76 PLANTING WALL-FRUIT TREES. 



old branches at a proper distance from the wall. 

 This inner circle will also abound in fruit, as close 

 and beautiful as the stars of a peacock's feathers, 

 and will quickly enlarge its dimensions, approach- 

 ing nearer to the exterior ring. When the younger 

 rival comes quite up to the older, then, agreeably to 

 the laws of nature, the beauty of the mother must 

 fade as that of the daughter is unfolded. On the 

 first conjunction your tree is complete, and all in 

 full bearing; and this completeness will be main- 

 tained by gradually diminishing the outer ring as 

 the interior disk is enlarged. For the success of 



o 



this shift also, I can refer to the test of experiment; 

 and may be allowed to notice again the advantage 

 of a principle by which, without losing one year's 

 crop, an old and almost barren tree is submitted to 

 a process of entire renovation, having not only 

 young wood in every part, but studded all over 

 with golden apricots or green-gage plums. 



In the wall department of your garden, I have 

 placed pruning before planting; an arrangement 

 which, though not very accordant with the order 

 of time, is most likely to answer your business as 

 to the order of importance; because, for one in your 

 circumstances who is called to the first operations of 

 planting on new ground, there are ten who enter to 

 a garden already in some sort furnished; and that, 

 too,with trees most frequently in such condition as 

 above described. And as the chief thing is to bring 

 your own skill, and occasionally your own hand, 

 into requisition, the above methods of reforming bad 



