WINTER-CLEANING.
The habit that housewives call spring-cleaning is being generally adopted by fruit-gardeners, but they anticipate the date. Winter-cleaning becoMes one of themoSt important and highly advertised functions of the year, I have seen an orchard where every tree looked as if the most efficient of housemaids had been polishing every branch, and the trunk gleamed -like the stands of an old-fashioned fouiposter bed- stead. The furniture polish in this case was a caustic wash which had fairly burnt off every live excrescence from what is called winter-green' to Moths' eggs. These caustic *ashes "still have their use 'on' rare occasions ; ' but their place ' has- been more or lesS monopolized by new sub- stitutes, known as tar-distillates. Of theSo a new and improved variety has lately been perfected at East Mailing and is said to be the death of the few enemies that evaded the older washes. Ildwever this may be, every orchard grower would be wise- to"'giVe his trees a good dose of tar- distillates, sprayed within the next week or so. The evidence of the East Mailing Research station and of individual growers is unanimously in favour of the' treatment ; and since one orchard. may infect another it is almost a public duty. It adds also to the pleasure in the orchard to see the trees looking spick and span and free from the maladies that they are all
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