16 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[ July 11, 1889. 
dry hot weather of June and early July brought the flowers out 
rapidly to fade quickly ; but many exhibitors have rejoiced in 
beautiful stands of blooms. 
PRUNING OR NOT PRUNING FRUIT TREES 
THE FIRST YEAR. 
Mr. Wrigiit very cleverly criticised my remarks at the late 
Chiswick Conference (March 21st, page 229, Journal of Horti¬ 
culture ), which were to the effect, “ That as a general rule I 
do not advise trees to be pruned the first season of planting and 
he had what appeared at first sight to be a mass of evidence on the 
other side. At the time those remarks were printed we were very 
busy, and I venture to return to the subject in a more leisure season 
in nursery work. It is necessary first to clear the ground. Bear 
in mind that I was advocating A pple-growing for profit—that is, 
on an extended scale, and my remarks were never intended for 
garden practice, though I submit they contain equally good advice 
there. When fruit trees a; e planted on a farm, say, it generally 
falls to the lot of perhaps an inexperienced hand to do the work. 
The holes are not properly prepared, the ground is not closed and 
tightened as it should be, and to cheapen the cost the work is often 
put out by the job : therefore the tree first has half its roots 
cut off so that it shall require a smaller hole, and to give an 
appearance of work done the tops are cut off too. The tree is 
often not staked for some time, winter rains come, the ground 
becomes soft, the tree blows first one way, then another, and round 
the collar of each tree a pipe-like opening is made ; the few roots 
left are on the move, so that any new fibres are constantly abraded, 
and although Nature makes a vigorous effort (generally successful 
with Plums and Damsons because of their copious roots) Pears, 
Apples, and Cherries die by thousands on the approach of a dry July. 
Even if the tree is staked and top-pruned what happens? A few 
pipy, sappy shoots are made -which are not hard and woody enough 
to cut back for good sound eyes, such as ought to produce shoots to 
form the foundation of an orchard tree ; the consequence is that 
the head is crowded with sprays of fine wood of no value as a base 
for a vigorous standard, and in despair, if left to Nature, fruit buds 
are formed, and then farewell to growth so far as the extension of 
the trees is concerned, and trees like mops are to be seen by hundreds. 
This is a picture from actual fact, and often in defiance^of warnings 
from ourselves. 
On the other hand, under the plan I advocate for orchard or 
plantation trees, at planting the roots are only partially shortened, 
the head if crowded has superfluous shoots removed, and the rest 
are left on the full length. At the earliest leafiDg foliage starts 
from the whole of the buds, at once stimulating root action. This 
increases rapidly, so that the tree starts on its career without loss of 
time. My opponent says “ Yes, and form a lot of useless fruit 
spurs, and you lose all the wood buds at the base.’’ I admit they 
are lost to sight, but only sleeping—-wait until next spring—the tree 
is pruned, and it seems hard to cut away all that promise of fruit; 
but see all these sleeping buds begin to work, and from them there 
issues a strong wood growth, which clothes the head with healthy 
stout growths, and at once the form of a basin-shaped head makes 
itself apparent. I like to thin the centre of any useless wood in 
August ; these shoots are shortened to 3 or 4 inches the following 
spring, and this operation doubles the shoots and induces stout 
wood. 
I am aware that our Kent system differs from the practice of 
some counties (see Mr. Molyneux’s notes, 251), but I believe this 
severe pruning in the earlier stages of the tree productive of the 
utmost after value. It is well known that if a tree begins to bear 
the growth is retarded by the demand made on it by the fruit. I 
never intended to say to gardeners, Do not prune the first year in 
garden culture, nor do I allude to bush trees at all. Experienced 
men know full well the capabilities of their own soils, and I have 
seen trees of all sorts pruned the first year doing well, but I am 
bound to say I have seen trees pruned the second year doing better. 
Stone fruit trees may be pruned with less danger than pip or kernel 
fruit trees, but Cherries for orchards are far better left one year. I 
have very carefully noted the difference where trees have by chance 
been pruned in the nursery the first year, and on pyramidal and 
trained trees of Apples, Pears, and Plums the trees are far better 
when allowed a year’s run after removal. They never fail to break 
from the two-year-old wood, and as far as the formation of a tree 
is concerned the fruit buds are formed say at the upper three- 
quarters of the shoot. The portion at the base will always con¬ 
tain enough wood buds to refurnish the tree in whatever form is 
required. This is what many of your correspondents overlook. 
Peaches and Nectarines should be pruned the first year. I may 
mention that in 1856 I planted some hundreds of trees myself in 
an old orchard, which our then old nursery foreman said was tree 
sick, and failure could only follow my labours ; but the whole of 
the trees treated as I advise made fine examples, and on the ex¬ 
piration of our tenancy the fruit fetched as many pounds as it 
did shillings before I began. If any of your readers favour me 
with a call I shall be happy to demonstrate my theory by pointing 
out successful practice. 
