AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
85 
SEARING AND CULTIVATION OF CIDER 
APPLE TREES. 
Under the above head, a series of valuable 
articles have been published in the Cercle Pra¬ 
tique d\ Horticulture et de Botanique , in France. 
We find them translated in the Gardeners’ 
Chronicle, from which publication we copy 
them. The system pursued in rearing fruit 
trees in France, must not be followed exactly 
in this country, but should be modified as 
circumstances direct. Every intelligent fruit 
grower will understand his own requirements 
in this respect; and it is with a view of fur¬ 
nishing him with some good hints, that we give 
place to these articles. 
PART i. 
Critical remarks on various modes of cultiva¬ 
tion which have been adopted, and are still 
practised as regards the Cider Apple tree. 
Formation of Nursery. —When a private 
nursery is formed for supplying plants for an 
orchard, it is frequently established in a very 
bad situation, such as the corner of a yard sur¬ 
rounded with quick-hedges in which there are 
large trees; or even in a narrow space between 
the back of a building and a hedge, with the 
view of getting shelter, or for the sake of eco¬ 
nomy of enclosure. To save the small cost of 
one or two pieces of fence, a great portion of 
the plants is lost, because some are drawn up 
by the shade of buildings or of trees, and others 
cannot thrive on account of the ground being 
continually impoverished by the roots of the 
hedges and of the large trees which usually 
grow in those hedges. 
Choice of the Plants. —A false economy often 
causes second or third-rate plants to be selected 
because of their cheapness. This is a mistake; 
for although plants of the second picking are 
not altogether to be despised, and although oc¬ 
casionally some plants may be found from among 
them that become as good trees as those from 
the first; yet it cannot be denied, that of two 
plants of the same age, grown in the same soil, 
and having received the same care, but which 
are of different vigor, the tallest and thickest 
should be preferred. 
Preparation of the Plant.—To prevent the 
Apple trees from becoming tap-rooted, many 
prune the roots to half their length, and thus 
almost make cuttings of their plants, the start¬ 
ing of which becomes more difficult, slower, 
and less perfect than would be the case if the 
roots were preserved. 
Distance usually left between the Plants. —It 
is an error to suppose that the more plants we 
put in a given space, the more trees really de¬ 
serving the name of such, we shall have. The 
Apple tree, which should remain from seven to 
ten years in the nursery, in order to acquire 
the necessary strength for being finally planted, 
requires a great deal of air and light to develop 
its stem and head, and a sufficient extent of 
ground to allow it to form good roots. In a 
nursery where the plants are too close together, 
as, for example, 2 feet between the rows, and 
12 to 15 inches between the plants in the rows, 
we often obtain only badly rooted trees with 
slender drawn-up stems, no thicker at bottom 
than at top; or, as is most frequently the case, 
some trees more vigorous than the i est get the 
ascendancy, and stop the growth of their neigh¬ 
bors, which they eventually annihilate. In this 
case, he who has planted 1000 plants, is for¬ 
tunate if he get 500 or 600 trees, we do not say 
very good ones, but merely passable. 
Bearing the Plants and forming the Stem .— 
If a straight stem is not indispensable to the 
formation of a good bearing Apple tree, it is at 
least necessary for new plantations in straight 
rows; and in all cases it is more eligible. Now, 
to obtain straight stems requires yearly attention 
to pruning, pinching off, and bending to a right 
position, &c. These operations should be skill¬ 
fully performed; but such is rarely the case. 
In nurseries which are not totally neglected, 
the shoots which come on the stem are all taker, 
off, and that generally at too early a period, i 
As these shoots, or more strictly speaking their 
leaves, were intended to increase the size of the 
stem, the premature destruction of the shoots, 
and the consequent privation of leaves, prevent 
robust, straight growth, and thence come those 
trees that have bending, weakly stems, and 
which are more especially too slender at the 
base. 
Neglect of matters relating to Crafts. —Cleft 
grafting, although most used, has several defects. 
In oi der to perform the operation, the stem must 
be cleft from side to side, and this cleft is a chasm 
which the sap cannot close up in a single year. 
By neglecting to keep it constantly covered, the 
introduction of water is permitted, decay of the 
wood follows, and this, continually spreading 
towards the interior, shortens the life of the tree, 
and renders' it more liable to be broken or up¬ 
rooted by high winds, because the rottenness 
extends to the large roots, which, from that 
cause, cannot offer any resistance. Grafts are 
often broken by the wind or by large birds. 
This is another result of negligence in the graft¬ 
ers, who should always protect the grafts by 
fastening to the stock, with osier, a rod to which 
the young shoots from the graft could be se¬ 
cured as they proceed in growth. 
Formation of the Head of the Tree. —Whether 
the tree has been grafted low or high, its stem 
should be stopped at a convenient height for 
the growth of the branches intended to form its 
head; but, instead of keeping these branches at 
a proper distance from each other, and only re¬ 
taining a small number, and allowing them to 
stow to a good length, the branches are all pre¬ 
served and cut very short at the end of every 
winter, without calculation, without forethought, 
and without the direction of the bud which has 
been pruned on having been examined. 
The consequence of this improper mode of 
pruning is, that, after three or four years, the 
head of the Apple tree is a shapeless bush, the 
numerous and widely-ramified branches of which 
would hardly afford a passage for a cat, although 
at a later period a man must pass among them. 
