CHAP. Vli VILLA GAKDENING 275 



some of the clay early in spring after it has been exposed to the 

 drying influence of March winds. This treatment will imi^rove 

 heavy land for all cultural purposes besides fruit-growing. I 

 think I need not say more about pruning and training, fiu-ther 

 than that care should be exercised not to prune more than is 

 necessary, or use more nails or ties than a bare sufficiency to keep 

 the branches in order and steady. There is frequently a lot of 

 time and material wasted in training fruit trees. Just as many 

 attachments should be used as are needed to kecj) the branches 

 out straight and no more, and plenty of room between the branches 

 and the ligature should be left to allow for swelling. 



Propagating Cherky Trees. — I have an acquaintance, a 

 working man, who has a garden in which he takes great interest, 

 and he has often amused himself in planting fruit-tree seeds, such 

 as Cherries, Plums, etc. He has raised a lot of Cherries, which 

 are now in full bearing, healthy, and strong. So far as I have 

 seen, he has nothing better than the old-established kinds, but 

 I somehow think there seems more than the average vigour in 

 them, which some might think arose from their being seedhugs un- 

 worked. But whether it is so or not, I can recommend all who 

 have a garden to plant a few seeds of fruit trees, taking j^ains, of 

 course, to obtain the seeds from the best-flavoured fruit. As soon 

 as the seedlings appear (unless it be intended to bud established 

 kinds upon them) they may be led up in a single stem to form 

 standards. They may stand rather close to each other till they 

 bear, when they should be planted out finally if the fruit is of 

 average quality. If the young tree has gone back to its wild 

 condition, then it may be budded when strong enough in August. 

 It will thus be seen that raising seedling fruits, such as Cherries, 

 Plums, Apples, and Pears, will, if it does nothing else, give us a 

 lot of young healthy stocks for working established kinds ujion. If 

 followed intelligently and persistently it will do something more ; 

 besides being a constant source of interest, it may lead to the 

 production of varieties worth perpetuating. At any rate it cannot 

 be a loss to us, but may be a great gain. 



Watering anb Mulching. — In dry weather the bvdk and 

 weight of the crop will be much increased by a few good soakings 

 of liquid manm'e during the swelling of the fruit. I remember 

 some years ago a very large old Waterloo Cherry tree standing on 

 Grass, that was watered regularly in dry summers from a rividet 

 near, and it was wonderful how rapidly the Cherries grew mider 

 the combined influences of moistiu'e and sunshine. It is not well 

 to pick oti' stones from land to be planted with Cherries. Stones 

 serve a wise purpose in more ways thau one. They are conser- 



