_Of the replanting of Trees, and furnishing the Orchard._
As soone as your seedes, or sets, haue brought forth plants, those
plants, through time, made able, and haue receiued grafts, and those
grafts haue couered the heads of the stockes and put forth goodly
branches, you shall then take them vp, and replant them, (because the
sooner it is done the better it is done) in those seuerall places of
your Orchard which before is appointed, and is intended to be prepared,
both by dungging, digging, and euery orderly labour, to receiue euery
seuerall fruit. And herein you shall vnderstand, that as the best times
for grafting are euery month (except October and Nouember) and at the
change of the moone, so the best times for replanting, are Nouember and
March onely, vnlesse the ground be cold and moist and then Ianuary, or
February must be the soonest all wayes, excepted that you doe not
replant in the time of frost, for that is most vnholsome.
{SN: The taking vp of trees.}
Now when you will take vp your trees which you intend to replant in your
Orchard, you shall first with a spade bare all the maine branches of the
roote, and so by degrees digge and loosen the earth from the roote, in
such sort that you may with your owne strength raise the young tree from
the ground, which done, you shall not, according to the fashion of
Fraunce, dismember, or disroabe the tree of his beauties, that is to
say, to cut off all his vpper branches and armes, but you shall
diligently preserue them: for I haue seene a tree thus replanted after
the fall of the leafe to bring forth fruit in the summer following: but
if the tree you replant be olde then it is good to cut off the maine
branches with in a foote of the stocke, least the sappe running vpward,
and so forsaking the roote too sodainely doe kill the whole tree.
When you haue taken your tree vp, you shall obserue how, and in what
manner, it stoode, that is, which side was vpon the South and receiued
most comfort from the sunne, and which side was from it and receiued
most shadow and bleaknesse, and in the same sort as it then stoode, so
shall you replant it againe: this done you shall with a sharpe
cutting-knife, cut off all the maine rootes, within halfe a foote of the
tree, onely the small thriddes or twist-rootes you shall not cut at all:
then bringing the plant into your Orchard, you shall make a round hole
in that place where you intend to set your tree (the rankes, manner,
distance and forme whereof hath beene all ready declared, in the first
Chapter:) and this hole shalbe at least foure foote ouerthwart euery
way, and at least two foote deepe, then shall you fill vp the hole
againe, fifteene inches deepe, with the finest blacke mould, tempered
with Oxe dunge that you can get, so that then the hole shalbe but nine
inches deepe, then you shall take your tree and place it vpon that
earth, hauing care to open euery seuerall branch and thrid of the roote,
& so to place them that they may all looke downe into the earth, and not
any of them to looke backe and turne vpward: then shall you take of the
earth from whence your tree was taken, and tempering it with a fourth
part of Oxe dunge and slekt sope-asshes (for the killing of wormes)
couer all the roote of your tree firmely and strongly: then with greene
soddes, cut and ioyned arteficially together, so sodde the place that
the hole may hardly be discerned. Lastly take a strong stake, and
driuing it hard into the ground neare vnto the new planted tree, with
either a soft hay rope, the broad barke of Willow, or some such like
vnfretting band, tye the tree to the stake, and it will defend it from
the rage of winde and tempests, which should they but shake or trouble
the roote, being new planted, it were inough to confound and spoyle the
tree for euer.
Now, although I haue vnder the title and demonstration of replanting
one tree giuen you a generall instruction for the replanting of all
trees whatsoeuer, yet, for as much as some are not of that strength and
hardnesse to indure so much as some others will, therefore you shal take
these considerations by the way, to fortefie your knowledge with.
First, you shall vnderstand that all your dainty and tender grafted
Plumbes, and fruits, as Abricots, Peaches, Damaske-Plumbes, Verdochyos,
Pescods, Emperialls, and diuers such like, together with Orrenges,
Cytrons, Almonds, Oliues, and others, which indeede are not familiar
with our soyles, as being nearer neighbours to the sunne, doe delight in
a warme, fat, earth, being somewhat sandy, or such a clay whose
coldnesse by Manure is corrected, and therefore here with vs in the
replanting of them you cannot bestow too much cost vpon the mould: as
for the Damson, and all our naturall english Plumbes, they loue a fat,
cold, earth, so that in the replanting of them if you shall lay too much
dunge vnto their roote, you shall through the aboundant heate, doe great
hurt vnto the tree. The cherry delighteth in any clay, so that vpon such
soyle you may vse lesse Manure, but vpon the contrary you cannot lay too
much. The Medlar esteemeth all earths alike, and therefore whether it be
Manured or no it skilles not, sunne and shadow, wet and drinesse, being
all of one force or efficacy. The Peare and Apple-tree delights in a
strong mixt soyle, and therfore indureth Manure kindly, so doth also the
Quince and Warden: lastly the Filbert, the Hasell, and the Chesnut, loue
cold, leane, moist, and sandy earths, in so much that there is no
greater enimy vnto them then a rich soyle: so that in replanting of them
you must euer seeke rather to correct then increase fertillity.
You shall also vnderstand that all such fruit-trees as you doe plant
against the walles of your Orchard (of which I haue spoken already &
deciphered out their places) you shall not suffer to grow as of
themselues, round, and from the wall, but at the times of pruning and
dressing of them (which is euer at the beginning of the spring and
immediately after the fall) you shall as it were plash them, and spread
them against the wall, foulding the armes in loopes of leather, and
nayling them vnto the wall: and to that end you shall place them of such
a fit distance one from another, that they may at pleasure spread and
mount, without interruption: the profit whereof is at this day seene
almost in euery great mans Orchard: and although I haue but onely
appointed vnto the wall the most quaint fruits of forraine nations; yet
there is no fruit of our owne, but if it be so ordered it will prosper
and bring forth his fruit better and in greater abundance. And thus much
for the replanting of trees and furnishing of a well proportioned
Orchard.