1869.] CULTIVATION OF HARDY FRUITS. 355 



transportation and replanting, works a wonderful change. The stock 

 by the operation loses a considerable amount of its strength and 

 vigour; the roots have been cut and pruned so that the plant loses a 

 considerable amount of its feeding powers, and with it the constitu- 

 tion is to a certain extent reduced — not, however, so far as to be of the 

 least injury to a healthy plant, but far enough to do all the evil 

 possible where the tree has already got the seeds of disease flowing 

 through its blood. This reduction of the strength and vigour of the 

 tree gives the first opportunity to the disease to make its appearance. 

 While the stock is struggling to overcome the check sustained by trans- 

 planting and root-pruning, the circulation of the sap is neither so great, 

 so swift, nor so regular, as may be easily seen from the late start and 

 weak shoots formed by such a tree when compared with one which has 

 not been removed ; consequently, the discharge from the tree to the soil 

 will also be less regular and less in quantity. If this be the case, as it 

 must be, then the tree to a greater or less extent must be living upon 

 itself, and the seeds of the disease are thereby getting an opportunity 

 to disperse themselves over the whole body thereof. As soon as this 

 has taken place the case is hopeless — the tree is doomed. Xo known 

 power of the gardener can save a tree when it has arrived at this stage. 

 He may struggle with it and cut as he will — his labour in the end will 

 be lost. This is a lesson to us all, which shows us how much we are 

 in the power of the nurserymen ; and I am sorry to think that so much 

 of the want of success in fruit cultivation is due, not to the mis- 

 management of the gardener, but to the carelessness of the nurseryman 

 and raiser of fruit-trees. I will not deny the fact that there are 

 a few good firms which may be thoroughly relied upon to pro- 

 vide good and healthy trees true to name. For every firm, however, 

 for which this can be said, a dozen can be pointed to which are just the 

 reverse. Now it would be good for gardeners, and it would be good for 

 nurserymen themselves, if this were not the case. How much more satis- 

 factory it is for the buyer, and must also be for the seller, where every- 

 thing gives satisfaction ! That satisfaction may be given, it is neces- 

 sary that the scions be selected with the greatest care from trees of 

 the most undoubted health, where canker never has been. It is very 

 often the case, however, that the scions are obtained from some 

 garden or orchard near by, and some young man is sent to gather 

 them who neither " kens nor cares " whether they are from healthy 

 trees or not. In this case he gathers aU he can lay his hands upon, 

 from trees old and young, healthy and diseased ; he puts them into 

 bundles which go into the nursery to spread the disease — I had nearly 

 said from pole to pole — from Land's End to John o' Groat's, Avoid, 

 therefore, the diseased parent if you wish to become the possessor of a 



