GENERAL MANAGEMENT OF ORCHARDS. 177 



fruit, in order to ascertain whether or not the curculio, or 

 some other marauder, were not the cause of such an un- 

 timely casting of the fruit; but not a vestige of an insect 

 could be discovered. With no expectation of ever gath- 

 ering any ripe fruit from that tree, we determined to test 

 what was looked upon as one of the whims of our illustri- 

 ous progenitors ; and, accordingly, two shotes were yarded 

 beneath the tree, in an iuclosure about one rod square. 

 They were kept there about two months. Their bed was 

 close to the body of the tree, under a few loose boards. In 

 this yard, holes were made with a crowbar, into which 

 kernels of corn were dropped. The whole ground was 

 rooted over and over, to the depth of eight to twelve inch- 

 es ; and many of the roots were torn up. This was in Au- 

 gust and September. The next season, instead of seeing a 

 dead tree the result of recklessness, as was prognosticated 

 every branch was well filled with luscious fruit, and those 

 trees continued to yield bountiful crops every season, as 

 long as we were in possession of them. The cherry-tree 

 was a few rods from the pear-tree, and was literally loaded 

 with fruit every season. But previous to that treatment it 

 never ripened. Some of it would rot. Some would wilt 

 and dry up. Some would be covered with black knots, 

 and some would become almost ripe, and then drop to the 

 ground; no traces of insects could be found. The hog 

 remedy was applied thoroughly, and every season since it 

 has borne a large supply of as good cherries as ever birds 

 picked. 



From these facts it would appear that, if yarding swine 

 about fruit-trees is generally injurious, here is an excep- 

 tion. If swine were permitted to sleep close to the body 

 of a tree, and to root about incessantly for a whole season, 

 we are not prepared to say that the effect might not prove 

 fatal. There can be but little doubt, when fruit-trees have 



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