April 11, 1867. ] 



JOUKNAIi OF HOETICULTUEE AND COTTAGE GAEDENEB. 



261 



silver sand, using plenty of drainage; return them to the 

 fcame for a week or two, keeping them near the glass, and 

 watering them very carefully. At the end of that time they 

 will want more air, and a little shading will be necessary in 

 very bright days. The plants must not be placed out of doors, 

 but should be encouraged in the greenhouse, and when they 

 have filled the thumb pot with roots shift into 2} -inch pots, 

 using the same compost as before. By the following March 

 there will be enough of them in bloom to amply reward the 

 grower for his trouble. Dozens of my seedlings sown last 

 March were beautifully in bloom in ten months after sowing, 

 and have been so ever since. Slany of the corms or bulbs are 

 as large as a two-shilling-piece. The varieties are persicum 

 rubrum and those of the coum and Atkinsii race. — H. C, 

 Hcndre Gardens, Monmouth. 



THE GARSTON VINEYARD. 



(Continued from page 64.) 

 A-PTEH passing through the span-roofed houses numbered 

 3, 4, 5, and G we turn to the left, cross an open space on the 

 north side of the dwelling-house, and enter the early vinery. 

 This is principally planted with Black Hamburgh Vines ; but 

 there are one or two Trentham Black Vines, from which Mr. 

 Meredith has cut magnificent bunches. Some of these were 

 shown at the Kegent's Park in July, 18G5. At the same show 

 Mr. Meredith exhibited the heaviest bunch of Black Hamburgh 

 on record. This magnificent bunch, which weighed 9 lbs. 8 ozs., 

 was produced on the point of'a shoot, and took the form of an 

 umbrella. I had the pleasure of seeing it a short time before 

 it was cut ; it was very symmetrical, the hemes as black as 

 sloes, and so even that they might almost have been cast in a 

 mould. I may mention that several other bunches were grown 

 on the same Vine, which was by no means a strong one. 



The early vinery is 65 feet long by 23 wide, and has a span 

 roof. There are six rows of four-inch pipes, three rows on each 

 side of the walk in the centre of the house. There is also a 

 large fine below the path. The ends of the house are east and 

 west, 60 that one-half of the Vines are partly shaded by the 

 others, yet those on the north side are as good as those on the 

 south. The walk through the centre is about 5 feet wide ; this 

 leaves a border on each side S) feet wide. The borders inside 

 the house are well elevated above the ground level, and are 

 about 4 feet 6 inches deep. There are also on the north and 

 south sides outside borders, which are likewise about 4 feet 

 6 inches deep near the front of the house, but taper off towards 

 the outside next the walk, where they are about 2 feet 6 inches 

 above the general ground level. They are about 3 feet deep 

 at the sides, so that below the ground level there is not more 

 than G inches of good soil for the Vines to grow in. 



I shall shortly give a section of the Vine-borders and vineries 

 at Huntroyde, also a general reply to the disbelievers in the 

 system of Vine-border making which I recommend. The 

 borders I have made are not fir the purpose of growing show 

 Grapes alone ; they are formed to last for many years, and to 

 avoid the necessity of destroying the Vines just when these 

 ought to be at their best. I ask " G. H.," Which is the less 

 expensive mode of maldng a Vine-border — to make it thoroughly 

 in the first instance, supposing it to cost £69 or £100 according 

 to size, and with a view of its lasting in good condition sixty 

 or a hundred years, or to make ten or twenty borders during 

 that time, involving a cost for each border of from £15 to £30, 

 and a loss of one year's crop of fruit every time the border is 

 made, besides the disadvantages of having the place upset by 

 these alterations? 



The structure just described being the early house, during 

 the first months of spring spare lights are placed over the 

 outside borders. The house rests on pillars, and there is no 

 glass at the sides. There are about sixty Vines, from which 

 have been cut the Grapes exhibited at the early shows, winning 

 so many first prizes during the last six years. 



Retracing our steps across the open space at the back of the 

 dwelling-house we enter another house facing that which we 

 have just left. It is of the same dimensions, and constructed 

 on exactly the same principle as the early Hamburgh-house, 

 having borders outside as well. It is planted with Muscat of 

 Alexandria and White Tokay, and when I saw it the Vines on 

 each side of the span were covered from the soil to the ridge 9f 

 the roof with bunches of beautiful amber-coloured berries very 

 even in size. The bunches were most symmetrical, and would 

 average about 2J lbs. in weight, and in number seven on each 



Vine. Provision is made for heating the border if necessary. 

