April 13, 1893. ] 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
269 
M uch earlier than usual have the blossoms of fruit trees 
expanded under the influence of the long-continued sun and 
the abnormal warmth of March and early April. True, there 
have been cold nights with frost on many occasions, amounting in 
some localities to 9° or 10°, perhaps more, but the cold appears to 
have had little retarding etfect on the expanding buds. Cherry 
and Plum trees were wreathed with blossom more than a week ago 
in the neighbourhood of London, but their spring beauty is over at 
a time when it usually begins. The flowers of several Pear trees— 
in fact, the majority — are fully expanded, and some fading. 
Captain Daubeny has sent us a photograph of a standard Jargonelle 
tree, taken at Cheltenham on the 3rd inst., densely crowded with 
developed blossom. On the 1st inst. we had Josephine de Malines 
fully expanded, and on the 3rd inst. the earliest Apple blossom^ 
Red Astrachan, in full beauty, quickly followed by Duchess of 
Oldenburg, while Cox’s Orange Pippin, King of the Pippins, and 
several others are expanding. 
Seldom has the blossoming of fruit trees been so advanced at 
the present date as it is this year. It is three weeks earlier than 
last year, and a month in advance of 1891. Seldom, too, have fruit 
trees been more densely covered with flowers and expanding buds. 
The light crop of fruit on many trees last year enabled them to 
prepare for the present bountiful display in storing nutrient 
matter that would have otherwise been expended on the fruit, and 
the dry autumn had a wholesome effect in maturation. Not one 
kind of fruit, but, generally speaking, all kinds, are unusually 
floriferous, and should even a tenth part of the blossoms set on 
many trees they would be distinctly overladen with fruit. But it 
by no means follows that such will be the case. Crowded blossoms 
mean in the case of many trees weak blossoms, and apart from 
that a good deal of the blossom that is now so beautiful cannot 
produce fruit, for the essential organs are destroyed ; but so far as 
we have found there are still more of the flowers that the frost did 
not injure, and the promise of fruit at the present moment is good. 
Perhaps it would be better if the flowers were fewer, and con¬ 
sequently stronger, on many trees, as we have found on more than 
one occasion that thinning the blossom buds on certain trees and 
branches has had a distinctly beneficial effect. Anything like a 
general and systematic thinning, however, is for obvious reasons 
impracticable, and the blossom must simply take its chance on the 
majority of trees. 
It does not by any means follow that the trees which are the 
first to expand their flowers will on that account fail to bear fruit. 
It is not the time of blossoming that determines the crop, but 
the character of the weather at the time and immediately after 
that is the great determining factor in fruit production, whether the 
blossoms are early or late. It would not be in the least difficult 
to adduce instances of the earliest blossoming trees bearing well 
while those which flowered later were fruitless in summer, for this 
has often been the case. 
We now desire to say that there are trees in hundreds of 
gardens that may and ought to be relieved of the pressure of 
blossoming. We mean trees which have been recently planted 
and the reverse of luxuriant. Many there are almost a’l over 
the country in which nearly every branch terminates in a blo-som 
bud. These terminal clusters should be removed—cut back to a 
wood bud if an extension of growth is desired. Failing this aid 
trees innumerable that have come under our notice cannot become 
thrifty, profitable fruit bearers, but must degenerate into mere 
pomological pigmies. To bush trees and pyramids, cordons, or 
fan-trained wall trees the remarks apply ; if the terminal bud 
produces blossom free growth is arrested. Four years ago a 
gentleman planted a number of cordon trees and followed the 
instructions “not to shorten them” too literally. The advice given 
was good in the case of those which terminated in growth buds, 
and they are tine trees now, whereas those which terminated in 
blossom buds and these allowed to remain are stunted and spoiled, 
the blank wall spaces affording unmistakeable evidence of the 
error that was committed in allowing the terminal fruit buds and 
clusters to remain. The time is appropriate for drawing attention 
to this matter, in order that similar mistakes may be prevented. 
We have seen many pyramid Pears and bush Apples, planted 
last autumn and during the present spring, every branch of 
which—and most of them are mere stubs—terminates in a cluster 
of blossom. They are trees that we should not have chosen, 
and the only way of making them thrive is to take off the end 
of every branch, and as the season advances give liquid manure 
to and mulch over the roots. This may possibly have the effect 
of forcing free growth, but if left as they are they will soon be 
worthless miserable little starvelings, exhausted and worn out, a 
deplorable case of fruit tree infanticide. 
The mention of liquid manure reminds of the great use it 
may be to many somewhat weak and extremely floriferous trees- 
during the blossoming period. The Cherry tree in a farmer’s 
garden always blossomed, but if the fruit set it never developed, 
but was cast prematurely, until he was advised to pour several 
pailfuls of liquid manure into the ground from the stem to the 
spread of the branches when the blossom buds were advancing. 
The result was altogether satisfactory, and he has since, and for 
several years, extended the practice to other trees that were more 
or less enfeebled, with the best results. They are now healthy, 
and only under the most inclement weather influences do they fail 
to yield good crops of excellent fruit. 
There are trees innumerable growing against walls—trees the 
reverse of vigorous—that would be undoubtedly benefited with 
liquid manure at the present time. It would have a tendency 
to assist the blossoms in setting, and could not fail to invigorate 
the trees and support the fruit. Where the soil is very dry, 
as is the case now near many a wall, it is an excellent plan 
to first afford clear water copiously and then follow with more 
nourishing liquid food. Pouring liquid manure into very dry soil 
is, to say the least, wasteful, and it cannot then have the hoped 
for effect. It is the extreme dryness of soil near walls that causes 
many roots to seek for moisture in the subsoil. 
It is to be understood that the trees for which liquid manure 
is advocated at the present time are those which are estab¬ 
lished in their positions. It is desirable to allow young trees 
to make fresh root growth before stimulants are afforded, and 
then only those in a more or less stunted condition are materi¬ 
ally improved by the application, but the benefit to these may 
be great. 
No doubt it is true that whatever may be done fruit crops are 
liable to fail. We have had rain and hail, frost and snow, with- 
destructive blizzards in April and May, and it is, notwithstanding 
the brilliant spring we have enjoyed, within the bounds of 
possibility that we may have similar unfortunate visitations, 
again ; still, should this be so, those who have done all that was 
possible to insure success will be none the worse for the effort 
but better, for they will have no self-reproaches, and every 
right-minded man must rest the more contented in misfortune 
when he feels that he at least has done all he could within 
his skill and means to attain the object in view, for he then 
knows he has done his duty. 
No. 2324.—VoL. LXXXVIIL, Old Serib?. 
No. CG3. —VoL. XXVI., Third Series. 
