General Notices. 129 



liage has fallen, the training of the tree should be attended to, in reference 

 both to its bearing fruit, and its future development. Former papers in the 

 Chronicle, have fully explained the general principles of pruning, in refer- 

 ence to different trees, and we refer to them for that instruction, which 

 young gardeners may need. Everything of this kind should be done now, 

 excepting the nailing of trees to walls, which, physiologists say, should be 

 left as long as possible. Nature appears to confer benefits on trees, by the 

 constant motion of their branches, in the wintry winds, and the process of 

 nailing in, attended to early, deprives them of this. It has been thought, 

 that the tendency of wall trees to canker, is to be attributed, in part, to the 

 unnatural position they are fixed in. It is as well, therefore, to leave this 

 part of gardening labor until the spring, unless the garden is very large, 

 when, of course, work must be done, when there is an opportunity. All 

 pruning, however, may be got under at once. Espaliers and standards, 

 should be carefully trained, and kept in an orderly and elegant form. The 

 latter are too much neglected in gardens. VV^hen young, standard trees 

 receive supervision, but when they become older and more valuable, they 

 are slighted. The centres become filled with small spray, by which air and 

 light are kept from a large portion of the tree. The knife should be used 

 to clear this away, and, also to remove all dead branches. Any lime, when 

 there is no hard frost, will be favorable for this work. 



The quarters devoted to gooseberries and currants should now be dug, 

 a good coating of well rotted manure, being mixed with the soil, as you 

 proceed. The bushes should now be pruned, if you can adopt measures to 

 scare away birds from the buds, otherwise, you had better wait until Feb- 

 ruary. If a bush is now cleared from all useless wood, facility is given for 

 the entrance of the winged depredators, and you may find your trees quite 

 destitute of buds in the spring. By leaving them unpruned, an entrance is 

 in many cases prevented, and, at all events, you can regulate your pruning 

 afterwards, by the state of the buds. However, it is better to get the work 

 done now, and take measures to keep the birds away, during the winter. 

 A mixture of cow dung, soot, and lime, put on with a plasterer's brush, I 

 have found effectual ; I am not quite sure that white worsted is not equally 

 potent to keep off the thieves. If your stock is not very large, try both, 

 and you will be sure of success. When the snow is on the ground, keep a 

 look out, and the occasional use of a gun will be beneficial. 



In order to have a succession of young bearing trees, of various kinds, 

 the gardener should every year displace some old worn-out subject, for one 

 just entering on its prime. It is bad management to allow all the fruit trees 

 of a garden, to grow hoary together. Good gardeners are always siiifting, 

 and by this means they secure health and plenty. Raspberries, currants, 

 and gooseberries, allow of this treatment, especially, since they so rapidly 

 come to perfection. — {Gard. Chron., 1848, p. 829.) 



Culture of the Azalea. — At this gloomy season of the year, we are often 

 cheered by thinking of the treasures which are preparing to display them- 

 selves, when a few weeks shall have brought more light and a liigher tem- 

 perature. The buds of hyacinths and early tulips, are ready to burst their 



VOL. XV. — NO. III. 17 



