40 The Gardener's New Director. 



their roots, to prevent frofls injuring their tender fibres » 

 and by this time they will have made fome fide-flioots* 

 which by O^oher fliould be nailed horizontally, and dole 

 to the walls. The fecond year of their management is 

 much the fame as the firii : bui in April and May I would 

 always obferve to rub off all fore right fhoots, which 

 •will not lie well to the wall, at leafl: thofe buds which 

 are ill-placed ; but fuch as are well-placed, fliould be al- 

 lowed to continue, to fill the tree at the bottom with 

 young wood, as that only produces fiuit, and not to lay 

 them in nearer than ten inches ; for crowding theft trees 

 with bearers is as bad as having too few. At Michael- 

 vias there will probably appear fome fmall vour.g fruit on 

 the branches ; but thefe I would choofe to take off, for 

 it very feldom happens that they continue, but rot by 

 frofl: or ftorms ; and if they are allowed to rot on the 

 young branches, they often infe£t them, v,b.ich ruins moft 

 of the young tender wood. 



I own I am of opinion with thofe, who are not fond 

 of pruning this tree in autunnn, as it is of a foft pithy fub- 

 llance, and bleeds fo much, that the wounds would not 

 be effeclually healed, before the winter frofls fet in ; and 

 froiii this 1 have often found a branch pruned in autumn, 

 rotted entirely by February. In autumn the fap is but 

 defcending or evaporating, and is not quite gore down : 

 fo that an amputation at this time muff occafion great 

 cffufion of it ; upon which account I recommend the 

 end of February^ when the fap is leaff in motion. I 

 Avould perform at that time all rny wall-prunings, and 

 a'f; 'T"orten my long branches, the better to obtain new 

 ■u'ood ; and I would be very fparing of topping branches, 

 unlets there is an abfolute neceffity. Some modern prac- 

 titioners will object to this pruning in /v^rwijr)', judging, 

 that, as the fpring approaches, the trees will bleed more 

 than at Mlchaehnas, and confcquently will fuffer more : 

 to which I anfwer, that from experience I find the fap 

 is in a lefs degree of motion in February ; and this I dif- 

 covered in February 1750, upon a voung branch of a 

 Fig-tree, entirely divell^d of its late crop cf fruit, and 

 a young branch of the fame length and bignefs, in Feb- 

 ruary I 75 1. I weighed them both, and tound that the 

 frefh branch cut off on the 22d of February I 751, O.S, 

 weighed a fourth part lefs than the branch which I cut 



off 



