June 16, 1876. ] 



JOURNAL OP HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



419 



female department. A lady — and such truly is many a gar- 

 dener's helpmate — is never more at home than when presiding 

 at a tea-table. 



Lastly, do not prolong your visit. Some men mnst make 

 the most of a day at a place, when an hour or two would be 

 ample. They forget that, if they can spare the time themselves, 

 the visited gardener may have much to attend to. Give him 

 no opportunity, whilst civil and courteous, of wishing in his 

 heart you would take your departure. Short visits are one of 

 the beBt receipts for happy future meetings. — R. F. 



ROOTS FROM THE BRANCHES OF THE VINE. 



When atrial roots are abundantly produced on the Vine, the 

 verdict mostly pronounced by gardeners is — Something wrong 

 with the border. This is not always correct, as first-rate 

 Grapes and plenty of air-roots are produced together on the 

 same Vine. A close, moist atmosphere, early forcing, and, 

 perhaps, insufficient root-action, are the circumstances most 

 favourable to their production. 



In an early vinery at Loxford Hall air-roots are freely pro- 

 duced. The house is started about the middle of December ; 

 the Vines are planted inside, but as the front wall is built on 

 arches, and a prepared border is outside as well as inside, 

 plenty of roots are outside ; indeed, I am of the belief that 

 if Vines are planted inside and allowed an equal chance of an 

 inside and outside border, the greater portion of the roots will 

 be outside the first season. This being the case, and as the 

 surface of the border is freely exposed to the action of the 

 atmosphere, in order to allow a season of complete rest for the 

 Vines, the heat which has been absorbed during the summer 

 is, to a large extent, given off. The Vines are watered with 

 warm water previous to " shutting the house up," and the 

 temperature is thus somewhat raised. A covering of ferment- 

 ing material is placed over the outside border. Forcing is 

 commenced with a gradual rise of the inside temperature ; 

 until the last week in January a night temperature of Go' is 

 maintained. The border is not warmed in proportion, and 

 although the roots are in a healthy condition, they do not act 

 reciprocally with the tops, and in the necessarily close and 

 somewhat moist atmosphere aiirial roots are freely produced. 

 The best method is to cut them off as fast as they appear. 



Where borders are heated by hot-water pipes placed under- 

 neath them, air-roots are seldom produced. A very successful 

 Grape-grower informed me that lie raised the temperature of 

 his Vine borders, by means of hot-water pipes fixed underneath 

 them, to 70°, and he is seldom troubled with air-roots on his 

 Vines. Of course he is an advocate for watering well, as a 

 heated border insufficiently watered would cause the production 

 of air-roots as freely as an unheated border. 



In the late vinery the border was made in the same way, of 

 the same materials, and at the same time as that in the early 

 vinery, but no aerial roots have been emitted in the house, 

 and yet the best Grapes have invariably been produced in the 

 early heuse. 



A more important matter than the production or non-pro- 

 duction of aerial roots is to have the ground roots in a proper 

 medium, and it is to the latter that I would wish to draw atten- 

 tion. In the early vinery above alluded to the roots were con- 

 fined to a limited space by a brick wall set in cement ; in the 

 late house the roots could ramble outwards beyond the reach of 

 the prepared border, and as the Grape3 did not colour well, 

 and became worse each successive season, it was determined to 

 renew the border, as the surrounding material is not suitable 

 for Grape-growing. The greater portion of the active roots 

 were not in the border at all, they had gone beyond it ; and as 

 a large portion of active roots were necessarily in the inside 

 border, all the roots outside the front wall were lifted, the old 

 material taken out, and a new border made. The roots which 

 were saved were laid out in this about G inches below the sur- 

 face. At the time this was done the Vines were in full leaf, 

 and carrying a full crop of Grapes, yet not a leaf hung down, 

 nor did the leaves fall sooner than usual. This was done last 

 October, and at the present time the Vines are again in full 

 leaf, have a promise of as good a crop of fruit as ever, and 

 I have no doubt but that it will be much improved in quality. 



