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ing; and is more panicularly thefeafon for pruning fruit·
trees.
When a tree has produeed two well difpofed branches
witll fome weak ones intermixeo, they /hould be /harten·
cd equally to the length of nve or fix inchcs; and if the
pufnion of the two branches b~ irregular, there mull be
only one lefe to begin ,the formation of your tree.
A cree 'Io'iII fometimcs /hoot fiye, fix, or feven bran·
ches, the firfl year ; when this happens, three or four
only of the bcll branches are to,be preferved.
A O1ultítude of branches in che nrfl year, is not always
a fign of vigour; for ehey fometimes prove weak, occa·
/joned by the innrmiey of the rooes,: in pruning, general–
Iya vigorous ~ree cannot have toO many branches, if
they are lI'ell difpofed, nor a weak one too few.
The fap of all trees mull be kept within due bounds,
and a greater liberty is to be allowed to Ilrong trees
than to weak ones; for whiEh reafon flrong and . igorous
branches are left of a greater length than feeble ones :
and ie is befl tO pruoe we.k fiekly trees miy, tbat the
fap may not be too much wa!led.
In the pruning of \yall.fruil-lrees, all che braDehes
Ihooeing direaly forward are to be cut off clofe lO the
branch ehey fpring from; and the utmofl care mufl be
takeD to preV~Dt their being tOO much crouded with wood,
ie being OfteD omrrary to take off ~.en bming branchel,
to prefem your crees iD beauty and healtb; for it is im·
pollible too gre.t a number of branches /hould be fupplied
with juices as tbey ought; and if they are ooe, either
the bloíToml will drop off, or che fruie never ripeD.
ycu fhould erer be careful to preferve a convenient
fpace beeweeDone branch and anoeher in all prunings;
alfo Ibat one braDch does nOI crofs another: a !lender
bearing branch may, nOlwilhflanding, fomelimel be pero
mined 10 fleal behiod Ihe main body of Ihe tree, and
be no offcnce tO Ihe eye.
Thal a me may be the better difpofed 10 bear fruil,
Ihe branches /hould be carried horizonlally as much as
'P0lli'lle; for Ihe more perpeDdicular Ihe branches of ame
are led, the more Ihey are incliDed 10 rUD iDtO great
wood and barrennefs.
Small weak branches, /hooling from Ihe like, /hóuld
be cut away, as /hould aJl/hoo¡s pUt forth in aUlU01n.
WheD an pld Iree /hnols flrong<r branches¡owards Ihe
I:ollom tban thc top, and Ihe tep is frckly, it mufl ~e cut
off, and a neIV figure formed from the lower branehe~;
but if Ihe 10p be iD good you mufl cut off Ihe
Jower onc., unlefs it be a few Ihae are well plmd.
Where old trees are iDa weak condilion, to preferve
them, Ih:y are 10 be dilburthencd 10taJly, Iming a few
branches only /horrcned 10 liye or fix inehes.
Having thus laid down the principal rules for pruning
in general, we now come 10' Ihe management of Ihe peach
and olher fruit trm in pa~ieular.
When peaeh Irm are ,igorous, il is ben 10 dder the
nrn pruning lill Ihey are ready tO hluíTom, when you may
be at a ccrtainty in pref~"ing thofe hanches wkich are
mofl promifing of fruit, .nd Ihen10 !llonen Ihem as Ihey
re9uire.
You may {oon difeover Ihe fruit.hming branchel by
.1hcir fwelling buds, and you !hould reduce Ihem 10 the
E N N G
lenglh of 6ve Or fix inches; Ihe lan year's fhoot! maybe
MI ten or Iwdve inc hes lung.
In the fvace of aboul three' yem, all Ihe wood mull
al feveral prunings ¡,e taken away , but in the meaD lime
the wall is lObe fu rni!hed with othe, wood.
When you have redueed yonr tree 10 beauly and order,
you haye li!tle 10 do but Ihinning your fruit till Midfum.
Oler, when Ihe /hoots are to be /hortened and falleDed 10
gi,ing Ihe fruit the advaDlage of Ihefun as much
as polliLle.
lf the peach·tree makel over·hafle in ill bearing, il il
a lign of innrmilY, and mull be accordiogly managed, by
pruning the branches /hort, and plucking off all or moll
of Ihe blorroms or fruil; whic)1 it is much leCs di/licult
10 do than whe8 a peaeh is over .igorous iCor then Da·
lure is .pI to make a confufion, whieh requires Ihe great·
eH !kili 10 know what briDches are nt 10 be chofen, and
what rejeéted.
The peach·tree requires a feeond, and fomelimes a
third pruning; the la(1 of which is 10 be performed a·
boul the middle of May, or io June or July.
The apricot aod neétarioe may be pruntd iD Ihe Came
manner as the peach; but it /hould be obferved, Ihae the
apricot is more apl to run 10 wood IhaD aDy olher of thefe
kind of wall-fruil Irees. l'
The ufual ways of grafling are, in the cleft-iD the
bark-by approae~.' aqd w~ip'grafling.
Grafling in the'cleft, or flip·graftiDg, il perfonned on
the cherry, pear, aDd plumb floeks, iD Ihe manner fol–
lowing.
When you have chofeD a flock, in a fmooth place cut
off the head of it, !loping: ,then, wilh your knife make
Ihe 10p horizoorally even; which being dODe, make a flit
of near til'O ioches deep down Ihe middle of the !lock;
in which nx acyon, !loped on mh fide from a bud; aDd
dofing .lbe bark of bOlh exaélly, lie them round wilh
bafs.
Whcn· you have thus fini/hed your grafting, pUl a
quanwy of clay and horfe.dung, lempered togelher,
round Ihe flock and lowe, parl of the eyon; in doiDg
which, be careful not 10 diflurb the I.uer.
Grafling in the bark is genefdlly performed only on ap'
pies, by mting the head of Ihe flock as alreadydireéled;
bUI inflead of fli!ting il, Dit only Ihe bark a li!tle abo.e
an inch on Ihe fouth·wefl fide, or al long as lhe floped par!
of Ihe cyon i then, loofening Ihe IOp of Ihe ~ark wilh
your knife, pUl iD your cyon (beiog prepared Wlth aBa!
flope about ao inch long, ending in a poinr, and beguo
from theback·fide oC an eye) and clofing i.t as aboye, ca–
ver il alfo in the fame manner wilh clay.
When eilher an apple, pear, plumb, or chcrry me,
wanes a branch 10 make elle tree uniform, a grafl may be
put ioto Ihe fide wilhout cutling the h~ad of il.
Grafling byapproaeh, or in.rching, is p."forme~ wfeD
a flock grows fo near anolher me, the frUlt of whlch yoo
wonld propagate, that jt may be joined with a braneh of
that uee, by cu!ting the fides of Ihe braneh and Ilock a·
boul Ihree inches long. and ntting Ihem, IbH Ihe palfa.
ges of the fap may mte!; in whieh pollu,e lel th<01 be
bound and clayed.
When they are well cemenled, cut off Ibe head of the
.llack