An Orchard in Miniature. 281 



choicest of our fruits in its effects on the human frame durin 



s 



the sultry months of the summer, being cooling, and slightly 

 cathartic. I cannot recommend a more palatable or wholesome 

 article, and more especially if taken cold in hot weather, than 

 the pies we use in our family. With a little yeast put into 

 the crust, we have it light and porous, about an inch or an inch 

 and half thick. This I believe to be the only kind of pastry 

 that is good for the stomach, and decidedly so for that of an 

 invalid ; and there are few constitutions so feeble or delicate, 

 but what may freely partake of it without any fear of bilious 

 consequences, or of any flatulence or indigestion. It continues 

 its produce in the gardens from the beginning of May to the 

 end of August, and has another great advantage, that it 

 will make an excellent preserve for the winter. It should not, 

 however, be suffered to grow too old before it is cut; like 

 every other vegetable, there is a point in its age when it is at 

 its highest perfection. We cut it into squares, put it on a pan 

 in single layers, and then place it in an oven so moderate in 

 its heat, as to require about twelve hours for the process ; it 

 should have a very small portion of its moisture left ; and then 

 we put it into wide-mouthed bottles, with about a fifth or a 

 sixth part of its weight of brown sugar. If, in the course of 

 a day or two, the dissolving of the sugar produces a small 

 supply of liquid, the quantity of moisture is right, and by fre- 

 quently shaking the bottle for a week or two, the article will 

 be good for use, till the gardens give their next supply. The 

 bottles should be covered with bladder. 



I had supposed, from the great quantity of liquid con- 

 tained in rhubarb stalks, that it might supply a new cider, 

 but find, on trial, that it contains so little of any saccharine 

 matter, that it will not ferment. I, however, made some wine 

 from the juice without any water, and have a few bottles left 

 of ten years' vintage, and it is really very good ; but, like all 

 the home-made wines, it is neither more nor less than sugar 

 wine, seasoned with the flavour which gives the name. 



Edgbaston, near Birmingham, James Luckcock. 



July 23. 1827. 



Art. VIII. An Orchard in Miniature ; or, the Culture of 

 Apple Trees as Dxoarf Standards, after the Manner of Goose- 

 berry Bushes. By Malus. 



Sir, 

 Observing in your Magazine for September Mr. Harris 

 son's method of growing apples against a wall, allow me to 



