ways it may be made to produce rich- 
flavoured fruit, and with more certainty 
than most other subjects- similarly 
treated, except Yvdien left to the vicissi¬ 
tudes of our seasons out of doors; here 
the production of ripe fruit is quite a 
matter of chance dependent on the 
character of our summers. If the wea¬ 
ther is warm, Pigs may be had through¬ 
out the south and western counties, 
though but seldom in the midland or 
northern portion of the kingdom. A 
remarkable feature in the character of 
the fig is its habit of producing two 
crops of fruit in each season, and, under 
favorable circumstances, both these 
may be matured and brought to perfec¬ 
tion. In the open air the trees should 
be planted in a shallow border of loam, 
having a deep stratum of draining mate¬ 
rials, such as stones and broken bricks, 
laid beneath it, and intermingled with 
the soil; for if the latter is deep and 
moist the trees form large succulent 
branches that are not ripened before the 
frosts occur, and, in consequence, the 
cultivator’s chief object should be to 
ensure only medium-sized, short-jointed 
shoots ; a condition that will be found 
the most fruitful, in addition to its 
other advantages. The pruning of fig 
trees in the open air should be left till 
danger from severe frost is passed, and 
yet it must be done before the seasonal 
action of the plant begins ; the middle 
or end of March is a safe time in ordi¬ 
nary seasons, when all superfluous 
branches should be cut completely out, 
so that they may, when nailed in their 
places, be at least eighteen inches from 
each other, the points must be left 
untouched, and as the fruit is borne on 
the previous year’s wood, the pruning 
must be regulated so as to ensure a 
sufficiency of it. Through the summer 
it will be necessary to thin the branches 
to about the number required for the 
next season; and, as the fig abounds in 
a milky juice, and is likely to bleed, it is 
far preferable to perform this disbudding 
at an early period, while they are yet 
small, which will prevent any danger 
from the exuding of sap, and supersede 
the necessity of much pruning in spring. 
The leaves should be moderately 
thinned, so as to allow the free admis¬ 
sion of air and sunlight to the fruit; 
the latter, also, ’will require thinning 
where they are produced in clusters, 
and, when nearly ripe, must be pro¬ 
tected from the ravages of wasps and 
other insects, by enveloping them in 
muslin bags, or they will be soon 
spoiled. The small fruit, which is 
usually produced in autumn, should be 
rubbed off, as it is impossible for it to 
ripen, and its presence only increases 
the chance of the branches suffering 
from frost; and it is advisable, in ex 
posed situations, or severe weather, to 
cover the trees with mats, lest the 
young wood perish, and along with it 
the next year’s supply of figs. On the 
southern coast of the kingdom these 
trees succeed better than in any other 
part, as they even bear fruit when 
treated as standards without any pro¬ 
tection. When cultivated under glass 
the fig, as before remarked, is a cer¬ 
tain and abundant bearer. Nor does it 
matter in what particular way it is 
managed, so that it is supplied with 
suitable soil composed of turfy loam and 
rotten manure, well drained: a steady, 
gradually rising temperature.; plenty of 
moisture, both at the roots and on the 
foliage while in an active state,—the 
latter is particularly necessary in hot 
weather, or much injury will be occa¬ 
sioned by red spider; and a proper 
regard paid to the balancing of the 
spread of the head to the powers of the 
roots, that the proper amount of vigour 
may be maintained. Planted in tubs 
and kept in the conservatory, the trees 
will yield one good crop of fruit annu¬ 
ally, and this may be had at an early 
season if they be removed to the vinery 
or pine-stove in March; planted into 
the borders of the latter, they will 
continue to bear in a continuous succes¬ 
sion, and, treated by themselves in a 
house devoted to the purpose, they will 
yield two crops, one in May, and the 
other in September, with great regu¬ 
larity. A temperature of 45° is suffi¬ 
cient to start the trees into growth, 
which, by the time they have fully* 
