_Of the Dressing, Dungging, Proyning, and Preseruing of Trees._
Sith after all the labour spent of ingendring by seede, of fortefying
and inabling by planting, and of multiplying by grafting it is to little
or no purpose if the trees be not maintained and preserued by dressing,
dungging and proyning, I will therefore in this place shew you what
belongs to that office or duty, and first, for the dressing of trees:
you shall vnderstand that it containeth all whatsoeuer is meete for the
good estate of the tree, as first, after your tree is planted, or
replanted, if the season shall fall out hot, dry, and parching, insomuch
that the moisture of the earth is sucked out by the atraction of the
Sunne, and so the tree wanteth the nutriment of moisture, in this case
you shall not omit euery morning before the rising of the sunne, and
euery euening after the set of the sunne, with a great watring-pot
filled with water, to water & bath the rootes of the trees, if they be
young trees, and newly planted, or replanted, but not otherwise: for if
the trees be olde, and of long growth, then you shall saue that labour,
and onely to such olde trees you shall about the midst of Nouember, with
a spade, digge away the earth from the vpper part of the rootes and lay
them bare vntill it be midde-March, and then mingling such earth as is
most agreeable with the fruit and Oxe-dunge and sope-ashes together, so
couer them againe, and tread the earth close about them: as for the
vncouering of your trees in summer I doe not hold it good, because the
reflection of the sunne is somewhat too violent and dryeth the roote,
from whence at that time the sappe naturally is gone: you shall also
euery spring and fall of the leafe clense your fruit trees from mosse,
which proceeding from a cold and cankerous moisture, breedeth dislike,
and barrainenesse in trees: this mosse you must take off with the backe
of an olde knife and leaue the barke smooth, plaine, and vnraced: also
if you shall dunge such trees with the dunge of Swine, it is a ready way
to destroy the mosse.
{SN: Proyning of Trees.}
After you haue drest and trimmed your trees, you shall then proyne them,
which is to cut away all those superfluous branches, armes, or cyons,
which being either barraine, bruised or misplaced, doe like drones,
steale-away that nutriment which should maintaine the better deseruing
sinewes, and you shall vnderstand that the best time for proyning of
trees, is in March and Aprill, at which time the sappe assending vpward,
causeth the trees to budde: the branches you shall cut away are all such
as shall grow out of the stocke vnderneath the place grafted, or all
such as by the shaking of tempests shall grow in a disorderly and ill
fashioned crookednesse, or any other, that out of a well tempered
iudgement shall seeme superfluous and burdensome to the stocke from
whence it springs, also such as haue by disorder beene brooken, or
maimed, and all these you shall cut away with a hooke knife, close by
the tree, vnlesse you haue occasion by some misfortune to cut away some
of the maine and great armes of the tree, and then you shall not vse
your knife for feare of tearing the barke, but taking your sawe you
shall sawe off those great armes close by the tree, neither shall you
sawe them off downeward but vpward, least the waight of the arme breake
the barke from the body: And herein you shall also vnderstand that for
as much as the mischances which beget these dismembrings doe happen at
the latter end of Summer, in the gathering of the fruit, and that it is
not fit such maymed and broken boughes hang vpon the tree till the
Spring, therefore you shall cut them off in the Winter time, but not
close to the tree by almost a foote, and so letting them rest vntill the
spring, at that time cut them off close by the tree. Now if you finde
the superfluitie of branches which annoy your trees to be onely small
cyons, springing from the rootes of the trees, as it often hapneth with
all sorts of Plumbe-trees, Cherry-trees, Nut-trees, and such like, then
you shall in the winter, bare the rootes of those trees, and cut off
those cyons close by the roote: but if your trees be broused or eaten by
tame-Deare, Goates, Sheepe, Kine, Oxen, or such like, then there is no
help for such a misfortune but onely to cut off the whole head and graft
the stocke anew.
{SN: Of Barke-bound.}
Next to the proyning of trees, is the preseruing, phisicking, and curing
of the diseases of trees: to which they are subiect as well as our
naturall bodyes: and first of all, there is a disease called
Barke-bound, which is when the barke, through a mislike and leperous
drynesse, bindeth in the tree with such straitnesse that the sappe being
denied passage the body growes into a consumption: it is in nature like
vnto that disease which in beasts is called hide-bound, and the cure is
thus: at the beginning of March take a sharpe knife, and from the toppe
of the body of the tree, to the very roote, draw downe certaine slits,
or incissions, cleane through the barke, vnto the very sappe of the
tree, round about the tree, & then with the backe of your knife open
those slits and annoint them all through with Tarre, and in short space
it will giue libertie vnto the tree to encrease & grow: this disease
commeth by the rubbing of cattell against the tree, especially Swine,
who are very poyson vnto all plants.
