lol- • OF PEARS. 



cutting the superfluous shoots on standard pears. 

 You will have in some sorts of pears, in a favour- 

 able season, from five to nine pears in a cluster. 

 This cutting should not be later than March, or 

 the beginning of April, on account of the leading 

 shoot beginning to grow ; the next topping, w^hen 

 the leading shoot grows quick enough to admit of 

 it, should be about the middle of June ; and the 

 length of the shoots should be according to their 

 strength, having from three eyes, or buds, to six 

 on a side. Plate VIII. will better explain the 

 different years growth, kc. than I can do by 

 words. The lowest ^^ is the place w^here we began 

 to cut the top off, and g, the old decayed stump, 

 with very little bark left. 



The cankery part beginning to affect the new^ 

 bark, I cut off all the canker at the bottom last 

 year, and plastered the place 'with some cow-dung 

 mixed with wood-ashes and powder of burnt bones, 

 put into as much urine and soapsuds as would 

 make it of the consistence of thick paint ; this I 

 laid on with a painter's brush. After it had been 

 applied about three hours, I patted it gently down, 

 with my hand, close to the tree. By so doing, I 

 o-et rid of all the air bubbles that may be under 

 the composition, and make it adhere to the tree, 

 preventing it from being washed off by heavy 

 rains. 



In the beginning of August we shorten the fore- 

 right shoots to about four inches long; by this 

 time the shoot will have made its full growth for 



