3 65 
Strom numerous instances; without any fear of being mistaken, 
that quick lime buried in small quantities about the end of 
autumn, a few feet from the trunk of trees nearly come to 
their full strength, is an improvement which will seldom fail 
to increase their produce, or to determine it, when it is not 
yet decided. Unless the cause of unfruitfulness be very ob¬ 
vious, a wise cultivator will first make a trial of this method, 
which, at any rate, is innocent, before he has recourse to 
measures* which, instead of being serviceable to his trees, 
might end in their destruction. Some use may also be made 
of wood and sea-weed ashes, of sea-weed itself, of dung, road 
dirt, &c. taking, however, the above precaution of burying 
these substances at the proper season, at a certain distance 
from the trunk. There is, besides, another practice, which is, 
to lay bare the large roots in the winter, and let them be ex¬ 
posed to the frost. Some persons who have tried it speak of 
it in high terms. 
We are indebted to the investigation of the famous BufFon 
for another process, which, having been since evinced by the 
successful experiments of M. Lancry** and uniting in itself 
many signal advantages, has, of late years, acquired extensive 
celebrity on the continent. It must, however, be used with 
caution, as otherwise it might endanger the life of the tree. 
To convey a right understanding of his method, and to guard 
against the abuse which might be made of it, I shall subjoin a 
summary detail of the principles on which it is founded. 
It has long been received as a fact, that the sap circulates 
alternately in two opposite directions, ascending mostly 
through the bdrk in the spring, and descending in the same 
manner towards the earth after midsummer. A reason that 
seems to decide in favour of its flowing up and down, is, that 
trees divested all around of their bark in a horizontal direc¬ 
tion, were it only a foot long, can seldom survive the opera¬ 
tion more than two years; the distance being sufficient to 
preclude the lip, or extremity of the upper bark, from the 
possibility of effecting a re-union with the lower bark. Ruf- 
fon, having observed that trees upon the decline more fre¬ 
quently bore fruit than others of the same species, concluded, 
that, by shortening the distance between the bark, so as to 
bring upon them only a slight degree of transient decay, it 
would probably contribute to their becoming fruitful. He 
. ■ ■■ ■ * —— 
Last autumn, two adjoining fields in St. Saviour’s parish, as equal as pos¬ 
sible in size, depth of soil, and exposure, were manured after a crop of pafr- 
nips. There were spread on the former field ten cart-loads of dung, and 
two cart-loads of sea-weed ashes; and on the latter, ten cart-loads of dung, 
and one cart-load of lime; they were then ploughed up and sown in the like' 
manner, with the same kind and the same quantity of wheat. I afterwards 
examined both at the time of harvest, and I ascertained, that the latter 
field had the advantage over the other, in the proportion of above one-third 
in the quantity and quality of the grain, as well as in the strength of the 
reed. I cannot attribute this difference to any thing else than the lime. 
* Encyclopedia Methodique, Art, BourrelS. 
accordingly 
