APP 



56 



APP 



Fig. 17.— (P .51.) 



one of which will be the leader, and 

 the others will form the first or lower 

 tier of bearing branches, which are to 

 be secured to small stakes, so as to 

 keep them in their proper places. 



The following season the upright 

 leader must be shortened to nine inches 

 or a foot above the two horizontal 

 branches, and deprived of all its shoots 

 excepting the three uppermost, which 

 are to be treated the same as before. 

 In this way the leading shoot is to be 

 stopped at the requisite distance above 

 the horizontal ones, until it has reached 

 the height of five feet. It is then cut 

 off, and no more allowed to grow up- 

 right, the whole strength of the tree 

 being directed to the fruiting branches. 

 — Gard. Chron. 



Espalier apple trees should be at not 

 less than twenty feet distance ; butfive- 

 and-thirty feet is better, especially for 

 trees grarted on crab or apple stocks, 

 which are free shooters ; for trees graft- 

 ed on codlin and paradise stocks eigh- 

 teen or twenty feet may be a sufficient 

 distance. They should be planted with 



their heads entire, only removing any 

 very irregular growths that do not range 

 consistent with the intended form, and 

 pruning any broken roots. Let all the 

 branches be trained horizontally to the 

 right and left, an equal number on each 

 side, all at full length, five or six inches 

 asunder, and, according as they shoot 

 in summer, still continue them along 

 entire. At the same time train in a 

 further supply of new shoots, to increase 

 the number of horizontals or bearers, 

 and thus continue increasing their num- 

 bers every year, till the espalier is 

 regularly filled from the bottom to top, 

 preserving all the branches at full 

 length, as far as the allotted space will 

 admit. 



They must have a summer and a 

 winter pruning annually; in the sum- 

 mer cut out all the superfluous and ill- 

 placed shoots of the year, and train 

 regular ones towards the lower parts in 

 vacant spaces, at least to remain till 

 winter, some of which may be then 

 wanted to fill some unforeseen vacancy, 

 clearing out all others at this time as 



