NOVEMBER. 323 



practice to screen the blossoms of wall trees by sticking twigs of Larch 

 or of evergreens, as Firs or Laurels, betwixt the branches and the walls 

 in such a manner as to overhang the blossoms where they are thickest, 

 and some instead of these use tlie leaves of strong Fern ; but all these 

 things are an objection, on account of their shading the blossom too 

 much, by which it is rendered weak, and the fruit produced often drop 

 away before arriving at any considerable size, so that all this trouble 

 goes for nothing, as there would probably have been as good a crop had 

 the trees been left to their chance." 



The next extract was from old Philip Miller, who, it would be 

 remembered, was a very celebrated gardener at the commencement of 

 the last century ; in his " Gardeners' Dictionary " of 1741, he says that 

 " There is not anything in the business of gardening which has more 

 exercised the thoughts of the curious than liow to preserve their 

 tender sorts of fruit from being blighted in the spring." After 

 stating the contrivances in use in his day, he goes on to say " that 

 the blights which are so often complained of do not proceed from any 

 inclemencies of the season ; where they are most subject to what is called 

 'a blight,' we shall find the branches very small, weak, and not half 

 ripened, as also trained in very close to each other. These branches 

 are, for the most part, full of blossom buds (which is chiefly obtained by 

 their want of strength) ; these buds do indeed open, and to persons not 

 skilled in fruit trees show a great prospect of a plentiful crop, whereas 

 the whole strength of the branch is spent in nourishing the flowers, 

 and, being unable to do any more, the blossoms fall off, and the small 

 efforts of the fruit buds are checked, so that many times the greatest 

 part of the branch dies away, and this is called a great bligJit, whereas at 

 the same time it may be often observed that trees which were stronger, 

 though placed in the same soil, exposed to the same aspect, and subject 

 to the same inclemencies, have escaped very well when the weak trees 

 have appeared to be almost dead, which is a plain indication that it 

 proceeds from some cause within the tree." He then goes on to state 

 that all this may be remedied by not over-crowding and by judicious 

 pruning and management, so as not to exhaust the whole nourishment 

 firom the roots, and by not planting too deep. 



For the defence it was contended that the defendant had just cause 

 for the course he had pursued, for where was there a philosophical law 

 that would bear out the opening case for the prosecution ? for in the first 

 place it was well understood that our seasons had very much changed, 

 that our springs were too late, that our summers were too short, and our 

 autumns too cold ; in fact, that our climiite had of late years very much 

 deteriorated, so much so that defendant had become a very necessary 

 appendage to gardening operations, and it was hoped to prove by the 

 witnesses for the defence that wherever well directed practical tests have 

 been scientifically applied, the decisions have always been in favour of 

 defendant ; for it was well understood that a rapid radiation of heat takes 

 place from the earth and all porous bodies connected therewith, 

 commencing at sunset and continuing until all the heat accumulated 

 during the previous day is radiated or expended, and as has been proved 

 by all keen observers of the thermometer, that the temperature of the 



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