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Gardening for Amateurs 



incorporated with the soil, hence they thrive 

 well where the soil is on chalk or lime. The 

 Cherry will succeed in light soil, when 

 established, but at planting time it is bene- 

 ficial to add at least a couple of barrow - 

 loads of loam to each tree. 



The Cherry, like the Pear and the Plum, 

 is better suited for cultivation as a pyramid 

 than a bush, and therefore this is the form 

 of tree to aim at at the time of pruning. 

 The finest Cherries are obtained from trees 



Fig. 1. Pruning Black Currant : a a, Young 

 growths to retain. 6, Old growths to 

 cut out. 



Fig. 2. Black Currant two years old : e e, 

 Where to prune. /, Bush after pruning. 



planted against a wall ; the fruits attain 

 almost double the size when grown in this 

 way and are much sweeter than when grown 

 in the open garden. The best form of 

 trained tree for this purpose is the fan-shaped. 

 The Cherry will succeed well on a wall of 

 any aspect, and is the only stone fruit that 

 succeeds against a wall facing north. Not 

 only is this the case with the Morello, but 

 also with most of the sweet Cherries. 



Pruning. Nearly all growers are agreed 

 as to the need for care in pruning Cherries. 

 A too free use of the knife may cause gum- 

 ming ; besides this, the fruit is largely 

 borne on one-year-old shoots, and to cut 

 away these severely must mean a corres- 

 ponding loss of fruit. Still, it is necessary 

 to prune it to some extent. The shoots of 

 newly-planted standards are cut back for 

 a year or two. and afterwards allowed to 

 grow freely and naturally ; if a young tree 

 is not cut back, young shoots are pro- 

 duced the following summer near the ends 

 of the branches only. Afterwards very little 

 pruning will be needed, unless it is found 

 necessary to remove a branch here and there 

 which may be crossing or damaging others. 



Cherries on Walls. Many of us have 

 Cherry trees on walls, which must have 

 attention each year, for in such cases the use 

 of the knife is unavoidable. Even with 

 these our endeavour should be to retain 

 young growths as far as is possible without 

 overcrowding. It is customary to prune 

 sweet Cherries on what is known as the 

 spur system ; that is, the young side growths 

 are cut back annually to form short spurs. It 

 is advised that ample wall space be always 

 allowed for the trees, as this allows room for 

 more young shoots each year, and to some 

 extent obviates the necessity for severe 

 cutting. The weak and badly placed shoots 

 should first be taken out, the best then being 

 secured to the wall, without any cutting back 

 at all if space allows. 



In the case of Morellos, shoots that are 

 weak or for which there is not room should 

 be entirely removed, but others are retained 

 full length ; there should be no cutting back. 

 Usually numerous young shoots are available ; 

 they should be tied along the main branches 

 so that fruit may be obtained all over the 

 tree. Morellos are seldom grown in the 



