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-ti^hbni lie gets them, is not as horieil: and careful as 

 himfclf, it is a great chance if the trees prove to be 

 bf the right kinds. ■ 



The trees fhould alfo be chofcn in the autumn, be- 

 fore others have drawn out the beft ; for thofe who 

 go firftto the nurferies, if they have {kill, will always 

 draw the fined plants. In the choice of the trees, 

 you fhould obferve the ftocks upon which they have 

 been budded, that they are of the right fort,' whether 

 Plum or Apricot j that they are found and young, 

 iiot fuch as had been budded the preceding year and 

 failed, nor thofe which have been cut down. If the 



■ fize of the (lock is near that of a man's finger, it will 

 ' be better than if they are larger ; thefe fliould be clear 

 ' of mofs or canker. The buds fhould be of one year's 



rowth only, and not fuch as have been cutdown in the 



^ring, and made a fecond fhootj nor fhould thofe 

 : trees be chofen whofe fhoots are very flrong and luxu- 

 ^.riant, but fuch as have clean fhoots, of a moderate 



fize, whofe joints are not too far afunder ;' and thofe 

 ' trees which Hand on the outfide rows, or near the 



ends of the rows, where they have moft air, are 

 .< generally fuch; for, where they ftand clofe in the 



nurfery, their fhoots are drawn up in length, their 

 - joints are rnuch farther afunder, and their buds or 

 ' eyes are flat ; for which reafon, I have before advifed 



* the planting of the flocks at a greater diftance than 



■ the nurferymen generally allow them; and, if a care- 

 ■- ful difcreet nurferyman would be at the trouble and 

 ^ cxpence in the raifing of his Peach-trees according 



' to thismethod, he would'beftcr deferve three fhillings 



per tree, than one in the manner they are ufually 



v^r'raifed; for every perfon who is at the expence of 



building walls for fruit, fliould not think of faving a 



* few fhillings inthe'^purchafe of their trees ; bccaufe, 

 ' if they are bad, or not of the right kinds, there is a 

 ' great lofs of time and expence to no purpofe, and 



the'difappointment will be fo great, after waiting three 

 , '^^^pffour years, as to difcourage many from making 

 '■'^''^^^^^arther trials, thinking themfelves liable to the fame 



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detained about tli'e roots of 

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the trees, will grcat!y 

 then raife a border of earth at Icall 



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:, When the trees are chofen in the nurfery, the next 



4 carejnuft be to have them carefully taken up out of 



' the ground, fo as not to break or tear their roots, 



'^•', ^r Dor injure their bark ; for as thefe trees are very apt 



> 4 'to gtim in tliofe places where they 'are wounded, there 



I cannot be too ,much care taken of this. , If the trees. 



•".-are to be tranfpofted to a dillant place, their roots 



'■ Ihould be clofely wrapped either with haybands, ftraw, 



;, 'i or Peas-haulth, and mats fewedover thefe, to prevent 



V i'vfthe air from drying theix roots and branches. : If 



.; *,- the leaves of the trees are not fallen when they are 



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up, they fhould be carefully flripp cd off, before 



; : 'the trees are paclced up ; for when there are many of 



c thefe left, they^are very apt to heat, if they are long 



in their pafTage, and often occafion a mouldincfs very 



to the branches. 



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[- We come next to the preparing of the ground to re- 

 i.ceive the trees. _ The beft earth for Peach-trees is 

 ;:,fuch as is taken from a pafture-ground, that is nei- 



-. ther too flifF and moifl, nor over dry,' but of a mid- 



*>*dling nature, fuch as is termed hazel loam. ^.Xhis 



s Ihould be duo- from the furface of the ground about 



'. - ten inches deep, taking the turf with it, and fhould be 



laid in 'heaps eight or ten mohtTis at leafl; buF tFiat 



\ which is prepared one year or more is fVill better be- 



• ^-'fore it be ufed^ that it may have the winter's froft, and 

 .- '4\-.:. — ^j.»g f^^^^ ^Q mellow it; durinor which time it 



a foot, or in very wet land two feet above the level 

 of the ground, fo that the roots of the trees may al- 

 v/ays remain dry ; but if the ground be pretty dry, the 

 borders fliould not be raifcd above fix or cio-ht inches 

 higher than the furface, which will be fulHcicnt to al- 

 low for their finking. 



