins to fhrivel ; ; it will then eat like a fweetmeat, and make a great addition to the table in the latter end at Oftober and beginning of cre . Monfieur’s, or the Wentworth Plum, is a large fruit ee the Bonum Magnum. It ripens about ine. begin- ning of Ottober, and is good for preferving, but too tharp ta be eaten raw., 26. The Winefour, a Yorkfhire plum, is one of the bef for om Prin ying, It is mp¢e in O€taber, ‘ To the above may be added : Admirable, Black Damafcene, Black Pear, Blue Matchlefs, Damas noir de Tours, Yon Carlos’s, Double. flowered, Harly Blue Primordian, arly Red Piimordian, Early Amber, Early Tours, or Precoce ' de Tours, Early Violet, St. Julian, Semina, Smal! White Damafcene, Spanith Damafcene, _ Striped-leaved, “True Prune, © AY Early Orleans, Fine Early Plum, Jacinthe, or Hyacinth, Koa’s Imperial, La Prune Suiffe, La Prune valeur Valentia, Matchlefs, Maugeron, Mufcle, Perfian, Red Gueen Mother, Royal Pea, Royal Dauphin, Verte-dock, or V erdock, Whitton, or Nutmeg, White Bullace, White Orleans, White Pear, White Perdrigon. A Selsftion of Plums for a [mall Garden. ~The Jaunhative ; Early J Damafk ; the Orleans; La Roy- al; Green Gage (different { lorts 3) Draps d’Or; rine; and Imperatrice. Saint Catha- The Megnum Bonum for baking, and the Winefour for preferving. 3° On the Chowe, Planting, Pruning, Sc. of Plum-Trees. _ When you ‘choole your trees, let the fame direGlions be ob rved as in the choice ot Apricots. plone with fingle flems ; fore direfted for Apricots ; . & D) Chosfe clean firaight as thofe with twe never make hand- ome trees for walls or itandards. Manage the border as bes digging the holes the fame width and depth, and loofening the bottom ; then fill up the holes ¢s TREATISEON THE CULTURE AND with fine frefh loam, or the mould that was ufed the preceding year for melon and cucumber beds; and be careful to keep the mould a proper height above the border, and the roots of your trees as near the furtace as poflible, {preading them hori- zontally. If there are any tap-roots they fhould always be cut off, as fhould alfo the fine hairy roots, as they are liable to get mouldy and rot, and thereby bring on a putrefaétion of the ‘mould about the root of the tree. If the roots are not fpread near the furface of the ground, it will prevent the fun and air from penetrating to them; and the fruit, ef courfe, will not have fo fine a flavopr. Never cut the ftems of young Plum-trees when fir ft plant- ed, but leave them till the buds begin to break ; them you may head them down to five or more eyes, always obferving to leave an odd one for the leading fhoot : remember to cut flop- ing towards the wall, and as near to an eyeas pofible. Thus managed, the fhoots will foon fill the wall with fine wood. If you find that fome of the fhoots are too luxuriant, you may pinch the tops off with your finger and thumb, about the be- ginning of June in the firfl yearatter planting ; by doing which you will obtain plenty of wood to fill the bottom of the wall. A great deal depends on the firft and fecond year’s manage- ment of your trees. ° The diftance from each cther at which Plum-trees fhould be planted againft a wall depends on the height of the wall. If the wall be ten feet bigh, which is the common height, they may be planted at eight yards diftance fiom tree to tree ; but if the wall be twelve feet high, or more, feven yards will be fuficient. For my part, I preter a wall of ten or twelve feet, which will be found high enongh, if the branches are trained horizontally ; by which means your trees will be much more fruitful, and not grow fo luxuriantly. By training an upright fhoot on your Plums, as direfled for Pears, you will get fine kind fhoots from the fides. The leading {hoot fhould.be fhortened, leaving it from one to two feet long, according to its ftrength. It the Jeading fhoot be very flrong, you may top it twice in the fummer, as direfted for Pears, and at the fame time that you top them ; repeating the fame every year til] the wall is filled to the top. 1 would always recommend, where it is: convenient, to allot one wall for Plums and another for Cherries, as they always thrive beit by themfelves. _ As you will have Plum-trees to fpare, that were planted between Pear-trees, when they begin to meet, they fhould be planted egainft another wall, or planted out as Dwarf Stand. ¥. ve & MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &. 23 ards. Thofe which you intend for Standards fhould be pres pared in the following manner. The year before you mean to traii/plant them, cut inthe fide fhoots at different lengths, from one foot to three, according to the fize of the trees ; {uflering them to grow rude all the fummer, neither nailing-in nor cut- ting the fide and fore-right {hoots. Some time during the win- ter open the ground round their roots, and cut in the flrong ones (which will caufe them to put forth fine young fibres;) then Hil in the earth. In the following autumn, or during the winter (the fooner the better,) you may tranfplant them out as Standards.* 1f you intend to plant them againft a wall, never cut the fide-fhoots, but only the roots; by this method the trees will bear fruit the firft year after tranfplanting, and there will be a great faving of time and money._ I have often tranf- pianted old Plum-trees that have been headed down, that have made very fine roots, which I have divided, and thereby ob- tained four or five trees from one, cutting them fo as to form them-into fine heads. Some that were tranfplanted in 1798, were in full bloffom in 199, producing fome fruit, and this year (1800) bearing a full crop. The ground in the borders and quarters where frefh trees are to be pianted fhould be well trenched, two {pits deep at leaft, to give the roots room to run into the frefh-ftirred ground. When you plant trees without flirring the mould, they feldom thrive well. When Plum-trees are planted for Standards in an orchard which is to be kept for grafs, they fhould be in rows at the dif. tance of twenty yards from each other.+ If in the kitchen gar- den tor Standards, I would always recommend the planting of Dwar's. You may train the tree up to have a flem of about three feet high, at the diftance of feventeen yards. If the garden is laid out with crofs-waiks, or foot-paths, about three feet wide, make the borders fix feet broad, and plant the trees inthe middle of them, In the Royal gardens at Kenfing- ton, which are very long and narrow, and where the winds * In tranfplanting of trees, efpecially large ones, I confider it to be of great confequence, thit they be placed in the fame pofttion (that is, having the fame parts facing the fame points of the compafs) as formerly. If you take notice when a tree is cut down, you will find that three parts in four of the growth are on the North fide. + The direCtions contained in this paragraph exa@tly apply to America ; but almoft all the rules relative to planting and pruning wall trees, apply equally to ftandards; and as the author has, in general, given his direStions in fpeaking of wall-trees, the American reader will be careful not to overiook them, merely becaufe they are not repeated in fpeaking of Randard treee sete 64 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND are very hurtful, I have planted two rows of Apple-trees, iii termixed with other fruit trees; alternately, one row on each fide cf the middle walk (which runs the whole length of the warden,) at the diftance of feventeen yards from each other. I have alfo made crofs-walls of three feet broad, at the dif- tance of feventy yards, with borders on each fide fix feet wide, having two rows of trees in each border, about twelve or fourteen feet afurnider. Thefe Dwarf trees are very ufeful in breaking the force of high winds, and are at the fame time — of fuch a height that a mari landing on the ground may gath« er the fruit. As Plum-trees may be planted in the fame man- ner, and for the fame purpofe as the above, you can have the quarters clear fur crops tor the kitchen, and a free air will be admitted, which you can never have if you plant Efpaliers : Dwarf Standards can be kept to what fize you pleale; they Jook much handfomer than Efpaliers, arid preduce a greater quantity of fruit. On pruning and refloring old and decayed Plum-Trees. have reftored Plum-trees, fome cf which were fo fat decayed as to have only from one to two or three inches of bark left ; they are now completely filled up with found wood; with large heads, which at tour year’s growth filled a wall fix- teen feet high, and are at this time full of fine fruit; fome of the ftems are feveral incHes in circumference, bearing treble the crops produced by young trees that have been planted three times as long as they have been headed down. | Where the trunks are become hollow, I always cut out all the Joofe rotten parts, and alfo examine the roots, cutting off what is rotten, injured, or decayed. This method fhould be purfued with all hollow and decayed trees ; and, if properly executed, they may be fo completely filled up, as fcarcely to leave a mark behind, even where the wood is totally decayed.* I have had fhoots from Plum-trees which have been head- ed, that have grown upwards of feven feet long, and as large as a walking- ftick, in one fummer ; this fhould never be fuffered ; - but they fhould be pinched off with the finger and thumb, in the beginning of June ;+ clofe to an eye or a bud; unlefs the wall be filled up to the top; im which cafe they fhould never be cut while they continue to bear handfome fruit. Before they begin to ceafe from bearing, you muff always begin with fhort- ening every other fhoot, leaving them only trom fix inches te ® Aftonithing as this really is, I was witrefs of the truth ef the Mates ment. + The middle, or latter end of June, for America, MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREESS, &¢é. 25 @ foot long, atid nail them in till the fecond year, taking care to rub off the fuperfluous and flrong fore-right fhoots ; by that time they will begin to bear; thea cutout the others that have done bearing: By this method you will keep the trees in a flourifhing ftate. When the branches are thus managed, they will frequently throw out {mall dugs, or fore-right thoots, a- bout an inch or two long, which will flower next year. They fhould never be fhortened till after the fruit is fet and become about the fize of a large pea; by thattime the leaves will have covered the fruit, and be able to proteét it from the inclemency of the weather. You may now fhorten thefe fhoots clofe to the fruit, which will leave them from one to two inches long, This method I have pra€tifed with great fuccefs for feveral years. By leaving thefe fhort fore-right {hoots, the fruit is proteéted till it 1s out of danger of being killed by the froft, or flunted by the cold north and north-weft winds that happen about the latter end of March and beginning of April. The cold chilling ratn and f{now, which are alfo very injurious to the fruit, will be thrown out by the branches flanding out from the trees. I, by no means, like to fee {purs ftanding out from the wall; for they are always fure to be injured by the froft and cold winds. [See Plate 2. fig. 2.| When the fhoots are left naked, I have often feen the plums turn yellow, and drop after they kave grown to a confiderable fize, trom their being expofed to the cold trofly winds and iain. Plums are more tender than any other fort of flone fruit, owing to the flowers cup dropping fooner than that of the Peaches, and Neétarines, &c.* They are very liable to decay, after cutting off large limbs or branches, which always brings on the gum and cank- er, if it be left to Nature to performthe cure. I would, there~ fore, recommend the application of the compofition (in the fame manner as direéted for other forts of fruit trees) to every fhoot where the knife touches, as foon as the trees are cut. If you with your fruit to be Jarge and fine, you muft take care to thin it where it is too thick; but that muft not be done too foon, left it fhould be pinched by the cold. The fruit ought to be of the fize of a {mall marble, and well theltered by the leaves, before you attempt to do this. Never pull off the leaves that fhelter the fruit, till it is tull grown and be» * Some of the dire€tions here given apply exelufively to wall-trees; but if the manner of pruning here recommended were obferved in America, the fruit of the Plum would be much larger, finer flavoured, and in greater abuns dance than it now is. Mr, Forfyth prunes his ttandards by the help of a dous ble ladder, which might alfo be done in America, D eo ° TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND gins to turn. This will be more fully treated of, when we come to the management of Peaches and Nediarines. I have taken up feveral old trees from the walls, when they have grown too near each other, and planted chem out as Standards, at the fame time fhortening their branches to form handfome heads, which are now full of fine fruit. Thefe trees would, by any other perfon, have been thrown to the Fagot- pile.* . * Several of thefe trees I faw, in 1800, loaded with fruit fo heavily as to require props to fupport the branches. ‘Fhe old ftumps, out of which Mr. Forlyth had brought the new and pacific branches, preferved their crogked and cankered th ape, while the new wood was extremely luxuriant and cledr. The fame J obferved with refpect to pears, apples, and other fruit trees, which were bending under the weight of their fruit, while, in the neighbouring gar- dens, though only on the other fide of the wail, the owners had hardly fruit enough for their tables, ‘thy a Be a ™ MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &. > . CHAPTER IIT. Ol PRA C EHiGs. Different Sorts of Peaches defcribed—Of the Sotl—Of Planting, Heading, Prumng, and Training —Method of making Inci- fons—Of Covering Peach-Trees, Watering, Sc. . Me Peach, Perfica, is a native of Perfia, and was introduc. ed from thence into Europe. It belongs to the twelfth clafs of Linneus. The following are the Sorts cultivated in this Country. [N. B. Thofe marked with an Afterifk (*) adhere to the fione, and are, by the French, called Pavies, and by the Amer: icans, Cling Stones. | a1. The White Nutmeg Peach. This peach is {mall, and the juice fugary. It is only efteemed as being firft ripe. It is in eating in July, and foon grows mealy. _ 2. The Red Nutmeg is a great bearer, and valued for its early maturity. It is of a bright vermilion colour, and has a fine mufky tafte. This peach 1s much efteemed, and ripens about the beginning of Auguff. 3. The Early Avant has an agreeable flavour, and ripens in Auguft ; but is apt to be ftringy. 4. The Small Mignonne is very red on the fide next the fun, and the flefh has a rich vinous juice. Itis ripe about the middle of Au guft. : ne (5 The Anne Peach (which is faid to have taken its name from Mrs. Anne Dunch, of Pufey, in Berk{hire, where it was firft raifed) is a fine early fruit. It is ripe about the mid- dle or latter end of Auguft. : 6. The Royal George Peach comes in foon after the former ; the flower is large and white; the fruit of a dark red towards the fun, and full of a fine rich juice. It is ripe about the latter end of Auguft. he ; u __.7. The Royal Kenfington is of one the beft peaches that we have; ofa high red colour next the fun, and of a yellows “TF 28 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND ifh colour next the wall; itis a good bearer and not liable ta be blighted. The flefh is full ot rich juice. It ripens about the latter end of Auguft, ar beginning of September.* 8. The Yellow Alberge is of a tolerable fize and good tafle, but fhould be perfeétly ripe betore it is gathered ; other- wife itis good for nothing. It is ripe about the middle of Auguft, : ; a g- The White Magdalen. This peach is feldom high- flavoured, unlefs it be torced, and then it is excellent. It rp- ens about the middle of Auguft. 10. The Early Purple. This fruit is large, of a fine red colour, and full of rich vinous juice. . It isan excellent peach, and 1s ripe about the latter end of Auguft, t1, The Large, or French Mignonne, is a beautiful large red peach, and has a fweet high-flavoured juice. This is one of the beft French peaches, and is ripe the latter end of Auguft. | 12, The Bourdine is a pretty large fruit, of a fine red towards the fun; the juice is rich and vinous; the treeis a good bearer, efpecially when old, ana the fruit highly efieem- ed. Itis ripe about the middle of September. This tree le do very well in flandards, and produces plenty of good ruit, " 13. The Chevreufe, or Belle Chevreufe. This is a good peach: itis of amiddling fize, and of a beautiful red cofour ; the juice is rich and {weet. Itripens about the beginning of September, and is a plentiful bearer. iq. The Red Magdalen is large, and full of rich fugary juice of excellent flavour, It is a very good peach, and ripens in the beginning of September. 15. Phe Karly Newington, or Smith’s Newington, is of a beautiful red colour towards the fun, full of a fugary juice, and ripens in the beginning of September. 16. The Mountauban is of a deep red, inclining to pur. ple, next the fun; but pale towards the wall. It has a fine melting flefh, with a mch juice; and the tree is a plentiful bearer. It is ripe in the latter end of Augutt. ' 17, The Malta Peach. This is of a fine red next the fun, and has a white melting flefh ; the tree 1s a good bearer, and the fruit ripens in the beginning of September, * This handfome peach, ¥ am told, was, with fome others, fent from France to her Majefty, upwards of twenty years ago. I have therefore taken the liberty to give it the above name, that it may not be confounded with Mr. (Grimwood’s Kenfington Peach. When I came to Kenfington, in 1784, 1 found it mentioned in the Catalogue as a new peach from France, * ae - “43. ft ” ee Ps a "ee MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 2g 18. The Nobleffe. This isa large peach, of a bright red colour towards the fun ; the flefh is meiting, and the juice very rich in a ‘good feafon. This tree is a good bearer, and _ the fruit is ripe in the beginning of September. ig. *fhe Old Newington Peach is of a fine red colour, has a high vinous tafted juice, and is efteemed a good Pavie. It ripens about the latter end of September. 20. The Chanceller is one of the beft fort of peaches, and of a fine red colour next the fun; the fkin is thin, the - flefh melting, and the juice very rich, _ It ripens about the be- ginning of September. he 21. The Bellegrade Peach, cr Gallande, is very large, and of a deep purple colour towards the fun; the flefh meit- ing and full of a very rich juice. This is a fine peach, and ripens about the middle ot September, 22. * The Lifle Peach is of a middling fize, and of a fine violet colour next the fun; the flefh is melting, and full of a © vinous juice. It ripens about the middie of September. 23. The Rofanna is of a fine purple colour next the fun, and has a rich vinous juice. Itis reckoned a good peach, and 1s ripe about the middle of September. 24. The Rambouillet (cofamonly calied the Rumbullion) is pretty large, and a fine red colour next the fun ; the fleth is melting, and the juice vinous and rich. It ripens about the latter end of September. 25. The Admirable is a very large and beautiful peach, finely coloured with red towards the fun ; the flefh is melting, and the juice fugary, and of an exquilite tafte. It pens about the middle ot September. 26. * The Bellis (La Belle de Vitry.) This fruit is of a pale red towards the fun; the flefh is white, and the juice vin- ous and rich. It is ripe in the latter end of September. 27. * The Portugal is of a beautiful red towards the fun, and generally {potted ; the flefh is firm, and the juice rich and vinous. It ripens late in September. | 23. La Teton de Venus (Venus’ Breaft.) Thisisa mid. dle fized fruit, fomewhat longifh ; the fide next the fun is of a pale red, the flefh melting, and the juice fugary andrich, Ii ripens about the Jatrer end of September. 29. La Pourpree (the late Purple.) This fruit is large, - and of a purple colour ; the fleih is melting, and the juice {u- gary and rich. It ripens the beginning of Oétober. go. The Nivette is of a bright red next the fun, and of a yellowith caft towards the wall; the flefh is melting, and full ” go TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND of arich juice. This is an excellent peach, and ripens about the middle of September. mie 31. *The Monftrous Pavy of Pomponne. This peach is very large, and of a round form; the flefh is white and — melting ; itis of a fine red colour towards the fun. This rip- ens in the latter end of O&ober. 32. * The Catharine Peach isa fine large fruit of a round make, and of a beautiful red colour towards the fun. The flefh is melting, and full of a rich juice. The pulp is im- proved by its laying three or four days before it be eaten. It ripens about the latterend of Oflober : but there are not many fituations where it ripens well. It is a plentiful bearer, 33. The Bloody Peach. This is of a deep red next the fun; the flefh is alfoot adeep red. It feldom ripens in Eng- Jand without forcing; but is reckoned excellent for baking and preferving. | 34. The Royal (La Royale.) Thisis a large round peach, of a deep red next the fun; the flefh is melting and tull of a rich juice. It ripens in the latter end of September. 35. The Cherry Peach (Peche-cerife, of Duhamel,) is {mall and globular. It is of a beautiful red colour towards the fun, and of a whitifh wax colour on the other fide. Its colour, which refembles ‘that of the Pomme d’Api, gives this little peach a beautiful appearance. The flefh 1s melting, and the juice has a tolerably good flavour. Ona dry foil and good ex- pofure, it ripens about the beginning of Oétober. 36. Grimwood’s New Royal George is a high coloured peach, and of a fine flavour. It ripens in the latter end of Auguft, or beginning of September.+ : 37. The Superb Royal is a fine large peach of a red col- our towards the fun, and pale on the other fide. It ripens im September. 38. The Queen Charlotte nearly refembles the fmall Mignon, and ripens about the fame time. — 39: The Late Violet is efteemed a very fine peach, and yipens in September. To the foregoing may be added > Allen’s Royal, Low’s Large Melting, Bourdeaux, Mallacotan, Buckingham Mignonne, Millet’s Mignonne, . -Carlifle, * Pavie Admirable, Double Swalch, * Pavie Royal, + This peach feems to be the fame as the Royal George, MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 3 Double Bloffomed, Peche de Pau, Double Mountagne, Ronald’s early Gallande, Dwarf Orleans, Sion, Se Poton, es Smooth-leaved Royal George, ~ Fair{cot’s, “ Steward’s late Gallande, ~ Ford’s Seedling, Vanguard, _ Hemfkirk,: ae . Violette hative, . - * Incomparable, — White Bloflomed., ‘hed Lord Falconberg’s. Mignnone, » Peaches proper for a fmall Garden. ‘The Early Evant ; Small Mignonne ; the Anne.Peach; Royal George ; Royal Kenfington; Noblefle; Early New- ington ; Gallande ; Early Purple; Chancellor; Nivette; the Catharine ; the late Newington. Of the Planting, Pruning, Training, Gc. of Peach-Trees. Peaches requivea lighter foil than Pears and Plums; and a light mellow loam is beft. If the natural ground fhould be a firong brick mould, or rather inclinable to clay,.it will be neceflary to take out fome of ‘it, particularly when you fir make the borders, and mix with it fome light mould, fand, or old lime rubbifh. At firft making the borders, you fhould take out the earth where the trees are to be planted, as before direéted for Apricots ; and keep working the reft with rot. ten leaves, or ftreet dung, and the above mixture ; throwing them up, as early as you can {pare them, in ridges rough trom the {pade, which will let the froft and fun penetrate and meli- orate the ground. If the ground fhould be wet, make fome drains acrofs the borders, to lead the water from the roots of the trees toa drain made along the middle walk. If the ground fhould have a flope, you can very eafily convey the water off when. the {prings are near the furtace ; but if the wet be occafioned by rains, and the ftiffnefs of the ground holds the water, you fhould give the border a proper flope to carry it off from the roots of the trees. Fill the crofs drains, leading to that along the middle of the walk, with old bricks or ftones at bottom, and at top with reugh gravel, which will keep the ground dry ; at the fame time laying it loping from the wall, {fo as to throw the water that falls in heavy rains toward the middle walk, where it will foon foak into the ground. «When water is fuffered to fland about the roots of tender trees in frong land, it is fure to bring on the mildew, which will fpoil and render them good for nothing but the fagot-pile. Sometimes, &- ite % j ge TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND indeed, I have recovered them, by moving them ‘to another afpeét. - All the French Peaches are very liable to mildew on ftrong land... salen pee . . Where there is not a proper defcent to carry off the water, the bottom of the main walk fhould be filled up with brick-bats ‘or ftones; and the {mall flones raked from the quarters of the . ms at , oy A . . 4 “* garden, making a dry drain along the middle g inches wide, OF: tore, covered with bricks or flones. The walk, when finifh- ed, fhould have a gentle rife in the middle, in order to throw the rain water toward the edges. me th Where the foil isja four wet clay, it will be neceffary to throw .mto the bottom of the border, brick-bats, covered with lime rubbith, or core trom the fkreenings of lime ; then water it, and when nearly dry, ram it well, which will convert it into a hard folid furtace, and prevent the roots of the trees from penetrating the wet earth below. It will alfo ferve to carry off the water to the drains. Pe a) age With regard to the choice of Peach-Trees, the direétions already given for Apricots will ferve. They fhould be pro- cured in the latter end of O€tober, or beginning of November, as foon as the leaf begins to fall ; and, if poflible, the ground be ready beforehand. be The ground, if new borders, fhould be well trenched to receive the trees; if to fupply the places of others which have been removed, or where trees have died, all the old roots fhould be carefully taken out, and frefh mould put in where the old was taken away ; remembering to raife the new mould a proper height above the old ; as it is a very great hurt to fruit trees, when they are planted too deep : if they are not kept up above the level of the old ground at firft, they feldom thrive well.t When the trees are planted, water the roots well to fettle the mould, letting it remain tor fome days till the water is abforbed ; then tread the mould, and fill the holes up to the top; obferving the fame rules as before given in cafe of dry weather, letting trefh-planted trees remain unpruned till the fpring. When you fee the buds begin to fhoot, if the trees be maicen trees of one year’s growth, you may kead them to five * Though the author is here {peaking of wall trees alone, his directions will furnifh the American planter with every information re{peCting the foil, fituation, &c. which he ought to choofe for his ftandards. Owing to the want of fuch information it is, that we fee Peach-Trees in Pennfylyania, &c. perith at fo early an age + Lhave obferved this error of planting too deep to be very prevalent in America, It fhould be carefully avoided. TREES, &e. 32 lrength ; then rob on a sut off the top, oblerving mpofition where you g, as before direfted, s near the top buds i d alfo to — off the fore.right fhoots. lt the leading fhoot be very flrong, pinch the top of it about he begi inning of June, Aichi will ‘make it | ne {trong fhoots, Nine of the fhoots {hot ie aig: dang the firft and 4 ring following, w vhem you may prune them, accontner a 1¢ frength of the treeyand the quantity: of wood it hag made during the preceding fummer, leaving your fhoots trom fix to twelve inches long: It is too common a Loa to lay in the thoots at full length, okie off only the points of the branches, which generally, after a lew years, ~ Jeaves the tree quite naked : Whereas if attention were paid to ‘the training, efpecially for the firft four years, i A always fll the tree with fine bearing wood from top to bottom, ‘and they could produce a great deal more fruit, and of much, finer quality, than when they are run up in the former way 3 _ for thofe trees, in general, are fo weak that they have not ‘ firength to bear good fruit. The third year, if care be taken to manage the trees properly in fummer, you may bring them into a bearing flate, If the ground be rong, they will grow » very. vigoroully ; ; in that cafe you muft pinch all the firong ‘fhoots about the month of June,t which will make them throw out fide-thoots ; thefe, if not laid-in too thick, ne _make fine bearing wood for the fucceeding year. It faffer the ftrong {hoots to grow to their fall ie ‘ngth, they ae be large and fpongy, and will neither produce fruit nor good covered over with bloffom ; butit two much fruit be fuffer- ed to remain, on them, they will be weakened fo much that they will never recover, In'that cafe, 1 would recommend Picking off the ercatcr I part of the fruit; to let the tree ree is wood for the tollowing year.5 + “Sometimes weakly trees are — cfs ed -. *® This is for a wall-tree, Standards mutt, of sinte: ae iat ‘ ae fo low. ei We io + Latter end of June, for America, ne i his ig one ‘great cante of he vada of the peaches i in America, ve attention is there ever paid to the direGtion here given. Ee 4 RS hye en 94 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND cover its firength.* When you prune trees in the flate, obferve never to prune at a fingle flower-bud ; if you do, you will be fure to kill the fhoot ; or, at leafk; it will die as tar as the next wood-bud. [Sve Plate 3. Fig. 2. j On obferving, you will find Ope fheots, and fometinies’ ‘whole trees, with nothing bat fingle flower-buds. Thefe forts of fhoots fhould be Jaid-in at tall length. . Always obferve the next branch that has got fome wood-buds, and cut them clofe, thatthey may produce fine wood to fupply the place of thofe that have only flower-buds, which may be cut out next rear. t* ‘ < b: gee 8 ‘ bite a : When peaches come into a bearing ftate, you will, in general, fee two flower-buds clofe together ; if you look be- tween thefe flower-buds, you will fee what/is called a wood- bad; you fhould always cut at fuch double buds ; as trom be- tween. them come out the fhoots that produce the truit for next, year. | If you obferve the above rules, you cannot miftake in pruning your peaches. [See Plate 3. Ig. 2. | W hen the trees come into a bearing fiate, you may keep them in a flourifhing one by proper management, and atten- tion tothe fummer pryping. 1 have often topped the flrong fhoots twice in the courie of the fummer, betore I] could get them to produce fine kind bearing wood. Ihave often had — fhoots that grew, in the courfe of one fummer, upwards of fix féet in length, and as thick as my thumb. When fuch fhoots as thefe are fuffered to grow to their full length, the lower part of ‘the wall (or of the ftandard tree) will be left naked [ See the Plate. Fig. 1.;| befides, thefe ftrong fhoots exhauif the tree of its ftrength, and never produce good wood — when you negleét to top them in fummer. I would recom. mend to cut out fuch fhoots when the trees are pruned in the {pring, and to leave only the fine kind bearing wood, which you may know by two {mall leaves where the flower-buds will’ be in the following year ; the ftrong fhoots have only one leaf bud at each eye. You fhould always rub off all the ufelefs. little fhoots, leaving only the bef, and thefe not too near to- gether.. Be very particular to pick off all the fide-fhoots that come out near the tops of the branches; which, if left, would weaken the fruit-bearing branches for next year. This fhould be done as foon as you can lay hold of thefe fhoots with your + ae % This precaution, alfo, is almoft entirely negle@ed in America. ot] + All thefe direftions are of the greateft importance. Liew ae “A +2 ~ find any young fhoots or buds.* You muftalways leave fome yy pie MANAGEMENT OF ¥RUIT TREES, &c. 95 finger and dumb : if you fuffer them to grow firong, they | will hurt the fruit-bearing fhoot. Of Pruning and Training old Peach-Trees. When the trees ron up too high-and thin, [See Plate Be Fig. 9.| the beft way is to cut them as far back as you ean young fhoots or buds on Peach-trees, otherwife you endan- ger the life of them. Never head them as you would Apri- cot, Apple, or Pear-trees. If you ctttor head down Peach- trees without attending to the caution given above, you | run a great rifk of killing them; but if there are a few young fhoots, the top may with fafety be cut off, jufl a- bove them, as they will lead the fap up and produce ftrong branches, which thould be topped as you would do a young tree. we ’ It is more difficult to procure new wood from old Peach- trees than from any other, except NeGlarines.. I have often made incifions in the old branches, about the joint, cutting out a piece from one to three inches according to the fize of _ the branches. [See Plate 11. Fig. 2.]_. This thould be done in feveral places of the tree, to furnifh it with young wood ; always rounding the edges where the incifion 1s made which fhould be above the joint, and as near to it as may be. The operation fhould be performed in the month of April,. (May, for America) but never cut of the old branches, un- iefs you perceive fome young fhoots. making their appear- ance. When they are about three or four inches long, cut off the old branch, which will caufe the frefh young wood to make a rapid progrefs the firfl fuminer, and you will have fine frait on them the following year. i _ Always ufe the compofition where you cut off old branch- es; obferving to round the edges, and cut out the canker which you find in the oid bark where the branch was ampu- tated. - In peaches, the canker 1s of a brown colour; andin the bark, it appears in {mall fpecks or dots, as if made with a pen. All thefe fhould be cut out clean; for if any part of the can- ker remain, it will affe€t the new wood as it begins ta grow. * This plate reprefents a tree againft a wall, but the obfervations apply equally to a ftandard-tree. Whenever a ftandard thoots up high, without having a nymber of fide-fhoots, to form a proportionate head, it fhould be cutdown in the manner above deferibed. This remark applies fo trees that have already been fuffered to run uptoohigh andthia. Trees herealtes planted will nat, of course, be permitted fo to do, Ss w ae 36 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND m Wherever you fee the guin oozing, you may be certain that the canker is not quite eradicated.—| See the Chapter on the Ganker. | Ag ag It will frequently be neceffary to look over your trees, and rub off what fuperfluous fhoots remained after going over ~ them the firfl time. Indeed, if you were toexamine the trees “once every fortnight, it would be fo much the better, as by fone”, . doing they can be kept in perteét order. Lhavefoaccuftom- | ed myfelf to look over my trees, that I do itas 1 walk about my ordinary bufinefs, which faves a great deal ot time. When the peaches are about the fize of a fmall marble, begin to thin them ; which operation muft be left to the judg- ment of the perfon who does it; but it fhould be according to the {liength of the tree. This ought to be done very regu- larly, that the fruit may be equally difperfed over the tree. Tf left too thick, it will not have rcom to fwell: this frequently happens. If the tree be very, ftrong, you may leave from three to fix peaches on each {hoot ; according to the flrength and Jength of the branch. ' I have obferved, that where the compofition was applied to prevent the fap trom being exhaled by the fun and aur, all the trees that were very much Joaded with frait were not in the leaft hurt; while the trees that were treated m the com= ~ mon way were greatly injured, and often killed, when they a have had a great crop. t f ‘ In very dry feafons, it will be neceffary to make a large bafon round each tree ; or, rather, make up an edge along the whole border with.mould, as you would tor a bed to bed out plants ina nurfery ; then give the trees a good watering, and mulch the border (which thould be from two feet and a “halfto three feet broad) with fome very rotten dung or leaves, which wjll keep the roots of the trees moilt, and prevent the ground from cracking. Water the trees once a week during dry weather, and fprinkle the branches and leaves every other day in the afternoon, with the engine, prefling your fore-fn- ger over the mouth of the pipe, in order to {pread the water very fine. By thefe means you will keep the trees clean and free trom infeéts ; always remembering not to {prinkle them when the fun is on them, nor foo late in the evening, as the former fcorches the leaves, and the Jatter is apt to bring the mildew on the tender fort of peaches. If you find any of the irees infeéted, leave off (prinkling them, or water them with clear lime-water, as hereaiter diretted ; but this fhould always _ be done in warmweather. By trequently {prinkling the trees iyith lime-water, and throwing it plentifully on the underfide _ “4 J i “ / Hie: MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &. 4) of the leaves, where the Acarus, or Red Spider, is moflly found, you will in a fhort time extirpate that deflruCtive in- fect.* “TR a ' it is abad praétice to pick off the leaves of peaches. The _ thade of the leaves nourifhes the fruit very much 3 and if you _ obferve, wherever the leaves are picked off the fruit will be fall, ftunted, and ill-flavomred. Remember to hang up the bean-ftalk (as hereafter defcribed) before the fruit begins to ripen, in order to get rid of the earwigs, &c. otherwife the will greatly injure the peaches.—{ See ei on Infeds.t | I would recommend planting. fome trees of the early . peaches in an Eaft or North afpeét, for, by fo doing, you will have a regular fucceffion of fine peaches till the late forts, to the South and Weft, come in ; but never plant late forts to re the North or Eaft. The following are the Sorts that [would recommend to beplant. edin North and kajt Afpetis.. Early Avant, Early Ann, Early Mignonne, Royal George, Red Magdalen, Royal Kenfington, Nobleffe, Grofs Mignon- ne, and Millet’s Migaonne. pas * The dire@ions here given cannot peffibly be obferved in the manage- ment of large peach-orchards in America; but it will be no great difficulty or expence to obierye them in gardens, where gentlemen fet great value on their trees, particularly in Philadelphia, and other cities and towns, + The American planter will not fail to profit from the dire&tions given \ for the deftru€tion of thefe noxious litte vermin, which fpoil both the ap- pearance and the tafte of no fmali part of every crop of his peaches, we : ; g8 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND 75 dy! rs OA CHAPTER IV. ee) OF NECTARINES. A Deféription of Ne@larines cultivated in Enola and the Method of Planting, Pruning, and mon them. ‘Tae Neétarine aidper fo called from Nesiae the po. _ etical drink of the Gods) was introduced here about the year — 1562, and belongs to the twelfth clafs of Linnzeus. — This fruit differs from the peach i in nothing more than in having a {mooth rind, and the flefh being firmer.+ The Varieties which are pul datad, be this Country are, 1. Fairchild’s Early Ne&tarine. This is one of the earli- eff ; it is a {mall round fruit, of a beautiful red colour, and well flavoured ; and 1s ripe about the middle of Auguft. shies *Newington Ne€tarine. This is a fine fruit, of a beau- tifal red colour next the fun, and yellow on the other fide. Ie has an excellent rich juice, and ripens about the middle of September. The Elrage Neégtarine is (read to have ben firft culti- vated by Gurle,a Nurferymanat Hoxton, in the timeot Charles - the Second. It is of a middle fize, of a dark redor purple next the fun, and of a pale green on the other fide. It ee P foft melting pulp and vincus juice, and is ripe in the latte end of Augult, or beginning of September. 4. The Scarlet Neétarine js of a fine f{carlet colour next the fun, but of a pale red next the wall. It ripens in the latter end of Auguit, or beginning of September. 5. *Brugnun, or Italian Neétarine, is of deep red next the fun, and of a pale yellow on the other fide ; ; it has arich flavour in a good year, and ripens in the latter end of Auguft, or beginning of September. 6. *The Roman Red Neétarine is a large fruit, of a dark red colour next the fun, but of a yellow colour on the other _ fide ; and when full ripe it fhrivels ; the pulp ts then. replete with a rich juice. Itis ripe in September. —-This neétarine has + Thofe marked with an afterifl, (*) adhere to the fone, MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &. 49g a fmooth leaf, and the Newington a jagged one, which is one of the moft effential differences by which thefe two excellent fruits are diftinguifhable from each-other. | 7. Murry Neétarine is of a reddifh colour toward the | fun, and of a pale green toward the wall. This fruit has a tolerably good flavour, and ripens about the middie of Sep- tember. : 8. Temple’s Ne€tarine is. of a middle fize, of a pale red colour toward the fun, and‘of a yellowifh caft next the wall. This fruit, when quite ripe, flirivels : the pulp is then full of rich juice of a fine flavour. It ripens about the middle of Sep- tember, or beginning of Oftober. , . 9 *Golden Neétarine. This is a handfome fruit, of a 4 {oft red colour toward the fun, and yellow on the other fide. It has a rich flavour, and is ripe about the beginning ot Oc- tober. 10, The Peterborough, or Late Green Ne&tarine (called alfo the Vermafh.) is of a middle fize, round fhape, and al- ways of a green colour ; the flefh is firm, and in a good feafon, » tolerably well flavoured. It ripens about the middle of Oc- tober. | a a 11. The Violet Ne€tarine is of.amiddle fize, and a purple: colour next the fun, but pale on the other fide ;, it has a vinous: _ flavour, and ripens in the latter end of Auguft, or beginning of September, _ : To the foregoins may be added ; _ Anderfon’s Ne€tarine,, Newfoundland, Aromatic, : New: White, - *Black Newington, - Princefs Royal, Clermont, | ; *Rogers’ Seedling, De la Taille, Royal Chair d’Or, pe “Early Ravie, 4 ty *St. Omer’s, © * Genoa, Tawny, ripe in September, | . Luncomb’s Black, White, ripe in Auguft and ~*Mutk Violet, September. » py) Selection of Netiarines for a_/mall Garden. Fairchild’s Karly Neétarine, Elruge, Scarlet, Newington, Red Roman, and Murry. iin : Of the Management of Neclarines. Itis unneceffary to fay much on this head, as the man« agement of neCtarines is almoft the fame as that of peaches. ye TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND ‘The fame rules miuft be obferved with regard to pruning and cutting out difeafed parts ; and the fame attention will be neceflary during the fummer ; obferving, in particular, not to leave the wood too thick. ~ Onaccount of the fmoothnefs of the fkin of the ne€ar- ine, it fuffers much more from millepedes (or wood-lice,) ear- wigs, &c. than the peach ; it will, therefore, be néceflary to hang upa greater number of bundles of bean-ftalks about thefe than about other fruit trees. Wafps are alfo very deftruélive to neftarines, and the trees are very liable to be infefted with the red fpider ; thefeare to be deftroyed as hereafter direéted. { See the Chapter on Infects. | Tage Do not omit to thin the fruit when grown to a tolerable fize ; but never pick off the leaves till the fruit be full-grown ; obferving the rules already laid down tor peaches. It willan- {wer equally well with nectarines as with peaches, to plant fome trees in an Eaft afpeét, which will continue the fucceffion much longer than if all were planted in the ufual afpects. In the fummer of 1800, which was dry and hot, we hada Welt afpeét which was fo much infefted with the red {pider that I expected the trees would have been totally deftroyed. In February following, I had the wall well wafhed with foap and urine mixed, as alfo the flems and branches of the trees. (This muft be done before the buds begin to open, and in the forepart of the day, that the trees may get dry before the even- ing ; but never in frofty weather.) Afterwards, wherever I faw any appearance of the fpider, I watered the trees with clear lime water, as direéted in chapters 3 and 28. Thefe trees arenow in a perfeétly healthy ftate ; but in fome gardens where thefe precautions have been negleéted, many of the trees are entirely killed. . > MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &e. 42 CHAPTER Vs OF CHERRIES. Different Sorts ; and the Propagation, Planting, Pruniig and Training of them—How to preferve them from In/:cts. Curr ES are faid to have comé originally from Cerafus, a city of Pontus, from which Lucullus brought them after the Mithridatic war, into Italy. They fo generally pleafed there, and were {o eafily propagated in all climates into which the Romans extended their arms, that, within the {pace of a hun- dred years, they grew common as far as the Rhine, and were’ introduced into Britain about Ann. Dom, 55.* Cherries belong to the twelfth clafs of Linnzus’ Sy ftem ; Icofandria Monogynia. ! A fhort Defcription of the principal Cherries cultwated in England. 1. The Small May Cherry 1s the firft ripe, and requires a good wall. One or two trees of this kind may be {ufhicient fora large garden. It is ripe in June. 2. The May Duke comes in about the fame time as the former, but is larger. It is an excellent cherry; and bears well againit a wall. g. The Archduke, if permitted to ripen properly, is an excellent cherry. It is ripe in June and July: beat, 4. The Heartfordfhire Cherry is a fort of Heart, but firm- er and of a finer flavour than Hearts in general. It does * It is fuppofed by many, that Cherries were firft introduced into this country in the reign of Henry the Eighth ; but Lydgate, who wrote his poem called «* Lickpenny,’’ before the middle of the fifteenth century, or probably before the year £415, mentions them in the followipg lines, as being comis - monly fold at that time by the hawkers in London feet ‘© Hot pefcode own began to cry, “© Straberys ripe, and Cherryes in the ryfe.’’ Ryce, rice, or ris, properly means a long branch; and the word is fli ufed in that fenfe in the Weft of England, ; F 42 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND not ripen till the latter end of July, or beginning of Auguff, which renders it the more valuable, as it fucceeds more early cherries. 5. The Bleeding Heart, or Gafcoign’s, is a very large cherry of a long form, and dark colour ; it has a pleafant tafte, and ripens in the latter end of July. 6. Harrifon’s Heart is a fine Cherry. It was introduced from the Eaft Indies by Governor Harrifon,* grandfather to the prefent Earl of Leiceiler, and firft cultivated at his feat of Balls in Hertford{hire : Some of the trees, 1 am informed, he prefented to George the Firft; and they are at this time, in a flourifhing ftate, bearing fine fruit, in Kenfington Gardens. This Cherry is ripe in July and Auguft. © 7. The Black Heart is a fine Cherry, too well known to require defcription. 8. The Morello, or Milan Cherry, is a very fige fruit when kept till the month of Oftober, and makes a very great addition to the defart at that time of the year. This is the beft Cherry that we have for preferving, and tor making Cher- ry-Brandy. | -g. The Carnation takes its name from its colour, being red and white. It isa large round Cherry, but not fo {weet as the Duke Cherry. It ripens in the latter end of July. 10. The yellow Spanifh Cherry is of an oval fhape and amber colour, and is a {weet pleafant fruit. It 1s ripe in Au- guit and September. 11. The Corone, or Coroun Cherry, refembles the Black Heart. This is an excellent fruit, and a good bearer. It ripens about the beginning of Auguft. 12. The Lukeward comes in foon after the former, and is alfo a fine pleafant fruit, and a good bearer. It ripens in the beginning of Augutt. mi 19. The Graffion. This is fuppofed by many to be the fame with Harrifon’s Heart ; but upon a clofe examination, I find it to be a different cherry : Its flelh is firmer and the ftone flatter. It ripens in July and Auguft. 14. Ronald’s Large Black Heart Cherry, intreduced into this country in the year 1794 from Circaffia. Mr. Ronalds, nurferyman at Brentford, and the only perfon, to the beft ot my knowledge, who has cultivated it in England, fent me fome of the fruit this fummer, 1801. It is a fine large cher- * Governor Harrifon went out Governor of Fort St, George in Decem- ber, 17140, and returned home in 1719 3 and it is probable that he brought — this cherry home with him; if fo, fome of thefe trees in Kenfington Gardens muft be upwards of eighty years old, MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. , 43 ry, a great bearer, and’will, without doubt, be valuable as a forcing fort, This cherry, in my opinion. 1s well worth cul- tivating. It ripens in the beginning of July. 15. Frafer’s Black Tartarian Cherry* is a fine large fruit. 16. Frafer’s White Tartarian Cherry is white and tranf- parent. Thefe cherries are excellent bearers, but partica- Jarly the black kind; The fruit is of a fine brifk flavour, and they ripen early. 17. The Lundie Gean, cultiveted at Lord Vifcount Dun- can’s, near Dundee, is black, and almoft as large as a Black Heart Cherry. Jt is now common in the nurferies about Edinburgh ; and Meffrs. Gray and Wear have had it for fome years in their nurfery at Brompton-park. 18. The Tranfparent Gean is a fmall delicious fruit. From the Black Cherry, which is fuppofed to be a na- ‘tive of England, are raifed, by feeds, the black Coroun, and the Small Wild Cherry, of which there are two or three varie- ties, differing in the fize and colour of their fruit. 1 would recommend planting thefe in parks and pleafure grounds, as “the trees grow to a preat fize, and havea beautiful appear- ance. ‘The fruit will be food for birds, and fo the means of preferving the finer fruit, in the garden and orchard, trom “their depredations. The wood alfo of thefe trees is very ufe- ful for turners and picture-frame makers. Stocks to .graft ‘ swall. ‘wpon are generally raifed from the feed of this fort. Thefe trees will thrive in poor land, where fcarcely any other forts The Clufter Cherry is planted more for ornament, or cu- riofity, than for any other purpofe. To the above my be added : ’ Amber Heart, Ox Heart, Black Mazard, Purple Heart, Church-hills, Red Heart, Double-bloffomed, Spanifh Black, * The Tartarian Cherries were brought from Ruffia in the 2zutumn of the year 1796, by Mr, John Frafer, of Sloane-fquare, Chelfea ; wetl known for his indefatigable induftry in colleting many curious plants, and other natural curiofities, in America and the Weft-Indies, He fays, that thete cherries are natives of the Crimea, and that he purchafed.them of a Ger- man, who cultivated them in a Garden near St. Peterfburg. This man had but few plants of them at that time, and fold them asa favour at ten roubles a plant. Mr. Frafer afterwards faw them in the Imperial gardens, where they were fuccefsfully forced in pots. 44 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND Flemish Heart, South’s large Black, Grofs Gobiet, Swedifh Black Heart, Holman’s Duke, Tradefcant’s, . ee Royal, Turkey Heart, On the goth of June, (fame month will do for America,) I headed feveral ftandards that were almoft deftroyed by the canker ; fome of them were fo loaded with fruit the following year, that I was obliged to prop the branches, to prevent their being broken down by the weight of it. In the fourth year at- -ter thefe ftandards were headed down, one of them bore two thoufand eight hundred and forty pears. There were three ftandards on the farmne border with the above, two of which were St. Germains ; the old tree was of the fame kind. One of thefe trees,* twenty years old, had five hundred pears on it, which was a great crop tor its fize: So that there were of the old tree, which had been headed down not quite four years, two thoufand three hundred and forty pears more than on the tree of twenty years growth, When the men numbered the pears, there was near a bar- row full of wind-falls at the bottom of the old tree, which were not included. Plate 8 is a corre€t drawing of an old decayed Beurré pear-tree, (reftored from an inch and a half of bark) which now covers a wall fixteen feet hight In the year 1796, it bore four hundred and filty fine large pears, and has continued in a flourifhing flate ever fince. The letters a, a, a, reprefent the fruit buds for the prefent year; 4, 4, 0, are thofe forming for next year; and c, c, c, the old foot-ftalks that bore the fruit lait year: The fmall buds ate beginning to form, which pro- ’ duce fruit the fecond year ; and d, d, are the fore-right fhoots as they appear betore they are cut, which muff be ate, clofe to a bud, leaving them as regular as poffible all over the tree ; you will then have a regular crop of fruit from the flem to the extremities of the branches: but if this be not obferved, you wil] have hardly any fruit next year. _ The following is the method which I purfue in training trees that are cut near the place where they were grafted. Every year, in the month of March (middle of April for America,) | fhorten the leading fhoot to a toot or eighteen inches, according to its ftrength ; this {hoot will, if the tree be ftrong, grow trom five to feven feet long in one feafon ; * This tree was about fix years old when I planted it, fourteen years age. + I faw this tree, as, indeed, I did all the others that are reprefented in the plates, at the end of the work ; and a mott gratifying fight it was to me, The remains of the old bark were eafily diftinguifhable {rom the hew bark, which looked precifely like that of a young tree.