THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 



137 



■will really in such a situation (or even 

 in a peach-house) reach to the top of a 

 twelve feet wall in the space of two 

 years, trained diagonally at 45'. Why, 

 thivy would have to grow at the rate of 

 seven feet a year ! also furnish laterals 

 too without shortening ; for you will 

 notice that he says nothing about short- 

 ening. What is your opinion '( — A. C. 

 [It cannot bo done at that rate in 

 England. But the system is sound ; 

 and as to the shortening, that very often 

 means removing the best wood of the 

 tree.] 



The Tomato.— On reading Mr. Cuthiil's 

 note at page 217 of " Profitable Garden- 

 ing," I find that he says that the plants 

 of the tomato are topped and planted out 

 in May. I want to grow tomatoes with 

 only two shoots trained one foot apart 

 up a wall, and to have them covered with 

 fruit from bottom to top. First of all, 

 how am I to get the two shoots ? Must 

 I pinch the plant back in May to the first 

 two buds from the bottom ? [Yes.] 

 Then to get fruit from bottom to top, 

 must I pinch each shoot again at every 

 second leaf, so as to let the bud at one 

 leaf go off to fiuit, and the bud that 

 comes out of the other leaf go upwards 

 to continue the stem, and afterwards to 

 be pinched back at every second leaf as 

 before, and so on until the height of 

 three feet has been attained. I have 

 never yet grown the tomato ; and I shall 

 feel greatly obliged if you will give me 

 the explanation which I require. — A. C, 

 3£onmouth. [Mr. Cutliill explains the 

 case himself at page 218 of " i'rofitable 

 Gardening," by saying, '"I have always 

 stopped my cucumbeis in the trellis in 



j the pits at every joint, but never thought 

 of doing it with th; tomato." But A. 

 C. has hit upon the theory completely. 

 Having pinched out the leader, the two 

 side buds will push, and in one time will 

 be nailed or tied in. Fiona the side buds 

 of these shoots hunches of flower buds 

 will .ppear, and the points of the shoots 

 are to be nipped out so as to leave only 

 one good leaf to carry the sap to the 

 flower buds. From the base of the leaf 

 there will instantly appeal a shoot, let it 

 push til. it also sliovvs flower buds, and 

 then pinch out the point. Sometimes 

 two shoots will push Irom a bud ; in this 

 case one must be removed, so as to keep 

 the plant to its two shoots, and those 

 under a systt-m of pinching. Tomatoes 

 grown in pots in the way we once re- 

 commended in the Floral World do 

 not need this constant pinching, as their 

 vigour of growth is reduced by the con- 



finement of their roots. Nevertheless, if 

 they are well fed, potted tomatoes may 

 also be pinched, and will bear im- 

 mensely.] 



A Hint to Beginneus. — Last August you 

 gave directions in the Floral Would 

 on propagating for next season in boxes 

 placed in a greenhouse. At present I 

 have no such house, but I had a slight 

 hot-bed made tip early in March for 

 half-hardy annuals, etc. ; the heat is 

 gone now. So a fortnight ago I put a 

 lot of geranium cuttings in 60-pots 

 uuder a bell-glass on the spent hot-bed, 

 covered with a small two-light frame 

 instead of a greenhouse. They are all 

 rooted now, and potted off singly. A 

 second batch of Calceolarias, Cioth of 

 Gold geranium, and fuchsia put under a 

 bell-glass in the same frame last week 

 are looking quite fresh, and better than 

 any I had in my Waltonian tor a week 

 during February or March last. They 

 appear as if they would be quite ready 

 to pot off next Monday. Finding this 

 method so successful, I last week put 

 my Waltonian case in an out-building, 

 with a window to the south The case 

 is close to the window, the high or back 

 part inside. [Yqu had better turn it 

 round, with the high or buck part to 

 the window. It is so made to shade the 

 cuttings and facilitate the management.] 

 There are three folds of old flannel be- 

 tween the zinc tray and bottom of case 

 to stop cold draughts. I have put a 

 b itch of cuttings in pots in the case ; 

 these are only covered by the top glasses 

 being kept close down, and there is also 

 a second batch in the case coveted with 

 a bell-glass besides the top glasses. All 

 at present look well. So far they have 

 had very little shading, and not a drop 

 of water. Perhaps some of your readers 

 may be like me, have no greenhouse ; if 

 so, the above-named pan may be useful. 

 By this time next year I hope to have a 

 house to strike cuttings in ; to find a 

 stove suitable is my greatest difficulty. 

 — Polly. [If peop e would do as we 

 advise them, there would be very little 

 spring propagating necessary. J 



Currants. — On going through Covent 

 Garden Market, last summer, I was much 

 struck with some very large currants — 

 black, red, and white. They were ex- 

 posed for sale in small round baskets in 

 the central avenue, and the price, I 

 think, was one shilling per basket. 

 Thty were intended for ciesserfc. It 

 would be a very great gratification to 

 me to he able to produce currants as 

 laige as those, and 1 do not see why I 



