iir> 2 P R A C T I C E O E G A R D E N IN G . P a r t I I I .
it over, within 8iii
same k iu d ; or tho gaps may
n ex t to tho gap be reserved i
earth to within 3 in. o fth e cloanod of all
side branches or twigs, cut it half through a t th e height of the earth in the gap, on the side farthest from
10 in, of tlie ground, and to fill up the gaps with stout well-rooted plants of the
_ _ 3 be mended by the following method: — I.e t one o fth e stoutest thorn plants
:ap uncut, and the space be dug over, or it may require to be filled up with rich
............. height of the top of the ditch. Then having cleaned th e thorn plant (
it, and lay it down upon the earth, securing the most distant end from rising up by a hooked pin ; then
cover it all over with rich earth, so as to make it the general height of the top of the ditch : and the thorn
plant, so laid down and covered, will take root, and send up a profusion of shoots over its whole length.
If one plant will not reach the whole extent of th e gap, one ;vt each side probably will. 7'hc surface of
the bank should be pointed up, and the ditch scoured as above directed in plashing. (Sang.)
5897. I n other cases, when the hedge is getting tliin below, or too tall, and when the stems arc placed
regularly within 8 in. or 10 in. of one another, and where it is necessary to retain a fence and a t the same
time to cut so as to have a supply of young shoots from the bottom, the plan to be followed is to cut
alternately the one part to within 8 in. or lOin. of the bottom, and the other a t 4 ft. high, dressing the
bank and scouring the ditch, as directed above. In cases where two rows of quicks have been planted,
th e front one is to be cut by the surface, and the other at 4 ft. or 5 ft. high, as circumstances may require]
(Ihid.)
6898. Neglected hedgcroiv timber may be improved by pruning according to its age. Blaikie recommends
what he calls foreshortening, or cutting in, as th e best method both for young and old hedgerow
timber. “ This operation is performed by shortening the over luxuriant side-branches (j5g.958. «), but
not to cut them to a stump, as in snag
pruning ; ou the contrary, the top only
of the branch should be cut off, and the
amputation effected immediately above
where an auxiliary side-shoot springs
from the branch on which the operation
is to be performed (b) ; this may be at
the distance of 2ft., 4 ft., or an yothe r
number of feet from the stem of th c tre e ;
and suppose the auxiliary branch which
5 left Ovhen the top of the branch is
cut off) is also over-luxuriant, or looks
unsightly, it should also be shortened
a t its sub-auxiliary branch, in the same
manner as before described. The
branches of trees pruned in this manner
are always kept within due bounds;
they do not extend over tho adjoining
land to the injury of th e occupier, at
least, not until the stem of the tree
rises to a height out of the reach of
pruning, when the top branches can do comparatively little injury to th e land. By adopting this
system of pruning, the bad effects of close prnning on old trees, and snag pruning on young ones, will be
avoided; the country will be ornamented ; ancl the community at large, as well as individuals, benefited.”
Pruning by foreshortening has been ably treated on, and strongly recommended, hy Mr. Billington, in
his Scries o f Facts on liaising. Pruning, and Training Trees, ^ c .; and by Mr. Cree, in the Quarterly
Journal o f Agriculture.
6899. Uedgeroxus frequently require to be altered in direction, to improve the form, or increase the
contents, of farm enclosures (Jig. 959,). Generally, and especially in flat arable lands, this is done by
959
eradicating such as are in unsuitable directions {«), and substituting others (h) in parallel, or a t least in
straight lines ; but in hilly grounds, and where the surface will be improved by shelter, it frequently
happens th a t a crooked hedge is superseded by two straight ones, and tlie interval (c) filled up with
plantation.
5900. Ornamental plantations are no less frequently neglected than such a.s are considered chiefly useful.
Clumps, belts, and screens which have become thin, because thoy have not been thinned, are almost
everywhere to be met with. “ In those neglected plantations,” says Lord Meadowbank, “ wliere daylight
may be seen for miles, through naked stems, chilled and contracted by the cold, the mischief might,
perhans. be partially remedied, hy planting young trees round the extreinities, which, having room to
spread luxuriantly, would exclude the winds, ancl th e internal spaces might be thickened up with oak,
silver firs, beeches, and such other trees as thrive with a small portion of light. Wlion once the wiiicl
B ook V . C U L T U R E , E T C ., O F P L A N T A T IO N S .
is excluded, the weakest of the old trees might be taken out, and the others left
to profit by th e shelter and space th a t is afforded.” (L ife o f Lord Karnes, lyy
Tytler.) One of th e most hopele.ss cases of improvement in this department is
th at of an old clump of Scotch pines (Jig. 960.), from which scarcely any trees
can be taken without risking th e failure of th e remainder. T h e only way is to
add to it, either by some scattered groups in one direction, or in various directions.
Where a clump consists of hard wood, either entirely or in part, it may
sometimes, if effect permits, be reduced to a group, by gradually rcducing the
number o fth e trees. The group left should be composed of two or three trees
of at least two species, different in bulk, and somewhat in habit, in order that
th e combined mass may not have th e formality of the clump.
