Cultivation of the Peach Tree. 223 



ance of being quite happy. As the garden was small, I had to 

 crop the borders : the crops were winter spinach, early peas, 

 and turnips, and these allowed the borders to be clear during the 

 summer, when I had them mulched about 3 in. thick, with rotten 

 dung from the old hotbeds. The peach tree cannot endure 

 dung that has any strength in it to be dug in among its roots, 

 although it bears the moisture from the dung when filtered 

 through the earth to its roots very well. To the peach tree, 

 strong dung in among the roots is almost instant death ; and 

 is at least sure to bring on the mildew, and that so abundantly, 

 as totally to prevent the recovery of the tree. 



The above facts suggested to me, that, in making borders for 

 peach trees, when the soil is not naturally suitable, and has to 

 be excavated and carried off, and a loam substituted for it, it 

 will be well to have a part of the excavated border, say to the 

 depth of 3 ft., filled up with large pieces of rock, or lumps of 

 stones, reaching from the bottom to within a few inches of the 

 surface. This provision would prevent the roots from lying in 

 superabundant moisture, and at the same time keep them out of 

 harm's way, and the hazard of being cut with the spade in stirring 

 the ground. The heat of the stones, and the moisture collected 

 about them, would attract the fibrous parts of the roots into con- 

 tiguity with the stones, and so prevent them from foraging about 

 the surface of* the soil in quest of heat and moisture. The cutting 

 of the roots in digging the borders is injurious to the trees in 

 the highest degree ; for trees that are so treated, although they 

 grow vigorously through the summer, are still unhealthy, and 

 become the victims of mildew and fly in the peach tree ; fly and 

 caterpillar in the plum tree; and caterpillar in the gooseberry 

 bush. The soil and climate are the chief essentials for the health 

 of all plants, and eminently so for that of the peach tree, which, 

 in regard to the soil eligible to it, cannot be kept in health unless 

 in a strong sound loam : no mixtures of soil suit it. The plum 

 tree, the gooseberry bush, and the currant bush, do very well on 

 any soil, provided you do not cut the roots of either in digging, 

 not even by digging dung in among them. Mulch the plum tree 

 with rotten dung, and, when required, loosen the earth with a 

 fork; dung the gooseberry bush and currant bush, and cover 

 the dung applied with earth, as I have mentioned in a former 

 note on these two. (VIII. 694>.) The ground must be kept rich 

 about these three, and no curtailment of their roots allowed ; 

 if they be not preserved in this condition, but left to poverty, 

 and exposed to a lessening of their roots, they will soon be 

 attacked with disease, and be rendered a prey to the caterpillar, 

 the fly, or the mildew. 



Gardeners have lone: known which is the kind of soil most 

 conducive to the health and welfare of the peach tree. As early 



