THE CHERRY. 



553 



being the form of the fruit in the wild plant. The tree is rarely planted 

 for its fruit in Britain, and is now lected on the Continent. One may be 

 introduced in an orchard or a shr ry for the sake of variety. It is pro- 

 pagated by layers, or by graftmg die mountain ash, or any allied species. 

 It requires a good soil in order to produce abundant and large fruit ; but very 

 little pruning is necessary, and we have never seen or heard of its being 

 tramed against an espalier ; though wc have no doubt it would be more pro- 

 lific if grafted on the common thorn, and so treated. There are fruit-bear- 

 ing trees in the arboretum of Messrs. Loddiges at Hackney, and in the Hort. 

 Soc. Garden. 



1178. Pyrus tormindlis (Arb. Brit. vol. ii. p. 913 ; Encyc. of Trees and 

 Shrubs, p. 436), the Griping-fruited Service tree, is not cultivated in gardens, 

 but it grows wild in Sussex, and the fruit is sent to Covent Garden market, 

 and eaten in a state of incipient decay, like that of the True Service. 



1179. Pprus A^ria^ var. cretica (^Arb. Brit. vol. ii. p. 910, and Encyc. oj 

 Trees and Shrubs, p. 403), the Cretan white beam tree, has a mealy, agree- 

 ably-tasted fruit, which is eaten when ripe, and before it has begun to decay. 

 In our opinion this is as well worth cultivating as the True Service. 



SuBSECT. VI. — The Cherry. 



1180. The Cherry (Cerasus sylvestris and C. vulgaris, Arb. Brit. ; (Ceri- 

 sier, i^n ; Kirschenbaum, Ger. ; Karseboom, Dutch; Ciriego, /to/. ; and 

 Cerezo, Span. — E. J5. 706 ; Arb. Brit. vol. ii. p. 693, and Encyc. of Trees and 

 Shrubs, pp. 277, 278) is, in its wild state, a middle-sized deciduous tree, a 

 native of most parts of Europe, and of part of Asia, and cultivated for its 

 fruit from the time of the Romans. It is the first hardy fruit that ripens 

 in the open air in Britain, and is grown extensively in Kent and Hertford- 

 shire for the London market. It is also one of the earliest of forced fruits, 

 being as we have seen (1026) ripened in March, and sometimes even in 

 February (1028). 



1181. Use. — The fruit, besides being highly valued for the dessert, is 

 useful in pies, tarts, and other preparations in cookery and confectionery. 

 Steeping cherries in brandy is said to improve its strength and flavour ; a 

 wine may be made from the pulp, and from the pulp and kernel bruised and 

 fermented the German spirit Kirschwasser is distilled. The mode of pre- 

 paring this spirit, and various other foreign or less common uses of the 

 cherry, will be found given at length in the Arboretum Britannicum. The 

 fruit of the Kentish cherry may be stoned, and dried, and used like raisins. 

 The gum which exudes from the tree is said to have all the properties of 

 gum arable. The wood of the tree is hard and tough, and is used by the 

 turner, flute-maker, and cabinet-maker : and the wild cherry, as a tree, is 

 an excellent nurse for the oak on light soils, while its fruit is a great 

 encourager of the thrush, blackbird, and other singing birds. 



1182. Varieties. — The Romans had eight kinds of cherry, and in England 

 in the time of Parkinson there were twenty-four sorts. In France and Ger- 

 many the sorts were more numerous than in England before the collection 

 made by the Horticultural Society of London, From that collection the 

 following very select list has been made for us by Mr. Thompson. 



11 83. Dessert cherries arranged in the order of their ripening. 

 Early purple Guigne, syn. Early purple Griotte. Large, heart-shaped, 

 dark purple, flesh purple, tender, rich ; beginning to the middle of June ; 

 leaves with long petioles, the fruit very handsome. 



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