120 THE MINIATURE PEUIT GAEDEN 



the estimation of the lover of soft fruits, the currant. 

 A near neighbour — an ingenious gardener — attaches 

 much value, and with reason, to his pyramidal currant 

 trees ; for his table is supplied abundantly with their 

 fruit till late in autumn. The leading, shoots of his 

 trees are fastened to iron rods ; they form nice pyramids 

 of about five feet in height; and by the clever con- 

 trivance of slipping a bag made of tifiany over every 

 tree as soon as the fruit is ripe, fastening it securely to 

 the bottom, wasps, and birds, and flies, and all the Uls 

 that beset ripe currants are excluded. 



PILBEETS AND NUTS AS STANDAEDS 



Filberts, as commonly cultivated, except in the Kentish 

 gardens, form straggling bushes, and are some years 

 before they commence to bear. To correct this, some 

 twenty years since I had them grafted by inarching on 

 stems of the hazel-nut raised from Spanish nuts, as 

 they were vigorous growers and formed stout stems. I 

 have found these grafted trees answer admirably, and 

 come quickly into bearing, forming nice garden trees. 



As soon as the nut trees designed for stocks have 

 made stout stems about four feet high, they should be 

 grafted by inarching at that height with choice kinds of 

 nuts, such as the red and white filberts and the Cosford 

 nut — an excellent nut — and, the best of all, the Lambert 



