258 



JOUENAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



( April 6, 1877. 



Mr. John Charlton, nnrseryman, was called to prove his i 

 valuation. p, ■ i 



Mr. Stone for the defence said they had paid Is. '^«- ""o 

 court for the five hundred Strawberry plants which Mr. Mar- 

 sack said he would have. The answer to the case was that 

 the land was taken by the defendant on the nsual agricultural 

 tenancy terminating at Michaelmas, but he now wanted to turn 

 himself into a market gardener, and thus impose upon the 

 Marquis of Abergavenny the duty, or obligation, of buying him 

 out. It was simply an after-thought on the part of plaintiH 

 coming upon Mr. Marsack, who could not be held in law as 

 liable to pay for those trees. 



Mr. Marsack said he took the land in question from the .iJtn 

 of September. On the ICth of October Marsh visited him, and 

 asked if he would allow him some few days longer that he 

 might have a sale of poultry upon the ground. His reply was 

 that if he promised to conduct himself properly he might have 

 ten days— certainly not a month. Marsh asked him if he 

 would take the outhouses, and he replied No. He then asked 

 him if he would take the trees ; and witness replied that if he 

 had the right to remove them he would take them at a valua- 

 tion rather than have the ground cut up ; but he did not 

 believe he had the least right to remove them. He told Marsh 

 that at the time. After the sale he found the fence round the 

 garden pulled down, and on going to Mr. Delves and receiving 

 information from him he came to the conclusion that he had 

 nothing whatever to do with the plaintiff. 



By Mr. Burton. Was quite certain that a month was not 

 given to plaintiff to have the sale. Gave him only ten days or 

 a fortnight. It was entirely false that he went into the par- 

 ticulars of the things. Told him distinctly that he believed 

 he had no right to remove those trees. 



Walter Blackall Marsack said he was present at the inter- 

 view between the plaintiff and his father, and corroborated his 

 statement. 



Mr. W. Delves, steward to the Marquis of Abergavenny, 

 said he had the arrangement of letting the land to Marsh, who 

 hired it from the Michaelmas previous to 1870. It was meadow 

 land, and he did not let it to him as a nursery. He asked 

 permission to break-up a little more— the previous tenant 

 having broken-up a little for a vegetable garden— as the ground 

 was suitable for Strawberries, and he did so. Would have for- 

 bidden him to go into the business of a nurseryman if Marsh 

 had put it to him. 



Mr. Burton addressed his Honour mainly on the question of 

 plaintiff being a market gardener, submitting that he was such, 

 although he could not say that he was a nurseryman. 



Mr. Stone remarked that nothing was said about market 

 gardeners ; the privilege of removal applied to seedsmen and 

 nursery gardeners — market gardeners were not mentioned. 



His Honour said no doubt the general rule was that things 

 could not be removed except by nurserymen, and he said he 

 must give a verdict for defendant ; and if Mr. Burton found 

 out that the law was different from what he (his Honour) 

 believed it to be, he might move for a new trial. 



DOINGS OF THE LAST AND WOKK FOR 

 THE PRESENT WEEK. 



KITCHEN GARDEN. 



Rain has prevented ua from doing much work in this depart- 

 ment, and all crops make but little progress owing to the cold 

 ■weather, although it has changed warmer for the last few days. 

 A week or two of fine drying weather would be a boon to those 

 who are behindhand with their work. We are making the 

 walks in good condition for the season. Some of them have 

 been regravelled, and others improved by merely turning the 

 surface gravel over with a fork ; but before doing this they 

 were cleared from weeds, moss, and dirt. Surfacing walks m 

 this way when gravel can be readily obtained costs but little, 

 and they require but little after-attention during the summer 

 months when other work is pressing. When walks are in such 

 a state as to be a mere seed bed for weeds they do not give any 

 satisfaction to the gardener or owner, and often cost more to 

 keep clean than they may be regravelled for at this season, 

 besides the satisfaction of knowing that the whole garden will 

 be vastly improved for one year at least. 



