April 22, 1669. ] 



JOURNAL OF UOJITICULTUEE AND COTTAGE OzUlDENEK. 



271 



enough to set the roots in xiij^orous action. After that the 

 roota BhonlJ have waterings juBt wljen they are thirsty, and 

 not otherwise. There is nothinp so aRrceable to a thirsty man 

 as a draught of pure water ; but Mhen satisfied, nothing could be 

 more uauBeatin'j; than forcing a man to drink water when he did 

 not want it. Just so to a great degree with a plant ; whilst the 

 Vine is merely Bwtlliug huds it makes small demands compara- 

 tively on the roots, and to deluge these roots wilh wattr of any 

 kind will he as little pleasant to the plant as forcing a man to 

 Bwallow water when he is not thirsty. As growth proceeds, 

 more water will be ntceseary. In fact, the roots being confined 

 to a small place, the soil should never be dry, but it should 

 not bo kept like a puddle with repeated waterings. After the 

 shoots are in leaf and the berries swelling, the plants mny 

 require watering twice in a sunjiy day. In cloudy, dull, colder 

 weather they may scarcely require watering twice a-week. 



5. As to manure-waterings, the surfacing with rotten dunfj, 

 or ground or dissolved bones, is about the simplest and surest 

 for beginners; but we have proved over and over again, that 

 plants, like animals, love change of food, and that is most 

 easily given them in the shape of manure-waterings. For 

 this purpose it is well to change the liquid manure, and it is a 

 good plan to alternate every such watering with a clear-water 

 ■watering. Thus, from 2 to 3 0Z9. of sujierphosphato of limo 

 will do fur the first gallon of water, and if made in the same 

 vessel, hiilf the quantity would do for the next watering. One 

 ounce of good guano is quire strong enough for a gallon of 

 water, and less for the next, and thus you may estimate 

 quantities, bearing in mind that it is safest to err on the weak 

 side. 'When we use soot alone, we make a peek do for sixty 

 gallons, Mith about 1 lb. of quicklime to clear it, and the water 

 comes out like brandy after twenty-four hours ; and so on with 

 other manures. A bushel of sheep dung, and half a bushel of 

 deer dung, will make a strong barrel of fifty gallons, and if 

 the sediment remain half the quantity will do next time. 

 Bear in mind that such waterings tell most when the plant is 

 growing vigorously ; and that when it is making little wood or 

 just swelling its buds, much manure-watering then induces a 

 State of atrophy from the very excess of nutriment which the 

 plant is unable to assimilate. 



We have said nothing .if the different modes of preparing 

 the Vines, as yours are already prepared. When we used to 

 grow them in pots rather largely, we tried two modes chiefly, 

 and with about equal success. First we stopped the Vine 

 shoot when from "> to 4 feet in length, allowed the terminal 

 bud to grow a little, and then stopped again, hut encouraged 

 laterals all along the shoot, and only removed them gradually 

 ■when we wished to ripen the wood. By the second method we 

 allowed the shoots to grow to from 6 to 8 feet long without 

 stopping, merely shoiteoing the laterals to a couple of joints as 

 they appeared, and then these longer shoots we twisted round 

 three or four sticks before starting them to break, and as the 

 bads broke we selected the strongest and best for hearing. 

 There are many details to attend to in these matters, and we 

 do not know on what plan your plants have been prepared. 



Now, as to Peach trees in pots, much of what we have said 

 will apply to them also, only they should seldom have any- 

 thing of what is understood as bottom heat, though, if the 

 loots are j lunged, from 2° to 3° above the average night tem- 

 perature of the house will be beneficial rather than otherwise, 

 and most so when it is desirable to force them early. We 

 ■would also particularly direct attention to what is said of 

 watering Vines, as we believe many Peach trees in pots are 

 mined by a continual lashing-on of water. 



Next, as to particulars. Your Peach trees have bloomed and 

 set their fruit well, but it is now falling in large quantities. 

