Budding Apples And Other Fruit Trees

The great majority of the fruit trees which are bought from nurserymen have been budded by them on to stocks such as Paradise, Quince, Crab, and Pear. Budding is very rarely practised by amateurs, except in the case of Roses, on account of the difficulty of getting stocks. It requires the same careful manipulation as with Roses (see Chapter VII (July. The Heart Of The Year).). It is done at about the same time, under the same conditions, and in the same way. The following are the principal stocks used: for Apples, Broad-leaved Paradise, Crab, and Free; the first is the best for bush trees, and the second for standards. For Pears, the Quince and the Pear; the former is the better for bushes and the latter for standards. For Plums, the Mussel, Myrobalan, Brompton, or St. Julien; there is little superiority in any for bushes and standards. For Cherries, Mahaleb, Gean, and Gaskin, the first for bushes, the others for standards. For Apricots, Peaches, and Nectarines, the Almond, Mussel, St. Julien, and Bromp-ton. The stock question is a somewhat complicated one, and in the main it is best left to nurserymen. After all, fruit trees, already established on the stocks, are very cheap. The stocks should not be budded before they are three years old.

A pot of "Butterfly Flowers" (Schizanthus), a splendid GREENHOUSE PLANT, BOTH FOR SPRING AND AUTUMN BLOOM.

Currants

Bushes in the open will have been cleared of their fruit, and may be pruned, the Reds and Whites by the pinching of the breastwood to six leaves, the Blacks by cutting out old wood which has borne fruit. Top-dressings of manure and sewage will help Black Currants to push the strong young wood, which is so important for the next year's fruiting. Trees trained on north walls will still be carrying fruit, perhaps, and netting, held clear of the wall, will have to be used to protect it from birds.

Gooseberries

Practically the same remarks as those made with reference to Red Currants apply to Gooseberries. The bush fruit will have been used, and late wall crops will need protection. Summer pinching may be practised with advantage. A sharp look-out should be kept for the American mildew, and if any diseased patches are seen on the young wood, the twigs should be cut out and burned immediately.

Grapes

In early Vineries, started in winter, the fruit may now have been used, and the object of the grower is to get the wood ripe and brown, particularly at the base of the laterals, where good buds are wanted for the following year's crop. A vigorous washing with the hose will do good as a preliminary; afterwards free ventilation and full exposure to sun will be helpful. If the laterals are so thick that sun and air cannot get at them, they should be shortened. Successional vineries with the fruit hanging ripe will prove a powerful attraction to wasps, and means of baffling them must be resorted to, or they will spoil a good deal of fruit. Perhaps the simplest plan is to cover the ventilator openings with hexagon netting, which large seedsmen supply. Bottles containing sour beer may be hung outside the house as traps. Late Grapes will be advancing towards the ripening stage, but they have a good deal to do yet, and careful attention should be devoted to the ventilation. Close and damp down about three o'clock, and open the ventilators again early the following morning.