22 ORIGIN OF THE APPLE TREE. 



periments have been made, in order to ascertain their annual 

 increase in height and bulk, and this would seem to be a dif- 

 ficult job, as so much depends on care and culture. In the 

 Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society for 1788, 

 Mr. Barker states, as the result of his observations, that oak 

 and ash trees grow nearly in equal proportions, increasing 1, 

 or IJ inches every year. He remarks that when the annual 

 growth amounts to 1 inch in height, a coat one-sixth of an 

 inch in thickness will accrue to the tree. 



The health and vegetation of trees may be greatly pro- 

 moted by scraping them ; by cutting away the cankered parts, 

 and by washing their stems, at least once a year in the months of 

 February or March, (and later in the Spring.) Hence Mr. For- 

 syth, (English author) in his ingenious treatise on " the Culture 

 and Management of Fruit Trees," recommends fresh cow-duna; 

 mixed with urine and soap suds; and the composition to be applied 

 to the stems and branches of fruit, forest or timber trees in the 

 same manner as the ceilings of rooms are white-washed. This 

 operation, he observes, will not only destroy the eggs of in- 

 sects, that are hatched during the Spring and Summer, but 

 also prevents the growth of moss, and if it be repeated in 

 Autumn, after the fall of the leaves, it will kill the eggs of 

 those numerous insects, which are hatched during that season 

 and Winter ; thus contributing to nourish the tree, and to pre- 

 serve its bark in a fine and healthy state. 



In common with other objects of vegetable creation, trees 

 are liable to a variety of diseases, which, if not timely attend- 

 ed to, eventually destroy them. We shall in this place in- 

 troduce a concise account of Mr. Forsyth's improved method 

 of curing injuries or defects in either fruit or forest trees. 



Mr. F. directs all the decayed, hollow, loose, rotten, injured, 

 diseased and dead parts to be cut away, 'till the knife extend 

 to the sound or solid wood, so as to leave the surface per- 

 fectly smooth ; then, to one hundred gallons of human urine, 

 and one bushel of lime, add cow-dung sufficient to bring it to 

 the consistence of paint. 



Afterv having carefully brushed oif all the moss, the infected 

 trees should be anointed with this mixture, about the latter 



