118 THE MODERN PEACH PRUNER. 



What has been stated in this article comprehends 

 the latest development of this system, now a gene- 

 ration old, and always advancing without having 

 much to retract. As was said before, the author 

 desired it to be known at present in this form, and 

 some ten years of personal trial have convinced 

 me that it is sound and practical. All that I 

 should, therefore, venture to suggest would be a 

 modified form suited to the wants of our climate, 

 which will be the subject of my next commu- 

 nication. 



No. 17. — Close Pruning by Alternate Shoots. 



It is probable that the severity of the original 

 form of close pruning of the Peach in the open air, 

 has presented some obstacle to its general adop- 

 tion — at least in this country ; and it must be 

 allowed that what is suitable for trees luxuriating 

 in the brilliant sunshine of France, and compara- 

 tively uninjured by the adverse influences of damp 

 and fog, cannot, without the necessary modifica- 

 tions suggested by personal experience, be expected 

 at once to secure popularity here. To obtain 

 public confidence it is necessary that any new 

 system practised abroad, under such different con- 

 ditions, should also successfully pass through the 

 test of a fair trial at home. Its merits can then be 



