trees in fome Gardens ; which had 

 been growing many Years, and ge- 

 nerally produced a much greater 

 Plenty of Fruit than any of thofe 

 Trees which were growing againlt 

 warm Walls : indeed, thefe Standard 

 Fig trees are in much greater Dan- 

 ger of having their Branches killed 

 by fevere Fro It ; but in mild Win- 

 ters they generally do better thnn 

 tbofe againlt Walls ; fo that where 

 thefe Trees can be covered in very 

 hard Winters, there will always be 

 plenty of Fruit ; and thefe may be 

 covered by faftening as many of the 

 Branches together, as can be con- 

 veniently brought into a Bundle ; 

 and winding fome Haybands, Straw, 

 Peas-haulm, or any fuch light Co- 

 vering as can be readily procured ; 

 which in the Spring may be gra- 

 dually taken off, fo as not to expofe 

 the Shoots all at once to the open 

 Air ; and if there is fome fuch I ig^hc 

 Covering laid round the Stems, and 

 upon the Surface of the Ground 

 about their Roots, it will more ef- 

 fectually fecure them from the Dan- 

 ger of Fro It ; but when this is 

 pradtifed, great Care fhould be taken, 

 that no Mice or Rats harbour in this 

 Covering ; for thefe will eat off the 

 Uark from their Shoots, and kill 

 them : and J h?ve often obferyed 

 thofe Trees which were againlt 

 Wall% have fuffered greatly from 

 thefe Vermin, by having many of 

 their largeft Branches difbarked near 

 the Ground, which has abfolutely 

 killed them : and it is in the Winter 

 that thefe Vermin do this Mifchief 

 to them ; therefore they fnould be 

 carefully watched at that Seafon. 



The common blue and white 

 Figs, which are the Sorts which have 

 been the molt generally cultivated 

 in England, are not fo proper to 

 plant for Standards, as fome other 

 Sort? which have been lately intro- 



duced ; for they gfe much tenderer, 

 and are often killed almoft to the 

 Root, when fome of the other Sorts, 

 which have been growing in the 

 fame Situation, have received very 

 little Injury from the Froft : indeed 

 the white Sort is generally a great 

 Bearer, and the Fruit is very fweet ; 

 but to thofe Palates which are ac- 

 cultomed to Figs, that Sort is not 

 much in Efteem, from its want of 

 Flavour. The Sorts which I have 

 found fucceed belt with me, are the 

 ninth, eleventh, thirteenth, fixteenth, 

 and eighteenth. Their Branches are 

 rarefy hurt by Frolt in Winter, and 

 their Fruit will always ripen well ; 

 for in favourable Seafons, many of 

 thefe Sort?, which were growing 

 againlt Wall?, have ripened their 

 fecond Crop of Fruit tolerably well : 

 thefe have alfo fucceeded very well 

 in Standards, altho'the Seafons have 

 been very unfavourable for thefe 

 Fruits fince they were planted. I 

 have alfo planted many of thefe 

 Sorts of Fig • trees againft North- 

 eaft and North-weft Afpedts ; fome 

 of thofe which were firft planted, 

 hr» e produced a good Quantity of 

 well-tafted Fruit, which has encou- 

 raged me to plant many more of thefe 

 Trees, to the fame Afpecls ; and 

 aifo to increafe my Number of Stan- 

 dard-trees. 



I am aware, that what I have 

 here advanced, in relation to the 

 Pruning and Dreftlng of Fig-tree*, 

 will be condemned by great Numbers 

 of People, who will not give them- 

 felves time to confider and examine 

 theReafons upon which 1 have found- 

 ed this Practice, nor to make one 

 fingle Experiment to try the Truth 

 of it, as being vaftly different from 

 th-e general Practice of molt Gar- 

 deners, who always imagine, that 

 Fig-trees mould never hive much 

 Pruning, or at leau, that they (hop lid 

 Kk 2 always 