—The fzme operation would produce the fame effets in Nandards a3 well as wai! trees, and in A- merica as well as in England, 78 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND — and, if left to nature, would run up without throwing out fide fhoots. The reafun for thus fhortening the leading fhoot is, to make it throw out fide fhoots ; andif it be done clofe to a bud, it will frequently cover the cutin one feafon, leaving only a cicatrix, asat f, f, f, in plate 8, which fhew every year’s growth and cicatrix. When the fhoots are very flrong, I cut the leading fhoot twice in one feafon ; by this method I get two fets of fide fhoots in one year, which enable me the fooner to fill the tree. The firft cutting is performed any time during the {piing, and the fecond about the middle of, une. J When you prune the trees, and cut the fore-right fhoots, which fhould be done in February or March (not fooner than the middle of March in America,) always cut clofe to an eye or bud, obferving where you fee the greateft number of leaves at the lower bud, and cut at them; for at the foot-ftalk of every one of thefe will be produced a flower bud, You will havein fome forts of pears, in a favourable feafon, from five to nine pears in a clufter. This cutting fhould not be later than March or the beginning of April, (it may be done til the middle of April in America) on account of the leading fhoot beginning to grow ; the next topping, when the leading fhoot grows quick enough to admit of it, fhould be about the middle of June (latter end of June in America,) and the length of the fhoots fhould be according to their ftrength, having from three eyes, or buds, to fix ona fide. Plate 8, will better explain the different years’ growth, &c. than I can do by words. The loweft /, is the place where we began to cut the top off; and g, the old decayed flump, with very little bark Jett. The cankery part beginning to effe&i the new bark, I cut off all the canker at the bottom laft year, and plaflered the place with fome cow-dung mixed with wood.afhes and powder of burnt bones, put into as much urine and foap-{uds as would make it of the confiftence of thick paint ; this I Jaid on with a painter’s brufh. Atter it had been applied about three hours, I patted it gently down, with my hand, clofe to the tree. By fo doing, I get rid ot all the air bubbles that may be under the compofition, and make it adhere to the tree, pre- venting it from being wafhed off by heavy rains. In the beginning of Auguft (fame feafon in America,) we fhorten the fore-right fhoots to about four inches long ; by this time tae fhoot will have made its full growth tor the feafon, and will produce fine ftrong eyes for the follow- ing year. MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT- TREES, &c. 79 The tree above mentioned had a decayed rotten root, the dead part of which I cut all away, till I came to the found wood. Whenever the trank is hollow, you muft follow it under ground till you have cut out all the decayed parts and rotten roots ; otherwife you will lofe the tree. _ By proceeding according to the foregoing dire€tions, the root will be renewed, while the tree 1s forming a fine - handfome head. In the mean time trench your borders, tak- ing up all the old roots, and add fome frefh mould to them, if you can conveniently get it ; if you cannot, remove all the four mould that is about the roots of the trees, and put in fome taken from the border, at a diftance from the wall ; always remembering to lay the top {pit next to the roots of the trees; alfo, mix fome vegetable mould, from the melon and cucumber beds, with rotten leaves, as a manure for the borders. | Ihave headed down many trees that had not this pre- paration; and yet they throve very well, but did not fend forth fuch fine roots and fhoots as thofe that were fo pre- pared. If the above dire€tions be followed, you will get more pears in three or four years than you can in twenty-five years by planting young trees, and pruning and managing them in the common way. If pears are grafted on free flocks, fuch as Colmars, Pea D’Auch, Crafanes, L’Efchafleries, Virgouleules, and Winter and Summer Bonchrétiens. The depth of the mould for pear-trees fhould never be lefs than three feet, laying the be{t mould at top, to encourage the roots to come as near the furface as poflible. If the bot- tom be clay it willbe very neceflary, once in every five or fix years, to open the ground round the roots of the trees, and cut off ali the large ones that are inclining to run into the clay ; by fo doing your trees will throw out freth roots that will run near the furtace, provided the mould is good near the top. You may have a crop of early peas, lettuce, or {pinach, or any other {mall crops on the ground, during the winter and {pring ; but no late crops by any means. It the ground can be {pared, I would advife to have no fummer crops; but keep the borders hoed, in particular after rain, otherwile the ground, if a flrong loamey or clayey foil, will be apt to crack in dry weather ; but by frequent ftirring between wet and dry this will be in a great meafure prevented, and the fun’s rays admitted into the mould, which will greatly heighten the flavour of the frait, When you can conveniently fpare the ground in winter, 8. TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND it fhould be ridged up to {weeten the mould ; which you may very well do, if you fow early peas on the fides of the ridges ; which is by far the beft way to preferve the peas from the froft, and to prevent them from rotting, which will fometimes happen, it the land be ftrong, before they begin to vegetate. Or, you may fow an early crop of carrots or {pinach in the ground, - MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 81 | CHAPTER VIII. OF VINES. ; Different Sorts of Vines cultivated in England.—Of their Pro- pagation.— Experiments on Training and Pruning, with full Directions for the right Performance of both.—Uje of the Compofition in Pruning.—Of Watering.— Preserving Grapes from khes, Wafps, and Birds.—Of gathering Grapes, and keeping them in Winter. Tu: Vine is a native of moft of the temperate parts of the world, and has been cultivated ever fince the flood. It belongs to the firft order of Linnaeus’ fifth clafs, Pentandrta Mono- nia. - I fhall here fele& thofe vines which are moft efteemed in this country, for the hot-houfe, vinery, and natural wall ; and give a {hort defcription of each. N. B. The letter 4 diftinguifhes the proper forts for a hot-houfe; the letter v fora vinery ; and the letter w fora common wall. ~ 1. The July Grape, or Morillon Noir Hatif, is a {mall round black berry, of a fugary juice, and is principally efteem- ed for being early ripe, which is in September. v. w. sat _- 2. The Royal Mufcadine, D’Arboyce, or Chaffelas Blanc, is an excellent grape; the bunches are large and com- pofed of round amber-coloured berries of a rich vinous tafte. In a fine feafon it ripens in September. A. v. 3. The Malmfey Mufcadine fomewhat refembles the preceding ; the juice 1s very fweet, and of a high flavour.— This is a good bearer and a very fine grape. w.v. — 4. The Black Mufcadine. This 1s a good bearer, and the’ berries are beautifully powdered with a bluifh bloom. 2. v. -- 5. The White, or Common Mufcadine, by fome cailed the Chaffelas. This refembles the Royal Mufcadine, but the berries are fmaller ; and, although it is not fo fweet as the L ae 82 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND Royal, it is the beft grape that we have for a common wall, and a great bearer. w. 6. The White Mufcat of Alexandria, or Alexandrian Frontinac. The berries are oval, and the bunches long. This grape has a rich vinous juice, and is efteemed an exceeding good grape tor the hot-houfe. 2. 7. The Red Mufcatof Alexandria refembles the former ; only the berries are red. A. 8. The White Mufcat, from Lunel. This grape has large oval berries of an amber-colour, and full of a vinous juice. This vine is a plentiful bearer, and highly efteemed. &. v. g. The Black Mufcadel has large oval berries of a black colour, and pleafant juice. A. 10. The Red Mufcadel has large red berries of an oval fhape, and ripens late. The bunches are very large. h. 11. The Black Damafcus has large, round, black col- oured berries ; the flefh is rich, and well flavoured: This ts an excellent late grape. h. 12, The Black Grape from Tripoli has large black ber- ries, and is an excellent grape. 2. 13. The Black Spanith, or Alicant Grape. This grape has black berries of a pleafant flavour. h v. 14. The Black Grape from Lifbon. This grape has large round juicy berries, and the bunches refemble the Black Hamburgh. This is a good grape h.v. 15. The Black Frontinac, or Mufcat Noir. This grape has pretty large round berries, black when ripe, and covered with a mealy powder. It has a rich vinous juice, and ripens in Odtober. v. kh. 16. The Red Frontinac, or Mufcat Rouge, is a very fine grape, and greatly efteemed. It has large brick-coloured ber- ries, and the juice is of a highly vinous flavour. v. 17. The White Frontinac, or Mufcat Blanc, has large bunches compofed of round berries. The juice of this grape, when fully ripe, is exquifite. 2. v. w. 18. Grizzly Frontinac has round berries, of a colour com- pofed of brown, red and yellow. This grape has an excellent flavour. A. v. 19. The White Sweet Water. The berry is large, of a white colour and very agreeable juice. This is efteemed an excellent grape, and ripens in September. 4. v. w. 20, The Black Sweet Water has a {mall roundifh berry, of a {weet tafle; but, being apt to crack, 1s not much in re- pute. The birds are very tond of this grape, which ripens in September. pv. w. | MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 83 21. The Black Hamburgh. The bunches ot this grape are large, compofed of large oval black berries, of a pleafant fweet juice and vinous flavour, Itripeis in November. 4. v. — 29, The Red Hamburgh has thin-fkinned berries of a dark red. They have arich vinous flavour, and sipens about the fame time with the former. 4. v. 23. The White Hamburgh. This grape has large oval- fhaped berries, and is a preity good bearer. 4. 24. The Small Black Clufte: has {mall ova! berries. The leaves are covered with a hoary down. This is a very pleaf- ant fruit. v. w. 25. The Large Biack Clufter is larger than the former, and has a very rough hartfh tafte. Mr. Speechly fays, that he had this grape from Lifbon, and was affured that it is the grape of which they make Red Port Wine. I have had the fame grape eight or ten years. v. 26. The White Grape from Alcobaca. This grape bears large bunches of white juicy berries. v. 27. The White Morillon has an oval-fhaped juicy berry. The leaves are downy on the uncer fide. &. v. 28, Early White Grape from Teneriffe. The berries are of a middling fize, and the eth remarkably {weet and juicy. v. w. a9. The White Parfley-leav’d Grape, or Ciotat. This grape has round berries, white, juicy, and {weet. There is a fort of the parfley-leav’d grape with red fruit. v. go. The White Corinth Grape has a {mall round berry, with a fine juicy flefh of an agreeable flavour. v. ; gt. The Aleppo Grape has middle fized berries, with a juicy flefh of a very fine flavour. This 1s a curious grape, fre- quently ftriped black and white. &. v. 32, The Red Grape from Syracufe. This is a very fine large grape. h. 33. L’Coeur Grape, or Morocco Grape. This grape has berries of a tawney colour, and is highly efteemed. f. 34. The Golden Galician Grape has large oval berries, of a yellow colour, and tolerable flavour. 4. 35. The Black Raifin Grape. This fpecies has large black berries of an oval form. ‘The fkin is thick, and the flefh firm. 2. 36. The White Raifin Grape refembles the preceding, only that the berries are white. &. . 37. The Malvoife, fometimes called the Blue Tokay, has fmall brownith berries, powdered with a blue bloom, The juice is vinous, 4. v. De | 84 TREATISE ON THE CULTUR 38. The Genuine Tokay is a white grape, with a thin - {kin, delicate flefh, and agreeable juice. 2. v. 39. The Lombardy Grape has fine large flame-coloured berries full of a fine juice ; and the bunches grow to a great fize, frequently weighing more than fix pounds. 2. ». 40. The Smyrna Grape. This hasa large red berry of a very fine flavour, and is efteemed a very good grape. h. v. _ 41. The Brick Grape, fo called from its colour, has {mall berries, but the juice is {weet. v. w. _ _ 42. The Claret Grape has fmall black berries, with a arias juice ; but the grape is very harfh, if not perfeétly ripe. h. v. x 43. The Syrian Grape. This has large, white, oval ber- ries, with a thick {kin and hard flefh. It is a good bearer. h. 4. The Auverna, or True Burgundy Grape, fometimes called the Black Morillon, is an indifferent fruit for the table ; but is efteemed one of the beft for making wine. v. w. 45- Cat’s Grape. This grape has {mall berries of a pale green colour. The flefh is fott and juicy, but of a very difa- greeable tafte, unlefs quite ripe. 2. v. . 46. The Damfon Grape has very large berries of a pur- ple colour. 2. ; —~ 47. St. Peter’s Grape has a large oval berry, of a deep black colour when ripe; the bunches are large, and the flefh juicy ; it ripens late. v. 48. The Greek Grape. The berries are of a bluifh white colour ; and it is efteemed a fine grape. f, v. 49. The Black Corinth, or Currant Grape, is a {mall roundifh berry, generally without a ftone, ot a deep black colour. It has a {weet juice, and ripens in Oé€tober. &. v. 50. The Cornichon Grape has berries of a remarkable fhape, long and narrow, of a white colour, with a firm {weet ileth. 2. i 51. The Red Chaffelas is very like the Chaffelas Blanc in fize and fhape, but is of a dark red colour, It is a very good grape, but ripens later than the white. 62. The New Mufcat of Jerufalem was introduced by Mr. Philip Miller, a vine of which is now in the Botanic Gardens at Chelfea. It has large round berries of a red col- our; fome of which I have, in fine feafons, feen as large as a goofeberry ; but, as it does not ripen well on the natural wall in this country, it might be worth while to try it in a hot- houfe, or vinery. It was introduced here about thirty-fix years ago, h. wu, f _ MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 85 53. The Black Prince. This has fine large berries, and _ the bunches grow to a large fize : I have had them, ina ta- vourable feafon, on the natural wall, weigh a pound and a half. This grape very well deferves a place in the hot-houfe and vinery. To the foregoing may be added : Black Frankindale. Red Conflantia, Black Gibraltar, Red Raifin, Black Mufcat of Alexandria, Sir Abraham Pitcher’s Fine The Miller Grape, yeh Black, New White Sweet Water, Weft’s St. Peter, Paffe Mufk, White Conftantia. Pearl Mufcadine, A From the Red and White Conftantia is made the famous Conftantia Wine, fo called from a place near the Cape of Good Hope. My worthy friend, Colonel Patterfon,* informs me, that this vine, when tranfplanted to but a {mall diffance from that pot, produces a very inferior wine. In his narrative he favs, ‘* Conftantia produces excellent wine, though the fituation is rather low, It is, however, preferable to all other parts of this diftriét ; not only becaufe it is rather more elevated, but mn account of the nature of the foil, which is a light fandy oam. Sele Vines for a fmall Garden. The White Mufcadine; White Sweet Water; Black Sweet Water ; Large Black Clufler; Small Black Clutter ; the Miller Grape. St. Peter’s, and the Black Hamburgh, will do very well in favourable feafons. Of the Propagation of Vines. The vine is propagated by feeds, cuttings, and layers ; and by grafting and inoculation. When vines are to:be railed from feed, it fhould be fown about the latter end of February, or beginning of March, in pots filled with light frefh mould, and plunged in a moderately warm hot-bed, gently fprinkling the mould from a watering- pot having a fine rofe. About fix or eight feeds, if good, will _ * This gentleman is well known in the Literary World, by his Nara tive of Four Journies into the Country of the Hottentots, and Caffraria ; from whence he fent a great many new plants and feeds to England. He al- fo brought home with him fome curious fkins; and good drawings of many ' plants, animals, &c, 86 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND be fufficient for a {mall flower-pot; for, if fown too thick, the plants are apt to be drawn, and thereby become very weak. In dry weather, the pots fhould be watered gently every day ; but in wet or moift weather this may frequently be omitted, giving them fo much only as will keep the mould moift till the plants begin to vegetate. The proper time for watering is in the afternoon, when the fun is going off the frame. Ob- ferve to fhut the frame down immediately after watering ; and if the heat be not too great, it may remain fhut during the night. As the heat of the bed begins to decay, you muft add a lining of horfe-dung and frefh leaves; which, when occafion requires, may be fhaken up and repaired by adding fome trefh leaves and dung to it, and thus keep up a proper warmth till the plants have got a fufficient flreagth to do with- out any bottom heat. About the latter end of Auguft it will be neceffary to take the lights off, that the plants may be hardened betore winter, taking care to fhelter them in frames covered with mats, which will prevent the froft in the laiter end of Oéto- ber and beginning of November from injuring the tender fhoots. When the plants are about fix inches high, they fhould be tranfplanted fingly into deep pots, filled with the fame fort of vegetable mould as is direfted to be ufed for vines ; taking great care not to hurt the roots, nor to break the leaders ; then plunge them again into the hot-bed ; but if the heat of the old bed be too much decayed, it will be neceflary to have a new one prepared before hand to receive the pots as foon as the plants are tranfplanted. If they grow vigoroufly, it will be necefflary to fhift them into fill larger pots. When the plants are above fix inches high, they fhould be carefully tied to fmal] rods, leaving only one ftem for the firft year. The rods fhould be as high as the frames will per- mit. When the leaves begin to drop, they fhould be carefully picked off the pots, to prevent the plants trom getting mouldy, which would very much injure them, The plants fhould be kept under frames, or put into the green-houfe, in hard winters, to fhelter them trom fevere frofis. In the fpring, about March or the beginning of April, (middle of May in America) if from feed ripened in this country, they may be planted out againft the walls where they are to remain; but, if from feed imported {rom vine coun- tries, I would advife not to plant above one or two againft the wall, or in the hot-houfe, before you have obtained a fpe- MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 87 cimen of the fruit, and be fatisfied that they are worth culti- vating. Better they are planted, they fhould be cut at the third eye,* if ftrong; but at the fecond, if weakly: At the fame time remember to rub off the lower bud with your finger and thumb, .as hereatter directed. It vines are to be propagated from cuttings, they fhould be chofen from the fhoots that are beft ripened, and have the fhorteft joints ; always having one or two joints of the laft year’s wood, cutting it perfecily {mooth, and a little rounding at the lower end, and as near to a joint of the old wood as poffible. The upper end fhould alfo be cut {mooth and flop- ing towards the wall ; but if they are planted in beds or bor- ders, let the cut always face towards the North. When cut- tings are planted againft piers or walls, let it be at about a foot diftant from each other, according to the vacant fpace, and fo deep as to have the fecond eye level with the ground ; remem- bering always to rub off the lower eye. By fo doing, if no accident happens to the top bud, there will be a fhoot produc- ed from each eye, with a little one under, which fhould al- ways be rubbed off as foon as it begins to {well ; for if fuffered to grow to any confiderable fize, you will be in danger of in- juring the large one in rubbing the {mall one off. Remember alfo to pick off all the runners and fide-{hoots, as before di- re€ted, leaving only two fhoots, which fhould be trained at their full length. About January or February they may be pruned,t leaving one or two eyes on each according to the firength of the fhoot, which fhould be managed as {hall be more fully explained hereafter. In the firft year, efpecially if the fummer be dry, and proper attention be not paid to the watering of them, they will! make but little progrefs ; but in the fecond year you will plain- ly difcern which is the ftrongeft plant, which fhould only be left to fill up the vacant {pace on the wall: The reft fhould be taken up and planted in other fituations where they are wanted. Mr. Speechly and others praétife a method of propagat- ing the vine from one eye and a tew inches of the preceding * That is, three eyes from the ground. + In America the pruning of vines fhould be performed, not in the fall» for the hard froft is then apt to kill the joints which are cut, and, fometimes it kills the whole branch. Neither fhould it be done too late in the fpring, for the vegetation is fo rapid, and the fap mounts in fuch abundance, that the vines are in great danger of bleeding to death. The latter end of Febru- ary, or the firft week in March, fleems to be the beft time; but, as the fea-~ fons differ fo widely in different years, much muft, on this point, be left to the obfervation and judgment of the cultivaccr, $8 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND © year’s wood, which he prefers to thofe raifed by cuttings in the common way, for the following reafons : ‘* They have more abundant roots, grow fhorter jointed, are more prolific, and will, if permitted, come into bearing the fecond year.” You fhould make choice of the cuttings after a warm dry feafon, fuch as laft year (1800;) but not alter fuch as the year before, when the wood did not ripen properly, owing to the wet and cold feafon. Each cutting f{hould have two inches of the old wood, with one eye of the new. When you prune your vines you will have great choice; you fhould then feleé& your cuttings of a middling fize, the wood round and per- fe€ily ripened. If, however, my friend, Monfieur Le Geau, of Spring Mills, will have the goodnefs to add his opinion at the bottom of this note, the reader will, I am certain, derive great ad- vantage from it. Vines are alfo propagated by layers in the following man- ner: Take layers trom walls or palings, obferving to train the fhoots at full length during the fummer. Then, about the month of February, take fome of the fineft and ftrongeft fhoots, and lay them in the ground about fix inches below the furface ; at the fame time making an incifion or two inthe old _ wood, or giving it a twift juft below a joint: They will gen-. erally take without notching or twifting ; yet, as it is the fur- er way, I would advife it to be done. The tops ot the layers fhould then be cut off, leaving two or three flrong eyes upon each. When the fhoots begin to run, they fhould be tied to long: flakes, to prevent their being broken by the wind. All the runners and fide-{hoots are to be picked off, leaving only two or three fine ftrong fhoots on each plant, which fhould be trained at full length during the fummer. Atter the fhoots are laid, it will be neceffary to mulch them with good rotten dung, or rotten leaves, which will keep the mould moift ; and in very dry fummers, fuch as the laft, (1800) it will be neceffary to give them a good watering once or twice a week : this will wath in the dung or leaves about. the roots, and caufe the layers to fhoot more vigoroufly. ; In choofing vines from the nurfery, I would recommend thofe which have the ftrongeft and longeft {hoots. If the toregoing direétions are properly attended to, the plants will be rooted and fit well for planting out in the au- iumn. When any are to be planted out, they fhould be careful- ly cut off from the mother vine and carried without fhaking the earth from their roots, to the {pot where they are to be. planted. MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 89 If the feafon be warm and fine, the grapes.of early kinds ripen very well on thefe layers betore they are taken up ; and, if properly managed, they will bear fome fruit the firft year after planting. One of the ftrongeft fhoots muft be lett nearly at full length, cutting it as high as the uppermoft full bud, leaving nothing but round well-ripened wood. It there are three fhoots, the remaining two fhould be cut fo as to leave only two full eyes upon each, which fhould be trained at full length, as before dire€ted, to produce fine wood for next year. The fhoot which was trained the preceding year fhould then be cut down, leaving only two ftrong eyes to produce wood for the following vear; and fo on every vear, cutting the branches alternately ; by fo doing, you will be able to keep your walls always covered with fine healthy bearing wood. This method of laying is pra€tifed with great fuccefs by many Nurferymen in the neighborhood of London ; in par- ticular by Mefflrs. Gray and Wear, at Brompton-Park nurfe- ‘ry, and by Mefirs. Kirke, at Brompton; each of whom raifes annually feveral hundred plants, for which they find a great demand. ; _ If any vines that have been raifed from feed fhould not prove to be of a good flavour, they will be very fit to graft or - inarch the finer forts of vines on: As the coarfer forts grow more vigorous than the finer, they are, for that reafon, fitter tor grafting or inarching. The beft manure for vinesis amixtureof vegetable mould,* rotten {pit dung, and frefh loam (turf and all ;) this fhould be thrown in a heap, and frequently turned, for a year or two be- fore it is ufed. Obfervations and Experiments on the Training and Pruning of Vines. The following is the method that I purfued with fome vines which were planted againft the piers of a South wall, and among old peaches, ne¢tarines, plums, &c. When I took them in hand, the fruit was fo {mall and hard as to render it unfit to be fent to the table. The vines were trained upright, which caufed them to grow fo lux- uriantly that the fap flowed into the branches inftead of the fruit. re" ' * For producing yegetable moutd, fee the diredtions for the management g of apple-trees, : M 90 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND In the year 178g, I let two flrong branches grow to their full length without topping them in the fummer. In 1790 ] trained them in a ferpentine form, [See Plate 10. ] leaving about thirty eyes on each fhoot, which produced one hundred and twenty-five bunches ot grapes, weighing from one pound to a pound anda quarter each. Every one that faw them faid, that the large ones were as fine as forced grapes ; while the fmall ones produced trom branches of the fame vine, trained and pruned in the old way, were bad natural grapes, and not above twice the fize of large currants.* More tully to prove the fuccefs attending this experiment, I next year trained five plants in the fame way, allowing the fhoots intended for bearing wood to run to their full length in fummer, training them wherever there was a vacancy be- tween the old trees ; where there was none, I ran them along the top of the wall, without topping them. In winter [I train- ed them in a ferpentine manner fo as to fiil the wall as regu- larly as poflible: They were as produétive as thofe in the for- mer year. , After a three year’s trial, I thought I was warranted to follow the fame praétice with the whole ; and in the year 1793 I fent, tor the ufe of his Majefty and the Royal family, three hundred and feventy-eight bafkets of grapes, each weighing about three pounds, without planting a fingle vine more than there were the preceding year, in which I was able to fend only fifty-fix bafkets of the fame weight ; and thofe fo bad and ill-ripened that I was afhamed of them, as they were not fit to be {een to the table. In this year there was more than a quarter of the crop deftroyed by birds and infe€ts, and rotted by the wet. Although the above ftatement is within the bounds of truth, it may appear to the reader like an exaggeration ; but it is in the power of every one, who will follow the direétions here given, to prove the advantage that will accrue trom this method of training. The above experiments were all made on the natural walls, and I hope will be fufficient to convince every unprejudiced perfon of the great advantage that the ferpentine method of training vines poffeffes above the common way. It may be proper to obferve, that the fhoots fhould be brought as near as poffible from the bottom of the vine, that * TI conjure the American planter to read this with attention. With a due obfervance of the directions here laid down, how plentiful might good grapes become in Pennfylyania, New-Jerfey, and New-York ! MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 91 the wall may be well covered. When the walls are high, and the fhoots from the ferpentine branches ftrong, we fometimes Jet them remain ; but if the walls are low, .and the ferpentine branches produce weak {fhoots, we cut them out in the au- tumnal pruning, and train up the ftrongeft of the young wood in their room ; as direéted in the explanation of plate 10. On the Pruning and Training of Vines. It is to be obferved, that the wood muft be flrong, or the vines will produce {mall bunches, It that be the cafe, cut them down to two or three eyes, in order to have {trong wood for next year. Vines bear their fruit on the wood that was produced the preceding year. Ii there be a great deal of old naked wood on them, as generally is the cafe, with fome {mall weak fhoots at the extremities, always cut them down as near to the ground as poffible; you will then have no fruit for that year.* Or you may cut every other fhoot, leaving the old ones to produce fome fmall grapes. The next year you will have plenty of fine wood, provided you take care to nail in the ftrongeft fhoots, and pick off all the fide fhoots that are pro- duced from the eyes, pinching them off with the finger and thumb, or cutting them out with a fharp pen-knife clofe to the bud or eye; but never twift them ; for by twifling them you will hurt the bud that produces the grapes next year; always obferving to cut as near to the bud as poffible, and taking care to lay in the wood very thin in fummer, that the fun and air may be freely admitted to ripen it: By thefe means it will grow very ftrong. Take care alfo to keep the fhoots nailed to the wall, which will prevent their being broken by the high winds ; obferving to pick off all the fide fhoots every time you nail them, which ought to be done feveral times during the fummer months, according to the quicknefs of their growth. In fine weather they will grow fo very quick, that you will have oc- cafion to look over them once every fortnight or three weeks, if you wilh to havethem in good order, Never fuffer the vines “It is generally thought, in America, that when the vine ceafes to bear, it is weyz owt, and fhould be thrown away. This is a great error, the failure in the crop avifes folely from the want of proper management, A vine will live as long, and, perhaps, longer, than an oak ; and the older it is, the berter it is, both as to the abundance and the quality of its fruit. Asa proof of this I need only mention the farmers vine at Hampton Court Palace, which is one of the curiofities that are fhewn to ftrangers at that place. This vine was planted in the reign of King William, and it bore, in 1800, nearly two tons weight of grapes, Many gentlemen nowin Philadelphia have fe n this vine, Fa have “patie the fame account of its produdt, the truth of which is well newn in England. ‘The ftem is about three feet in gi f extend about fixty feet from the ftem. lal talc a g2 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND to run together in a clufter, and to mat, which will infallibly ruin them for bearing the fucceeding year. ‘op the fhoots that have been trained in a ferpentine manner, as foon as the “grapes come to the fize of very {mall green peas, a joint or two above the truit ; but never top the leading fhoot, nor that which you intend fhould bear fruit next year. I fhall now give fome direftions for the fecond year’s _pruning. I would never recommend the pruning of vines till the be- ginning of February, except in fuch a feafon as the prefent ; for they are more forward now (in the middle of January) than they were laft year in the latter end of March: This is owing to the fine autumn and mild winter, and the wood being fo well ripened in the preceding fummer. It is, however, very common wjth fome to begin pruning foon after the fall of the leaf, before the wood becomes hard ; but if a froft fets in before the wood is hard, in particular alter wet fummers and autumns, it will be very much injured ;* I have frequently {een it almoft killed after autumnal pruning. We often have fine weather in the months of O€tober, November, and De- cember, with fun and drying winds, which helps to ripen the -wood after wet autumns. When the vine leaves begin to fall, remember always to take a foft broom and {weep them off upwards in a gentle man- ner, which will be of great fervice in affifting to harden the wood. ' When you begin to prune in February,t always make choice ot the ftrongeft and lengeft fhoots, leaving them as long as you find the eyes good and plump, andthe wood round ; but by no means leave them when they become flat ; as in that cafe they feldom bear fruit; and if they do, it will be very {mall. I never lay in any that has lefs than fifteen, and trom that to thirty good eyes, according to the flrength of the fhoot, which will produce two bunches from every goodeye. I have had feventy bunches of grapes from one fhoot. The fhoots that have borne fruit in the preceding year fhould be cut out next year, except when you want to fill the wall, and the fhoots are very ftrong. You will always get plenty of fine healthy young wood if you are careful when you prune in the winter ; * This is the cafe in a much greater degree in America, where the weather isfo much more intenfe. Great attention fhould be paid to this part of the dire€tions. t The reader will recur to what I have before faid, refpeCting the feafew for pruning in America, | > MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 93 therefore never leave any but fine ftrong wood, always cutting at the fecond, third, or fourth eye; remembering to rub the loweft bud off, and that which comes out at the joint between the new and laft year’s wood. By thefe means you will get as much fruit from thefe fhort fhoots as you would have by the common way of pruning. You muit always obferve to leave two or three of the flrongeft fhoots for next year’s bearing wood, and never top them. It you have not room to train them, you may lead them over the tops of the other trees, if the vines are planted againft piers; or you may run them be- hind the ftandards, if there be any, which is generally the cafe when the wallsare high: thus you will cover all the wail, which will have a very beautiful appearance when the fruit is ripe, befides turnifhing a plentiful {upply of fine grapes for the table. You may run the fhoots over the top of the wall on the other fide, provided the walls are low.* I alfo train them over the tops of trees on each fide; which never does any harm to the trees below, provided you keep them nailed to the wall. I have alfo planted vines between trees on North and Eaft af- peéts, and trained them over the tops of the South and Weft walls to fill the upper parts, till the peaches and ne€tarines cover them. I then cut away part of the vines, leaving only as many fhoots as I may think neceflary. Two years ago I removed fome old apricots that covered a wall about one hundred and fixty-five feet long, and planted them againft a new wall, leaving five vines that were planted againft the piers. Thefe five plants have, in the courfe of two years, covered the above wall trom top to bottom, and bear plenty of fine grapes every year. I alfo moved an old vine on a wall near to the above, and cut it in pretty clofe; it ne three years fpread twenty-fix yards, and bears very fine ruit. Againft one of the piers had been planted a Black Ham- burgh Grape, and at the other fide of the fame pier was plant- ed a Mufcadine, at the diftance of about two feet trom each other ; I pruned them both according to my method, and the fecond year after, they produced one thoufand one hundred bunches of fine grapes, * J faw an inftance of thisin Kenfington Garders, where the vines hav- ing filled the fide of the walls, on which they were planted, had been trained in the manner above defcribed, over the other fide of the wall, whence the fruit was hanging down in great abundance ; and I underftand it ripened very well, though to Eaft and Weft afpe@ts. In America grapes will ripen in al« moft any afpect, provided the ftem of the vine has an afpect towards and point between South-Eaft and Scuth-Wef, & 94 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND I alfo tried an experiment by taking fome fhoots from a South wall, opening the ground deep enough to lay them in acrofs the foot path, at the diftance of about four feet trom the wall, and tied them to flakes, training them as efpaliers,* lay- ing in the wood as dire€ted for walls, and keeping them as low as poffible, that they might not fhade the bottom of the wall ; I alfo pruned them as I do thofe againft walls, laying the fhoots in very long, except thofe that were intended to bear fruit next year, from which I took off all the fide fhoots and runners again{ft the wall and efpaliers. In a favorable feafon thefe bear very fine truit, better than what is got from the walls by the old method of pruning t+ Always obferve to ufe the compofition as foon after prun- ing as poffible. As the vine is very porous, it foon imbibes the wet and moitture, which brings it quickly to decay. __ If at any time a vine fhould be cut late in the feafon, it will be apt to bleed much; in that cafe the powder muft be applied, repeating the application till the bleeding ftops ¢ I cut two ftrong vine-branches in the month of June and three more in July, in very hot weather, on purpofe to try the effect of the powder in ftopping the bleeding. The fap rofe fo flrong that it*worked out at the top in a froth ; I applied the powder, which in a fhort time entirely ftopped it. I fhall now give fome Directions for the Watering of Vines. After the grapes are fet and begin to fwell, you may water them with the Barrow Engine, fprinkling them all over the leaves and fruit, preffing your fore-finger over the top of the pipe; by doing this you can throw the water as fine as fmall rain, which will wafh all the duft off the vines and leaves, that are frequently covered with it, efpecially if the garden be near a public road, as is the cafe at Kenfington. You fhould alfo wath the infeéts off the trees. In fine weather I fprinkle all the wall-trees three times a week, which keeps them clear * An efpalier is a tree, which is planted out in the open ground, and the branches ot which are trained in a horizontal direétion, and tied to flakes, Thefe trees are never fuffered to grow more than tour or five feet high. Such a fyftem of training vines would do very well for America. + The fruit would always ripen well on efpajiers in America, where there is no want of fun and heat, which are fo much wanted in England. I am perfuaded that efpalier vines would, were all the precautions taken, pro-- duce very well in any part of the Middle States. t In America the viaes bleed much more copioufly than in England. If, therefore, the pruning be done atrer the fap begins to rife, great attention fhould be paid to the rules here laid down, MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 95 from infe@ls, and promotes the {welling of the fruit; but this operation muft never be performed wher the nights are cold and frofly. You fhould begin to {prinkle the trees when the fun is in an oblique dire€tion, or gone off the wall, which may be about four o'clock on a South afpeét ; by doing it at this time, the leaves will have time to dry before night, and fo pre- vent the froft, if there fhould be any in the night, from injur- ing them. In very hot and dry weather, give the trees a good boitom watering once a week, which will torward the {welling of the fruit. Vines require a great deal of watering; but when the fruit is fully fwelled, you fhould leave it off; particularly when the nights begin to get cold, as it would hurt the flavour of the fruit. We thall fay fomething in this place refpefting the pref- ervation of grapes from flies, wafps, and birds ; but for more full dire€tions on that head, fee the chapter ‘ On Infeéts, &c.’ As foon as the large fly makes its appearance, you muft provide plenty of bottles a little more than half filled with fome weet liquor to entice the flies to enter them, where they will be drowned. You muft hang the bottles on the nails at proper difiances all over the vines, and alfo place fome of them at the bottom of the walls. The blue fly comes much earlier than the wafp, and you will find it no lefs deftru€tive to the fruit: It will therefore be neceflary to hang up the bottles betimes, in order to deftroy as many of them as poffible before the wafp makes its appearance, and have the bottles ready for this fecond enemy. When the grapes begin to ripen, you will be troubled with other enemies ; the birds will now begin to attack the fruit ; it will then be neceffary to bag fome of your fine handfome bunches, but to bag them all wouid be an endlefs job, if you have a full crop and a large garden. I have had five men bagging for three weeks, and yet could not bag the half of what were on one wall. Where the bunches are very thick, the quickeft way is to cover the trees with nets, or buntine (a kind of ftuff of which fhips’ colours are made) which will admit a free air to the grapes, and will dry foon after rain. They will alfo bea good covering for the trees in the {pring, in cold, wet, or fnowy weather. Always obferve, that the bunches of grapes fhould be kept under the fhade of the leaves till they begin to ripen; then you may begin to pick off the leaves which cover the fruit, leaving thofe a little above it to be a fhelter from the wet and froft in the nights ; this will affift the ripening of the fruit; and take off only a tew leaves at a time, according to the quantity 96 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND of grapes to be gathered at once: By thefe means your fruit will continue three times as Jong in fucceflion as it would if the leaves were picked off all at one time. I have often ‘fcen all the leaves taken off from the fruit foon after it was fet, which prevents it from fwelling, and the fruit will become hard and {mall, and will generally crack. When the leaves are not too thick, they admit the rays of the fun to pafs through, and a warm glow of heat will be re- fle€ted trom the wall.* You may find it convenient to let the grapes hang as long on the walls as you can: I have often let them hang till the middle of November, only covering them with nets or bun- tine. When the froft begins to fet in fharp, you fhould then gather the grapes. Where there are feveral bunches on one branch, you may cut it off, leaving about fix inches in length, or more, of the wood, according to the diftance between the bunches, and a little on the outfide of the fruit at each end ; feal both ends with fome common fealing-wax, fuch as Wine Merchants ufe for fealing their bottles with, which you may buy at the Wax Chandlers; then hang them acrofs a line ina dry room, taking care to clin out, with a pair of f{ciflars, any of the berries that begin to decay or become mouldy, which if left would taint the others: In this way I have kept grapes till the 6th of February ; but, if they are cut before the bunches are too ripe, they may be kept much longer. Having plenty of grapes in the winter makes a great ad- dition for the table ; and if properly kept, they will be of a much finer flavour than the Portugal grapes, which are gener- ally at a very bigh price during the winter and {pring. Grapes may alfo be kept by packing them in jars (every bunch being firft wrapped up in a foft paper) and covering every layer with bran, which fhould be well dried before it is ufed, Jaying a little of 1t in the bottom of the jar; then a layer of grapes, and fo on, a layer of bran and of grapes alternately, ull you have filled the jar; then fhake it gently, and fill it to the top with bran, laying fome paper over it, and covering the top with a bladder tied firmly on to exclude the air ; then put on the top or cover of the jar, obferving that it fits as clofe as poffible. Thefe jars fhould be kept in a room where you can have a fire in wet or damp weather. _ * The leaves muft never be picked off, in America, where the fun itfelf burps them up but too faft, - MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 6} CHAPTER IZ, OF FIGS. Differen Sorts defcribed.— Of Raifing, Pruning, Training; and Sheltering Eigedirees.® Tue Fig has been cultivated in England ever firice the year 1762, Some of the oldeft that we know of in this kingdom are in the Archbifhep of Canterbury’s gardens at Lambeth. his genus of plants is arranged in “the third order of Lins nus’ twenty- third clafs, entitled Po! ygamia Tricécia. The following are the Sorts beft worth Cultivating in this - Country. 1. The Brown, or Chefnut-coloured Ifchia Fig. This is one of the largeft taat we have: It is of a brown or chefnut colour on the outfide, and purple within ; the grains are large, and the pulp {weet and high flavoured. ‘lh ripens in es : and, if planted againit a hot wall, two erops may be obtained annually. 2. The Black Genoa Fig is a long fruit of a-dark purple colour, the infide being of a bright red, and the flefh very high flavoured. It ripens in the latrer end of Auguft. g. The Small White Early Fig. The {kim of this fruit _ 18 of a pale yellow when ripe; the flefh is white and {weet. It is ripe about the latter end of Auguit, or beginning of Sep- tember. 4. The Large’ White Genoa Fig. This is a large fruit, the {kin is thin and yellow when ripe, a and red within. It is a good fruit, and is ripe about the latter end of Auguft. This ~ and the preceding bear two crops annualiy. The Black Ifchia Fig is a middle fized fruit; the fkin is almoft black when ripe, and the infide of a deep red. The flefh is high flavoured, aad the trees good bearers. — * T have never feen any fig-trees in America; but ¥ have no doubt buty with the precautions here dilated, they weuld do very well, N g? TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND 6. The Brown and Black Small Italian Figs are cultivat- ed in pots; the fruit is {mall, round, and very delicious. I have gathered from one plant, in a twenty-four pot, two dozen of figs at one gathering, 7. the Malta Fig. This 1s a finall brown fig; the fkin of a pale brown, the infide of the fame colour; the Heth is fweet and high flavoured. Its ripe in Auguft and Septem- ber. 8. The Murrey, or Brown Naples Fig, is a pretty large fruit of a light brown colour, and the infide nearly of the fame colour; the flefh is weli flavoured ; and it ripens about the middle of September. 9. The Green Ifchia Fig is an oblong fruit with a green fkin ; but being thin, 1s Rained through with a brownith catt by the pulp when full ripe. The infide is purple, and the flefh high flavoured. It is ripe about the middle of September. to. The Madonna Fig, commonly called the Brunfwick, or Hanover Fig, is a large pyramidal fruit; the {kin brown,,. the feth a lighter brown, coarfe, and has but tittle flavour. It ripens about the middle of September. : it. The Common Blue or Purple Fig is a large oblong fruit, ripens in Auguft, and is a good bearer. : 12. Phe Long Brown Naples Fig. The fkin of this fruit *4s.of a dark brown when ripe, the flefh inclining tored. It has large grains and a good flavour, and ripens about the be- ginning of Oétober. 13. The Small Brown Hchia Fig is a fmall pyramidal fruit; the fkin of a light brown; the flefh of a purple cait, and of high flavour. It ripens in October. 14. The Yellow Hchia Fig is a large fruit, the fkin yel- low, and the flefh purple and well flavoured. It ripens in Oktober. % 15. The Gentile Fig is of a middle fize, roundith fruit, the fkin yellow, and the flef inclining to the fame colour. It has large grains, and a good flavour ; mpens very late, and the trees are but indifferent bearers. There are alfo the following : _ Beft Early White, Large Blue, Black Provence, Marfeilles, Cyprian, ~ Milward, Fard’s Seedling, Small Black Ifchia, Green Naples, White Ifchia, Large Black, Yellow Cefar. ida si MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 99 Figs proper for a fmall Garden. The Large White Genoa ; Early White; Murrey Fig; Smal! Brown Hchia, and the Black Efchia. In a good feafiin, the Brown or Chefaut-coloured Ifchia, the Black Genoa, the Smali Winte Early,the Murrey or Brown | Naples, and the Common Blue or Purple Fig, will ripen on fiandards. Figs are raifed from fuckers, layers, or cuttings, and will thrive in aimoft any foil, but do not like a wet bottom ; they generally produce nore fruit on a firong loemy foil than ona gry one, Layers, or cuttings, are preferable to fuckers. Obfervations, Gc. on Pruning Figs. They fhould never be pruned in autumn or during the winter : the beft time is at the latter end of April or beginning of May ; by that time you will fee what fhoots have been kill- ed by the frofit in winter. The end of thofe branches more particularly will be hurt where the wood has not ripened well in autumn ; They thould be cut into the found wood, and as near to an eycas pofhible. When the branches have been fuf- fered to run up leaving the bottom quite naked, you fhould cut out every other branch as near to the ground as you can, which will furnith the wall with fine young wood ; obferving os to flop the ends of the fhoo's in the beginning of Jung-this will caufe them to throw out fide fhoots which will bear fruit the next fummer. By that time you will have plenty of fine wood ; you may then cut down the reft of the cld branches that weve left the preceding year, obferving to prune them a- bout the fame time as you pruned laft year ; Always remem- ber to pinch off the ends of the Rrongeft thoots, except the leading ones, at the top bud. _ When vou prune in the {pring, never fhorten the fhoots, as the fruitis produced near the tons. There will be a great many fine fhort fide and fore-right fhoots which fhould never be cut off but when they are decayed. Thefe fhoots will ripen much better than the long firong ones, and will net be fo liable to be killed by the froft in winter, By tollowing this method, you will have the trees covered with fruit from the top to the bottom of the walls, inflead of having.a few fruit only at the top, which is the cale when the common method of pruning is practifed, When the figs are about the fize of fmall nutmegs, you fhould pinch off ihe point of the top bud with your finger and thumb, or cut it with a fharp pen-knife ; and always remem- ber to ufe the powder, wherever you cut er pinch, to Lop the yoo TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND oozing of the milk, which, if fuffered, would greatly exhaut and injure the trees. Take care not to lay in the branches too thick ; they fhould be from a foot to eighteen inches diftant. The trees muft be coveredin the beginning of winter before the troft fets in, otherwife the ends of the fhoots will be hurt by the firft tharp froft, before the wood is ripened and hardened, which will oblige you to cut them as betore. When fig-trees are very much injured in hard winters, the beft way will be to cut as near the ground as poflible; and the fecond year you may get them into a fine bearing ftate, if you man- age them as above direled. I fhall now give fome dire&tions as to the beft method of covering them. I generally cover them with bentings, or fhort grafs, from the pleafure ground ; which I find antwers the purpofe — very well; Alterit is thoroughly dry, it may be put in a cock, covering it with ftraw to prevent the rain from penetrating in- to it, which will caufe it to heat and rot; or it may be put into, one of the fheds. If you cannot procure grafs, get fome dry mofs. Firft cover the trees with laurel, yew, fir, or fpruce boughs, and then tuck in the {hort grafs or mofs, among the branches, beginning at the top of the tree, tucking in the gra{s, &c. as you defcend, till you come to the bottom. Fern, when’ well dried, makes an excellent covering. You may thatch the tree on the ouifide with the long leaves of the common fern; when you can get thefe, there will be no occa- fion for fhort grafs. Fern, when it can be procured, which it may in moft country places, will be tound preferable to laurel. — _* Figs may alfo;be fheltered in winter by wrapping hay or ftraw-bands round the branches of the trees ; then open the ground, lay in the branches, and cover them over with mould about nine inches deep, leaving the ends of the fhoots about three inches out of the ground, and covering the ground over with feme rotten leaves, er old tan, &c. to keep out the froft : You may alfo cover the roots of the trees in the fame manner. If the walls are low, and the borders broad, you may bring all the branches front ways; but when the walls are high you can only bring the fide branches forward in the above ymannet. Some cover with reeds and ftraw ; the latter I by no means approve of, as it is very apt to harbour rats and mice on account of feme of the grain being left in it, P _ MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &. 104 Be careful to obferve, when you put on the grafs, that “mo mice, &c. have got amongft it; and examine during the winter that no rats or mice get among the branches of the trees that are covered againit the walis; 1f they do, they will infal- Jibly bark the branches, and in that cafe you will be under the -neceffity ot heading the trees down. _». I would recommend fetting traps, fuch as fhall be de- fcribed hereafter, near the roots of the trees, as foon as they "are covered. we rag | Take care not to uncover the figs too foon in the {pring ; and it fhould be dose partially, as frequently there are froits and cutting winds in the months ‘of April and May, which will intallibly kill the young fruit as they make their appear- ance in the foring. . Thofe branches which have been laid into the ground fhould be taken up in the month of April, taking off the hay and firaw-bands, and then nailed tothe wall. Stick in among the branches fome fern-leaves, or any other light covering, to protect them from the drying winds and frofts, till the fram comes to the fize of a large walnut, or rather till the leaves are {ufficiently large to.proteét the fruit. The Italians, when they with to forward the ripening of figs, drop in a little fweet oil, from a quill, into the eye of the fruit; but care muft be taken not to hurt the fkin, which would make the fg burft. This will make a difference at Jeaft of a fortnight in the ripening. As foon as the leaves begin to fall, brufh them off witha broom, but by no means till they will come off eafily. It they are forced off before they begin to wither and decay, the trees will bleed at the foot-ftalks. At the fame time you fhould clear the flalks of the {mall late fruit, which, if fuffered to ‘remain during the winter, will rot, and injure the tree fo as te prevent it from bearing the enfuing fammer. It youobferve any milk oozing trom the foot-flalks, ufe a little of the com- pofition, which will fopit, and heal the injured part. By doing this, you will affifi the ripening and hardening the wood before the winter froits fet in. When you plant fig-trees, let them be from twenty to twenty-four feet apart, and train them horizontally, which will render them much more fruitiul than when they are tramed upright, which cauies them to run up in long naked wood. ' Obferve alfo to leave fours, or fhort fhoots, all over the branches; and when the buds begin to {well, all the fhorg sicots fhould be pinched, as beicre dire€ted. 4 a icp «TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND As the branches of flandard fig-trees are very liable tobe killed in fevere winters, it will be neceffary to lay them alfo in the ground, wrapping them up in hay or flraw-bands, as before direéled for wall-trees, It will be fometimes imprace ticable to lay down the middle branches ; they muft, there- fore, be well covered with hay or ftraw-bands, and the outfide ones laid down, going regularly round the tree, and mu particular care not to hurt them with the fpade ; then muleh them with rotten leaves, &c. After bard winters, 1 have frequently been obliged to cut fig-trees down very near to the ground, and apply the compo. ficion: In the courfe of two years the new wood has covered — over the old flump, and the branches filled up the former fpace, bearing alfo plenty of fine fruit. In a plentitul year, when there are more than you want for the fupply of the table, the remainder may be dried foy winter ule, _ MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 103 KY ley } Crenerewerrty a | CHAPTER x, = OF QUINCES. The beft Sort for the Kitchen Garden.—Of their Propagation, Planting, and Pruning.-Of Bark-bound Trees, and of tho/e which have rough Bark. hee Quince is called Cydonia, from Cydon, a town of Crete, famous for this fruit. Ic belongs to the fourth order of the twelvth clafs of the Sexual Syfem, Icofandtia Pentagynia. Linnaeus has joined it to the apple and pear. This 1s a very beautiful tree when in flower, and when the fruit is ripe in autumn. It was cultivated in this country in Gerard’s time. The deft fort for planting in the kitchen garden is the Portugal, being the fitteft for baking or ftewing. Itis of a fine purple colour when dreffed, and is much better for Mar- malade than any ofthe other forts. ‘The oblong kind, and the Apple Quince, are alfo planted in fruit gardens; and there are feveral other forts cultivated in the nurferies about town, and planted in fhrubberies for variety and ornament. ‘The Portugal fort is very ufetul to mix with apples for making pies and puddings ; for when the apples are flat, and have loft their flavour, they add a quicknefs to them. Bad us i a 7 4 ioe 4, Bh) Rep ay ; Of the Propagation and Pruning of Quince-Trees. They are eafily raifed by layers, or by cuttings taken from the tree in March (April tor America.) They thould be _ planted in a fhady place, in rows at about a foot diflance from - each other, and about three inches from plant to plant in the rows. Mulch them with rotten leaves, or rotten dung, which _ will keep the ground about them moift ; and water them fre- “quently in hot weather. About Michaelmas thofe that are well rooted may be planted out, and thofe that are not fhould remain another year, They may alfo be propagated by bud. ding or grafting ; and thefe trees will bear fooner, and be more fruitful, than thofe raifed by any other method. 