182 
EEMARKS ON THE DWARFING OP FRUIT-TREES. 
maximum depth at which our fruits for dwarfing should be planted ; indeed I have Peaches 
and Nectarines second to none, which have been planted a dozen years or more : these had 
only fifteen inches of loamy soil allowed them. 
I would here respectfully point to a very common error concerning depth of prepared 
soils for fruit-trees. It is common with those who are well experienced in the diversity 
that exists in soils, as well as in the prejudicial effects which oozy or wet subsoils are 
liable to produce, to advise planting above the ground level. I have known persons in such 
cases still make the amount of soil beloiv the level of the same depth, whereby, if elevated 
considerably, the whole of course constitutes a greater volume, and is a departure from 
the principle laid down. The measurement should, of course, take place from the apex of 
the mound, or at least the height it is intended to attain : in such cases it is well to take 
the liberty of a.dding tw^o or three more inches ; unless water is present at a certain level, 
in order to prove a counteracting power to the influence of extreme drought in hot summer. 
From the question of more depth I must take the liberty of adverting to that of 
quality. A soil ma}'- be deep, yet poor ; it may be shallow, yet rich ; we must therefore 
learn to separate these matters. In later times so much has been said or written about 
the evil effects of introducing manures — especially those of the animal kind — into our 
fruit-borders, that it may at first sight appear a work of supererogation to moot the 
question. It is plain, nevertheless, that the public are not yet sufficiently informed on this 
head ; and that even as *' little strokes fell great oaks," so must repeated observations, 
through the medium of the press, establish ultimately a system to guide those who do 
not fully understand the bearing of the question. 
In the more practical gardening of former days, deep trenching or digging and a liberal 
manuring formed in the main the practice pursued in making new plantations of fruits 
However, it was very common, some thirty years since, to find a great portion of the 
quarters in our old kitchen-gardens overshadowed by huge old fruit-trees, giving ample 
evidence of over-cultivation originally. Their vegetables were of course inferior in 
character, and the whole garden in consequence wore an unsystematic appearance. 
Subsequent experience has proved that it is of more importance to attend to the 
mechanical character of the soil ; and that the mixing of manures with the bulk of the soil 
had better be dispensed with, since any necessary amount of nourishment may be carried 
out by a system of top-dressing or mulching. 
The benefits of the latter process, indeed, are but half estimated as yet. 
When it is taken into consideration what a tendency mulch has to encourage surface 
fibres, which are well known to tend to a fructiform habit, it is somewhat astonishing that 
the practice is still so limited. Another point too must be observed, and that of no mean 
importance, viz. the great utility of surface manure, in preventing the injurious effects of 
sudden droughts, which not unfrequently cause trees to cast a considerable portion of their 
fruits. 
Amongst other adjuncts of a dwarfing system, the selection of proper stocks on which to 
bud or graft our superior fruits, is a question of the very highest import. It is strange to 
think that the Quince stock, so valuable for dwarfing the Pear, has not come into more 
general use. Two points concur to hinder its almost universal adoption, viz. its ineligibility 
for producing a showy tree in a short time in the nursery, and the uncertainty that at 
present exists as to its thriving on any given soil. With regard to the first, it is in part a 
nurseryman's question. Pears grafted on the free or Pear stock, will make stout plants in 
half the time of those grafted on the Quince ; the nurseryman therefore naturally prefers the 
Pear stock, for the plants appear much superior to the eye of those who do not fully under- 
stand the matter. Indeed, if the nurseryman must be compelled to work on the Quince, it 
is but fair that he should be permitted to charge nearly double the price for them, for not 
only would they require nearly double the time to make established plants, but in many 
cases he would have to apply peculiar dressings to his soil, to fit it for their culture. 
In my opinion it is vain to plant Pears on such stocks, in soils not adapted for the 
Quince itself ; those who are using Pear or Quince stocks, therefore, should consider 
the natural habits of the Quince. 
