PRACTICAL FARMER 



85 



four feet distance, observing as you api;roacii tlie 

 tree to dig carefully around the mound in which 

 the roots are formed. 



Sterilitij. — Open the earth about the foot of the 

 tree, cut off* the extremities of the large roots, 

 shorten those that are too long or far off, and all 

 the small ones near the irunk ; throw good new 

 earth upon them and cover them up. 



Means to produce fruit from trees which flourish 

 well, but tvhose fruit becomes blighted almost every 

 year. — There are some trees which are charming 

 to the sight when in blossom, but which retain 

 none of their fruit: in this case, at least six buck- 

 ets of water thrown around them when in full 

 bloom, will answer a good purpose. If you have 

 not so much water, you may refreshen the tree by 

 sprinkling the buds. When the fall of the blos- 

 soms is in too great an abundance, bleed the tree 

 or prune the roots. 



Inertness of the sap. — In very cold and dry sum" 

 niers in which there is not much rain, it happens 

 that the sap ceases to flow by degrees. You will 

 then see a great portion of the fruit, particularly 

 peaches, which have the most need of a large 

 stock of sap to acquire maturity, fall or prove 

 abortive, liie only remedy in this case is to open 

 around the foot of the tree, and to throw in a 

 bucket of water to o])en the pores and revive the 

 sap, which will jirove well that watering and vigi- 

 lance are necessary in gardening. 



When the spring is dry and cold, it happens 

 often that a peach tree does not shed its blossoms, 

 the flower attaching itself to the small nut of the 

 peach, dries it up, and makes it fall ; to remedy 

 this, you must bare the roots and throw in buck- 

 ets of water, and wlien it is dried up, cover them 

 again with earth, and continue watcringthem ev- 

 ery week during th : months of March and April, 

 until you find the fruit safe and well grown ; this 

 raises the sap and saves the fruit ; it is good to 

 water freely peach and apricot trees during the 

 great heat of summer, and above all, when the 

 fruit is approaching to maturity. When the fruit 

 is well grown, the tree must be thinned of those 

 that are superabundant, which not only makes the 

 fruit grow larger but better, it also ])reserves the 

 vigor of the tree, which would become ruined in 

 two or three years, if you do not proportion the 

 fruit to the strength of the tree. Peaches, necta- 

 rines, and apricots, must be thinned in May. Only 

 a few fruit must be suffered to remain on the 

 weak branches. 



When the heat is great and a continual drought, 

 at the end of July, and during the month of Au- 

 gust, it is good to throw around the foot of the 

 tree, and particularly the peach, a bucket or half 

 bucket of water, so as to rouse the sap and pre- 

 vent the fruit from falling half ripe. When you 



observe the tree languish, and the fruit advance 

 very slowly and fall in great numbers, yon maybe 

 sure it is in the sap ; you must then put water to 

 the foot of the tree, for which purpose you must 

 make a trench around it at a short distance, so 

 that the water may be better held, cover the earth 

 with leaves or straw, and throw water on it, so as 

 to enable the earth to preserve its freshness. 



To give fruit a fine color, about the end of June 

 clip with a scissors those leaves that surround the 

 fruit, and when they have grown nearly to their 

 size, remove all their leaves from around them, so 

 that the dew, rain and sun may penetrate, paying 

 attention to the soil, the weather, and the strength 

 of the fruit, for delicate fruit becomes scoi-ched if 

 laid bare too soon, and if too late, will remain 

 without color and taste. Peaches and apricots 

 should be laid bare only fifteen days previous to 

 their being ripe, otherwise the fruit would become 

 defective and imperfect about the stone. By jet- 

 ting water with a syringe upon fruit exposed to 

 the sun two or three times a day, you will give it 

 a peculiar and curious color, but at the same time 

 impair the quality. 



When the severity of the heat occasions th« 

 fruit to fall, instead of watering, dig round the 

 roots two inches deep, which fill up with the ashes 

 of wood, and to prevent the wind from blowing it 

 away, cover this nshes with earth. 



Peach and apricot trees are liable to what is 

 termed the blight, which is an injury that shows 

 itself by the leaves becoming crimped, shrivelled, 

 dull and yellow, they fall about the first rain ; 

 you have nothing to do but first to remove all the 

 blighted leaves, so that the new foliage of the suc- 

 ceeding spring by force of the sap of those which 

 have been blighted, come quicker. 



To remove gum you must with a proper instru- 

 ment cut down to the inner part of the tree, and 

 cover the wound with dry earth tied on with a 

 cloth. 



This is the general method of treating diseased 

 trees in France, which from similarity of climate 

 with that of this country, will apply here. Many 

 persons believe it to be only necessary to plant a 

 tree, and that nature will do all the rest. It is 

 true, we must depend upon nature for the success 

 of our endeavors ; but we must recollect that the 

 fruit trees we cultivate, are not indigenous to this 

 climate, and that our want of skill and judgment 

 in planting and nourishing them, may embarrass 

 the operations of nature in bringing the fruit to 

 perfection. It becomes necessary, therefore, to 

 ensure success, that we should aid nature in her 

 operations, by removing all obstructions to her 

 efforts, and furnishing the proper attention and 

 nourishment for the prosperity of the tree. In 

 order to effect this, observation and experiments 

 are necessary ; and ordinary care and attention lo 



