The Fruit of Labour
In the garden things are dormant, but soon, in the first mild day or two, insect life will revive and begin to do its work. It is time to check that the trees are banded, to spray tar oil wash, or, as I did last year, paint the branches with the wash. The tree I treated-in this way is an old one. I felt it needed a more thorough going-over, for the bark is crusted and wrinkled in places, and a spray often fails to reach such crevices. I think I did a good job. When I picked the fruit it seemed healthier and cleaner and I had a virtuous feeling at the recollection of the struggle I had had on that cold January day. I was only a little daunted when an expert informed me that my tree was past being worth a place in a garden. It is not short of fruit spurs, and the fruit, when it survives frost and gale, is satisfyingly sweet. IAN NIALL.
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