1870.] THOUGHTS ABOUT GRAPE-GROWING. 275 



they have been thus prepared, they may be potted singly or otherwise, 

 as before mentioned. A compost of decomposed turfy loam, with a good 

 proportion of cow-dung and a little sand, will be found to answer well. 

 Before they have been potted, they may be removed to a frame or pit 

 to be gradually kept moving in growth till the season of flowering 

 comes again in the early spring. The Richardia should not be potted 

 too firmly, and care should be taken to have the plants secured from 

 injury by frost. If it is required to bloom earlier than usual, it may 

 be subjected to a gentle heat. 



Although the Richardia is a plant that does admirably well as I 

 have described, yet, treated as a conservatory plant, it is a subject 

 that will stand a variety of usage. I have seen it growing beautifully 

 in the great conservatory of Chatsworth, which is kept as a tropical 

 house, in a piece of water imitating part of a quiet natural rivulet. 

 All the year round it seemed to be without its season of rest, throw- 

 ing up its grand snow-white flowers in midwinter. In addition, it is 

 a very worthy subject for window cultivation — a department of gar- 

 dening now* receiving some merited attention at the hands of the ablest 

 horticultural writers. R. M. 



THOUGHTS ABOUT GRAPE- GROWING. 



We are so accustomed at this period to hear it stated that preconceived ideas 

 of every kind are being sifted for the purpose of ascertaining the amount of truth 

 and fallacy contained in them, that it seems a mere truism to apply the same 

 remarks to the discussions which have lately taken place in the gardening periodi- 

 cals upon Vine Culture. In what is confessedly an age of transition, it is incum- 

 bent upon those who really desire improvement to see that what was good in 

 former systems is not rashly cast aside, though some deficiencies may have become 

 apparent. 



Amateur cultivators, who look mainly to these publications for cultural 

 directions, must be greatly distracted by the extreme diversity of opinion which 

 exists among those whose names deservedly rank high in the gardening world. 

 So also must many young practitioners like myself, who are anxiously striving 

 to keep their qualifications apace with the progress both of science and practice, 

 be puzzled to account for the apparently endless variety of opinions and methods 

 of cultivation prevalent among practical men. Experienced Grape-growers have 

 the results of their practice by which to test the new theories advanced. Young 

 practitioners, seeking a knowledge of the best and surest method, are bewildered 

 as they see accredited systems of culture openly censured or covertly under- 

 mined. 



Amid this chaos of opinion, the article on Grape-Growing in your April Num- 

 ber must have been hailed with intense satisfaction by a large number of your 

 readers, especially as it is so difficult, from the one-sided intimations and incom- 

 plete details which are too frequently given in articles on special cultivation, to 



