PREMATURE DECAY OF PEACH AND APRICOT TREES. 27 



In concluding these remarks, I would observe, that within 

 little more than a score miles of this place, are gardens in which 

 flued walls are considered indispensable in the out-door culture of 

 the Peach and Nectarine. I have seen as many as from four to 

 six fire holes to a south Peach wall ; and they really look very 

 expensive things. 



IV. — On the prematuee Decay of Peach and Apricot Trees. 

 By J. B. Whiting, C.M.H.S., Gardener to H. J. Hope, 

 Esq., the Deepdene, near Dorking. 



(Communicated December 7th, 1852.) 



In a paper (Vol. VI. p. 128) on the short duration of wall-trees, 

 Mr. G. Lovell ascribes the premature failure of the Peach and its 

 allies chiefly to improper management of the trees during the 

 first stages of their growth, and as a remedy he recommends a 

 course of treatment differing but little from a method described in 

 Vol. II. of Loudon s Gardeners Magazine, but which has never 

 been brought regularly into practice, principally, perhaps, on 

 account of its requiring more time and attention than the mode of 

 management now generally followed in nurseries. It is reasonable 

 to suppose, that the present system is to a certain extent injurious 

 to the constitution of the Peach and the Apricot-tree, which, being 

 natives of much better climates than our own, require to be placed 

 under the most favourable conditions to ensure even a moderate 

 amount of success in their culture ; still I cannot altogether 

 coincide in the opinion Mr. Lovell has expressed, that " to the 

 disagreement between the scion and the stock, and to the early 

 and ruthless application of the knife, may be attributed, in the 

 majority of cases, the early death of the Peach and its allies." 

 I think that the premature decay of our Peach-trees ought rather 

 to be attributed to a conjunction of various causes, not one of 

 which singly equals in evil effect an unfavourable season. In 

 proof of this, we need not go back beyond the springs of 1850 and 

 1851, when the protracted cold weather blistered and destroyed 

 much of the foliage, and even many of the tender shoots that 

 were first unfolded, so that the young wood made very little 

 progress till nearly the middle of May. Many Peach-trees suffered 

 so much in consequence, that they lingered for a month or two, 



