334 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
October  1,  1898. 
Trees  trained  thinly  over  roofs  may  not  always  prove  quite  so  pro¬ 
ductive  as  extra  well  managed  trees  in  potf,  but  they  invariably 
surpass  those  trained  up  walls  or  grown  as  bush  trees.  They  also 
succeed  under  a  variety  of  circumstances,  and  I  have  recently  met  with 
what  to  me  is  an  exceptional  case.  At  Badminton,  Figs,  in  common 
with  other  choice  fruit,  are  in  great  request,  and  Mr.  Nash  endeavours 
to  meet  this  demand  to  the  best  of  his  ability  with  the  conveniences  at 
his  command.  Part  of  a  west  roof  in  a  span-roofed  plant  house  has 
for  several  years  past  been  thinly  covered  with  a  Fig  tree,  and 
succeeded  so  well  that  it  was  decided  to  extend  it  through  the  partition 
to  a  plant  stove  adjoining.  This  move  has  also  turned  out  successfully, 
and  when  I  saw  the  tree  recently  it  had  covered  about  one-third  of 
the  roof.  Excellent  dishes  of  fruit  are  gathered  tiom  it  late  in  May, 
and  subsequently  the  branches  may  be  said  to  be  in  almost  continuous 
bearing  till  quite  late  in  the  season.  Late  in  September  there  were 
most  delicious  ripe  Figs  for  gathering,  and  the  young  wood  seemed 
to  be  crowded  with  successional  fruit,  the  greater  portion  of  it  promising 
to  ripen. 
On  questioning  Mr,  Nash  as  to  th©  effect  of  keeping  that  portion  of 
the  tree  in  a  moist  heat,  he  assured  me  that  it  was  not  possible  to  prevent 
a  natural  rest  taking  place,  the  branches  shedding  their  leaves  in  due 
course.  It  is  only  fair  to  point  out  that  the  roots  are  wholly  confined  to 
a  border  inside  the  greenhouse,  and  that  would  be  in  favour  of  resting. 
Why  then  should  not  more  plant  stoves  have  their  roofs  thinly  clothed 
with  Fig  branches-?  They  would  afford  suflacient,  but  not  too  much, 
shade  to  the  plants  underneath,  obviating  the  necessity  for  blinds,  while 
the  leaves  would  fall  before  the  days  become  very  short.  At  Badminton 
the  Crotons,  Dracjenas,  Pandanuses,  Palms,  and  the  other  usual  occu¬ 
pants  of  plant  stoves  looked  happy  enough,  and  stouter,  firmer  short- 
jointed  Fig  growth  could  not  possibly  be  found  under  glass. 
Fig  trees  are  decidedly  of  noble  growth,  and  might  therefore  be  also 
trained  up  conservatory  roofs,  combining  the  ornamental  with  the 
useful.  In  this  instance  they  could  be  planted  in  inside  borders,  but  if 
I  intended  to  cover  the  roof  of  a  plant  stove  with  Fig  growth  a  restricted 
outside  root-run  would  be  afforded.  There  is  no  comparison  b^ween 
the  fruit  ripened  under  glass  and  that  gathered  from  trees  against  the 
sunniest  open  walls,  and  the  seconu  crop  fruits,  if  smaller,  are  yet 
superior  in  point  of  quality  to  those  produced  earlier  in  the  season.  It 
is  not  often  that  house-grown  fruit,  properly  ripened,  fails  to  please,  but 
the  taste  has  frequently  to  be  acquired  for  Figs  ripened  in  the  open. 