1o4 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND. The Quince-tree may be pruned much in the fame way 2s you would prune an apple-tiee, taking care to cut out all the old déceafed and dead wood, and the crofs branches in the middle of the tree, which are apt to injure each other by fric- tion. In general you will find old trees much hurt by inju- dicious pruning : In that cafe you muft head them down, cut out all the cankery parts, and alfo all the deceafed and dead wood where the tree is hollow, or where large branches have been cut or broken otf, applying the compofition as for apple- trees. . : ae . Quince-trees are very apt to have rough bark, and to be bark-bound: In that cafe, it will be neceflary to fhave off the rough bark with a draw- knife, and to {carify them when bark- bound ; then brufh them over with the compofition, as here- after directed. sae I would, however, advife to plant quince trees at a proper diftance trom apples and pears, as bees and the wind might mix the Farine, and occafion the apples or pears to degenerates oe _ MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. °105 ——s CHAPTER XTIs ———— | OF MEDLARS. Different Sorts.—Their Propagation and Manner of Treatment. rae Medlar is ranged in the fourth order of Linnzus* twelfth clafs. Icofandria Pentagynia. | The Different Sorts cultivated in this Country are, The Great Medlar with bay leaves, and the Dutch Med- — Jar. hele, being the largeit fruit, are generally cultivated in England. There is afmaller fort, which 1s a variety of that called the German or Dutch Mediar; the fruit is {mall, and the tree is more frequently planted in pleafure grounds than gardens. The oriental fort, according to Mr. Philip Miller, is call. ed the Dwarf Cherry of Mount Ida, in Crete, where the fhep« herds feed upon the fruit. It is large, roundifh, and of a fine red colour when ripe. There are feveral fpecies now growing in the gardens of this country, that have been introduced from North-America, which are very ornamental in pleafure grounds and parks, and to whofe fruit the deer and birds are very partial. They are raifed trom feed, or by grafting; thofe wha wifh to keep the forts true, fhould propagate them by grafting on their own ftocks. The Medlar requires much the fame fort of treatment as the quince-tree. Cut out all the dead and cankery wocd; and, when they begin to get ftunted, head them down, and apply the compofition, as directed tor apple-trees. Medlars fhould hang upon the tree till they begin to rot, as thofe who are fond of this fruit never eat it till the pulp is quite foft, It may be proper to obferve here, that thofe who with to have their medlars large and fine, mult keep the tree thin of wood. As many people are fond of the fruit of the medlar, I would recommend planting fome trees of the large Datch fort 106 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND in the kitchen garden ; the otherforts may be planted in pleaf- ure grounds and parks, There is a fort called the Nottingham Medlar, which is very much efteemed by fome for its fliarp and poignant tafte. Medlars, as well as quinces, fhould be planted at a prop- er diflance from apple and pear-trees. MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 107 | CHAPTER XII. | OF GOOSEBERRIES. Different Sorts ef Goofeberries ; and the Weight of many large oh ones from Manchefter.— The Propagation, Planting, ail Pruning of Goofeberries.—A Method of Deftroying Gater-— pillars. es Goofeberry and Currant are ranged by Linnzus in the firft order of his fifth clafs, Pentandria Monogynia. The Goofeberries common in this Country are, Green Gafcoin, Hairy and Smooth Red, Smooth Green, — Large Smooth Yellow, Barly Black, Large Rough Yellow, Small Early Red, Common and Large White, Large Smooth Dutch Yellow, Champaigne. A Lift of the largeft new Sorts fhown in Lancafhire laf? Summer (1800,) with ther Colour and Weight, communicated by _ Meffrs. M+ Niven, Nurferymen, Manchefter. a Red Gavfeberries, ~ dw, gr. dw. gr. Alcock’s King, -- ---- = 16 15 Robinfon’s Crudus, - = = = = 13 17 aletaneelon ce Duke of York, -- 16 1 Withington’s Sceptre, ---=- 13 7 Boardman’a Royal Oak,-- = 15 4 Green Goofeberries. Brundrit’s Atlas ----- 17. 1 Blakeley’s Chiffel, -----17 0 Chapman’s Peerlefs,- - - - - 15 2t Boardman’s sreen Oak,- == (4 F Dien’s Giory of Englaad,- - - 16 2 Brundrit’s Tickle Tuby,--- 14 6 Fairlow’s Lord Hood,- - - = 14 5 Chadwick’s Hero, - - - = = - 13 10 Fifher’s Conqueror, - - - = = 17 19 Dean’s Lord Hood,- --+-- 15 10 Fox’s Joily Smcker,- - - = - 15 8 Mill’s Langley Green,» -~--=16 2 Hall’s Porcupine, - - = = = = 13 20 Read’s Satisfattion, ~--- 2 15 4 Lomax’s Victory, - - - - = - 16 11 Robinfon’s Stump, - « = = = 13 25 Mafon’s Hercules, - eee 2 = 13 16 Smith’s Green Mioafk, -22* 13 29 Taylor’s Volunreer,- - <= = - 16 17 Yates’ Duke of Bedford, - - = 14 15 Werthington’s Glory of Eccles, 14 10 White Goofeberries Yellow Gaofeberries. -) Adams” Saow Bail, -.- = - = 12°22 Brundrit’s Sir Sidney, - - - - 15 22 A’kinfon’s White Hall, --- 14 8 D.venport’s Defender, - - - - £5 12 Chapman’s Highiand White, - 12 0 So PIS RONEE he Creeping Ceres,- 16 © Davenport’s Lady, ~----+ 15 0 Hamret’s Kilton, - - - - + - 15 9 Gibfon’s Apollo, - - - + - = 14 20 Hijl’s Golden Gourd, - - - - 13 17 Holding’s White Maflin, - - 13 0 Beet Royal Sovereign, - « - 17 10 Kenyon’s White Ncble, -- - 13 6 Leigh’s Prince of Orange, - - 15 © Moor’s White Bear,---- - 14 19 Parkinton’s Goldfiuder, - - » 14. § Woodward’s White Smith,-- 17 3 O8oher 27, 1800. Joe 488 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND In favourable feafons, many of the forts in the foregoing if have been known to weigh more by feveral penny-weights. The following Lift 1s taken from the Catalogue of Meffrs. Kirk, Nurferymen, at Brompton, near London. Supreme Red, Golden Eagle, Perteétion Red, Royder’s Triumph, High Sheriff of Lancafhire, Woilliamfon’s Yellow Hornet, Roya! George, Swingham, Unicorn, Jackfon’s Golden Orange, Rough Amber, ~ Goliah Champion, White Walnut, — Warrington Red, Ackerley’s Double Bearer, | Golden Drop, Royal Oak, . Cofte:diner Goliah Champion, Mils Bold’s, ai Hairy Amber, Sparkler, sg Nixon’s Golden Eagle, Ackerley’s Rodney, Worthington’s White Lilly, Hamplon’s Cefar, Laylord’s Seedling, ~Monk’s Charles Fox, Nixon’s White Heart, St. John, _ Riding’s Old England, Pigeon Egg, Bakeley’s Swingham, Worthinglowe’s Conqueror, Tillotfon’s St. John. : On the Cultivation, Gc. of Goofeberries. Goofeberries are raifed from cuttings, or from feed, and fome raife them from fuckers; but this laft is not a good way, as bufhes raifed in this manner are more hable to throw out fuckers than thofe which are raifed from cuttings or feed. The beft time for planting cuttings is about Michaelmas, always cutting them trom the ftrongeft and cleaneft fhoots. The length ot the cuttings fhould be trom fix to eight inches, planting them to an Eaft or North afped, at the diftance of one foot from row to row, leaving them about three inches above ground. By planting at this diftance, you will be able io hoe and keep them clear of weeds. Water them frequent- ly in dry weather during the {pring. The Methods of Planting Goofeberries are various. The Market- Gardeners about London plant them in rows from eight to ten feet apart from row to row, and fix feet from plant to plant intherows. In that cafe, I advife pruning them in the beginning of Oétober, and the ground between may be planted with Coleworts or Beans for a ipring crop; by fo doing, MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 109 there will be no occafion to tread over the ground and hurt the coleworts in pruning the bulhes ; for, betore the goofe- _ berries begin to fhoot, the coleworts will be all cleared off the ground. . After this time (or before if you find it convenient) lay a good coat of rotten dung onthe ground ; then dig it and plant early potatoes ; but not fo near to the goofeberries as to hurt them. The roots of goofeberries fhould always be kept clear to admit the fun and air. In {mall gardens I would recommend planting them in a quarter by themfelves, at the diflance of fix feet between the rows, and four feet from plant to plant; or you may plant them round the edges of the quarters, about three feet from the path; you will then have the ground clear _ for cropping, anda man, by fetting one foot on the border, can gather the goofeberries without injuring the crop. As goofeberries love a rich foil, they fhould be dunged every year, or at leaft have a good coat of dung once in two Cavs. { ‘ Never plant them under the fhade of other trees, as it will injure the flavour ot the fruit. Of Pruning Goofeberry-Bufies. It is a practice too common in pruning goofeberries, to Jet them branch out with great naked fiems, fuffering them to remain in that flate for years. When that is already the cafe, they fhould be cut down near to the ground in the winter pruning ; this will make them throw out fine ftrong healthy | fhoots which will bear fruit the fecond year, Goofeberry- ___ bufhes, in general, bear their fruit on the fecond year’s wood, Care fhould be taken in fummer to keep the middle of the buth clear to admit a tree air into them ; leaving the fineit and ftrongeft f{hoots from fix to ten inches diftant from each other. This will help to ripen and harden the wood. Itisa praétice with fome to fhorten the fhoots in the autumn or win- ter pruning: This fhould be always near to a wood-bud ; which may be known by its being fingle, whereas fruit-buds _ are in clufters. The fhoots may be fhortened to eight or ten inches, according to their flrength. Some leave them at full _ length for three or four years, thinning out thofe that are fu- ' periluous. Always leavea proper number to be trained up between the full length fhoois, to facceed them when they are tired of hearing ; then cut the old ones down to the young ones that are tofucceed them. By thefe means you will al- ways keep the bufhes in a conitant fate of bearing. 410 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND You may obferve, that thofe branches which were cut the firft year, will in the fecond throw out fhort dugs, or fpurs, which produce the fruit; andthefe fhould by no means be cut off, unlefs the branches are ina fickly flate, and require to be cut clofe down (as is the cafe this year, 1800,) when the buthes are overloaded with fruit. It will then be neceffasy to cut out a good deal of the old wood, to affift nature to recover herfelf after producing fo great a quantity of fruit. This year the bufhes are fo loaded that the branches are bent down to the ground. Goofeberries are well worth paying attention to, as they fupply the table fo amply till the other freits come in. There have been confiderable additions made to them, of late years, from the great attention that has been paid, by the Gardeners, and others of Manchefter and its neighbourhood, to raifing goofeberries from feed.* Pre eer Their catalogues now contain between four and five hun- dred forts or varieties; but fome are fo near each other as. hardly to be diftinguifhed. By mixing up a rich foil to plant thofe in which have been raifed from feed, and by wa- tering, fhading, and thinning the fruit, they have grown toa fize much larger than any that had ever been feen in this country. They have made it their principal fiudy to improve this valuable fruit, and have given great encouragement, by eflablithing fecicties tor diftributing prizes annually to thofe who raife the largeft and fineft new forts. But it muff be al- lowed, that fome of the largeft are much thicker in the fkin, and nat fo well flavoured as fome of the old forts. I enquired ot Meffrs. M‘Niven, Nurferymen at Manchef- ter, how many good and diftiné&t forts they could fend me out of their numerous catalogue; they told me, that they could fend about eighteen or twenty forts, which they could anfwer for being good and diftin@. { accordingly gave an order, and received all the forts that they could warrant good, which turn- ed out to my fatisfaétion. Great attention fhould’be paid to the cultivation of the early and late forts. In fome old gardens, in particular, there are very valuable forts that have been of late too much neg- * Such is the fuccefs of thefe unwearied endeavours, that it is now no mncommen thing to (ce gociteberries as larfe as puliets’ eges. It is very yare to fee any of this fruit in America, where the fun is, indeed, rather teo hot fer them ; but 1 have feen very tolerable goofeberries from the garden of Mr-Chitton in Philadelphia, and 1 am certain, that if the modeof cultivation here laid down were well attended to, and geod fets got from England, great plenty of this valuable fruit might be raifed ta all the Mid» yes Bs tik, yc eee Boe wig Gis BUG Welty n olaics, MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 141 leG&ted : I would therefore recommend to thofe who live in the neighbourhood of fuch gardens, to obferve their time of | aa and to cultivate thefe efpecially which are early and ate. ; It is a praétice with fome to clip the tops of goofeberries with a pair of garden fhears, as they would clip a thorn hedge ; this I by no means approve of, as the fruit will not be half the fize, nor ot fo fine a flavour, as when the buthes are kept clear of fuperfluous wood. Care fhould be taken in {pring and fummer to ftock, or grub up, all the fuckers from the roots of the buthes, leaving their ftems clear and unencumbered. — , Many ot the Lancafhire forts are apt to grow horizontal- ly, and the branches frequently trail on the ground, which renders them liable to be broken by high winds, efpecially when they are loaded with truit. In that cafe I would recom- mend two or three hoops to be put round them, to which the _ branches may be tied, to fupport them, and prevent their be- ing broken by the wind. ; _ Thofe who wilh to have their goofeberries very late, fhould plant on North walls and palings, between the other trees, and they may be removed when the trees begin to meet. It laid in thin, they will bear very fine and handfome fruit. I would advife to plant the fineft late forts; as by this method the table will be fupplied much longer than by the common cuftom of planting in quarters. Immediately after pruning, I always apply the compofi- tion to the ends of the fhoots and cuttings ; and I find it of great ule in preventing the exhalation of the fap, and preferv- ing the cuttings till they take root, Gooleberries are very much infefied with a fmal! _ green caterpillar, which frequently devours both leaves anc fruit. You mutt, therefore, be very attentive, and obferve their firft appearance on the buthes; for, if not deftroyed early, they will increafe fo faft, that they will focn devour all the leaves, and the fruit will then be good for nothing. They make their firft appearance generally on-the edges and under- fides of the leaves. Take fome fifted quick-lime and lay it under the buhhes ; but do not at firft let any of it touch the branches or leaves ; then fhake each bufh fuddenly and fmartly, and the caterpil- lars will tall into the lime; if the bufh be nut fhaken fudden- ly, the caterpillars, on being a little difturbed, will take fo firm a hold as not eafily to be fhaken off. After this is done, 912 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND fift fome of the lime over the bufhes; this will drive down thofe which may have lodged on the branches. The cater- pillars ought to be {wept up next day, and the bufhes well wathed with clear lime- water mixed with urine ; this will def- troy any caterpillars that may ftill remain, and alfo the Aphides, if there are aay on the bufhes, _ MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 119 ¢ GHAPTER XIIt. ——— PD OF CURRANTS.#* i Different Sorts of Currants. — Propagation, Planting, and Pruning of them.—How to Preferve them from Infects. (Ce RRANTS, with Goofeberries, are arranged by Lin. nzus in the firft order of his fitth clafs, Pentandria Mono- ByMias i? The forts moft commonly cultivated in this country are, the Red and White Dutch Currants, and the Common Black, and American Black Currants. The following Sorts are alfo cultivated by the Nurferymen about 3 Town, and in other parts of England, viz. Common Red, Long-bunched Red, Champagne Large Pale and Striped-leaved Red, Red, White Cry ftal, Fine New White Dutch, Large Pale and Red Dutch. The currant is the moft ufeful of all the {mall fruit, either for the table and kitchen, or tor preferving, making wine, &c. and continues longer in fucceffion than any other. With proper management, currants will continue in ufe from June to November. Black Currants are very much eftzemed by fome ; yet they are feldom fent to the table, but are very ufes ful for making jelly, frequently taken tor fore throats, colds, &e.t * There are pleaty of currants in America; but for want of attention to the mede of management here laid down, they are greatly inferior both im fize and flavour to the fame fort of fruit in England. _ In Ireland, Black Currants are frequently fteeped in whifkey, of which they make punch, and recommend it as a good medicine for coughs and colds. I once had two gallons of it fent me by a friend tor that purpofe ¢ fome of it was taken in a glafs of warm water by a perfon who was very much afflicted with a fevere cough, and thought to be in a decline, which efie&ted a perfe& cure in three or four nights. The currants, for this purpofe, fhould be bruifed and put in ajar, and the whifkey poured over them: Let it ftand for a week or fortnight, covering B 114 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND On the Propagation of Currants. Currants may be raifed from feed, layers, &c. When the trees are cut low, you may lay down ‘fome of the brahches elther In winter or fpring, when the ground in the quarters or rows is dug, which fiould always be done annually. In the auiumn toliowing, thefe layers will have made fine roots ; you may then plant them out where you wifh them to fland, and they witl bear fine fruit in the following fammer. Currants may aifo be propagated by cuttings, as goofe- berrics ; always remembering to make choice o the ftrongeft and fbraighte ft inoots. _ Under the buthes that have been Gieied for late fruit, you will always find plenty of felt-fown plants, which I would advife you to plant out by themfelves. Thofe who make cur- rant wine may fave the feed, after the fruit is fqueezed, and dry it: It may then be fown in autumn, or early in the pring, on a bed of fine hight earth ; by which you will, moft proba- bly, obtain fome fine varieties. By no means propagate them from fuckers, as they never grow handfome, and are very lia= ble to throw out a great many fuckers. In many gardens there flill remains a {mall fort of red and white currant not worth cultivating ; I would therefore advife thofe who have any of them in their gardens to root them up, and plantin their room, the Large Red and White Dutch, the Long-bunched Red, and Champagne Large Pale Red.— Currants may be planted out in the fame manner as goofeber- ries, either in quarters or fingle rows round the “edges of quarters, I would particularly recommend planting a few againft a South or Weit wall, or paling, which will produce fruit much earlier than in the open ground. Alfo to plant fome between other fruit trees on North walls, or palings, for latter crops ; thefe may be covered with double nets, to preferve them trom birds ; tucking in a few fern branches ‘between the two nets, which will prevent the heat of the fun and drying winds from fhrivelling the fruit. In open ground they fhould be covered _with mats for the fame purpofe; at the fame time permitting all the leaves to remain on the bufhes, to fhade the fruit and _make it keep the longer. _ it clofe down ; then ftrain it through a fine cloth or fieve, and put it in bot- ' ties or cafks for ufe. Currants may be ufed in this manner with brandy, gin or any other fpirits, They may alfo be preferved as cherries, and feat up to table, W,. Borsytx. ~ | MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 115 Pruning of Currant-Bufhes. The pruning of currants is nearly fimilar to that of goofe- berries. You may beginin the month of November. and y beg : continue till March, as it fuits your convenience. Currants fhou!d never be lett too thick of wood; anda great deal depends on the management of them in fummer, to have ftrong and fine wood for the following feafon. It they have been neglected for fome years, and fuffered to run up to ~ long naked wood, they muft be cut down near the ground; they will then fet forth fine trong ihoots. In this cafe 1 would recommend heading down every other tree, and cutting the others partially, by taking out every other branch as near as can be to the ground, unlefs they are trained up with fingle flems, in which cafe it will be neceflary to cut them as near as pofiible to where the branches’ begin to break out and form the head. Inthe winter pruning, (in America, this may be done any tire between November and the middle of April) you muft preferve the ftrongeft and fineft fhoots, leaving them trom nine to eighteen inches long, according to their flrength, and from eight to ten inches apart, and as regular as poflibie from top to bottom of the tree ; taking care to cut out all the dead and weak fhoots. Pay particular attention in fummer, and keep the middie of the bufh open to admit the fua and air ; prefecving the fineft and ftrongeft {hoots that are nearett the item, Some are tond of training them up with finale ftems, to a confiderable height, to form fine round heads, which are _ very ornamental, if not fuffered to run up too high ; as in that cafe they are liable to be broken by the wind, if not well fup- ported by flakes. Care muft be taken not to let the thoots run to more than fix inches long ; becaule fuch fhort fhoots will not be fo liable to be damaged by the wind as long and weak ones are, efpecially when loaded with fruit. I preter dwarts trom three to four feet high. The fame manner of pruning, &c. will do for Black Cur- ranis ;, but, as they grow itronger than the Red or White, the. fhoots fhould be lett thinner, and laid in longer, which will make them produce larger and finer fruit. Thofe again{t walls and palings fhould have the fhoots laid in thinner than thofe in the quarters, and trained as hori- zontally as poffible, fhortening them in the winter pruning, to a foot or eighteen inches, according to the {lrength of the fhoots. As currants are very liable to be devoured by ear-wigs, which take fhelter under their leaves and branches, bundies of 116 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND > bean-ftalks fhould be hung up fome time before the bufhes are covered with mats or nets, If proper attention be not paid to this, the fruit will generally (uffer very much from thefe in- jeéts. After the bufhes are covered, take the mats off once in three or four days, and kill the ear-wigs that have got into the bean-ftalks, which it will be neceflary ftill to keep hung up. As there is a {weetnefs in the infide of bean-ftalks, which at. traéts the ear-wigs, they very readily take fhelter in them trom rain. By paying proper attention to the foregoing dire€tions, you will be able to keep thefe deftruétive infeéts under, and . preferve the greater part of the fruit. Be particularly careful to pull up all fuckers at the roots of the trees, and keep them as clean as poflible; otherwife the fuckers will prevent the fun and air from penetrating to the roots, and greatly weaken the trees. W hat has been faid above will, I hope, be fufficient to direét thofe who are fond of cultivating this valuable and ufe- ful fruit. Currants are very liable to be infefied with aphides, and other infeéts, which fhall be taken nctice of in another place. MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 117 | m CHAPTER XIV. | OF RASPBER-RIE'S. Different Sorts of Rafpberries ; and of Propagating, Planting, f Watering, Staking and Pruning them. 4 ve ERRIES are a very ufeful fruit for the table; for preferving, tor making of jam, fauce, &c. and continue a ‘long time in bearing. The Raipberry belongs to the fifth order of Linnzus’ ae clafs, Icofandria Polygynia, and is a native of Eng- an The Jollowing are the Sorts cultivated in this Country. Early White, Large Red Antwerp, Double-bearing White, Large White Antwerp, _ Large Common White, Smooth Cane Double-bearing, Large Red, Woodward’s New Rafpberry. Of Propagating, Planting, and Pruning Ra/pberries. Rafpberries are raifed from fuckers and layers. They fhould be planted in a piece of ground by them- felves, ie (except the Early White) at the diftance of about fix feet from row to row, and four feet in the rows. The ground fhould firft be-well trenched and dunged, be- fore the rafpberries are planted. Make choice of the ftrong- eft and fineft plants that come out from the fides of the ftcols, where they have been ftanding for fame years ; or encourage the flrongeft plants that come out betwixt the rows after dig- ging, which fhentd be done annually, In digging the ground, you will frequently happen to cut the roots with a fpade, which will occafion a great number of {mall plants to come up; of thefe feleck the {trongeft and finelt, and hoe up all the fuper- fluous ones. But I preter laying down fome ot the ftrongeft outfide fhoots in the month of March ; as by the following autumn they will make fine roots, and may be planted cut in a quarter or piece of ground where you mitend them to remain. a18 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND Thefe will not be fo liable to throw out fuckers as thofe which are produced trom fuckers. When you plant out frefh pieces of rafpberries, it fhould - be done in moift weather, as the roots are very delicate, and hable to be hurt when expofed to adry air. It, however, they are planted in diy weather, take care to moiften the roots with water, and cover them with wet litter, or leaves, during the time of planting. In planting, open a trench with the {pade along the line where the fuckers or layers are to be planted ; cut off all the {mall fibry roots with a knife, leaving only the ftronger roots ; put them into the trench, and cover them with fome earth ; then water them well, and throw the remainder of the earth over them, letting them remain till you have finifhed planung the piece; then, where you firft began to plant, begin and tread the ground with your foot as hard as you can along each of the trenches, and in the fame dire€tion as you planted ; Then with a {pade, level all the ground {mooth, and run it over with a rake, taking off any ftones and rubbifh that may be left on the furface. In dry weather, the plants fhould be watered two or three times a week till they have taken root. It will be neceflary to flake the Antwerp, and other ftrong-srowing forts, with flout flakes ; then run a couple of {mall rails at the top, to tie the branches to; which will prevent their being broken by the wind, or beaten down by the rain. The Early White and imaller forts, may be plaited together at top, tying them round with the {mall yellow willow, which will keep them together. Some of the early rafpberries may be planted between the trees on a Weft afpeét, to produce early fruit before thofe in the open groundcomein. The Antwerp will thrive exceedingly well againft North walls or palings, and will produce late crops. Such as are planted againit walls or palings fhould be tacked to them. Where you find any of the Small Red and White Rafp- berries, deftroy them, and plant the following forts in their room, viz. the Large Red, the Smooth Cane Double.bearing, the Large Red and White Antwerps, the Large Common White, the Double-bearing White, and Woodward's New Ralpberry. Some preter pruning rafpberries in autumn, a practice of which I by no means approve. As they bear the fruit on the wood of the preceding year, they are very lable to be killed by the froft in fevere winters; but, by deferring the pruning tii the month of February (March, for America,) you with -MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 119 have great choice of fine wood for bearing the following fum- mei ; remembering to root out, or cut down all the wocd that bore trust the preceding year, which generally dies; feleéting ~ only trom five to feven of the moft vigorous and flrong fhoots from the laft year’s wood, to bear fruit the enfuing feafon. hefe fhoots may be pruned to the length of three or four feet, according to ther flrength, if they are of the Smooth Cane Double-bearing iort, (which generally bears a fecond crop in autumn, and wil, in fine feafons, continue bearing from June ~ to November) but, if the Large Antwerp, the fhoots fhould be left five or fix feet long. The Early White, which never grows fo ftrong as the above forts, fhould be ihortened to two feet anda half, or three feet. Thefe fhould be planted in rows about three feet dif- tant from each other, and two feet trom plant to plant in the rows ; always remembering to keep them clear of fuckers, and to cut out the dead, or laft year’s wood, as betore directed ; making choice of the Rrongeft fhoots for bearing wood. But be caretul not to cut off the little fpurs on the fides, which bear the fruit. Rafpberries will continue in bearing five or fix years; by which time you fhould have a frefh plantation to fucceed them. The young plants will bear fome fruit the firft year, and come into full bearing the fecond vear after planting. If they be fuffered to remain more than five or fix years on the fame ground, they will degenerate and bear {mall fruit. Care fhould be taken not to leave above eight or ten of the frong- eft fhoots, rubbiag off or pulling up all the fuperfluous ones ; and to keep the ground well hoed and clear of weeds between the rows. 129 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND CHAPTER XV. | OF BARBERRIES. The Different Sorts, and their Culture. Tus Barberry is ufeful for preferving and pickling, and for garnifhing of difhes; the trees alfo have a fine effeét in fhrubberies and pleafure grounds, being beautiful flowering fhrubs. In autumn and winter they have a delightful appear- ance, from their various-coloured fruit. 1 would, therefore, recommend planting them in all fhrubberies and pleafure grounds. ‘Thofe who are fond of the natural harmony of finging-birds, will find Barberries well adapted tor attracting them to the fpots where they are planted, moft birds being very fond ot them. They fhould not, however, be planted near the fides of public walks, as the flowers emit a very ftrong and rather difagreeable {mell. The Barberry is ranged, by Linnzeus, in the firft order of his fixth clafs, entitled Hexanaria Monogynia. The following Sorts are moft efteemed for their Fruit, Sc: 1. The Red Barberry without ftones, which has an agrees able flavour when full ripe. 2. The White Barberry. 3. The Black Sweet; which is the tendereft of them, and {hould be planted in a warm fituation. 4. The Common Red with ftones. This is planted more for ornament than ufe, on account of its beautitul red berries. The Barberry is a native of England. Of Raifing and Pruning Barberries. Barberries are very eafily propagated from fuckers and layers, and require the fame management in pruning as other flowering fhrubs. I would always recommend planting them in pleafure grounds, and not in kitchen gardens. On grafs lawns, in pleafure grounds of fmall extent, they have a fine appearance, and are frequently planted in fuch fituations as ornamental flowering fhrubs ; they are alfo planted frequently in clumps. . MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 121 When you with to increafe them, encourage the fineft and cleaneft fhoots in fummer, by trimming all the fide branches off thin; and when you drefs the fhrubberies in winter, lay down the ftrong fhoots, which will take root, and be fit to tranfplant in autumn following. When defigned for ufe, they fhould be trained up as ftandards and half ftandards, and they will grow from fix to twelve feet high. In fummer, trim off all the ftraggling and fuperfluous fhoots ; fo as that they may make fine handfome heads. Barberries may alfo be raifed from feed ; but fuckers and layers are beft for preferving the forts diftinét. to2 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND (aes CHAPTER XVI. — ——_. OF MULBERRIES. Different Sorts cultrwated in England.—Propagating, Plant- ang, and Pruning of them.—Of Refloring old and decayed Trees. bee Mulberry, Morus, is a native of Perfia ; whence it was introduced into the Southern parts of Europe, and is now commonly cultivated in England, Germany, and other coun- tries where the winters are not very fevere. It is ranked in the tourth order of Linnzus’ twenty-firft clafs, Moneecia Tetrandria. We are informed, that mulberries were firft introduced into this country in 1596; but I have reafon to believe that they were brought hither prior to that period, as many old trees are to be feen ftanding at this day about ancient monafte- ries and abbeys ; trom which it is at leaft probable, that they had been introduced before the diffolution of thofe houfes. Four large mulberry-trees are {till ftanding on the fite of an old kitchen garden, now part of the pleafure ground at Si- on-Houfe, which, perhaps, may have ftood there ever fince that houfe was a monaftery. ‘The late Duke of Northumber- land has been heard to fay, that thefe trees were above 300 years old. | At the Priory near Stanmore, Middlefex, (the feat of the Marquis ot Abercorn) there are alfo fome ancient mulberry- trees. The priory was formerly a religious houfe. In a very old garden at Chelfea, which belonged to the late John Browning, Efq. (who was a very good botanift, and had a large colleétion of trees and plants) there is one of the largeft mulberry-trees that 1 ever faw, and which appears to be extremely old. Gerard, who publifhed his Hiftory of Plants in 1597, fays, in that book, that mulberry-trees then grew in fundry gardens in England. MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 123 Thofe commonly cultzvated in this Country are, 1. The Common Black Mulberry-Tree, which is much efteemed for its delicate fruit. This is now common in mot parts of Europe, except where the winters are very fevere. There is a variety of this with jagged leaves, and {maller fruit; but Mr. Miller fays, that it is a diflinét {pecses, a native of Sicily ; and that the fruit has no flavour, confequently it is not worth cultivating. There were fome of thefe wees in » Chelfea Gardens. ° 2. The White Mulberry. This tree is raifed in great abundance in Italy, and other Southern countries, for the leaves, to feed filk-worms ;* though it is faid that the Pers fians generally ufe the Common Black Mulberry tor that pur- pofe ; and this latter is the only fort raifed tor the fake of is fruit, which is very wholefome. g. The Red or Virginian Mulberry-Tree, which grows to a confiderable height, and bears reddifh berries. __ The two laft are cultivated, in this country, only for the fake of variety. . Mulberries are raifed from feed, or propagated from cute tings and layers. _ Thofe raifed from feed have frequently male flowers, and produce no fruit; thefe, therefore, fhould never be made choice of for fruit-bearing trees, unlefs they have been feen to bear in the nurfery. i : The beft bearing branches of old trees are to be chofen for cuttings and layers ; for fome branches of thefe trees pro- duce only katkins, and trees raifed from them will never pro- duce fruit. If they are to be raifed trom layers, they will generally take root fufficiently the firft year to bear feparating from the parent tree, and fhould then be planted in a nurfery, and trained up with fingle ftems. In four years they will be fit to plant out where they are to remain. They fhould be planted at a proper diftance to admit the fun and air, as the truit, when the trees are too clofe, is very aptto turn mouldy ; they fhould alfo be fheltered from the Eaft, North, and Weft winds. : But the beft way of raifing mulberries is from cuttings of the tormer year’s {hoots, having one joint of the two years’ wood. Fiant them out in autumn, if fine weather, or in the month of March, in rows nine inches apart, and at the diftance * This tree pofleffes the peculiar property of breeding no vermin, either while growing or when cut down ; neither does it harbour any Caterpillar, the &lk-worm excepted, Evelyn's Sylva, by Hunter, yo!, 2. Pe 40. 124 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND of two inches in the rows, leaving only two or three buds above ground: Mulch the ground with leaves or dung well rotted, to keep it moift, and the plants will require little watering. If they fucceed well, they may, next feafon, be tran{planted into a nurfery, and treated as direfted for layers. Thefe young — trees, while they remain in the nurfery, fhould be tranfplanted every three or four years. I would recommend planting of mulberries in grafs or- chards and pleafure grounds, becaufe the fineft of the fruit, when ripe, frequently drops, which, if it fall on dug or plough- ed ground, will be foiled and rendered unfit for ufe, as the earth will adhere fo to the fruit as to render the cleaning of it im- praéticable ; but if planted on lawns, or in gra{s orchards, the fruit can be picked up without receiving any injury. Another reafon for planting thefe trees on lawns or in orchards is, that, when full grown, they are too large for a kitchen garden. The {oil in which they thrive beft is a rich, light, and deep earth. As the fruit is produced on the young wood, you fhould cut out only fuch branches as crofs others, and fuch as are de- cayed, or broken ai any accident ; at the fame time apply the compofition. If, however, the heads fhould become too full of wood, it will be neceffary to thin them, as the fruit is larger and better flavoured where the heads are kept thin of wood. I have found many of thefe trees ina very decayed flate, with the trunks quite hollow; and have tried the efficacy of the compofition on feveral of them, cutting out all the dead wood and cankery parts of fome, and heading down others that were ftunted and fickly. After thefe operations they put forth vig- orous branches, aad bore excellent crops of fruit, more than double the fize of that which they produced in their former fates ao) a ras ' IT would advife thofe wizo have any old decayed mulber- ry-trees, to treat them in the fame manner ; but thofe which are very much decayed fhould be headed down; this will throw them into a healthy bearing hate, and in two or three years they will produce plenty of fine fut. In the lawn in front of the houfe of Joan Grove, Efq. at - Little Chelfea, there are four old mulberry-trees, which a few years ago were fo very much decayed, and fo fur! of wounds and dead wood, that they produced very little fruit, ad that of a fmall fize. I had all the decayed and rotten wood ca,etully cut out, and the branches trimmed, and then the compot on applied. In the firft feafon they fent forth fine fhoots, and 1.2 the fecond produced plenty of fruit, of a better flavour and double the fize of that which they formerly bore, . MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c: 195 _« _ As old mulberry-trees produce not only a greater quantity _ of fruit, but alfo much larger and of a finer flavour, than young ones, it is well worth while to take fome pains to repair the - - injuries which they may have fuftained by accidents or age: Iam forry to fay, that this pleafant and valuable fruit is but very little cultivated in this country.* * Gerard, in his defcription of the mulberry-tree, has the following cu- rious paragraph :—‘* Hexander in Atheneus affirmeth, that the mulberry- trees in his time did not bring forth fruit in twenty years together ; and, that fo great a plague of the gout reigned and raged fo generally, as not onl oe but boys, wenches, eunuchs, and women, were troubled with that dif> eale.’? *” a26 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND | ———— | GHAPTER XVIIL- OF THE SERVICE. The Cultivated Service, the Wild Service, and the Maple-leaved Service ; with ther Culture. - "Tusre are three forts of the Service-Tree cultivated in England, viz. the Cultivated Service, the Wild Service, or Mountain Afh, and the Maple-leaved Service. The firft isa native of the warmer climes of Europe; and the other two grow wild in different parts of England. The Service belongs to the twelfth clafs of Linnzus? Syftem, entitled Icofandria Trigynia. Of the Cultivated Service. This tree is well worth cultivating, both for its fruit and for ornament. It is beautiful in the month of June when in flower, and the fruit in autumn has a fine appearance, and grows to a large fize if the trees be kept thin, and not over Joaded with wood. They may be planted in orchards among other fruit trees ; for, as they flower much later than apples and pears, there will be no danger of the Farina intermixing with theirs. They may alfo have a place in plantations in the pleafure grounds, or fingly on the lawn, or in the rows by the fides of gravel-walks: In this cafe, they fhould be trained with ftraight ftems eight or ten feet high, and all the ftraggling branches fhould be cut in, to affift them in forming handfome round heads. Thefe trees may be intermixed with thorns, and will have a very good effeét. We have only two forts cultivated in the garden; viz. the Apple-Shaped, and the Pear-Shaped Service-Tree. Thefe trees are propagated from feed, layers, and cut- tings By raifing them from feed you may perhaps obtain feveral varieties ; but the beft method of preferving the forts, when you have fine varieties, is, by grafting or budding. Train the fem, if for ftandards, fix or eight feet high ; but if for dwarfs, about three feet high ; which latter may be | MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 127 _ planted in fhrubberies. The fruit, when ripe, may be gather- ed and put in the fruit-room ; letting it remain till nearly in a ftate of decay: It will make a variety when ferved up to table among the autumn fruits. : The wood of this tree is very ufeful for making piéture- frames, toys, &c. When the trees are pruned, and where there are any de- cayed parts, the compofition fhould be applied. Of the Wild Service-Tree, or Mountain Afh. The Wild Service is fometimes planted in orchards among fruit trees; but I would recommend planting it in pleafure grounds, plantations, or on lawns, for ornament, where the different varieties of the fruit have a beautiful effeét in au- tumn ; and the fruit gathered, when full ripe, and laid by fome time to foften, has a very agreeable acid tafte. The feeds, when properly dried, may be fown in autumn in beds of light mould ; taking care to keep them free from weeds in fummer. In the following autumn they may be tranfplanted into beds, or quarters, (according to the number which you may with to plant) and trained either for dwarfs or flandards. : By feleéting the largeft and fineft fruit, many varieties may be obtained from the feed; they may alfo be propagated from layers; but thofe who are fond ot having a great variety, and keeping the fcrts true, fhould graft them. If trained up with ftraight clean ftems, fervice-trees wil! grow to the height of thirty or forty feet; in that cafe they fhould be planted among foreft-trees, or on the back parts of large {hrubberies. But thofe who with to plant them as flow- ering fhrubs muft head them down when young, to make them throw oui horizontal fhoots ; they may then be planted among the middling fized fhrubs, which will make a beauti- ful variety, both when in flower and when bearing fruit. Wild fervice-trees* grow to a confiderable fize when properly managed, and are very much ufed by wheelers, &c. ©n account of the wood being all, what they call, heart-wood. Of the Maple-leaved Service-Tree. __ This tree grows wild at Paddington, and in other parts of England, and is frequently forty or fifty teet high, with a large {preading head, making a fine appearance, and deferves a place among foreft trees, and in extenfive plantations and gardens. % The fruit of the wild fervice is excellent food for game and other birds. 128 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND It bears large bunches of white flowers, fucceeded by clufters of brown fruit, which, when gathered full ripe, and laid by for fome time, till it becomes foft, has a very agreeable tart flavour. This tree may be raifed from feed, which fhould be fown in autumn, or by layers; but thofe who with to raife them in the dwarf ftate fhould grait them very low, and train them from fix toeight feethigh. Some graft them on white thorns ; but I prefer their own flocks. If thefe dwarfs are trained up with fine heads, they will have a very good effeét in fhrubbe- ries. If intended for ftandards, train them up as high as you can: They will have a beautiful appearance in the back parts — of fhrubberies. They may alfo be trained without grafting, and planted on lawns for ornament. Some train them as ef- paliers ; but this I do not approve of, as they are not fo orna- mental, neither do they bear fo well. The wood of this tree is alfo very ufetul for mechanical purpofes. MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. » 129 ie a | GHAPTER XVIII. OF THE ALMOND. Different Sorts of Almonds ; their Propagation, and the Me- s thod of Pruning them.— How to keep them during Winter. Alas Almond belongs to the twelfth clafs of Linnzus, Icofandria Monogynia, being joined with the Peach, and was introduced here in 1570. Almonds are beautiful trees for planting in fhrubberies and plantations, and deferve a place in every pleafure ground, on account of their coming fo early into bloom, and for the ufe of their kernels. The following are the Sorts propagated wn this Country for Or- : nament and Uje, viz. _ The Tender-fhelled Almond, the Sweet Almond, the Common or Bitter Almond, the Sweet Jordan Almond, the Hard-fhelled Almond, the Dwarf, and the Doubie-flowering Almonds. The laft two, being beautitul early flowering fhrubs, are planted for ornament only. Almonds are propagated by budding them upon plum, _ almond, or peach ftocks. The next {pring you may train them for flandards, or let them grow for halt ftandards ; but the common way is, to bud them as high as you with the flem to be; and the fecond year alter they may be planted out for good. If you are to tranfplant them into a dry foil, let it be done in O€tober, when the leaves begin to decay ; but if into wet ground, the month ot February is the proper feafon. Al- monds budded on plum ftocks thrive beft in a wet foil, and on almond and peach flocks in a dry. When the young trees are brought from the nurfery, they fhould never be cut until the young fhoots begin to break, as dire€ted tor peaches and ne€iarines. Almonds require nearly the fame management in prun- ing as ilandard apricots. After wet autumns, when the wood is not well ripened, hard winters are ant to kill the thoots 3 5 2 Tt a ca 130 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND in that cafe, they fhould be cut down to the found wood ; tak- ing care to cut out the crofs fhoots that rub againift others, leaving the tree open in the middle, pruning the fhoots about the fame length as apricots, and according to their ftrength. Never omit cutting out all the cankery parts, and decayed wood. Some plant thefe trees out as flandards, and others as half ftandards, according to the ground and fituation ; always taking care to plant them in a fheltered place facing the South, intermixing them in the back of the fhrubberies with the taller flowering fhrubs : Or they may be planted on lawns for orna- ment, as they make a very beautiful appearance when in flow- er, or bearing fruit. 1f planted as dwarfs, they may be cover- _ ed with poles ftuck into the ground, thatching over the tops of the trees with fome fern, or any other light covering, which will prevent the bloffom from being killed by the froft in February and March. After the fruit 1s fet, and the leaves fo far out as to cover it, if fine weather, the covering may be re- moved in the latter end of April or beginning of May, which will enfure a plentiful crop of Almonds; a very ufeful fup- ply for the table in autumn and winter. Thofe who have plenty of walling fometimes plant al- mond-trees on walls, and fometimes on efpaliers. Almonds may be preferved in dry fand, or bran, for ufe ; but they muft be thoroughly dried on fhelves, or boards, in an airy place, before they are put into the {and or bran, otherwife they will get mouldy. ‘They are preferved only for their ker- nels, the other part of the fruit being of no fervice. MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 131 —_——— CHAPTER XIX, ——_—_ Dameereeend OF FILBERTS AND HAZLE-NUTS. The Sorts commonly cultivated in England — Method of Cul- ture.— How to keep them in Winter. TE vn ERTS and Hazle-Nuts grow wild in woods and hedges, and are brought in great quantities to the London markets, and to thofe of other large towns throughout the kingdom ; employing a great many poor families during the autumn, who _ ‘otherwife might have very little to do, and of courfe be a bur- den on the public. This genus of plants is ranged in the eighth order of Linnzus’ twenty-firft clafs, Moncecia Polyandria. The Sorts gencrally cultivated in England are the following : r. The Large Cob Nut. 2. The Large Long Nut, which produces very fine large fruit. 3. The Barcelona, or Spanifh Nut, with large cups. . The Common Wood Nut, with red fkinned kernels. . The Filbert with white kernels. . The Filbert with red kernels. . The Large Clufter Wood Nut. Of Propagating and Pruning Nut-Trees. Filberts and nuts of all kinds are propagated from feed » | jayers, and fuckers ; but thofe who wifh to have fine fort$ fhould graft the trees, or lay down in March fome of the STG -‘ftraighteft fhoots, notched at a joint, pegging them into the ‘ground; then cover them with earth about three inches thick, making bafons round them with edges of mould about two inches higher than the furface of the ground, to prevent the water’s running off; water them fometimes in dry weather, and mulch them with fome rotten leaves, to keep them moitt. By the following autumn they will be fit to take up and plant out in beds in the nurfery, where they fhou!d remain about two years, planting them out in Auguift where you with them 192 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND toremain for good. If any of the layers have not taken prop- er root, they may be left till the autumn following. Filberts and nuts may be planted on the outfides of woods, orin the back parts of fhrubberies and pleafure grounds, or in Jarge kitchen gardens, in fhady walks; or for the purpofe ot hiding fheds, cifterns, &c. When they are raifed trom feed, it fhould be fown in au- tumn, ina light earth; and it will be neceflary to cover the beds all over with flates, flat ftones, or bricks, to prevent the mice from eating the nuts or carrying them off in winter, — When at the Botanic Gardens, Chelfea, I once fowed feveral quarts of Large Barcelona Nuts, in pots, in two frames at a confiderable diftance from each other, the nuts were all carried off by the mice in one night. On fearching round the -Jining of a frame where we kept green-houfe plants in winter, — I found above a quart of the nuts in one hoard, which I again fowed immediately, covering them over with flates; trom thefe nuts I railed fome very fine plants. The Barcelona Nut-Tree is rather fcarcein Englana, but it is well worth cultivating ; it 1s a diftinét {pecies, and grows to a fine timber tree. The nuts that I fowed, as mentioned above, were produced from a fine tree in the Botanic Gardens at Chelfea.* Thofe who are not in poffeffion of plants may procure them from nuts trefh imported from Spain, by fowing them as above directed. Great quantities are imported annually under the name of Barcelona, or Great Spanifh Nuts. When in the nurfery, nut-trees fhould be trained with {ingle ftraight ftems, to form fine heads trom three to fix feet high; cut off the leading fhoot at the height you would have the head formed, rubbing off all the lower buds, and leaving only as many at top as you think will be fufficient to form a handfome head, and according to the ftrength of the ftem. Nuts, when intended for keeping, fhould be well dnec and packed in jars or boxes of dry fand (and placed ina fruit- room, or dry cellar,) well covered downto preferve them from mice. The fhoots of filberts and nut-trees are very ufeful for — ftacking green-houfe plants and rafpberries, or for making withes to bind faggots, and for flicking peafe.t * This tree, at two feet and a half from the ground, meafures about four feet in circumference. + I have often been aftonifhed, that thofe who have gardensin America, fhould pay fo little attention to fruit of this fort, Phe nuts, which are natives MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 133 of the Middle States, are excellent, even in their uncultivated ftate, where ey have to contend with every poffible difadvantage. They are fomething _ between the Englith hazie-nut and the filbert, and, with a little care, might R ‘be rendered very produétive and profitable. "They: are much better than the _ Spanifh nuts, which are fold at Philadelphia for a fhilling fterling a pint, or thereabouts ; and yet no pains are taken to cultivate them. Our forts, too, _ might be obtained at a very {mall expence, I have fent feveral plants to my friends at Boftletown, which, I hear, grow very well; and I have lately fent them fome of the fineft hazle-nuts I ever faw, and which I got from the gar- den of Jofeph Galloway, Eig, at Waterford. It thefe fucceed, I hope it will be an inducement for others to obtain a like fupply. 1g, TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND * CHAPTER XX. a Cm OF CHESNUTS. Different Sorts cultivated in England.—Che/nut-Trees are excellent Timber.—How to Propagate, Plant, and Head them.* Tar Chefnut, Caftanea, is a native of the South of Europe, and is faid to take its name from Caftana, a city of Theflaly, were anciently it grew in great plenty. It belongs to Linnz- us’ twenty-firft clafs, Moncecia Polyandria. : The forts moftly cultivated in England are thofe com- monly called Spanifh Chefnuts, which run into great varieties when raifed from feed; anda fort called, in America, Chin- quapin, or Dwarf Virginian Chefnut ; but this is only raifed for the fake of variety. . < The former are very fine trees, and well worth cultivat- ing both for ufe andornament. ‘The timber is reckoned equal to oak, and, for making cafks, even fuperior to it; as, when feafoned, it is not fo liabie to fhrink or {well as oak. Thefe trees have alfo a very noble appearance, and are theretore very fit to plant in parks, &c. ; Gerard fays, that in his time there were feveral woods of chefnuts in England, particularly one near Feverfham in Kent; and Fitz-Stephens, in a defcription of London, written by him in Henry the Second’s time, {peaks of a very noble foreft which grew on the North part of it. This tree grows fome- times to an amazing fize. Not to mention thofe abroad, there is one at Lord Ducie’s at Tortworth, in the county of Glou- cefter, which meafures nineteen yards in circumference, and is mentioned by Sir Robert Atkyns, in his Hiftory of that county, as a famous tree in King John’s time ; and by Mr. Evelyn, in his Sylva, book gd, chap. 7, p. 293, fourth edition, to have been fo remarkable for its magnitude in the reign of _ _ *T particularlg requeft the American reader to pay attention to what js hereafter faid abekt the prefervation of the fruit of the chefnut. | MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 135 King Stephen, as then to be called the Great Chefnut of Tort- worth; trom which it may reafonably be fuppofed to have been ftanding before the Conquefts, Lord Ducie had a draw- ing of it taken and engraved in 1772. One of the prints is now in my poffeffion.