MANAGEMENT OF FRUIT TREES, kc. 5 



side, according to the strength of the main shoot ; taking care 

 to rub off, with the finger and thumb, the fore-right shoots ali 

 over the tree, except a few which may be wanted to fill up the 

 wall, near the body of it. [See Plate 1. Fig, 1.] * 



In the second year, the horizontal shoots must be short- 

 ened in the same manner, according to their growth ; and so 

 on every year till the wall shall be completely covered from top 

 to bottom. 



It is a frequent practice with some gardeners, to head down 

 the trees at the time of planting ; which very often proves fatal 

 to them. 



Of old and decayed Trees » 



When a tree becomes thin of bearing wood it will be neces- 

 sary to cut down the whok of it, as near to the place where it 

 was budded as possible ; remembering always to cut at an eye 

 or a joint. If there should be any young shoots on the lower 

 part of the tree, it will be proper to leave them, training them 

 horizontally, which will check the flow of the sap, and thereby 

 render them much more fruitful. 



Very frequently, when large branches have been cut off in 

 a careless manner, and the wounds left to nature, the whole tree 

 is infected with the gum and canker ; which, if not checked, 

 will in a short time totally ruin it. 



The best remedy in this case is, carefully to pare off the 

 cankered part of the bark with a knife, or other convenient in- 

 strument. You will frequently find the white inner bark in- 

 fected, which must also be cut away, till no appearance of in- 

 fection remains ; this may be easily known by the brown or 

 black spots, like dots made with a pen, of which not one must 

 be suffered to remain. 



All the branches so cut and pared should be immediately 

 covered with the composition in a liquid state ; the preparation 

 and application of which will be particularly described in ano* 

 ther place. 



When trees are in a very bad condition, they should be cut 

 in a partial manner, taking off the worst branches first, particu- 

 larly those in the middle of the tree, always cutting as near to 

 the graft as possible ; or every other branch may at first be takers 



* The directions which are given for trees against a wall, will apply, with 

 equal force to standard trees, except that the stems, or trunks, of these latter 

 should be higher, and, consequently, they should not be headed down so near 

 the ground. The Apricots, which 1 have seen in America, are hard, and not 

 above one-third part as large as the same fruit in England, a difference which 

 is entirely owing to want of attention to rules such as are here laid down. 



C 



