ENEMIES OF THE APPLE TREE. 



135 



ENEMIES OF THE APPLE TREE. 

 By Monsieur Charles Baltet, of Troyes. 



The Apple tree is one of our most popular of all fruit trees. In France 

 one meets with it nearly everywhere — in gardens, in the open orchard, 

 on uncultivated land, or by the roadside, from the plains of Flanders to 

 the mountains of Auvergne, on the hillsides of Vigan and under the 

 shadow of the Alpine heights, or within the influence of the sea breezes 

 of Normandy or Brittany, to say nothing of the highly cultivated and 

 lucrative espaliers in the neighbourhood of Paris. 



And to what an extent its fruit is sought for, either for direct con- 

 sumption or for industrial uses ! Carts, wagons, and ships convey it to 

 the markets, to the cider press, to the manufactory, to the stove of the 

 fruit-drier, to the ovens of the confectioner, to the pan of the jam-maker. 

 In all forms the Apple is wholesome ; and its culture and sale form the 

 object of a very considerable and paying enterprise. 



However, the watchfulness of the cultivator must be kept constantly 

 on the alert if he means to safeguard his property from the attacks of its 

 numerous enemies, and to fight against the unfavourable influences which 

 frequently beset the conditions under which it has to grow. 



The diseases of the Apple are, in fact, often the result of badly made 

 plantations, of unsuitable positions, or of neglected cultivation ; above all, 

 one ought to find out what is defective in the nature of the soil and 

 supply the want. For example : endeavour first to provide coolness for 

 the roots of trees that wither in a dry soil ; and, secondly, to drain away 

 excess of moisture from soils and subsoils which are always wet. These 

 are conditions which weaken the growth and, in consequence, the bearing 

 of the trees. The leaf, losing its strength, gets spotted or bleaches, 

 withers away, and falls prematurely. 



Yellow Leaf. — In the first place remove the earth round the trunk 

 down to the roots, and to a sufficiently wide radius, replacing it by a 

 mixture of fresh materials, sandy loam, peat, river dredgings, rotted turf, 

 and waste animal or vegetable matter, the whole being watered with 

 manure water, or dirty water from the house. When the hole is filled up, 

 cover it with a layer of rough grass, farmyard litter, or marsh cuttings, 

 which will permit the rain to filter slowly through, being enriched at the 

 same time by passing through them. 



Scorching. — The blackening and drying up of the young shoots and 

 leaves, caused by excess of moisture in the soil, necessitates the removal 

 or draining away of the water by means of drains made of pipes of alder 

 wood or burnt clay, trenches filled with broken stones or green fagots, 

 the ground round the tree at the same time being repeatedly dug. If the 

 tree is still young it should be dug up, and replanted sufficiently high, or 

 even on a mound, then staked, and moderately pruned. Good may be 

 done also by incorporating with the soil any light sandy substances, such 

 as road-scrapings, cinders, and even clinkers. 