It is sometimes necessary to relay the Box edgings before 

 doing the walks; indeed, whatever may be the character of the 

 edgings, if of stone or pottery, and they require cleaning, it 

 ought to be done before interfering with the walks. Box is 

 certainly the neatest edging for walks. It may be objected to 

 by some becaueo it harbours slugs, but this may with more 

 force be brought against any other edging except pottery or 



stone. Box lasts a long time in good condition without relay- 

 ing ; still, to have the edgings neat and dwarf it is better to relay 

 at intervals of six years. The way this is done may be summed 

 up in a very few words. First lift the Box the whole length 

 of the border, then dig over the place where it is intended to 

 relay, working-in some fine rich soil. The ground must be 

 trodden quite firmly and made perfectly level. It is better to 

 spend an hour or two extra at this than to plant uneven work, 

 which would be an eyesore for years. The Box should be pnUed 

 to pieces, and if the previous edging was m good condition 

 1 yard of it will cover a space of nearly 3 yards. ^ 



We planted a piece of ground with about a dozen varieties ot 

 Potatoes, most of them being late sorts. One object of this 

 planting was to prove the new remedy for the disease, salus, 

 invented by Mr. W. G. Smith. He does not send it out to 

 destroy the disease after it has taken hold of the Potato, but 

 as a preventive. It has the advantage of being very easUy 

 applied, being in the form of a very fine powder. We rubbed 

 the Potatoes with it, and also sowed the powder m the dnUs as 

 guano is sown. i i _ „„„v. 



In a season like this the advantage of glass protectors, such 

 as " ground vineries," is very apparent. Seeds sown under 

 them vegetate much more freely than those sown in the open 

 ground, and the plants grow rapidly even during cold wet 

 weather, when out-of-door crops are at a standstill. 



VINEBIES. 



We have continued thinning the Grapes as they became ready, 

 but allusion has been already made to the detaUs of this and 

 other work, such as stopping the laterals, i-c, as they require 

 it. We gave a good watering to the borders as soon asall tne 

 fruit was set. There are many who do not give their Vine 

 borders sufficient water. They water often enough, but will 

 perhaps Rive a border 30 feet by 12 feet a dozen potfnls. Such 

 a border if it is dry-and unless it is so it ought not to be waf ered 

 —ought to have at least three hundred gallons of water, inis 

 watering ought either to be of manure water, or what is prefer- 

 able, a sprinkling of guano, pigeons', or hens dung should be 

 made on the surface, and the water applied through a coarse 

 rose will wash the nutriment down to the roots. One more 

 good watering when the Grapes begin colouring will generally 

 be sufficient to finish off the crop. . . 



Other work requiring to be done .it this time is marching. 

 This is much more satisfactory than grafting. It is more cer- 

 tain of success, and the union is usually more complete. Ibe 

 best connection is made when the work is done, about the time 

 the Grapes are ready to be thinned ; the shoots will be green, 

 but firm and woody. Anyone can perform the operation. With 

 a sharp knife cut a slice from what is intended to be the stock, 

 cutting quite to the centre; then cut a similar slice from the 

 shoot It is intended to inarch, and bind them together moderately 

 ti-'ht. In two weeks tho matting may be slackened a little, as 

 the shoots swell rapidly. The two shoots should be fastened 

 tocether above and below the union, and this will prevent them 

 from moving at any time when the matting is being loosened. 



Vines in pots require a good supply of water if they are to 

 ripen their fruit next month, and the night temperature ought 

 not to fall below 05'. The water should be placed in pots over 

 the hot-water pipes before using it for the roots. It may be ot 

 the temperature of So' or DO'. Use it with an ounce of guano to 

 a gallon of water, or the water may be made suitable by soakmg 

 cow and stable manure in a tub of water, and using it mucli 

 diluted. The roots very speedily work up into a surface-ilressing 

 composed of equal parts of turfy loam and decayed manure; but 

 this dressing should be applied about the time of thinning the 

 Grapes. Only clear water should be used after the Grapes com- 

 mence colouring. . • •, j. _* 

 Fiqs and Oranges in Pots.— Figs require very simUar treat- 

 ment to Vines. When the roots are confined to a pot they 

 require rich soil, and will not grow too vigorous with it, whereas 

 if planted-out in such soil they would produce gross leaves and 

 shoots but no fruit. A Fig tree with its roots confined especi- 

 allv deU^hts in a similar surface-dressing to that recommended 

 for Vines. The roots will traverse it through and through, and 

 if a little pounded charcoal is added to it the green of the leaves 

 becomes intensified, a sure sign of renovated vigour. Red spider 

 attacks tho leaves, but this is very speedily destroyed by syrmg- 

 ing well with clear tepid water, twice a-day if necessary. It is 

 hopeless work attempting to grow either Fig or Orange trees 

 under the shade of Vines. In order to produce these fruits in 

 good condition they ought to be placed near the glass, and plenty 

 of light should be admitted to them, shading with canvas screens 

 being an evil if the trees are in good health. As the roots are to 

 be restricted to the pots they must have plenty of water. 



GREENHOUSE AND CONSERVATORY. 



Forced flowers and plants which have done flowering are too 

 Often neglected at this season, very often for want of space in 

 which to house them, or it may bo time to look after them. 

 This holds good especially with Dutch bulbs, Spirfflas, Lily of 

 the Vallev &c Indeed, there are some who throw their plants 

 away rather than be at the trouble to look after them. G«r- 



II 



