266 
THE FLORIST AND POMOLOGHST. 
[ DECEMBEIt, 
fine quality, a degree of success not confined to this neighbourhood alone, for I 
am pleased to see other instances quoted in which the fruiting of the Apricot as 
a standard has been equally satisfactory. Thus, at Evesham, a Breda Apricot 
has produced nine bushels of fruit this year. Such successes as these should 
assuredly lead to more extended culture; for notwithstanding that the Apricot tree 
is somewhat tender, being a native of “ the land of the sun,'*’ yet it is so far 
acclimatized ‘as to be rarely injured by frost. True, the blossom-buds are 
susceptible of injury, as they are put forth early enough to be frequently subjected 
to several degrees of frost. Hence the necessity of carefully protecting them ; 
and to facilitate that operation, it is essential that the trees should be trained as 
low bushes, espaliers, or in such other form as may suggest itself to the 
cultivator, having in view the one object of accessibility. 
The soil best suited to the Apricot is a calcareous loam or sand, of sound 
texture, two feet deep. It is of primary importance in preparing the sites for 
standard trees, that the subsoil should be perfectly drained, and the position 
slightly raised so as to elevate the stems above the ground-level. This will be found 
indispensable to success in places where the ground is at all wet. Moreover, the. 
digging of the surface within the limits of the tree should be studiously avoided, 
as not only does such a practice destroy the surface-roots, but, more particularly 
in the case of standard trees, it has a tendency to retard fructification. Some of 
the finest and healthiest trees I have seen have had their roots wholly under 
gravel walks, or pitched over with stones. I may also mention that the large 
Moor Park tree, previously alluded to, has not had the soil about it disturbed 
for many years, the surface being paved over with oyster-shells. The tree is. 
growing in a friable loam, resting on a stratum of broken sandstone rock of 
considerable depth. Eich, deep clay soils are to be avoided, since they induce 
vigorous growth and imperfectly-ripened wood, the principal cause of the 
unfruitfulness often complained of in Apricot trees. When such soils have to be 
dealt with, a large per-centage of old mortar rubbish may be added to it with the 
best results. 
During the growing season, the trees ought to be frequently examined, and 
all elongated shoots pinched back, so as to maintain, as far as possible, an equal 
distribution of wood, which obviates the necessity for the inordinate use of the 
pruning-knife, which is one of the chief causes of gumming and the premature 
decaying of branches,—evils which occur less frequently in standard trees than 
in trees trained against walls. 
The insect most injurious to Apricot foliage is the caterpillar of the red-bar 
moth, the eggs of which go on hatching from the middle of May until mid¬ 
summer. Their presence is readily detected by the rolling-up of the leaves. 
This destructive pest must at once be eradicated, and the only remedy I know of 
is picking and squeezing every leaf which is rolled up. One or two such careful 
inspections will usually clear the trees for the season. 
