'JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
■  October  7,  1897. 
:ui 
The  soil  is  heavy  and  difficult  to  work,  but  fertile,  and  the  situa¬ 
tion  is  well  elevated,  and  for  this  reason  escapes  the  spring  frosts 
•experienced  in  low-lying  districts.  Planting  was  commenced  with 
standard  Apple  and  Pear  trees,  but  these  have  given  the  least  satisfac¬ 
tion  up  to  the  present  time,  though  a  few  are  now  beginning  to  yield 
in  consequence  indulged  in  many  experiments,  that  would  perhaps 
not  have  been  otherwise  undertaken.  Yet  to  a  man  of  close  observa¬ 
tion,  a  real  student  of  Nature,  these  have  yielded  considerable  interest, 
and  proved  of  practical  value  also. 
The  result  of  some  twelve  years’  experience  may  be  summed  up 
something  like  profitable  crops.  Dwarf  Apples  and  Pears,  with  half¬ 
standard  or  bush  Plums,  have  afforded  by  far  the  best  returns,  and 
the  majority  are  now  in  excellent  condition,  yielding  in  fair  seasons 
bountilul  crops  of  clean  well-developed  fruits.  For  several  years  the 
owner  regarded  his  fruit  plantation  as  a  hobby  pure  and  simple,  and 
in  a  few  words,  and  though  all  his  conclusions  may  not  be  in  accord¬ 
ance  with  the  opinions  of  others,  he  has  certainly  had  ample  justification 
for  them  in  his  own  practice. 
First,  as  to  the  age  of  the  trees  to  be  planted,  IMr.  A.  (as  we  may 
call  him)  is  emphatically  of  the  opinion  that,  allowing  for  the  difference 