* Formerly a great part of London was built with chefnut and walnut-trees; and at Sion Houfe, the feat of the Duke of Northumberland, the ftables are built with them, from the old monaftery at that place, which was taken down when the prefent manfion-houfe was built. The beft way of propagating chefnut-trees is from feed, gathered when thoroughly ripe; which is generally about the latter end of Oétober; but they fhould not be gathered till the hufks begin to open, and the nuts appear of a brownifh col- our; they will then drop of themfelves, and fhould be care- fully picked up in the morning ; and particularly after high winds ; thofe which are intended for eating, or for feed, fhould be always fuffered to drop of themfelves; they will be found much better than thofe that are beaten down. If, however, the froft fhould fet in early, you will be under the neceffity of thrafhing them down, which fhould be done in a dry day. All that fall in the hufk fhould be thrown in heaps in a fhed, or other convenient place, and fuffered to remain three weeks, or a month, in that flate, toripen. They fhould then be taken out of the hufks, and the beft picked out and laid up by themfelves, after being well dried, on mats, or clothes, ina funny fituation, They fhould be laid up in the fruit- room, or granary, on fhelves, or on a dry floor. Remember _ to turn them trequently. The inferior ones will do for fowing, or they may be given to pigs or turkeys, who are ve- ry fond of them ; they will be found very good for fattening poultry, efpecially turkeys. If during the winter they fhould become damp or mouldy, they fhould be turned and caretully wiped ; and if {pread at a moderate diftance froma fire, or dried in an oven after the bread is drawn, and then packed in boxes, or jars, with thorough dry fand, they will keep * At Afhted park, near Epfom, the feat of Richard Howard, Efq. there are a great many Spanifh Chefnuts, that were fown by a gardener now liv- ing, one of which, at three feet from the ground, meafures feven fect in cir= cumference, and has a trunk upwards of fifty feet high. Since writing the above, I have feen the old gardener, Thomas Davie, who is now 77 years old, and have had fome converfation with him. He fays, that at the age of 15 he bought three thillings worth of chefnuts in London on purpofe to treat his fellow-fervants ; but findiag that they would Net accept of them, he fowed them in a bed in the garden at Afhted, which then belonged to the Earl of Suffolk, and afterwards planted out the young trees where they now ftand. Thefe trees are, therefore, at this time, fixty- two years old, from the feed. « 136 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND. - plump and good.* Obferve not to put them into the oven when too hot, as it will make them fhrive]: And thofe for {owing muft not be driec in this manner, as the heat of the oven would kill the germ. Ina fine warm feafon, I have feen them ripen as well and grow nearly to as large a fize as tor- eign ones, when the trees were healthy ; but ina middling feafon they will do very well for fowing, or for fatting pigs and poultry. Be careful to preferve them from rats and mice, otherwife they will foon defroy vaft quantitics of them. ‘They may be fown in beds of light earth in the month of November, if itbe a dry autumn, drawing the drills about nine inches apart, and about three deep. Plant the nuts about an inch apart in the rows, with the points upwards, as bulbous roots are planted ; then cover them with mould, and patit down with the back of your rake. The beds fhould be four or five feet wide, and a little raifed towards the middle to car- ry off the water. “Phere fhould be alleys between the beds, a- bout eighteen inches wide, and about two or three inches deep ; - thefe will receive and carry off the rain-water, which other- wife would be apt to rot the nuts. ‘Thus, a five-foot bed will admit of fix rows and a {mall edging next the alley. If you find the mice begin to attack them, the beds fnould be complete- ly covered over with flates, flat flones, or bricks, till the nuts be- gin tofpring; they muft then be taken off. It it bea hard winter, it will be neceffary, before the ftones or tiles are put on, to cover the beds with “‘fome rotten dung, rotten leaves, or old tan, to preferve the nuts from the troft. If it bea mild winter, and the nuts have been fown in autumn, they will begin to Yao: before Chrifimas; but if the autumn be wet, I would advife not to fow them till fome time in February, or the beginning of March. By the nuts being fown in rows, you will have room to hoe betwixt the rows, and be able to keep them clear of weeds, which you could not fo eafily do il ‘they were fown broadcaft. If it fhould a yea dry fummer, it will be nee to give them a good watering once or twice a week, till the Bak begin to get ftrength. If they De well managed, by the end of Oc- tober, or in the following fpring, you may tran{plant them in- to beds, in rows about a foot apart, ana at the diilance of four inches in the row, where they may remain for two Fae longer ; *In America, particularly, chefnuts become very much fhrivelled in about two months atter they are gathered. The method here defcribed, will effeCiually prevent this. Chefouts may, by this method, be kept good, frefh, and fall-fkinned, all the year round, and this, too, without any expence, worth {peaking of, and with very litt). tiouble, The fame obfervations ape ply to ali forts of nuts. / MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 197 taking care to trim all the fide fhoots, leaving only one ftraight ftem. Thefe beds may have alleys about the fame width as — before, with this difference, that the beds fhould be two inches Jower than the alleys, which muft be well trodden, to keep the earth from crumbling down into the beds. Firft level all your ground, then ftretch the line from one end of the bed to the other, according to the fize of the ground, and with your fpade cut off the edging in the infide of the bed, throwing the mould towards the middle of it; then remove the line to the other fide of the bed, which ought to be from four to fix fect wide, and cut the other edge, throwing the mould into the bed as be- fore. When this 1s done, throw up fome of the mould on the top of the alley, to make it about two inches higher than the bed, and tread the alley well down. Then begin to plant your young trees in rows acrofs the bed, a foot or fitteen inches apart, and about {ix inches in the row, digging the ground and planting as you proceed, alfo beating up the edges ot the alleys with the back of the fpade, to keep the mould from tumbling down into the bed. Proceed thus till you have finifhed the bed, and {fo on till you have planted the whole. If itbe dry weather, each bed fhould be watered as you finith planting it, which be- ing made a little lower than the alleys, will retain the water that you throw on it, and will prevent the rain from running off: It the dry weather continue long, mulch the beds as before dire&t- ed. Obferve to keep them tree from weeds, watering them as occafion requires, and trimming up the plants with only one -flem. In this flate they may remain two years, and, if any of the plants require it, flake them to keep them ftraight. At the end of two years they will be fit for tranfplanting, and may be planted out for good, 1f they are properly fenced off from cattle; but if they are to be placed in an openexpoiure, they ought firft to be planted out in a piece of ground, properly pre- pared for the purpofe, at'the diflance of two feet from row to row, and one foot in the row. If they have been planted in the autumn (which! would always recommend, except in wet ground, or when the feafon is wet) let them remain till next {pring twelvemonth, and then head them down to two eyes above ground, cutting as near as may be to an eye, and floping to the North, that the fhoot which ts thrown out may cover the ftem in the firft feafons, which, if the bufinefs be rightly performed, it will de, and grow to the length of fix or feven feet, according to the vigour of the fem, If they are nat headed down in this manner, you will never have fraight handfome trees. If the groundbe properly fenced off trom — cattle, thofe that are planted out tor good, at three years old, ; Ne e 138 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND muft be treated in the fame manner after the firft or fecond year. It may, however, be neceflary to obferve, that young trees muft not be headed down immediately after tran{plant- ing ; they ought to be well rooted before that operation is per- formed ; and it is alfo worthy of remark, that the larger the ftems are when they are headed, the ftronger and more luxu- riant will the fhoots be. I did not, at firft, intend to have faid any thing of chefnuts and walnuis; but, as moft people are tond of them, and as they are generally ferved up at table with the deflert, it feemed proper to give fome account of their culture, &c. MANAGEMENT OF FRIUT TREES. &c. 199 GHAPTER XXII. | OF WALNUTS. Different Sorts defcribed.—Their Propagation. Planting, and Lrimming.—Great Utility of the Timber.—Method of heep- ang Walnuts in Winter. Tus Walnut, Juglands, is a native of Perfia; and the time of its introduftion here is not known with certainty. It be- longs to the twenty-firft clafs of Linnzus’ Syftem, Moncecia Polyandria. Thofe commonly cultivated in this country are the fol- lowing varieties of the common walnut, viz. the Double Wal- nut, the Large Walnut, the French Walnut, the Thin-fkinned Walnut, and the Late Walnut. The Hickery Nut from North America, the fruit of which is {mall but well flavoured, is alfo raifed here, as is the Black Virginia Walnut; but this latter is cultivated chiefly for its timber. There are feveral other forts from North America, which are planted for variety.* The beft way of raifing thefe trees is from the nut, which fhould be gathered when full ripe; Thofe with thin fhells are to be preterred for this purpofe. Walnuts, unlefs a fharp troft fets in, which is very feldom the cafe betore they are ripe, fhould be fuffered to remain on the trees till they begin to drop of themfelves: Shaking of the tree will then bring them down. Beating them down with poles, as is ufually done, in- jures the trees very much, by breaking the young fhoots: Be- fide, the nuts never will keep well when they are thrafhed down too early. | The nuts may be fown in drills in the fame manner as chef- nuts: The beft time for doing this, if the feafon be dry, is au- tumn; and the nuts muft be thoroughly dry, otherwife they will be apt to rot before they vegetate. It the autumn be wet, they _ may be fownin the month of February or the beginning of _* Thefe latter are the different forts of what is called the Butter Nuc in America, They feldom bear, in England, and the fruit is good for nothing, , 140 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND _ March, and ought to be covered over as direéted for chefnuts, to preferve them trom mice, If they thrive well, they will be fit for tranfplanting the firft autumn aiter fowing ; but, if not, they fhould be fuffered to remain another year. Bed them out in the fame manner as directed for chefnuts, tranf{- planting every fecond or third year, until they are planted out for good. This will caufe them to throw out fine horizontal roots, and bring them into a bearing flate much fooner than when they make deep tap-roots. ‘Train them up with fine fin- -gle ftems to about feven feet high, before you fuffer them to form heads; the branches will then be out of the reach of cat. tle. The time of tranfplanting them out denends on the pro= grefs that they have made in the nurfery ; they fhould be fuf- tered to continue there until they have grown to a tolerable fize, and to the height juft mentioned as proper for ftandards, The ground, where they are to be planted, fhould be well ploughed or trenched, and the trees planted, at firft, in rows fix feet apart, and the fame diftance from tree to tree in the rows, in the quincunx order, and thus to remain till they come into bearing: This will be neceffary, as there is no dependance on the fort of fruit that trees raifed from feed may produce. Af- ter you have made choice of thofe which bear the bef fruit, the other may be planted out for timber, or cut down tor ftakes, or any other purpofe. The trees lett for bearing muft be thin- ned, by taking out every other tree in the remaining rows, as they increafe in fize, till they ftand at the diftance proper for full grown trees ; which may be from twenty-four to forty- eight feet, according to the richnefs of the foil and the pro- grefs which the trees make. : : _.. In trimming the ftems of walnut-trees, cut off the fhoots and {mall branches clofe to the bole; and in lopping, cutting out crofs branches, or fuch as are damaged by winds and other accidents, always cut at a fork or eye, otherwife part of the branch will die and injure the tree. But, whether only a part or the whole of a branch be cut off, the compofition ought immediately to be applied.* Formerly, walnut-tree was much ufed for building, and for houfehold furniture ; but mahogany, and other foreign tim- bers, have now, in a great meafure, {uperceded it, efpecially in the latter article. This timber will do very well for uprights, © but is rather too britile for joifts, rafters, &c. and, when prop- * I know that there is great difficulty in raifing walnut-treesin Americas but I, neverthelefs, am of opinion, that, if proper attention were paid tothe gulumtion of them, they would aniwer very well, At any rate it is worth @ (rial, MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c: 141 erly polifhed, it looks very well in chairs, tables, bureaus, &c. It 1s, at prefent, a’ good deal ufed for gun-ftocks. Walnuts thrive beft in a deep rich foil, but will do very well ina chalky foil, as may be feen on the hulls in Surry, in the neighbourhood of Leatherhead, Godflone, and Carfhalton ; and, at Bedding- ton-Park, the feat of the ancient family of the Carews, there are many fine old walnut-trees. Thefe trees are well worth cultivating ; as the yearly value of the fruit that they Dear is very confiderable * There is a great deal of money made, in plentitul years, by thinning of the nuts tor pickling, both for home confumption, and alfo tor exportation, The leaves of walnuts fleeped in boiling water, and that intufion mixed with lime-water, foap-{uds, and urine, is tound very efficacious tor deftroying {lugs and worms in the ground, and infetts on trees. Walnuts for keeping fhould be {uffered to drop of them- Selves, and afterwards laid in an open airy place till they are thoroughly dried ; then pack them in jars, boxes, or cafks, with fine clean fand, that has been well dried in the fun, in an oven. or before the fire, in layers of fand and walnuts alter- nately ; fet them in a dry place, but not where it is too hot. ‘In this manner I have kept them good till the latter end of April. Before you fend them to table, wipe the fand clean off ; and, if you find they have become fhrivelled, fteep them in milk and water tor fix or eight hours before they are ufed ; ie make them plump and fine, and caufe them to peel eafily. * At Beddington, about 50 walnut-trees (and not above half that num= ber full bearers) have been let at 301. 4ol, and sol. according to the crop 3 and it is fuppofed, that in a good feafon the renter clears 501. by the bargain. Beddington was uoted in Queen Elizabeth’s time for the fineft orangery ja England, : 142 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND — CHAPTER XXIIo ——aas OF GRAFTING AND BUDDING. Four different ways of Grafting, with Ob/fervations.—On ufing® the Compofition, Te of Grafting-Llay—Of Budding, with Observations, Sec. Me res G is the taking of a fhoot from one tree, and in- ferting it into another, in fuch a manner as that both may unite clofely and become one tree ; this is called, by the ancient writers in hufbandry and gardening, zncifion, to diftinguith it from inoculating, or budding, which they call zn/erere oculos. I have taken a great deal of pains to trace the pra€tice of grafting to its origin, but without fuccefs ; as no author that I have perufed gives any fatisfa€tory account of it; it is, how- ever, allowed by all to be very ancient. The ufe ot grafting is, to propagate any curious forts of fruits fo as to be certain of the kinds ; which cannot be done by any other method: For, as all the good fruits have been accidentally obtained trom feeds, fo, of the feeds of thefe, when fown, many will degenerate, and produce fuch fruit as 1s not worth the cultivating : But when fhoots are taken from fuch trees as produce good fruit, thefe will never alter from their kind, whatever be the flock or tree on which they are grafted, The principle or philofophy of gratting is fomewhat obs. {cure; and, had not accident given the firft hint, all our knowledge otf nature would never have Jed us to it. The ef- feét is ordinarily attributed to the diverfity of the pores or duéts of the graft trom thofe of the ftock, which change the figure of the particles of the juices in pafling through them. to the reft of the tree. " ra Mr. Bradley, on occafion of fome obfervations by Agri- cola, fuggeits fomething new on this head. The ftock gratted — on, he thinks, is only to be confidered as a fund of vegetable matter which is to be filtered through the cion, and digefted, and brought to maturity, as the time of growth in the veflels of the cion diretts, A cion, therefore, of one kind grafted on * ae MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 14 atree of another, may be rather faid to take root in the tree that it is grafted in, than to unite itfelf with it: For itis vifi- ble, that the cion preferves its natural purity and intent, though it be fed and nourifhed by a mere crab; which is, without doubt, occafioned by the difference of the veffels in the cion from thofe of the flock ; fo that grafting may be juft- ly compared to planting. ~ : In profecution of this view, of that ingenious author, we add, that the natural juices of the earth, by the fecretion and comminution in paffing through the roots, &c. betore they ar- rive at the cion, muft doubtlefs arrive there half elaborated and concoéted, and fo difpofed for a more eafy, plentiful, and per- fe&t affimilation and nutrition ; whence the cion muft necef- farily grow and thrive better and fafter than if it were put im- mediately in the ground, there to live on coarfer diet and hard- er of digeftion; and the fruit produced by this further prepar- ation in the cion, muft be finer, and further exalted, than if fed immediately from the more imperteétly prepared and al- tered juices of the flock. It may, perhaps, be thought un- _neceflary to fay any thing here on grafting, as it has been fo fully treated of by Mr. Miller, and other writers on garden- ing ; but as this treatife is principally on pruning and training, gratting feems naturally conneéted with it. I perfuade myfelf, therefore, that a few inftructions in grafting will not be unacceptable, as they may fave the reader the trouble of turning to other books ; efpecially as they are more particularly intended for the grafting of old trees, and fuch as are found, when they come to bear, to be a different fort from what was expeéted: For, although nurferymen in - general are very caretul in thefe matters, yet, through the in- attention of their men, or fome miftake, or by an improper choice of the forts, it will frequently happen, that, after wait- ing thirteen or fourteen years, when the trees come to bear, the fruit is found of a bad quality, and not fit for ufe ; fo that new gra{ting or budding is abfolutely neceflary. I fhall, therefore, give what dire€tions may be neceffary _ on that fubjeét, to render it plain and eafy to thofe who have not been regularly inftruéted in the art of grafting from gen- eral pra€tice ; and add a method which I have followed for fome years, and which, I flatter myfelf, will be found an im- provement. __ The fhoots ufed in grafting are called cions, or grafts ; _ and in the choice ot thefe the tollowing direétions fhould be caretully obferved. ft. That they are fhoots of the former year; for when they are older they never fucceed well. adly. ‘44g TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND Always to take them from healthy fruitful trees; for, if the trees from which they are taken be fickly, the grafts very of. ten partake fo much of the diftemper as rarely to get the bet. ter of it, at leaft for fome years; and when they are taken from young luxuriant trees, whofe veflels are generally large, they will continue to produce luxuriant fhoots, but are fel- dom fo produtive as thofe which are taken trom fruitlul trees whofe fhoots are more compact, and the joints clofer to- gether; at leaft it will be a great number of years before the luxuriant grafts begin to produce fruit, even if managed with the greateft fkill. 3dly. You fhould prefer thofe gralts which are taken from the lateral or horizontal branches, to thofe from the ftrong perpendicular fhoots, for the reafons betore iven. Thefe grafts, or cions, fhould be cut off from the trees before their buds begin to fwell, which is generally three wecks or a month betore the feafon for grafting ; theretore, when they are cut off they fhould be laid in the ground with the cut downwards, burying them half their length, and cover ing their tops with dry litter, to prevent their drying; if a {mall joint of the former year’s wood be. cut off with the cion, it will preferve it the better, and when they are grafted this may be cut off; for at the fame time the cions muft be cut to a proper length before they are inferted in the ftocks; out till then, the fhoots fhould remain of their full length, as they were taken from the tree, which will better preferve them from fhrinking; if thefe cions are to be carried toaconfidera- _ ble diftance, it will be proper to put their ends into a lump of clay, and to wrap them up in mofs, which will preferve them frefh for a month, or longer ; but thele fhould be cut off from the trees earlier than thofe which are to be gratted near the place where the trees are growing. Having given dire@ions for the cions and grafts, we next come to that of the flock, which is a term applied to the trees intended for grafting ; thefe are, either {uch old trees as are already growing in the places where they are to re- main, whole fruit is intended to be changed ; or young trees, which have been raifed in the nurfery for a fupply to the garden ; in the former cafe, there is no other choice, than that of the branches, which fhould be fuch as are young, healthy, well fituated, and have a {mooth bark ; if thefe trees are growing again{ft walls, or efpaliers, it will be proper to grat fix, eight, or ten branches, according to the fize of the trees, by which they will be much fooner turnifhed with branches again, than when a lefs number of clons are putin 5 MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &e. 145 but in ftandard trees, four, or at moft fix, cions will be fuf- ficient. | In the choice of young ftocks for grafting, you fhould al- ways prefer fuch as have been raifed from the feed, and that have been once or twice tran{planted. Next to thefe, are thofe ftocks which have been raifed from cuttings, or layers ; but thofe which are fuckers trom the roots of other trees fhould always be rejeéted ; for thefe are never fo well rooted as the others, and conftantly put out a great number of fuckers from their roots, whereby the bor- ders and walks of the garden will be always peftered during the fummer feafon; thefe are not only unfightly, but they al- fo take off part of the nourifhment from the trees, If thefe ftocks have been allowed a proper diftance in the nurfery where they have grown, the wood will be better ripen= ed, and more compaét, than thofe which have grown clofe, and have been there drawn up to a greater height; the wood of thefe will be foft, and their veffels large; fo that the cions grafted into them will fhoot very ftrong; but they will be lefs difpofed to produce fruit than the other ; and when trees ac- quire an ill habit at firft it will be very difficult to reclaim them afterwards. Having directed the choice of cions and ftocks, we come next to the operation ; in order to which you muft be provid« ed with the following tools : 1. A neat {mall hand-faw, for cutting off the heads of large ftocks. 2. A good ftrong knife, witha thick back, to make clefts in the ftocks. tj 3. A fharp pen-knife, or budding-knife, to cut the grafts. 4. A grafting chifel and a {mall mallet. _ 5. Bafs ftrings, or woolen yarn, to tie the grafts with 5 and {uch other inftruments and materials as you fhould find neceflary, according to the fort of grafting which you are to perform. | 6. A quantity of clay, which fhould be prepared a month before it is ufed, and kept turned and mixed, like mortar, every other day : This is to be made in the following man- ner. Get a quantity of flrong fat loam (in proportion to the quantities of trees intended to be grafted;) then take fome new ftone-horfe dung, and break it in among the loam; andif _ you cut a little ftraw, or hay, very {mall, and mix amongft it, the loam will hold together the better; and it there be a quan- tity of falt added, it will ee the clay from dividing in dry 146 . TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND weather; thefe muft be well flirred together, putting water to . them atter the manner of making mortar ; it fhould be hol- lowed like a difh, filled with water, and kept every other day flirred; but it ought to be remembered, that it fhould not be expoled to the froft, or drying winds ; and the oftener it is flirred and wrought the better. Of late years, fome perfons have made ufe of another compofition for grafting, which they have found to anfwer the. intention ot keeping out the air better than the clay before de- {cribed. This is compofed of turpentine, bees-wax, and rolin, melted together; which, when of a proper confiftence, may be puton the flock round the graft, in the manner as the clay is ufually applied; and, though it be not above a quarter ofan inch thick, it will keep out the air more effe€tually than the clay; and, as cold will harden this, there is no danger of its being hu t by froft, which is very apt to caufe the clay to’ cleave, and fometimes to fall off; and, when the heat of the’ fummer comes on, this mixture will melt, and fall off with-” out any trouble. In the ufing of this, there fhould be a tin’ or copper pot, with conveniency under it to keep a very gen- tle fire with {mall coal; otherwife the cold will foon condenfe the mixture: But you muit be careful not to apply it too hot, left you injure the graft. A perfon who is a httle accuftom- ed to this compofition will apply it very faft; and it is much eafier for him to work with than clay, efpecially if the feafon fhould prove cold. There are feveral ways of grafting, but four principal ones. | See Plate 11. } 1. Gratting in the rind, called alfo fhoulder-grafting ; whichis ‘only proper for large trees: This is called crown- graiting, becaufe the grafts are fet in form ofa circle, or crown; and it 1s generally performed about the latter end of March, or the beginning of April. 2. Clett-gratting, which is alfo called ftock, or flit-graft- ing: Thisis proper tor trees or ftocks of a leffer fize, from an inch to two inches or more, diameter: This grafting is to be performed in the months of February and March, and fup- plies the failure of the efcutcheon way, which is pra€tifed in June, Juty, and Auguft. 3. Whip-gratting, which is alfo called tongue-gratting : This is proper for {mal| ftocks ot an inch, halt an inch, orlels, diameter; it isthe moft effectual way of any, and is moft in ule. 4. Grafting by approach, or abla€tation: This is pra€tif- ed when the ftock that you would graft on, and the tree tron ~~ MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 147 which you take your graft, fland fo near together, that they _ may be joined; and fhould be performed in the month of A- pril. This method, which is alfo called inarching, is chiefly _ufed for jafmines, oranges, and other tender exotic trees. We come next to the manner of performing the feveral methods of grafting. igh The firft, which is termed rind, or fhoulder-grafting, is feldom praétiled but on large trees, where either the head or the large branches are cut off horizontally, and two or more cions put in, according to the fize of the branch, or ftem ; in doing this, the cions are cut flat on one fide, with a {houlder to re{t upon the crown of the ftock; then the rind of the {tock muft be raifed up, to admit the cion between the wood and the bark of the ftock, which muff be inferted about two inch- €s, fo as that the fhoulder of the cion may meet, and clofely join the crown of the ftock ; and, after the number of cions is anferted, the whole crown of the ftock fhould be well clayed over, leaving two eyes ot the cions uncovered therewith, which will be fufficient for fhooting. This method otf grafting was much more in praétice formerly than it is at prefent; and the difcontinuance of it was caufed by the ill fuccefs with which it was attended ; for, as thefe cions were placed between the tind of the ftock and the wood, they were frequently blown out by flrong winds, after they had made large fhoots, which has fometimes happened after five or fix yeais’ growth; fo that, whenever this method is praétifed, there fhould be fome flakes taftened to fupport the cions until they have almoft covered the ftock. ) _ The next method is termed cleft, or flock- grafting ; this as praftifed upon flocks, or trees, of a {maller fize, and may be ufed with fuccefs where the rind of the ftock is not too thick, whereby the inner bark of the cion will be prevented from joining to that of the ftock. This may be performed on dtocks, or branches, that are more than one inch diameter ; The head of the flock, or branch muft be cut off witha flope, _and a flit made the contrary way, in the top ot the flope, deep enough to receive the cion, which fhould be cut floping like a wedge, fo as (o fit the flit made in the flock; being caretul to Jeave that fide of the wedge which is to be placed outward much thicker than the other: And in putting the cion into the flit of the ftock, there muft be great care taken to join the rind of the cion to that of the ftock ; for it thefe do not unite, ‘the grafts will not fucceed; when this method of grating is uted to ftocks that are not flrong, it will be proper to ‘make a ligature of bafs, to prevent the flit of the flock trom 148 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND opening ; then the whole fhould be clayed over, to prevent the air from penetrating the flit, fo as to deftroy the grafts, only leaving two eyes of the cions above the clay for fhooting. The third method is termed whip, or tongue-gratnng, which is the moft commonly praétifed of any by the Nurfery- men near London, efpecially for fmall flocks, becaufe the a much fooner cover the ftocks in this method than in any other. This is performed by cutting off the head of the ftocks flcping ; then there muft be a notch made in the flope toward the upper part downward, a little more than half an inch deep, to receive the cion, which muff be cut with a flope upward, and a flit made in this flope like a tongue, which tongue muft be inferted into the flit made in the flope of the flock, and the cion muft be placed on one fide of the flock, fo as that the two rinds of both cion and ftock may be equal and join to- gether exa€tly ; then there fhould be a ligature ot bafs to taf- ten the cion, fo that it may not be eafily difplaced, and after- wards clay it over as in the former methods. The fourth fort of grafting is termed inarching, gralting by approach, or abla€tation. This is only to be performed when the ftocks that are defigned to be gratted, and the tree from which the graft is to be taken, ftand fo near together, as that their branches may be united. It is commonly praétifed on tender exotic plants, and fome other forts which do not ducceed in any ot the other methods. In performing this operation, a part of the flock or branch mutt be {lit off about two inches in length, obferving always to make choice of a fmooth part of the ftock ; then a {mall notch Should be made in this flit of the ftock downward, in the fame manner as hath been dire&ted tor whip-gratting ; the branch ot the tree defigned to be inarched fhould have a part flit off in like manner as the ftock, and a flit made upward in this fo as to leave a tongue, which tongue fhould be inferted into the flit of the ftock ; obferving to join their rinds equally, that they may unite well together ; then make a ligature of bals, to keep them exaétly in their fituation, and afterwards clay this part of the ftock over well, to keep out the air; in this method of grafting, the cion is not feparated trom the trree until it is firmly united with the flock; nor is the head of the ftock, or branch, which is grafted, cut off till this time, and only half the wood pared off with a flope, about three inches in length, and the fame of the cion or graft. 7 This method of gratting is not performed fo early in the feafon as the others; it being done in the month of April, MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 149 when the fap is flowing, at which time the. cion and flock will join together, and unite much fooner than at any other feafon. _ The walnut, fig, and mulberry, will take by this method of grafting, but neither of thefe will fucceed in any of the oth- er methods ; there are alfo feveral forts of evergreens that may be propagated by this method of grafting ; but al! the trees that are grafted in this way are weaker, ‘and never grow tothe fize of thofe which are grafted in the o‘her metheds ; therefore this is rarely practifed but on fuch forts of trees as will not take by the other metheds. Objervations on Grafting. In a Jong continuance of dry weather the grafts very fre- quent!y fail of taking ; fometimes, no doubt, owing to the improper choice of the gralts, as well as to the dry weather, Great care fhuuld always be taken not to graft with weak fhoots, particularly thofe taken from near the top. Always take your gratts from the lower end otf the fhoots, and abferve that the wood is plump and frefh ; for fuch as are fhrivelled feldom or never take. Where any have miffed in the {pring, I would advife to cut off, about the middle or latter end of Inne, (in America, the middle of July) fome fine healthy gratts of the fort that you wifh to graft with, open the bark in the fame manner as you do for budding, [of which hereatter ] and infert the graft with a piece of the former year’s wood on it: After you have done this, rub in, with a brufh, fome of the compofition in a liquid ftate ; then wrap your bafs round it, as is done for {pring grafting, leaving about three eyes on the fhoot, which fhould be tied on with the bafs as tight as you can; then cover the outfide of the bafs, thus tied up, with the compofition, to the thicknefs of about one eighth of an inch, obferving alfo to cover the end of the fhoot with the fame, to exclude the air and wet. In about three weeks, or a month, look over the grafts to fee if they have taken. When the graft begins to {well, it will throw off the compofition: When that is the cafe, always remember to apply more, to prevent the air from penetrating the incifion. In the month of September, ycu fhould examine whether the wounds are al] healed up, and the two barks perteétly united ; if they are, you may flacken the bafs ; and if they are perfeétly healed up, it may be taken off; but if not, the bafs muft again be tied on, and covered with the compofition as before direft- ed ; letting it remain till the following fpring. You may then take the bafs off ; and, if you find that the two barks have fep- 150 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND arated during the winter, with the point of a fharp knife, cut out all the brown part of the bark (which, 1f lett, would infal- Jibly bring on the canker,) and rub the compofition into the wound. If your grafts have produced {trong leading fhoots, the tops of them fhould be pinched off with the finger and thumb ; but if they have not fhot flrong, they fhould not be cut till the fpring, when they fhould be cut to three or four eyes, according to their ftrength, to make them produce hori- | zontal fhoots, and form handfome heads. This gratting fhould always be performed in moift or cloudy weather. I have already, in the chapter on apple-trees, mentioned the advantages to be derived trom ufing the compofition in- ftead of grafting-clay, and alfo given fome direttions for the fame. Rubbing a little of it into the incifion will effectually prevent the canker, and in applying it round the gralt, a much lefs quantity will be fufficient than of the clay ; as it need not be more than three inches round in gratting {mall ftems or fhoots, ard fo in proportion for thofe which are larger. The compofition will keep the cion moift, and will not crack and fall off in dry weather as clay does. [he compofition to be ufed in grafting fhould be of fuch a confiftence as to work eafily with the hand, ora knife, or {mall trowel, rather fotter than grafting clay generally is. Any perfon, who gives this method a fair trial, will find it to be a fure, neat, and expedi- tious way of grafting. ! . Grafting, or budding, fhould be performed as near to the upper fide of a bud as poflible. The moft proper place for peeie the cion, or bud, 1s at the joint a littie above the crofs oot. ; Inoculation, or Budding. This is commonly pra&ifed upon all forts of ftone fruit in particular ; fuch as peaches, ne€tarines, cherries, plums, &c. as alfo oranges and jafmines ; and is preferable to any fort of gratting for mofl kinds of fruit. The method of performing it is as follows: You mutt be provided with a fharp pen- knife, or what is commonly called a budding- knife, having a flat haft (the ufe of which is, to raife the bark of the {tock to admit the bud,) and fome found bafs mat, which fhould be foaked :n water to increafe its flrength, and make it more pliable ; then, having taken off cuttings from the trees that you would propa- _ gate, you {hould choofe a fmooth part of the ftock, about five or fix inches above the furface of the ground, if defigned for dwaris, and for halt ftandards at three feet ; but, for flandards, they fhould be budded fix or more feet above the ground ; MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 151 _ then with your knife, make an horizontal cut acrofs the rind of the flock, and from the middle of that cut make a flit down- wards about two inches in length; fo that it may be in the form of a T ; but you mutt be careful not to cut too deep, left you wound the ftock; then having cut off the leaf from the bud, leaving the foot-ftalk remaining, you fhould make a crofs cut about half an inch below the eye, and with your knife flit off the bud with part of the wood to it, in form of an efcut- cheon ; this done, you muft with your knife pull off that part _ of the wood which was taken with the bud, obferving whether _ the eye of the bud be lett to it or not (tor all thofe buds which lofe their eyes in ftripping fhould be thrown away, being good for nuthing ;) then having gently raifed the bark of the {tock where the crofs incifion was made, with the flat hatt or handle of your knite, clear of the wood, you fhould thruft the bud therein, oblerving to place it {mooth between the rind and the wood of the ftock, cutting off any part of the rind belong- ing to the bud which may be too long for the flit made in the ftock ; and having thus exaétly fitted the bud to the ftock, you mutt tie them clofely round with bafs mat, beginning at the under part oi the flit, and fo proceed to the top ; taking care that you do not bind round the eye of the bud, which fhould be left open. When your buds have been inoculated three wecks or a month, you will fee which of them have taken ; thofe which appear fhrivelled and black are dead ; but thofe which remain frefh and plump, you may be fure are joined ; and at this time you fhwuld loofen the bandage, which if not done in time, hh pinch the ftock, and greatly injure, if not deflroy, the ud." In the March following you muft cut off the ftock about three inches above the bud ; floping it, that the wet may pafs off, and not enter the ftock: To this part of the flock left above the bud, it is very proper to faften the fhoot which pro- ceeds from the bud, and which would be in danger of being blown out, if not prevented ; but this muft continue no longer than one year, after which it mult be cut off clofe above the bud, that the ftock may be covered thereby. The time for inoculating is, trom the middle of June un- til the middle of Auguft, (in America, from the end of Juneto the end of Augufl) according to the forwardnels of the fea- fon, and the particular forts of trees to be propagated; but _ the time may be eafily known, by trying the buds, whether they will come off well from the wood, or not. However, the moft general rule is, when you obferye the buds formed 152. TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND at the extremity of the fame year’s fhoots, which isa fign of their having finifhed their {pring growth. The firft fort commonly inoculated is the apricot, and the Jaft the orange-tree, which fhould never be done until the mid- dle of Auguft ; and in doing of this work, you fhould always make choice of cloudy weather ; tor if it be done in the mids dle ot the day, in very hot weather, the fhoots will perfpire fo faft as to leave the buds deflitute of moifture ; nor fhould you take off the cuttings from the trees long before they are ufed ; but if you are obliged to tetch your cuttings from fome dif- tance, as it olten happens, cut off the leaves, let al! the toot. ftalks remain, then wrap the cuttings up in wet mofs, and put them in atin box (carrying them in a tin cafe with water be- ing now dilufed) to exclude the air ; in this manner you may carry them to any reafonable diftance in good condition for inoculating. It is a very improper pra€tice of many perfons, to throw their cuttings into water ; for this fo faturates the buds with moifture, that they have no attraétive force left to imbibe the fap of the flock ; for want of which they very ofien mifcarry. But betore I quit this fubje&, I beg leave to obferve, that though it is the ordinary praétice to diveft the bud of that part of the wood which was taken from the fhoot with it; yet, in many forts of tender trees, it is beft to preferve a little wood to the bud, without which they often fail. The not obferving this has occafioned fome people to imagine, that certain forts of trees are not to be propagated by inoculation ; whereas, if they had pertormed it in this method, they might have fucceed- ed, as I have feveral times experienced. The next thing neceflary to be known by thofe who would praétice this art is, what trees will take and thrive, by being grafted, or inoculated, upon each other ; and here there have been no fure dire€tions given by any of the writers on this fubjeét ; for there will be found great miftakes in all their books, in relation to the matter ; but, as it would extend this article too far, it all the forts of trees were to be here enumer- ated which will take upon each other by grafting or budding, I fhall only give fuch general direétions as, it attended to, will be fuflicient fo to inflruét perfons, as that they may fuc- ceed, \ All fuch trees as are of the fame genus, 2. ¢. whidiabiee in their flower and fruit, will take upon each other : Por in- ftance, all the nut-bearing trees may be fately grafted on each other, as may all the plum-bearing trees, under which head I reckon not only the feveral forts of plums, but alfo the al- MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c: 153 mond, peach, netarine, apricot, &c. which agree exaftly in their general charafters, by which they are diftinguifhed trom all other trees; but, as many of tiefe are very fubject to emit large quantities of gum from the parts of the trees which are deeply cut and wounded, in the tender trees of this kind, viz. eaches.and neétarines, which are moft fubjeét to this, it is found to be the furef{t method to bud or inoculate thefe forts of fruits.* All fuch trees as bear cones will do well upon each other, though they may differ in one being ever green, and the other fhedding its leaves in winter ; as is obfervable in the Cedar of Libanus, and the Larch-Tree, which are found to fucceed upon each other very well ; but thefe muft be gralted by ap- proach ; for they abound with a great quantity of refin which 1s apt to.evaporate from the graft if feparated trom the tree before it is joined with the ftock, whereby they. are often de- flroyed ; as alfo the laurel on the cherry, or the cherry on the laurel. All the maft-bearing trees will alfo take upon each other, and. thofe which have a tender foft wood will do well, it gratted in the common way ; but thofe that are of a more firm contexture, and are flow growers, fhould be grafted by approach, By ftri@ly obferving this:rule, we fhall feldom mifcarry, provided the operation be rightly performed, and at a proper feafon, unlefs the weather fhould prove very bad, as it fome-~ times happens, whereby whole quarters of fruit trees mifcarry ; and it is by this method that many kinds of exotic trees are not only propagated, but alfo rendered hardy enough to endure the cold of our climate in the open air; for, being grafted upon ftocks of the fame forts which are hardy, the grafts are ren- dered more capable of enduring the cold, as hath been expe- rienced by molt of our valuable fruits now in England, which were formerly tranfplanted hither from more Southerly cli. mates, and were at firft too impatient of our cold to fucceed well abroad ;. but have been, by budding or grafting wpon more/ hardy trees, rendered capable of refifting our feverett cold. Thefe different graitings feem to have been greatly in ufe among the ancients, though they were certainly miftaken in the feveral forts of fruits which they mention as having fucceeded. * The peaches and neQarines, in America, Should be inoculated upon plums, almonds, or apricots, all of which have a much greater capacity of: vefifting the attacks of thofe infeats, which defiroy the iree. But, I im- agine, that, if the American cultivator pay aftention to the chapters on dif eafes and on iniects, he will eafily preferve, or reftore, the {tems of all hia fruit trees, U 154 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND upon each other; as the fig upon the mulberry, the plum upom the chefnut, with many others of the like kind; moft of which have been tried by Mr. Miller, and found not to fucceed ; therefore what has been advanced on this head by the ancients is not founded on experience ; or, at Jeaft, they did not mean the fame plants which at prefent are called by thofe names ; though I cannot help thinking that we are apt to pay too much deference to the writings of the ancients, in fuppofing them feldcm to be miftaken, or to affert a falfehood; whereas, if their works are carefully examined, it will be found, that they have often copied from each other’s writings without making experiments to prove the truth of their affertions; and it 1s well known, that the ranging of plants before Czlalpinus’ time (which is about two hundred years fince) was, by their out- ward appearance, or from the fuppofed virtues of them, a method that is now juftly exploded ; and it has been obferved, from many repeated trials, that however plants may refemble each other in the fhape and make of their leaves, manner of _ Shooting, &c. uniefs they agree in their fruit, and their other diftinGive charaéters, they will not grow upon each other, though performed with ever fo much art. Obfervations on Budding Pear-Trees. | When the pear-trees which are grafted in the {pring have not taken, I would advife to cut them off, a little below the graft, ata joint or bud. The tree will then throw out a great number of healthy fhoots : Rub thefe all off, except fo many as will be fufficient to fill the wall; nailing thofe up, to pre- vent the wind fiom breaking them. About the latter end of July the fhoots will be fit to bud, which fhould be done about that time. 1 would recommend Jeaving a littie of the wood on the infide of the bud when in- ferted into the flock, rubbing in the compofition, and tying on the bafs as before. Laft {pring I grafted fome Summer Bonchretiens with the Bergamot de Pafque (or Kafter Bergamot) and Pear d’Auch, mott of which failed. I then cutthem off below the grafts, and in July following they had produced fhoots from five to fix feet long, which I budded in the latter end of that month with the beforementioned forts, which all took. About the begin- ning of September I ordered a man to flacken the bafles ; which having lett too loofe, the barks began to feparate. I then made him tighten them, Jetting them remain till the fol- lowing fpring. About the beginning of April, when I faw the buds begin to fhoot, I cut the fhoots near to the buds, but find- MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 15 5 ing many where the bark had not united, and fome of the eyes apparently dead, I took a {harp pen-knife and cut out all the decayed bark, rubbing in the compofition, in the hiquid ftate, till the hollow parts were filled up; I then fmoothed it off, with the finger, even with the bark of the Rock. Lalfo rubbed forme of the compofition over thofe eyes that were in the worft flate, being quite black ; but with very little hope of recovery. To my great aftonilfhment, many of thofe which feemed per- fettly dead, recovered, and by the middle of July had thoots from five to fix feet long, (many of the fhoots which took well have fruit buds formed for next year) and covered a {pace of wall larger than a young tree would have done in eight years ; all the cavities where I cut out the dead bark, and applied the compolition, were, in the courfe of the fummer, filled up with found wood, and the bark between the ftocks and galts per- feétly untied. Three years ago I budded on fome Brown Beurres and Crafanes with Pear d’Auch, one of which now covers a wall. fixteen feet high, and fifteen feet long, and has more fruit on it this year than a maiden tree would have produced twenty years atter planting. I never recommend budding or graiting of old trees, ex- cept when you have bad forts, or more of any fort than you want for a fupply : In that cafe, I would recommend to bud or graft with Pear d’Auch, Colmars, and Winter Boncretiens, which keep much longer than Beurres, Crafanes, &c. {t will be neceffary to give fome dreétions for ftandards that have been grafted in the f{pring, and have mifled. In fuch cafe, they fhould be cut below the graft, as dire&led for wall- ‘trees; and when fo treated, they will throw out a great num- ber of fhoots, which fhould by no means be too foon thinned, as in that cafe they will be liable to be broken by the wind. You may begin to take off the weakeft fhoots about the latter -end of May, or beginning of June. - About the middle of the latter month, they will have acquired confiderable flrength ; you may then thin them ; leaving as many ftrong regular fhoots, and of thofe neareft the top of the ftem, as will form a hand- “fome head. If the ftem be very ftrong, it will be neceffary, perhaps, to leave more than you intend to bud, on purpofe to receive the fap, which will flow in great abundance from a large trunk, and, without this precaution, would be apt to burft ‘the fhoots, if there be not a fufficient number to receive it. I have often feen fhoots as large as my arm burt by a fupera- bundance of fap. When that 1s likely to happen, the beft thing you can do is, to {carity the fhoots, and rub aq little of the compofition into the wound, 7 336 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND ower ———— CHAPTER XXIII. ‘ —————w a) OF A GARDEN. ts Setuation, Size, Sel, and Form.—Of Watering, Draining &c.—Of the Melon: Ground.