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nuin until the following fpiing, vvlien they fViOuld 

 be carefully taken up, lo as not to break their ten- 

 der roots, and tranfplanted into a nurfery in rows 

 three feet afundcr, and one foot diftant plant from 

 ; plant in the rows, obferving to lay a little mulch up- 

 on the furface of the ground about their roots, to pre- 

 vent its drying too faft; and if the fpring fhould 

 prove very dry, you fliould give them a little water 

 once a\veek, until they have taken root \ after which 

 they fliould be conftantly kept clear from weeds, and 

 , the ground between the rows carefully dug every 

 : fpring to loofen it, fo as that the tender fibres may 



ftrike out on every fide. 

 ■ In this nurfery they may continue one or two years, 

 accoi-ding to the progrefs they make> after which 

 they (hould be tranfplanted where they are to remain, 



to produce fruit. 



In removing thefe trees, you (hould obferve to prune 



• their downright roots, if they have any, pretty Ihort, 



and to cut oft all bruifed parts of the roots, as alfo 



all the fmall fibres, which generally dry, and when 



left upon the roots after planting again, grow mouldy 



and decay, fo that they are injurious to the new 



fibres which are Ihot out from the roots, and very 



often prevent the growth of the trees; but you 



■ fliould by no means prune their heads, for the plants 



which are produced from ftones, are generally of a 



more fpongy texture, and fo more liable to decay when 



. cut, than thofe which are budded upon other ftocks. 



Bcfides, as thefe trees are defigned for ftandards (for 



it is not proper to plant them againll walls, until 



you fee the produce of the fruit, to (hew which of 



.. them deferves to be cultivated,) they will never re- 

 quire any other pruning, but only to cut out decayed 

 branches, or fuch as fhoot out very irregular from 

 the fides, for more than this is generally very injur!- 



•: ous to them. 



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, In planting thefe trees, it will be the better way to 

 . difpofe them fingly in the quarters 9f the kitchen- 

 ; garden, where they will thrive, and produce fruit 

 -. much better than if they are planted near each other 

 in rows ; and, as they are thuS -f^^^gly difpofed, they 

 > will not do much injury to the crops which grow 

 -, under, them. 

 3Vhen. they have produced fruit, you will foon be a 

 judge of their gooclnefs, tlierefore fuch of them as 

 • you diflike may be deftroyed ; but thofe which are 

 good, may be propagated by inoculating them upon 

 other ftocks, which is the common method now 

 pradifed to propagate thefe friiits, therefore I fhall 

 now proceed to treat of that more particularly •, in 

 the doine; of which, I fliall fetdown the method now 

 .^com.monly pradiied by the nurfery-gardeners, and 

 ' then propofe fome few things of my own as an im- 

 proyement thereon, for fuch perfons who are very 

 J /^curious to'have good fruit. But firft. 





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: : You fliould be provided ^with fl:ocks' of the Mufcle 

 and white Pear Plums, which are generally .efteemed 

 , the two beft forts pf Plurns^ for ftocks, to inoculate 

 Peaches and Net^arines upon 5 as alfo fomc Almond 

 t and Apricot ftocks, for fome tender forts of Peaches 

 ., : \vhich will riot grow ujpon Plum ftocks.' Thefe 

 % fliould be all produced from the ftone (as hath been 





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already diredted in the article Nursery,) and not 



v;. from fuckers, for^th^^ there laid down. Thefe 



/: ftocks fliould be tranfplanted, when they have had 



v^..ohe years growth in the feed-bed, for the younger 



^ they are tranfplanted, the better they will fucceied, 



i _iand hereby they will be prevented from fending tap- 



, roojDs deep in the ground; foY by ftiortehing thofe 



^:^ roots, which feem fo difpofed, it will caufc them to 



';r put out horizontal roots. Thefe ftocks fliould be 



.planted at the diftance above-mentioned, viz. the 



• row§ three feet afunder, and one foot apart in the 



rows. Jrhis is wider than moft nurferymen plant them, 



but I fnall give.my reafons hereafter for this. ^ . 



