506 



CULTURE OP VINES IN POTS, 



temperature. Guano, twice a week, should 

 be also used, — a handful to a large water 

 pot of about three or four gallons. 



About the lOlh of September, let them 

 be removed to a north aspect, plunging 

 them in tan or rotten leaves up to the rim 

 of the pot. Let them remain here till the 

 middle of October, when they should be 

 pruned six jnches lower than the second 

 topping. Keep the pots as dry as possible, 

 so as to superinduce a dormant stale. 



There they should remain till the first of 

 November, and then be introduced into the 

 house, if it is desired to have a ripe crop 

 by the middle of February. If not required 

 so soon, great care must be taken not to 

 let the roots get frozen in winter ; as in 

 that case, failure is ineviiahle. They can 

 be stored away in a cellar, stoke hole, or 

 any other place free from frost ; and if 

 there should be no convenience of this kind, 

 they might be covered over with dry leaves, 

 to the depth of two feet and a half. 



Vines that are intended to start early, 

 will break much more regularly, and much 

 stronger, if they are kept in the dark a 

 short time previous to their being excited. 

 When removed to the house, they should 

 receive a good soaking of water, and a 

 top-dressing of the soil recommended, with 

 the addition of a fourth of dissolved bones, 

 incorporated with it. 



It must never be forgotten that the plants, 

 during their whole growth, should enjoy as 

 close a proximity to the glass as circum- 

 stances will permit. 



Description of a House, most suitable 

 for vines in pots, particularly in regard to 

 ripening the fruit in February and March : 

 Small, low, sheltered houses, having an 

 angle of not let less than 55 degrees, are 

 the best to employ for the purpose of grow- 

 ing early grapes, so as to have them ripe 

 in February and March. A " lesser an- 



gle'^ than this would not do; as the sun 

 would not strike the house perpendicularly 

 till later in the season, and the consequence 

 would be, a great deficiency in flavor of the 

 fruit. The size of the house must be de- 

 termined according to the supply required; 

 and persons could have them any length 

 and width, to suit themselves, providing 

 that they adhere to the angle of 55 degrees, 

 as it is highl\'^ important to secure as much 

 sunlight as possible between the autumnal 

 and vernal equinoxes. If the situation will 

 admit of the ground being excavated to 

 the depth of two or three feet, so much the 

 better. Shutters should be provided for 

 covering the house, in very severe weather. 

 Mode of Heating. — The best system of 

 heating, to my mind, is a combination of 

 hot water, in open gutters, the flue, and a 

 circulation of atmospheric air, as on the so 

 called Polmaise system, but which, in fact, 

 was introduced into practice at Isleworth, 

 at the Makquis of Ailsa'.s, in 1838, by Wm. 

 Penn, horticultural builder, of Lewisham, 

 Kent, — with only the difference, instead of 

 a furnace or stove, hot-water pipes were 

 substituted ; still, the principle was the same. 

 A good substantial brick flue should run 

 parallel with the back wall, and about two 

 feet distance from it, where the fire enters ; 

 and over the fire should be placed a small 

 copper boiler, having a perfectly flat bottom. 

 Open gutters should communicate with the 

 boiler, for the water to circulate in ; and 

 they may run parallel with the flue, or rest 

 on the top of it. Gutters of tin, {well paitited 

 loith red paint,') or of copper, or iron, will 

 answer well ; they should be provided with 

 covers, which should fit accurately, to con- 

 fine all moisture, if not required. The 

 whole now should be enclosed in an air 

 chamber, having small sills let in, at the 

 distance of four feet apart. They should 

 be two feet square, and provided with shut- 