{SN: Of the Gall.}
There is another disease in fruit-trees, called the Gall, and it eateth
and consumeth the barke quit away, and so in time kills the tree: the
cure is to cut and open the barke which you see infected, and with a
chissell to take away all that is foule and putrefied, and then to
clappe Oxe dunge vpon the place, and it will helpe it, and this must be
done euer in winter.
{SN: Of the Canker.}
The Canker in fruit trees is the consumption both of the barke and the
body, & it commeth either by the dropping of trees one vpon another, or
else when some hollow places of the tree retaineth raine water in them,
which fretting through the barke, poysoneth the tree: the cure is to cut
away all such boughes as by dropping breede the euill, and if the hollow
places cannot be smooth and made euen, then to stoppe them with clay,
waxe, and sope-ashes mixt together.
{SN: Of worme-eaten barkes.}
If the barkes of your trees be eaten with wormes, which you shall
perceiue by the swelling of the barke, you shall then open the barke and
lay there-vpon swines dunge, sage, and lime beaten together, and bound
with a cloath fast to the tree, and it will cure it: or wash the tree
with cowes-pisse and vinegar and it will helpe it.
{SN: Of Pismiers and Snailes.}
If your young trees be troubled with Pismiers, or Snailes, which are
very noysome vnto them, you shall take vnsleckt lime and sope-ashes and
mingling them with wine-lees, spread it all about the roote of the trees
so infected, and annoint the body of the tree likewise therewith, and it
will not onely destroy them but giue comfort to the tree: the soote of a
chimney or Oake sawe-dust spread about the roote will doe the same.
{SN: Of Caterpillers, and Earewigges.}
If Caterpillers doe annoy your young trees, who are great deuourers of
the leaues and young buddes, and spoylers of the barke, you shall, if it
be in the summer time, make a very strong brine of water and salt, and
either with a garden pumpe, placed in a tubbe, or with squirts which
haue many hoales you shall euery second day water and wash your trees,
and it will destroy them, because the Caterpiller naturally cannot
indure moisture, but if neuerthelesse you see they doe continue still
vpon your trees in Winter, then you shall when the leaues are falne away
take dankish straw and setting it on fire smeare and burne them from the
tree, and you shall hardly euer be troubled with them againe vpon the
same trees: roules of hay layd on the trees will gather vp Earewigges
and kill them.
{SN: Of the barrainenesse of Trees.}
If your trees be barraine, and albeit they flourish and spread there
leaues brauely, yet bring forth no fruit at all, it is a great
sicknesse, and the worst of all other: therefore you shall vnderstand it
proceedeth of two causes: first, of two much fertillitie, and fatnesse
of the ground, which causeth the leafe to put forth and flourish in such
vnnaturall abundance, that all such sappe and nutriment as should knit
and bring forth fruit, turnes onely vnto leafe, cyons, and vnprofitable
branches, which you shall perceiue both by the abundance of the leaues
and by the colour also, which will be of a more blacker and deeper
greene, and of much larger proportion then those which haue but their
naturall and proper rights: and the cure thereof is to take away the
earth from the roote of such trees and fill vp the place againe with
other earth, which is of a much leaner substance: but if your tree haue
no such infirmitie of fatnesse, but beareth his leaues and branches in
good order and of right colour and yet notwithstanding is barraine and
bringeth forth little or no fruit, then that disease springeth from some
naturall defect in the tree, and the cure thereof is thus: first, you
shall vnbare the roote of the tree, and then noting which is the
greatest and principallest branch of all the roote, you shall with a
great wimble boare a hole into that roote and then driue a pinne of olde
dry Ashe into the same (for Oake is not altogether so good) and then
cutting the pinne off close by the roote, couer all the head of the
pinne with yealow waxe, and then lay the mould vpon the roote of the
tree againe, and treade it hard and firmely downe, and there is no
doubte but the tree will beare the yeere following: in Fraunce they vse
for this infirmitie to boare a hoale in the body of the tree
slope-wise, somewhat past the hart, and to fill vp the hoale with life
honey and Rose-water mixt together, and incorporated for at least
xxiiij. howers, and then to stoppe the hole with a pinne of the one
woode: also if you wash the rootes of your trees in the drane water
which runneth from your Barley when you steepe it for Malt, it will cure
this disease of barrainenesse.
{SN: Of the bitternesse of Fruit.}
If the fruit which is vpon your trees be of a bitter and sootie tast, to
make it more pleasant and sweet you shall wash your tree all ouer with
Swines dunge and water mixt together, & to the rootes of the trees you
shall lay earth and Swines dunge mixt together, which must be done in
the month of Ianuary and February onely, and it will make the fruit tast
pleasantly. And thus much for the dressing and preseruing of trees.