HORTICULTURE. 



Fruit 



C! i: ! I -- 



Hi/ .-'. 



clotted cream : in the Highlands of Scotland, they are 

 sometimes eaten with milk, but more commonly made 

 into jellies. The Red biltfrru, or Cowberry, (V. vitis 

 i<iira, Eng. Bot. t 598,) is acid and rather bitter, and de- 

 cidedly inferior to the cranberry. It makes however a 

 very good rob or jelly, which in Sweden is eaten with 

 all kinds of roast meat, and forms a sauce for venison, 

 which is thought superior to currant jelly. 



AV/. 



The .Vf* which grow in this country, and which form 

 part of the dessert, remain to be noticed. 



193. The Hazel^Carylut aveUana, Lin. ; Eng. Bot 

 t 723 ; MtMtacia Polyandria ; Autentacece, Jussieu,) is a 

 native of Britain, and very common. In September, 

 great quantities of the nuts are collected by the coun- 

 try people, and sent to market There arc several va- 

 rieties, particularly the White Filberd, and the Red I-'il- 

 berd ; the Cob-nut, remarkable for its Urge size ; the 

 Cluster nut; and the Dwarf Prolific-nut. In some 

 gardens small plantations of dwarf filbered trees are 

 ide. The trees are not allowed to rise more than 

 ; or seven feet, and they are trained, like gooseberry 

 snes, open in the centre. When full grown, the cup 

 thus farmed by the expanded branches is about six feet 

 Each tree is twelve feet from another. 



Fruit 



swpplyofthe 



I.T.'i. it in.iv t 

 \.p!e. th,-- 

 trie Npinih 



different 



the success of the 

 repeated stirring 

 H the produce of nuts from 

 in this way, that in some parts of 

 are formed with a view to the 

 The trivial name Ai*l- 

 is derived from a town near 

 of which have long cultivated 



229 



merelv that state in which it is fit for pickling. Several 

 varieties are cultivated, particularly the round, and the 

 oval walnut; the large walnut; and the tender shelled, 

 The chief thing to be attended to in the culture of the 

 tree, U to induce it to spread its roots near the surface, 

 and to prevent their getting down into cold wet soil. 

 As it generally attains a Urge size, it must stand in the 

 Uwn or park, or a row of walnut-trees may form part 

 of the screen of the orchard. Mr Boutcher of Edin- 

 burgh long ago recommended the inarching of a branch 

 of a bearing tree, the quality of whose fruit was known, 

 upon a common stock, and added, that fruit was thu. 

 produced in one-third less time. The same idea has 

 lately occurred to Mr Knight, and in this way he lu- 



frocured plants which proved fruitful in three years. 

 t is evident that the peculiar varieties can only b<- 

 continued by layering and grafting ; for large planta- 

 tions, however, the nuts are sown. The nuts are 

 ready in October, and are gathered by beating the 

 trees with long poles ; they may be kept through the 

 winter, by covering them with earth in the manner 01' 

 potatoes, and mixing some dry mould among them to 

 fdl the interstices ; for this last purpose, dry sand be- 

 ing preferable. 



1M>. The Cltetlnut-tree (Fagus catlanea, L.; or Cat- Chouut. 

 lanea t-cjca of Brown; Monaecia Polyandria i Amen- 

 lacfte, Juss.) is considered as a native of the southern 

 parts of EngUnd, where, at any rate, it has long been 

 naturalized. It has a place in " English Botany," 

 t. 886. It is not much cultivated for its fruit in tin 

 country. As a forest-tree it is well known, though 

 perhaps scarcely duly prized. The variety preferred 

 is called the Spanish chestnut It may be proper to 

 observe, that when fruit is the object, grajled trees 

 should be resorted to. The grafting of chestnut-trees 

 has long been practised in Devonshire, and it is now 



eltr 



rd tree to a great extent, much of their likely to become general. The stocks may be raised 

 ; on the sale of the nuts. 



porously in a strong loam, or 

 hat retentive and moist. It 



pie ttmttL 



The I 



in any soil which U 

 is sometimes propagated by suckers, but belter plants 

 are procured by layers. In this way only are the diffe- 

 rent varieties continued : by sowing the nuts, trees may 

 be got for the thickening of a wood or forming a cop- 

 pice, bat not for cultivating with a view to the fruit A 

 lew trees of tne uificrent vanetjes are ornamental on the 

 side of any bank which may occur in the pleasure 

 apaanili. Early in spring, generally about the end of 

 February, the catkins or male flowers, and the fe. 

 with their bright red styles, are display- 

 appearance at that still dreary 



from the tummon nuts, but the grafts are to be taken 

 from bearing branches of such trees as yield the largest 

 and fairest fruit The timber of these grafted trees is 

 of little value ; indeed the tree generally continues in a 

 dwarf state : but the fruit is not only sooner produced, 

 but is of better quality and more abundant The nut- 

 ate not so Urge as those imported from Spain ; but 

 they are more sweet. They may be kept in earthen- 

 ware jars, in a cellar somewhat damp, or covered with 

 earth or sand in the manner recommended for walnuts. 

 The French call these grafted trees, marroniert ; and 

 the forest trees, ckataigtueri. The chestnut is suited 

 to the same kind of situations as the walnut-tree above 





The dm*a*timofU fas*/ (C. 

 ducr* nuts which are twice Ike size of the 

 not, and grow in Urge racemes. It 

 yields its fruit in this country, nor is it much 

 to. Indeed a Urge bosh or tree of it is seldom to be met 

 with in oar garden*. la the Botanic Garden, Leith 

 Walk, Edinburgh, one of the finest -pf "T- in Britain 

 ocean : it is now ( 1 8 16) abort U feet m height, and fifty 

 - - !'!. 



195. The ffofosjMrw (JmfUuu rtgta, L.; Moiurcia 

 AfjsMsMi ; TWcUrtUcM, Jaswen) is considered as 

 a native of Persia, but as having come to us from 

 France, the name mai**t bring regarded as a corrup- 

 tion of (jaulnut. The date of its introduction is not 

 known. Lane and old trees of it are very common in 



197. The chititftaniite, or dwarf Virginian chestnut, 

 (Farut pmwuim, L.) has long been known in English 

 garden* ; but the fruit is small, and has not been much 

 attended to. 



198. In this country, even in ordinary seasons, se- 

 veral of the fruits which have now been treated of, 

 such as the grape, the peach and nectarine, and the 

 fig, and more particularly the finer varieties of these, 

 are found to be brought to greater perfection, or the 

 trees are more effectually kept in a healthy and fruitful 

 state, by having recourse toa certain degreeofartilir!..l 

 heat If this be true in the south of England, much 

 more may it be affirmed of all that part of the island 

 which lies to the north of York. Glazed houtes, under 

 various names, have therefore been contrived for the pur- 



chini\u- 



many parts of England, where it ripens its fruit regu- poseof forwarding anddefemling the bloavomof the trees, 

 larly. In Scotland, however, the fruit comes to pcrfec- and the setting of the fruit, in the ip r ' n K> and for ripen, 

 tion, only in fine seasons : in ordinary yean it attains uig the bearing wood for next year in the autumn, the 



