^I)c JTarmcf's ilTontl)li) DisitorT 



cider-mill. When they were four years old he | 

 graCied ihetn close to the ground ; iiiid three years 

 after he sold them for more than. FIVE POUNUS 

 sterling. They were removed to a pnit.ihle .«iiii- 

 atioii, and now form a most beaiitilul and pro- 

 ductive orchard. Thus profitable was that little 

 effort in the nursery way. There have been 

 many others of the like kind, on a larger scale, 

 and all very advantageous. One in particular 

 shall be mentioned. 



About ten years ngo, a very worthy gentleman 

 in my neighborhood, possessed of a fine taste, 

 and of an excellent judgujent in the nianagenicnt 

 of a nursery, began the propagation of finit and 

 other trees: partly for his anuisenicnt, and part- 

 ly for the use of his farm. Since which he has 

 furnished a most beautiful and e.\tcnsive garden, 

 with a rich and vast variety, from his own nm- 

 series: and now has an abundance of the finest 

 apples, plund)S, [leaches, apricots, cherries, &c. 

 From so great a number of young and thrifty 

 trees, bearing and coming on to bear, one can 

 scarcely pretend to guess at the (piantily of fruit 

 wliich iliey will yield in the period of four, or 

 five years more. 



[The following account is taken from his Gar(le7ier.] 

 "In the spiing of the year, 1790, when 1 en- 

 gaged in the service of E. H. D. Esq., his gardens 

 were not so e.xtensive as they now are ; and his 

 nursery was small, compared with what it is at 

 present. But little was done in it that year. — 

 Some apple, jiear, and fruit trees were planted ; 

 and a collection of seeds made for the following 

 year: in which, apple, i»ear, jilumb, apricot, 

 peach, cherry, mulberry, elm, button wood seeds, 

 &c. were sowed, all of which have fully answer- 

 ed the expectations of the proprietor, and of the 

 best judges of propagating these kinds ot trees, 

 yearly additions have been made to this nursery, 

 and it now takes up nearly one acre and one 

 quarter of land. The whole of the ex[>ence be- 

 stowed upon it, from 1700 to 179.'), does not ex- 

 ceed, in my opinion, the sum of forty pounds. — 

 And this year, trees have been taken from it, atui 

 solil, to that amount: and bad there been enough 

 of a suitable age and growth, for transplanting, 

 oiie hiMidred pounds worth might have been dis- 

 posed of Not to mention the great number of 

 trees taken out of tliis nursery, to supply the 

 proprietor's own gardens, and those pieseuicd to 

 ids friends, it now contains more than t\vo thous- 

 and of button wood trees, five years from the 

 seeds, and from seedlings brought from the town 

 of Boylston, one thousand of which are more 

 than seven feet high and which are to be re- 

 moved next spring, to a suitable situation, for the 

 purpose of a woodlot for the use of bis firm. 

 Including these, there are now in this nursery 

 about fourteen thousand trees ; many of them 

 are small, and have not been iiuioculated. 1 esti- 

 mated them on an average, at six pence: and at 

 this low price the value of them will be THREE 

 HUNDRED and FIFTY POUNDS, the nett pro- 

 ceeds, on profits of one acn; ami one qu:'.rter of 

 land iuiprovpd in this way. For, the trees which 

 liavc been taken up and dislrihuted on the farm, 

 with those which have been given away, woulil 

 more than pay the rent of tlie land, and the ex- 

 pense of fencing it. Anil it ought to be observed, 

 that a very considerable portion of the labor be- 

 stowed on this nursery, might have been per- 

 formed at times when little else could have been 

 done." 



Mere we see the exertions and rewards of in- 

 dustry in the culliv.-ition of a nursery. Ami one 

 woidd think that this example woid<l be fi)llowe(l 

 by many attentive and judicious ftrmers among 

 us. Hut if it should not, this is certain, vi/. that 

 it is an examjile of great industry, and well wor- 

 thy the attention of the public. 



Hilt it may be observed, tint if farmers in gen- 

 eral should attend to the cultivation of fruit trees 

 they would soon become plenty, and be of little 

 value. To deleriiiinc this matter, let them con- 

 sider, how great a number of their neiglibors, and 

 who might raise corn in plenty, do nevertheless 

 neglect to ciihivnte so niiich of it as would sup- 

 ply thc'ir fiiiiiiliis, although bread is the stalf of 

 lile. Good husbands only will be the rivals of 

 those who may engage in the propagation of 

 fruit trees. And this >vill give those who engage 

 in the business, two chances at h'ast out ol' tlin-e 

 in favor of a ready market for their productions 

 of this kind. And besides, old orchards are 



mouldering away ; new fiirinsure rapidly increas- 

 ing ; and acountiy without bounds is daily solicit- 

 ing a supply liom the nursery. When nurseries 

 wenMuimerous; when orchards, now decajed 

 and past bearing, were in their full strength and 

 vigor; and when money was very scarce — even 

 then — forty years ago, appleirees from the nur- 

 sery would tfilcli eight pence each; and there is 

 no great probability that they will ever be much 

 cheaper in this State. 