 The soil in this and the early Hamburgh-house comes close up 

 to the hot-water pipes, of which there are six rows. The Vines 

 in each of the above houses were planted in a growing state in 

 July, 1857 ; and although Mr. Meredith has cut such wonder- 

 ful crops from them, he expects to obtain still greater results 

 — indeed the appearance of the Vines would lead any one to 

 the same conclusion. Every year they rapidly increase in size 

 and productiveness. I did not prick over either the outside or 

 inside borders in search of roots, but any Grape-grower could 

 tell from the Vines that the borders were filled with fine 

 healthy roots. " G. H." may take my word that roots are to 

 be found in any quantity both outside and in ; if there is any 

 difference in their healthiness those in the outside border will 

 perhaps be the best. 



Leaving the early vinery we pass to the west side of the 

 vineyard. Here there are several lean-to houses for the growth 

 of Peaches and Nectarines, and in each the trees are in a very 

 flourishing condition and give promise of good crops; but it 

 struck me in passing through that they did not receive so 

 much care and attention as the Vines. In front of this 

 range is a span-roofed pit used for growing Tomatoes, &c. 

 Ketracing our steps to the early vinery and turning northwards, 

 we pass between several ranges of Pine-stoves and convenient 

 span-roofed houses for the growth of young Vines, Cucumbers, 

 and Melons, situated on each side of the passage leading to the 

 dwelling-house. There are seven of these forcing-pits. They 

 are about SO feet long by 12 wide, and are very efficiently 

 heated with four-inch piping. 



I now come to Mr. Meredith's splendid house of mixed Vines. 

 On entering it, the sight of the enormous bunches calls to mind 

 the wonderful Grapes mentioned in the thirteenth chapter of 

 the Book of Numbers ; by the brook Eschol, wonderful Grapes 

 were grown without the aid of man. There is no doubt that 

 the land by the brook Eschol was exceeding fertile; there is 

 also little doubt but that the Vines extended themselves from 

 tree to tree, and that their roots were freely watered by the 

 brook. This, then, should teach us a useful lesson, and one 

 that I have before particularly tried to impress on the memory 

 of those who advocate the once-a-month system of watering 

 the Vine ; and the fact of the Vines producing such wonderful 

 Grapes in their wild state, would lead one to beUeve that the 

 extending system of Vine-growing so much written about lately 

 is one that may be safely tried, and there can be little doubt 

 but that it would succeed. If, however, this system were 

 adopted to any extent, a single house would be required for 

 each variety of Grape ; double or treble the number of houses 

 for the growthof Vines would, therefore, be necessary. 



Mr. Meredith has shown the world what he can do by keep- 

 ing the Vine within a certain limit, let him now show us what 

 he can effect with the extending system. He could do this 

 justice in a house of similar dimensions to that which I de- 

 scribed in these pages some months ago. He might make a 

 section of a border in the centre of such a house, there plant 

 one Vine under the north side, and another under the south, 

 and train the Vines right and left, adding to the border as the 

 roots extended. Each set of branches would have just 51 feet 

 to travel from the main stem, and about 25 feet of roof in 

 width. I have little doubt that, under proper treatment, two 

 Vines would cover the whole roof of this large structure in six 

 years from the time of planting. Would not this be worth 

 trying ? If it were thouglit desirable a ribbon of Grapes might 

 be obtained in such a house by grafting different kinds on the 

 principal Vine. Thus a yard or more in width of white Grapes 

 might run the whole length of the roof, then a yard of black 

 Grapes, and so on. What a magnificent sight this would be. 

 Large numbers of pot Vines might stiil be grown in the same 

 house, and many other subjects that would help to pay for 

 nursing the Vines till such time as they had arrived at a size 

 to produce Grapes by the half ton. Good crops of Grapes 

 mi^ht be taken from the Vines after the second year. 



Returning to the house which I had begun to describe, and 

 which called to mind the wonderful Grapes found by the brook 

 of Eschol; although it is of much smaller dimensions than 

 that to which I have been referring above, it is of no mean 

 size, being 128 feet by 17. The roof is rather flat, at least, that 

 part of it facing the south, and there is a short north light 

 about 5 feet wide, and under this the walk. At present there 

 is no outside border, but Mr. Meredith intends to make one 

 very soon ; the border inside is about 12 feet wide, and 5 feet 

 6 inches deep. Let " Vitis," or any of the advocates of 

 shallow borders but see this wonderful house of Grapes, and I 



