THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 



167 



with a furnace outeide, fed with Welch lumps. 

 This flue terminates at the other end in au up- 

 right shaft Reund this flue is a hollow casing, 

 b b, by means of which the current of air is 

 made to circulate round the flue before ascend- 



ing by the openings, rf, to warm the house. The 

 pots are plunged to the rim in sawdust, in a brick 

 pit along the centre of the house, and require 

 but little attention beyond securing for them a 

 sweet and constantly circulating atmosphere. 



Pear Tkees Failing.— H. N. 0. — There can be no 

 doubt your trees have sent their roots down into 

 an ungenial soil, and are touched with prema- 

 ture decay. When you cut in the roots, you 

 should also have mulched the surface round the 

 stems with rotten dung to induce a growth of sur- 

 face fibres close home If the trees were ours, 

 we should cut close in a selected number of bran- 

 ches this season to get breaks next spring; this 

 would produce a new set to beregularly laid in, and 

 next year we should cut in another lot, and so re- 

 new the whole of the wood in the course of time. 

 "We should, also, this next autumn, plant new 

 trees in the mid spaces, if there is room enough, 

 or if room could be made by cutting in for the 

 purpose, and the planting should be on platforms 

 made by taking out the soil, so as to form a 

 square three feet from the tree each way, and 

 three feet deep. A layer of brick-bat9, stones, 

 chalk, cinders, or any other kind of paving 

 material is then to be thrown in a foot deep and 

 rammed hard, and the hole filled with good loam 

 without manure. This should be done early to 

 allow the earth to settle well before planting. 

 Something might be done towards promotiug 

 the furmation of fruit-buds for next season by 

 nipping out at once the point of every side shoot, 

 and, of course, clearing away all superabundant 

 growth. We give this advice in ignorance of 

 the aspect in which the trees are planted, the 

 nature of the soil and climate, and the position 

 of the trees in respect to each other. 



Melon Culture. — A.B., Whitland. — The amount 

 of water given to young plants must depend 

 somewhat on the amouut of heat. If the heat 

 is up to the mark — and it ought never to descend 

 below 75 a at bottom, and 65 a atmospheric — 

 quick growth may be encouraged from the first 

 by liberal waterings, and frequent use of liquid 

 manure. Before fruiting, we want a strong 

 plant, and the melon is as thirsty as the rest of 

 the gourd family. Good drainage is, however, 

 very necessary. Water must not stagnate about 

 the routs, hence, it is usual in ridging out, to 

 make a bottom of brickbats, covered with a sod 

 turned upside down, where the hillocks are to be. 

 To say how many times a week any plant should 

 be watered, would be to lay down too precise a 

 rule; personal judgment must determine such a 



point, and, when we say, be liberal with water 

 and heat, and stint the water when the fruit is 

 near ripening, or, rather, withhold it altogether 

 for ten or twelve days, and give plenty of air 

 you will perfectly understand how to proceed'. 

 Don't let too many fruits set on a plant, but cut 

 away the blossoms after from four to half a 

 dozen are secured, and stop the fruiting shoots, 

 three or four eyes beyond the fruit. Plenty of 

 healthy foliage, and full exposure to sunshine, 

 are of great importance in the production of 

 melons. 

 Dahlli Cdltdre. — Scrutator. — Dahlias should 

 have only one stem each, and that staked in 

 good time. If the plants grow very bushy, thin 

 away a portion of the shoots ; manure water 

 once a week, not too strong, will do them 

 immense good, and, while growing, they will 

 take as much drink as you like to give them. 

 But, bear in mind, if you once begin a regular 

 system of watering, you must go on all through 

 the season, except during wet weather, for 

 watering brings the roots near the surface, and 

 the plants suffer if supplies are stopped. We 

 put a good spade full of rotten dung under every 

 Dahlia to draw the roots down, and obviate the 

 need of frequent watering. If your plants are 

 troubled with red spider, dust them with sul- 

 phur, and then drench them well overhead — the 

 red spider cannot stand sulphur and moisture 

 together. A dry leaf and a warm berth are the 

 delights of this pest. Dahlia roots should be 

 stored in a place free from frost and damp, but 

 not so dry as to shrivel them. They should not 

 be taken up until the frosts have destroyed the 

 stems, and, to promote the ripening of the tubers, 

 the plants should have very little water towards 

 the end of the season. The best way of storing 

 them is to lay them in wicker baskets, and cover 

 with short dry hay, and place the baskets in au 

 airy loft. 

 Agave Americana. — C. B., Leytonstone. — All the 

 Aloes require a soil composed of rich loam, a 

 little old dry chippy dung, leaf mould, and a 

 good admixture of broken crocks, lumpy char- 

 coal, and brick rubbish. The pots should bo 

 well drained with large crocks at the bottom, 

 then a layer of smaller ones, and then some of 

 the roughest of the soil. They are propagated 

 by suckers, which may be taken oil' no% if of 

 moderate size, and struck in sandy peat and 

 loam with bottom heat. They like sun, and 

 during the summer, plenty of water; in winter, 

 very little, or none at all. Broken leaves may be 

 cut off close with a sharp knife, but, the less the 

 plants are cut or injured, the better. Do not 

 shift to larger pots unless the pots are already 

 full of roots, but, if they really require more 

 room, shift at once without breaking the ball, 

 and give plenty of water and shade for a week. 

 When growing, an occasional sponging of the 

 leaves with soft tepid water will do them good, 

 but they must not be exposed to sun while the 

 foliage is wet. 

 Out-door Vine. — /. D. — .If you want fine 

 bunches, thin them regularly, removing tho 

 bunches entirely where they are crowded 

 together, and thinning out the berries in the 

 branches with a small pair of scissors to allow 

 them to swell. The best fruit is that which 

 ripens under the shade of the leaves, but, if the 

 vine is over crowded, it will benefit it to remove 

 a moderate number of the laterals. Eead care- 

 fully an article on the " Vine," in No. 3 of the 

 "Floral World," and you will easily com- 

 prehend how to manage a vine in the open air. If 

 wasps are numerous in your district, you would 

 do well to provide yourself with a sufficient 

 quantity of Haythoni's hexagon net to protect 

 them when they begin to ripen. The year before 