* A GARDEN, if poffible, fhould be on a gentle declivity to. wards the South, a little inclining to the Eaft, to receive the benefit of the morning fun. It it/be fituated in a bottom, the wind will have the lefs effe€t upon it; but then damps and togs will be very prejudicial to the fruit and other crops: And if Situated too high, although it will ma great meafure be free trom damps and fogs, it will be expofed to the fury of the winds, to the great hurt of the trees, by breaking their branches and blowing down the bloffoms and fruit. A garden fhould be ‘well fheltered from the North and Eaft, to prevent the blight. ing winds from affeéting the trees; and alfo from the Welterly winds, which are very hurttul to gardens i the {pring or fum- mer months. Ifa garden be not naturally fheltered with gen- ile rifing hills, which are the beft fheiter of any, plantations of foreft trees made at proper diftances, fo as not to fhade it, will be found the beft fubftitute. Atthe fame time, there ought to be a free admittance for the fun and air. On that account, a place furrounded by woods is a very improper fituation for a garden or orchard, as a foul ftagnant air is very unfavourable £0 vegetation ; and it is alfo obferved, that blights are much more frequent in fuch fituations, than in thofe that are more open and expofed. I have recommended the pragtice of intermixing fruit trees in fhrubberies and_plantations of this kind to feveral gen- tlemen, who have adopted it with fuccefs. While the fruit trees are in flower, they are a great ornament to the fhrubberies ; and in fummer and autumn the different colours of the fruit have a beautiful appearance. Add to this the advantage * Some of the direflions, contained in this chapter, will not apply to America; but the far greater part of them will, and I recommend thole, who “with to have complete gardens, to ftudy it with care, MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 157 ofa plentiful fupply of fruit for the table, and for making «ider and perry; and if fome cherries are interfperfed among them, they will be food for birds, and be the means of pre- venting them frem deflroying your finer fruit im the orchard or garden. About fix years ago, my worthy friend Walter Urquhart, Efq. ot Warley Park, near Waltham Abbey, planted a clump of truit and toreft trees, with flowering fhrubs m front, next the houfe, to {creen his garden, which was fo injudicioufly fituated asto prefent the walls to siew from the howfe, and from almoft every part of his beautiful park. The fruit trees ‘made choice of for this purpofe were large ones of various kinds, which had been headed down, and were then full ot truit-buds. Thefe trees were planted at a proper diftance from the garden, fo as not to fhade the walls, and the foreft trees interiperfed among them, according to the height that they would attain when full grown. Mr. Urquhart has continued to take up fome of the for- efi trees from time to time, as the frei trees fpread their branches and require more room. Thus the clump has be- come a nurfery for foreft trees ; a great deal of money 1s fav- ed which would otherwife have been expended in the purchafe and carriage of plants; and from it he has made fome very. fine new plantations. The fruit trees make a handfome or- chard, and atthe fame time cover the walls of the garden. When the fituation will not admit of fuch plantations, T would advife planting fome crols rows of fruit trees in ile gar- ‘den, at the diftance of forty or feventy yards trom cach other, more or lefs according to the fize of the garden. In long rows, one row of trees will be fufiicient on each fide of the walk ; but in the fhorter crofs rows, there fhould be two rows on each fide. The trees fhould not be planted oppofite to each other, ‘but alternately ; fo as that thofe of one row may be op- polite tothe open fpaces of the other. Trees planted in this _ manner will have a good effe&i, and will alfo ferve to break the force of high winds, and prevent a great deal of damage ‘which might otherwile be done to the reli of the trees through- out the garden. Thofe which ! would recommend for the a- boye purpofe are dwarfs, with flems about two feet high, whuch can eafily be obtained by cutting off the lower branches. In laying out a new garden, another very effential point is, to make choice of a good foil. It fhould be two or three feet deep ; butii deeper the beiter; of a mellow pliable na- ture,and of a moderately dry quality; and if ibe ground Should ‘have an vneven furface, l would by ) pam ee oattay: YO MICAS aiiempe 158 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND to level it; for by that unevennefs, and any little difference there may be in the quality, you will have a greater variety of foil adapted to different crops. The beft foil for a garden is, arich mellow loam; and the worft, a ftiff heavy clay. A light fand is alfo a very unfit foil for a garden. Sea-coal afhes, or the cleaning of {treets and ditches, will be found very proper to mix with a ftrong foil; and if the ground fhould be cold, a large quantity of coal-afhes, fea fand, or rotten vegetables, fhould be laid upon it, in order to melio- rate and loofen the foil, and render it eafy to work. Lime rubbifh, or light fandy earth trom fields and com- mons, will alfo be found of great fervice to ftiff clayey ground. If the foil be light and warm, rotten neat’s dung is the -beft dreffing that you can give it. If horfe-dung be ever ufed, it muft be completely rotted, otherwife it will burn up the crop the firft hot weather. With regard to the form of a garden, there are various Opinions, and it fometimes depends on the fituation; but where you are at perteét liberty I would preter a fquare or oblong. As to the fize, it may be from one acre to fix or eight within the wall, according to the demand for vegetables in the family. It fhould be walled round with a brick wall from ten to twelve feet high: But, if there be plenty of wall- ing, which there may be when you are not flinted with refpeét to ground, I would prefer walls ten teet high, to thofe that are higher, and I am convinced they will be found more con- venient. The garden fhould be furrounded with a border. or flip, from forty to fixty feet wide or more, if the ground can be {pared ; and this again enclofed with an oak paling from fix toeight feet high, with a cheval-de-trife* at top, to prevent people’s getting over: It will alfo ftrengthen the paling. By making flips on the outfide of the garden wall, you will have plenty of ground for goofebernies, currants, {traw- berries, &c. You may allot that part of the flips which lies. * A very good cheval-de-frife may be conftruted as follows: Take a piece of wood of a convenient length, about four inches broad, and one inch and a quarter thick, and p!ane the upper edge into the fhape of the roof of a houfe of a low pitch; thea draw a line on each fide from end to end, about an inch and a quarter below the upper edge, and through thefe lines drive twelve-penny nails about four inches diftant from each other, fo as to come out near the upper edge on the oppofite fide. Each nail thouid be oppofite the middle of the fpace between two nails on the other fide. The nail heads fhould be funk in the wood, and fmali ftrips nailed over them ; then drive in tenter-hooks between the nail points, and nail the whole firmly on the out- file of the top of the paling, In this manner proceed till you have finifhed the whole of the fence, y MANAGEMENT OF FRIUT TREES. &c. 159 neareft to the ftables (if well fheltered, and expofed to the fun,) for melon and cucumber beds ; and you can plant both fides of the garden-wall, which will give a great addition to the quantity of wall fruit. If the foil of the new garden be ftrong, it fhould be plough- ed or dug three or four times before you plant any thing in it; and if it be thrown up in ridges during the winter, it will be of great fervice, as the froft will meliorate and loofen its parts. _ Gerdens, if poffible, fhould lie near a river, or brook, that they may be well fupplied with water. From thefe, it the garden does not lie too high, the water may be con- duéted to it by drains, or, which is much better, by pipes, taking care to lay them low enough to receive the water in the drieft feafon, which isthe time when it will be molt wanted. If there be no running water near the garden, and if the latter lies on a declivity near a public road, I would advife to make ahollow drain, or a cut, from the moft convenient part of the road to receive the water that wafhes the road in rainy weather, and convey it to a large ciftern, or tank, in the upper part of the garden; this, if the road be mended with lime-ftone or chalk, will prove an excellent manure. The water from the ciftern, or trom the river, may be condutied to the different quarters by means of pipes, which having cocks or proper places, the water may be turned upon the dif- ferent quarters ot the garden at pleafure. Or the water may be conveyed in proper channels, and turned on the quarters in the fame manner as in watering meadows, _ Thefe pipes, channels, &c. will be a confiderable expence at firft; but they will foon repay it by faving a great deal of time, which would otherwife be {pent in pumping and carry- ing water. The moft convenient time for turning the water on, is in general, during the night; and in dry weather it would then be of the moft effential fervice. If the fituation be fuch that you are obliged to pump the water from deep wells, there fhould be a large refer- voir, in which it fhould be expofed tothe fun and air for fome days before it is ufed: It may then be turned on as a- bove. Ifthe ground be wet and fpewy, it will be proper to make a bafon in the moft convenient place, to receive the wa- ter that comes from the drains, and to colleét the rain that falls on the walks, : 160 .TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND In laying out the quarters, you muft be guided in a great meafure by the form and fize of the garden; but do not lay them out too fmall, as in that cafe a great part of the ground will be taken up with walks. The beft figure is a {quare or oblong, when the garden ts of that form ; but if not, they may be laid out in any other figure that is thought to be moft con- venient. The middle walks fhould be about feven feet, which is wide enough to admit acart; and the others about three or four feet broad; with a border on each fide, five or fix teet wide, at leaf, between the walk and the fruit trees. Walks in kitchen gardens are generally gravelled, and but feldom. laid with turf, as the frequent wheeling and treading foon de- firoys the grafs and renders them very unfightly : But a bind- ing fand makes good walks and they are eafily kept; for when mols or weeds begin to grow, they may be cleaned witha horfe-hoe, or feuffeled over with a Dutch hoe, in dry weather, and raked a day or.two after, by which they will be made al- ways to look neat and clean. I, however, give the preference to fea-coal afhes, which, in my opinion, make the belt walks for a kitchen garden, and they are eafier kept than any other, being firm and dvy, and cleaner to walk on than fand, efpe- cially after froft. The bottoms of the walks fhould be filled up with brick rubbifh, chippings of flones, or gravel and ftones; thofe rak- ed off the quarters will de very well, and by ufing them you will fave carriage. If the foil be iff and wet, or fubje& to detain the moif- ture, there muft be under ground drains made to carry off the water. In this cafe, let the main drain be made under the walk, to receive and carry off the water from thofe under the quarters. Draining, when the foil is wet, is abfolutely nece[- fary, otherwife the trees will never produce good well flavour- ed fruit, and your kitchen plants will be much injurea: The drains alfo under the walks will keep them dry and firm, and make them fit for carting and wheeling on in wet weather. The borders under the walls, in the infide, fhould be from ten to twenty feet wide, according to the fize ot the gar- den, to give full liberty to the roots of the trees to fpread, There fhould be a foot path about two feet anda halt from the wall, for the greater convenience of nailing the trees, gather- ing the fruit, &c. This walk fhould be from two to two feet and a half wide (to admit a barrow, or barrow engine for wa- tering the trees,) and covered with fand, or, which is better, MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 161 €oal afhes,* about two or three inches thick ; but without any gravel or rubbifh below. On thefe borders you may have early or late crops, according to the afpeét ; but by no means plant any deep-rooting plants, {uch as cabbages, beans, peas, &c. (except early frame peas) which would be very hurttul to the trees. The reafons for allotting part of the outfide flip next the ftable tor hot-beds for raifing nielons and cucumbers, are, firft, becaufe there will be no litter to carry in within the walls to dirty the walk ; fecondly, the beds will not be feen from the garden ; and laftly, the convenience of carrying the dung, by which a great deal of time will be faved in carting and wheeling. It will be neceflary, efpecially in expoled fituations, to enclofe the melon ground with either a wall or paling from fix to eight feet high. It was formerly a praétice to enclofe mel- on-grounds with reed fences ; but, although they are tolerably warm, and eafily removed from one place to another (be- ing made in feparate panels) they are very apt to harbour ver- min. Melons are beft worked in brick pits, coped with ftone or oak, about twelve feet wide and two and a half deep: The length fhould be according to the number of trames that you work. The fize of the lights, for ear y melons, fhould be five teet long, and three broad ; but for others they will re- quire to be fix feet long, and four broad. The former fhould be four and the latter three light boxes. For the pits, a nine- inch wall will be fufficient ; and if they are intended for a wood coping, the brick-layer muft build in fome pieces of timber to faften itto: But where ftone can be had at a rea~ fonable rate, I would give it the preference, as wood rots very foon. There fhould be.a walk between the ridges, about fix or feven feet broad, fufficient to admit a cart to carry dung, which will be much more expeditious than wheeling. The walk fhould be made up as high as the coping, and floping gently towards each end ; the bottom fhould be filled up and covered as before direéted : This will be eafily kept clean; fo that, after your linings are made up, it may be kept as neat as if it were in a pleafure ground. , It will be neceffary to make a loofe drain along the mid- dle of the bottom of the pit, to convey away any wet, and © Slugs avoid coal ath walks, efpecially whea new laid and rough; fuch walks, therefore, may be of fervice, as they will, in fome degree, obftruct the paflage of flugs and {nails from one quarter to another. f 162 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND the oozing from the dung, to a ciftern, or tank, made on pur- pole to receive it. This moiflure, which is the ftrength of the dung, may be ufed tor watering cabbage-plants, cauli- flowers, &c, or it may be thrown on the ground tor manure. I have experienced it to be much better than dung. When a garden 1s planted and finifhed, it will be found very convenient to have a plan of it, with the name of each tree inferted in its proper place. This I had done when the new flips were laid out in Kenfington-Gardens about ten or eleven years ago, and have found it of great fervice. Walls of kitchen gardens fhould be from ten to fourteen feet high ; the foundation fhould be two bricks or two. bricks and a half thick; the off-fet fhould not be above one courfe higher than the Jevel of the border ; and the wall fhould then fet off a brick and a halt thick. If the walls are long, it wall be neceffary to flrengthen them with piers from forty to fxty feet apart; and thefe piers fhould not projett above halt a brick beyond the wall. Ido not approve of fixed copings, efpecially when they projeét fo tar as they are generally made to do; I would rather advife to have a moveable wooden cop- ing, fixed on with iron hooks faftened to pieces of woad built into the top of the wall: Thefe copings would alfo be found very convenient to faflen the nettings, &c. to in {pring, for fheltering the truit trees. It, however, any fhould prefer fix- ed copings, they fhould not projeét above an inch on each fide of the wall; this {mall projettion wiil be fufficient to pre- ferve the wall, and will not prevent the dew and rain trom falling on the upper parts of the trees, which 1s of preat fer- vice to them. Some copings are made of bricks convex onthe upper fide; but I have lately feen a very good coping at Athted-Park, near Epfom: It is made of a fort of Welch flate, to be had, of different fizes, at Mr. Samuel Wyatt’s flate-yard, Chrift-church, near Blacktriar’s Bricge. This is made to projeét about one inch, and an{wers exceedingly well, Flat copings fhould have a little flope towards the North or Eaft, according to the afpe€t of the wall; this wall carry the wet from the South and Weft fides, which otberwife would be apt to injure the early bloffoms and fruit on the South and Weft walls in cold nights. When bricks can be had, I would advife never to build garden walls of ftone; as it is by no means fo favourable to the ripening of fruit as brick. When a kitchen garden con- tains four acres, or upwards, it may be interfe€ted by two or more crofs walls, which will greatly augment the quantity of MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 163 fruit, and alfo keep the garden warm and fhelter it greatly from high winds.* é * To thofe American geatlemen, who have iand to lay out in pleafure grounds, and moft of them have Jand, which might, ata very little expence, be fo difpofed of, I would beg leave to recommend the perufal, and, indeed, . the ftudy, of the late Lord Orford’s celebrated work on ** Modern Garden- ing, and laying out of pleafure grounds, parks, farms, ridings, &c &c. il- luftrated by Defcriptions ’* Thiswork is a moft exceilent guide in the ftudy of the higher order of gardening, and very far furpaffes what has been write éep by Gilpin, and, indeed, by all other authors on the fubject. 164 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND | CHAPTER XXIV. THE ORCHARD. Tis Size, Situation, and Soil.—Chorce of Trees, Preparing the Ground, Planting, Sc.—An Annual Wafh for Trees. ws oS are appropriated to the growth of ftandard fruit trees only, where a large fupply ot fruit 1s wanted ; and generally confift of apple-trees, pear-trees, plum-trees, and cherry-trees; but a complete orchard fhould have, befides, quinces, medlars, mulberries, fervice-trees, filberts, Spanifh nuts, and barberries; as alfo walnuts and chefnuts; the ‘wo Jatter of which are well adapted for fheltering the others from high winds, and fhould therefore be planted in the boundaries of the orchard, a little clofer than ordinary, for that purpofe. In choofing your trees, too much care cannot be taken to admit of none but fuch as have good roots, fair clean flems, and proper heads. In feleéting your pears and apples, efpecially the latter, be careful to procure a proper affortment for the fupply of your table during the whole year: A very few of the /ummer forts will fufice; more of the autumn, and full more of the winter will be required; as upon this laft you muft chiefly depend for fupply from the month of January to July. [See the Method of Preserving Fruit, chapter 25. | In cyder-making counties, fuch as Hereford, Worcefter, Gloucefter, Sommerfet, and Devon, they have large orch- ards of apples ; and in fome counties, (Kent in particular) there are orchards wholly of cherries. In general orchards, however, there ought to bea much larger proportion of apples than of any other fruit. Orchards, in proper fituations, are very profitable ; befide, the trees have a delightful appearance when in blofom, and alfo when the fruit is ripe. What has been faid refpeQing the fituation and foil of a garden is alfo applicable to an orchard. The fituation of an orchard fhould be rather elevated than low ; on a gentle decliv- ity ; and open to the South and South Eaft, to give free ad- million to the air and rays of the fun (to dry up the damps MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 165 and difperfe the fogs,) which will render the trees healthy, and give a fine flavour to the fruit. An orchard fhould alfo be - well fheltered from the Eafi, North, and Wefterly winds, by _ plantations, if not naturally fheltered by rifing grounds. Thefe plantations of foreft trees fhould neither be too large nor too near the orchard ; as they would in that cafe prevent a free circulation of the air, which would proveinjurious to the fruit trees. But, it the ground will not admit of fuch plantations, I would advife planting crofs rows of fruit trees, as direéted for gardens. I would alfo recommend planting fome of the largefl growing trees nearefl the outfides expofed to thofe winds ; two or three rows of which fhould be planted clofer than ordinary, which would greatly fhelter thofe in the inte- rior parts of the orchard. Walnut and chefnut trees, as has been already obferved, are well adapted tor this purpofe. As to the fize of an orchard, it may be from one to twenty acres, or more, according to the quantity of fruit want- ed, or the quantity of ground that you may have fit for the purpofe. That foil which produces good crops of corn, grafs, or garden vegetables, will alfo do tor an orchard ; but a loamy {oil is to be preferred ; though any of a good quality, not too light or dry, nor wet, heavy, or ftubborn, but of a mode- rately foft and pliant nature, will be found to aniwer the end. Shingly and gravelly foiis difagree very much with fruit trees, unleis there be loam intermixed.* They will fucceed much better on a chalk bottom. On fucha foil, 1 have feen roots twelve ieet deep, and trees thrive well. If the bottom be clay, the roots fhould be cut in once in four years to prevent them from penetrating the clay, which would greatly injure the trees. The foil thould be trom two to three feet deep; be- fore planting the trees, it fhould be trenched two fpits deep, and ten feet broad where the rows are to be planted, and a {pit below loofened, unlefs it be clay, which fhould be trodden down. Ifitbe pafture ground, it fhould be ploughed, and well fummer-tallowed, till the grafs be killed, otherwife when it is lad in the bottom in trenching, which it generally is, it will be very apt to breed grubs, which will do much mifchief. * Where no better is to be had, the holes fhould be dug at leaft three feet deep, and filled up with good mould ; if mixed up with rotten dung, rot- ten leaves, or other manure, the trees will in time amply repay the expence. The dung ufed for this purpofe fhould be that from the melon and cucumber beds, mixed with the mould from the fame, when the beds are broken up in autumn, or winter; it fhould be laid up in heaps, are continue fo for one year at leaft; but fhould be frequently turned and have fome gocd freth yaould mixed with it. 166 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND Some only dig holes large enough to receive the roots, efpecially in grafs ground which is to be continued fo, Others prepare the ground by deep ploughing, if the orchard is to be of great extent. The fward, if pafture, fhould be ploughed in fome time in the fpring: Give it a good fummér-fallow, ploughing it two or three times, which will rot the turf. A fortnight or three weeks before planting, give the ground a good deep ploughing to prepare it for the reception of thé trees. The beft time for planting ona dry foil is in O&ober ; Dut, if wet, the latter end of February, or the month of March, will be a fitter feafon. k In planting, endeavour to fuit the trees as well as poffible to the foil, and to plant them at proper difiances from each other; which may be from forty to eighty tect, according to the fize of the trees when full grown. Fruit trees, as_ has als ready been obferved, when planted too thick, are very liable to blights, and to be covered with mofs, whic robs the tree of a great part of its nourifhment, befides {poiling the flavour of the fruit. Procure your trees froma foil nearly fimilar to, or rather worfe than that where you intend to plant them; for trees tranfplanted from a rich foil to a poorer never thrive well, but if trom a poor to a richer foil, they will generally fucceed. It trees are planted in the quincunx order, and at the dif- tance of eighty feet, the ground between the rows may bé ploughed and fown with wheat, turnips, &c. or planted with potatoes. Ploughing or digging the ground, provided it be not done fo deep as to hurt the roots, by admitting the fun and rain to meliorate the ground, will keep the trees in a healthy, flourifhing ftate. It will be neceffary to fupport the young trees by tying them to {takes until they are well rooted, to pre- vent their being loofened or blown down by the wind. The {pring after planting, if it prove dry, dig up fome turf, and lay it round the ftem of the young trees with the grafly fide downs wards; this will keep the ground moiit, and fave a deal of watering : It the trees have taken well, this need not be re- peated, as they will be out of danger the firft year. The turf fhould be laid as far as you think the roots of the trees extend 5 and when it is rotted, it fhould be dug in, which will be of great fervice to them. Trees that are of very different fizes when full grown fhould not be planted promifcuonfly ; but, if the foil be prop erly adapted, plant the larger in the back part or higher ground, ~ or at the North ends of the rows, if they run nearly North and South, and the others in fucceffion according to their fize. Fruit trees planted in this manner will have a fine effe&t when MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 167 grown up; butif they are planted promifcuoufly, they will not appear fo agreeabic to the eye; and, befides, the fmaller wees will be fhaded by the larger, which will injure them, and fpoil the flavour of the fruit. Orchards fhould be dunged once in two or three years. The flems of trees in thole where cattle feed thould he high enough to prevent thei eating the lower branches; and fenc- ed iniuch a mapoer as to prevent their being barked, or injur- ed, by the cattle rubbing againli them, particularly when young ; which may be done by triangles of wood, or the trees ay be bufhed with thorns, Czc.- The trees are to be pruned and managed as already directed for apples, pears, plums, &c. I} the foil be wet, 1t muft be drained, as already diretted for a garden. When the furface of the ground is wet, and has a little defcent, it may be formed into a kind of ridges, by mak- ing a furrow, from one foot to two feet deep, between every two rows, floping the ground regularly on each fide, from a reafonable diftance to the bottom of the furrow. Thefe hol- lows will carry off the water, and render the furtace dry and healthy. Ii pafture, the turf may be firft pared off, and alter- wards re-laid when the furrow is made. In orchards, where cattle are not permitted to go, I would preter dwart-trees to flandards, taking care to proportion the diftance of the rows to the fize of the trees. But in orchards kept for pafture it will be neceffary to plant flandards. Burning of rotten wood, weeds, potatoe haulm, wet fraw, &c. on the windward fide of the trees when they are in blof- fom, will be found a good prefervative trom blights, caterpil- lars, &c. I would recommend wafhing the trees annually, in the month of February or March, with the following mixture, which will deftroy the eggs of infects, and prevent mofs fron growing on the trunks and branches: It will alfo help to nour- ifh the tree, keeping the bark fine andhealthy ; and will have the fame effeét on itas atop drefling has upon gra's land.* Mix trefh cow-dung with urine and foap-fuds, and with this mixture wath over the ftems and branches of the trees, as a white-wafher would wath the ceiling or walls of a room; taking care to cutoff all the cankery parts, and to ferape off all the mofs, before you lay the mixture on. In the courfe of the {pring or fummer, you will fee a fine new bark coming on. When the old bark is cankery, you muf pare itoff with a draw- * This fhonld never be negledtcd in America, where the inlets are the bane of cultivation, 168 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND knife, or fuch a long knife as I have had made on purpofe, ef pecially tor wall-trees, where the draw-knife cannot be appli- ed, next the wall. The knives and other tools for drefling decayed trees will be defcribed hereafter.* When you fee it neceffary to take all the outer bark off, you muft cover the flem, &c. with the compofition and powder, patting it gently down, as in the cafe when large limbs are cut off. If the above wafh be repeated in autumn, aiter the fall of the leaf, it will deftroy the eggs of a great many infeéts that hatch in autumn and winter. This wafhing will be found of great fervice to all kinds of fruit and foreft trees whatever. # See plate 13. MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 169 Cee) CHAPTER XXV:; Sasues OF GATHERING APPLES AND PEARS. The Time and Manner of Gathering them ; and of the Man- agement of the Kruit-Room.—Of Packing Fruit for Carriage. As Apples fhaken or beaten down witha pole never keep in winter, they ought all to be hand-picked, by a perfon fland- ing on fteps made on purpofe. . The fteps fhould be light, for convenience of moving from one place to another ; and fo contrived, that the ladder may be difengaged frem the back at pleafure; which may eafi- ly be done if they are faftened together by a bolt attop. There ‘fhould be a broad ftep at top to itand on, with room for the bafket which is to hold the fruit. When you begin to gather the fruit, you fhould be provided with hand-bafkets of different fizes, and alfo with large bafkets, or hampers, and wheel-bar- rows, You muft lay fome fhort grafs mowings, perfe€tly dry, (which you ought to provide for the purpofe in fummer, and keep in a {hed or any other dry place, till wanted) at the bot- toms of the large bafkets and hampers, to prevent the fruit from being bruifed. Obferve attentively when the apples and pears are ripe ; and do not pick them always at the fame regular time of the year, as is the practice with many. A dry feafon will forward the ripening of fruit, and a wet one retard it; fo that there will fometimes be a month or five weeks difference in the proper time of gathering. The method that I have praétifed is, to obferve when the fruit begins to fall (I do not mean what we Call wind-falis, or the talling of fuch as are intefted with the caterpillar, &c. but found fruit,) [then put my hand under it, and if it comes off without any force being ufed, I take it for granted that the fruit is perfeftly ripe, unlefs the tree be fickly, which is eafily known by the leaves or fruit being fhriv- eled. If the toregoing obfervations are attended to, the fruit will keep well and be plump, and not fhniveled, as is the cafe with all fruit that is gathered ue it is ripe. vo TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND The perfon on the fleps fhould pick the fruit carefully, and lay it gently into the bafket on the top of the fteps; for if it be in the leaft bruifed it will not keep. For the fame rea- fon, great care muft be taken in emptying the fruit out of the hand-bafkets, when {ull, into the large bafkets or hampers. It more than one large bafket be wheeled at once, which may generally be done, the lower ones muft not be fo full as to let the bottom of the upper one touch the fruit. It will alfo be neceffary to put fome of the foft dey grafs between the bafkets, and alfo over the fruit in the upper bafket. When the fruit begins to tall of itfelf, cover the ground under the tree with fome of the fhort grafs mowings, or if that cannot be procured, with fome peafe-haulm, or oat or barley- {traw, quite dry; this will preferve the fruit trom bruifing_ when it drops; the fruit which thus falls of itfelf fhould be laid up feparate from, and ufed before that which is hand- picked, according to the feafon in which they are to be fent tothe table. Should any be bruifed by falling on one another, they fhould be thrown afide, as only fit for baking, or to be given to the pigs. When all the fruit is gathered in, rake off the fhort grafs, &c. and throw it up to rot, or mix it up with dung, or leaves of trees; for if it remain on the ground during the winter, it wu! harbour flugs. When the bolt of the fleps ts taken out, and the ladder and bacx part feparated, the ladder will then be fit to ufe in gathering fruit off wall trees; only it will be neceflary tofcrew on the upper part of it two pieces of iron, or nail two pieces of afh or oak, about fix or eight inches long, to keep it far enough from the wall to prevent the tree from fuftaining any damage in the bark or branches; which would infallibly bring on the canker. When the fruit is carried to the fruit-room, lay fome of the dry fhort grafs on the floor in the area of the room; then take the truit gently out of the bafkets, and lay it in heaps on the top of the grafs, keeping each fort in a feparate heap ; the heaps may be from two to three feet high, or according to the quantity of fruit that you have. When the heaps are complet. ed, cover the tops at leaft two inches thick with thort grafs, in order to {weat them. Let them hie a fortnight, then open the heaps and turn them over, wiping each apple or pear with a dry woollen cloth, which thould be frequently dried during the procefs, obferving now to lay in the middle the fruit which before was atthe top. Let the heaps now remain eight or ten days, covered as betore; by that time they will have thrown MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 171 out the watery crudities which they may have imb‘bed during a wet feafon ; then uncover the heaps, and wipe the fruit care- fully one by one, as before, picking out every one that is in- jured, or has the leaft {pot, as unfit tor keeping. Fruit fhould be gathered, if poffible, in dry weather,,and when the dew is exhaled from off the trees; and remember never to gather in the evening after the dew begins to fall. During the time that the fruit is fweating, the windows fhould be left open, except in wet and foggy weather, to ad- mit the air to carry off the moifture which per[pires from the fruit. The perfpiration will fometimes be fo great, that on putting your hand into the heap, it will come out as wet as if it had been dipped into a pail of water: When in this ftate, it will be neceffary to turn and wipe the fruit. In laying up fruit, the common prattice has been to lay it on clean wheat ftraw ; but 1 find by experience, that when any of the fruit begins to decay, if it be notimmediately pick- ed out, the flraw, by imbibing the moifture from the decayed fruit, will become tainted, and communicate a difagreeable tafte to the found fruit. I would likewife caution thofe who ereé& new fhelves in their fruit-rooms, to have the timber well feafoned, and to make ufe of white deal in preference to red, as the latter, ef- pecially if not very well feafoned, is apt to give a very difa- greeable rifinons tafte to the fruit, which quite fpoilsits flavour. I would, therefore, recommend covering the bottoms of the fhelves with thin coarfe canvafs, (fuch as may be purchafed for about eight or ten pence a yard) on which the fruit fhould - be laid ina fingle layer, after being wiped perte&tly dry ; but by no means lay them a-top of. one another. When that is done, cover them with a piece of the fame canvafs, or thin flannel, or with old new{papers, or whitifh brown paper, which will, in a great meafure, exclude theair, prevent the troft trom injuring the fruit, and preferve a beautiful {moothnels on its fkin. The fruit fhould be turned two or three times during the winter ; as delicate and tender fruit, by lying long with- out turning, is apt to rot on the underfide, even it perfeéily found when laid up. Be particularly careful, however, to pick out all the damaged fruit. When the fruit is laid in, put the earlieft forts on the lower fhelves, or in the lower drawers, according to the time of com- ing in, beginning with the Nonefuch, Golden Rennet, and jJenneting Applies, and Bergamot and Beurré Pears, (for [ find by experience, that the Jargonelle keeps beft on the tree, as, if aja TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND gathered, it rots almoft immediately ;) thus, by proper mane. agement, you may have a conftant fucceffion of fruit from one feafon to the other. When there are large quantities of fruit, it will require a great deal of time to lay it on the fhelves, &c. this bufinefs may therefore be done in wet weather, or in the evenings, when you cannot conveniently {pare your men from the out door work in the day time. Thofe who keep their fruit in flore-houfes, for the fupply of the London and other markets, as well as thofe who have not proper fruit-rooms, may keep their apples and pears in baf- kets or hampers; putting fome foft paper in the bottoms and round the edges of the bafkets, &c, to keep the fruit from be- ing bruifed; then put in a layer of fruit and over that another layer of paper; and fo on, a layer of fruit and of paper alter- nately, till the bafket or hamper be full ; Cover the top with paper three or four times double, to exclude the air and froft as much as poffible. Every different fort of fruit fhould be packed feparately ; and it will be proper to fix a label to each bafket or hamper, with the name of the fruit that it contains, and the time of its being fit for ufe. But the beft way of keeping fruit is, to pack it in glazed earthen jars, ‘The pears or apples muft be feparately wrapped up in foft paper, then put a little well dried bran in the bottem of the jar, and over the bran a layer of fruit ; then a little more bran to fill up the interftices between the fruit, and to cover it; and fo on, a layer of fruit and of bran alternately, till the jar be full ; then fhake it gently, which will make the fruit and bran fink a little ; fill up the vacancy at top with more bran, and lay fome paper over it, covering the top with a piece of bladder to exclude the air; then put on the top or cover of the jar, obferving that it fits as clofely as poffible. Thefe jars fhould be kept in a room where you can have a fire in wet or damp weather. Of Packing Frat for Carriage. If fruit be to be fent to any confiderable diflance, great eare fhould be taken in packing it, which fhould not be in bafkets, as they are liable to be bruifed among heavy luggage, and the fruit, of courfe, will be injured. I would, theretore, recommend boxes made of firong deal, of different fizes, ac- cording to the quantity of fruit to be packed. The following are the dimenfions of the boxes in which we fend fruit by the coach to Windfor and Weymouth, for the ufe of his Majefty and the Royal family, viz. . MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 179 The larger box is two feet long, fourteen inches broad, and the fame in depth. The fmaller box is one foot nine inch- es long, one foot broad, and the fame deep. Thefe boxes are made ot inch deal, and well fecured with three iron clamps at each corner; they have two {mall iron handles, one at each end, by which they are faftened to the roof of the coach: In thefe boxes we fend melons, currants, pears, peaches, neéta- rines, plums, and grapes, packed fo as always to have the heav- ieft fruit at bottom. The melons are wrapped up in foft pa- per, the pears, peaches, ne€tarines, plums, and grapes, are firft wrapped up in vine leaves, and then in paper. The cherries and currants are packed in a flat tin box, one foot four inches long, ten inches broad, and tour deep. In packing proceed thus :—Firft put a layer of fine long dry mofs in the bottom of the tin box, then a layer of cur- rants or cherries, then another layer of mofs ; and fo on, al- ternately fruit and mofs, until the box is fo full, that when the lid is hafped down the fruit may be fo firmly packed as to pre- ferve them from tniélion. Make a layer ot fine mofs and short foft dry grafs, well mixed, in the bottom of the deal box ; then pack in the melons with fome of the fame, packing it tight in between all the rows, and alfo between the melons, in the fame row, till you have finifhed the layer; choofing the fruit as nearly of a fize as poflible, filling up every interflice with the mofs and gra{s. When the melons are packed, lay a thin layer of mofs and grafs over them, upon which place the tin box with the currants, packing it firmly all round with mofs to prevent it from fhak- ing: then put a thin layer of mofs over the box, and pack the pears firmly (but fo as not to bruife them) on that layer, in the fame manner as the melons; and fo on with the peaches, nec- tarines, plums, and laftly, the grapes, filling up the box with mois, that the lid may fhut down fo tight as to prevent any fritiion among the fruit. The boxes fhould have locks, and two keys, which may ferve for them all; each of the perfons who pack and unpack the fruit having a key. The mofs and grafs fhould always be returned in the boxes, which, with a little addition, will ferve the whole fea- fon, being fhaken up and well aired after each journey, and keeping it {weet and clean. After the wooden box is locked, it wiil be neceffary to cord it firmly. My reaion for being fo particular on packing of fruit is, that I have known inftances of its being totally fpoiled in the carriage trom improper packing. 174 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND By purfuing the above method, we have never failed of fuccefs; and if fruit be packed according to the foregoing dis reGtions, it may be fent to the fartheft parts of the kingdom, by coaches or waggons, with perfeét fatety. MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &e. 173 CHAPTER &XVI. ————. Seto OF THE CANKER AND GUM. A Defcription of the Canker ; its Origin and Progre/s.— Full” Directions for Curing it.—Of the Gum and its Remedy. a ie Canker is a difeafe incident to trees, which occafions the bark to grow rough and fcabby, and turns the wood af- fefied toa rufty brown colour. ‘This difeafe, if no remedy be applied, will in time totally kill the tree. Apple-trees are very liable to be infe€ted with the cank- er from the fellowing caufes, viz. From injudicious pruning, from the foot-ftalks of the fruit being lett on the trees, and from injuries fuftained by applying ladders in gathering the fruit; thefe injuries are ve- ry hurtful to the tree, and will infallibly bring on the canker when no remedy is applied. A man oughtto ftand on fleps, inftead of a ladder, when the fruit is out of his reach from the ground. Care fhould alfo be taken in nailing, that the fhreds be not too tight, which caules a {welling in the fhoot, and ves ry often produces the canker. Another caufe of the canker is, when we have very wet autumns, fuch as thatot 1799, which prevents the young wood from ripening, and a hard froft fetting in after, it kills the young fhoots; thefe, if left on the tree, will bring on the canker, and increafe it rapidly. Birds and infeéts devouring the buds will have the fame effect. Carelefs people frequently leave the dead fhoots on the tree throughout the fummer, which will intallibly bring on the canker. Some even leave them for years, until the tree is to- tally killed. They fhould be cut off in the end of April, or beginning of May ; as by that time you willbe able to fee how tar the difeafe has advanced. I would advife to cut two or three buds, or even more, below the apparently difeafed part, as the canker frequently reaches a great way farther in the heart of the fhoot than it appears to do on the outfide; you muft cut down till the brown colour in the fhoot dilappears, and nothing remains but found white wood, 456 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND The truth of the foregoing obfervations will appear evi« dent to any perfon who takes notice of the apple-trees with their mutilated ftag-looking heads, as he rides or walks along the road. It is a general opinion, that the canker in all trees pro- ceeds trom the nature of the ground in which they are planted ; fuch as a four clay, a fhingly or gravely foil, &c. | ' My late and much efteemed friend, Mr. Hudfon, author of the ‘ Flora Anglica,’ was of this opinion, till I convinced him of the contrary by tome experiments made at Nutwell, near Exeter, the feat of the late Sir Francis Drake, a gentle- man very fond of gardening and agriculture. Mr. Hudfon faid, 1t would be to no purpofe to make any attempt to cure the apple-trees, as the ground was of {uch a nature as to bring onthe canker The trees were, indeed in a fad condition, be- ing covered all over with lichens and mofs, and very much ‘inteéted with the canker. I requefted Mr. Hudfon to fix on fome of the worft; we then defired the gardener to open the ground round their roots, which we found perfeétly found, the bark of them f{mooth, and not the leaft appearance of the canker to be feen. The canker, as before obferved, proceeds from bruifes in the bark, from limbs cut off, &c. When thefe limbs begin to rot and grow hollow, they convey the canker to the root ; for it always proceeds from the branches and {tem to the roots, and never from the roots to the tree. It is granted, however, that all fruit trees love a fine rich mellow loam, and thrive much better in it than ina fhingly or gravely foil. When by accident, or improper treatment, trees receive large wounds, and the cure is lett to nature, they are trequent- ly overrun with gum and canker, which, if not checked, will in a fhort time totally ruin them. In this cafe you muft caretully pare off, with a draw-knife, or any other convenient inftrument, all the difeafed part of the bark. The inner white bark is frequently infeéted; this muft alfo be cut away till no appearance otf inte€tion remains. The inteétion in the inner bark appears like dots made with a pen, all of which muft be cut clean out; for, if any part of the canker be left, it will infe&t the new wood and bark.— Wherever you fee gum oozing out, you may reft affured that the canker is not quite eradicated ; which, if fuffered to remain, will f{pread till the whole tree becomes a mafs of gum and canker, and will be killed ina very {hort time. MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 174 When the trunk is become hollow; cut the loofe rotten part clean out till you come to the found wood, taking care ta round the edges of the hollow part ; then apply the compofition in a liquid fate, laying it on with a painter’s brush wherever the cankered bark has been pared off, or the dead wood cut out, till thefe places are entirely covered with it: When that ts done, fhake fome of the powder of wood-afhes and burnt bones over the compofition, and pat it gently down with your hand. (See the chapter on the making and laying on of the Compofition. | It the foregoing dire&tions be carefully followed, the canker will be completely eradicated, and the hollow trunk in time be filled up with found wood. When the ftem is much decayed, it will be abfolutely neceffary to open the ground, examine the roots, and cut off all the rotten parts. When you have cut outall the rotten and decayed parts below ground, and f{craped the hollow clean, make up a mafs of the compofition mixed with fome clay, like what is ufed for grafting; then fll the hollow part with it to within about two inches of the furiave of the ground, tread- ing it in with your foot, or preffing it in with the hand, as clofe as you poflibly can, to prevent the wet from penetrating to the roots, and leave the furtace of the compofition floping from the tree towards the outfide of the border, to throw the wet off, which will prevent the frefh part of the root from rotting ; then cover the root over with mould level with the reft of the border. Sy When you have examined all the old wounds where large limbs have been cut off, you fhould next examine the old bark and, if you find the outfide of it wrinkled and cracked, pare it off, as it is always, when in that flate, very much hurt by the canker. This fhould be done with the draw-knife, or oth- er fharp inftrument ; then apply the compofition as before di- re€ted, which will bring a fine fmooth bark under it. In the {ucceeding winter, or {pring, you will fee all the plafter, with the old part of the bark that was left in the hollow parts of the tree, or where old branches had been amputated, peeling off and fhewing the {mooth bark underneath. You fhould then {crape off, with a wooden or bone knife, what old bark re- mains in the hollows where the draw-knife could not reach without cutting too much away. When that is done, mix up fome frefh cow-dung with foap-fads and urine, making it very thin, and give the tree a coat of this mixture all over where the bark has been fcraped off: The cow-dung will adhere to it, and heal the parts where you were obliged to {crape to the in- y aa: 478 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND ner bark. This wafh will remain till the frefh bark comes on; then it will be difcharged of itfelt during the {ummer, or the next fpring, leaving a new frefh fmooth bark where the old and cankery was teken off. Next fpring, if any of the old bark remains, you may repeat the fame operation, which will caule all the remaining old bark to flough off like a {cab from a wound on the human body. By thefe means you will keep your trees in a fine flourifh. ing healthy ftate, and, in general, prevent them from becom- ing bark. bound. It any of them, notwithftanding, fhould be bark-bound, you muft fcarify them, by taking a fharp knife, and running the point of it ftraight down the middle of the ftem trom top to bottom ; taking care to run your knife through the outec bark only ; then, with a brufh, or your finger, rub in fome of the compofition, to prevent the incifion trom bring- ing on the canker. This operation will caufe the tree to ex- _ pand the bark and become very flourifhing. Remember to cut off all the ends of the fmall fhoots “where the canker had injured them laft year. Cut off alfo the old fruit-ftalks, and all the fmall dead flubs, which, if lett, will never fail to bring on the canker. The rough or cankery bark on that fide of trees which is next the wall, fhould be {fcraped or pared off with a tool made in the form of a fickle, which, with other tools, will be de- fcribed hereafter. It is much to be regretted, that fruit trees in general throughout this kingdom are ina mutilated unfruitful ftate. After gentlemen have purchafed the young trees from nurfe- ries, and planted them in their orchards and gardens, they think every thing neceflary is done; when, in fatt, the greater part of the work is yet to come. In packing and carriage, the ftems and branches are very frequently bruifed ; in that cafe, the injured parts of the bark and wood mutt be carefully cut out, and the compofition immediately applied : This may be done when you head the trees, which operation fhould be pertormed in April, May, or even June, when the bud begins to fhoot ; but by no means cut off any of the fhoots, except thofe thatare broken or bruifed very much. When this is negleéted, the canker will follow, to the great injury, it not the death of the trees. How common is it to fee, in al! parts of the country, great numbers of trees fo affeéted with this difeafe as not to produce fruit enough in twelve or fourteen years to pay halt the expence attending them : Whereas, if they were to be man- aged according to the toregoing directions, they would more than pay all the expence in three years. tis common, when MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 179 young trees do not thrive, either to blame the nurferymen for fending bad or difeafed trees, or to attribute their unthriving flate to the nature of the foil; whereas the fat is, that this frequently arifes irom the inattention or mifmanagement ot the perfon who plants and fuperintends them. If the injured and difeafed parts be not cut out at an early period, the trees will not thrive, but will become cankery and ftunted, and can- not be recovered afterwards without a great deal of labour and trouble ; whereas, if the directions given for heading trees the firft year, and cutting out the difeafed parts, be at- tended to the trees will flourifh, and bear large crops of fine and well-flavoured fruit. The Gum. The Gum is a kind of gangrene incident to fruit trees of the ftone kind, and arifes from the following caufes: From injudicious pruning, trom bruifes, or any injuries received in the wood or bark. This may happen from ftrokes of the ham. mer in nailing, trom pinching the fhoots by nailing the fhreds too tight, or by driving the nails too clofe tothe branches. It may a!fo be occafioned by leaving the toot-ftalks of the fruit, or by pruning in fummer and cutting the fhoots to fhort ftumps, and by injuries fuftained by a carelefs application of ladders ‘in nailing and gathering the fruit, &c. but it particularly orig- ‘imates where large limbs have been lopped or broken off.— ‘This difeafe may be known before the gum itfelf makes its ap- pearance. The bark at firft becomes of a brownifh colour, ‘which gradually grows darker, till at laft the gum begins to ooze out like little blifters. As foon as any of thefe fymp- toms are obferved, the infe€led part fhould be cut out with afharp inftrument, and the compofition and powder applied immediately, You muft obferve to cut out the gum per- fe€tly clean; you will fee it oozing out trom between the wood and bark: This muft be followed till you come to the white clean bark and wood. It afterwards any gum fhould make its appearance, it muft be {craped off; which is beft done when “it is moiftened with rain, as you can then fcrape it off eafily without hurting the bark. This muft be done without delay, otherwife the difeafe will rapidly advance. _ When trees are hollow, it will be neceffary to examine them carefully to fee whether any grubs have entered the bark “and wood, which you will know by their perforating the bark. If there be any, they muft be carefully cut out before the com- pofition is applied, ; 180 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND ; | ———-| CHAPTER XXVII, —_-—— eS OF THE MILDEW, HONEYDEW, AND BLIGHTS. A Defeription of the Mildew, and a Remedy for it.—Of the Honeydew, and rts Rmedy.—A Defcription of different forts of Bughts, and the beft Means of preventing them. eidpr pred poedpe dpe OF THE MILDEW, Tu mildew, a difeafe very hurtful to plants, is a kind of thick clammy moifture, which falls on, or rather tranfpires from the leaves and bloffoms of plants. This clammy fub- ftance, by ftopping up the pores, prevents perfpiration, and hinders the growth of the plant, But what 1s commonly call- ed mildew is an infeét which is frequently tound in vaftnum- bers feeding upon this moifture. Mr. T. S. Segar, in a trea- tife upon this fubjeét, fays, that the meldew ts of a very fharp corrofive nature, and by its acrimony hinders the circulation of the nutritious fap ; in confequence of which the leaves be- gin to fade, and the bloffoms and truit are greatly injured. - I have obferved that, contrary to the common opinion, trees are more liable to mildew on South and Weft walls, than on an Eaft wall; and I have frequently removed fuch trees from a South or Weft wall, to a No.th or Eaft wall, where they have perfeétly recovered. | Whenever you apprehend danger, wath or f{prinkle the trees with urine and lime-water mixed; and when the young and tender fhoots are much infeéted, it will be neceflary to wath them well with a woollen cloth dipped in the following ynixture, fo as to clear them of all the glutinous matter, that their refpiration and per{piration may not be obftruéted. Take tobacco one pound, fulpur two pounds, unflaked lime one peck, and about a pound of elder buds ; pour on the above ingredients ten gallons of boiling water ; cover it clofe, and let it ftand till cold; then add as much cold water as will fill a hogfhead. It fhould ftand two or three days to fettle, then take off the {cum, and it is fit for ufc. MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 182 Of the Honeydew. The honeydew is a {weet faccharine fubftance found on the leaves of certain trees, end is generally fuppofed to fall from Heaven like dew, but this is amnftaken opmion. One kind of honeydew tran{pires trom the leaves of the trees where it is found, and the other is the excrement of a fimall infec called a vine fretter, afpecies of aphis. Bees and ants are ve« ry fond ot both thele kinds of honeydew. As the honeydew by its vifcous quality, clofes up the pores, and ftops the perfpiration of trees, it muft of courfe be very hurtful tothem. ‘this difeafe fhould be treated in the fame manner as the mildew; but as has been already obferv- ed, trees fhould be watered, or wafhed, early enough in the day to get dry betore the cold ot the night comes on ; nor fhould it be done while the fun fhines very hot, which would be likely to {corch the bloffoms and leaves, Of Blights. Blights are very deftruétive to fruit trees, fometimes de- ftroying the whole tree ; but more frequently the leaves and bloffoms, while the tree itfelf remains unhurt. One caufe of the blight is, the continuance of a dry Eaft- erly wind for feveral cays together, which ftops the perfpira- tion in the tender bloffom; anda long continuance of the fame weather equally affects the tender leaves, caufing them to wither and decay, the perfpiring matter is thereby rendered thick and glutinous, and fo becomes food for thofe {mall in- fe€ts which are always found in vaft numbers on fruit trees that are affected by this fort of blight, | Thefe infeéts, however, are not the original caufe, as fome imagine, but the natural confequence ot bhghts ; for wherev- er they meet with fuch a proper nutriment they multiply a- mazingly, and greatly promote the diftemper when no meth- od is taken to prevent it, . _ The bett remedy for this deftemper that I know of is, to wafh them with urine and foap-fuds, as before direéted; and the fooner this 1s performed, whenever we apprehend danger, the better ; if the young and tender fhoots feem to be much inteéted, wafh them with a woollen cloth dipped in the fame Jiquid that is recommended for the mildew. Another caufe of blights in the {pring will be found in ‘Sharp hoary frofts, which are often fucceeded by hot fun-fhine in the day time; thefe are certain and fudden deftru@ion ta the fruit. Sharp pinching trofty mornings, which olten happen when the trees are in flower, or while the fruit is very young, $2 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND occafions the bloffoms or fruit to drop off, and fometimes greatly injure the tender fhoots and leaves. The only method yet found out to prevent this mifchief is, the carefully covering the walls with netting, &c. as before dire€ted.