6 30 C I T 
a great check, which will change the colour of their 
leaves, and many times kill the extreme weak part of the 
fhoots. Let the lltuation for your orange-trees, during the 
fummer feafon, be as much defended as poflible, by tall 
trees or hedges, from the fun in the heat of the day, and 
from ltrong winds, for boththefe are very hurtful to them. 
As thefe trees advance, it will be neceffnry in the fum¬ 
mer to flop ftrong (hoots where they grow irregularly, 
to force out lateral branches to fill the head ; but do not 
pinch off the tops from all the fhoots, as is the practice of 
fome, which will fill the tree with fmall. fnoots too weak 
to fupport fruit; but endeavour to form a regular head, 
and obtain ltrong fhoots, taking away weak trifling 
branches where they are too clofe. During the l’ummer 
feafon, your orange-trees will require frequent waterings 
in dry weather, especially if they are large ; therefore you 
ihould endeavour to have the water as near the trees as 
poffible, to fave the trouble of carrying it, which, in a 
large quantity of trees, takes up much time. Your 
water ihould be foft, and expofed to the air, but never 
add dung of any fort thereto ; which, although by many 
frequently recommended, yet has always been found de- 
ftrudlive to thefe, and all other trees, if much ufed ; it 
being like hot fquors to human bodies, which at firlt 
taking, feem to add vigour, yet certainly leave the body 
weaker after fome time than before. 
Your orange-trees will require to be fhifted and new 
potted every other year, therefore you mult prepare a 
quantity of good earth, at lead a year before you intend 
to ufe it, that it ma'y be well mixed, and perfedtly rotten. 
The belt feafon for this work is about the end of April, 
that they may have taken frefli root before they are re¬ 
moved out of the green-houfe ; and when this work is 
performed, it will be neceffary to let them remain in the 
houfe a fortnight longer than ufual, to be well fettled. 
In the performing this work, after you have drawn the 
trees out of the pots, you muff cut off all the roots round 
the outfide of the ball of earth, and take away all mouldy 
roots, (if any fuch be;) then with a (harp iron inftru- 
ment, get as much of the old earth from between the roots 
as poflible, being careful not to break or tear the roots ; 
then fet the root of the tree into a large tub of water for 
about a quarter of an hour, to foak the under part of the 
ball of earth ; and afterwards fcrub the Items of the trees 
with a hard hair-brufh, cleaning them and the heads with 
water, and a fofc woollen cloth. Your pots being pre¬ 
pared, with fome potfherds and large ffones in the bot¬ 
tom, put fome of your frefh earth into the pot, about 
three or four inches.thick ; and having placed your tree 
thereon, in the middle of the pot, upright, fill it up-with 
the fame rich earth, prelfing it down hard with your 
hands; then water the tree all over the head with a water¬ 
ing-pot that has a role upon the fpout, to let the water 
fall light and thick, as in a (bower of rain ; and in water¬ 
ing thefe tiees, do it in the fame manner, during the time 
they abide in the houfe after fluffing ; this will greatly 
■refrefh their heads, and promote their taking frefh roots. 
When you firff fet thefe trees abroad after fhifting, you 
ffiould place them near the fhelter of hedges, and' faf- 
ten their fiems to ffrong (takes, to prevent their being dif- 
turbed by winds, which fometimes will blow frefli planted 
trees out of the pots, if too much expofed thereto, and 
thereby greatly injure their new roots. 
If old orange-trees have been ill managed, and their 
beads become ragged and decayed, the beft method to re- 
ftore them, is to cut off the greateft part of their heads 
early in March, and draw them out of the tubs or pots, 
and (hake off the earth from their roots, cutting away all 
fmall fibre's and mouldy roots : and then foak and clean 
their roots, Items, and branches, planting them in good 
earth, and fetting them into a hot-bed of tanners’ bark, 
as was direiSted for fuch trees as came from abroad, ma¬ 
naging them in the fame manner; by this method they 
wiil produce new heads, and in two years time become 
good trees again. But if thefe are large trees, and have 
R U S. 
