Jan.J the FRUIT GARDEN. 27 
a number of strong wood-shoots. This plainly shows, that the 
shoots which were intended for fruit-bearing must not be generally 
shortened; for if that is practised, the trees would constantly run to 
wood, and never produce any tolerable crop of fruit. 
If, indeed, there is a want of wood in any part of these trees, then 
the occasional shortening of some of the adjacent young shoots may 
be necessary, whereby to promote a production of laterals the ensu- 
ing summer to furnish the vacancy. 
For instance, if there is any vacant part in the tree, and two, 
three, or more shoots, are requisite to furnish that vacancy, and 
only one shoot was produced in that part the preceding summer, 
that shoot, in such a case, being now shortened to four or five buds, 
it, if strong, will produce three or four lateral shoots the summer 
following. 
Pruning Plums and Cherries. 
This is also a proper season to prune plums and cherries, either 
against walls or espaliers, especially where the weather is mild. 
Let it be observed, in the pruning of these trees against walls or 
espaliers, that, like the apples and pears, they being of the spur- 
bearing kind, producing the fruit upon short natural spurs or studs, 
emitted along the sides of the branches, or from two or three to 
many years old, so must accordingly retain the same branches many 
years for bearers, which must not be shortened in the course of 
pruning, but trained horizontally at their full length, about three or 
four to five or six inches asunder; also all young shoots of the last 
year's growth, as are now proper to be reserved in vacancies, to fur- 
nish the wall or espalier with bearing wood, must not be shortened; 
but every such shoot or branch must be left entire; and this should 
at all times be observed, which is the only certain method whereby 
to render the branches fruitful. 
In the operation of pruning these trees, observe, as advised for 
the apple and pear trees, to give proper attention both in any young 
trees still under training, and in the fully-trained older trees fur- 
nished with the requisite expansion of branches. 
Observing, in the former, i. e. the young trees under training, 
that where further supplies of branches are required in order to 
form a proper expansion of bearers trained in regularity, should be 
careful to leave some best well-placed young shoots for that purpose; 
and cut out the improper and unnecessary, such as fore-right and 
other irregular placed growths; or also any superfluous or over- 
abundant shoots, that may occur in particular parts of the trees; re- 
taining the reserved proper shoots mostly at their full length, for 
training as above; and they will thus, in from one to two or three 
years' growth, furnish natural fruit-spurs for bearing; but generally 
sooner in the cherries than the plums, as some sort of cherries will 
probably bear fruit the same year, on the young shoots now train- 
ed in: the morella in particular bears mostly on the one-year old 
shoots. For observations thereon — see November. 
And in the full-trained trees of the above sorts, look carefully 
over the general expansion; and where any occasional supply of 
