8 



THE MODERN PEACH PRUNER. 



and autumn, besides the spring Peaches obtained 

 by forcing. 



This is certainly a considerable advance upon 

 former years, and in consequence much of the old- 

 established styles of management are unsuited to 

 the wants of the present day. More especially 

 the system of long pruning of the shoots, with 

 its tedious dis-budding, and considerable winter 

 shortening-in of the leading branches, has been 

 found inadequate to represent new ideas, and 

 modern experience. Many of the works of the 

 older writers have inherent defects which vitiate 

 the otherwise sound principles laid down in them. 

 They too often pre-suppose a greater amount of 

 knowledge in the general reader (such a class as 

 is now much more common) than is usually found 

 to be the case. Hence the rules given are too 

 vague to be of practical use : there is a want of 

 detail, and of classification. For example, although 

 the best continental authorities approve of naming 

 and classifying the Peach shoots (for convenience 

 of reference), this is first attempted in the present 

 work in this country, and is done with the sanction 

 of those best qualified to judge. 



Great confusion was sure to follow from having 

 two systems — one for the orchard-house, and 

 another for the open air. It is now proposed to 

 avoid this by means of one general method of 



