142 OF PRUNING?. SECT. XII, 



trifle wider; and fixed close to the wall, so as to 

 form upright oblongs of twelve inches by six. In 

 this way of training, the shreds ought to be finer, 

 and the nails much smaller ; but the branches may 

 be tied with bass, &c. if the trellis is set a little from 

 the wall, as suppose an inch. 



It may be observed, that tying saves the expcnce 

 of nails and shreds, close set buds are never covered, 

 and damage from the hammer is avoided. By trel- 

 lising, a tree will be cleaner and less infested with 

 vermin, which breed in the holes made by nailing. 

 In this mode of training, the fruit swells freely, 

 grows larger, and is of more equal flavour ; so that 

 it deserves trial where it is likely to-succeed by fine 

 situations. 



Let the young gardener be advised resolutely to 

 observe the pruning laws, and keep all in perpetual 

 order, for his trees will run presently to confusion 

 and ruin, if inattention and neglect take place. 



2. The HEALTH of wall trees is greatly pro- 

 vided, for, by observing the directions already given, 

 concerning their form ; for if observed, each shoot 

 will have the proper benefit of sun and air, to con- 

 coct its juices and prepare it for fruiting. 



It injures a tender shoot when it presses hard 

 against a nail. If the hammer strikes a shoot, and 

 bruises the bark, it often spoils if not kills it, by the 

 part cankering. The shreds may be too tight, so- 

 that the shoot cannot properly swell ; and if shreds 

 are too broad, and too numerous, they are apt to 

 occasion sickness, and prove a harbour for insects 

 and filth : Let the number be lessened at all oppor- 

 tunities. A slip of the knife may wound a neigh- 

 bouring branch, and make it gum, canker, or die. 

 It will require care, and some practice, to avoid this 

 accident ; and in order to it, keep the point of the 

 8 



