Q22 THE FLORIST AND 



to the quantity of young shoots desirable either for fruit or uniformity of 

 growth; these being secured all others should immediately be rubbed off. 

 As growth proceeds luxuriant shoots are stopped or their points pinched off, 

 removing more or less of the shoot, according to the object to be attained. 

 If the plant is very luxuriant, more leaves may be removed and if every 

 shoot upon a tree is operated on in this manner it amounts to a severe check 

 on its growth. In the case of young trees, or weakly ones, where a certain 

 form is desired, the young growing point should be bruised without remov- 

 ing any of the elaborating foliage, securing density of habit without any 

 perceptible check of growth. Suppose a shoot that has grown 12 or 14 

 inches to be pinched back one half of its length, the uppermost bud will 

 burst again and the others remain comparatively dormant ; but allowing the 

 same shoot to have been checked in its longitudinal growth, by pinching or 

 bruising its extreme point, it will be found that all the lower buds will be 

 benefitted and several additional shoots produced. We have alluded to this 

 subject more particularly at present as we are aware of having occasionally 

 made use of the term pinching when disbudding would have been the more 

 appropriate expression. 



Strawberries. — Preparations should now be in progress for securing 

 plants for early forcing next spring. Various methods are adopted to get 

 strong plants, such as filling small pots with rich soil and plunging them in 

 the strawberry patch, introducing a young plant on the pot, and removing 

 into larger ones when rooted. Others again prepare full sized pots at once 

 and place them in this manner, securing the young plant in both cases with 

 a small stone laid on the surface. 'When close attention is paid in watering, 

 these plans are good. An equally successful and less troublesome method 

 is to prepare a few square yards of ground in a somewhat sheltered situa- 

 tion, manuring it well and digging deeply, and filling it thickly with young 

 plants. They should be partially shaded for a few days, and duly watered. 

 In the course of three or four weeks they will lift with good balls of earth 

 and are potted at once in fruiting pots. Pistilo-staminate or hermaphrodite 

 varieties are found to produce better when forced early than pistillate sorts. 



Root pruning of fruit trees is sometimes commendable, and the present 

 is the proper season for. its more immediate beneficial effects. It is mostly 

 performed on young vigorous trees that show no disposition to fruit. By 

 cutting away some of the strongest roots at this time the supply of sap will 

 be lessened and the wood ripening process accelerated, No fruit need be 

 expected from badly ripened wood. In nine cases out of ten the non-ap- 

 pearance of fruit on healthy trees arises from this cause. Mild autumn 

 weather induces growth to a late period and sudden frosts arrive before the 

 wood ;s sufficiently matured. This is more particularly noticeable on soils 