5901. Scattered tr e e s ....o...r.n...a..m....e..n..t.a...l scenery otherwi•se of very good shapes, and very well managed as
to pruning, aesiroying tne browsing line, &c., individually, are often, from want of thinping in some
places, and thickening in others, deficient in massiveness (fig. 961.) ; the obvious remedy is to thin out
some (a), and plant others, so as to destroy the straggling non-cooperating appearance which such trees
present, and produce something of group, connection, massiveness, and character (fig. 962.).
5902. Wounds, bruises, casualties, and defects oftrees. Small wounds, such as are required to be made
by judicious pruning, easily heal up of themselves ; large wounds, by amputations of branches, above
6 in diameter should, if possible, never be made. Even wounds of 6 m. diameter, or under, will heal
quicker b y th e application of any material which excludes the air and preserves the wood from cor-
ruption • and we agree with Sang in recommending coal-tar, or the liquor produced from coals m m anufacturing
gas. It is. however, less favourable to the progress of the bark over the wound than a coating
of clay or cow-dung, covered with moss to keep it moist. Pontey recommends putty and two coats of
paint over it. In case the wood, a t a bruised or amputated place, have by neglect become already corrupted
the rotten or dead wood is to be pared out quite into the quick ; and th e wound is then to be
dressed with tar, or clay covered with a piece of mat, sacking, or moss. A woun^ hollowed out as above,
may a t first appear an unsightly blemish ; but, in subsequent years, nature W'H Ity the coats of wooci,
under the new-formed bark, thicker a t that place ; and probably may, in time, fill it up to be even with
^''590™ All f ;m £ r e ? b y Vha tever means produced, are to be managed as the circumstances of the case
require. If a large branch be broken over at the middle of its length, it should be sawn clear off close by
the lateral which is nearest to the bole of the tree ; but, if there is no lateral, or branch, capable to carry
forward the growth, cut the main or fractured branch in quite to the bole. Iu both cases, trea t the
wounds as above recommended. ^ -1 a r 1 j
5904. Interior rotting, arising from th e dampness of the soil, cannot by the ty t of man be cured,
though it might have been prevented by timely draining. The hearts of trees frecjuently rot, where
there is no excess of moisture, and especially such as have been produced Irom old rciots le ft_ in ty e
ground by a previous felling. Such roots, when in good ground, send up very great shoots with few
leaves in proportion to their sizes ; by th e absence of a profusion of these, properly to concoct the juices,
so abundantly supplied by th e roots, the fibre of the wood is loose and imperfect ; th e next season will
supply more leaves in proportion to the supply of juices, yet not a sufficient number for making perfect
timber • several years may pass before this event arrive : thus, crude and ill-digestcd timber, disposed to
premature decay, is the foundation over which subsequent coatings of wood are laid : yet, however perfect
these may be, they do not prevent th e progress of decomposition going on in the n ten o r. Nature
teaches how necessary numerous leaves are to the proportion of th e solid wood ; the cotyledons and
subsequent leaves of a one-year-old tree are a thousand times greater, compared to its solid contents,
than are the leaves to the solid contents o fth e first year’s shoots from roots like the above.
5905. Shakes often arise from the weight and multiplicity of top branches, and might have been prevented
by timely pruning. Shakes or rents in th e boles of trees, however, often happen where there is
no excess of tops. Sometimes the rain, running down from th e branches, wets one part of the bole, while
the rest is comparatively dry. If this circumstance is succeeded by an intense frost, before th e wetted
side becomes dry, the bole may be rent for a great length, and perhaps to the depth of th e core. Shakes
or rents, like th e above, are difficult to cure. T h e best method of helping thern is, to trace out their
upper extremity, caulk it up with oakum, and pitch it over, to prevent the ram descending that way m
5906. / » ^^ses o f hollowness, Pontey recommends probing to the bottom, letting out the water, if any,
with an auger, drying the cavity with a cloth, filling it with dry sand, plugging it with wood and oakum,
and then painting it over. . ~ j ■ x
• 5907. Decorticated stems, or branches stripped by lightning, or otherwise, if the soft wood is not much
injured, will heal over and become covered with bark; and this the more certainly and rapidly, it the air
be excluded by a coating of adhesive matter, as cow-dung and quicklime, or tying on moss or bandages
of mat or cloth. Pontey gives an instance in which such treatment was successiui m the case of an apple
tree. (Pruner, p. 230.) , x
5908. Withered or decayed tops may arise from age and incipient decay ; b u t also, as Pontey states,
from improper pruning, or the want of it. We often see it from improper prumng of elms which, after
having been close pruned to their summits for many years, are left entirely to nature ; in that case they
branch out luxuriantly below, and the top withers. By neglecting to thm out the branches on the stems
of non-resinous trees, the same effect may be produced. , , . r
5909. Stunted bushy tops show a deficiency of nourishment : on very tall naked stems it is Irom these
circumstances; and on short stems, from defects in the soil. Obliquely placed misshapen head.s.m detached
trees, commonly proceed from th e same causes and want of shelter. Stunted growth, both m tops
and stems, is also produced by ivy, and by lichens, mosses, the mistletoe, and other parasites. Ivy com-
Eresses the bark, precludes its expansion, as well as excludes air and moisture, by which the outer bark
ecomes rigid and corky. Trees will live a long time under the influence both ol deformity and disease,
though the timber produced must necessarily be defective.
5910. Excessive exudations of gum and resins are peculiar to resinous and some other trees when overpruned,
or pruned at improper times. Mildew, honeydew, and aphides attack the oak, beech, poplar,
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