34B 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
February 12 
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FRUIT-'J’REES, THEIR BLIGHTS AND OTHER 
AILMENTS. 
{Cuuthnwd ftum fCKje. 235 .) 
The Peach and Nectarine. —Havincf, in previous 
remarks, dealt with the Apple, the Pear, and the Apricot, 
I now proceed with tliO Peach and its relative, tlie 
Nectarine. Tlie evils wliicli, in ilie main, befall these 
delicate trees are the Aphides, the Red Spider, the 
jMildew, the Curl, the withering at the points, and the 
Gnm ; a tolerably full catalogue, certainly. 1 will not 
take them consecutively, but would ratl)er deal with 
them in the order in which they generally occur during . 
the round of a season. 
First, then, the Aphis, Pcrsictc, or Pencli jly. , 
Rarely does a season pass but these haunting little | 
rogues make their appearance just as the trees are in I 
full blossom; or, rather, perhaps, just as they are going 
out of bloom. To say that tobacco is the best remedy 
at ]ircsent known, is to say what everybody knows full ; 
well. I must, however, speak of the modes of applying 
it, and the periods for doing so; for although most 
persons admit the necessity for its use, yet few, I am 
assured, are aware of the immense importance of the ^ 
utmost promptitude in its application. There is no doubt, 
that if the Aphis is thoroughly e.xtirpated the moment it j 
appears, there is little occasion for anxiety concerning 
it during flic same season. I have known the beauty 
and regularity of a Peach-wall irrecoverably destroyed 
througii underrating the evil consequences arising from 
the attacks of Aphides only for a few days; therefore, I ; 
say, the moment you see one, a])ply the tobacco. 1 am ' 
not aware tliat there is any application so good out-doors 
as tobacco-water. 'J’his is rather ex[)ensive, and my i 
))ractice is to syringe the trees well with ordinary soap- j 
suds, or soft-soap-water, the afternoon previous to using : 
the tobacco water. I use soft-soap at the I'ate of not (pute ‘ 
two ounces to a gallon of tepid-water. I'he next day, I 
brew my tobacco licpiid, which is generally a mixture of 
shag tobacco and tobacco-paper; and I must confess, 
that although 1 use the paper with a view to economise j 
the tobacco, 1 am not at all assured it does so. To such j 
an extent does the adulteration of tobacco-paper extend, ; 
I have been told that twenty pounds of genuine tobacco 
refuse will make, at least, a hundred weight of tobacco- 
]iaper. Some of these worthies, collecting all the refuse of 
the paper warehouse, make up a most economical mixture j 
for the manufacture of tobacco-paper, by watering the ' 
mass copiously with a little of this and abundance of ' 
lamp-black. I 
If any amateur is trying bis hand for the first time, I 
advise him to use shag tobacco at tbo rate of four ounces 
to a gallon of water, well squeezed out. This, well ' 
syringed over every part the day succeeding the soap- 
sud ajiplication, will go far towards the entire destruc- , 
tion of this Aphis; but if any show signs of life the 
succeeding day, they must not be allowed to rally, but i 
receive another dose. Some persons have portable i 
coverings, by which they can fumigate out-door trees, i 
and to this there can be no objection. ' 
The Curl.— I really scarcely feel qualilied to say ! 
much about a cure for the “ Curl,” which is the same 
thing, I presume, as the “ Blister.” I have had as little of 
tills Blister, or Curl, in my day, as any person. I may 
])ick haU-a dozen of these crumpled leaves in a season 
Irom many trees; but they are so rare, I never care a 
button about it, simply ))icking those infested away. 1 
am not a deep-border man. 1 secure dry subsoils, and 
jilant on platforms, introducing a little imro “maiden” 
turfy loam; assisting cases of over-bearing, w'eakness, 
&c., by generous top-dressings, or by liquid-manures. I 
have noticed, that 1 have most commonly met with 
blistered leaves on what may be termed bad Beach soils, 
such as are clammy, poor, and old; seldom, I think, will 
they be found infesting young and fresh trees on walls. 
Drainage, the removal of soil about the roots, and, above 
all, securing well ripened wood, appear to be the best 
preventives. 
'J’he Gum. —The prevalence of this in Peach and 
Nectarine-trees argues either a depraved and weakened 
constitution; or injury from wounds; or both. llcre,again, 
we are strongly reminded of the immense importance of 
well-ripened wood. 'J'he least wound is sufficient to cause 
Gum in trees whose wood has been badly ripened for 
years; whilst in those Avcll-ripeued it is somewhat 
dithcult to induce it; this alone points to the cause. 
Of course, all careful cultivators avoid wounding the 
branches of their trees; if they should meet with an 
accident of the kind, I know of no better jilan than to 
take means immediately to exclude the air, and to 
promote a re-union of those parts which had been 
violently separated, thus:—Suppose a w'orkman had 
struck his spado against the bole, or a portion of the 
main branches, and created a considerable wound, I 
would take a sharp knife and remove all bruised ])or- 
tions, and then apply a plaster; one of the best with 
which 1 am acquainted is composed of about eipuil parts 
clay, cow-dung, and lime. 'J'his must be enclosed in 
something, and any strong, coarse cloth, or thin, old car- 
jicting, that will endure for twelve-months, at least, will 
answer. By that time, if the tree is healthy, there will 
be new bark, or, at any rate, a kind of callosity, which 
will bid defiance to the weather; the rest is simply a 
work of time. 
'J'he Red Siuder. —This absolute terror of the 
gardeners of the olden time, and plague of our present 
^professionals, is well known to bo one of the gi'eatest 
enemies ol' the Peach and Nectarine, whether in doors 
or out. There need not, however, be half the alarm 
that exists about this diminutive scamp, for he is well 
known to abhor two things;—an almost constant wet 
condition of the foliage, and sulphur. Of course, all 
good cultivators use the syringe occasionally; but 1 
naturally pause, before I recommend that out-door 
Beaches be kept constantly wet in the foliage for many 
days together. Sulphur, then, I recommend; not a 
mere dusting only with the powder puff, but an annual 
application in such a way as to preserve its virtues 
for many months where these rogues love to resort; in 
other words, from March to the end of September. 
My practice has been to apply a mixture, by means 
of the syringe, the moment the Peaches are pruned and 
trained, which, with me, has been annually by the middle 
of February. The mixture is nearly the same as the 
general wash for fruit-trees, except that 1 ]nit much 
more sulphur in it. Soft soap, nearly three ounces to the 
gallon of water, well beat up, and about a pound of flowers 
of sulphur; the whole thickened with liucly-straincd 
clay until nearly a paint in consistence, and wo have, 
generally, added a few handfuls of fresh lime. 'This 
forms a regular coating all over the wall and wood of 
the trees, and the virtues of it remain through the whole 
summer. With this application, 1 hav^o never been 
troubled with the Rod Spider in any degree worthy of 
notice. Indeed, when it has shewn itself it has not 
been before the beginning of September. 
Withering oe the Points. —This is an ailment 
with which 1 have had little to do for the last score 
years; but 1 have frequently observed it in other 
gardens. That it arises chielly from ill-conditioned or 
badly-ripened wood, there can be no doubt; and this, 
of course, refers us to the question. Why is the wood 
badly ripened ? 'This may be the case for more than 
one reason. 'The soil may bo too rich ; the wood badly 
thinned and trained, or the aspect may bo ungenial. 
But above all these evils, that of highly cxciling soils, 
or composts, is, in my opinion, productive of the greatest 
mischief, especially to young trees in the fourth or fifth 
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