VOL. V. 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



Publish ed by Jdh.n B. Russeli. ut No ^Sa fvortli Ma rket a treet,(uver the AgriculturarWiirehouse!)— Thomas G. Pkssehuen, Editor. 



BOSTON, FRIDAY, JUNE 22, 1827. 



No. 48. 



AGRICULTURE. 



MASS. AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



t tho annual raeetinj of" the Massacliusetts 



iety for the promotion of Agriculture, held 



e 13, the following gentlemen were elected 



ers for the ensuing year : — 



on. JouN Lowell, President. 



ieut. Gov. Winthrop, 1st Vice President. 



on. Israel Tborndike, 9d do. 



on. Richard Sullivan, Corresponding. Sec'ry. 



)hn Heard, Esq. Treasurer. 



orham Parsons, Esq. Recording Secretary. 



enj. Guild, Esq. Ass't. " ■' 



John Prince, Esq. "] 



Hon. P. C. Brooks, \ 



Hon. John Wells, l^ Trustees 



E. Kersey Derby, Esq. f 



Hon. Wm. Proscott, | 



.Tohn C. Gray, Esq. j 



ervations on Manuring, Planting, Grafting, 

 Tuning of Trees. Extracted from Bradky's 

 'realise on Husbandry and Gardening. Ptib- 

 fhed in Great Britain, 1726. 

 may be thought singular, that we should at- 

 fpt to lay before the public, remarks on a siib- 

 which may be considered to be already well 

 erstood, and still more so, that we should draw 

 n from so ancient a source. The popularity 

 he work of Forsyth may seem to render such 

 easure hazardous : and the opinion, that mod- 

 improvements have entirely superseded the 

 3tice of the early part of the century, may 

 firm this opinion. But chance having thrown 

 ur way this early treatise on the management 

 •,rees, we are constrained to express our con- 

 ion that it contains as much solid, good sense, 

 :an be found in any modern work of the same 

 ?nt, and we think the form in which instruo- 

 i is conveyed much more suited to practical 



Oy TEEAT.MENT OF TREES. 



ibservation 1st. If any branch, in the middle 

 the tree, rises with too much luxuriance above 

 rest, in full, sappy wood, we must cut it off 

 ;e to the body of the tree, but take care we 

 not injure the bark of the great wood we take 

 rom ; for such a wound would endanger the 

 ilth of the tree, the wounded part would be a 

 g time recovering, and be subject to canker. 

 Id. There are many people with their pruning 

 ives constantly in hand. But the continual 

 ining of a tree makes it shoot into false wood 

 I miscarry of its buds designed for fruit. The 

 ison why trees shoot more into wood when they 

 e been largely pruned, is because the root had 

 ed itself with juices proportionable to the nour- 

 ment its stani'ing branches required ; but 

 len m.iny of them are cut away, the same fund 

 es to the remaining buds that was destined to 

 pport many more ; and thus a too luxuriaut 

 O'.vth will be produced on the limbs which are 

 't. 



3d. When a tree is in good order, we must 

 ke care not to prune it too close, or take away 

 a much wood inside, as some are too apt to do. 

 must however take away enough to adroit the 



sun and air into tho centre, in order to ripen the 

 fruit. It may bo remarked, iilsn, that we must 

 admit more sun and air in a strong or wot s6i1, 

 than in a dry, sandy one ; because the former na 

 turally produces insipid fruit, wliile the latter 

 generally ripens fruit better. 



4th. Winter fruits should have their shoots 

 left wider asunder than summer, the latter not 

 wanting so muah sun as the former. 



Trees whicli made weak shoots the year before 

 should be pruned in January, or earlier ; but vig 

 orous trees should be pruned late in the year, in 

 April, or even May, in which case they will bring 

 less wood and more fruit. 



5th. We must consider the climate in which we 

 live, and direct our practice according to the de- 

 gree of heat or cold. In hot countries the fruit 

 must be gathered sooner than in colder ones, be 



cause the sap has performed its work sooner 



Fruit will keep longer, the longer it is suffered to 

 remain on the tree. We should gather fruit after 

 a frost, for we are then sure the sap will no long- 

 er aid it. 



fith. In gathering frnits it should bo done with 

 care and patience ; we should avoid destroying 

 the blossom buds which are near them, or which 

 join them ; for the buds are already formed for 

 next year's fruit. Apples are much harder to 

 gather than pears, being more closely fastened to 

 the tree, and with shorter stalks. 



