MANAGEMENT OF YOUNG TREES 69 



tied in ; and eventually it is possible that they will have 

 to be removed altogether, as it is not always easy to keep 

 branches of that description tied back within the general 

 level of the hedge. Nothing, moreover, gives a worse 

 appearance to a hedge or tree than one of these bare 

 branches projecting beyond the general level, perhaps 

 entirely devoid of young growth. In the case of one of 

 these branches that I have described having been allowed 

 to grow for some years, and then found necessary to be 

 removed by being cut out altogether, the disfigurement 

 that will be caused to the hedge or tree will be very 

 apparent for some years afterwards ; whereas, if such 

 branches had been removed each year as they made 

 their appearance, no disfigurement would have resulted 

 through their removal ; rather would the growth be 

 improved to a great extent, inasmuch as, where each 

 shoot or branch is cut off a number of young growths 

 will break away, which will help to give the hedge 

 a firm and compact appearance, a thing that is greatly 

 to be desired in all clipped hedges or trees. For 

 the general work of clipping and training trees in the 

 Topiary garden, I would strongly recommend that the 

 old-fashioned shears be used. There are several 

 different makes of clipping shears to be got now. Some 

 of them have been given a trial here ; but for general 

 purposes they were not found to be very well suited to 

 the work. There are exceptions, of course, where they 

 might be used with advantage, as, for instance, in the 

 case of a privet hedge, where the surface is smooth and 

 even and the growth soft and easily cut. But for all 

 general purposes, the old style of shears is the best. It 

 is very often the case that in the work of clipping a well 

 trained tree, it is necessary to cut the growths off one 

 by one, and it is in a similar instance that the old- 

 fashioned shears with their sharp points have the ad- 

 vantage over the newer make of machine. 



