352 



THE FRUIT GARDEN 



Part of Fig Branch (Pinched), Showing 

 Fruit and Successional Shoot 



THE FIG 



The fig is grown in the west and south of France in the open air. In the 



neighbourhood of Paris it needs a wall or a sheltered situation and a warm soil, 



as at Argenteuil. Here it also must 

 have protection in winter by covering 

 with straw. Warm and light land 

 best suits the fig. The amateur who 

 may have but little room should place 

 it in the warmest corner of the garden. 

 When grown for commercial purposes 

 the plants are placed 4 metres apart in 

 the row, with 3 metres between the 

 rows. The fig is propagated by layers ; 

 the shoots will root the same year as 

 layered. 



Pruning. — This consists, firstly, in 

 removing all the wood buds upon shoots 



of the previous year, except one or two at the base ; secondly, in removing the 



wood which has borne fruit immediately after the spring gathering. 



Varieties. — The best are : — The White Fig, the Violet Fig, La Barhillonne, 



La Dauphine, La Rouge de Bordeaux. Each 



district has its own commercial varieties. 



Figs are used fresh, for preserving or for 



confectionery. They are largely grown in 



Bordeaux, Provence, the Western littoral, 



Brittany, and Argenteuil. 



THE RASPBERRY 



Raspberries are not fastidious as to situa- 

 tion or soil. In order to have an abundance 

 of good fruits it is well to avoid very hot and 

 also shaded situations, as well as excessively 

 dry soils. Propagation is effected by means 

 of one-year-old suckers. These are taken 

 every year from clumps in full bearing. 

 Each clump should have no more than six 

 stems in order to produce the finest fruits 

 and a continuous crop. 



Pruning.^ — The second crop of fruits in 

 August and September is borne upon the 

 shoots of the same year, and for the spring 

 crop upon the wood of the preceding year. Every year, therefore, in winter the 

 wood which has produced fruit in spring, and which is dead, must be removed. 

 The best growths of the year must be selected, and upon these will be pro- 



Fruiting Shoot of Raspberry 