When a house of Vines fails, it is not always advisable to 

 root out the Vines and plant young instead. An instance of 

 renewing an old vinery occurred here some six years ago. The 

 house is only 15 feet by 11 feet, and it contained one Vine of 

 the Royal Muscadine ; it had been badly managed, as it had 



not ripened any fruit for twenty years. It was taken in hand 

 in October, and the first step was to examine the roots. Where 

 a border ought to have been, a large Aucuba and some other 

 common shrubs were flourishing ; these were cleared off, and 

 a trench dug out about 9 feet from the front wall and parallel 

 with it. Digging carefully with forks, the old sour stuff was 

 taken out, and the roots saved as much as possible. A couple 

 of roots had struck downwards close to the front wall ; these 

 were allowed to remain. A foot of drainage was placed in the 

 bottom of the excavated space, and over this some loose litter 

 to prevent the compost, which consisted of turfy loam mixed 

 with a small portion of rotted manure, from mixing with 

 it. The very few roots which were saved were spread out over 

 the border, and kept near the surface ; the border was raised 

 G inches above the path, over all was placed a font of dry 

 manure, and the operation was complete. The Vine was 

 severely pruned, but the most promising of the young wood 

 was saved ; the wood was well painted with a mixtnre of sul- 

 phur and soft soap as a preventive to mildew. Tbe Vines were 

 not forced at all. The few bunches which showed were allowed 

 to remain, and they ripened perfectly, and plenty of young 

 wood was trained up, some fine young rods were saved, and a 

 hundred bunches of Grapes as good as that variety usually 

 produces were ripened next year. A gentleman called here the 

 other day and asked advice about a house of somewhat old 

 Vines ; they are not satisfactory, and produce fruit of an in- 

 ferior quality. Instead of rooting them out as he intended 

 and planting young Vines, making, of course, a new border, I 

 would do half the length of the house, lifting the Vines care- 

 fully, and watch the result of the operation for a year or two, 

 and afterwards be guided by circumstances. — J. Douglas. 



CHOICE STOVE PLANTS AND THEIR CULTURE. 



A stove well stocked with tropical plants will always be gay. 

 Take, for instance, a leaf of an Ansectochilus or of a Fittonia — 

 why, it is of itself a bouquet. So I offer these notes in the hope 

 that they may lead others to give us their ideas as to the value 

 of various stove plants, modes of culture, &a. Such, I am sure, 

 would be read by many with great interest and be very useful. 

 I invariably note down year by year how I succeed with certain 

 plants, the soils I use, and the success I meet with. 



The plants I intend to notice, when well grown, are very or- 

 namental, though not met with in every collection. To grow 

 stove plants well requires skill and very close attention. 



Sonerila maegakitacea, a native of Java, is a most beautiful 

 stove plant. I keep mine well pinched, in order to make it 

 bushy. It is of quick growth, and the foliage is studded all 

 over the surface with silvery spots. The flowers are of a 

 pleasing rose colour. I do not allow the plant to bloom much, 

 as I find the foliage more desirable than the flowers. I pick 

 off most of the blooms. I generally give a good shift in March, 

 and again in June. I water moderately. It flourishes in a 

 gentle bottom heat, with plenty of atmospheric moisture during 

 the season of growth, and requires to bo shaded from the mid- 

 day sun. In winter I place my plants so that they may be 

 fully exposed to the sun, that damping-off may be prevented. 

 The soil I use is fibrous sandy peat with plenty of silver sand, 

 and good drainage is given. 



Cyanophyllum magxifiouji. — This is a native of Tropical 

 America, and when well grown there are few plants in our 

 stoves that present a more noble appearance, the foliage being 

 of a rioh velvety green on its upper surface, and the under side 

 purplish crimson. During the growing season I use the syringe 

 freely, and I generally shade a little in the hottest part of the 

 day. In order to form a bushy plant I take out the leader. I 

 grow it in equal parts of fibrous peat and Joam, with plenty of 

 silver sand, and I add a little cocoa-nut refuse. I have invari- 

 ably found that if the soil is exposed to the sun and kept turned 

 for a few days before being used, it is much better for the 

 plant. Good drainage must be secured. 



Pothos argyr.ea. — Native of Borneo. A beautiful plant of 

 neat and compact habit ; the leaves rich green, blotched with 

 silvery white. Plants of it placed here and there about the 

 stove are very effective. I grow mine in old leaf mould, fibrous 

 loam, and fibrous peat, with plenty of silver sand, and I gene- 

 rally add some charcoal broken up finely. I water freely during 

 the growing period, and it requires to be shaded from the sun. 

 I grow it both as a pot and basket plant, and in either way it 

 is very pretty. 



Pavetta bokeonica. — This is not often met with. The leaves 



