AMYGDALACE.E. V. CERASUS. 



511 



planted, as dwarf standards, to be kept under 5 feet in height, 

 some well furnished plants that have been kept in large pots or 

 tubs for a year or two ; such being more fruitful, and less apt 

 to go to wood, than plants that have grown in the open ground. 

 In planting these the ball of earth should not be much reduced, 

 only a few of the under roots should be spread out, for if the 

 ball were reduced, and the whole roots spread out as in the ordi- 

 nary way of planting, when it is wished that the plant may push 

 freely, the intention here would be thwarted, which is to have 

 the plant dwarf and fruitful, growing little to wood. Along with 

 these may be planted in the same way an apricot or two, or figs, 

 or both, that have been dwarfed in pots or tubs as above. If 

 they succeed it would give a pleasant variety, of which there 

 need be little doubt, as the temperature, soil, and general treat- 

 ment for cherries will suit apricots, and not far disagree with 

 figs. These little standards may be allowed a space of about 4 

 feet square each, which is sufficient, as they must not be suffered 

 to rise high or spread far, on account of shading the trees on the 

 trellis. In planting of the principal dwarfs and riders, let the 

 work be carefully performed. They should be raised with as 

 good roots, and be kept as short time out of the ground as pos- 

 sible, placing them just as deep as they have been before, spread- 

 ing out their roots and fibres, and filling in with fine earth. The 

 whole should have a moderate quantity of water, and have air 

 freely admitted every day, defending them, however, from snow 

 or much rain. The house should not be forced the first year ; 

 and it will be better to defer heading in the plants till the middle 

 or end of March than to prune them now. I shall, therefore, 

 take no further notice of them till then, supposing they are to be 

 attended to with respect to air and moderate waterings. It is 

 necessary, however, to remark, that the plants should be care- 

 fully anointed with the liquor recommended for vines, see vol. 1. 

 p. 708. either just now or sometime in the course of the month. 



Time of planting. According to Nicol and M'Phail January 

 and February ; to Torbron early in the autumn. 



Pruning. Trees planted in January may be pruned about the 

 middle or end of March. The dwarfs planted against the trellis 

 should be well cut in, that is, each shoot of last year should be 

 shortened back to three or four buds, that the plants may throw 

 out a sufficiency of young shoots to fill the rail from the bottom. 

 The dwarfs planted in the border as little standards need not be 

 headed in so much, as the intention is to have the fruit full, 

 and that they may grow little to wood from the beginning. 

 Their short shrubby shoots need not be touched, unless bruised 

 or hurt in transplanting, shortening back the longer and weaker 

 ones a few inches, according to their strength. The riders 

 planted against the back trellis may be treated very much in the 

 same manner, the sole intention being to obtain a few crops of 

 them while the dwarfs are making wood, and filling their spaces. 

 In November following the trees may be pruned for the succeed- 

 ing season. In order to produce wood to fill the trellis as soon 

 as possible, the dwarfs should be pretty much headed in. The 

 shoots may be pruned very much in the manner of the trees 

 in the early house, shortening no shoots that are fully ripened, 

 except a few of those at the extremities of the tree, in order to 

 make them throw out others for its full extension upwards next 

 year. November is also the proper time for pruning an esta- 

 blished cherry-house preparatory to forcing for the next year. 

 As cherry trees which have been forced make very little wood, 

 the pruning required is probably nothing further than moderately 

 to thin out the spurs, and to prune off any accidental breast- 

 wood or water-shoots that may have risen since the crop was 

 gathered. " The leading shoots, except for the purpose of pro- 

 ducing wood to fill up any blank or vacancy, need not be short- 

 ened ; nor need those in the lower parts of the tree, except for 

 the same reason. But if it be necessary to shorten these, let 



them be cut pretty well in, as otherwise they will push very 

 weakly. Shoots on the extreme parts of the tree that should be 

 shortened for the above purpose, need not however be cut so 

 closely in. If they be headed back one-third or to half their 

 lengths, it will generally be found sufficient." 



Summer pruning. Very little of this is requisite, such water- 

 shoots or breast-wood as arise among the spurs are to be pinched 

 off as they appear, laying in such shoots only of this description 

 as may be wanted to fill an occasional vacancy. Train in the 

 summer shoots of the dwarfs as they advance at the distance of 

 about 8 or 9 inches from each other ; and otherwise observe the 

 general rules for pruning cherries on walls and espaliers. 



Stirring the soil. After pruning, the borders are to be forked 

 up, and a little well-rotted dung mixed with sand worked in if 

 thought necessary. In summer they may be slightly stirred on 

 the surface, and weeded to keep them fresh, clean, and neat, and 

 where a part of the border is outside the house cover with horse- 

 dung or litter in the early part of the season. 



The time of beginning to force is sometimes December, but 

 more generally January and February. " Newly planted trees," 

 Nicol observes, " will bear gentle forcing next spring, from the 

 first or middle of March, which ought to be considered merely 

 as preparatory to forcing them fully, till about the first of Fe- 

 bruary the third year." Torbron, if the trees have been re- 

 moved with good balls, admits of gentle forcing the first spring, 

 but prefers deferring it till the third year. He says, " I have 

 had an abundant crop of fine cherries from trees which had been 

 planted only a few months before forcing, but would not recom- 

 mend the risking of a whole crop, unless the trees have been 

 longer established." Where cherries are to be ripened early 

 in the season he " shuts in about the beginning of December, 

 and lights the fires about the third or last week of that month." 

 Hort. trans. 4. p. 116. 



Temperature. Abercrombie begins at 40, " and throughout 

 the first week lets the minimum be 40, and the maximum 43, 

 giving plenty of air. By gradual advances in the second, third, 

 and fourth week, raise the course to 42 min. and 45 max. In 

 strong sunshine admit air freely rather than have the tempera- 

 ture above 52, by collecting the warm air. In the fifth and 

 sixth week the artificial minimum may be gradually elevated to 

 45, but the maximum should be restrained to 48 from fire heat, 

 and to 55 from sun heat, until the plants are in flower. After 

 the blossoms are shown, and until the fruit is set, aim to have 

 the heat from the flues at 48 min. and 52 max. At this stage 

 maintain as free an interchange of air as the weather will permit, 

 and when the sun heat is strong do not let the temperature within 

 exceed 60. As the fruit is to be swelled and ripened, the re- 

 quisite heat is 60 min. and 65 max." In January M'Phail 

 does not let the cherry-house rise higher than 50. In February 

 " if the thermometer in the morning is as low as 35 there is no 

 danger, but it should rise in the course of the day to imitate 

 nature as near as possible. In the month of March the thermo- 

 meter in the open air in the shade seldom rises above 55. In 

 the month of April it seldom rises above 65. But it is observed 

 that when the sun shines on a cherry tree or other trees in the 

 open air, the heat on them is higher than in the shade. The 

 cherry tree is of such a delicate nature to force, that it is impos- 

 sible for any person to write down the exact temperature of the 

 air, which would insure a crop from it in the forcing way." 

 When the fruit is beginning to colour and swell off for ripening, 

 the temperature may be raised 4 or 5 degrees. Torbron (Hort. 

 trans. 4. p. 1 19.) says, " for the first three, four, or five weeks 

 of lighting fires, if the weather be so severe as to depress the 

 thermometer in the open air from 22" to 1 2 degrees ; then let 

 the thermometer inside the house be kept from 35 to 40, or 

 just sufficient to exclude the frost. If the weather be not severe 



