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THE PRACTICAL GARDENER. 



[Feb. 



never so healthy trees as seedHngs. I find I can bring a 

 seedling orange-tree into bearing in six years. I have ob- 

 served the young seedling-trees to put out thorns at the base 

 of the leaf, and so long as these appear on the young wood, 

 no fruit can be looked for, as the tree is in too luxuriant a 

 state." To correct this luxuriant habit, he uses the following 

 compost : — " Mix half strong brown loam, half peat or heath 

 earth, well together, with a little gi'avel to keep the soil from 

 binding to the roots ; have pots proportionable to the size of 

 the tree ; put them into this soil, which he considers ra- 

 ther poor, but it keeps them in good health and in humble 

 growth : by this management they come sooner into a bearing 

 state. He keeps them in that soil till he sees blossom appear- 

 ing, which may be looked for when no thorns push out of the 

 young wood. After that he gives them larger pots; then 

 takes compost, half strong brown loam, half vegetable mould ; 

 breaks some bones small, mixes some in the compost, and 

 puts some in the bottom of the pots, in order to feed the rools 

 a greater length of time, and drain o(Y superabundant water." 

 He proceeds to detail the following very rational mode of after 

 culture, which is exactly corresponding with our own views of 

 the case, particularly as regards heading down the trees : — " In 

 pruning orange-trees, care must be taken not to shorten any 

 young wood, as the flower generally appears at the extremity 

 only, cutting out any cross useless wood." He very justly con- 

 demns the practice of annually heading down orange-trees, and 

 observes, " by that treatment it is impossible for trees to bear 

 fruit, for in spring they bring forth strong thorny wood, and 

 are no nearer bearing fruit than when only one year old." 



The orange, like most other plants, has its peculiar insects, 

 who often commit sad devastation on them ; and, in common 

 with most every plant, is much infested with Aphides, par- 

 ticularly on the young shoots and leaves. These latter are, 

 however, easily got rid of, as a powerful fumigation of tobacco 

 will destroy them without the least injury to the tree. The 

 insects which are by far more to be dreaded, are of the Coccus 

 genus, and not unfrequcntly several species may be detected 

 upon the same tree. As these insects seem to stand fumiga- 

 tion with impunity, nothing from the ordinary modes of this 



