204 NEW AMERICAN ORCHARDIST. 



which occur after the sap has arisen ; the danger in this 

 case being caused by the occurrence of unusually warm 

 weather, either during an open winter, or during the 

 progress of a very early spring, which causes the tree to 

 advance prematurely. Those trees being more especially 

 exposed which are in warm and sunny expositions, while 

 those trees which are situated on the north sides of hills, 

 the most exposed to cold winds, and on the north sides of 

 fences and of buildings, almost invariably escape. I have 

 stated elsewhere, that in Switzerland a mound of earth is 

 sometimes placed over the roots of plants in autumn, as a 

 protection from winter frosts, to be removed in spring. 

 Completely to protect the tree, and to insure a crop of fruit 

 in all situations and seasons, let the whole surface of the 

 earth beneath the tree, be covered to the depth of eight or 

 ten inches, either with leaves, or coarse, strawy manure, or 

 with coarse hay, in January and February, and when hard 

 frozen. This will preserve the ground in a frozen state, 

 and effectually retard the advancement of the tree till the 

 danger is past, and to a late period in spring. 



PRUNING, &,c. In our climate the peach is almost uni- 

 versally cultivated as a standard. They are rarely pruned 

 at all. In New Jersey and Delaware, also, the best culti- 

 vators prefer to leave the peach trees unpruned, even while 

 standing in the nursery, that they may spread wide; and 

 some there are who prefer close planting. There they are 

 sometimes renovated by heading down, after they have 

 borne two crops, for the production of new and more fruit- 

 ful wood. This operation should be performed in spring. 

 Trees are very rarely to be seen trained to walls, except oc- 

 casionally in the gardens of the opulent. 



The most extensive peach orchard which has come to 

 my knowledge, is that belonging to Messrs. Isaac Reeve 

 and Jacob Ridgeway, of Philadelphia. It is situated forty- 

 five miles below the city, on the River Delaware, at Dela- 

 ware city, and contains 200 acres of trees, in different 

 stages of growth. In 1839, they gathered from this 

 orchard 18,000 bushels of first-rate fruit, from 170 acres 

 of trees, whereof only 50 acres were then in full bearing. 

 When the fruit has attained the size of a small musket 

 ball, it is thinned. One of those gentlemen informed me, 

 that of that size, they had gathered, in that year, 700 

 bushels, by measure, of the immature fruit. By this judi- 

 cious management, while the amount of fruit was but little 



