1871.] CULTIVATION OF HARDY FRUITS. 125 



seed, the fruit should be rubbed between the finger and thumb in a basin of water 

 until the seed is separated from the pulp. After having been thoroughly washed 

 it must be well dried, and afterwards laid past in a cool dry situation till spring. 

 The seed may be sown either indoors in heat or out of doors in a sheltered situa- 

 tion about the end of April. The former method we consider the best, as by 

 this means the plants are much stronger and more healthy, and if well managed 

 will make better trees in a much shorter space of time. The end of February or 

 beginning of March the seed may be sown in pots in nice rich soil of a lightish 

 nature, having a good proportion of leaf-mould, and be placed for a few weeks in 

 an early vinery or gentle hot-bed. As soon as the young plants have reached the 

 height of an inch or so, they ought to be gradually hardened off, so that by the 

 time they are 3 or 4 inches in height they will be fit for planting in nursery- 

 lines — say a foot between the lines, and 3 or 4 inches in the line. During the 

 first winter they will be all the better for a slight covering to protect them 

 from frost. In spring they may be cut back to a few eyes, after which the 

 training will depend entirely upon the taste and form of tree the cultivator 

 may desire. 



The propagation of the Mulberry by layers is a very simple process, and the one 

 generally practised by nurserymen, as by this means larger trees can be obtained 

 in a given time than by any other. This operation may be performed almost any 

 time from October till March, and may be accomplished according to the follow- 

 ing method : If suitable branches can be obtained near the ground, all that is 

 necessary is to cut off a piece of the bark of the branch, or, what is perhaps better, 

 make a ring from which the bark is to be taken, after which the branch may be 

 bent down and securely fixed into a nice, light, and moderately-rich soil. If the 

 branch is not more than three years of age, it should be ready for separation from 

 the parent tree in a year afterwards. If the branch is older than this, then the 

 longer will be the time before this can be done. After having been cut off from 

 the tree it ought to be well cared for, and nursed for a year or two, at the end of 

 which time it may be placed into its permanent quarters, and should begin to 

 bear when six or seven years of age. As every one knows what a sucker is, suffice 

 it to say that when detached from the tree it must be planted as already recom- 

 mended for layers, and well attended to for a year or two. 



Cuttings are generally made from the young wood, having a heel of two-year- 

 old wood attached. Cuttings of older wood will, however, root well enough, but 

 they require longer time to accomplish it. Cuttings make more symmetrical and 

 finer trees than layers, and come into bearing much about the same age ; but a 

 tree raised from a cutting will not be more than half the size at six years of age 

 of one from a layer. The cuttings, having been made with a nice sharp knife, may 

 be put into small pots singly, the pot being filled with light rich soil having a 

 good admixture of river or other sand ; and, if plunged in a gentle hot-bed, will 

 make nice little plants the first season. Two or three buds at most are enough to 

 leave upon each cutting; and after they have made a start the strongest one may 

 remain, and the others be removed. Cuttings made as above directed, and plant- 

 ed in lines in autumn, will also make good plants in the course of the following 

 season. It is said that cuttings made of wood of several years' growth will also 

 root readily ; so that if this be the case, much time and labour might be avoided 

 by adopting this method. 



The Mulberry will grow in any good garden-soil, but succeeds best in a good 

 rich loam of a lightish texture. It will also be found to succeed best where 

 there is a considerable amount of moisture and a pretty heavy rainfall ; so that 

 the cultivator need not be over-particular regarding drainage, if so be that he 