* The covering is to remain on during the night, and to be taken off in the day-time. This method has been reckoned of little fervice by fome, which, indeed, may be the cafe when the coverings are not properly ufed ; for, if the trees are kept too long covered, the young branches and leaves will be fo weak as not to be able to bear the open air when they are expofed to it. The fame confequences will follow when the trees are incautioufly expofed to the air alter having been long cov- ered. | But if the covering be properly performed, it will fre- quently preferve the fruits under it, when there happens al- moft a general failure in the neighbourhood where this pre- caution has been negleted. The great trouble which feems to_attend it may deter many from putting it in praétice; yet if the nettings, or other coverings, be fo contrived as to draw up and let down by means of pullies, the bufinefs may be done with eafe and expedition; and the fuccefs attending it, will make ample amends. But what is called a blight, is frequently no more thana weaknefs or diftemper in trees. Thisis the cafe when trees againft the fame wall and enjoying the fame advantages in ev- ery refpeét, differ greathy in their health and vigour, the weak _ ones appearing to be continually blighted, while the others re- main in a flourifhing condition. This very great difference, in {uch circumftances, can be attributed only to the different conttitutions of the trees, proceeding from a want of proper nourifhment, or from fome bad qualities in the foil, fome dif- temper in the flock, buds, or cions, or from mifmanagement in the pruning, &c. all of which are produétive of diftempers in trees, of which they are with difficulty cured. ' Jf the fault be in the foil, it muft be dug out, and frefh mould put in its place; or the trees muft be taken up, and others better adapted to the foil planted in their room. It will be found abfolutely neceflary always to endeavour to fuit the particular forts of fruits to the nature of the foil ; for it is in vain to expeét all forts of fruit to be good in the fame foil. If the weaknefs of the tree proceed from an inbred dif- temper, it will be advifable to remove it at once, and, atter renewing the earth, to plant another in its place. * Page ay 225 49. MANAGEMENT OF FRIUT TREES, &c. 183 But if the weaknefs has been brought on by ill manages ‘ment in the pruning, which is frequently the cafe, I would advife the method of pruning and training whichis laid down in this treatife, to be adopted without lofs of time. How common is it to fee the young luxuriant branches trained up to their full length every year, and fo carried to the top of the wall in a very fhort time! By which the fruit-bear- ing branches are robbed of a great part of their nourifhment, which weakens them fo much that they have not ftrength to produce fruit; but the bloffoms tall off, and not unfrequently the branches decay, fometimes even the whole length, and this is afcribed to a blaft! Luxuriant fhoots fhould be ftopped, and all fuperfluous wood fhould be cut out; otherwife they will exhauft a great part of the nourifhment which fhould go to the fupport of the fruit-bearing branches. There is another fort of blight that fometimes happens pretty late in the {pring, viz. in April and May, which is very deftruétive to fruit trees in orchards and open plantations, and againft which we know of no effeétual remedy. This is what is called a fire-blaft, which in a few hours hath not only de- flroyed the fruit and leaves, but often parts of trees, and fome- times entire trees have been killed by it. Jal This is generally thought to be occafioned by certain tran{parent flying vapours, which may fometimes take fuch forms as to converge the fun’s rays in the manner of a burn- ing-glafs, fo as to (ane the plants they fall upon, and this in a greater or lefs degree in proportion to their convergency, As this generally happens in clofe plantations, where the va- pours trom the earth, and the perfpirations from the trees, are pent in for want of a free circulation of air to difperfe them, it points out to us the only way yet known of guarding again{t this enemy to fruits; namely, to make choice of a clear heal- thy fituation for kitchen gardens, orchards, &c. and to plant the trees at fuch a diftance as to give free admiffion to the air, that it may difpel thofe vapours before they are formed into uch volumes as to occafion thefe blafts. But blafts may alfo be occafioned by the refle&tion of the fun’s rays from hollow clouds, which fometimes aét as burn- ing mirrors, and occafion excefive heat, Againft this there 3s no remedy, 4 18, TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND CHAPTER XXVIII. ——————-} OF INSECTS, &c. Of the different Sorts of Infeds infefling Fruit Trees, and the Method of Deftroying them.—How to Preferve Fruit from Birds ; and Defiroying Rats and Maree. 1p asi Goce parr hbo OF THE APHIS.* Aputpes, or Plant-Lice, are a very numerous and deftruc. tive tribe of infeéts. Entomologifts enumerate 75 fpecies of them; but probably there are many more, as every tree intefied by them has a difliné {pecies ; and Linnzeus names them from the different trees that they live upon ; as the Currant Aphis, the Plum Aphis, the Cherry Aphis, &c. The males, which are very few in comparifon of the females, have wings ; but the females are apterous, or without wings. Aphides are devoured by the larva of the Myrmeleon Formicarius, or ant-eater, of Linnzus. Ants are likewie very fond oi them, on account of a {weet liquor which they ejeci from the anus. Aphides are extremely common. Fruit trees are frequently very much infefted with differ. ent {pecies of the aphis ; the plum, im particular, fuffers greate ly by them. Thofe which I have mott frequently found on plums are, the brown, the green, and the light fea-green aphis ; but, as betore obferved, different forts of trees generally have different fpecies of aphides Great care fhould be taken to deftroy thefe pernicious infe€ts at as early a period of their growth as poflible ; otherwife they will confume the leaves and truit for that feafon. The beft method that I have found for this purpofe is, to take forhe fine wood-afhes mixed with one-third part of fine unflaked lime, and throw it on with a, common dredging-box, till you have covered the underfides of all the leaves where you find the infeéts : This fhould be _ * Thofe who wifh for farther information refpeCting infe&ts, may cons fult Reaumur’s Hiftory of Infetts, MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 185 done in the morning early while the dew is on the leaves, which will caufe the powder to adhere to them ; letting them remain fo covered with the powdered lime for three or four days, Then mix unilaked lime and foft water, or water that has been expofed to the fun a week at leaft, at the rate of half a peck to thirty-two gallons, and ftir it well two or three times a day for three or four days. If you have many trees that are inteéted with infeéts, mix up a large quantity in the fame pro- portion as the above. I generally mix as much at once as will fill a ciftern* about feven feet long by three and a hali broad, and three feet deep, and that contains about 550 gallons, which, according to the foregoing proportion, requires about two bufhels and haifa peck of lime. With this liquid, after the lime has fubfided, give the trees a good watering, obferving to throw a confiderable part of it under the leaves, by a bar- row engine; this fhould be repeated once a day, tor fix days, which will deftroy all the aphides. The engine that I would recommend is that of the late Mr. Winlaw’s conftru€tion, which may be had of Meffrs. Chieflie and Yowle, No. 72, Margaret-Street, Cavendifh Square. It you find the infeéts begin to make their appearancé again, apply the powder as before direéted, and repeat the wa~ tering. Particular Directions for ufing the Lime-Water. _ Take the clear water after the lime has fettled, fill the en- gine with it, and give the trees a good watering, throwing it with as much force as you can under the leaves ; prefling your fore-finger over the mouth ot the pipe to f{pread the water like the falling of {mall rain, which you may very eafily do, at the fame time wheeling the engine backwards and forwards, that no part of the tree be miffed. This fhould be done in cloudy weather, or when the fun is off the wall, It the trees are on an Eaft wall, you may begin to water them about halt paft éleven o'clock ; 1f on a North wall, you may water them the firft thing you do in the morning ; and if on a South wall, at four o’clock in the afternoon; repeating the watering for at Jeaft fix days fuceeffively. Butif there be cold Northerly and Fafterly winds, or trofty nights, the watering fhould be difcontinued till the weather is milder, : Be always caretul that your trees\get dry before night, and be fure ever to water when the fun is on them; nor *Ifit bea leaden ciftern, alittle loam, enough to cover the bottom, muft be thrown in, and then trod down, before the lime and water are put in; The loam will prévent the lime from corroding the metal, ; 186 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND yet water them with the grounds of the lime, which will make the trees look very unfightly, and alfo injure the leaves. When aphides are numerous at the ends of the fhoots, the leaves there will be curled up; thefe fhould be all ftript off, and the infeéts crufhed with the foot. Of the Acarus. The Acarus, or Red Spider, is one of the moft de- _ ftrudtive infets that can infeft plants, particularly in forcing- houfes. ; ‘} hefe infe€ts have no wings, and the female 1s oviparous. There are no lefs than 82 fpecies of this genus. The acarus is very common on trees, particularly the current, on the fruit of which it is frequently feen running. Thefe infects attack the vines, nettarines, peaches, and cherries; and forced French beans are very fubjeét to their depredations, as are alfo peaches and neétarines on the natur- al wall, in hot weather. Melons in frames are very much in- tefted with them. I once faw a ridge of melons, of feventy lights, fo much injured by them, that when the fruit was full- grown, it was good for nothing, and the ftems and leaves were completely exhaufted of their moifture by thefe infeéts feeding on them, ‘They are equally hurttul to moft exotics in hot-houfes. } The beft thing that I known for deftroying thefe perni- cious infeéts is moifture ; which will alfo deftroy many other infeéts in hot-houfes. Frequent watering of wall-trees, ftandards, &c. with lime-water (the making and ufing of which 1s defcribed in the direétions for deftroying the aphis,) and threwing it plenti- fully on the underfide of the leaves, where the acarus is generally iound, will in a {hort time extirpate that deftru€live infeét. For plants, &c. in hot-houfes, I would recommend ufing water only, and in the following manner: Between three and four o’clock in the afternoon, fill the barrow engine with foft water, or fuch as has been expofed to the fun all day, and wheel it along the foot-paths of the houfe, where they are wide enough to admit it, and {prinkle all the plants, preffing your finger on the top ot the pipe to f{pread the water like a fine {hower of rain, playing alfo againft the top lights and fhelves till the water ftands an inch deep in the paths of the houfe.* If you cannot conveniently get the engine into _ ™Thave lately feen a fmall copper engine, made by Mr. Philips, en- gine-maker, Blackfriars read, which anfwers yery well, when a barrow en-~ gine cannot be got into the houfe, : MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 187 the houfe, open the front lights, or when there are no front lights, flide down the top lights, and throw the water in it at the front or top. When you begin this operation, if in the in- fide, every light muft be fhut; and if you throw the water in at the front, you muft keep only one light open, which {hut immediately when you have fufficiently watered that part of the houfe oppofite to it; and, then opening another light, proceed as before ; and fo on, till the whole is properly watered. The houfe muft then be kept clofe fhut till next morning; this will caufe fuch an exhalation from the glafs, tan, (if there are any tan-beds in the houfe,) &c. that the plants wil! be covered all over with the vapour ; which wiil intallibly deftroy the cocci, _ aphides, and other infetis ; but the watering muft be repeated every afternoon, during hot weather only. By this you will alfo fave a great deal of labour in watering; but fuch plants as require much watering fhould be watered before you begin to fprinkle the houfe. Belore morning the plants will have im- _bibed all the moi{ture, and the paths will be perteétly dry. When I lived at the Botanic Gardens, Chelfea, I obfervéd in hard winters, when we were obliged to keep ftrong fires in the {ftoves night and day, that the plants which ftood on fhelves in the dry floves were fo {corchea up that the leaves ufed to drop cff, as from deciduous trees in autumn, which gave them a very difagreeable appearance. This induced mé to confider what could be done to prevent it; when the following method occurred to me: About eight in the morning, when the fun {hone out, and there was the appearance of a fine day, I threw in water till it covered the floor, which was of tile, trom one to two inches deep, and kept the houfe fhut the whole of the day, unlefs the thermometer rofe to about eighty degrees, which feldom happens at that feafon of the year ; in that cafe, I open- ed the door to admit a little air. By the middle of the day, the water was entirely exhaled, and the floor perfeétly dry. This I ufed to repeat two or three times a week, in funny weather ; the plants in about a week’s time began to throw out their foliage, and in a tortnight or three weeks they were in full leat. This {uccefs induced me to takethe fame method with the tan ftoves and other houfes in fummer, when troubled with infeéts ; and I had the fatisfaétion to find that it had the defired effect, Of the Acarus on Melons. ___ Ass we are now treating of infeéts, although it may look like a departure trom my original plan, I hope that fome in- ftructions tor deftroying the red f{pider on melons will not be unacceptable, 488 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND Melons, in dry weather, and with adry heat, are very apt to be infefted with the red {pider ; and you may always ob- ferve the fymptoms long betore you can fee thefe infeéts with the naked eye, by the leaves curling and cracking in the mid- dle. Whenever you obferve them in that ftate, in fine warm funny weather, I would recommend watering them all over the leaves from a watering pot with a rofe, or an engine, about fix in the morning; and about eight o'clock fhade them with mats, if the fun fhines, and fhut the trames clofe down till about eleven; then admit a {mall quantity of air, letting the. mats remain till about three in the afternoon, when they fhould be taken off. Shading with mats will prevent the leaves from being {corched by the fun while they are wet. Ifthe wind be South or South Weft, I would recommend watering them a- gain about three in the afternoon, fhutting them up clofe to keep the heat in, which will caufe a ftrong exhalation, and de- firoy the {piders, as they by no means love moifture. In wa- tering, throw as much as poffible on the underfide of the leaves, where the infeét generally lodges; the vines may be gently turned, taking very great care not to hurt them ; by which means you can eafily throw the water all over the underfide of the leat; which muft be done in a gentle {hower from the en- gine, or from a watering-pot with a rofe, fo as not to wafh up the mould on the plants, at the fame time throw great plenty - of water on the lights and fides of sponse After you have done watering, lay the vines gently 4own again in their for- mer pofition. If a funny day, let the mats remain as before direéted until the leaves of the plants are perteétly dry, admit- ting air according to the heat of the day. Before the trames and lights are ufed, I would recommend wafhing them well, both infide and out ; firft, with clean wa- ter, and then with foap-fuds and urine mixed; ufing a brufh or woollen rag in the wafhing ; this will kill the eggs of the Spiders and other infe€ls that may have been depofited the preceding feafon. When the ridges are fit for putting the mould on for the hills to plant the melons in, it fhould be from a foot to fifteen inches deep, and the reft of the bed fhould be covered with light mould, or rotten leaves, about one inch deep to keep down the fteam. Take care not to make the hills too broad at. firfl (a wheel-barrow tull and a half will be enough for one hill,) and obferve that the heat is not too great, which will burn the mould and the roots of the plants. You will know when the beds are of a fine temperate heat, from fticks fuck in at dif. ferent parts of the bed, by the feel of your hand, and the flicks having a pleafant {weet {mell. MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 189 It will be very proper to water the hills, with a watering- pot having a rofe, once a day for two or three days before you put in the plants, keeping the lights fhut, which will deftroy any eges ot the {pider that may yet remain in the crevices of the boxes and lights. The day on which you mean to put in the plants, you fhould give the beds a great deal of air, to let out the tleam that has been penned in; then turn over the hills, and put in your plants about three o’clock in the afteynoon, making a hollow circle round the bottom of each hill, to feparate the mould of the hills from that on the bed, which will fuffer the fteam to evaporate more eafily ; then watering the plants, fhut them down till next morning, admitting air according to the heat of your bed, taking care not to give too much till your plants are well rooted in the hills, which will be in a couple of days; it will alfo be neceffary to {hade them in the heat of the day, to prevent the plants trom flagging. In cold frofty weather, you muft by no means fprinkle the plants, as the froftin the night will infallibly bring on the canker. Soft water fhould be ufed in fprinkling, or fuch as has been expofed feveral days to the fun. If the water be very hard, put fome wood-afhes into it, and flir it up two or three times a day, it will be fit for ufe in the courfe of two days; let the afhes fubfide, and ufe the clear water only. If your melons have been infefted with the fpider in the preceding year, by no means ufe any of the mould again. © Of the Coccus. The Coccus is a genus of infeéts belonging to the order Hemiptera, whofe males have wings, but the females have none. The moft common infeéts of this genus are thofe which attach themfelves to peach, ne€larine, and pear-trecs; and when ful] grown they have fomewhat the appearance of a boat with the keel turned uppermoft. ‘Thefe are apparently with- out feet, eyes, or other members, while in this flare; and fo much refemble fome kinds of galls, or excrefcences of the ~ bark, as frequently to be taken for fuch. A thin film ot a white cotton-like {ubftance 1s interpofed between the flat part of the body and the tree. This is common, in a greater or leffer quantity, to-all the f{pecies, and appears at firft all round the edge as a kind of cement to join it to the tree. The males are very few in proportion to the females, and not nearly one fourth of their fize; they are beautiful little flies, 190 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND which, after a fhort, but ative life, terminate their exiftencé without having tafted food, being provided with no fort of or- gans for that purpofe. = i en Peach, nectarine, and pear-trees, are very much infefted with thefe infeéts : They frequently cut through the bark, and the trees then appear as if they had been {cratched by cats. I have feen fome trees with this appearance all over them.* When thefe infeéts firft appear on the bark, they fhould be {craped off with a wooden knife, and the ftem and branches of the tree wafhed with foap-fuds and urine, applied witha painter’s brufh. _ This fhould be done in February, before the buds begin to come out. But if the outer bark is perforated, it muft be cut or pared off with along knife; and if you find any brown {pots in the inner bark, they muft be carefully cut out. This difeafe is one great caufe of the canker, and of the death of the tree. [See Plate 9. Fig. 3: | When this difeafe has made its way through both barks, as is often the cafe, the branches on each fide of the tree may be cut clofe to the ftem, if it has an upright one; but if the tree be trained fan-tafhion, the be{t way is to head it near to the place where it was gratted. 1 have headed old pear-trees which were fo dead, except a {mall ftrip of live bark on one fide, that you might rub the bark off them as eafily as offa bundle of faggot-iticks that had been cut upwards of a year ; yet thefe trees have fhot out frefh branches to the length of feventeen feet in two years, and produced fine fruit the fecond year. Apply the compofition immediately after heading, or cutting, or paring off the deceafed bark. A very deftruttive fpecies of the coccus tribe has lately done incredible damage to the apple-trees in the nurferies and gardens in the neighbourhood ot London. Some Narferymen have loft feveral thoufand apple-trees in one year. Thefe in- fefts attach themfelves to the bark by their fuckers, and, by feeding on the juices of the tree, rob it of its nourifhment. Such trees as are infefted with them have a fickly appearance. I am happy, however, in being able to fay, that I have nearly extirpated them from his Majefty’s gardens at Kenfington : But, as our neighbours do not pay the fame attention to their trees as we do to ours, the infetts frequently emigrate to us ; this obliges me to be very attentive to their firft appearance ; and as I take the earlieft opportunity of deflroying them, the trees fuffer very little from their depredations. * This, if I am not much miftaken, is the very infect that makes fuch dreadful ravages amongtt the peach-trees in America, MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 191 _ Thefe infeéts make their nefts generally where branches have been cut off, or in hollow places, where the canker has eaten holes in the trees. “Their firft appearance is like a white down ; on touching, or rubbing them, they tinge the fingers of a crimfon colour, like cochineal. Ii fuffered to remain long on trees, they take wing, like aphides. The method that I have followed for thefe ten years to deftroy them, is as fol- lows : I rub the places where their nefls are with an old bruth, fuch as painters ufe, till they are all cleaned off ; and if the part be canker-eaten, I cut it clean out with a knife or chifel : I then take of loap-fuds and urine equal parts, and with this I wath the wound and the bark all round it ; and with a brufh apply the compofition mixed with wood-afhes and the powder of burnt bones, covering the wound all over with it. After- wards I fhake fome of the powder of wood-afhes and burnt bones, mixed with an eighth part of unflaked lime finely pow- dered and fitted, ever the hollows, or where knobs have been cut off, . At the fame time that the trees are cleared of the cocci the caterpillars fhould be picked off. The firft time that I obferved the new coccus, which has done fo much mifchief to the apple-trees about London, was,, in a garden of my own at Chelfea, about the year 1782 or 3 ; and, as tar as I can learn, they were imported, among fome apple-trees, by the late Mr. Swinton, of Sloane-ftreet, Mr. Swinton afterwards removed his nurfery to the King’s road, near Chelfea College, which now goes by the name of the Foreign Nurfery. — All the gardens about Chelfea and Kenfington are now very much infefted with thefe infeéts ; and I haye frequently feen them in feveral other parts of the kingdom. _ Dolor George Fordyce purchafed feveral apple-trees at the fale of the effects of Mr. De la Tour, editor of the Courier de |’Kurope ; all of which were from Mr. Swinton’s nurfery, and all infected with thefe infeéts. The doétor gave me twelve of thefe trees, which | planted, and very foon cleared them of the coccus. Mefirs. Lee and Kennedy, Nurferymen at the vineyard, Mammerfmith, Meffrs. Grimwood and Co. Kenfington, and Mefirs. Gray and Wear, at Bromton-Park nurfery, have ap- plied train oil, laid on with a painter’s brufh, with a view of deftroying thefe infeéts, but they have not been fuccefsful.* * Since writing the above, I have been informed, that the Farmers ia Kent likewife ufe train oil ; but if they would make a fair trial of urine and Joap-fuds, they would find it more eff:{tuyl, and it would coft nothing but la. ioe TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND Indeed, I by no means approve of applying oil to trees upon any account, as, by fhutting up the pores, it is apt to render them bark bound. Of Caterpillars. Caterpillars are very deftruétive to cabbages, and all the braffica tribe, and trequently make depredations on trees, par- ticularly the apricot. They fhould, therefore, be carefully obferved and picked off. A few years ago, Kenfington Gar- dens were very much infefted with them ; but by carefully picking and deftroying them, and all the aurelia that could be come at, very few are now to be feen. During the winter and fpring, every chryfalis that can be found under the copings of walls, on gates, palings, &c. fhould be deftroyed. Many may alfo be found about the doors and windows of houfes, under the eaves, and in many other places. The beft method of preventing trees from being infefted, is to fcrape the fiems with a piece of bone or wood made in the form of a knife, taking care not to bruife the bark ; and afterwards to waih the tree and wall with an equal quantity of foap-fuds and urine mixed, As foon as the leaves are off the trees in autumn, they fhould be raked and {wept up; then carried to the melon ground and mixed up with other leaves and dung for hot-beds; by this means you will get rid of a great number of eggs of in- feéts that are depofited on the underfide of the leaves. Then wath all the flems of the trees, and all the ends of the buds, taking care not to hurt the buds : In doing this, what falls will deftroy the flugs that take fhelter on the off-fet of the wall and in the borders, before they are dug tor planting lettuce, endive, &c. This wafhing fhould be repeated about the beginning of February, which will deftroy any eggs of different infeéts that may {ill remain about the trees. A painter’s brufh may be ufed for laying the mixture on the trees, and a foft broom, or a brufh made of the ends of garden matting, for wafhing the wall. The matting feems preferable, as, being foft and flexi- ble, it will enter the holes and crevices. The mixture that talls on the border and off- fet of the wall, in this fecond wafhing, will deftroy thofe flugs and infeéts bour; befides, what falls on the borders will make afine manure. Theurine and foap-fuds fhould be faved in tubs in winter ; and, asit will be too ftrong for ufe in fummer, it may be lowered by adding water. This mixture will alfo be found effeétual in killing flugs that harbour about the roots of the trees and bottoms of the walls. When it foaks into the ground, the flugs will work their way, and may eafily be killed by throwing a little more of the mixture on them from a watering-pot with a rofe, ' MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 193 that made their appearance early. The ftems and branches of the trees may be waihed two or three times, or oftener, in the {pring, before the buds begin to f{well; but the branches muft not be rubbed after the trees come into flower; you may, however, fprinkle them over with the mixture froma watering. pot with a rofe juft betore the buds begin to open, but by no means after they are open; as it will, by its glutin- ous nature, render the bloom liable to be fcorched by the fun. I would recommend the above wafhings, &c. for all trees, ftandards as well as thofe on walls; particularly apple, cher- ry, and plum-trees. If any caterpillars fhould remain, they will be difcover- ed by the curling of the leaves; tor every curled leaf has one or more caterpillars, or other infeéts in it; they fhould there- fore be carefully pulled off, and the infetis crufhed: It neg- lef&ted, they will frequently devour every leat, leaving the tree quite naked, and of courfe deftroy the fruit for that feafon. There are fome gregarious forts of caterpillars found in great numbers enclofed in a net, or bag, refembling a ftrong cobweb, and fixed to the branches of trees and fhrubs. Thefe nefts fhould be carefully picked off, and the infe€ts crufhed, by which vaft numbers of them willbedeftroyed. After you have cleared the tree as well as you poflibly can, wath it as above direéted, which will deftroy thofe ftragglers that may flill remain on it. - Obferve, that after the trees come into flower, inftead of wafhing them with urine and fuap-fuds, they fhould be well watered with clear lime-water, mixed with tobacco-water. _ There are feveral fpecies of moths that in the caterpillar flate are very hurtful to plums and other fruit trees: It will, _therefore, be a great advantage to deflroy them on their firit appearance. It would be of great fervice to get acquainted as muchas poflible with the economy and natural hiltory of all thefe in- Ateéts, as we might thereby be enabled to find out the maft cer- tain method of deftroying them. Were a few of each fort of caterpillars put in a box or cafe, and fed with leaves of fuch trees as they generally live upon, they might be oblerv- ed from time to time unul they came to the chryfalis, and from that to the moth or butterfly flate, and thus a more per- feét knowledge of them might be obtained, } A2 194. TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND It would be neceflary to have feparate divifions in the cafe for each different {pecies, and to put fome earth in the bottom-of each divifion, which fhould be moiftened occafion- ally, as fome of them bury themfelves in their chryfalis flate, while others adhere to walls, gates, or palings. Fiefh leaves fhould trequently be put in, and the box or cafe covered with a piece of fine canvals, or gauze, to admit the frefh air. At the fame time that the trees are cleared of the coceus, aphis, or any other infeéts, the caterpillars fhould be caretully looked tor and picked off. You will obferve, that they fhel- ter themfelves at the ends of the fhoots, in the flowers, and at the bottom of the foot-flalks of the flowers. There are two or three forts that infeft fruit trees, two of a brown and one of a green colour. Four years ago the apple-trees fuffered very much by a blight; they had all the leaves eaten off, and, of courfe, bore no truit. I firft had all the caterpillars care- fully picked off: I then cut out the cankered wood, and wath- ed the trees with a-mixture of urine, foap-fuds, and frefh cow-dung, fufficient to bring it to the confiflence of paint, laying it on all over the {tems and branches of the trees, par- ticularly where the decayed parts were cut out: After this, the trees recovered in a manner that furprifed every one who faw them; and they {till continue in a thriving flate, and bear very fine fruit. In 1795 I ufed the above method with a great many dwarf apple-trees; and the effect was fo vifible next feafon, that all who faw them took notice of the great difference be- tween them and the remaining trees, which we had left tona- ture; the latter bearing no fruit, and their leaves being eaten by the caterpillar, while the former have borne fine clean fruit ever fince. The trees, twenty-five in number, which I left to nature, continued ina fickly {tate tor three years, neither bearing fruit nor putting torth fhoots. After the third year { headed them down, {craping the {tems and cleaning off the infeéis ; they are now recovered, having made as fine wood as the others, and are in a healthy flourifhing ftate. Fig. 2, Plate g,reprefents different flates of a kind of moth, whofe caterpillar has for many years done great mif- chief among pear-trees on walls. One wall in particular, in Kenfington Gardens, was very much hurt every year, for fev- eral years fucceflively. 1 imagined that it had been the effeét. of lightning, or a blight; till, on picking off the caterpillars, we found a {mall fort in its cafe, flicking to the leaves, as MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 105 at a. [See the Defcription of the Plate.| All the firft leaves were deftroyed by the caterpillars : I was, therefore, rejoiced that I had found out the caufe of their being fo much injured every year, being perforated in many places, and dropping off very early. The Chermes. Chermes is a genus of infe€is belonging to the order He- miptera, and of which there are twenty-fix fpecies. They take their fpecific names from the different plants which they frequent; as the Chermes Graminis, or Grats Bug; the Cher- mes Ficus, or Fig-Tree Bug, &c. The latter is one of the largeft of the genus, and is brown above and greenifh beneath. It has four long wings, which are placed in form of an acute root, The larva, which is of an oblong form, has fix feet, and its motion is flow. When it is attempted to catch the cher- mes, it makes its efcape rather by leaping than flying, by means of its hinder legs, which play like {prings. Some of thefe in- {e&ts have a manceuvre worthy of notice. Several fpecies are provided at the extremity of their body with a {mall fharp- pointed implement, but which lies concealed ; and this they draw out in order to depofit their eggs, by making a punéture in the plant that fuits them. By this method the fir-tree cher- mes produces that enormous {caly protuberance which is to be found at the fummit of the branches of that tree, and which is formed by the extravafation of the juices occafioned by the punétures. The young larva fhelter themfelves in cells cons tained in thetumour. ‘The direétions for deftroying the coc- cus are applicable to this infeét. The Thrips: The Thrips, of which there are eleven fpecies, alfo be- longs to the order Hemiptera. This infeét is, in general, fo {mali as to be fcarcely difcerned by the nakedeye. It 1s, how- ever, very pernicious to fruit trees, fometimes attacking the fruit as well as the leaves. To deftroy this infeé, follow the direftions given for deftroying the coccus. The Phlana, or Moth. _ There are numerous fpecies of this well known infeét, and their caterpillars differ greatly as to fize, fhape, and colour. All of them, after cafting the flough feveral times, {pin their cod, in which they are traustormed to chryfalids. They are frequently tound in this ftate, rolled up in the leaves of {fruit trees; particularly thofe of pears, plums, and cherries. Thefe 196 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND” leaves muft be carefully picked off, and the infeéts crufhed : The trees mut then be wafhed with clear lime-water mixed with tobacco-water. This wafhing would be found ufefal when the infeét is in its larva fate, alter picking off and crufhing as many of the caterpillars as poflible. See Cater- pillars. Sphinx, or Hawk Moth. There are 165 {pecies of this genus, ten of which are found in Great Britain and Ireland. The name of Sphinx 1s given to this genus on account of the fingular attitudes of their caterpillars, who apply the hind- er part of their body to a branch of a tree, and hold the reft of it ereét, hike the Fabulous Sphinx. Moft of them {pin their cod under ground. The fphinges appear either early in the morning, ot aiter funfet, and fly heavily and fluggifhly, often emitting a kind of found. Many of the cater, iilars are green and {mooth, fome brown, or yellow, and others are fpotted, or have belts. The fphinx may be detftroyed by the fame method as the phalzena. The Phalena Bombyx Neuftria. The Phalzna Neuftria, or Lackey Moth, lays its eggs in rings round the branches of fruit trees, exhibiting the appear- ance of anecklace. Thefe being very hard, and adhering clofe to the bark, muft be cut off with a fharp knife, taking care to wound the bark as little as poflible ; and wherever the knife enters, it will be neceflary to rub ima little of the com. pofition, The Papilio. The Papilio, or Butterfly, belongs to the order Lepidop- tera. There are a great many fpecies of this genus, generally diftinguifhed by the colour of their wings: The mere com- mon forts, with their caterpillars, are fo well known, as to ren- der a defcription of them unneceflary. The caterpillars and chryfalids muft be carefully picked, and the trees well waters ed with clear hhme-water and tobacco-water mixed. The Cicada. The Cicada, Frog-Hopper, or Flea-Locuft, is a genus of infeGis belonging to the order Hemiptera. The larva of fey- eral of this genus evacuate great quantities of a frothy matter upon the branches and leaves of plants or trees, in the midff of which they conflantly refide, probably for fhelier again ft other MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 197 “ animals ; perhaps, alfo, the moifture of this foam may ferve to fecure them trom the fultry rays of the fun. As the freth emitted by thefe infe€ts is very unfightly, and as they are alfo hurtful to trees, by eating the leaves, they fhould be defiroyed by rubbing off the Jarve with the hand, and afterwards watering the tree plentitully with foift water. Of Earwigs. _ Earwigs are very deftruétive to fruit, particularly peacnes. The method that I would recommend for deflroying them, and which I have long purfued with fuccefs, is as follows : Take old bean ftalks, cut them about nine inches long, tie them up in {mall bundles, with fome pack-thread, or with {mall yellow willows; and hang them about on different parts of the trees. The firft thing you do in the morning, being provided with a board about eighteen inches fquare, and a {mall wooden trowel, take down the bundles ot bean flalks, one by one, {trike them againit the board, and with your trow- el kill the earwigs as they fall out of the flalks. It you fol- low this up every morning, (or every other morning) you will be able to keep them under. The toregoing method will anfwer for any fort of trees infefted with earwigs. In fome years I have feen a great part of the fruit, efpecialiy the fmooth-fkinned forts, deftroyed by thefe infeéts and a {mall green caterpillar ; and in a {carce year of fruit, the leaves of peaches are frequently deftroyed _ by them. Of the Ant. The Ant is very deiftruétive to fruit, efpecially the peach when ripe; you will frequently fee thefe infeéts travelling all over the tees, and fometimes the fruit will be filled with them. The beft method that I have found to deflroy them is, to get a fharp pointed wooden flake, or an iron crow, if the ground be hard, and with it bere a hole not far trom the fiem of the tree, and as deep as the ground will permit. By flirring the earth, you will fet the antsin motion: Then work your flake or crow round the fides of the hole, making them as {mooth as you can; the ants will come to the mouth of the hole and tumble in, and by the fhape of the hole and fmoothnefs ot its fides, wil! be prevented trom climbing up again. When you {ee a great many in the bottom of the hole, pour in fome water froma watering-pot ; and thus you may diown thoulands ot them. This is an eafy and fimple way to get rid of ants. Some are of opinion that they do good by eating the aphides frcm off igf TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND the trees ; but I have always thought that they do much more hurt than good. You may likewife deftroy many of them by mixing quick- lime with foot, and laying it along their roads where you {ee them thickeft ; but where you can come at their nefts, the beft way is to put a piece of quick-lime into it, and pour as much water over the lime as will flake it, the heat of which will de- Stroy them: When you have poured in the water, cover the lime with a turf or a little earth, which will render it more ef- fe€tual, by confining the heat. You mav flake the lime with a mixture of urine and foap-fuds, which will render it flill ~ more effe€tual. If a little of the powder of ftavefacre be laid on the ground round the ftem of a tree, it will prevent ants from afcending it. Sluzs. Thefe infe&ts are frequently found harbouring about the foundations of walls, and about the roots of peafe, lettuce, &c. They may be picked off and killed, by putting them into a pot in which is a little fine unflaked lime; or the ground where they are fhould be well watered with foap-fuds and urine, mix- ed with tobacco-water. When they are numerous on the furs face of the ground, which frequently happens after rain, or in a dewy morning, fine unflaked lime threwn over the borders, &c. will deftroy them. But! preter the above mixture, which, if the ground be well watered with it, will bring them up out of their holes, when they very foon die: It will alfo deftroy their eggs, which they always depofit in the earth, Snails Snails, during the winter, gather themfelves together in clufters; and in that feafon are frequently found in great num- bers behind wall-trees, and in holes of the walls. ‘They muft be carefully picked off and crufhed, which is the only effe€iual way of getting ridof them. If any fhouid efcape, they fhould be deftroyed as they make their appearance in the {pring. As they alfo depofit their eggs in the ground, the borders fhould be well watered, as direéied for flugs. Of Wafps and Flies. As foon as the Walp and Large Flefh Fly (which are very deftru€live to all kind ot fruit, particularly grapes) make their appearance, get ready feveral bottles, or phials ; then mix up grounds of wine, or beer, with fweepings of fugar, honey, or grounds of molaffes, and with this mixture fill the bottles half, MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c. 19 or three quarters fuil, then place fome of them at the bottom of the wall and hang a fufficient number up by a pi¢ce of yel- low willow or pack-thread on the nailsagainft the walls in dif- ferent places, obferving to empty them frequently, as they fill with flies and wafps; firft pour the liquor into an empty bottle, and then fhake out the dead infeéts, crufhing them with your foot, that none of them may revive: then pour back the liquor into the bottles and phials, as at firft. In this manner you may deftroy a great many before the fruit becomes ripe. If you begin to hang up the bottles as foon as you fee the fly, which comes much earlier than the wafp, you will be able to deftroy ~ great numbers of them, and will have the bottles ready for the wafps when they make their appearance. The fly will be found as deftructive as the wafp to grapes. When the weather is hot, and the wafps are numerous, if they do not enter the bottles faft enough (which will happen when the fruit is very ripe,) take a little oil in a cup, and with a feather dipped in it touch their backs, and they will inflantly drop down: On obferving, you will find them turned black and green by the effects of the oil.* It is amazing what num- bers a diligent perfon can deftroy in this wavy inaday. Oil has the fame effect on flies; butit is very difficult to touch them with it as they are fo quick in their motions. Of Birds. When fruit begins to ripen» birds will attack it. The beft preventative in this cafe is, to cover the trees with nets, or buntine, a fort of cloth of which fhips colours are made. Thefe will admit a free circulation of air te the truit,and will foon dry after rain: They will alfo be a good covering tor the trees in [pring, in cold, wet, or {nowy weather. Rats and Mice. Thefe vermin do a great deal of mifchief in gardens, i: fheds, and other places, where they frequently deftroy great quantities of beans, peas, and other feeds; it is, theretore, the intereft of every gardener to kill as many of them as pof- fible. There are different ways of deflroying them, by traps, and by poifon; but I would advife neverto ule arfenic, or corrofive fublimate, for that purpole, except under particular circumftances, as they are deadly poifon: Nux vomica will generally an{wer the end as well, without the danger. fn cate * Oil kills infe€ts by clofing up the lateral pores by which they breathe. 200 TREATISE ON THE CULTURE AND » of being accidentally tafted by children or others, it will be attended with no worle confequence than leaving a difagreea- ble bitter talle inthe mouth; unlefs, indeed, a confiderable quantity of it be taker, which would, no doubt, prove fatal ;* as it is pofleffed of a flrong narcotic quality, and is found a certain poifon for dogs and cats, as well as for rats and mice. All domettic animals thould, therefore, be kept trom the plac- es where the poifon is laid. A very good way to prevent ac- cidents is, to enclofe the traps in cafes, having holes in the ends of them large enough to admit the rats, but fmall enough to exclude dogs, cats, &c. . A Bait for Rat Traps. | Take a pound of good flour, three ounces of molaffes, and fix drops of the oil of carraways; put them all in a difh, and rub them well together ts!) they are properly mixed; then add a pound of crumbs of bread. Set the traps, baited with fome of the foregoing mixture as near their haunts as poffible; but, for two or three days, fo as not to fall or flrike on the rats going in, and let them have free liberty to go in and out at pleafure; this will make them fearlefs. Lay fome ot the bait at the rat-holes, and featter a little of it quite up to the traps, and fo on to the bridge of each trap, where you may lay a handtul. It may alfo be proper to fcent the traps with the following mixture, for the purpofe of enticing the rats into them. Take twenty drops of oil of rhodium, fix or feven grains of mufk, and half an ounce of oil of annifeed ; put them ina {mall phial, and fhake it well before ufing : Then dip a bit of twifled paper, or rag in the mixture, and rub each end of the trap with it, 1f a box-trap, and put two or three drops on the bridge, leaving the paper or raginthe trap. Of whatever kind the trap 1s, it fhould be feented ; Once in a twelvemonth will be fufficient. Thenthrow fome chaff, mixed witha little wheat, about the bottom of the trap, in order to deceive the rats; for they are very fagacious, and will not enter a fufpi- cious place. This will be neceffary to be done only at the firft time of fetting the traps ; tor after fome rats have been caught and have watered and dunged in them, rats will enter boldly ‘when they find cihers have been there before them: Do not therefore, wafh or clean out the trap, as fome people do before they fetit again; but letthe dungand urine remaininit. Keep * Tt hasbeen taken in dofes from five to ten grains, twice a day, in ifs termictents and dyfenteries. MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, &c: 01 the places where the traps are fet as private as poffible ; and when you fet them for catching, mix no breac with the bait, as the rats will in that cafe be apt to carry it away. When you find the holes quiet, and that no rats ufe them, ftop them up with the following compofition: Take a pint of common tar, half an ounceof pearl-afhes, an ounce of oil of vitriol, and a good handful of common falt, mix them all well together, in an old pan or pot. ‘Take fome pieces of paper, and lay fome of the above mixture very thick on them, then ftop the holes well up with them, and build up the mouth of the holes with brick, or fone, and mortar: If this be properly done, rats will no more approach thefe, while either fmell or tafte remains in the compofition. To kill Rats in Places where you cannot fet Traps. Take a quart of the bait already defcribed, then rafp into it three nuts of nux vomica, and add a quarter of a pound of crumbs of bread, if there was none before ; mix them all well together, and lay it into the mouth of their holes, and in differ. ent places where they frequent ; but firft give them of the bait without the nux vomica for three or four fucceeding nights ; and when they find it agrees with them, they will eat that mix. ed with the nut with greedinefs. Rats are frequently very troublefome in fhores and drains. In fuch cafe, arfenic may be ufed with fuccefs, as follows : Take fome dead rats, and having put fome white arfenic, fine. ly powdered, into an old pepper-box, fhake a quantity of it on the foreparts of the dead rats, and put them down the holes, or avenues, by the fides of the fhores, at which they come in ; this puts a ftop to the live ones coming any further ; for when they perceive the arfenic they will retire immediately ; where- as, if you were to put down the dead rats without the arfenic, the live ones would eat them. What has been faid relates chiefly to rats ; we fhall.now give fome direétions for deftroying mice. Take a quart of the bait prefcribed for rats, before there is any bread mixed with it; then take four nuts of nux vomica, and ra{p them very fine, otherwife the mice will pick out the food from it, on account of its bitter tafte ; rub them well to- gether ; lay fome of it ona piece of paper, or, if without doors, ona piece of tile, removing ail other food from the place, and it will kill all that eat of it. What is not eaten, take away in the morning, and replace it at night. If this be in a garden, fhelter it with boards, or tiles, that it may not get wet. Be 2020 TREATISE ON THE°CULTURE, &c.: bi » I wouldrecommend fetting fourth-figure traps in gardens ;. Thefe are fo well known to gardeners, that they need no de- {cription. They may be baited with garden beans. Traps are alfo made by ftringing garden beans on a piece of fine pack-thread, as you would {tring beads, then driving in two {mall flakes at the breadth of a brick trom each other, and fetting up a brick, or ftone, or a board with a weight on it, inclining to an angle of about forty-five degrees ; then tie the flring, with the beans oa it, round the brick and ftakes, to fupport the brick in its inciining pofiuion, taking care to place all the beans on the under fide of the brick. ‘The mice in eating the beans will alfo cut the pack-thread, and fo difen- gage the brick, or ftone, which falling on them, kills them. There is nothing new in the foregoing method ; but, as field-mice will feldom enter a clofe trap, 1 thought proper to mention it. As mice are frequently carried into gardens with flraw, or litter, and are there extremely hurtful, deftroying beans and peafe in {pring, as alfo lettuces, melons, and cucumbers in frames, it is neceffary to take fome pains to deftroy them, OBSERVATIONS on tHe DISEASES, DEFECTS, AND INYURIES, 7A cote ape FRUIT AND FOREST TREES. INTRODUCTION. It redounds very much to the general honour of the Britifh nation, as well as to the particular credit of the Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufattures, and Commerce, and feveral other Affociations for the Advancement of Agricul- ture, &c. that the face of the country has, in the courfe of the prefent century, received fo much improvement, and fuch added beauty. The premiums and honorary marks of diftinétion held forth by thefe focieties have excited a {pirit of emulation, or fuggefted a fpirit of improvement, among perfons of every rank of life, which have been produ€tive of many difcoveries of no common benefit in their prefent effetis, and of great promife from their tuture confequences, to the community at large. : But, notwithftanding the ftrides which modern agricul- ture has made towards perte€tion in many points, there 1s one particular and very interefting branch of this fcience which improvement has not yet embraced, viz. the growth of timber, and the culture and management of plantations both of fruit and foreft trees. The profeffion of a gardener has been the employment of my life ; and during a long fucceflion of years, it has been an objeét of my particular ftudy to inveftigate and difcover the latent caufes of thofe various defeéts and difeafes to which all kinds of trees are more or lefs fubje€t, and the injuries re- fulting from them, by obftruéting the fertility of fruit trees, and diminifhing the quantity, as well as quality, of timber in foreft trees. Having acquired a competent knowledge of the evil in all its appearances and effeéts, my attention was dire€led toward the difcovery of fuch a remedy as might not only counteract the progrefs of thefe difeafes in fruit and foreft trees, but alfo afford nature fuch powerful affiftance, that fhe might be enabled to renovate, as it were, fertility in the one, and found timber in the other. Of my fuccefs in thefe endeavours to promote the general advantage of this country in a matter fo conneéted #06 OBSERVATIONS ON THE DISEASES, &c. with its beft interefls, I have that clear convilion which I traft, will be hereafter communicated to every part of the kingdom where the application of my experience fhall be made and profecuted. The inquifitive fpirit which accompanied my profeffion- al purfuits, with the natural defire of improving my private practice in the management of the various kinds of trees under my care, led me by degrees to this difcovery. The idea, how- ever, of making it public never occurred to me, till the many trials and experiments that I had repeatedly made, both on fruit and foreft trees, inthe Royal Gardens at Kenfington, had attracted the notice of many perfons of high rank, as well as philofophical eminence, and prompted them to favour it with a particular examination. Their invefligation of my procefs and method of curing the defeéts and injuries which, from va- rious caufes, thofe trees had fuftained, by producing convic- tion in their minds, gave the mo flattering encouragment to me. Indeed, the application of the remedy had been attended with fuch uninterrupted fuccefs, that its falutary and certain effeéts were evident to every one who favoured it with an at- tentive obfervation. Many, who vifited me with the moft decided opinions againft the fuccefsful application of any rem- edy for trees in a very advanced ftate of decay, did not hefi- tate, on an inveftigation of the fubjeét, to acknowledge that their prejudices were not only removed, but that their judg- ments were perfe€tly convinced of the powerful efficacy of the difcovery, and the very great advantages which, both in an individual and a national view, might be derived trom it. Among the more early inquirers, were the Commiflion- ers appointed by Parliament to examine into the flate ofthe woods, forefts, and land revenues of the crown; who, in the courfe of their {urveys, had perceived a great number of trees in the Royal Forefts to be materially injured; and their anx- iety to prevent the lofs or further damage of fo much valua- ble timber induced them te honour me with a letter* concern- ing the effe€ts of injuries done to oak-trees, and the means of reventing or curing deteéls in timber from various caufes therein ftated. In reply to this inquiry of the commiflioners, I did my- felf the honour of addreffing them two fucceflive letters.t Shortly after the date of thefe letters the commiffioners favoured me with a vifit at Kenfington, to examine the procefs * See No. 1, of the Appendix. + See Nos, 2 and 3, of the Appendix. OF FRUIT AND FOREST TREES. 807 * and mode of cure which I had adopted, as well as the effetts which my remedy had produced on trees of various kinds and ages to which it had been applied. Thofe gentlemen feemed, in a moft particular manner, to intereft themfelves in afcer- taining the utility and benefit that might arife from the applica- tion of it to many thoufand valuable trees in his Majefty’s woods and forefts, which had received injuries of fuch a kind as, if left to the unafhifted efforts of nature, would occafion a very confiderable diminution in the value and the quality of the timber, and might even terminate in their entire ruin.* This very attentive and minute examination of the feve- ral objects of their inquiry being tollowed by the cleareft con- viétion of the great public utility which would refult from a general application of the remedy, the commufhoners were pleafed to make a reprefentation of it to the Lords of his Majef- ty’s Treafury, under whofe fanttion it was fubmutted to the confideration of the Houfe of Commons by Mr. Rofs, on the 24th of July, 1789; and on his motion, an humble addrefs was prefented by that honorable houfe, to his Majefty on the fubject.+ In confequence of this addrefs, a committee of Members of both Houfes of Parliament undertook, at the inftance of the Lords of the Treafury, to inveftigate the efficacy of my com- pofition ; for which purpofe, they moft attentively examined the flate, condition, and progrefs of cure, of the decayed and injured trees in Kenfington Gardens, to which it had been ap- plied, in experiments of various kinds, for upwards of feven preceding years; and, alter having by a very full enquiry, {triét inveftigation, and the moft minute attention, fatisfied their minds in every particular, they reported to the Lords of the Treafury the refult of their examination, exprefling their unan- imous opinion and convition, that ‘‘ The Compofition was a difccvery which might be rendered highly beneficial both to individuals and the public.” That report, and alfoa letter pre- * Mr. Nichol, of Redbridge, Hants, Purveyor for Portfmouth Dock, in- foxmed me that the average of the damaged timber brought to that place was never jefs than one fourth of the total quantity of timber brought in annual- ly ; and not unfrequently it amounted toa third. If, however, the trees that have received any injuries were prepared, and the compofition applied as di- reCted in this treatife, the cavities, or wounds, would be filled up with new and found weed, And if recent wounds, occafioned by lopping or breaking off branches, were immediately dreffed in a proper manaer with the compo- fition, the tree would fultain no injury 5; as the wounds would be healed and covered over with new and found bark in a fhort fpace of time; fo that there would not be found a foot of damaged timber, + See No. 4, of the Appendix, 208 OBSERVATIONS ON THE DISEASES, &c. 5 vioufly written to the committee by the Commiffioners of the Land Revenue, of which I have been favored with copies, are, for the further information of the public, inferted in the appendix.