196 FRUIT CULTURE UNDER GLASS. 



growths, to be alternately spurred back, reduces the 

 management, and yearly pruning and pinching, to as 

 simple a routine as that of spur-pruning the vine, and 

 has great advantages over the system of tying in three 

 times more growths every season than are required, to 

 be cut away in winter, sadly mutilating the trees. 



Root-Pruning. For the first few years after young figs 

 are planted, root-pruning should be as carefully attended 

 to as the training and pruning of the trees themselves, 

 otherwise they will not so soon be brought into a 

 fruitful condition. The roots should be seen to at the 

 time of winter pruning. A trench should be taken out 

 down to the drainage round each tree at about 3 feet 

 from the stems, and the roots carefully disentangled, 

 lifted back to within 20 inches of the stem, pre- 

 serving all the finer fibry roots, and cutting back those 

 that are strong. The second year the same process 

 should be attended to, but not encroaching so near the 

 stem. In my own experience I have found that in 

 limited and not too rich borders, two root-prunings 

 have been sufficient to bring the trees into free bearing, 

 unless it be some of the more gross-growing and gen- 

 erally the least desirable sorts. Such free-fruiting and 

 desirable varieties as Brown Turkey, Grosse Verte, and 

 Eaby Castle can be brought into free-bearing condition 

 by two root-prunings, with the system of pruning and 

 pinching the tops that has been recommended. 



Before treating of the general management in forcing 

 the fig so as to keep up a supply of fruit from May 

 till the beginning of winter, I will now refer to figs in 

 pots, as they form an important feature, especially in 

 the very early forcing of the fig. 



