14 THE MINIATURE FRUIT GARDEK. 



after the fruit is gathered, if the soil be suflaciently 

 moist,— if not, it will be better to wait till the usual 

 autumnal rains have fallen ; the roots should then be 

 carefully examined, and tliose inclined to be of per- 

 pendicular growth cut with the spade, which must be 

 introduced quite under tlie tree to meet on all tides, 

 BO that no root can possibly escape amputation. All 

 the horizontal roots should be shortened with a knife 

 to within a circle of eighteen inches from the stem,' 

 and all brought as near to the surface as possible, 

 filling in the trench with compost for the roots to re^t 

 on. The trench may then be filled with the compost 

 (well-rotted dung and the mould from an old hotbed, 

 equal parts, will answer exceedingly well) j the sur- 

 face should then be covered with some half-rotted 

 dung and the roots left tiU the following autumn 

 brings its annual care. It may be found that after a 

 few years of root-pruning, the circumferential mass of 

 fibers will have become too much crowded with small 

 roots ; in such cases, thin out some of the root?, 

 shortening them # nine inches or one foot from the 

 stem. This will cause them to give out fibers, so tliat 

 the entire- circle of three feet or more round the tree 

 will be full of fibrous ro<^its near the surlaeo, waiting 

 with open mouths for the nourishment annually given 

 to them by surface dressings nnd liijuid manure. 



Thus far for the gardener who does not mind extra 

 trouble, — who, in short, feels real pleasure in every 

 operation that tends to make his trees ]iert'eet in fniit- 

 fuhicss and synmietry. lUit it is not every amateur 



1 U thoy bnve not aprcad to tlila extrtit tho Hmt »oA»on, or «ren Uir h^oond, 

 tboy DQod nol bo i)runud, but merely brou^-bt uotir to tbo siirrftco unlaprond out. 



