52 THE MrNIATUEE FEUIT GAEDEN 



fence. My trees, planted from fifteen to eighteen 

 inches apart, are models of beauty, far surpassing 

 espalier training, and giving more fruit in the same 

 space. For boundary fences in the kitchen garden I 

 know of nothing more desirable or more economical 

 than a diagonal cordon fence covered with trees full of 

 fruit. 



'The double trellis is made precisely in the same 

 manner as the single trellis, but the addition of hori- 

 zontal iron bars, fastened to the straining posts, one 

 foot in length, gives the power of placing two rows of 

 wires instead of one, thus economising space, and by 

 using the same straining posts the means of gaining 

 twice the produce is afforded ; the additional expense 

 being the iron strainers and the wires. 



In cultivating pears or any other fruit trees on 

 trellises, I recommend digging a trench parallel to the 

 trees, about eighteen inches from the stem, and from 

 one foot to eighteen inches in depth. This should be 

 filled with rotten manure and loam, and should be 

 used as a permanent root border, an alternate parallel 

 trench being dug to supply the fresh and to receive the 

 used-up soil. It will, I think, be understood that this 

 system will provide fresh food for the roots of the trees, 

 and will also form a modified system of root-pruning ; 

 the roots will be found to gr6w luxuriantly and will not 

 travel far. The soil taken from the trellis trench will 

 serve again in alternate years, as it will have had a 

 fallow, and if the surface is dressed with manure and 



