i8Si.] FRUIT- CULTURE. 203 



feet, and not nearer each other in the rows than 20 feet, or else in a few years 

 nothing will grow between them. "We don't recommend such trees for small 

 gardens at all; for a very few trees would swallow up the whole space and 

 leave room for nothing else in a short time. Trees of this kind are only suit- 

 able for large gardens. Indeed we do not recommend the planting of trees at 

 all in gardens which are to be annually cropped with vegetables. It is bad 

 for the vegetables, and it is bad for the trees. We recommend that such trees 

 — and indeed all fruit-trees— should be planted by themselves. We don't 

 care although only half-a-dozen trees are to be planted — we say, plant them by 

 themselves. If there is over an eighth of an acre available for the purpose, 

 make an or.CHARD. If there is no other place, plant dwarfs in a quarter by 

 themselves in the vegetable garden. In preparing soil for dwarfs it does not 

 need to be so deeply dug — otherwise the preparation is the same. For dwarf 

 trees, 12 inches of good soil will do; and we have seen good results with only 6, 



Planting.— The end of October is the best time of the year for planting fruit- 

 trees. Plant only where the soil is dry. Orchard - trees on good deep soil 

 should stand 25 feet apart after they have fully grown. Mark the rows then 

 at 25 feet apart. This will leave a good deal of unoccupied space, so it 

 may be as well to plant the trees 12^ feet apart in the rows. In this case 

 every alternate tree is to be lifted before it crowds its neighbours. Trees of 

 this kind, when planted on soil prepared as we have described, need very 

 little trouble afterwards; but they are years in coming into bearing, and 

 are only suitable for those who have room to form a regular orchard, or 

 who have a large vegetable garden. For those whose ground is limited — 

 and most cottage and villa tenants and owners have only small spots — we 

 would recommend a miniature orchard. A miniature Apple-orchard should 

 be planted with trees of the English Paradise Apple stock ; for on these, 

 especially when root-pruning is practised, the trees grow dwarfer, and bear 

 fruit more plentifully and sooner than when on the free (or seedling) stock, which 

 is the one suitable for large orchard-trees. Anybody having a plot of ground 

 50 feet or so square, may have three dozen of trees, if trees on these stocks 

 are planted at between 7 and 8 feet apart. At this distance occasional root- 

 pruning will be required, even on these dwarfing stocks. Those who have 

 only a small plot to devote to Apple cultivation had better plant trees 6 

 feet apart each way. These trees require to be kept in small bulk ; and for 

 this purpose, trees grafted on the Doucin, or French Paradise Apple stock, 

 should be planted. Mr Rivers, in 'The Miniature Fruit-Garden,' advises 

 the planting of such trees as these much closer together than what we have 

 advised ; but we have had something to do with orchards planted on Rivers's 

 plan, and we consider that the room which we have recommended is little 

 enough. Cottage and villa owners could not do better than procure Mr 

 Rivers's little book, and well study its teachings ; but our experience is, that 

 the excessive restriction which is there recommended, is not suitable. We 

 will not criticise Mr Rivers's teaching. His indomitable perseverance and 

 enthusiasm we admire. We feel grateful to him, and honour his memory for 

 the great work he did for Pomology ; but we think that, for ordinary growers, 

 and more especially for beginners, a less tied-down system, if we may so ex- 

 press ourselves, is more worthy of recommendation. We therefore advise 

 beginners to allow their trees the distance named. 



Perhaps we ought to say that only young healthy trees should be planted ; and 

 trees which have been repeatedly cut back to keep them small, are neither young 