For  this  article  to  be  sufficiently  instructive  reference  ought  to  be 
made  to  varieties  of  Figs,  and  a  few  of  the  most  important  cultural 
details  to  be  observed.  I  am  not  in  a  position  to  write  confidently 
about  any  of  the  newer  varieties,  but  am  of  the  opinion  that  it  will  be 
a  difficult  matter  to  find  one  that  equals,  to  say  nothing  of  surpassing, 
the  good  old  Brown  Turkey  as  an  all-round  Fig.  It  succeeds  admirably 
either  in  pots  or  borders,  can  be  forced  hard  or  grown  without  the  aid 
of  fire  heat,  crops  heavily  and  continuously.  The  fruit  are  of  good  size, 
not  BO  liable  to  split  prematurely  as  are  others  that  could  be  named,  and 
the  quality  cannot  be  beaten.  Of  wbat  other  variety  of  fruit  can  so 
much  be  truthfully  said  ?  If  an  addition  had  to  be  made  to  the  list  to 
be  cultivated  it  would  be  in  the  direction  of  the  Ischias,  White  Mar¬ 
seilles,  or  other  smaller  varieties,  rather  than  Brunswick,  Castle  Kennedy, 
or  large  sorts,  as  these  are  either  shy  bearers  or  poor  in  quality,  Negro 
Largo  succeeds  well  when  the  roots  are  much  restricted,  and  the  quality 
is  good. 
Wholly  confining  the  roots  to  pots  does  not  often  answer  well ;  but  if 
space  is  limited,  or  if  the  trees  must  be  turned  out  of  the  houses  in  the 
autumn,  allowing  the  roots  to  spread  out  from  the  drainage  holes  and 
over  the  sides  of  pots  into  turves  or  loamy  compost  serves  to  sustain  the 
trees  in  a  fairly  vigorous  and  productive  state,  the  trees  not  suffering 
greatly  from  the  loss  of  most  of  these  roots.  For  those  to  be  planted 
out  there  must  be  no  rich  extensive  borders — such  as  Grape  Vines  are 
supposed  to  require— constructed,  these  promoting  a  gross,  unfruitful 
habit  of  growth.  The  most  profitable  outdoor  trees  that  I  have  ever 
seen  had  in  one  instance  to  root  in  an  open  stable  yard,  or  a  continuation 
of  a  coach  road.  In  the  same  district  another  set  of  trees  of  great  size 
were  rooting  in  a  narrow  border  at  the  foot  of  the  Shakespeare  Cliff, 
Dover,  and  formed  with  the  chalky  soil  brought  down  from  those  cliffs 
in  “  trug  ”  baskets.  Those  trees  formed  extra  stout,  short-jointed  wood 
which  invariably  fruited  freely,  and  there  was  very  little  superfluous 
growth  to  cut  out. 
■  The  roots  of  those  to  be  cultivated  under  glass  should  also  be  confined 
to  comparatively  small,  not  over-rich,  solid  borders,  composed,  say,  of  a 
mixture  of  two  parts  of  brown  or  yellow  loam  to  one  each  of  old  mortar 
rubbish  or  chalk  and  decayed  manure,  a  sprinkling  of  half-inch  bones  also 
doing  good  service.  Figs,  however,  must  not  be  starved  at  the  roots.  What 
is  wanted  is  an  abundance  of  root  fibres  in  a  close  compass,  and  these 
must  have  water  and  liquid  manure  freely  and  often.  They  are  very 
hungry  rooted,  and  more  than  a  match  for  the  roots  of  any  other  fruit 
trees  or  Vines  that  might  unwisely  be  associated  with  them. 
The  top  growth  must  have  plenty  of  light  and  as  much  sunshine  as 
possible.  Thin  training  is  equally  essential.  The  heaviest  crops  of  fine 
fruit  are  given  by  those  branches  trained  perfectly  clear  of  each  other, 
and  no  greater  mistake  than  crowding  the  shoots  so  that  they  overlap 
each  other  can  well  be  made  in  Fig  culture.  It  is  during  the  growing 
period  when  the  thinning  of  growths  should  take  place.  If  it  is  left  till 
the  winter  the  shoots  reserved  will  be  too  soft  to  be  fruitful,  and  severe 
pruning  further  results  in  the  production  of  a  superabundance  of  sappy 
wood.  Trees  or  bushes  with  clear  stems,  removing  all  sucker  growth, 
are  to  be  preferred,  but  are  not  absolutely  indispensable.— 
W.  IGQULDKN. 
WINTER  PRUNING. 
