JULY. 
143 
dispersed over the roots of such plants as are immediately over its surface. I 
need scarcely say that Mr. Day’s Saccolabiums, Aerides, and such like plants, 
in a medium of this kind, under Mr. Stone’s cultural care, are indicative of 
high health and vigour. 
Lastly, we all know and fear the ravages of spot; we look with the greatest 
concern upon the insidious way in which it works itself over a collection of 
Orchideae, and ofttimes disfigures for life the appearance of many valuable plants. 
I unhesitatingly pronounce that there seems to be no absolute cure for some of 
the more aggravated forms of it; but beyond question skilful treatment will in 
a great measure prevent it. There are a variety of conditions that must be ob¬ 
served before any cultivator can command success; but in all my experience I 
have never beei^ able to count upon it with the same certainty—I have never 
been able to claim immunity from the inroads of spot in the same satisfactory 
manner, until after I had reduced the “watering” theory to every-day practice. 
REMARKS ON FRUIT TREE CULTURE.—No. 11. 
To preserve the vitality of the central part of fruit trees should be a very 
great object with the cultivator. How often may we see in places where the 
practice of pruning and management is not understood, the greater portion of 
the bearing wood and fruit at the extremities of the branches of even large 
trees, while the centre of the tree is bare of any growing wood, consisting 
only of naked branches, fully exposed, be it observed, to the full glare of the 
sun, of the effects of which exposure I shall have something more to say 
presently. Just now I wish to impress on the mind of the young practitioner 
the necessity of commencing early to lay the foundation for keeping the centre 
well filled, by cherishing those extra shoots mentioned in my last article, as 
enabling the operator to thin out the extremities occasionally, and keep his 
trees at home, as many old hands call it, meaning thereby well furnished from 
the centre to the circumference, not only with wood, but with foliage, to shelter 
it from the evil effects which often result from the fierce rays of the sun striking 
on its exposed surface when nailed close to a wall. This important subject is 
one which is worthy of a little extra attention; we have to remember that a 
Peach tree against a wall is in an artificial condition, both as to treatment and 
position. We do not anywhere find that healthy trees growing in a natural 
state, and with plenty of room for development, ever grow in such a manner as 
to expose their stems to the full action of the sun’s rays in summer. On the 
contrary, it would appear that the natural tendency of growth is to spread the 
branches out and clothe them with foliage, so that the powerful rays of the 
sun are broken, and the stems kept comparatively shaded ; not that I would 
infer from this that these effects are ever injurious in the case of trees standing 
in the open ground, only that the natural tendency of growth would appear to 
be to shade the stems by foliage. The case, however, is different with trees 
trained against a wall. There the rays of the sun are intercepted and inten¬ 
sified, and hence it is that I consider it so very important that young wood 
should be encouraged to grow in the centre of trained trees, and more parti¬ 
cularly of Peaches and Nectarines, in order that the larger shoots, which carry 
the extreme bearing wood, may be kept shaded by the foliage. I am well 
convinced that injurious effects do often arise from the action of a powerful 
hot sun striking upon such shoots when fully exposed and bare of protecting 
foliage. This is often evidenced by the upper sides of such shoots having the 
bark contracted, split across, indurated or unnaturally hardened, and sometimes 
killed, by which means the flow of the sap and consequent enlargement of the 
