JANUARY 



IRISH GARDENING 



13 



long enoui^h if latlu-r severe measures were taken to 

 reduce the heati, a sacrifice no doubt, but of two evils 

 it is the least. If nothing; else was done to ag'ed 

 specimen trees the clean pruning- out of any small dead 

 wood which often exists seems of decided advantag-e to 

 them apart from improved appearance. Not a few of 

 our evergreen coniferous trees of the pine, fir, cypress, 

 and cedar families when attaining- to anything up to 

 thirty or more feet in height are apt to get scraggy at 

 the bottom and frequently when the bottom tier of 

 branches is not failing these branches are apt to 

 become an eyesore to us and suggest discomfort to 

 themselves when bedraggling the grass or gravel. 

 There need be no hesitation in removing these, for 

 when done, the tier above will, in the course of a 

 couple of years, take a droop earthwards, sufficiently 

 so to have them just as they should be- Some of the 

 conifers are apt to form two or more leaders when any- 

 thing up to fifty feet high, generally caused by the loss 

 of the legitimate leader and tliat possibly from heav}^ 

 birds settling on it during the more brittle stage of 

 a season's growth. We once had picea grandis showing 

 three leaders at about fifty feet in height and could only 

 manage to get rid of the superfluous twain by the aid of 

 an expert rifle-shot. It is now at this dull season oppor- 

 tunities are aff"orded for these necessary attentions to 

 trees. Apart from this, on the minor scale the cutting 

 down of scraggy laurels for the purpose of rejuvenation 

 may be contemplated. The best method of doing this 

 is to cut to within, at least, six inches of the ground 

 but, and it is rather a big but, that is to be done when 

 the hardship of Winter is past, and to those contemplat- 

 ing doing it at the immediate present we should say, 

 and sa}' decidedly, Don't. 



The Fruit Grounds. 



By A. Barkkk, Carrigoran, Newmarket-on- Fergus, 

 Co. Clare. 



A HAPPY and prosperous new year to fruit 

 growers all, great or small ! With the com- 

 mencement of the new year a determination 

 must be made (and kept) to push on to a conclusion 

 many important details of hardy fruit growing out-doors, 

 which may have been left over from the past year (a 

 year which will long recall pleasant memories of the 

 splendid crops of all hardy fruits). 



Pruning seems to be unusually backward this season, 

 owing to unfavourable weather principally. This 

 matter must be attended to on all possible opportunities, 

 and especially in case of trees which may require spray- 

 ing to destroy lichens, insect or fungoid pests ; when 

 such trees are pruned they can be sprayed on the first 

 appearance of a good, dry day or two. 



The training and nailing up of fruit trees on w;ills 

 must also be promptly finished off, and wherever pear 

 scab made its appearance last year the trees should 

 l)e sprayed to prevent a recurrence again this year. 

 Plums and cherries are more troubled with aphis than 

 any other pests, these may be dealt with later on. 



Special attention should be paid to trees requiring 

 spraying ; in the pruning of these be careful to cut clean 

 away all wood showing signs of decay or disease, 

 and all weakly spurs and shoots ; long over- grown 



spurs may also be sawed or cut out, leaving about 

 two inches of base to be formed into a future 

 fruiting spur. 



Young fruit trees which are unfruitful through 

 making too much wood growth, may still be quite 

 safely lifted throughout this month at any time 

 when the ground is in fairly dry condition, and 

 replanted in same position (or removed to some 

 other part of garden if desired). This operation if 

 carefully carried out will certainly check the superfluous 

 production of wood, and cause the tree to produce a 

 good supply of fruit buds. Before replanting the tree 

 cut back any strong fibreless roots to about 18 inches 

 from the stem of the tree, and other roots must have 

 the damaged ends removed with a knife or sharp 

 secateur ; be careful not to get the tree too deeply 

 planted, a covering of two or three inches of earth over 

 uppermost roots is quite sufficient in ordinarily heavy 

 soils, a little more in sandy or light soils must be 

 allowed. Providing that the soil is in fairly good 

 condition no manure need be added in course of 

 replanting, a little mortar rubble, and a sprinkling of 

 basic slag would prove very beneficial in heavy soils, 

 but if the soil is poor and light a few forks of good, 

 well-decayed manure will be of considerable assistance 

 in securing good, plump fruit buds for the ensuing year, 

 these trees must be made quite secure against loosening 

 of roots by wind, either by staking, or treading firmly. 

 Care must be taken to give the trees a good mulch of 

 littery or half-decayed manure about end of February, 

 or on the first appearance of dry weather. Sickly or 

 diseased trees would be better uprooted and burnt 

 replacing them with a good, strong fruiting tree 

 procured from a nurseryman, though much may be 

 done to restore unhealthy trees by lifting, and 

 especially so where they are too deeply planted 

 in poor or heavy and retentive soils. 



Planting of new trees where not already finished had 

 better be deferred to end of this month, or early 

 in February, -when first favourable opportunity must be 

 availed of to complete this operation. 



Anyone desirous of planting new trees may still quite 

 safely do so up to end of February (or ist week in 

 March), but the ground for this late planting must be 

 immediately prepared by deep digging or trenching, 

 adding more or less manure according to condition of 

 the soil. The trees if not already in hand, should be 

 purchased at once. On arrival from nursery they may 

 be securely heeled in on spare ground ready to plant 

 in permanent positions at end of this month, or as soon 

 as ground is in ^oo<\ planting condition in February. 



SPRAViNf.. —Where apple and pear scab has been 

 prevalent during past season, or where trees are in- 

 fested with wooly aphis, &c. , winter spraying is an 

 absolute necessity to ensuring good, clean fruit and 

 healthy trees. Where there is even a suspicion of any 

 of above enemies spray your trees in due season, and 

 you will not be aggravated by the appearance of these 

 pests at a time when they cannot be so readily dealt 

 with. In case of large old trees where moss and lichens 

 often abound, or where there is much loose scaly bark, 

 brush over the largest branches and stems of trees with 

 a stiff, hard brush to remove the moss, &c., pre\ious to 

 spraying, by so doing, the spraying is rendered much 