Of  the  period  from  fruit  bushes  and  trees  assuming  the  sere  and 
yellow  leaf,  or  other  autumnal  tints  indicative  of  speedy  fall,  to  the 
swelling  of  the  buds,  there  must  be  some  conflict  of  views,  or  no 
principles  involved  as  regards  the  proper  time  of  performing  the  operations 
comprised  under  the  heading,  such  as  thinning,  removing  or  shortening 
growtus  of  the  preceding  season  or  seasons  for  pruning  as  carried  on  at 
different  times  and  in  divers  manners.  But  there  must  be  a  right  time 
and  proper  mode  of  performing  the  essential  operations  of  pruning  in 
order  to  secure  the  form  of  bush  or  tree  desired,  maintain  it  in  symme¬ 
trical  shape,  prevent  crossing  and  crowding  of  growths,  and  promote 
the  production  of  remunerative  crops  of  fruit.  These  conditions  imply 
a  healthy  and  fruitful  subject,  for  the  unhealthy  cannot  produce  fine 
clear  skinned  fruit,  while  the  weakling  and  exuberant  cumber  the 
ground.  The  health  of  the  bush  or  tree  and  its  production  of  fruit 
depends  on  certain  conditions  of  soil,  situation  and  cultivation.  In  the 
latter  is  included  the  operation  of  pruning,  which  is  a  very  wide  subject, 
but  for  our  present  purpose  will  be  restricted  to  the  use  of  the  knife,, 
saw,  secateur  and  spade  from  the  time  the  leaves  assume  their  autumnal 
hues  and  the  swelling  of  the  buds  in  the  spring. 
First  comes  the  operation  in  connection  with  the  lifting  and  planting 
of  bushes  and  trees.  The  heads  correspond  to  the  roots,  and  vice  versa. 
If  the  head  consists  of  strong  and  long  growths  the  roots  will  be  pro¬ 
portionately  elongated,  deep  striking  and  far  reaching,  comparatively 
few  in  number,  and  the  fibrelets  feeding  at  a  considerable  distance 
from  the  collar.  It  follows,  therefore,  that  in  lifting  such  bush  or 
tree  the  whole,  or  nearly,  of  the  fibry  roots  are  left  in  the  soil,  and 
the  root  system  is  reduced  to  one-third  in  proportion  to  that  of  the 
head.  This  is  a  common  case  with  bushes  or  trees  not  recently  trans¬ 
planted,  and  especially  standard  Apple,  Cherry,  and  Pear  on  free  stocks, 
the  roots  not  being  more,  frequently  less,  in  number  than  the  main 
branches,  and  at  most  half,  commonly  two-thirds  their  length.  Such  is 
the  case  under  careful  and  general  lifting.  There  are  worse  examples — 
trees  with  a  lot  of  top  and  little  bottom — mere  stumps  of  unbranched 
fibreless  roots,  and  these  much  dried  by  exposure  in  the  market  places. 
Now  when  the  bush  or  tree  was  intact  it  required  all  its  roots  to 
imbibe  nutriment  in  solution  from  the  soil  for  the  support  of  its  head 
during  the  growing  season.  How,  then,  is  a  tree  denuded  of  two-thirds- 
of  its  roots,  and  those  parts  the  most  active  in  imbibing  the  soil  waters, 
to  supply  itself  with  nourishment  in  the  season  after  planting  for  the 
support  of  the  existent  head  ?  Growth  in  such  case  is  out  of  the  question, 
for  there  cannot  possibly  be  any  but  a  feeble  pushing  of  growth  and 
development  of  leaves  in  proportion  to  the  matter  stored  in  the  tree 
before  lifting  and  transferred  with  it  to  the  planting  station,  for  the 
meagre  roots  can  do  no  more  than  imbibe  soil  water  sufficient  for  the- 
development  of  the  cambium,  and  Insure  its  utilisation  for  the  pushing 
of  new  growths.  Such  growths  are  generally  sufficient  to  enable  the 
tree  to  form  calluses  at  the  extremities  of  the  roots,  and  from  this 
cellular  matter  push  roots  into  the  soil.  These  usually  supply  sufficient 
.  food  for  the  maintenance  of  the  stubby  growths  and  their  small  leaves. 