In the earlier part of the article, “ In nurseries sickly trees 
were taken up and put in thickly and planted in what was called 
the hospital, &c.” Here, 1 am afraid, I did not make myself clear 
When a quarter containing, say, fifty kinds of fruit gets thin, 
some being cleared, others partially so, our practice is to take up 
and place them together. During this operation any sickly or injured 
trees are cast out. I am afraid the word hospital led Mr. Wright 
to infer sickness, but as a fact the trees replanted are as healthy as 
the rest, only they may be of forms not then wanted or under 
saleable size, as all growers know that it is rare for a row of IOO 
trees to be fit for sale the same year. They are left unpruued 
until the following year, and after two summers’ growth are fit for 
sale. 
The interesting notes by Messrs. G. Abbey, A. Young, and 
Walter Kruse (page 272) throw various lights on the subject. I 
have disposed of some of their objections, and quite agree with 
Mr. Young. Mr. Kruse plants principally on the Paradise stocks 
full of roots. Market trees are generally on the Crab stock, bub 
both benefit by being left uncut for a year. Mr. Kruse is a very 
intelligent grower who sees the work done, and were all cultivators¬ 
like him I could relax my dictum. Good nursery cultivation 
means good trees, and good roots also. Our practice differs entirely 
from Mr. Abbey’s ideas (page 271) as to left-over trees. It is precisely 
late-planted trees that we find most benefited by a year’s growth 
before pruning. It is a fact that trees planted before December 1st 
make roots by the spring, and it is also the case that late-planted 
fruit trees are frequently killed by being pruned at planting time. 
The matter has been well discussed, and opinions are divided 
on it as I expected. My desire is to see fruit more intelligently 
cultivated, and every detail should be brought out that can help 
the cultivator. Mulching is valuable assistance to heavily cropped 
trees at this season. Some standard trees have borne for nearly 
ten years in succession here, where this has been carried out.— 
Geo. Bunyard. 
NOTES ON MYOSOTISES. 
Invaluable as the common forms of Myosotis dissitiflora are for 
spring bedding arrangements, their usefulness is enhanced by their ready 
adaptation to pot culture for early flowering with slight forcing, especially 
in view of the improved size and colour of the flowers. A recent visit 
to the establishment of Mr. Virgo, in the warm, sheltered, and picturesque 
valley of Walton-in-Gordano, not far from the cosy little watering place 
of Clevedcn, disclosed to me a sight not easily forgotten in healthy 
vigour and floriferousness. Myosotises were evidently at home, thousands 
of plants averaging a foot to 18 inches in diameter, planted in beds of 
about 8 feet in width, and collectively covering several acres, formed a 
floral ocean of the softest azure blue imaginable. The cutting and tying 
of the flowers for market was proceeding briskly ; small bunches of from 
six to eight sprays were being packed into shallow boxes for dispatch to 
London, Birmingham, Manchester, Bristol, and other centres, where they 
always find a ready sale. 
Careful selection has done much towards the improvement of the 
plant, coupled, no doubt, with good cultivation and the peculiar suit¬ 
ability of the soil in the neighbourhood for imparting the rich deep 
colour which is so much admired in the flowers, although by reports from 
different parts of the country it appears to adapt itself to almost any 
soil or situation. In this neighbourhood the soil appears to be of a rich 
ferruginous loam, resting on deep beds of carboniferous limestone—just 
the sort of soil that would produce the blue colour in the Hydrangea, 
and evidently in the case of Forget-me-nots its influence is somewhat 
similar. 
The bulk of the plants are propagated annually by cuttings taken 
as soon as the plants have flowered, which is generally towards the end 
of June ; these inserted in a frame placed in a cool shady corner root 
freely, and are then planted in their permanent quarters. Although this 
is the favourite -way of propagating the stock, thousands are raised 
annually from seed with the object of improving the strain. Several 
distinct varieties have been selected at various times, and Blue Perfection 
is perhaps the best type of these large-flowering varieties, the flowers of 
which generally average from half an inch to three-quarters in diameter, 
and the colour is, as the name implies, a perfect blue. Undulata is a 
pretty fancy variety, with crimped or undulated edges to its flowers, 
which give it a very distinct appearance. This variety was awarded a 
first-class certificate at the Iloyal Botanic Society’s show when exhibited 
there last year, and evidently deserves it. Compactum forms a close 
growing tuft of leaves, from which spring short, sturdy spikes, thickly 
set with large, well-formed flowers of a somewhat paler hue. This 
variety will evidently take a front rank for select spring bedding 
purposes. Several more promising varieties were undergoing a trial in 
a corner of the enclosure, but as their merits were of an uncertain 