grown in tubs for feveral years, your beft way will be to 
prepare a parcel of rough bafkets, fuch as are ufed for 
bafketing evergreens, when lent to a diftant place : let 
thefe be fomewhat lels than the tubs you defign to plant 
your trees into; then plant your trees herein, plunging 
them into the hot-bed, and about the beginning of July, 
when your trees have made good fhoots, you may remove 
them into the tubs, with their bafkets about them, filling 
the empty fpace with the fame good earth: this will pre- 
ferve your tubs from rotting in the bark, and the trees 
will do equally well as if planted into the tubs at firff, 
provided you are careful in removing the bafkets, not to 
difturb their roots; and alfo let them remain in the green- 
houfe a fortnight or three weeks after planting, before 
you fet them abroad. Thefe trees being new potted or 
tubbed every other year, thofe years in which they are 
not fhifted, you muff in April obferve to take out as 
much of the old earth from the tops of the pots and tubs, 
and alfo round the fides of them, as poffible, without in¬ 
juring the roots of the trees, and fill them up with frefli 
earth ; you muff alfo vvafli and clean their Items and 
leaves from filth, which will greatly ftrengthen their dow¬ 
ering, and caufe them to fhoot vigorously the following 
fummer. 
In the management of orange-trees, which are in good 
health, the chief care ffiould be to fupply them with wa¬ 
ter duly, inftead of ftarving them in winter, as is fome¬ 
times praftifed; w'hereby their fibres are dried, and be¬ 
come mouldy, to the great prejudice of the trees ; and 
not to give them water in too great abundance, but ra¬ 
ther to let their watering's be frequent, and given in mo¬ 
derate quantities. You muff alfo obferve, that the water 
has free paflhge to drain off; for if it be detained in the 
tubs or pots, it will rot the tender fibres of the trees. 
During the winter feafon, they muff have a large (hare of 
air when the weather is favourable; for nothing is more 
injurious to thefe trees than ftifling them: nor fhould they 
be placed too near each other in the green-houfe; but fet 
them at fuch diftance, that their branches may be clear 
of each other, and that the air may circulate freely round 
their heads. In fummer they ffiould be placed where the 
winds are not violent, and to have the morning and even¬ 
ing fun ; for if they are too much expofed to the mid-day 
fun, they will not thrive. The belt fituation for them is 
near fome large plantation of trees, which will break the 
force of the winds, and lcreen them from the violent heat 
of the fun. In fuch a lituation- they may remain until 
the beginning of Odfober, or later, according as the fea¬ 
fon proves favourable; for if they are carried into the 
green-houfe early, and the autumn ffiould prove warm, 
it will occafion the trees to make frefli (hoots, which will 
be weak and tender, and fo liable to peril'll in winter; 
and fometimes it will occafion their flowering in winter, 
which greatly weakens the. trees; nor ffiould they remain 
fo long abroad as to be injured by morning froffs. The 
beft compoft for orange-trees is two-thirds of frefh earth 
from a good pafture, which ffiould not be too light, nor 
over fliff, but rather a hazel loam ; this fhould be taken 
about ten inches deep with the fward, which ffiould be 
mixed with the earth to rot, and one-third part of neats’ 
dung ; thefe ffiould be mixed together, at leaft twelve 
months before it is ufed, obferving to turn it over every 
month, to mix it w'ell, and to rot the fward; this will 
alfo break the clods, and caufe the mould to be finer. 
Before you make ufe of this earth, you ffiould pafs it 
through a rough fcreen, to ftp a rate the great ffones and 
the roots of the fward therefrom; but by no means lift 
the earth too fine, for this is very prejudicial to lnofl 
plants, but particularly to orange-trees. 
Of late years there have been many of tliefe trees plant¬ 
ed aga’uift w'alls, againft which frames of glafs are made 
to fix over them in winter; and fome few curious perfons 
have planted thefe trees in the full ground, and have erec¬ 
ted moveable covers to put over the trees in winter, which 
are fo contrived as to be all taken away in fummer :. where 
2 tlref§ 
