138 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[ August 13, 1891. 
should not be less than 30 feet apart each way, and none but the 
best trees—worked on the free stock—with straight clean stems of 
6 feet before branching, and not more than three years old from 
the time of budding, should be planted. 
I may say here that I remember an intelligent farmer telling 
me in all earnestness that his father was a successful cultivator of 
the Apple in this district, that he grafted his own trees, and those 
he grafted on the Grey Willow stock—which I take to be Salix 
caprea—succeeded the best on his heavy soil—the lias clay. It is 
needless for me to tell the members of the British Fruit Growers’ 
Association that I have had no experience of that stock. Plants 
that have stood in nursery rows for years, and have been pruned 
repeatedly to keep their heads within bounds, seldom make good 
trees. When lifted they have scarcely any fibrous roots, and after 
replanting become stunted, and fail to make much growth for 
several years. On the other hand, young vigorous trees planted at 
the age mentioned start into growth at once, and soon become large 
and fruitful. In planting the varieties must be kept by themselves 
as much as possible for the sake of uniformity of growth and con¬ 
venience in gathering and storing the fruit. Make the pit large 
enough to hold the roots without being cramped, and a strong stake 
driven into it to tie the tree to. After which, place the tree close 
to the stake, spread the roots out on ail sides before filling in the 
soil, which should be made firm, but care must be taken not to 
plant it deeper than it was when growing in the nursery row. 
When planted secure the tree to the stake, prune it, and mulch the 
surface with manure to exclude air and to keep down evaporation. 
All that is required now is to protect it from cattle, sheep, and 
horses. Barbed wire guards I find the best ; they are cheap, 
durable, and answer the purpose better than any other kind of 
protection that I know. The principal culture of orchard trees is 
during the first few years when they are young. It consists of 
pruning and cutting out all weak useless branches and those that 
cross each other, keeping the trees clean and free of insect pests, 
and top-dressing the ground with good manure to keep them in a 
vigorous and fruitful state. 
Fruit Gardens. 
The cultivation in the fruit garden is different from that of an 
orchard. Apple and Pear trees may be planted here a little closer, 
say from 18 to 20 feet apart, and trained in pyramidal form, and 
the ground worked and cropped between them with Gooseberry, 
Raspberry, Currant, and Strawberries, or vegetable crops, until 
they have filled their allotted space. I have recommended that the 
orchard trees be three years old from the time of budding ; but 
for planting in the garden I prefer maidens or plants of one year’s 
growth from the bud to those of four or five years’ growth. They 
soon establish themselves, and grow faster than older trees, and can 
be trained to the form desired much easier. I repeat that too much 
care and attention cannot be taken in planting, and none but the 
very best trees should be planted to ensure successful cultivation. 
There are several fine Apple and Pear trees in the castle 
gardens here, both on walls and in the Open quarters of the garden, 
which are much admired by gardeners and others visiting the place. 
They were all planted, pruned, and trained under my supervision, 
and perhaps I could not do better than describe the mode adopted in 
growing and training them. To avoid repetition I may say the most 
of the trees were planted when maidens of one year’s growth. ThePear 
trees on the walls are planted at the distance of 21 feet apart, and 
trained in fan-shape with a leader up the centre. When planting 
them they were kept away 6 inches from the bottom of the wall to 
allow room for the stem to swell, the roots were spread out care¬ 
fully and covered, the ground made firm, and mulched with manure 
afterwards. The leaders were then cut back to within 18 inches 
from the ground and fastened loosely to the wall. In the following 
year they produced from three to five shoots each, which were 
carefully but loosely nailed to the wall as required during the 
growing seasoD, and allowed to grow their full length without 
being stopped. At pruning time the centre shoot of each tree was 
cut back to within 18 or 20 inches from where it started, according 
to the strength of the growth, and the two or four remaining shoots, 
as the case might be, were nailed to the wall their full length ; the 
two lower shoots horizontally, one on each side of the main stem, 
and the others at a slight angle up the wall. From this time on, 
until the trees had occupied their full space, they were examined 
regularly every spring shortly after starting into growth, and all 
the superfluous buds rubbed off the leading shoots, and a few of 
the buds near the ends of the permanent branches picked off to 
strengthen the terminal bud. I never shorten the points of the 
permanent branches until they have grown their full length, unless 
they have met with an accident, or the wood happens not to be 
sufficiently ripe to remain. The breast wood is taken off two or 
three times during the season, but I never pinch and stop the 
growths during the summer, as recommended by some writers. 