* Having been thus honoured by the unanimous approba- tion of perfons fo refpettable for their rank, character, and knowledge, I proceeded to exert myfelf in making various ad- ditional trials and experiments, to enable me to give farther proots of the efficacy of my compofition, in reftoring the pow- ers of vegetation to trees fo tar decayed as to be of no value as timber, but which, from their fituation as a fkreen, or as compofing part of a general uniform appearance in the Royal Gardens, it became a defirable objeét to preferve. Nor were my endeavours lefs fuccefsful in this fubordinate experiment, than they had been in thofe which were direéted by circum- ftances of fuperior intereft; for I had the very great fatisfac- tion to find, that in confequence of my treatment of trees in that ftate of decay which has jufi been fpecified, a few years growth has filled up unfightly chafms, and reftored that uniformity to their local pofition, which young plants fet in their places would not have accomplifhed in a long courfe of fucceflive years. The report of the committee having been laid before his Majefly, in confideration of the great utility and advantage which muft arife to the country at large trom the ufe of this compofition, his Majefly was moft gracioufly pleafed to order a reward to be given to the author, for making known to the public the materials of which it is compofed, with the method of preparing it, as well as the mode of its application ; and, in order to diffufe the benefits of this difcovery throughout the kingdom, an advestifementt has been inferted in the London Gazette, and in moft of the town and country new[papers. The very great importance to this country of fecuring a continued fuccefflion of good, healthy, and well-growing foreft trees, producing found, unblemifhed timber, for fupplying the various wants of the public, muff be evident to every man’s re- fle€tion ; nor need it be obferved, that numberlefs large trees in the woods, parks, and forefts, of this kingdom, are, from various caules, rendered unfit for ufe, and the timber fo much damaged as to occafion a confiderable diminution in its value. This evil arifes, in fome inftances, frem unfkiltol management, and in others from external accidents; among * See Na. 6, of the Appendix. t See No. 6, of ihe Appendix. OF FRUIT AND FOREST TREES. 29 which are, the ruinous effe&ts of hurricanes and high winds, when the trees are generally left, in their wounded and dif- figured ftate, to the accelerated operations of inevitable de- cay. It alfo not unfrequently happens, that the heirs of large eftates, on coming to the poffeffion of them, order great num- bers of trees to be promifcuoufly felled, before they have at- tained a ftate of maturity, without paying the leaft attention to provide a fucceffion of young trees to fupply their place; by fuch inexcufable negligence defeating the ends propofed by the provident care and wifdom of their anceftors, depriving the public of a valuable fource of timber, either for domeftic purpofes or national ufe, and reducing their country to a de- poncsee on foreign produce for fupplying the demands of er fleets and manufactures. I fhal! efteem myfelf moft happy, if, in giving this trib. ute of information to the general ttock of public improve- ment, I fhould promote an influence that may excite noble- men and gentlemen, and proprietors of land of every denom- ination throughout the kingdom, to be aftively folicitous in planting and preferving oak-timber, the native growth of their country; that Great Britain may never be under the danger- ous as well as difagreeable neceflity of trufting the fafety of her feamen to the inferior texture and lefs durable quality of foreign growths; while the hardy oaks of England, which for ages paft have been confidered as affording the beft timber in the world for this building, and may have been faid to have brought home vittory and commerce from every part of the globe, are no longer fuffered to diminifh, as they have done of late, to the manifeft detriment and difhonour of our country. Such an evil (and it is of no common magnitude) proceeds from the negligence and inattention of the landed men, who, from a {pirit of patriotic ambition, as well as private interett, fhould pay a very vigilant attention to the maintaining of a fucceffion of healthy, well-growing timber, for the fervice of their country, nor any longer fuffer the internal refourcesof the kingdom to fail in furnifhing materials tor that great na- tional obje&t, the fupport of the Britith navy ; as well as tor the many various demands of domeftic utility. By making fuch a provifion for the public wants, they will add to their own immediate wealth, as well as to the fortunes of thofe who come after them: And, while I exprefs my wiihes that fuch general good defigns may be put in univerfal praétice, | may exprefs my belief, that the oe which I have made, and 2 210 OBSERVATIONS ON THE DISEASES, &c. which is now divulged tothe public,* will facilitate the means of profecuting them, to theeffential advantage of the British Empire. ‘ General Obfervations on the Difeafes, Defects, and Injuries, of all Kinds of Fruat and Foret Trees. In the courfe of more than thirty years pra€lice in culti- vating, pruning, and keeping of garden fruit trees, I have ob- ferved, that from natural caufes, accidents, and unfkilful man- agement, they were fubjcét to injuries of different kinds, which always diminifhed their fertility, and trequently rendered them wholly unprodu€tive. All wees that bear ftone-fruit are lable to emit a gum, which, by producing a canker, proves fatal to the health and vegetation of the tree. Molt foreft trees are alfo liable to what is called a bleeding, which proceeds from any injuries that ob{truét the circulation of the juices. Of thofe which -fuffer from bad management or accidents, fome are injured by unfkilful pruning, and lopping at improper feafons of the year ; and others by the violence of high winds, having boughs or limbs torn from their bodies ; which being left in that flate, expofed to all the inclemency of hard frofts, are often crack- ed or rent in the wood; or from heavy and foaking rains, the wounds imbibe fo large a quantity of wet and moifture, as, by eaufing a fermentation with the natural juices, brings on dif- eafe, and in time deitroys the health and vegetation of the tree. Thefe, among other caufes, tend to produce decay and barrennefs in fruit trees, as well as defeéts in timber, to the great lofs of the public in general, as well as effential injury to the individual proprietor. To remove thele evils, and to prevent the ill confequenc- es arifing from the caufes already defcribed, 1 fubmit to the experience of the publica remedy difcovered by myfelf, which has been applied with never-failing fuccefs to all kinds of fruit trees, and has not only prevented further decay, but aétually reftored vegetation and increafed fruitfulnefs, even in fuch as were apparently barren and decayed. It has produced alfo a fimilar effe€t on foreft trees, by refloring them to foundnefs of timber and healthful vegetation, and covering, as it were, vifible nakednefs and increafing decay, with freth and vigor- - ous foliage. et This remedy is acompofition formerly applied in the manner of a plafter, but now in a liquid flate, and laid over * See Nos. 6 and 7, of the Apperdix. OF FRUIT AND FOREST TREES. 211 the wounded or injured part of the tree witha painter’s brufh : It is of a foft and healing nature; poffeffes an abforbent and -adhefive quality ; and, by refilling the force of wafhing rains, the contraétion of nipping trofls, and the effets of a warm fun or drying winds, excludes the pernicious influence of a changable atmofphere. The difcovery of it is the refult of much refle&ion and ftudy during a long courfe of years, and of a great variety of experiments, made at a very confiderable expence, to afcertain the efficacious powers of the application. Nor fhall I hefitate a moment to declare my firm belief, that wherever it fhall be properly applied by the proprietors of gardens, orchards, and woods, it will be produétive of all the advantage that can be derived from reftoring as well as preferving vigour and fertil- ity in all kinds of fruit trees ; as alfo from preventing decay, and promoting health and found timber, in every f{pecies of foreft trees : And how great that advantage may be, it isin the capacity of every one to determine, On the Management of Foreft Trees. The received opinion and common praétice of moft pro- feffional men has been, to prune or top their trees, from the month of Oétober, when the juices have been exhaufted by the fummer foliage, autumnal fruit, and general nourifhment of the bedy of the tree, until the month of March, when the fap Or juices, re-invigorated by nature during the winter’s repofe, begin to re-afcend and perform the annual funétion of cloth- ing it with frefh foliage, bloffoms, and truit. The reafon of this practice is, that the fap being fallen at that feafon of the year, it has been confidered as the moft proper period to lop off all fuperfluous growths ; and the efforts of nature to heal the wounds thus neceffarily given, (before the rifing of the fap in the following {pring) have been judged beft for the fafe- ty and health of the tree. The danger ot performing this fer- vice when the juices are in a more vigorous flow, as in the months of May, June, and July, has been dreaded, from a tear of its occafioning a wafte of the nutritive juices, difcharg- ing themfelves through the wound, to the impoverifhment and injury, if not the ruin, of the tree. _ The pruning of fruit trees and the lopping off large branch- es from foreft trees during the winter feafon, has alfo been fre- quently attended with great hurt and impediment to their health and vegetation ; the wounds being expofed to all the rigours of an inclement feafon, and thereby contraéting thofe difeafes which contain the principles ot decay. Hence it is, that fuck 212 OBSERVATIONS ON THE DISEASES, &c. numbers of foreft trees are continually injured in their value for public ufes, either by unfkilful management, or purpofe depredation, or by the violence of boifterous winds, when ~ their limbs and branches being torn off, the trees are left in that unproteéted ftate to imbibe the feeds of decay and rotten- nefs, which will in time pervade their very heart, and render them unfit for any of thofe valuable purpofes for whichnature, by their trame and texture, appears to have defigned them. It may alfo be obferved, that where branches have been cut off from the body of the tree, even at the diftance of two or more feet from the trunk, with a view to prevent injury to the timber, even that method has not been found effeétual to fave the tree from very material detriment ; as the remaining ftem of the branch fo cut away, dying foon after, becomes a ready conduit for conveying pernicious moifture and difeafe. to that part of the tree with which it is conneéted ; and fo on, in time, to the whole. The praétice of others, in lopping their trees clofe to the trunk, and dreffing the part {mooth and even, has lefs objec- tions than the former; neverthelefs, even according to this method, the tree is liable to injury. The effort of nature to heal the wounds thus given difcovers itfelf by encircling the wound with a kind of callus, or lip, which, increafing in fize, and {welling out from the annual flow of the juices, forms a hollow or cavity of the central part, where the rain or fnow 1s very apt to lodge; and penetrating between the bark and the wood, dried and cracked by a hard froft or warm fun, pro- motes that fermentation with the natural juices, which is the certain fource of difeafe and decay, Young, healthful, and vigorous trees, when they have been injured by being wantonly cut through the bark, or from other caufes, will fometimes recover themfelves, and, to all outward appearance, be reftored to their original foundnefs ; but when cut into planks and boards, internal blemifhes and faults are difcovered in them, which appear to have been oc- cafioned by the early injuries which the tree had received ; the texture of the wood not uniting where the wound was originally given; though, from the youthful vigour of nature, the bark has clofed, and an external cure been evidently per- formed. As a moft efficacious remedy to prevent the evils that I have defcribed, with all their deftru€tive confequences, and to reftore found timber where the fymptoms of decay are already apparent, I confidently recommend the ufe of my ¢ompo- fition, which, being applied ig a proper manner to the wound- OF FRUIT AND FOREST TREES. 213 ed or injured part, will infallibly prevent the bleeding of trees, or the oozing of juices through the wounds of limbs or branche es that have been cut off in the middle of f{ummer, when they are in their higheft vigour, and moft rapid flow of vegetation ; by which means, any wafteful difcharge ot the juices is pre- vented, and they are duly confined to their natural operations of giving nourifhment, growth, and fertility, to their refpe€tive bodies. 2 By employing the propofed remedy, trees of ail kinds, whether in gardens or orchards, in parks or forefts, may with greater fatety and advantage be pruned or loppea in the {pring, or early in the {ummer, than in the winter feafon; as the com- pofition, when properly applied, repels the flow of the juices through the wound, caufes a more aftive vegetation, ana af- fifts nature more powerfully in healing the wound at the time the fap is in full vigour, than when it 1s on the decline, as in autumn and winter. It is alfo neceflary to remark, that both fruit and foreft trees (particularly thofe which grow in the fhade) are very lia- ble to be affeéted with diforders proceeding trom the growth of liver-wort, and various kinds of mofs, that adhere to the outer bark of the tree, and trequently gain a confiderable thicknefs, that not only prevents the natural flow of the juices, but caufes a flagnation in the circulation, and brings on decay; which, after deflroying the outer bark, penetrates, by degrees, deeper into the wood. When this circumiftance is obferved, care fhould be taken to clear the whole bark of the tree from thefe growths ; and where it is infeéted, to {crape or pare it away. When the body of the tree is thus cleanfed from infe€tion, the compofition fhould be applied in a liquid ftate, to the parts fo cleaned, to clofe the pores of the wood ; when the tree will foon acquire a frefh bark, witn improved health and vegetation. I am confirmed in thefe opinions by the many experiments and various trials that ] have made to afcertain, by the moft pofi- tive proots, the properties of this compofition, before I ven- tured to offer it to the public attention. Indeed, every year’s ‘experience has increafed my convi€tion ot its general utility, when properly applied to the purpofes for which it is recom- mended. To give amore complete illuftration of its virtues, and to place the advantages arifing trom it in a ftronger light, I fhall beg leave to ftate a few otf the very numerous experi- ments that I have made on the foreft trees im his Majefly’s gardens at Kenfington, where the falutary effe€is of the coms pofition are evident to every attentive obferver. The firft trials of its efficacy were made on fome very large and ancient elms, many of which were ina moft decayed flate, 214 OBSERVATIONS ON THE DISEASES, &c. having all their upper parts broken, by high winds, from their trunks, which were withal fo hollow and decayed, that a {mall portion alone of the bark remained alive and found. Of thefe- trees, I cut away, at firft, a part only of the rotten fluff, from the hollow of the tree, and then applied the plafter to the place where theoperation had been performed, by way of an internal coat of the compofition. Ina fhort time, however, the efforts of nature, with a renovated flow of the juices, were clearly difcernible in their formation of the new wood, uniting with, and {welling, as it were, from the old, till it became a ftrong fupport to that part ot the tree where the compofition had been applied. I then cut away more of the rotten wood from the in-’ fide, applying the plafter in the fame manner, with the fame good effects, and continued to ufe the knife in proportion to the acquifition of new wood ; fo that, fromthe tops of thefe decayed and naked trunks, {tems have aétually grown of above thirty feet in height, in the courfe of fix or feven years trom’ the firft application of the compofition ; an incontrovertible proof of its good effeéts in reftoring decayed vegetation. Many other elm trees which had received hurts from bruifes and other caufes, and where difeafe and decay were already evident, after cutting away all the infeéted part, and duly applying the plafler, were fo completely healed, that the outline of the wound is fearcely difcernible on the bark, and the new wood is as perfeétly united to the old, as if it had been originally formed with the tree. Ot oak-trees alfo, which had received very confider- able damage from various accidents, as blows, bruifes and cut- ting of deep letters, the rubbing off the bark by the ends of rollers,or wheelsof carts, and mutilated branches, a perfeét cure has been made and found timber produced. ‘The acidity, or corrofive quality, of the juice of oak-trees, when obflruéted in their circulation from any of the caufes already mentioned, and fermenting with the wet and moiflure imbibed by the wounds from the atmofphere, will bring on difeafe, and pro- mote decay ; for, notwithftanding the hard texture of the oak, when once the principles of decay begin to operate, the acrie monious juices feed the difeafe, and accelerate its progrefs. as much, perhaps, as in trees of a folter quality and texture; but when the difeafed or injured part is entirely cut away to the frefh found wood, and the compofition properly laid on, as perfeét a cure has been made as I have already related in the recovery of the elm trees. Indeed, when I refleét that the oak has been the boaft of our early anceflors, and the means, un- der the bletling cf God, of affording protection and fafety, as OF FRUIT AND FOREST TREES. 215 well as accumulating honour and wealth to the nation, what language can fyfficiently deplore that want of pudlic {pirit, and that ftrange inattention to the prefervation and increafe of this ftaple tree, which fuffers fuch numbers of ftately oaks to go to decay ; in which difgracetul flate they remain to upbraid Gein Hcilonk as foes to the commerce and naval glory of the kingdom ! Various experiments have alfo been made on other foreft trees, as afh, limes, chefnuts, and fycamores, that had received the feveral injurtes to which they are expofed ; as wellas many ot the refinous kinds, fuch as the cedar of Lebanon, and oth- ers of the pine tribe; in all of which I have experienced a de- gree of fuccefs that exceeded my moft fanguine expe€tations. As I feel a ftrong folicitude to render my experiments of the moft extenfive advantage to the community, and in partic- ular to the proprictors of Janded eftates throughout the king- dom, I beg leave to recommend to their particular attention, that all foreft trees, whether felled with a faw or an axe, may be cut near to the ground; at the fame time carefully preferv- ing the ftump and roots fromany further injury. The furface fhould then be made quite fmooth, when the compofition may be {pread over the whole furtace according to the direftions already given. It fhould, however, be obferved, that the com- pofition, when employed for this particular purpofe, fhould have an equal quantity of the powder of alabaiter mixed with the dry powder generally direéted to be ufed after the compo- fition is laid on, in order to render the furface harder, and of courfe better able to refilt the bad effeéts of the dripping of trees, of rain, froft, and fnow. But this addition 1s by no means nece({fary in the ufual application to the fides of trees. In confequence of this procefs, the vigour of the roots will operate fo powerfully in the courfe of the fucceeding {pring, that a confiderable number of buds or branches will {hoot forth round the ftamp, which, with proper care and attention, may be trained to many valuable purpofes, either ftraight or crook- -ed, for knee-timber, or other ufes ; and, by retaining only fo many of thefe fhoots as are defigned to grow tor any particular intention, more than one half will be faved, in point of time, according to the proportions of common growth: For it a young tree be planted in a foil equal in quality to the fite of the old ftump, the fhoot growing trom the latter will, in eight or ten years, attain toa fize which the fingle plant will hardly ac- quire in twice that period. There are alfo many ufetul pur- pofes of hufbandry, as hop-poles, and other poles ufed on va- rious occalions, for which a number of thoots may be trained 216 OBSERVATIONS ON THE DISEASES, &c. from one ftump, whofe fertile juices will fhortly rear a healthy and numerous offspring around it. Very particular attention, however, thould be paid to regulate their number, according to the fize and vigour of the flump. It would certainly be proper to leave more of them at firft than are intended to be referved for final ufe, in order to draw up the fap ; if too few are left, they will be lable to burft, trom the fuperabundant flow of the juices from the old ftock: To prevent which in- convenience, they fhould be cut away by degrees, always ap- plying the compofition as they are cut, and leaving the fineft ftem to produce the new tree, which will, in time, cover the old ftump, and leave nothing but a faint kind of cicatrix at the junétion of the old and new part of the tree. It is needlefs tor me to infift on the great advantages which land proprietors and farmers will derive trom this meth- od of managing their woods and coppice grounds, wherever they may be. In many counties of England, coppice, or un- derwood, is an article in very great demand for charcoal, com- mon fuel, or the purpofes of particular manufaétories, as well as to furnifh a variety of articles for hufbandry and domeftic convenience. It would be equally unneceffary to enlarge on what muft be fo evident to the moft ordinary underftanding, the great national advantage which may be derived from the ufe of this compofition, by preferving and increafing the native fupplies of our country for the fupport of that navy which is to proteét it. Nor need I urge to the man of tafte, and the lover of land- {cape beauty, what a ufeful help it may afford to the delight. ful modern art of ornamental horticulture. ee a Piglnd fh #4) Eee eights t < PUL pu Bees 1, aR ideas Se AS as Oe ies #7 i ¥' es feet a Vaso 7 eta Hee se et Sila UW eres Cliohy ake Hersey a wiintena season Ri nies Basle Sy VEN aoa MeN Gers Rae at ie oF Me REE x Ww GAGE PLUMB i Bc o et G q * SOS eee oe seedignli : aaa STANDARD CHERRY * ny ve 3 Wer wae tas ei as 2 Plate Vil y ~ a WHITE BI: *b ¢ ® @ > “1 ve > @ sa = nN aes — = x EP & Z > fen aio mis ws a 4 - t vo aia WHITE BEURRE PEAR TREE I" d : | , ¢ ¢ | STANDARD naa ae Bf bg dectinaes sienna. Ais if VW INTE <2 5 SN \ if \. Ht BX. Ss | aon SM we as) i eile GRAFTING ANDINARCHING Lug W/4 | AMIN Na. J | " Sy | i. f | Ltae Kil ary Saat i; ' ‘* TOOLS Plate XU Es = itace Sat ag ee a i Sree ais Tas BOG e ¢ SeNcre q P . Plate XML —- _ = in Hi yi NW ii Nell il a \ \ i | i¢ | \) APPENDIX. APPENDIX. No. 1. Land Revenue Office, April 17, 1789: SIR, Beine informed that you have difcovered a methed of cur- ing defeéts in growing trees of all ages, which may have fuf- tained damage trom any caufe whatever, we with to be fa- voured by you with an anfwer to the following queftions, rela- tive to injuries done to the bark of oak-trees, and the means of preventing defeétsin the timber arifing from that caufe, viz. 1. Suppofing a piece of bark of five or fix inches f{quare to be cut from the fide of an oak-tree of any fize, from twenty feet to one load or more, fo as to lay the wood bare, and that letters or figures were burnt or ftamped with fharp inftruments, into folid wood, where the bark was fo taken off, and the tree left in that ftate fo long as it fhould continue ftanding, what effe€t do you think would be produced by fuch proceis upon the body of the tree; whether it would continue to grow, and increafe in fize in the part from which the bark was taken; or whether any, and what detriment would enfue from it to the timber, if no means were ufed to prevent it; and whether fuch detriment, if any, would extend further than the limits of the part deprived of its bark ? 2. If you fhould be of opinion that oak-trees would fuf- ‘tain any material detriment, or become in any degree defec- tive, from the caufe above flated, do you know any means by which fuch detriment may be effeétually prevented, in trees which have remained in that ftate from four, five or fix months to a year; fo as to reftore the bark, and prevent the trees from ‘becoming defeétive, and unfit for the ufe of the navy ? 3. If you fhould be able to fuggeft a complete remedy for fuch defeéts, and if the remedy would be efleéted by means y ey _ peculiar to yourfeif, and unknown to others, we wifh to know 220 OBSERVATIONS ON THE DISEASES, &c. if you would be willing to undertake to apply it, or fuperin- tend or direct the application of it by perfons properly in- ftrufted by yourfelf, to any number of trees that might require it in any of the royal forefts ? . 4. In cafe there fhould be occafion to apply fuch a rem- edy to a very confiderable number of trees in the flate above defcribed, we wifh to know, as nearly as poffible, what ex- pence the application would be attended with, by the hundred, or thoufand, or any given number of trees, including labour, materials, and every incidental expence ? __ We thall be glad to receive an anfwer to thefe enquiries with all convenient {peed, and are, Sir, Your moft obedient Servants, JOHN CALL, JOHN FORDYCE. Mr. Forfyth. | To the Honourable the Commiffioners of the Land Revenue. Royal Gardens, Kenfington, April 24, 1789. HONOURED SIRS, Gite the letter you have been pleafed to honour me with,I beg in general to fay, that, from many years attention to fruit and foreft trees, I have obferved every wound, bruife, or in- jury ; even the wanton cutting of the initials of a name on the bark of a tree, has been attended with mifchicf, and has often brought on the deftruétion of the tree, efpecially if old. In particular I beg to fay, that if a tree be young, nature will ex- ert herfelf to recover trom the injury; but if the tree be old, it will ceafe to grow about the injured part, will not increafe in fize, the wound will daily increafe, and in time deftroy all the timber of the tree: OF FRUIT AND FOREST TREES. O24 In anfwer to the fecond queftion, I beg to fay, that oak- trees are equally liable to decay and detriment, as all other trees, though their decay will be proportionably flow, as they are lefs porous than many other trees of our ifland ; though I fhould add, that after oak-trees are fo tar decayed as to hold water, their decay is as rapid as moft other trees. In anfwer to the queftion, “« Do you know any means by which fuch de- triment may be effeétually prevented >” I beg to fay, that after many years clofe application, and ftriétly critical obfervation, I am fully convinced, that upon the excifion of the decayed part, and the application of a compofition, itis poflible to heal any wounded tree, and even to reftore it to its former health, if there be only an inch or two of bark remaining to carry on the circulation of the vegetable economy. This 1s no theory, but is demonftrated by a great variety of experiments on fruit and foreft trees in his Majefty’s gardens at Kenfington, now under my care ; and which trees, upon examination, have convine- ed all thofe who viewed them, of the praéticability of produc- ing the fineit, cleaneft, and moft prolific branches from ftumps in a flate of decay : And with confidence I can affert, that I have fucceeded fo well with his Majefty’s fruit trees, that by cutting out the difeafed and dead wood, the trees have pro- duced more and finer fruit in two and three years, than a tree newly planted will in thirteen or fourteen years ; and this ad- vantageous circumftance is equally vifible in the experiments I have made on elms, where nothing remained but the bark. The oak, trom experience, { find equally as curable as any other tree ; the bark may be reftored, and the trees ren- dered as fit for the navy, as though they never had been In- jured. In anfwer to the third queflion, I fay, that I am able to “ fuggeft a complete remedy for the defeéts ;”’ and that reme- dy I fuppofe to he known only to myfell, as it is not a fecret drawn from books, or learned from men, but the effeét of clofe application, and repeated experiments. As to undertaking the application of the remedy, I muft requeft you will have the goodnefs to permit me to fay, that as a fervant of his Majefty, Ido not think myfelf at liberty to form any engagement that muft inevitably call me for a time from his Majeity’s fervice in his royal gardens at Kenfington; but fhould bis Majefty be gracioully pleafed to think my fervices would be produttive of a national good, and will condefcend to permit me to be abfent, I fhall, with the createft pleafure and alacrity, engage in the undertaking. #22 OBSERVATIONS ON THE DISEASES, &c. I beg permiflion to lay before your Honourable Board feveral {pecimens of parts of trees which have been injured in a manner fimilar to thofe you have alluded to; others which have been healed by the method I have before mentioned. But the moft effe€tual means of demonftrating the utility of this application, is the many fruit and foreft trees now grow- ing in his Majefly’s royal gardens at Kenfington, which I fhall be happy to fhew you. . Your Honourable Board, confidering the fhortnefs of time, will, I truft, make every allowance for any inaccuracy in this an{wer to the letter you favoured me with, and permit me to fub{cribe myfelf, With the greateft meh pect, Your moft obedient, Humble Servant, WILLIAM FORSYTH: Zo the Honourable the Cominifiioners of the Land Revenues Land Revenue Office, April 25, 1785. SIR, W E have received your letter of yefterday’s date, which contains a very clear and fatisfaftory anfwer to our enquiries refpe€ting the effetts of injuries done to the bark of oak-trees, and the means of preventing damage to the timber from that caufe ; and the fpecimens fent with your letter afford the moft convincing proofs both of the deftructive confequences arifing trom even flight injuries to the bark, when no means are ufed to prevent them, and of the efficacy of your difcovery for preventing and curing defeéts in timber proceeding from that fource ; but we obferve that you have not given an an- iwer to our enquiry as to the expence which the application of the remedy you have difcovered would be attended with, by the hundred, or thoufand, or any given number of trees, in cafe there fhould be occafion to apply it toa very confiderable number: We therefore repeat our requeft, that you will be OF FRUIT AND FOREST TREES. 22g fo good as to inform us, as nearly as you can, whereabouts would be the expence of fuch application, including labour, materials, and all incidental charges, but exclufive of any re- ward to yourfelt for difclofing the compolition for the benefit ef the public, which we conceive fhould be given feparately. Weare, Sir, Your moft obedient Servants, JOHN CALL, | | JOHN FORDYCE. Mr. William Forfyth. Po the Honourable the Commtffioners of the Land Revenue. Royal Gardens, Kenfington, April 28, 1789, HONOURED SIRS, i PRESUME I need not again affign the reafon why I omit- ted in my former letter, mentioning the expence which will be incurred by cutting out the injured parts of the trees, and the application of my compofition, I have endeavoured to think of every probable charge that will accrue; and, upon an accurate calculation, am convinced it wil! not exceed fix- pence per tree. It may not be improper here to obferve, that this calculation includes the labour of the men for the opera- tion; the compofition, and the application of it; and alfo an after review, that the healing of the trees is going on well; but I fhould alfo obferve, that in this expence I have not put down any thing for myfelf, leaving that wholly and altogethey fo your turther confideration. Iam, honoured Sirs, With great refpe&, Your moft obedient Elumble Servant, WILLIAM FORSYTH. 224 OBSERVATIONS ON THE DISEASES, &c. ed pund pnd pou dye No. 4. July 24, 1789? RESOLVED, Tu At an humble addrefs be prefented to his Majefty, that he will be gracioufly pleafed to give direétions for making fuch enquiries as fhall be thought neceflary for the purpofe of afcertaining the efficacy of a remedy invented by William Forfyth, for curing defeéts in trees, arifing from injuries in the bark; and in cafe the fame fhall appear likely to be of public utility, to order fuch recompence to be made to the faid William Forfyth on the difclofure thereof, as his Majefty fhall judge proper; and to affure his Majefty, that this houfe will make good the fame. . No. 5- Land Revenue Office, Scotland Yard, Dec. 11, 1790. MY LORDS AND GENTLEMEN, Havine reprefented to the Lords CommifMioners of his Majefty’s Treafury, that, in purfuance of their Lordfhips de- fire, we had written to the feveral noblemen and gentlemen mentioned in the lift, of which a copy was fent to each of you, requefting to know whether they would have the goodnefs to make the neceflary examinations and enquiries, to afcertain the effe€t of the experiments made by Mr. Forfyth, of the compofition difcovered by him for curing defeéts in trees ; and that twelve of thofe noblemen and gentlemen, here under named, and to whom this letter is addreffed, had fignified their willingnefs to affift in the propofed examination ; we have now the honour to inform you, that their lordfhips have been pleafed to fignify to us, that they approve of their exam- ination being made by thofe noblemen and gentlemen, or any . OF FRUIT AND FOREST TREES. 2a feven or more of them ; and to requeft that you will be pleaf- ed to take fuch fteps as you fhall think neceflary, for afcer- taining the efficacy of the faid compofition for curing injuries and deteéts in trees, and to addrefs the refult of your examin- ation to the lords of the treafury. Among the ufes to which the compofition in queftion is faid to be applicable, that which appears to us more immedi- ately conneéted with the objetts reterred by parliament to our confideration, is, the cure of injuries and defects in foreft trees, efpecially the oak: And we beg leave particularly to recom- mend it to you to examine, _ Whether the compofition appears to be efficacious for the purpofe of reftoring the bark of an oak-tree which has been either cut or accidentally torn off, fo as to prevent fuch inju- ries or defe€ts in the timber as are commonly found to pro- ceed from that caufe ; And whether the application of the compofition to the parts of foreft trees where limbs or branches have been cut or torn off, appears to be efficacious for the preventing or curing injuries and deteéts in timber, proceeding trom that caufe ? We prefume, with great deference, that you will think it proper to point out any other ufes to which the compofition may appear to you to be applicable, with advantage to the pub. lic ; and we requeft that you will be pleafed to tavour us with a copy of your refolutions, or report to the treafury thereon, We have the honour to be, My Lords and Gentlemen, Your moft obedient hnmble Servants, CHARLES MIDDLETON, JOHN CALL, JOHN FORDYCE. The Marquis of Abercorn. Earl of Upper Offory. Lord Vifcount Barrington. Lord Frederick Campbell. Sir George Yonge, Bart. K. B. Fehn Rolle, E/q. Philip Stephens, E/q. C. M. Pierrepont, E/q. Wilham Pulteney, E/q. Robert Barclay, E/q. Hans Sloane, E/q. Wilham Mainwaring, E/q: Feo #26 OBSERVATIONS ON THE DISEASES, &c, Dy here Speed ered pee To the Lords Commiffioners of his Majefty’s Treasury. | MY LORDS, Havine met on Saturday, at Kenfington, in compliance with the defires of your Lordfhips, communicated to us by the Commififoners of the Land Revenue, we endeavoured to take every mealure for the inveitigation requefted of us that the time and circumftances permitted ; and we conceive that the beft and moft fatisfa€tory mode of reporting to your lord- fhips the refult of that invefligation will be, to fpecify, as fhortly as may be, the flteps we took ; the obfervations we made ; and our opinions, founded both upon what we our- felves faw, and upon fuch documents as appeared to us au- thentic and convincing, After referring to the laft letter addrefled to us by the Commifioners, in order that we might keep in view, as much as poflible, the objeéts more particularly recommended to our attention, we proceeded firft to read a ftatement by Mr. For- fyth, of the properties of his compofition, and then to infpeét and examine the various {fpecimens and documents laid before us by him, tending to prove and illuftrate thofe properties. Our invefigation, thus far, having proved as fatisfa€tory as the nature of it admitted, we thought it right to require Mr. Forfyth to fhew us fuch trees in Kenfington Gardens as (hav- ing been injured or decayed by whatever caufe) had been bene- fited by the application of this compofition ; and we defired him to fhew us what {pecimens he could of fuch trees in all the flages of their amendment and recovery. In confequence of this requifition, we were condu€ted to many foreft trees of different kinds, viz. elms, limes, and horfe-chefuts, in which holes and wounds, in fome inftances feveral feet in length, and of a confiderable width and depth, had been completely filled up with found wood, fo as the outline of the wound remained barely difcernable in the bark. We examined many others in an evident ftate of progrefs towards a fimilar cure, and we could not difcover any one of the experiments that fell under our obfervation, of which we had the !eaft reafon to doubt the fuccefs. We examined alfo feveral experiments upon trees which, ftanding near each other, had been cut down, and to the flems of which the compofition had been applied, while the OF FRUIT AND FOREST TREES. 227 others had been left to nature: The uniform refult of thefe experiments appeared, that thofe flems to which tle compofi- tion had been applied had fhot up into healthy vigorous trees, in far lefs time than we fhould have conceived poflible: While thofe, left to unaflifted nature, had only produced irregular, unhealthy fhoots, and were apparently in a flate of decay.— Several experiments had alfo been made on decayed and hol- low ftumps (where little or nothing but bark remained) of elms of very confiderable fize and age: From thefe flumps, by the application of the compofition, healthy trees have iffued, which have, in the fpace otf five, fix, feven, or eight years, at- tained to a fize and height which it appears to us that trees fown or planted feldom attain to in thrice the time. With a view to afcertain, as far as was in our power, the quality of that wood which by the application of the compolition had been formed in the decayed and injured parts of trees, we cut pieces ot it out, and compared them with other pieces cut out of the original wood of the fame trees, and, after as accurate a fecreting and comparifon as we were enabled to make, we could not difcover any difference either in the colour or texture. Upon our obferving to Mr. Forfyth, that we had not yet feen any {pecimens of the operations of his compofition upon oak-trees, he informed us, that having at firft confined his ex- periments to other trees, which were in a ftate of greater de- cay, he had none of the fame date (viz. from two to cight years) to fhew us, but that we might fee many fpecimens, of near two years flanding, equal in their progrefs to the reft: According. ly, we examined various experiments upon oaks; of which the progreflive flate was fo perfeétly fimilar to that of the other {pecies of trees, that we thould not be juftified in any doubt upon that head ; the event, alfo, of comparing the new wood with the old was the fame. To report at large our obfervations upon the effeéis of the compofition applied to the different fruit trees, would be little more than a repetition of what we have glready faid ; the time of the year would only allow us to remark the rapid growth of the branches and fhoots wherever the compofition had been applied to the moft decayed and injured ftems. We deem it unneceflary to enter into any detail of the collateral information and documents which confirmed the impreffions refulting from our perfonal obfervations, perfuad- ed that your lordfhips will believe we omitted no means in our power to form our judgments, We will therefore only add, that, from all we faw and heard, we have reafon to believe, and confequently do not heft. 228. OBSERVATIONS ON THE DISEASES, &c. tate to exprefs our conviftion, that Mr. Forfyth’s compofition’ is a difcovery which may be highly beneficial both to individ-' vals and the public. We have the honor to be Your Lordfhips obedient Servants, ABERCORN, FREDERICK CAMPBELL, WILLIAM PULTENEY, CHARLES PIERREPONT, HANS SLOANE, GEORGE YONGE, PHILIP STEPHENS, ROBERT BARCLAY, JOHN ROLLE, WILLIAM MAINWARING. No. 6. if confequence of an addrefs of the Houfe of Commons tg his Majetty, and of an examination made by The Marquis of Abercorn, Sir George Yonge, Bart. Lord Frederick Campbell, Philip Stephens, E/q. Wiliam Pulteney, E/q. Robert Barclay, E/q. Charles Pierrepont, E/q. fohn Rolle, E/g. and Hans Sloane, E/q. Wiliam Mainwaring, E/q. and their report to the Lords Commiffioners of his Majefty’s Treafury, refpeéting the efficacy of a compofition difcovered by Mr. William Forfyth, for curing injuries and defeéts in — trees, his Majefty has been pleafed to grant a reward to Mr. Forfyth, for difclofing the method of making and ufing that compolition ; and the following dire€tions for that purpofe are publithed accordingly ; a OF FRUIT AND FOREST TREES. 224 06 Peter perend prs Royal Gardens, Kenfington, May 11, 1791. | Diredions for making a Compofition for curing Difeafes, De- feds, and Injuries, in all kinds of Fruit and Fore/t Trees, and the Method of preparing the Trees and laying on theCom- _ pofition, by WILLIAM ForsyTH. We one bufhel of frefh cow-dung, half a bufhel of lime rubbifh of old buildings (that from the ceilings of rooms is preferable,) half a bufhel of wood-afhes, and a fixteenth part of a bufhel of pit or river fand: The three laft articles are to be fitted fine before they are mixed; then work them weil to- gether with a {pade, and afterwards with a wooden beater, until the fluff is very {mooth, like fine plafter ufed for the ceilings of rooms. The compofition being thus made, care muft be taken to prepare the tree properly for its application, by cutting away all the dead, decayed and injured parts, till you come to the frefh found wood, leaving the furface of the wood, very f{mooth, and rounding off the edges of the bark with a draw- knife, or other inftrument, perfetly fmooth, which muft be particularly attended to; then Jay on the plafter about one eighth of an inch thick, all over the part where the wood or bark has been fo cut away, finifhing off the edges as thin as poflible: Then take a quantity of dry powder of wood-afhes mixed with a fixth part of the fame quantity of the afhes of burnt bones; put it into a tin box, with holes in the top, and fhake the powder on the furtace of the plafter, till the whole is covered over with it, letting it remain for half an bour, to abforb the moifture; then apply more powder, rubbing it on gently with the hand, and repeating the application of the powder till the whole plafter becomes a dry {mooth furface. All trees cut dewn near the ground fhould have the fur- face made quite {mooth, rounding it off in a fimall degree, as before mentioned; and the dry powder dire€ed to be ufed af- terwards fhould have an equal quantity of powder of alabafler mixed with it, in order the better to refift the dripping of trees and heavy rains. If any of the compofition be leit for a future occafion, it fhould be kept in a tub, or other veffel, and urine of any kind 230 OBSERVATIONS ON THE DISEASES, &c, poured on it, fo as to cover the furtace; otherwife the atmof- phere will greatly hurt the efficacy of the application. Where lime rubbifh of old buildings cannot be eafily got, take pounded chalk, or common lime, after having been flaked a month at leatt. As the growth of the tree will gradually affeét the plafter, by raifing up its edges next the bark, care fhould be taken, where that happens, to rub it over with the ne when occa- fion may require (which is beft done wher moiitened by rain,) that the plafter may be kept whole, to prevent the air and wet from penetrating into the wound. WILLIAM FORSYTH. William Forfyth, of Kenfington, in the county of Mid- dlefex, gardener, maketh oath, and faith, that the foregoing is a true account of the method of making and ufing the compofition difcovered by him for cur- ing difeafes, defeéts and injuries, in fruit and foreft trees: and which compofition was applied by him to the trees in his Majefty’s gardens at Kenfington, fhewn tothe noblemen and gentlemen to whom it was referred to examine the efficacy of the faid com- pofition. WILLIAM FORSYTH. $worn atthe Land Revenue Office in Scotland Yard, the eleventh day of May, 1791, before us, CHARLES MIDDLETON, JOHN CALL, JOHN FORDICE, OF FRUIT AND FOREST TREES. 938 ted peered pred pune Wo. 7* Additional Direttions for Making and Ufing the Compofition. To the foregoing direétions for making and applying the compofition, it is neceflary to add the tollowing. As the befi way of ufing the compofition is found, by ex- perience, to beina liquid flate ; it mui, therefore, be reduced to the confiftence of pretty thick paint, by mixing it up with a fufficient quantity of urine and foap-fuds, and laid on with a painter's brufh. The powder of wood-afhes and burnt bones is to be applied as before direfted, patting it down with the hand. When trees are become hollow, you muff {coop out all the rotten, loofe, and dead parts of the trunk till you come to the folid wood, leaving the furface {mooth; then cover the hollow, and every part where the canker has been cut out, or branches lopped off, with the compofition ; and, as the edges grow, take care not to let the new wood come in contaét with the dead, part of which it may be fometimes neceffary to leave ; but cut out the old dead wood as the new advances, keeping a hollow between them, to allow the new woad room to ex- tend itfelf, and thereby fill up the cavity, which it will do in time, fo as to make, as it were, anew tree. If the cavity be large, you may cut away as much at one operation as will be {ufiicient for three years. But in this you are to be guided by the fize of the wound, and other circumftances. When the new wood, advancing from both fides of the wound, has al- -moft met, cut off the bark from both the edges, that the folid wood may join, which, if properly managed, it will do, leave ing only a flight feam in the bark. It the tree be very much decayed, do not cut away all the dead woad at once, which would weaken the tree too much, if a ftandard, and endanger its being blown down by the wind. It will, therefore, be ne- ceflary to leave part of the deac wood at firft, to ftrengthen the tree, and to cut it out by degrees as the new wood is formed. If there be any canker or gum cozing, the infeéted parts mutt be pared off, er cut ont with a properinflrument. When the {tem is very much decayed, and hollow, it will be neceflary to open the ground and examine the roots ; then proceed as diretted for hollow peach-trees ; [See Plates 2.and 5, which 232 OBSERVATIONS ON THE DISEASES, &c:_ fhew the manner of preparing hollow trees, and alfo the grows ing of the wood. | Some months before the publication of the ** Obferva- tions on the Difeafes, &c. in Fruit and Foreft Trees,” I had tried the compofition in a liquid ftate, but did not think my- felf warranted to make it public until I had experienced its effeGls through the winter. The faccefs anfwered my moft fanguine expetlations ; and I have ufed it in that way ever fince. By ufing the compofition in a liquid ftate, more than three-fourths of the time and labour is faved ; and I find it is not fo liable to be thrown off as the lips grow, as when laid on in the confiftence of plafter: It adheres firmly to the naked part of the wound, and yet eafily gives way as the new wood and bark advances. The firft time that I tried the compofition in a liquid form was upon an elm which had been planted about twenty years. It had been very much bruifed by the roller, had feveral cavi- ties in it, and was very much bark-bound befides. Having prepared the wounds, and applied the compofition with a painter’s brufh, I took my knife and {carified the tree in four places ; I alfo {haved off, with a draw-knite, all the cankery outer bark, and covered the whole tree with the compofition, fhaking the powder of wood-afhes and burnt bones all over it. A very heavy rain began in the evening and continued all night; yet, to my great furprize, in the morning, I found that only fome of the powder, which had not had time to dry and incorporate with the compofition, was wafhed off. 1 now re- peated the powder, and, without any thing more being done ta the tree, the wounds healed up, and the bark was reftored fo completely, that, three years ago, it could hardly be difcerned where the wounds had been. The fcarifications had alfo dif- appeared. Some of the wounds were thirteen inches long, eight broad, and three deep. Since the time when it was {carified, the tree has increafed ten inches more in circumfer- ence than a healthy tree planted at the fame time with it about fixteen feet diftant, which was not {carified. SUPPLEMENT. SUPPLEMENT. Succe/s of feveral Experiments, fince the Publication of * 09- Jervations on the Difeafes, Defects, Sc.” Siwce I publifhed my * Obfervations on the Difeafes, De- feéts and Injuries in Fruit and Foreft Trees,” I have been af- fiduous in making experiments for the fake of improvement. A great many hollow trees that had, when I took them in hand, little more than the bark remaining found, have within thefe few years been entirely filled up : Others, that were headed down within a few feet of the ground, have their ftumps now completely covered by the leading fhoot, forming handfome trees ; and the places where they were headed are only dif- cerned bya faint cicatrix. Of a great many, I fhall only par- ticularize a few inftances. A lime-tree, about eighteen inches in diameter, whofe trunk was decayed and hollow from top to bottom, to which, after cutting out the decayed wood, I had applied the compo- fition about fixteen years ago, was cut down laft year on pur- pofe to examine the progrefs it had made in the interior part, and was found entirely filled up with new found wood, which had completely incorporated with what little old wood remain- ed when I firft took itin hand. The body of this tree I had cut in fhort lengths, which I have now in my poffeffion, to fhew to any gentleman who withes to be convinced of the faét. An old elm whofe infide was totally decayed, and out of which, at different times, were taken two large cart loads of rotten wood, has made fhoots upwards of twenty feet high in the courfe of fix years. Another elm, on the Palace Green, which was headed about twenty feet from the ground, has produced a fhoot forty-fix feet high, and five feet nine inches in circum- ference. Alime, cut down near the ground, has now a fhoot twenty feet high, which entirely cavers the ftump, forming a fine tree twenty-one inches in circumference. A fycamore treated in the fame manner is now thirty feet high, and twenty- . fix inches in circumference. Another is thirty feet high, and 236 OBSERVATIONS ON THE DISEASES, &c: two feetin circumference. Thefe are now fine thriving trees, and the cicatrices hardly difcernable. A horfe-chefnut beaded down has produced, from its hollow ftump, four fine fhoots, one of which is cut down; the other three are upwards of thirty feet high, and one of them is twenty-fix inches in circumference. ‘Iwo of the remaining three are to be cut down, leaving only one to form the body of the tree. A lime, whofe hollow part is eleven feet high, is alfo filling up; the tree is a foot in diameter. A decayed part, four feet high and twenty-eight inches broad in a large elm, is now filling up rapidly with found wood. About two feet and a halt in length on one fide, which was for fome time left to nature, {till continued to decay till the compofition was applied : New wood and bark are now forming. An elm, at the back of the old truit-room, near the garden wall, which was entirely hollow, was alfo headed down: The new head now f{preads about twenty-four feet, and is eighteen feet high. Another large hollow elm near the laft was headed down ; it afterwards produced a fhoot fixty feet high and three feet and a half in circumference ; the hollow was upwards of two feet in diameter. There are a great many other elms, fome of which had wounds ten feet long and two feet broad, now en- tirely filled up; befides many {ycamores, oaks, and other for- eft trees, all reftored to a flourifhing ftate, by having the dead wood cut out and the compofition applied. An oak that was headed down about fix years ago is reprefented in plate 12. In hollow trees, the rotten and decayed wood mutt be cut out at different times, as the new wood comes in contaét with it; but great care muit be taken not to cut out two much at once, but to leave enough to fupport the tree and prevent it from being blown down by high winds, till the new is {trong enough for that purpofe : The remainder may then be cut out. A number of inftances of the fuccefs attending my meth- od of pruning and training might be adduced; but I fhall notice only the following. Mr. Aberdeen, gardener to John Sullivan, Efq. at Rich- ings, near Windfor, has followed it tor fome time with great fuccefs, both in the houfe and on the natural wall, Having heard for feveral years of the very fine and large crops that were produced in the forcing houfes belonging to John Julius Angerftein, Efq. at Woodland Houfe, on Black- heath, I was induced to take a journey thither, incompany with John Wedgwood, Efq. to fee what meihod was purfued to obtain fuch crops. On enquiry, Mr. Stuart, the gardener, candidly told me, that feveral years ago he had beed at Ken- OF FRUIT AND FOREST TREES. 