As to the breadth of thefe borders, that cannot be too 

 great; but they n:iould never be lefs than fix or eight 

 feet broad, where fruit-trees are planted^ for when 

 the borders are made very narrow, the roots of the 



■ trees will be fo confined in four or five years time, that 

 they will feldom thrive well after. The depth of thefe 

 borders fhould not be greater than two feet and a 

 half; for when they are prepared to a great depth, ic 

 only entices the roots of the trees downward, which 

 may be the caufe of their future barrennefs ; .for their 

 roots being got down below the influences of the 



; fun and fliowers, imbibe a great quantity of crude 



juices, which only add to the luxuriant growth of 



the trees, and deftroy their fruitfulnefs ^ befides, 



/; whatever fruit are produced from fuch trees, are not 



/ near fo well tafted as thofe are which grow upon thofe 



trees whofe roots lie near the' furface, and enjoy the 



kindly benefit of the fun's heat, to corred and digefl 



i v\?hatever crudities there may be in the earth. 



Where the natural foil of the garden is fhallow, and 

 .cither chalk, clay, or gravel lies near the furface, 

 t thefe fhould not be dug out to make pits to receive 



■ *:; the earth'for the border, as is by foniti pra£l:ifed, for 

 'this will be no better than planting the trees in tubs 



or cafes, for their roots will be confined to thefe 

 pits ; fo that wh«! -they are extended to the fides, and 

 can get no farther, the trees will blight and decay ; 

 and if it is clay on the fides, the wet will be detained 

 as in a bafon, and the earth of the border will be like 



■ mud in very wet feaforis, fo unfit for the roots of thefe 

 trees. Therefore, whenever it fo happens that'the 

 ground is of either of the forts before-mentioned, it 

 will be the befl way to raife the borders of a proper 

 thicknefs of good earth over thefe, rather than to 

 fink dpvyn into them ; for when the roots of the trees 

 lie near the furface of the ground, they will extend to 



.-- a great diflance in fearch" of nourifhment ; but if they 

 ^;-get below the flaple of the land, they can find no-, 



n thing but four crude pafture very unfit for vegetation: 



- Your borders being thus prepared, fhould lie about 



- three weeks or a month to fettle, by which time the 

 ■\*;feafon fof planting will be come, which fhould be 

 ;'^' performed as.foon as the .leaves begin to decay, that 



the trees may put out new roots, before the froft 

 ^ comes on to prevent them. Your ground being ready, 

 ,^^and the treps brought carefully to the place, the next 

 i^ work is to prepare them for planting, which is to be 

 ' performed in the following manner : you mufl fhorten 

 ,^. all the" roots, ' a^nd cut off fmooth and broken or 



. Ihould be often turned, to rot the turf and break the 



V] clods, whereby it will be rendered very Jight_,and 



^- eafy to work ; and about the beginning of September 



-you fhould carry it into the garden, and make the bor- 



^ders, which muft be raifed in height proportionable 



'.to the moifture of the garden ; but if the ground be 



very wet, it will be advifeable to lay fome rubbifhin 



• the bottom of the border to drain off the moifture, 



alfo to prevent the roots of the trees from running 



downward ; and in this cafe it will be proper to make 



:fome under-ground drains at the bottom of the border, 



-to con^^y off the fuperfluous moifture; which, if 



Lbruifedxopts, li alio all the fmall .fibres fhould be^ 

 '• taken off, for the reaibns before eiven^; and where 

 : any of the roots cfofs each other, the worft of them 

 :-«iuft be cut out, thatthey may hot injure the other. 

 „ And having thus prepared your trees, you fhould mea- 

 fure out their diitance; "which ought never to be lefs 

 * than twelve feet ; l)ut where the groundis very good, 

 they fhould be planted fourteen ieet afunden This 

 I doubt not, will be thought too great a diflance by, 

 ,. many perfons, efpecially_ fince it is contrary to the 

 ' general pra6tice at this time; but I am fatisfied . 

 _ whoever fhall try the experiment, will find itnbmore 

 - .than iji. fufficient for tbef^ trees where they are rightly 

 manaired :' for if they take kindly to the foil, their 

 j- branches may be fo trained as to furnifh all the lov^^er 

 part of tTie wall in a few years, which is v/hat fliould 

 be principally regarded," and not, as is too often the 

 pradlice, run up, the fhoots in height, and leave all the 

 lower part of the tree dcflitute of bearing wood, fo 

 that in a few years there will not be any fruit but up- 

 on the upper part of the trees ; which alfo mufl be the 

 cafe where they are planted too clofe, bccaufe there 

 being no room to extend the branches on either fide, 



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