Mar.] The Fruit Garden. 143 



fupported with flakes ; if dwarfs, againft walls or efpaliers, 

 by being failened thereto. 



Pruning and Tralnvig young ApncotSy Peachy and NeSiarine^ 

 trees. 



Now is the only proper time to head down young apri- 

 cot, peach, and nedarine-trees, planted a^.ainft walls, any 

 time fince laft Michaelmas, with their firft ihoots, from bud- 

 ding at full length ; which when a year old, fhould always 

 be headed down low, to force out lower branches, to 

 furnifh the wall properly quite from the very bottom. 



This Ihcuid be done juil as the trees begin to pufh; 

 therefore watch the opportunity, and let their heads be 

 iliortened at the proper time, which will be a great ad- 

 vantage. 



The head Ihould be cut down to the fifth or 

 fixth eye from the bottom ; and if there are two fhoots 

 from the fame Hock, let them both be cut down, as 

 above. 



By this pradlice the trees'will produce fome flrong flioots 

 near the ground, fo that they will be furnifhed equally 

 with branches from the furface of the earth, to the top of 

 the wall. But if the trees were not to be headed down, 

 as above, they would run up with a Hem like a ftandard 

 tree, and not furnifh any branches to fignify, within 

 two or three feet of the ground ; fo that the ufe of fo 

 rtiuch of that part of the wall would be entirely loit. 



Such young apricot, peach, and ncftarine-trees, as 

 were headed down a year ago, and having each produced 

 three or four fnoots the la ft fummer, fhould now have 

 thefe fhortened to fuch lengths, as may encourage each 

 fhoot to produce two or three new ones the fame ieafon. 



The method is this : let each fhoot be fhortened to 

 about one half of its onginaf length ; that is, fuch as are 

 twenty inches long, fhould be fhortened to ten or twelve 

 inches ; and fuch as are fifteen inches in length, or there- 

 abouts, fhould be fhortened into eight or nine inches, 

 and fo in pipporiion to the different lengths of the flioots. 



By this practice each of thefe fhoots will produce'three 

 or four new fhoots the fucceding fummer; liO that by Mi- 

 chaelmas, each young tree fo treated, will, if they have 

 thriven well, be furnilhcd with, perhaps, fifteen, eighteen, 

 or twenty fhoots. 



