56 
THE FLORIST. 
PROTECTION OF FRUIT TREES. 
I have read with interest the controversy in the Florist between 
protection and open brick walls. Varied is the testimony as to the 
efficiency of protection ; gardeners, like doctors, differ. The keys to 
the discrepancy of testimony are to be found in the high or low situa¬ 
tion of the garden—on its earliness or lateness—on its being near water 
or in a high dry position—or the wetness or dryness of the soil—in the 
breadth or narrowness of the coping—in the coping being narrow tile 
or wide thatch—in the materials of the wall, viz., in its being brick or 
mud wall. These matters have not been sufficiently attended to in the 
controversy, and hence the discrepancy of testimony. 
My garden is in a foggy valley. A small stream abuts the wall, 
which faces the south. It is an early wall, and the soil is friable loam. 
Till I covered my trees I never had any fruit of Apricots, Peaches, 
and Nectarines, though the walls were well bloomed. Having failed 
for three years (1853-54-55), I determined to cover and secure the 
trees, and since then (in 1856-7), I have had abundant crops of 
Apricots, Peaches, Nectarines, and a much improved crop of Green¬ 
gages. The crop this year of the above fruits has been most abundant. 
Indeed, the gardeners of Critchell and Langton, who came to see my 
Strawberries, said—“ Sir, you would be wise to take off three out of 
every four.” 
Now, having had no fruit before I protected, and abundance since, 
can you wonder at my being in favour of protection ? I think I have 
had more fruit on my three Peach-trees, two Nectarines, one 
Apricot and two Green-gage trees (Nature’s largest leap in fruits), 
than could be found upon 800 yards of wall in this neighbourhood. I 
should not say think , because I saw that it was so. I had an evidence 
of the value of covering similar to my own in a small cottage garden at 
Keynstone, the property of a widow, Mrs. Cook. Perceiving one side 
of the tree fruitless, and the other well covered with fruit, I said— 
“ How do you account for this?” She said—“ Sir, I covered that part 
where the fruit is with a sheet. That same night the frost swept off 
the whole of the other blossoms.” 
Now my plan is cheap and simple ; for two years I have pursued it 
and succeeded. Sir John Smith, Mr. Farquharson, Mr. Parke, and 
the Rev. H. Austen, of Keynstone—my neighbour, and a subscriber 
to your Florist , who will read this—can testify to the truth of this, 
for they saw the abundant crop when they did me the honour to come 
to review and eat my Strawberries. Two years ago I bought sufficient 
rough calico, two yards wide, at 6j?d. per yard, i.e., 3 \d. per yard. I 
tin-tack this to three or four light poles for each tree. At the top of 
the wall, under a warm coping, I fix staples for the poles, and the 
lower end is pressed firmly into the ground. The poles are placed 
aslant, to let in as much light and air as possible. I cover from the 
first appearance of bloom till frosts are over ; and observe this, a white 
frost is worse than a dry black frost. The covering is put up at four 
each evening, and taken off at ten each morning. Whenever it rains, 
blows hard, hails, or is likely to do so, I keep the covering on all day. 
