OCT.] THE FRUIT GARDEN. 549 



The best time to plant them out finally is, when they have had 

 one or two years' growth from cuttings ; or indeed the cuttings may, 

 with great propriety, be planted where they are to remain for fruit- 

 ing. Old gooseberry bushes seldom bear large fruit after being trans- 

 planted, unless they are carefully removed with large balls of earth 

 around their roots. 



Previous to planting, each young tree should be pruned up to one 

 clean stem of eight to ten or twelve inches before you form the head ; 

 for when they are suffered to branch away immediately from the bot- 

 tom, they, by spreading out so near the ground, will impede the 

 growth of any crops that grow near them, and in the occasional and 

 very necessary business of manuring, digging, hoeing, weeding, &c., 

 will be very troublesome to work between. 



For further observations on the planting of gooseberries, see pages 

 146 and 306. 



PRUNING AND PROPAGATING GOOSEBERRIES. 



The latter part of this month, and the entire of the next, will be 

 a very suitable season for the pruning of gooseberries. It is a prac- 

 tice too common in pruning these trees to let them branch out with 

 long naked stems, suffering them to remain in that state for many 

 years. When that is already the case they should be cut down, or 

 considerably shortened, to promote a free growth of healthy young 

 shoots, which will bear fruit abundantly the second year. But for 

 general instructions on this head, see page 42. 



You may now plant cuttings of the various kinds of gooseberries 

 which you wish to propagate; for the necessary instructions, see 

 page 306. 



Note. New varieties of gooseberries may be obtained by sowing 

 seeds of the best kinds you are able to procure, either in this or any 

 of the autumn months, in beds in the open ground, or in boxes of 

 good earth. From these sowings the plants will rise freely in spring, 

 and by the autumn or spring following may be planted in nursery 

 rows to remain another season, after which they are to be finally 

 planted out for fruiting ; or they may remain where planted from the 

 seed-bed till they show specimens of fruit ; then those that are good 

 are to be taken due care of; the others, which, by the by, will be 

 the far greater number, may be thrown away. 



If the seed is kept out of the ground till spring scarcely any of it 

 will vegetate till that time twelve months ; therefore it is necessary 

 either to sow it in autumn, or to preserve it in damp earth or sand 

 till February or March. If sown in autumn cover it near half an 

 inch deep with loose, rich earth ; but if in spring a quarter of an 

 inch will be sufficient. 



PLANTING RASPBERRIES. 



There are many varieties of the Rubus idteus, or European rasp- 

 berry, but the most preferable are the red Antwerp, the white Ant- 



