44 THE MINIATUEE FEUIT GAEDEN 



planted, so that the junction of the graft with the stock 

 is even with the surface of the mould formed as directed 

 for pyramids. The pruning of wall pear trees has always 

 been a subject of controversy with gardeners, as they 

 are inclined to grow too vigorously. If it be thought 

 desirable to have trees of large growth, so as to cover a 

 high wall, and yet be highly fertile, it is much better to 

 root-prune than to prune the branches. With such 

 trees it need not be done so severely ; biennial root- 

 pruning will be quite sufficient, commencing at eighteen 

 inches from the wall after the tree has had two seasons' 

 growth, cutting off the ends of all the roots at that dis- 

 tance from the wall, and increasing it by six inches at 

 every biennial pruning, till a dist&nce of six feet from 

 the wall is reached. When this is the case the roots 

 must be confined to the border of that width* by digging 

 a trench biennially, and cutting off all the ends of the 

 roots at that distance from the wall. 



I may, perhaps, make this more plain by saying that 

 a tree planted in November 1890 should have its roots 

 shortened eighteen inches in November 1892, to twenty- 

 four inches in 1894, to thirty inches in 1896, to three 

 feet in 1897, and so on, leaving six inches biennially 

 till, say, a distance of sis feet from the wall is reached in 

 1899. This border, six feet wide, will then be full of 

 fibrous roots.^ It should never be dug or cropped, but 



' If the wall to which the trees are trained be twelve feet and 

 npwards in height, the border should be eight, and even ten, feet in 

 ■width. Wide and shallow fruit-tree borders are much to be pre- 

 ferred to those that are deep and narrow. 