To build up young trees and furnish the wall with them in the 
shortest time possible I have stopped the leading shoot of the 
current year’s growth after it had grown about 2 feet in length, 
which caused it to send out lateral branches. These in good 
seasons ripened well, and a year’s growth was gained by adopting 
this method ; but I do not recommend it in a general way, as the 
success mainly depends on the seasons being good to ripen the wood 
thoroughly. 
Pruning. 
The trees are pruned as soon after the leaves fall as possible, 
and the roots mulched with enough stable litter for a breadth of 
3 feet from the bottom of the wall, after which the branches are 
syringed with a wineglassful of petroleum to a gallon of water. 
All is thoroughly mixed by the syringe, continually churning it up 
during the operation. The petroleum thus applied kills scale and 
all insects it comes in contact with, and it gives the bark of the 
trees a smooth and healthy appearance. This finished, the branches 
are then secured in their proper position for the year. 
Pyramidal Trees. 
These, though differently trained, are built up much in the 
same way as wall trees. When newly planted they are cut down 
to within 18 inches from the ground, and the following year they 
produce from three to five shoots each. One of the strongest of 
these is selected for a leader, which ultimately becomes the stem of 
the tree, and all the others are rubbed off except three of the best 
placed, which are retained to form the base and framework of the 
tree. The shoots are allowed to finish the season’s growth without 
being stopped in any way. When they are being pruned in the 
autumn the leading shoot is left from 18 inches to 2 feet long, 
according to the strength and ripeness of the wood (but as the 
trees get older the leading shoots may be left even longer) and the 
side branches a little shorter. This system is practised year after 
year, cutting out all cross and superfluous wood, and training and 
furnishing the tree with well arranged branches until it has filled 
its space, after which the growth is spurred in the usual way close 
to the permanent wood every season to form fruit buds. I do not 
believe that stopping and pinching the young shoots during summer 
adds to the productiveness of the tree ; besides, it is impossible in 
large fruit gardens, where there is a great number of trees, to find 
time to do so. 
I do not advise root-pruning to be practised except in cases 
where the roots have penetrated a cold wet subsoil, in which the 
trees produce strong rank unfruitful wood. When such is the case, 
and the trees are young, they should be lifted entirely, the strong 
roots cut back, and the fibrous roots spread out near the surface ; 
but when the trees are large it is advisable to dig a trench 
3 or 4 feet distant from the trunk all round, cut back the strong 
roots, and add some good soil to encourage fibrous roots to grow 
near the surface. 
The Apple is more liable to the attacks of insect pests and 
disease than the Pear. The canker is the most difficult to deal 
with, and some varieties are more subject to it than others. When 
planted in low, damp situations the trees get covered with moss 
and lichen. They are also subject to the attacks of American 
blight, and this, in my opinion, is one of the principal causes of 
canker, but there is a great diversity of opinion about this. When 
once a tree is attacked with canker it is almost impossible to cure 
it, and the sooner it is grubbed out and a new one planted in its 
place the better. I think it is a mistake to lose time and valuable 
space with a sickly tree from any cause whatever when trees can 
be bought so cheaply from our nurserymen. Moss and lichen can 
be destroyed by dusting the trees with newly slacked lime on 
damp mornings during the winter months, and American blight by 
scrubbing the bark of the affected trees with a hard brush and 
soapsuds, and by frequent syringings of petroleum mixed in water 
as previously described. 
Of Apples there are more than forty varieties, and of Pears 
about the same, grown in the Castle gardens. But the following 
twenty-four of each are amongst the most useful, both culinary 
and dessert. Apple : Devonshire Quarrenden, Irish Peach, Lord 
Suffield, Keswick Codlin, Lord Grosvenor, Potts’ Seedling, Blen¬ 
heim Pippin, Beauty of Hants, Cox’s Orange Pippin, Ecklinville, 
Emperor Alexander, Gloria Mundi, Golden Noble, Hawthornden, 
Annie Elizabeth, Sturmer Pippin, Alfriston, Beauty of Kent, 
Dumelow’s Seedling (Wellington), Lane’s Prince Albert, Rymer, 
Warner’s King, and Rushock Pear main. 
Of Pears the following twenty-four varieties are grown success¬ 
fully, both on walls and pyramidal trees in the open. Duchesse 
d’Angouleme, Jargonelle, Summer Bergamot, Beurre Magnifique, 
Beurre d’Amanli9, Beurre Diel, Beurre Ranee, Beurre d’Esperen, 
Durondeau, Louise Bonne of Jersey, Pitmaston Duchess, Uvedale’s 
St. Germain, Thompson’s, Brown Beurre, General Todtleben, 
Doyenne du Comice, Glou Morceau, Winter Nelis, Marie Louise, 