7th. In hot, dry years, if it is very hot in Au- 

 gust and September, our fruits should bo gather- 

 ed early in October ; for such fruit as has had a 

 good share of ripening on the tree, lasts but a 

 short time, and is very subject to rot ; but if Au- 

 gust and September be very cold, then let the 

 fruit be left on till the last of October, and it will 

 keep well. I account this one of the most impor- 

 tant observations with regard to fruit. 



9th. Those who prefer large, fine, fair fruit, 

 should thin the fruit early ; and if the tree, in its 

 first or second sap, tends to shoot abundance of 

 wood, it should be pinched off while it is tcr.dcr 

 and young, but never cut while the sap is flowing, 

 because the tree, by cutting at that time is apt to 

 run into wood, and tho blossom buds arc disap- 

 pointed. N. B. The blossom buds are formed by 

 the first sap, between April and June, and filled 

 by the second, between July and October. 



10th. We find some trees more apt to shoot 

 into wood branches than others. Such trees 

 should have their branches left long in pruning ; 

 but those shoots which are loaded with blossom 

 buds should be shortened, that the remaining buds 

 may nourish the fruit better. 



11th. It is necessary, the first and second year 

 after planting a tree, to prune it very short, to 

 make it shoot into wood ; and if, in following 

 years, it does not come into bearing, but keeps 

 shooting unprofitable wood, as is common with 

 the Bergamoite, Rousselet and Firgoulouse pears, 

 and some others, then leave every shoot very 

 long. (.)( nW the sorts of pears, none will bear 

 pruning so short as the as the Winter Bon Cretien: 

 for then ii will give large wood and larger fruit. 



I5lh. In pruning, we must have regard to soil 

 and climate. If it be wet and cold, we must prune 

 the tree very epeo ; but in light, sandy grounds, 



where fruit is a/wai/s good, though it is smaller 

 the pruning should be different. Wounds made by 

 pruning, heal with very great dilliculty, in very 

 hot, dry land ; ;ind I have known them entire)) 

 perish by pruning. 



l(3lh. When a tree looks yellow, pluck it up 

 and plant another. It is not worth the trouble of 

 pruning and culture. But if it be a rare sort we 

 may recover it by mud that has been well turned 

 and dried, and hogs' dung laid about the roots. 



If we find that pear or quince stocks do no! 

 answer a particular soil, take them up and plant 

 those on free stocks ; if they fail plant apples ; 

 in short, suit your trees to your soil, otherwise all 

 your labor is lost. 



)7th. Pear trees, in their soil, should be plant- 

 ed shallow, that the roots rncy spread ; fern oi 

 straw is a great protection in summer to the roots.- 

 and vastly encourages their growth. People fond 

 of raising fruit, should keep free stocks ready to 

 engraft, but never use suckers, they arc good for 

 nothing. 



22d. When wo graft a young or old tree, wo 

 should do it as nearly equal on eacii side as possi- 

 ble, otherwise that which is not engrafted will run 

 away with tho nourishment from the grafts. This 

 IS of less consequence in budding, as this does not 

 affect the tree so much. When trees are trans- 

 planted, the holes should bo made as Ir.rgc as pos 

 sible, and the ends of the roots cut away, and tin 

 small fibres taken oft'; for they are apt to rot and 

 infect the ^reat roots. 



[An ei^opdon may be; made to this last rule 

 where considerable earth can be taken up with 

 the tree, and it is instantly replanted ; in tha! 

 case the small fibres are of great value to thr 

 tree.] — Mass. Jig. Repos. 



24th. When you plant a wild stock for graft- 

 ing, be as careful as if it was the finest fruit. — 

 This is apt to be neglected, though this stock is 

 to be the foundation of ail our work. 



25th. When we transplant a tree, never fail to 

 plant the same side towards the south which stood 

 o before. We must also defend, as much as 

 possible, tho wound made by grafting from the 

 violence of the sun. 



[If this bo an important rule in Great Britain, it 

 must be more so here. Grafts should be loosely 

 covered till the whole wound is healed.] — Mass. 

 Ag. Repos. 



26th. In dry, sandy ground, plant trees in r^u 

 tumn, and in moist, watery places, in spring, oth 

 erwise the winter is apt to chill and kill them. 



Apples and pears, though more hardy than some 

 others, are still more apt to be hurt by watei 

 standing round them. 



In moist grounds, it is good to open the holes in 

 the fall, and let them remain open all winter ; this 

 enriches and mellows tho land thrown out, and 

 fits it better for planting. 



Where a soil is light and sandy and not subject 

 to inundation, plant the trees in tli.j beginning of 

 November and they will gain fibres enough to 

 support them before winter, and will shoot well 

 the next spring, and belter than those planted in 

 the spring. 



[N. B. — In this country we should plant in Oc- 

 tober.] 