THE ADVANTAGES OK AN OncllARn. 



When we survey the country around us, of 

 which our industrious Ancestors look possession 

 about one century and an half ago, we see the 

 ruins of many once beautiful and fiourisliing or- 

 chards: and we are surprised that their descen- 

 dants have endeavored no more to counteract 

 those ravaizes of time, by repl.acing the labors of 

 their hands. To excuse this negligence it has 

 been observed, that joniig orcharils will not suc- 

 ceed on those lands liom which old ones have 

 been removed; though peartrees h ill, and last 

 for more than one generation. Hut if this obser- 

 vation be just, and it is more thiin probable that 

 it may be, lor large trees must impoverish the 

 ground on which they grow, there is scarcely any 

 considerable firm on which some new situation 

 may not be found on wliich to place an orchard. 

 Any southeast prospect, or an hill dripping 

 towards the south, which is a most excellent sit- 

 uation, or even the sides of roails and fences 

 around pastures and mowing lands, will answer 

 very well. Trees thus placed will yield a great 

 plenty of fruit ; increase the grass ; afford a com- 

 fortable shelter for cattle, and he highly ornamen- 

 tal. It would be judicious to inopagate a large 

 proportion of sweet apples : as lliey afiiii d a rich 

 repast for the table of the fiuiner ; are equal in 

 value to any other apples fur cider; and will al- 

 most fatten sheep and swine. One would im- 

 agine, that the profits and pleasures arising from 

 an orchard, would stimulate the farmer to prop- 

 agate the appletree; but in nothing, perhaps, has 

 the present generation been more deficient. — 

 Many farms on which scarcely an apple is now 

 to be seen, abounded with those of the first qual- 

 ity filiy years ago. Cider was then so plenty 

 that it would not fetch more than two or three 

 shillings, at the press, per barrel; nor more than 

 five or six in the market. In that jiart of the 

 country in which the writer then lived, about a 

 dozen miles from Boston, apples, pears, plumbs, 

 cherries and peaches were exceeding plenty. — 

 Hoys were seldom or never known to rob fruit 

 trees of any kind : and the poor had only to ask 

 and gather what they wanted. 1 know of no tree 

 in this country which iiroduces a greater variety 

 of fruit ; scarcely any two, unless gialied, or in- 

 nociilaied, being the same taste and flavor, which 

 can be used in a greater variety of way, and pre- 

 served for a longer space of time, than that which 

 I am reconnnending. In bloom the appletree 

 makes a most heantiliil appearance, and the fruit 

 of it, even in its crude state, all'ords an agree- 

 able tart. Although it is said liy natiiralisls, that 

 the crab is the poorest of all apples, they ditier 

 in many essential respects from each otiier. — 

 Some arc ripe in July, and hiiilily agreeable to 

 the palate : others are niaiure in August, and in 

 September; anil so on, in succession, 'till late in 

 October, when all come to perfection, and there 

 is the greatest variety and abundance. While 

 some are most excellent for pies, and others for 

 sauce, a greater proportion are fur eating ; and 

 may bo preserved through the winter, with no 

 other expellee than barrelling, or boxing them 

 up: and all of them may be converted into a 

 very wholesome, vinous liipior, which will keep 

 through the wliide of the year. Hut some have 

 ol<scrved, that appletrces are liable to frosts, 

 worms, caterpillars, &c. and iherel'ore they neg- 

 lect the propagation of them. Apply this reason- 

 ing to fiax, barley, and to corn : shall we neglect 

 these things becrriise they are subject to frosts, 

 worms, mililew.s, and the like evils .' It is true 

 that !i|iples are not so necessary as bread ; but 

 they are vi:ry grateful and prolitablc. If only one 

 tree out of twenty set out by the liirnier, should 

 nourish and bear liuit, within twenly years alter 

 the propagation of it, he will receive a tenfold 

 reward tin- all hisexpencc and Irouble. Let your 

 applitrees bo carefiilly planted out ; well sei'iircd 

 from sheep and cattle ; and judiciously grallcd : 

