60 THE MINIATURE FEtriT GAEDEN 



and other shy-lDearing sorts, of setting the blossoms and 

 of thinning and gathering the fruit. 



Thirdly. Their making the gardener independent of 

 the natural soil of his garden, as a few barrowfuls of rich 

 mould with annual manure on the surface will support 

 a tree for many, very many years, thus placing bad 

 soils nearly on a level with those the most favourable. 



Fourthly. The capability of removing trees of fifteen 

 or twenty years' growth with as much facility as fur- 

 niture. To tenants this will indeed be a boon, for 

 perhaps one of the greatest annoyances a tenant is 

 subject to is that of being obliged to leave behind him 

 trees that he has nurtured with the utmost care. 



Probably in judicious root-pruning and annual 

 manuring on the surface, so as to keep our fruit trees 

 full of short, well-ripened, fruitful shoots, we are all 

 inexperienced. 



Eoot-pruning was practised with success in a garden 

 near where for some years a healthy peach tree was 

 never seen, as the subsoil is a cold white clay, full of 

 chalk stones. This change was brought about by 

 biennially pruning the roots of the trees early in 

 autumn, as soon as the fruit was gathered ; in some 

 cases lifting the trees and supplying their roots with 

 a dressing of leaf-mould, sand, and rotten manure, equal 

 parts. Powdered charcoal, or the ashes of burnt turf 

 and rotten manure, also make an excellent root-dressing 

 for cold heavy soils; but if the soil be dry and poor, 

 and unfavourable to the peach and nectarine, loam and 



