44 THE FRUIT GARDEN. [JAN. 



with a good flavor; observing therefore to keep the general branches 

 thin, about six or eight inches asunder, in which, if any are too 

 crowded or over abundant, prune out the most irregular ; also any 

 cross-placed branches, and casual worn-out old bearers, together with 

 all the irregular-placed and superabundant young shoots of last 

 summer, preserving only occasional supplies of the most regular ones 

 in vacancies, and a leading one at the termination of each branch, 

 agreeable to the rules exhibited above in pruning the gooseberry 

 bushes; and the general upper shoots may be mostly shortened more 

 or less where required to keep the head to a moderate extent, and a 

 compact handsome growth. 



Observe in pruning young gooseberry and currant bushes, let those 

 designed for standards be pruned to a clean single stem, eight, ten, 

 or twelve inches; and being careful to retain a requisite supply of 

 the best young shoots properly situated ' above, to form the head 

 accordingly, cut out the irregular and ill-placed ; and the retained 

 proper shoots may in some be moderately shortened, especially such 

 as run away straggling from the rest ; and any proper shoots ad- 

 vancing below may be permitted to remain entire till advanced equal 

 with the others above, &c., that the whole may come on as equally 

 as possible to form a regular head. 



Currants and gooseberries trained against walls, palings, trellises, 

 &c., should also have a necessary pruning and regulation in the gene- 

 ral branches, or as may be required, cutting out the superabundant 

 and irregular-placed shoots of last summer, or any casual too crowd- 

 ing and disorderly growing older branches, or such as appear unfruit- 

 ful, or any of a worn-out or decayed state, and all dead wood; 

 retaining young shoots advancing from below, and in the most va- 

 cant parts, shortened more or less, or left entire, according to room 

 for extending them; and train the general branches, &c., three or 

 four to five or six inches distant. For more particulars, see Oc- 

 tober. 



FIG-TREES. 



Fig-tree pruning is advised to be deferred till March or April, 

 where see the method explained. 



PROTECTING THE ROOTS OF NEW-PLANTED TREES. 



If the weather should now prove severe, it will be proper to pro- 

 tect the roots of new-planted fruit-trees from being hurt by the frost, 

 by laying mulch, or long dung litter, on the surface of the ground ; 

 particularly the choicest of the stone-fruit kinds as peaches, necta- 

 rines, apricots, and any principal sorts of cherries and plums. 



RASPBERRIES. 



If you have neglected to afford the protection directed in Novem- 

 ber to your Antwerp Raspberries, you should no longer omit it ; 

 especially in those parts of the Union where severe winter frosts 



