356 Movable Coping and Coverings for Fruit Walls. 



of an inch thick, and 12 ft. long, joining half way between the 

 coping irons ; upon two of which, fixed 6 ft. apart, each board 

 must rest, being tied thereto by a cord nailed on its under side. 



The coping boards should be of sufficient width to project 

 over the spurs or branchlets of the trees intended to be so 

 protected ; and, as a farther defence, I recommend a curtain 

 made of old ships' flags (bought by the cwt.) or bunting, which 

 is far superior to evergreen boughs, netting, or mats. There 

 are two ways of putting up these curtains : one is by nailing 

 them to the coping boards, and drawing them up by cords 6 ft. 

 apart, which, running through rings sewed on tape in the cur- 

 tains, pass through pulleys secured loosely on the edge of the 

 boards, so as to move sideways, and thereby facilitate the draw- 

 ing up of the curtains : the other, which I prefer, is by fasten- 

 ing 1 2 ft. lengths of curtain to two pieces of deal or larch 

 scantling about Ij in. square, one of which is fixed about 6 or 

 7 in. in the ground, and screwed to the coping board above ; the 

 other, which is only about 1 in. longer at each end than the 

 width of the curtain, is stretched out to the next fixed pole or 

 standard, to which a loop of stiff leather is nailed, to receive its 

 top, whilst the lower end, having a spike in it, is let down into 

 a staple, or spike with an eye in it, at the base of the fixed 

 pole. Thus, by means of these two fastenings at top and bot- 

 tom, the curtain is kept at full stretch on nights ; and, in the 

 day, is rolled back to the fixed pole, and there fastened by a 

 string in the middle. 



The former of these modes is better calculated for an entire 

 wall requiring protection ; whilst the latter is more suitable for 

 single trees, or a part of a wall. 



The curtain is kept from touching the trees, by a tarred 

 string which is fastened to the coping irons, and brods fixed in 

 the wall, 6 ft. apart, in the quincunx form. {Jig. 98.) These 

 brods project 6 or 7 in. ; 

 and, in order to pre- 

 vent the wind getting in 

 at the ends of the draw- 

 up curtain, a board is 

 fixed up, unless the cur- 

 tain extends the whole 

 length of the wall : and, 

 for the like purpose, si- 

 milar boards are used for 

 the pole curtains ; though, if enough of the curtain stuff is left 

 on the first fixed pole, to admit of its being nailed back to the 

 wall, a board will be only wanted at the end, or a pole with a 

 piece of curtain to it. I need scarcely add, that it is an insuper- 



98 r^ 