 then you may comfort youiiielf with llio rctlec- 



tion, that you have laid the foundation of that 

 Health which will grow and increase as you ad- 

 vance ill years, and eventually descend to your 

 children. Could 1 name a certain tree, which 

 would grow rapidly ; and extend iis branches far 

 and wide; and which would last for a ceiiliiry or 

 more; and that this tree within less than a doz- 

 en years alter the seeds ol it had been sowed, 

 would start up and bear a multitiidi! of little sil- 

 ver pieces, equal in value to the sixteenth or even 

 the sixtieth part of a dollar, would you not en- 

 deavor to propagate that tree .^ \Vliy, then, can 

 you not be persuaded that all the profits of this 

 tree may be realized, if you will cultivate the 

 appletree.' Although the tVuit of this tree is an- 

 other kind of property, and differs in appearance 

 from those little pieces of silver, it will ,is certain- 

 ly produce them, as if the tree itself had borne 

 them. Whatever you cultivate, and which pro- 

 duces silver, is the same in point of profit as sil- 

 ver itself. 



There is one consideration more on this suli- 

 jecl, and w hich may not be unworthy of your at- 

 tention. Many farmeis who hire a number of 

 laborers are obliged thereby to pay a very heavy 

 tax, to whicli their foreliithers were entire stran- 

 gers. 1 mean the expense incurred by RU.M,and 

 which is more prejudicial to their interests than 

 frosts and caterpillars are to their orchards. And 

 I can see no way of withetanding this growing 

 evil, but through the influence and increase of 

 CVDER. When this liquor was plenty, and 

 when good small beer held a respectable place 

 in the farmer's cellar, the best of labnrer.'i — men 

 who would reap, or hoe an acre per day, in light 

 land, and go home at night contented w itii their 

 wages, were ready to be hired — there were 

 enoiigli of these characters wishing to work, and 

 the farmer had not to court them into bis service. 

 And I have no doubt, was cyder as plenty, and 

 good small beer in as much reputation in these 

 days, as they were fifty or sixty years ago, farm- 

 ers would soon ex|ierience an alteration in their 

 favor. The man who will not labor cheerfully 

 and faithfully when he has victuals enough, and 

 good cyder and beer, is not worth his keeping. — 

 If then, you would reap the above profits and 

 pleasures, and rid yourself of this needless and 

 bnrtliensome tax, cultivate the appletree ; and en- 

 deavor to excel in the quantity and quality of 

 your cyder, which is annually increasing in value. 



I shall close by observing, that every ajiple 

 tree increases the valne of the farm on which it 

 grows. Those farms on which good orchards 

 are placed will commonly be in demand, and 

 greatly preferred to those which have none. In- 

 deed a jiiilicious man will not readily buy a farm 

 which has no orchard on it; because it wants 

 one essential advantage ; more especially if it be 

 near a market town. A young ami fiourishing 

 orchard, has rendeied many an old and worn-out 

 lariii saleable. 



THE .IIA.NAGEMEKT OF CYDER. 



Many farmers who spare no ex|iciise nor labor 

 in preparing their pork, veal and mutton in the 

 best manner, wilii the view of obtaining the 

 highest prices for those articles, pay very littlo 

 attention to another equally as important a part of 

 their produce; and which would welt reward 

 them for all their cares and pains bestowed upon 

 it ; 1 mean cyder. That w hich is sw ect and good, 

 will fetch one sixth part more at least, than that 

 w hich is sour and ordinary. This must be an 

 object to the farmer, even when he has but one 

 or two tons to dispose of: and w hen be has three, 

 or four times that (|uaiitity to sell, it becomes of 

 great importance to him. If his lot is cast with- 

 in eight or ten miles of a maike! town, this sixth 

 p;u-t will almost delVay the expenses of carting 

 till' whole. .And thin" kind of cyder will meet 

 Willi a ready sale: the man who offers it, will 

 not be obliircd to stand a great many boms in 

 the heat of the day, pel haps, in lly time, or in a 

 storm, and aficr all his anxiety, and the sufier- 

 ings of bis ratlli-, to court a chapman. And 

 wiiatever the reelings of those may be, who re- 

 gard neither the quality of the article they have 

 for sale, nor the trouble and artifice they are 

 obliged to submit to, in order to dispose of it, the 

 firmer who knows that his meal, meal, cyder, 

 \e. .-.riMeally good, w ben be shall hear them 

 commended and receive a geiu-ions price liir 

 them, willetijoy the approbation of bis own heart 

 and go home rejoicing. It nr.isi be of as much 