Such  tree  has  received  a  severe  check  by  the  disproportion  of  the  roots 
to  the  head,  and  in  consequence  concentrates  its  energies  on  fruit- 
producing  buds,  forming  spurs  along  the  preceding  year’s  growth,  and  in 
the  following  season  may  produce  a  profusion  of  fruit,  the  branches 
hanging,  as  the  saying  goes,  “  like  ropes  of  Onions.”  But,  in  such  case, 
where  is  the  growth  of  shoot  and  spur  essential  for  the  tree’s  continuance 
in  bearing  7  Another  year  must  elapse  before  the  tree  has  got  sufficient 
hold  of  the  soil,  and  is  provided  with  ramifications  for  imbibing  nutrition 
for  the  support  of  a  similar  crop,  with  provision  made  for  enlargement 
of  the  head  and  continuance  of  the  fertility. 
Thus  three  years  are  required  for  the  tree  to  recover  its  equilibrium 
of  top  and  bottom,  when  only  it  may  be  considered  firmly  established, 
and  nothing  is  gained  in  that  time  but  an  early  fruiting  habit,  which  is 
frequently  lost  directly  the  tree  gets  a  good  hold  of  the  soil,  and  produces 
nothing  but  leaves  for  an  indefinite  period.  This,  of  course,  depends  on 
the  nature  of  the  soil  and  the  management.  If  the  soil  be  of  such 
character  as  to  induce  a  fibrous  root  formation,  the  growths  above 
the  ground  will  be  stout  and  fruit  production  progressively  increase  with 
the  years  until  the  tree  reaches  its  best  period,  when  it  is  a  matter  of 
nutrition  and  continuance  in  health  for  profitableness  or  otherwise.. 
But  if  the  soil  be  of  a  loose  and  rich  nature  the  roots  gain  the  mastery 
of  the  head,  supply  it  with  more  material  for  elaboration  than  the 
climatic  conditions  admit  of  utilisation,  and  the  growths  become 
exuberant,  sappy,  and  fruitless.  Such  tree  is  a  fitting  subject  for  root- 
pruning — its  roots  must  be  cut,  as  in  the  transplanted,  in  order  to 
concentrate  the  energies  on  reproduction,  and  the  soil  made  firm  to 
induce  a  fibrous  root  formation. 
The  other  picture  is  a  tree  with  a  strong  bead  and  two-thirds  of  the 
roots  cut  off  in  lifting  for  transplanting,  and  the  branches  so  reduced  or 
shortened  as  to  make  them  correspond  with  the  roots.  Who  practises 
this  7  Everybody  likes  something  to  look  at — a  tree  with  a  fine  head,  a 
heap  for  the  money,  and  an  early  return  for  the  outlay.  Well,  foresters 
do  not  practise  it  on  coniferous  trees,  but  they  do  select  Austrian  Pines,. 
Larches  and  Scotch  Firs  for  safe  removal  that  are  either  young  or 
frequently  and  recently  transplanted  in  order  to  have  them  with  roots 
proportionate  to  the  tops,  for  experience  has  proven  that  the  tree  losing 
two-thirds  or  more  of  its  roots  in  removal  is  money  wasted  and  labour  in 
vain.  This  is  the  case  with  all  evergreens,  and  it  applies  to  deciduous 
with  comparatively  equal  force,  for,  though  favoured  by  there  being  no 
parts  of  evaporation — ^the  leaves — as  in  evergreen  trees,  there  comes  a 
time,  and  that  the  most  trying,  as  there  are  few  parts  lor  imbibing  soil 