When thefcjlocks have grown in the nurfery two 



year.s fhey will be ftrong enough to bud ; the feafon 



for which is^commonly abput Midfumnier, or any 



. „. tin;e in Julyj^HciT the rind'will eafily feparate from 



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the wood, when you fliould make choice of fonic 

 good cuttings of the forts of fruit you intend to pro 

 pagate, always obferving to take them from healthy 

 trees, and fuch as generally produce a good quantity 

 of well-tafted fruit •, for it is very certain, that any 

 fort of fruit may be fo far degenerated where this 

 care is wanting, as not to be like the fame kind. Be- 

 fides, whenever a tree is unhealthy, the buds taken 

 from that tree will always retain the diftemper, in a 

 greater or lefs degree, according as it hath imbi'bed 

 greater or lefs quantity of the diftempercd juice" 

 Thus, for inftance, where a Peach or Neftarinc-trec 

 hath been greatly blighted, fo as that the ftioots have 

 grown bufled, and the leaves curled up to a great 

 degree, that diftemper is feldom recovered a^ain by 

 the greateft art, or at leaft not under fcveraf years 

 management j for let the feafons prove ever fo favour- 

 able, yet thefe trees will continually fliew the fame 

 diftemper, which many perfons are fo weak as to fup- 

 pofe a frefli blight, whereas in reality it is no other 

 but the remains of the former ficknefs, which arc 

 fpread and intermixed with all the juices of the tree 

 fo that whatever buds are taken from fuch trees, will 

 always retain a part of the diftemper. 

 Upon the care which is taken in the choice of the 

 buds, the whole fuccefs depends ; therefore a perfon 

 who is curious to have good fruit, cannot be too care- 

 ful in this particular ; for in general no more is re- 

 garded by thofe nurferymen who are the moft careful 

 in propagating the feveral forts of fruit-trees, dian 

 the taking their buds or grafts from the true kinds 

 of fruit-trees > but there is ftiU more care required 

 to have found healthy trees, efpecially in this of 

 Peaches and Neftarines ; for if the buds are taken from 

 young plants in the nurfery which have not pro- 

 duced fruit, the flioots of which are' generally very 

 ftrong and vigorous, thefe buds will have (b vicious 

 a habit, as rarejy to be correfted and brought into 

 good order ; for they will flioot more like the Willow 

 than the Peach, the joints being extended to a great 

 diftance from each other, the flioots very grofs, and 

 the wood pithy'-, therefore where the praftice of tak- 

 ing the buds from fiurfery-trees is long continued, 

 there can be little I^opes of the trees fo raifed.;, I 

 would therefore recommend it to every curious per- 

 Ion, to procure their buds from fuch trees as have 

 been long growing, whofe fruit are well flavoured, 

 and the trees perfedly found ^ as alfo never to make 

 choice of the ftrongeft or moft luxuriant ftioots of 

 thefe trees, but fuch flioots as are well conditioned, 

 and whofe buds grow pretty clofe together. And 

 although thefe do not make fo ftrong flioots the fol- 

 lowing years, as thofe which are taken from luxuri- 

 ant branches, yet they will be better difpofed to bear 

 fruit, and will make much better trees. - :-.^ 

 The cuttings with whichyou are thus to be provided, , 

 fliould always be taken from the trees either in a 

 morning or evening, or elfc in a cloudy day, for if 

 they arc cut off* when the fun is very hot, the ftioots 

 will perfpire \o freely, as to leave the buds deftitute of 

 moifture, which is often the caufe of their mifcarry-^ 

 ing i and the fooner they are put into the ftocks when 

 cut from the trees, the better they will take. The 

 manner of this operation being fully explained under 

 the article of Inoculation, I fliall not repeat it in 

 this place. The management of thefe trees, during 

 their remaining time in the nurfery, is likewife fully 

 fet down under that article. I fliall therefore pro- 

 ceed to give fome directions for the choice of thelc 

 trees, when they are to be procured from a nurfery. 

 The firft care fliould be to find out a perfon of cha- 

 rafter to deal with, on whofe integrity you "^^7.^^' 

 pend, not only for having the trees of thofe kinds 

 which you propofe, but alfo for their buds being 

 taken from bearing trees ; and either fee them taken 

 up, or let fome perfon you can confide in do it tor 

 you ; becaufe, as moft of the nurferymen have deal- 

 ings with each other, if the perfon applied to has not 

 the fort of fruit defired in his own nurfery, he pro- 

 cures them from another j and if the gardener from 



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