THE COTTAGE GARDENER AND COUNTRY GENTLEMAN’S COMPANION, May 26, 1857. 
into the former, and the balance is restored. These two 
means may be employed at the same time on young trees; 
but in those which have attained their full growth it fre¬ 
quently happens that we cannot bring the strong part any 
lower, and in that case our only resource is to train the weak 
part more upright. The use of these various modes ought 
to cease as soon as a more even distribution of the sap has 
rendered the respective parts equal. 
In order to facilitate the operation of training, and to give 
it the desired regularity, we fix guides on the wall, or trellis, 
so as to regulate thereby the position of the principal 
branches. These guides are taken away when the formation 
is complete, and the branches are then maintained in the 
place assigned to them. , 
NAILING. 
The nailing consists in fastening all the branches of a 
Peach tree, whatever their nature may be, in the place most 
suitable to them. The regulation or training of the principal 
branches, which has just been treated on, is, properly speak¬ 
ing, the nailing of them. 
But nailing, as I understand it, is chiefly applicable to the 
fruit-branches, and to the shoots as soon as their growth 
requires it. It will thus be peroeived that we may carry on 
the nailing of the tree throughout the whole course of its 
existence; nevertheless there are two periods of the year , 
more especially devoted to this operation, namely, when the j 
tree is without foliage, and when it is furnished with leaves. ; 
Hence the operation is distinguished as winter nailing and 
summer nailing. 
At Montreuil woollen shreds and nails are used in train¬ 
ing and nailing. These shreds surround the part to be , 
fastened without becoming so tight as to cause strangulation. 
For this reason neither linen nor cotton rags are employed, 
as they contract or expand according to the quantity of ; 
moisture they absorb ; and because, from their not allowing 
the nails to pierce them readily, we cannot well calculate 
the tension which we wish to produce. 
When there is a trellis we train the principal branches 
upon it, fastening them with osiers. The fruit branches 
and young shoots are tied with rushes. In gentlemen’s i 
gardens, guides, of which I have before spoken, are fixed to 
the trellis; and also a rod at each side of every principal 
branch, and parallel to its direction. The above is a con¬ 
venient way of training the fruit-branches in their proper 
place, which could not always be .done if they happened to 
be opposite the openings of the trellis. 
Latterly some walls have been covered with trellises of 
iron wire. I prefer those made of wood; but if the iron 
ones are used guides must be employed for training the 
principal branches, and when they are fastened to such 
trellis care must be taken to wrap the wire several times 
round with osier, so that the branches may rest on the latter, 
in order to prevent their bark from being bruised and rusted 
by the iron. 
a, Winter Nailing .—This is the first operation performed 
after the winter pruning, and the training of the principal 
branches. All the fruit-branches are.fastened in the place 
they should occupy, having due regard, at the same time, to 
their form and strength. 
It has been shown that the growth of a wood-branch likely 
to become too strong is diminished by close training, and 
keeping it in a confined position ; and that, on the contrary, 
it may be roused from a state of languor by giving it greater 
liberty. Nailing acts in the same way on the fruit-branches. 
The restraint that can be produced by nailing has beneficial 
effects chiefly on the upper sides and near the extremities, 
where vegetation is always more active, and which ought to 
be the more restrained, as it tends to increase the distance 
of prominent eyes from the place where the branch takes its 
rise. On the other hand, the branches on the lower side 
must be so. nailed as to be in the best position to allow of a 
free flow of sap. The fruit-branches must be nailed near 
enough the principal branches to shade them with their 
leaves from the sun, and so that no naked spaces may exist. 
In short, with a lew exceptions, among which are the fruit- 
branches that require to be constrained, all the fruit-branches 
ought to form with the branch that gives rise to them, a 
rectilinear angle of greater or less extent. 
Whatever care or foresight may be used in maintaining a 
supply of fruit-branches, naked spaces may occur on principal 
branches, more especially on their under sides. Such cases 
may be remedied in the following manner :— 
At a, Fig. 10, a naked space may be seen on the upper 
and under side of the branch. In order to fill it the fruit- 
branches a, a, situated on each side, and immediately beneath 
the naked space, are left, when pruned longer than usual, and 
are allowed to grow to the required extent. I suppress all the 
eyes in the intervals of the three shoots b,- b, b, and I en¬ 
courage the growth of the latter, in order to convert them into 
fruit-branches. When these are obtained, and the branches 
a, «, trained as near as possible to the principal branch 
that bears them, no naked space appears, and the branch is 
as well covered at this place as elsewhere. The three shoots 
5, b, b , are treated in the same way as the fruit-branches; 
and being successively replaced, like them, they produce 
fruit equally as well. This simple proceeding is advantageous 
in two ways ; it prevents the branch from being naked, and 
it affords fruit from the three fruit-branches on each side, of 
which we should have been deprived if this proceeding had 
been neglected. Ten years ago, at Andilly, I had occasion 
to cover, in this way, some principal branches that were 
naked to a very great extent. In order to do so I allowed 
a young branch, trained in the above-mentioned way, to 
grow along the naked branches, securing it close to the 
latter by including both in the same fastenings. In this way 
the naked branches were covered, whilst the means em¬ 
ployed were scarcely perceptible. 
We now readily cover naked portions of branches by 
means of inarching. It is thus performed:—Part of the 
end of a young shoot originating below the naked part is 
trained along the naked branch ; we raise from the latter a 
strip of bark as broad as the thickness of the shoot, and 
about an inch and a quarter in length, and we apply to this 
barked portion a part of the shoot sliced to half its thick¬ 
ness, with an eye in the middle; the inarched shoot is 
secured with worsted, leaving the top of the shoot free. 
This operation may be performed from April to August. In 
the following spring, early or late, according to the state of 
vegetation, the inarched shoot is divided from its original 
base immediately below where it was united to the naked 
branch ; and no more scar is left than results, from a 
shield-bud. 
It may happen that during the winter nailing it is neces¬ 
sary to suppress useless eyes. Instead, however, of entering 
, into details respecting that operation, it will be better to 
proceed with the subject in hand. 
b, Summer Nailing. —The summer nailing consists in 
fastening to the wall, when needful, those young shoots 
made by the wood-buds subsequently to the winter pruning 
and nailing. 
