OBSERVATIONS ON VEGETABLES 



TREES, ORDER OF LOSING THEIR LEAVES 



One of the first trees that becomes naked is the walnut ; 

 the mulberry, the ash, especially if it bears many keys, and 

 the horse-chestnut come next. AU looped trees, while 

 their heads are young, carry their leaves a long while. 

 Apple-trees and peaches remain green very late, often till 

 the end of November : young beeches never cast their 

 leaves till spring, till the new leaves sprout and push them 

 off: in the autumn the beechen-leaves turn of a deep 

 chestnut colour. Tall beeches cast their leaves about the 

 end of October. 



SIZE AND GROWTH 



Mr. Marsham of Stratton, near Norwich, informs me 

 by letter thus : "I became a planter early ; so that an oak 

 which I planted in 1720 is become now, at 1 foot from 

 the earth, 12 feet 6 inches in circumference, and at 14 feet 

 (the half of the timber length) is 8 feet 2 inches. So if 

 the bark was to be measured as timber, the tree gives 1 16| 

 feet, buyer's measure. Perhaps you never heard of a larger 

 oak while the planter was living. I flatter myself that I 

 increased the growth by washing the stem, and digging a 

 circle as far as I supposed the roots to extend, and by 

 spreading sawdust, etc. as related in the Phil. Trans. I 

 wish I had begun with beeches (my favourite trees as well 

 as yours), I might then have seen very large trees of my 



437 