237 fington: Gardens, where he faw my method of pruning and training, was convinced of its advantages above the old, and had adopted it with great fuccefs. Indeed, there were, at the time I was there, the fineft and largeit crops of grapes that I had ever feen in any forcing houfes. Two houfes, in partic- ular, were covered from top to bottom with fine grapes, and the vines trained in the ferpentine manner. John Wedgwood, Efq. of Cote Houfe, near Briftol, a gentleman who is much attached to gardening and planting, tells me, that he has pra€tifed my mode of pruning and train- ing fruit trees, particularly peaches and neétarines, in his houfes; and that he is highly pleafed with the method, which has been attended with great fuccefs. : Lord Frederick Campbell has lately favoured me with a lift of eighty-five fruit trees, of different kinds, that were headed down, in his gardens at Coomb Bank, in Kent, in the years 1798 and 1799; and afterwards trained and pruned ac- cording to my method; many of them before heading down, were in a very cankery, unfruittul ftate, and overgrown with mofs: Thefe are now ina fruitful, healthy and flourifhing condition, fome of the ef{paliers have made thoots trom two to - three yards long, and upwards. Thefe trees were cut and prepared by Mr. Williams, who had been tor fome time ac- cuftomed to my way of treating fuch trees, and whom I re- commended to his Lordfhip as a gardener. Thefe trees are very proper patterns for any gentlemen in the neighbourhood, who wifh to give the compofition, and method of training and pruning, recommended in this treatife, a fair trial. Several fuccefstul trials havealfo been made at the Duke of Dorfet’s feat, at Knowle, in Kent, at Hatfield Houfe, the feat of the Marquis of Salifbury, and at a great many other places; and experiments are now making at Sir Henry Strachey’s at Rook’s Neft, near Godftone, in Surrey. Although I do not mean to enter at large on the culture and management of foreft trees ; yet as the following obferva- tions on raifing oaks, and dire€tions for planting chefnuts for underwood, may be ot confiderable fervice, 1 fhall, without any further apology, lay them before my readers. The beft Way of raifing Oaks. _ It is a generally received opinion, that when an oak lofes its tap-root in tran{planting, it never produces another; but this 1 have proved to be a miftake, by an experiment which I made on a bed of oak plants in the year 1789. I tranfplanted them into a frefh bed in the forementiconed year, cutting the 238 OBSERVATIONS ON THE DISEASES, &c. tap-roots near to fome of the {mall fide-roots or fibres fhoot- ing from them. In the fecond year after, I headed one half of the plants down, as direéted tor chefnuts, and left the other half to nature. In the firft feafon, thofe headed down made fhoats fix feet long and upwards, and completely covered the tops of the old ftems, leaving only a faint cicatrix, and had produced new tap-roots upwards of two feet and a halt long. One of thefe trees I left at the Land Revenue Office, for the infpeétion of the commiffioners, and to fhew the advantage of tran{planting and heading down young oaks, when done in a proper manner. By this mode of treatment they grow more in one year than in fix when raifed in the common way. The other halt of the plants, that were not headed down, are not one fourth the fize of the others. One of the former is now eighteen feet high, and, at fix inches from the ground, meaf- ures fifteen inches in circumference; at three feet from the ground, ten inches; and at fix feet, nine inches anda half; while one of the largeft of the latter meafures only five feet and a half high, and three inches and three quarters in circum- ference, at fix inches from the ground. This is a convincing proof, that tran{planting and heading down oaks is the mof fuccefstul and advantageous way of treating them; and by it they are fooner out of danger trom cattle, as well as from ver- min, which are frequently very injurious to young trees, Of reifing Chefnuts for Underwood. As the chefnut is the beft and moft durable wood for flakes, hop-poles, &c. I fhall give fome dire€tions how to plant them to the beft advantage for copfe wood. For this purpofe, the ground fhould betrenched or plough- ed, and well fummer-fallowed. After the fall of the leaf, plant the young trees in the quincunx order, in rows fix feet apart, and at the diftance of fix feetin the rows from plant to plant. If you are forming large plantations, the moift expe- ditious way will be to plant aiter the plough, treading the earth firmly about the roots of the plants. It will be neceflary to form bafons round the plants on purpofe to mulch them, 1f it fhould happen to be a dry feafon the firft fummer after plant- ing. It may, perhaps, be a faving of time to put the plants in loofely at firft, that you may be able to keep up with the plough, and to return afterwards to tread the mould, and form | the bafons for mulching. When the trees are become fit for poles, every other one may be cut down almoft clofe to the ground, throughout the plantation; always obferving to cut in a floping manner, and OF FRUIT AND FOREST TREES. 284 as near to an eye as may be. ‘TThofe that you intend for tim- ber fhould be left in every other row, which will leave them twelve feet apart every way; butif the foil be rich and deep, it may be neceffary to leave them twenty-four feet apart. In many counties, particularly Hertfordfhire, the underwood is more valuable than timber ; in that cafe it will be more ju- dicious to leave but few trees tor that purpofe: In the mean time the underwood will amply repay you for the expence of planting, &c. befides the rent of the ground, while at the fame time you have a fuflicient crop of timber on the ground, In Kent, they generally plant out chefnuts.and afh tor hop-poles at three years old, and cut them fourteen years after, which makes in all, feventeen years before they are fit to cut; and they bring from one guinea and a half to two guineas per hun- dred ; but if they were raifed from large ftools, properly cut, and the compofition applied, they would be fit for cutting in Jefs than one third of that time, and of courfe, the value of the Jand would be tripled. 230 OBSERVATIONS ON THE DISEASES, &c. 0G pric G prren@ perdi LE, Bel ERS ON THE Effedt of the Compofition in all Chimates. Tus following letters, &c. are inferted to fhew that the compofition, when properly applied, is found to be equally efficacious in all climates, foils, and fituations. Indeed, all who have given it a fair trial are fo tully convinced of its util. ity, that many noblemen and gentlemen have fent their gar- deners to me for inftruétions. ‘The Chevalier D’Almeida, the Portuguefe Ambaffador, had a perfon fent from Portugal for the fame purpofe ; and fome Polifh noblemen, who had feen the trees in Kenfington Gardens, were fo fully convinced of the great advantage to be derived from the application of ‘the compofition, as to fend a man for inftruétions, that he might introduce the praétice into Poland. BQ d pee Gper ge Copy of a Leiter from the Economical Soctety of St. Peterfourg. Imperial Corps of Land Cadets, in St, Peterfburg, January 9) 1792. SIR, As a Member of the Economical Society of St. Peterfburg, his Excellency Count Anhalt folicits me to exprefs, in your own language, the pleafure which the communication of your ufeful difcovery has given him, and the learned body over whom he fo worthily prefides. The Court has already taken the neceflary fteps, by defire of the Society, to have your little differtation tranflated and printed in the Ruffian lan- guage, in order to diffufe the advantage it holds out, as wide- ly as poffible, over this vaft empire. I am happy in the OF FRUIT AND FOREST TREES. 241 opportunity his commiffion offers, of expreffing likewife indi- vidually the fatistaftion I have received, as a countryman and lover ot Botany, trom the perufal of your fagacious applica- tion of the Chirurgical art to vegetation ; and muft own, that your extirpation of the difeafed parts, and the ule of an ungu- ent to ward off the noxious aftion of the air and humidity, during the exertions of nature to repair lols of fubftance, and the languid circulation of the vegetable juices, appear to me highly judicious. The analogy in certain refpeéts between the inferior order of beings, fo particularly your care, and the more animated link of the great chain of Creation, feems to become every day more and more apparent. Nay, if we are . to credit the ingenious author of the Philofophy of Natural Hiftory, lately publifhed in Edinburgh, it is nota little evi- dent; and indeed the great number of curious faéts and ob- fervations which he has brought together render his phrafe, which I have ufed above, much lefs improper than it would have otherwife appeared on the face of the cafe. All thefe confiderations then make me fee, with the more pleafure, the fagacious application of at leaft one branch of the healing art to afcertain difeafes of vegeiables, to the advantage ot the world in general, and the Britifh Navy in particular, which muft gain infinitely by the prefervation and health of Buitifh Oak, warivalled tor the noble purpofe to which it is applied. I have ftill to congratulate you on your becoming, fo des fervedly, a member of our Society; for fare no treatife ever laid betore us promifed a wider field of public and private economy, and of courfe none ever came more immediately under the fpirit and parport of our inflitution, Lam, Sir, with hearty wifhes for the fuccefs and extend. ed range of our purfuit, Your moft obedient humble Servant, (Signed) MATTHEW GUTHRIE, To Mr. Forfyth, Kenfington. _ PS. As the extremes of our climate may produce cafes which are not likely to happen in your temperate ifland, Count Anhalt will be happy to fee more obfervations on fuch acci- dents in any future letter you may addrefs to the Society. A paper of mine on the Ruflian Climate, in the fecond volume of the Philofophica! Tranfaétions of the Royal Society of Edin- burgh, may probably affurd you all the information neceflary to judge of what modification your fy ftem may require in this country, although I do think it applicable every where, with Ii 2 242 OBSERVATIONS ON THE DISEASES, &c. pofibly fome little alteration in the confiftence of your plaf- ter, to fuit extremes of heat and cold. This letter being of a public nature, intended to teftity the fenfe ot the Economical Society of Peterfburg, on your ufetul difcoyery, you may make what ufe of it you pleafe. eres —— Copy of a letter from George Sultvan Marten, E/q. Eniton, Oxfordfhire, July 30, 180. SIR, Ux DERSTANDING there exifis fome doubt how far your vegetable plafter anfwers in hot climates, I cannot in juftice hefitate to inform you, that it was in conftant and fuccefsful ufe not only ia. my own garden in the diftiG of Trnfivelly, four hundred miles South of Madras, but alfo in the Compa- ny’s Cinnamon Plantation which I had the pleafure of form- ing there, and where, from the method of cultivating that {pice; the trees are always cut down to fiumps. Your plafter at thefe times was always applied, which flopped the bleeding, and haftened out the {hoots (trom whence the beft cinnamon 1s taken) much quicker than the former mode (and which is fill prachifed in Ceylon I believe) of heaping the earth over them. Nor was my experience coniined; for, when I quitted India in Oétober, 1798, | lett one hundred and fifty thoufand trees and plants in the Trinfivelly Plantations, all of which I had planted trom the feed of two trees brought from the iflana of Ceylon by Mrs. Light, which are yet flourifhing, I dare fay, in the Commercial Refident’s garden. I likewife applied your plafter with equal fuccefs to the fruit trees of the country. But to anold Pumbilmos, or Shad- dock-tree, which was almeft throughout decayed, and which I had to fill up with the plafter after the dead wood was taken out, it produced wondertul renovation. I derived too much benefit from: this. compofition to finifh without affuring ycu, that I will with much pleafure give you any further informa.’ tion as to its fuccefs in hot countries that came within my ob- fervation during the ufe of it for feveral years in the diftriét : of Trinfivelly. I an, Sir, Your moit obedient Servant, (Signed) GEORGE SULIVAN MARTEN. To Mr. For/yth. OF FRUIT AND FOREST TREES. —_243 dpe pnd pood pe Copy of a Letter from JFoha Wedgewood, E/q. Cote Houfe, Nov. 14, 1800. DEAR SIR, WV HEN you were with me you expreffed a wifh to have the number of peach and ne€tarine trees which I had on my walls that had been dreffed with your compofition. Thefe trees were part of a fet which 1 bought in a lot, and which had been left to grow rude againft an old wail, fo that they ap- peared to be gone paft all cure. Many were eaten up with the canker, and many were become fo naked at the bottom that they gave but little room to imagine they could be brought into any form. I planted them againft my walls in the be- ginning of the year, where they were left unpruned till the middle of May. The gardener then gave them a fevere cut- ting in, and, as he went on, conflantly drefling them with your compofition, caretully eradicating all the canker. Ican now fafely fay, that they are as free from canker as any trees I ever faw, and fullof fruit-bearing wood, many of them brought into excellent form, and all of them, except fome few which died in the fummer, promifing to make very ufetul and profitable trees; fo that if 1 had occafion to new flock my walls, I fhould as willingly purchafe another fuch lot as to buy regular trained trees from a nurfery. Provided the roots are good, I am convinced from experience, that the older the tree the more-profitable it will be, as in the cafe of the trees above defcribed ; all the young fhoots are covered with blof- fom buds in great profufion. } The following is the lift of the trees, and the afpetts of the walls on which they are planted. 19 Peach and Ne€tarine Trees on a new wall by the hot- houfe, Eaft afpeét. 16 do. «0 30 dor Wen iree he onanother Katt alpetk. tg dey). dow ee essen thedamealpeét: Bde. hda. Set. aire on a South afpeels 2dor . odo. (3. Son another,south wall, ALGO. Sgn ss Oe ge os ON another South owall. 65 in all, 244 OBSERVATIONS ON THE DISEASES, &e. Thefe are exclufive of many trees that were on the walls before, and which have been much benefited by being dreffed with your compofition. 1 am fo fully aware of the excellence of the compofition, that I do not permit the gardener to prune any plants without immediately ufing it. If you think thefe xemarks can be of any fervice, you have my permiflion to make any ufe of them. Iam, dear Sir, Yours fincerel (Signed) JOHN WEDGEWOOD. : ] Extrad of a Letter from Thomas Davis, E/g. Author of the Agricultural Survey of Wilifhare. June 28, 1801. 86 [ was happy in having an opportunity the other day of fhewing the effe@s of your plafter (in recovering the bark of oak-trees of 4 or 500 years old, which had begun to rot up- wards from the ground, and is now recovering downwards very rapidly) to Lord Spencer, who was both pleafed and afton- hed with it. *¢ You may at any time refer to me for proofs if you want them. {[ madea bold experiment feven years ago on an oak- tree 40 feet high and 164 feet round, woith £. 80 at leaft to a Carpenter to cut to pieces, and fuch a tree as the King has not ten in his dominions. There was a craze in the fide of it, which looked like a fhake, and fpoiled its beauty. 1 cut out _ the bark on each fide the fiffure fo as to make the opening 6 or.7 inches wide. I coated it well with plafter, and it is now perfectly united and found.” Fe A ae eS OF FRUIT AND FOREST TREES, 245 Directions for Heading down Orange-Trees. Jusz as the manufcript was going to the prefs, Mr. Rade- maker, the Portuguefe Agent in London, called and told me, that he had received a letter from the Clievalier d’Almeida, the late Ambaflador from Portugal at this court, intorming him, that on his return home he had tound the orange-trees on the Prince of Brazil’s plantations in a very unhealthy and decayed ftate; and requefting him to apply to me tor fome of the compofition, and a copy of the pamphlet ‘On the Dif- eafes, &c. in Fruit and Foreft Trees ;” as he wifhed to make trial of it on the trees of that country. Accordingly, 1 have fent a cafk of the compofition, with dire€tions for preparing the trees, and laying it on. When it is found neceflary to head down orange-trees, I would advife not to cut them quite down to the ftem; but to leave two or three inches of the branches; {ome more, fome lefs ; always remembering to cut near to a joint, and in fuch a manner as to form a handfome head; and to apply the com- pofition immediately. In doing this, however, it will be ne- ceflary to leave a few young fhoots to draw up the fap. If the trees are infefted with infeéts, the ftems muft be wabh.- ed with foap-fuds and urine, and well {crubbed with a hard brufh. About twelve years ago the orange-trees in the green houfe in Kenfington gardens were fo much infefted witha fpecies of coccus, that I was obliged to head them all down, and clean off the infeéts as above diretted ; applying the com- pofition immediately after. Thefe trees throve amazingly ; and in three years, without any bottom heat, the heads were as large as before they were cut; and they {till continue ina flourifhing and fruitful flate. I would advife to rub off the fide fhoots, as dire&ed for other fruit trees, and to keep the heads thin of wood. I thought it proper to infert the above for the information of thofe who have orange-trees in this country, as well as for thofe who have them abroad. EXPLANATIONS OF { 249 ) aapye-< kane doe EXPLANATION OF PLATE 1, Ing. 1: REPRESENTS an old apricot-tree, after the laft pruning in fummer, in the fourth year after heading down, The low- er part of the trunk is reprefented as covered with a rough bark, which mutt be pared off when it happens to be cankery. a,a,a,a. The cicatrices of the four different years’ head- ing, which fhould be performed at the time of the winter or fpring pruning. _ 6, 6,6. Forked foots which are laid in, in fummer, and cut off at 4 in the winter pruning, that the leading fhoots may be always lett without forks. As the {mall fheots c, c, c, from the flem, advance, the larger forked ihoots fhould be cut out, as at d, d, d, to make room for them to be trained horizontally. . Fig. 2. Is an old branch of an apricot trained up according to the old method, leaving above three-fourths of the wall naked. Such branches thould be cut down as near to the place where the tree was firlt budded as poffible, as at ¢, on purpofe to fill the wall with fine new wood, | ( 250 ) Cuter dp erneG pee EXPLANATION OF PLATE 2: Fig. 1. An old hollow Green Gage Plum-Tree the fecond year after heading down. This tree was very much decayed, hav- ing only a few inches of found bark; many of the roots be- ing alfo rotten and decayed, were cut off, and an incifion made at a, which produced a frefh root. b. The firft heading, clofe toa bud. c,c. The new wood and bark growing over the hollow part d, which is covered with the compofition. e,€, Se. Where the fecond year’s heading was per- formed. f.f- Where the fore-right fhoots are cut off during the winter or {pring pruning. E818, Se. The fruit buds for next year, as they appear after the tore-right fhoots are cut off, as at /, /- Fig. 2. A branch ona larger fcale, to fhew the manner of cutting thofe fore-right fhoots, which are full of fruit buds. This fhould be done at 2, 2, but not till the fruit is fet; they after- wards form into dugs as below, in the fame figure. Fig. 3. An old branch pruned in the common way, covered over with canker, and producing only {mall weak fhoots, leaving the wall moftly naked. »(; 25%, ego dpend EXPLANATION OF PLATE 3. Fig. 1. AN old hollow peach-tree, after the laft nailing in fam- mer, which had been headed down ata, fouryearsago. The hollow is covered over with the compofition, and now nearly filled up. The heading muft always be done as near to abud as pofiible. b, b, Sc. Where the forked branches are to be cut, when the {mall fhoots c, c, $c. are far enough advanced, that thefe may be trained horizontally. When a fhoot has fingle fruit-buds to the top, as at d, it muft not be fhortened but laid in at full length ; or, if not wanted, it muft be cut clean out. i Fig: 2. A branch on a larger {cale. é,é. Are double flower-buds, with wood-buds between them : The fhoots fhould always be cut at fuch ; but never at a fingle flower-bud, as at /; otherwife the fhoot would die to the next wood-bud ; and, if the pruning were done in a care- lefs manner, would endanger the whole fhoot: Thofe above J; are all wood-buds. Fig. 3. A branch of an old peach-tree pruned in the common way, which fhould be cut at g, and the young wood will foon cover the wall. ("Se ai) Tdpardprindder EXPLANATION OF PLATE 4. Fig. 1. AN old cherry-tree headed down atc. Before this it8 branches were covered with the gum and canker, as Fig. 2. The fore-right f{hoots fhould be tucked in, as direéled for pears, and at the fall of the leat, or in the month of February, they fhould be cut at a: Thefe form the fruit-buds 6, b, Sc. all over the tree. c, ¢, Gc. The cicatrices where the leading fhoot was headed in different feafons. : d,d. Thé compofition applied where large limbs were cut off, Fig. a. A branch of this tree betore it was headed down. e, ¢, Sc. Branches injudicioufly pruned in fummer 3 which brings on the death of the fhoot, and afterwards the gum and canker on the tree. jf, Sc. The gum and canker in the laft flage, which corrodes the whole tree if not carefully extirpated. { 253 ) ape pee SP EXPLANATION OF PLATE 6. AN old cherry-tree, reftored from two or three inches of live bark, taken from the wall, and planted out as a dwarf fiandard : Now Very fruitful. a, a. The cicatrices where it was headed down the firft and fecond time. b. The hollow covered with the compofition, and now nearly filled up with found wood. {{ 294: )) Or baer | tee day EXPLANATION OF PLATE 6. Fig. 1. AN old cankery apple-tree headed down four years ago, now bearing great plenty of fine fruit. bute a: Where it was firft headed down. band c. Two wounds covered with the compofition, and now nearly filled up with found wood. The part of the trunk below a fhews the cankery ftate of the bark ; which rough cankery bark muft always be pared off, . otherwife it will mfeét the new, Fig. 2. A branch fhewing the method of keeping a regular fuc- ceffion of bearing wood. ~ d. A branch, which has done bearing, to be cut at ¢, and which 1s fucceeded by the branch fs; when that alfo is tired of bearing, it is to be cut at g, and will be fucceeded by the branch fh; and when that alfo is worn out, it is to be cut offat 2. By proceeding in this manner, you will always be able to keep a regular fucceflion of fine bearing wood. ( 355 ) ‘EXPLANATION OF PLATE 7. TuiIs plate reprefents an old decayed pear-tree, with four ' ftems, which was headed down, all but the branch C, and the young wood trained in the common way, or fan-fafhion. A, A, A. Young wood producing the fine large fruit B. C. An old branch pruned in the common way, having large {purs ftanding out a foot or eighteen inches, and produc- ing the diminutive, kernelly, and i!l-flavoured fruit D, not fit to be eaten, The two pears B and D, reprefented in the plate of their natural fize, grew on'the tree at the fame time.* “a, a, a, Sc. ‘Wounds in the ftems of the tree, with the compoiition applied, as they appeared when the edges of the bark began to grow over them. * I faw this tree, with the fruit on it, juft as they are here reprefented. The old ftump was fuch as one would have thought it impoffible to get young wood from, yet I neves faw finer wood than that on this tree. ( 259 ) PEP kprmrd yy ~ EXPLANATION OF PLATE &. Fig. 1. AN old decayed Beurré pear-tree headed down at f, and reftored from one inch anda half of live bark. , a,a,a,&c. The fruit-buds for the prefent year- b, b, 6, Sc. Thofe forming for next year. c,c, 3c. The foot ftalks of the fruit of laft year, on which are forming buds for bearing in the fecond year. | d,d, Sc. The fore-right fhoots as they appear before _ athey are cut off at ¢, in the autumn or {pring pruning. d. The manner of tucking in the fore-right branches. Ff, Sc. Cicatrices of the different headings, which caufe the leading fhoot to produce horizontal fhoots. § §- Large wounds, having the compofition applied, ‘healing up. ; Fig. 2. An old branch of the fame tree before it was headed down, trained and pruned in the old way, with fpurs ftanding out a foot, or a foot and a half, from the wall; and the rough bark, infefted with a deftruétive infeét, which is defcribed and a.method of cure given, in chap. 28. See Coccus, and Plate g. Fig. 3. | (M857 «)) Orbit Tr tu EXPLANATION OF PLATE 9. Fig. 1. AN old Bergamot Pear headed down at the cicatrix a, taken from the wall and planted out as a dwarf f{landard. b. A wound, covered with the compofition, where a large upright fhoot was cut off, to give the leading {hoot tree- dom to grow ftraight. ing. 2. The different appearances of the infe& fo defirudlive to pear-trees, mentioned in the Chapter on Infects, under the head Caterpillar. This infeét is enclofed in a cafe, and, when fixed on the Jeat on which it feeds, appears as reprefented at a, a, a, which is about its natural fize. b. The cafe magnified. c. The cafe, with the Infeé& in motion, magnified. d. The Infeé& magmified. e. The Meth. f- The Chryfalis. _g. The Chryfalis magnified. Fig. 3. The coccus which intefts peach, ne€tarine, and pear-trees: a, a,a. The infect, the natural fize, on a branch of a pear-tree. b, b, 6. The fame magnified.* * This is, moft affuredly, the very infect that deftroys the peach-tree in America, and the reader has nothing to do but to look at the chapter on in- fects, to know how to kill the infect, and preferve the tree, Ke { 258 ) er ves parsed pen EXPLANATION OF PLATE 10. a, a,a, 3c. THE young bearing wood of a vine trained in a ferpentine manner, with the buds for the prefent year ap- pearing. Thefe fhoots are generally cut out in the winter pruning, as low as ¢, c, c, Sc. to produce wood for next year. The thoots 6, 6, &c. produce fruit in the ufual manner, alfo young wood for the following year, which muft not be topped, but only have the fide fhoots picked off. ‘Two or three of the ftrongeft young fhoots from eachof thofe 4, b, Gc. will be fufficient, and they muft be laid in at full length. (269 ) ard dprered poreng pred ped EXPLANATION OF PLATE 11. Fig. 1. GRAFTING in the rind, fhoulder-grafting, or crown- grafting. a. The ftock grafted. b. The manner of,rcifing the bark to receive the cion or graft. ce The graft prepared for inferting. Fig. 2. Clett-grafting, ftock-gratting, or flit-grafting. d. The ftock grafted. e. The ftock prepared for receiving the graft. f- The cion ready for inferting. d, d, d. Dvfferent views of incifions made for the pur- pofe of obtaining young wood. _ e. A-young fhoot coming out at the lower part of the. incifion. Fig. 3. Whip-grafting, or tongue-grafting. g. The ftock grafted. kh. The ftock prepared. i. The graft prepared for inferting: Fig. 4: Inoculating or budding. 4. The manner of making the incifion in the bark, The bud inferted, and the bark laid over it. m. A {hoot fhewing the manner of cutting off the buds. n. A veffel with a little loam, covered with wet mofs, to ftick the lower end of the fhoot in, to keep it moift till ufed. o. A bud taken off and ready for inferting. ( 260 ) GDH eG prr eed pengpee Fig. 5 and 6. Inarching, or grafting by approach: p. Grafting ona ftock ina pot. Grafting ona ftock growing near the tree from which it is to be grafied on. r, 5. The fhoot and flock prepared. t,¢. Two branches inarched where the natural ones had failed, now properly united with the body of the tree ; the ‘lower parts being cut off. u, uw. Iwo branches lately inarched for the fame pur. pole, and when properly united with the fem, are to be cut off at u, wu, u, u. w, x. ‘The manner of preparing the flock and graft. v. Anatural fhoot coming out where the branch was inarched the preceding year. ( 261 ) HE prd dung pradde EXPLANATION OF PLATE 12. TuIs plate reprefents an old ftunted oak, which was head- ed down about fix years ago. At that time it was fall of wounds and blemifhes, now nearly healed. a. ‘The place where the tree was headed, afterwards cov- ered with the compoliticn. b, 6, b. Three young fhoots produced fine heading ; there were feveral others, which were cut down as they ad- vanced in growth ; the two remaining fide ones are alfo to be cut down, and only the middle one left, which will in time cover the wound a, and form a proper tree, c, ¢, ¢s Remains of the old wound, covered with the compofition, and now almoft healed up. ( 262 ) oddvedprarddu nthe EXPLANATION OF PLATE 13: Fig.1 @ 2. Two different views of a tool for cutting out the dead and decayed parts of hollow trees. It has two wooden handles which may be of any convenient length. Fig. 3 & 4. Two views of another tool, with one handle, for cutting out dead wood. This is made narrower than the former, and is to be ufed in places where Fig. 1. cannot be admitted. 5. A triangular chifel, for cutting grooves or channels to carry off the water from the hollows of the trees, ¥ 6. A tool reprefenting an adze on one fide and a hatchet on the other. 7. «A large chifel. 8. A large gouge. . A {mall faw, with double teeth, thin on the back, for cutting off {mall branches, &c. io. A knife with a concave edge. 11. A tool in form of a fickle, without teeth. This is to {crape ftems and branches of trees on the fide next the wall. 12. A pruning knife with a convex edge. 13. A tool in fhape of a curry-comb for fcraping mofs, &c. off the ftems and branches of trees. One ot the {crapers has teeth ; the other is plain. The back of this tool, and the edges of the fcrapers, are a little concave. 14. A larger double-toothed faw for cutting off large branches. 15. A {mall pruning knife with a convex edge. 16. A large chifel with a ftrong plate of iron {crewed on upon the face of it, like.a double iron for a plane, to prevent its running in too far where the tree is crofs-grained. N. B. Thefe tools have handles of different lengths, to be ufed as occafion requires. i NDE xX. A. Aicanus, on Trees, how to deftroy, 186. on Melons, how to deftroy, 187. ALMONDS, different forts of, 129, Propagation of, did. How to prune, ibid, Planting of, 130. ; How to preferve, idid. ANTS, how to deftvoy them, 197. APHIDES, defcribed, 184. How to deftroy, iid. APPLES, different forts of, 49. What fort of trees to choofe, 57. Heading of Dwarfs, 58. Heading down old trees, idid. Hollow trees, how to be treated, 59- Trees that are very cankery, oF have ill-formed heads, fhould be headed down, ibid, Pruning of Apple-trees, ibid. - The advantage of heading down young trees in the Nurfery, 61. Of borders and crofs walks, ibid. How to improve the foil, 62. Manure for Apple-tress, idid. Grafting of old trees, 63. Ufe of the compofition in grafting, 72id. APRICOTS, different forts of, 14. Proper trees, preparing the borders, and planting, 16. Heading and trainiog, iid. _ Shortening the horizontal fhoots, 17. Old and decayed trees, how to manage, ibid. Injuries fuftained by cutting or breaking off large branches, how to remedy, idid. Canker to cure, idid. Topping young fhoots, 18, 264 INDE X. APRICOTS, pruning, 18. Objections to autumnal pruniag, 73d, Beft forts for ftandards, ssid. B. BARBERRIES, different forts of, 120. Raifing and pruning of Barberries, 23/d. BIRDS, to preferve fruit from them, 2or. BLIGHTS, what they are, and remedies for them, 181 to 183. BOMBYX, how to deftroy, 196. BUDDING, how performed, 150. Obfervations on budding, 154. Ufe of the Compofition in budding, 155. Cc. CANKER, the defcription and caufes of it, 175. Does not arife from the nature of the foil, 176. Does not proceed from the roots to the branches, but from the branches to the roots, 73id. [ : To cure the Canker, zdid. CATERPILLARS, how to deftroy, 192. ~ CHERMES, how to deftroy, 195. CHERRIES, different forts of, 4%. Planting of them, 44. Heading down, its advantages, and how performed, id/d. Incifions for producing new wood, 45. The Canker in Cherry-trees, how to cure, iid. The bad effects of the common way of pruning, & aremedy, idide Heart Cherries, how to prune, train, &c. 46. Large Cherry-trees at Afhted-Park, Surry, iid. note. Manner of treating trees that produce fpurs, iid. Advantages of the new method of pruning and training, 47- Headiug down of old trees, 48. CHESNUTS, different forts of, cultivated in England, 134. h Excellent timber, 7did. Great Chefnut of Tortworth, ‘did, Several large trees at Afhted Park, near Epfom, 135. zorez Propagating of, idid. . Gathering, and keeping of Chefnuts in winter, iid. Sowihg, and management of Chefnuts in the Nurfery, 136, Planting out, ibid. Heading down, 137. CICADA, te deftroy, 196. INDEX. 265 COCCUS, defcription of the Coccus, 189. How to deftroy the Coccus, 1go. A new tribe, firft appearance of them in England, 7/4. COMPOSITION, dire@tions for making and applying it, 229. Additional inftructions, 231, CURRANTS, different forts of, 113. Black Currants good for Coughs and Colds, iid, mote. Propagation of Currants, 114. Planting of, ibid. How to have an early crop, ‘did, Pruning of, 11. To preferve them from infetts, ibid. Suckers muft be ftocked up, 116. E, EARWIGS, to deftroy, 197, FIGS, different forts of, 97. Raifing of, gg. Pruning and training of Fig-Trees, iid. Sheltering them in winter, 100. Cautions about uncovering, ror. To forward the ripening the Figs, idid. Leaves, and foot-ftalks of late fruit to be taken off, 74/2. Training, and the diftance at which Fig-Trees fhould be planted, idi¢, Of fheltering ftandard Fig-Trees from froft, 102. Heading down of Fig-Trees, i472, Figs may be dried for winter ufe, iid. FILBERTS. See Nuts. FLIES. See Wases. FRUIT-ROOM. See the following Article. FRUIT-GATHERING. The time and manner of gathering Apples and Pears, and of: carrying them to the Fruits room, 169. Of fweating, and laying up Applies and Pears on the fhelves, 170. How to keep them in bafkets, 172. And in jars, ibid. Of packing fruit for carriage, id/d. é G, GARDEN, a proper fituation for one, 156. How to fhelter it by clumps, ibid, Le 266 INDEX GARDEN, of crofs rows of Fruit Trees for thelter, 157. Of laying outa Garden, ibid, Soil, 158. Form and fize, ibid. Slips, outfide of the wall, ibsd. Chevaux de frize, for paling, ibid. nete. Of watering a Garden, 159. Quarters and Walks, 160. Draining, iid. Borders under the walls, ibiJ. The Melon Ground and Pits, 17%. ae of a Garden proper to be had, 142. Garden Wall, ibid. CraeRniC OF FRUIT: See Fruit-GATHERING. GOOSEBERRIES, different forts of, with the weight of a great many new ones from Lancafhire, 107. Propagation and Planting of Goofeberries, 108. Pruning, 109. Great attention paid to the Cultivation of Gocieuentine about Manchefter, 100. Of early and late forts, ibid. Method of deftroying Caterpillars on the bufhesy 118, GRAFTING, definition, &c. of Grafting, 142. On the choice of Grafts or Cions, 143+ ps Choice of Stocks, 145. Tools neceflary in grafting, ibid. Grafting Clay, ibid. A compofition of Bees-wax, &c. inftead of clay, 146- Different ways of Grafting, i#id. "Grafting in the rind, or fhoulderegrafting, 147- Cleft-grafting, ibid. Whip-grafting, or Tongue-grafting, 148. Grafting by approach, id¢d. Obfervations on Grafting, and the advantage’ a nfing the Plafler- Compofition inflead of Clay, 149. GUM, a difeafe in Fruit Trees, how to cure, 179. H. HONEY-DEW defcribed, 181. How to be treated, tbid. Y. INOCULATION. See Buppina. INSEGTS. See Aruis, Acarws, Coccus, &c i NDE X: 259 LEA LIME-WATER, how to make, 18g. Its ule, ibid. MANORE for Fruit Trees, 63. MEDLARS, different forts of, 10g. Manner of treatment, sid. Shouid be planted at a diftance from apples and pears, 106. MICE, how to deftroy, 201. MILDEW, what it is, 180. Remedy for it, ¢b/d. MOSS, to deftroy, and prevent from growing on Fruit Trees, 167. MULBERRIES, when introduced into England, 122, Large ones at Sion Houfe, Priory, and Cheliea, iid. ‘Treated of by Gerard in 1597, ibid. Sorts cultivated in England, 123. Their propagation, 724d. Planting of, 124. Pruning of, sbid. Of Defects and Difeafes, and renovating old trees, 13g. N. NECTARINES, different forts of, 38. Management of, 29. Greatly infeed with Earwigs, &c. 40, Thining the fruit and picking off the leaves, roid. How to projong the fucceffion, sid, NUTS AND FILBERTS; different forte of, 131. Propagation of, 27d. Training, 132. Keeping of, in winter, bia. oO. @BSERVATIONS on the Difeafes, Defects, and Injuries of Fruit and Fore Trees. Publifhed by order of Government. Introduce tion, 205. y What led to the dilcovery of the compofition, 206. Enquiries of the Commiffioners on the Effcéts of the Compo« fition, ibid. Mr. Nichol’s Efiimate of damaged Timber brought inte Portfmouth Dock, 207, note. Genera! Obfervations on the Difeafes of trees, 210, On the Managettent of Foreft Trees, 211. 268 INDEX, OBSERVATIONS, firft trial of the Compofition on Foreft Trees, 212. Of raifing young timber from old roots or ftump:, 214+ Correfpondence with the Commifficners of the Land Reve-< nue, 219. A Letter from the Commiffioners to the Ncblemen and Gene tlemen appointed by Parliament to examine the Experi- ments in Kenfington Gardens, 224. Report on the above examination, 226, DireGions for making and applying the Compofition. 229. Additional Dire€tions for m-king and applying the Compe- fiti n, and for preparing the Tree, eipecially hollow ones, for receiving it, 231. Succefs of feveral Ex, eriments fince rubjifhing the Objerva= tions, 8. 236. The beft meth: d of raifing Oaks. 237. Of planting Chefnuts for Copfe-Wood, 238. Letters attefting the efficacy of the Compofition in different climates, 240. ORANGE-TREES, directions for heading down, 24% ORCHARD, its fituation, fize, and foil, 164. Proper trees, sbid. Preparing the ground for planting, 16g. Planting, 166. Of draining a wet foil, 16%. uf An annual Wath for trees, 75/d. P, PAFILIO, how to deftroy, 1096. PEACHES, different forts of, 27. Of the foil, and borders for Peaches, 37. Draining a wet foil, 32. A four wet clay, how to treat, ibd. OF toe choice of Peach-Trees, ibid. Preparing the Borders and planting, shid. Heading, topping, pruning, and training, 33. Pruning and training of old Trees, 35. Of making incifions, sid. The Canker, ilvd. The fuperfluous fhoots to be rubbed off, 36. Of thinning the fruit, éb¢d. The great advantage of ufing the Compofition, ibid. Of watering and mulching, bid. Of picking off the leaves, 37. "No procure a regular fucceflion, ibid, \ INDE X, nth PEACHES, forts for North and Eaft afpeéts, ibid. PEARS, different foits of, 65. Choice of trees, and planting, 74. Pruning, sid. Cankery trees, how to treat, 7s. Experiments on unfruitful, old, and decayed trees, r4;d. A comparative flatement of the produce of trees, by the old and new way of pruning and training, ibid. Defcription of an old Beurre Pear-Tree reftored from 1 1-2 inch of found bark, 77. Of training trees that are headed down near to the place where they have been grafted, ibid. Of the Canker and its remedy, 78. Shortening the fore-right thoots, :b/d- OF decayed and rotten roots 79. Trenching the borders, sbid. The proper depth of mould, sbid. How the trees ought to be treated in a clayey foil, sid. Proper fmall crops for winter and fpring, #bid. PHALENZ, how to detiroy, 198. See BomByx, 196. POISON, for Vermin. See Rarsand Mice. - PLUMS, different forts of, 19. Choice of Trees, m.anagement of the Borders, ard Planting, 23. Head-down, 22. Diftance at which Flum-Trees fhould bo planted, sb:d. Training and fhortening the leading thoot, ibd. Preparing Wall Tiees for Standards, and tranfplanting them, Zid. Trenching the Borders, 2.3. OF Standards in Orchards, and Dwarfs in Gardens, sid. OF Crofs-rows in Gardens, ibid. OF pruning and reftoring old and decayed trees, 2.4. OF fore-righ: fhoots, 25. Sheltering from frofts and cold winds, 70d. The Compofition ought always to be applied after the knife, id/¢. OF thinning the fruit, sd/d. Q, QUINCES, beft fort of, for the kitchen garden, 1¢3. Propagation, planting, and pruning of them, iid. Rough bark, and baik bound trees, 194. me Should be planted at a diftance from apples and pear®, ibid. 270 | INDEX. R. RASPBERRIES, different forts of, 119. Propagation and planting, iid. Watering and flaking, 129. Pruning, hid. The time they will continue in a bearing fate, ibid, RATS, how to deftroy them, 199. SERVICE, different forts, 126. The Cultivated Service, ibid. How propagated, ibid. Training and pruning, did. The Wild Service, or Mountain Afh, 127 Its propagation, ibid. Traiaing, #b¢d. The Maple-leaved Service, ibid. Its propagation, training, 128. SLUGS, to dettroy, 108. SNAILS, to deftroy, bid. SPHIN X, to deftroy, 196. STOCKS for grafting on, the choice of, 146. T. THRIPS, how to deftroy, 198. TRANSPLANTING, of old trees, 23 and 24. TREES. For the management of Fruit Trees, fee APPLES, Pears,PLUMs,&C, Foreft Trees, how to manage. See “* Obfervations on the Difeales, Defe&s, &c. of Trees.” TRAPS for catching Vermin. See Rats and Mice. Vv. VEGETABLE MOULD, how produced, 63. VINES, different forts of, 81. Of propagating Vines from feed, 85. from cuttings, 86. from layers, 08. Of choofing Vines from the Nurfery, ibid. Experiments and Obfervations on training and pruning of Vines, 89. Dire€tions for training and pruning, 9I+ Ule of the Compofition after pruning, 94. Direétions for watering Vines, ibid. OF preferviny Grapes from Flies, Walps, &c. 95. OF picking off the leaves, 96« Gathering and preferving Grapes ia winter, ibid. TING Dybes. ‘274 W. WALNUTS, different forts cultivated in England, 139. Propagation and treatment inthe Nurlery, sdid. Planting out, idid. Trimming, 140. Walnutetrees exceilent timber, s:d. Leaves of, fervicsahle in deftroying Slugs, 141. Method of keeping Walnuts, sfd. Value of Walnut-trees at Beddington Park, annually, ibid, xete. WASH, annual, for trees, 243. WASPS, to deftroy, 198. WATERING, directions for watering trees, go. See alfo Mivpew, Arnis, AcaRnus, &c, where directions aye given for watering wader different cizcumftances, yas i Se ve MORN [The Editors in this place avail themfelves of the opportunity of fubjoining the following Communication, obligingly pre- Jented by PeveR W. YatTEs, E/g. containing his Obfer= vations on Mr. Forfyth’s Treati/e, Gc. | SS ae Cee Messrs. DANIEL & SAMUEL WHITING. GENTLEMEN, Acrezasur to your requeft I now furnifh you with fome of my obfervations on Mr. For/yth’s method of cul- tivating and managing Fruit Trees, and his remedy for cur- ing their difeafes, &c. About feven years ago I obtained his Treatife, (the London edition of 1791.) This contained his obfervations on the difeafes, &c. of fruit and foreft trees, with an account of his method of cure. Since which he has publifhed a new edition, to which are added his obfervations upon their culture and management. Before the receipt of this pamphlet I had for feveral years been at confiderable trouble and expence to procure fome of the beft fruit trees, viz. Apples, Pears, Peaches, Cherries, Plums, Apricots, and Ne€tarines. I devoted as much time to their cultivation and improvement as my pro- feffional purfuits would permit. By grafting and inocu- Jating, I increafed and multiplied my original ftock until my country feat was abundantly fupplied, But when they commenced bearing, and when I expeéted to reap and en- joy the fruits of my labor, I difcovered that they became in- fe&ted by the canker, a difeafe incident to fruit trees. It generally, and almoft without exception, appeared on the S. W. fide of the body or trunk of the tree. The bark of the infected part at firfl appeared dark, and at length rough, » M 2 (ez) wrinkled, cracked and dead ; the infe€tion annually increaf- ed; it communicated to the alburnum or fap-wood, next to the heart-wood; the circulation of the fap-juice was ob- flru€ted ; it gradually diminifhed ; it ftagnated, and the tree perifhed. To what caufe to afcribe it I didnot know. I perufed, but in vain, every treatife upon Horticulture and Fruit Trees that I could procure, 1 knew of no remedy ; but determined to make fome experiments. I cut out the defeéted parts ; nature foon formed a callus, or lip, encom- paffing the wounds. This proved beneficial, but not effec. tual: itretarded, but did not prevent mortification and death. Another expedient was, amputating fome of the branches on the N. E, fide of the trees, in order to lighten them in that quarter ; and promoting thofe on the oppofite fide, in order to prote& the trunk from the hot rays of the meridian fun. This proved advantageous, but gave the trees an unfightly form, 1 difcontinued that pra€tice on the re- ceipt of Mr. For/yth’s Treatile, the perufal of which afford- ed me both fatisfaGtion and aflonifhment. To renovate dif- eafed trees faft haftening to decay, and to increafe the quan- tity and meliorate the quality of the fruit, in the way by him prefcribed, feemed to me almoft incredible ; but as in the animal kingdom defperate remedies are fometimes ap- plied to cure defperate difeafes, and the fkilfu: furgeon will amputate a limb to fave the body, I was induced to attempt it in the vegetable kingdom, and therefore hefitated not a moment to make the experiment. I purfued the mode of procefs prefcribed by Mr. For/yth. One of my firft exper- iments was in May, 1796, on a young bearing (Boncretien) Pear-Tree, the bark whereof, as well as the alburnum or fap- wood and the heart-wood, were dead trom the ground up- wards about five feet. I cut away all the dead part, leaving nothing but the bark on the oppofite fide, and applied the gompolition. The effects were foon vifible; The external (ya78%))) part of the wound (which compofed about the one third part of thetrunk) was in a few days furrounded by a callus or lip,;which continued to encreafe until the fap-flow was ob- firufted and ftagnated by the next autumnal froft; but by the fubfequent annual flow ot the juices, the callus increaf- ed, fo as to fill the wounded part with new wood. The old and new wood united, and is covered with new bark, I forbear giving a particular detail of any more indi. vidual inftances; let it fuffice for me to fay, that I at the fame time, made fimilar experiments on fome Plum, Cher- ry, Peach and Apricot-Trees, and have annually, in the vernal months, continued the operation on fuch of my fruit trees as became infeéted. Some of which are almoft healed, and others in a progreflive ftate of improvement. Nor has any one cafe of failure occurred where all the defeétive wood was carefully extirpated and the compofition duly applied. Iam therefore fully fatisfied, that Mr. For/yth’s rem- eay affords a radical cure for difeafes, defeéts and injuries in all kinds of fruit trees ; and that it may with equal fuc- cefs and advantage be applied in this climate as in England.* But whether ina more northern or fouthern latitude, an al- teration in the confiftence of the compofition, may or may not be requifite, in order to fuit the extremes of heat and cold, time and experience will demonftrate. Encouraged by the fuccefs of thefetrials and experiments, I have made it a praétice, in pruning my fruit trees, efpeci- ally where large amputations are made, to apply fome of the - compolition to every wound ; it prevents the exuding ot the vegetable juices through the wounded parts ; it aids and pre- cipitates the healing of the wounds ; promotes the vigor and health of the trees, and adds to the fize and flavour of the fruit. This difeafe or canker, has been afcribed to various caufes, (but generally to the foil or quality of the ground,) * The climate is various in different countries under the fame parals lel of latitude, ( 276 ) which it is unneceflary here toenumerate. But it feeins extraordinary that the fruit trees in this climate are almoft invariably inte€ted on the S. W. fide of the trunk or body of the trees. There it generally commences, and continues to increafe annually until the infeftion is communicated to the limbs. It I might be permitted to hazard an opinion, I would account for it as follows: That it is caufed by the hot rays of the meridian fun, which in that direétion is moft powertul, and ftrikes the tree nearly at right angles. The fouth fide of trees grows fatter, for there the vegetation is more rapid, than the north: this may be feen by the concentric rings of a tree when cut or fawed into logs. Fruit trees generally incline to the N. E.* which expofes their trunks to the influence of that lumina- ty in the fpring, when the fap-juice is fubje€t to alternate freezing and thawing. The motion of the fap (which af- cends in the vernal months in all deciduous trees) is accel- erated by the hot rays of the fun at fouth-weft. It is re- tarded and ftagnated in the cool of the nights, whereby the irritability of the vegetable veffels is decreafed for want of a fufficient ftimulus of heat; and by this alternate thawing and freezing of the fap-juice (and particularly onthe S. W. fide of the tree where the fun’s rays are moft powerful) the vegetation is at laft deftroyed, and mortification enfues. As a preventative, I have in a few cafes debarked fors eft trees, and with a coat or furtout of that bark covered the trunks of fome of my fruit trees, in order to fhelter them from fevere frof{t and the intenfe heat of the fun, and have found it fuccefstul; It feems from Mr. For/yth’s treatife (and indeed from all the others which treat about inoculating or budding * Wefterly winds are moft prevalent as well as moft powerful in this ¢limate. Thofe from the eaftward are feldom, and not fo forcible. Ficmt this caufe it is probable that the trees receive this inclination. , Cea i) of fruit trees) that inoculation is, in England, performed in the Jummer and in no other feafon of the year. To fatisly my curiofity, I have made the experiment in the /pring, when the fap-juice is in full motion, and have found it to fucceed ; but the infertion of the bud is more difficult than to do it in the fummer feafon. A tree thus inoculated will bear fruit one year fooner than one budded in the next fum- mer feafon, and as foon as one budded the fummer preceding. I have not read any author who attempts to trace the art of grafting and inoculating to its origin. Parkinfon (who wrote a large treatife on Horticulture, &c. in the year 1626) mentions them both, but is filent as to the period when the praftice commenced. However uncertain we may be as to its origin, we are well convinced of its vaft utility and advantage Seedling apple, pear and plum trees will not, by feveral years, flower or bear fruit fo foon as thofe which are grafted or inoculated ; befides, the fruit of trees raifed from feed is liable to perpetual variation, but grafting as well as inoculating, does invariably produce the fame kind of fruitas the parent tree from which the gratt or bud is taken. ‘have not difcovered in my praétice, nor read of an inflance where this communication of juices from the graft or bud of one tree, to the ftock of another, or from the ftock to the graft or bud, has ever varied the fruit of either of them. The operation, if we may be permitted to compare vegetable to animal reprodu€tion, refembles a fimilar one upon animal bodies, as where a tooth, extrafted from a per- fon’s head, is inferted in that of another; or it may be compared to the joining of the head part of one polypus to the tail part of another. Thefe parts (compofed of two half polypi) being kept for a time in contaét with each other, will unite and become one animal. Although gra{ting and inoculating have been praflif- ed for at leaf two centuries, it feems not as yet to have ‘been difcovered whether the graft or bud gives or takes any { 278 ) property to or from the tree or ftock in which the graft or bud is inferted: Philofophy has not hitherto folved this ar- canum. Mr. For/yth’s treatife is well calculated to roufe the care and attention of gentlemen on this fide of the atlantic to the cultivation and management of fruit trees. What affords a more agreeable repaft than good and wholefome - fruit! It is one of nature’s nobleft gifts, affording not only comfort, but alfo contributing to the luxury of man. The praftice of grafting and inoculating in America is but of modern date. It was introduced by Mr. Prince, a native of New-York, who erefted a Nurfery in its neigh- bourhood about forty years ago. But fince the Jate Ameri- can revolution, others have been inftituted in this and fome other parts of the United States. Mr. Loving /fon has late. ly eftablifhed one, not far from the city of New-York, which can vie with fome of the moft celebrated ones in Europe. May he, and others, who have undertaken in that ufeful branch of bufinefs, meet with encouragement and fuccefs. Nothing in the extenfive field of Horticulture can afford more agreeable amufement or vield more folid fatistaétion and advantage. ; To the negleét of pruning fruit trees in due feafon, and the unfkilful manner of performing it, may, in a great meafure, be afcribed the bad and unfruitful ftate of fome of the orchards in America. This inattention and mifman- agement, and efpecially the not amputating dead limbs, and extirpating all infe€ted parts of fruit trees, eee them to difeafe mortification and death. An unpruned tree, left in a natural fate, will bear fruit fooner than one that is pruned; for by pruning, the parts below the lopped or amputated branches, become vivipat- ous, and produce new J/ea/-buds, which require feveral years before they will acquire fuflicient maturity to generate (e797) flower buds to produce an oviparous progeny ; but unprun- ed trees grow and look irregular and unfightly; nor is their fruit to be compared to that of trees properly pruned and _managed, in order to afford them a more equal advantage of the fun and air, by means whereof they will produce fruit better in fize and quality. To autumn ana winter pruning may be attributed the difeafes and rapid decay of many fruit trees in feveral orch- ards ; tor then the fap-flow is on the decline, and flagrfated ; the wounds are expoied to the inclemency of the weather, which produces canker and mortification, and they perifh, The practice of pruning in the fpring, when the fap juice is in brifk motion, is preferable to any other feafon of the year. Mr. For/yth’s reafons for this, are, in my opinion, forcible and conclafive. The worft enemy of the animal tribe, which fruit wees in thefe parts have to encounter, is the Caterpillar. I have formerly, and for feveral fucceffive years, early in the morn- ing, while they were confined to their neft or web, taken them off and deflroyed them. By a repetition of this prac- tice two or three times, for two or three weeks fucceffive- ly, they were totally deflroyed: but of late I have difcov- ered a more eafy and expeditious method, and which effec- tually anfwers the purpole. Take a handful of Wormwood, one of Rue, andtwo of Virginia Tobacco, (a fufficient quan- tity of Tobacco alone will do, but not fo well,) boil thefe together in about two pails full of rain water for near halt an hour, ftrain it through a cloth, and with this liquor fprinkle the trees. I perform this witha barrow-engine : but the opetation fhould be performed when the caterpillars or worms have left their noflurnal nefi or web, and are dif | perfed on the trees. Repeat the operation two or three times, they will drop down and expire. Tn this cold climate, where fruit trees are expof- {200 3) ed to injury by froft, we are frequently deprived of our fruit, or the trees afford but a fcanty crop. ‘This might perhaps be prevented, if the vegetation could be retarded until the dan- ger of the vernal froft was paft, by affording fhelter to the trees. The fruit on walls and efpaliers might be thus pro- tefted, but as to flandard trees, it would be laborious and expenfive. I have attempted feveral expedients, none of which proved effe€tual. The making of {mokes with tan ia the evening, and continuing them during the courfe of the night, has been my praétice. Thefe {mokes are to be watched, to prevent their blazing, and fhould be made on the © North or North-Weft fide of the orchard, to proteét the trees from the cold winds arifing from that quarter. The making of ftraw conduétors, or of woollen yarn (faftening one end round the body and fome of the limbs of the trees, and {ufpending the other end in a pail or tub of water) has beén recommended; but not having made a fair expert- ment of this kind, I cannot prefume to fay whether it would prove fuccefsful or not. I have long entertained an cpinion that an orchard expofed to the north, where the ground, in the fpring of the year, continues longer bound by troft, which retards the vegetation, would be preferable to one bearing an eaflerly or fouthern afpe&t, where the fap- juice is fooner in motion, and accelerated by the rays of the fun. Bie 1 had contemplated to communicate the preceding ob- fervations (with fome others on Horticulture, &c.) to the Agricultural Society of this ftate, whereof I am a member ; but if you fhould deem them of any fervice, you may pub- lifh them by way of appendix to the new edition of Mr. For/yth’s Treatife, which you have now in the prefs. 1 am, gentlemen, your moft Humble Servant, PETER W. YATES. Albany, September, 1803. Dl ne area r cat * egal : A Hint ge | LIBRARY ~ANORNT ee = OO009294BR4u8