It would be better to allow the trees to push 
freely, without employing the pruning knife at 
all upon them, than to exhaust them in this 
manner, by inducing them to make a number 
of shoots, most of which must be entirely cut 
off next year; for the inevitable result of this 
bad pruning, besides exhaustion, is to necessitate 
the amputation of strong branches with the saw 
which should have been cut off with the prun¬ 
ing knife when first developed; from these 
amputatious with the former instrument large 
wounds result which only heal slowly and im¬ 
perfectly ; and the decay of the wood arising 
from wounds not healed will eventually produce 
the same effect as the neglected clefts of grafts. 
Talcing up young Trees from the Nurseries .— 
We would gladly have said that the Apple 
trees are taken up from the nursery, hut as 
their roots are very often cut short by the spade 
or by strokes of the mattock; or, having been 
slightly , uncovered, they are drawn violently out, 
so as to break all the fibres, &c., that are 
twisted, we are obliged to say that they are 
torn up. 
Again, the plants are often left exposed to the 
air, which dries the fibres, if any remain; or to 
rain, which washes them; or sometimes, even, 
to the destructive influence of frost. Yet it does 
not require much science to know that roots in¬ 
tended to live and grow in the earth only must 
suffer by exposure to the air, to light, and to 
frost; and that they should remain exposed to 
these influences as short a time as possible. 
The preservation of the leaves on the tree, if 
it has been transplanted at a time when they are 
still in a tolerably fresh state, such as the bo¬ 
ginning of November, likewise affects the suc¬ 
cess of the operation. At the before mentioned 
period, although the leaves may only remain on 
the branches for a single day, the death of the 
small roots will be the result; because, as the 
leaves, from the effects of light, continue to ab¬ 
sorb the sap contained in the tree, which latter 
can draw up no more nourishment from the 
soil; they consequently dry up all the young 
and tender parts, such as the spongioles and the 
recent shoots. It is, therefore, of the utmost 
importance to take off the leaves, if there are 
any, frt-the time when we transplant. 
Preparation of the Trees and Soil for Plant¬ 
ing. —We should never hesitate about thorough 
trenching and making deep holes before plant¬ 
ing. The rapid growth of the trees will amply 
repay the expense. The preparation of the soil 
is commonly performed tolerably well, but as 
much cannot be said of that of the roots. 
Planters arc often seen shortening the roots of 
a tree as if they could make use of the portions 
cut off; they call that trimming the root. Some, 
more careful, allow the roots to remain at full 
.length ; but there are many who, instead of 
spreading them out as the hole is being filled 
up, content themselves with throwing in the 
soil and treading it when the toots have been 
sufficiently covered. In consequence of this 
the flexible roots take a had direction, by reason 
of the weight of the earth, and they are 
frequently squeezed in bundles, in whi h the 
weakest ones become hot, moist, and rotten. 
Another bad practice should be pointed out. It 
consists in introducing the earth among the 
roots by means of a pointed stake. Many old 
planters would think they planted badly if, 
whilst holding the tree in one hand, they had 
not a well-pointed stake in the other; with this 
they make many thrusts through the earth that 
is thrown on the roots, severely bruising the 
latter, and making many excoriations. A stake 
is only useful in the case of large trees which 
cannot be shaken, and the roots of which are 
too large to be lifted and directed by hand. 
When the stake is used, care should be taken 
not to injure the roots between which it is 
introduced. 
When Apple-trees are finally planted they 
no longer require what are called the attentions 
of rearing; other operations, however, become 
necessary; hut too frequently neglects and 
accidents await them. 
(To be continued.) 
-o & * - 
A FAST STORY. 
An Englishman was bragging of the speed on 
English railroads, to a Yankee traveller seated at 
his side in one of the cars of a “fast train,” in 
England. The engine bell was rung as the train 
neared a station. It suggested to the Yankee 
an opportunity of “ taking down his companion 
a peg or two.” 
“ What’s that noise?” innocently inquired the 
Yankee. 
“ We are approaching a town,” said the Eng¬ 
lishman. “They have to commence ringing 
about ten miles before they get to a station, or 
else the train would run by it before the bell 
could he heard! Wonderful, isn’t it? I suppose 
they haven’t invented bells in America yet!” 
“ Why, yes,” replied the Yankee; we’ve got 
bells, but can’t use them on our railroads. We 
run so ’tarnal fast that the train always keeps 
ahead of the sound. No use whatever; the 
sound never reaches the village till-after the train 
gets by.” 
“Indeed!” exclaimed the Englishman. 
“Fact,” said the Yankee, “had to give up 
bells. Then we tried steam whistles—but they 
wouldn’t answer, either. I was on a locomotive 
when the whistle was tried. We were going at 
a tremendous rate—hurricanes were nowhar, 
and I had to hold my hair on. We saw a two- 
horse wagon crossing the track, about five miles 
ahead, and the engineer let the whistle on, 
screeching like a trooper. It screamed awfully, 
but it wasn’t no use. The next thing I knew, 
I was picking myself out of a pond by the road¬ 
side, amid the fragments of the locomotive, dead 
horses, broken wagon and dead engineer, lying 
beside me. Just then the whistle came along, 
mixed up with some frightful oaths that I had 
heard the engineer use when he first saw the 
horses. Poor fellow, he was dead before his 
voice got to him. After that we tried lights, 
supposing these would travel faster than sound. 
We got some so powerful that the chickens woke 
up all along the road when we came by, suppoS' 
ing it-to he morning. But the locomotive kept 
ahead of it still, and was in the darkness, with 
the light close on behind it. The inhabitants 
