1870. ] 
FEUIT-THINNING. 
123 
tlie important question in regard to it that many imagine. And yet I hold it is 
important, and that the thinning ought not to be one act, but many. I cannot 
agree with those who advocate the thinning of the flowers of fruit-trees out of 
doors. In our climate this savours too much of presumption, and an excess of 
interference, which nature justly resents. Flower-thinning may safely be left to 
the tree. The expansion of flowers into full blossom, and their progress to fruit 
babyhood, hardly exhaust the tree at all. All these supplies, so far, are inherent 
in the bud, or laid up at its base, and if you reduce the number of buds in the 
spring, I don’t believe that yorf can get the supphes that were laid for those that 
you remove, diverted into those that are left; and if you could, I question the 
wisdom of giving them more than nature has provided for them at this stage. 
Babies are none the better, but all the worse, for being unduly crammed, 
whatever may be said about men—or turkeys. It is difficult also, without a 
very great sacrifice of time in the scrutiny, to discriminate at a glance between 
perfect and imperfect flowers, or determine with certainty which will set,—this or 
that. The thing is impossible. For these reasons, the thinning of the flowers 
of fruit trees in the open air had better be dispensed with. It is alike unsafe, 
uncertain, and unnecessary. A fortnight or three weeks after the fruit is set, 
is a suitable time for the first thinning ; a second might take place in 
another fortnight ; and the third, and final one should be, after stone-fruits 
are stoned, and when apples and pears have grown to about one-sixth of 
their full size. No set time can be laid down for the process. The 
size and condition of the fruit determine the time. And it is safest not to thin 
severely until the natural period when each fruit-tree throws off its superfluous 
fruit has passed. For instance, no wise man would thin cherries until the fruit 
had passed through the dropping or yellow stage. The only thinning that might 
precede these natural ones would be the removal of imperfectly set and malformed 
fruits. In the case of thinning too early, the chances are that those taken off 
might have gone on to maturity, while those left might be destined to drop. It 
is difficult to fix the right moment on paper, though the practised eye can speedily 
settle it on the tree. Neither too early, nor too late, and with caution and skill 
always, are good and safe thinning instructions, of universal application. The 
middle course here,—there are always three courses,—is the only safe one. 
As to the manner of thinning, nothing can well be more simple. With the 
fingers and thumb-nail as the handy instrument of the eye, go to work upon the 
trees as soon as the fruit is fairly thoroughly set. Eemove every ill-formed and 
badly-placed fruit, and thin the thickest of the clusters where the young fruit 
is crowded together. Cherries, Plums, Apples, and Apricots are most given to 
over-crowding at this early stage. Leave only from two to six of the strongest 
fruit in each bunch or cluster. At the second thinning, reduce them again by 
one-half, and if the clusters are placed closely together, only one should be left 
to each at the final thinning. The largest should invariably be chosen to remain, 
G 2 
