THE GARDEN AT HOME 



may bring lew fruits to tickle his palate. Many good 

 gardeners aver that the weather of the previous autumn 

 has more to do with the following summer's crop than 

 the blossom display on which the ordinary man would 

 rather pin his faith. There seem to be good grounds 

 for believing them, for a prolonged spell of fine weather 

 in autumn helps the " ripening " of the branches and 

 the subsequent full development of the fruit buds, ensur- 

 ing that these shall not only give blossom, but in due 

 season fruit. Again, the fruit-grower is not entitled to 

 expect a heavy crop of fruit from his trees in two suc- 

 cessive seasons. If he is so disposed, experience will 

 soon dispel his expectations. Such are a few of the 

 disappointments that are common to all fruit-growers, 

 whether skilled or not. But compensation is not wanting. 

 It is found in the knowledge gained by experience ; in 

 the good results that follow its practice ; in the wide field 

 that is open to the gardener for experiments in training 

 and pruning, and noting the behaviour of the same fruit 

 on different soils and in different positions. In numerous 

 other ways fruit-growing appeals to the interest of the 

 attentive cultivator. 



I am anxious to pass in review a few favourite fruits, 

 and in doing so to point out some of the pitfalls that 

 beset the path of the unwary rather than to discourse 

 fully on their cultivation, from the way to dig a hole to 

 the method of storing fruits. In these enlightened days 

 when every other of one's acquaintances is a gardener, 



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