 This may be primarily owing to the wood being imperfectly 

 hardened or ripened last autumn. Ar;ain, it may be only 

 owing to a healthy action of the plant to do for itself what it 

 expected jou to do for it — that is, to free it from a super- 

 abundance of fruit, and even of blossom.". One of the best 

 securities for preventing young frtiit dropping is to thin out 

 the weakett and worst-placed flower buds. Very likely you 

 will have reason to be thankful to the plant for throwing oft 

 what would have been an injurious redundancy. But even 

 allowing that too many have fallen, it may be partly owing to 

 your treatment, " syringing twice a-day, mulching the roots, 

 and watering very often." 



There is no royal road to success, we mnst be content to 

 notice, and think and act according to circumstances. In an 

 early house frequent syringings before the fli^wer buds expand 

 help to soften the bads and may be nseful. la late houses 



we consider the practice of no importance. Whilst in bloom a 

 somewhat dry atmosphero is desirable. If apt to be too dry, 

 beginners had belter dump the floor uf the house im-tead of 

 using the syringe. When the blooms set, syringing is usefol 

 for clearing away blooms, &o., and is eepeoiully refreshing 

 after a sunny day. Syringing, however, in a dull day twice 

 often does more harm than good, as repressing instead of 

 encouraging free transpiration. In dull cold days, when there 

 ia not much artificial heat given, the trees would be better 

 without the syringing. 



As to the watering very often, unless a considerable amount 

 of artificial heat was given, the weather we have lately had 

 did not allow of wateiing very often with propriety. In our 

 orchard liouee pot trees frequently received no watering for 

 eight or ten days. lu such fine days as the 8ih and 9th of 

 this month, the trees would want water every three or four 

 days. When growing freely and the fruit swelling they would 

 want it more frequently, and that chiefly according to the 

 weather and the sunshine. Do not, if you wish thoroughly 

 to succeed, think it too much trouble to examine your pots 

 with a stick or even your fingers, and do not be satisfied with 

 mere surface appearances. Simple as it is, we find it very 

 difficult to secure this being done by other people. If we see 

 a plant suffering the wieUler of the water-pail is ready to say, 

 " Why, sir, I watered it so and so," and very likely he says 

 what is true — ho gave it a touch-and-go as he went along, and 

 the surface soil for an inch or so is damp enough, but try 

 beyond that and you will find the soil and the roots dry. We 

 have known scores of pots of Peaches throw the fruit from 

 this cause alone. We have seen the same result accomplished 

 by keeping the roots constantly in soil saturated with liquid. 

 The deduction to be drawn is simply this, " Do not water when 

 it is not wanted. Do not satisfy yourself with surface dribblets." 

 After you have fairly started your plants, when you water give 

 enough to reach every fibre of the roots, and then summon 

 resolution to your aid, and give not a drop to them until 

 you find they require it. In some very hot sunny days about 

 and after midsummer, we have sometimes been obliged to 

 water twice a-day. In ordinary weather, water once in two or 

 three days ; in dull weather still more seldom. Before growth 

 is proeeeding rapidly, provided the soil is first gradually 

 moistened, as there is but little demand on the roots, the 

 waterings should be but seldom, only thorough when given. 

 We are convinced that tons of water have often been applied 

 early, when less than hundredweights would have been more 

 than sufficient. There is no trial-stick so effectual as going 

 down several inches with your finger or a small stick. If the 

 pots stand even partly above ground, a sharp stroke or ring on 

 the pot with a stick or your knuckles will indicate the state of 

 general moisture within. If the ringing is followed by a sharp 

 clear sound, something like an empty vessel, then water is 

 wanted ; if a dull heavy sound, pass that plant by — a much 

 more difficult matter ilmn is generally imagined. Out of one 

 hundred men yon will not find above from five to ten who will 

 do that, simple as it is, without avast deal of trouble. Watering 

 merely the surface soil of pots — watering everything as yon 

 go — are the two most fruitful sources of injury to plants in 

 pots. 



Again, as to heat and air, we presume as you only light fires 

 about 8p.ii. thatyou do cot give much heat. As to whether you 

 give too much to Peaches we cannot say, but it is well that 

 when Peaches are merely swelling their buds the temperature 

 from artificial means should rarely exceed from 45° to 50°, 

 when in bloom from 50° to 55°, and after setting from 55° to 

 60°. In all these cases, provided air is early given so that the 

 temperature may rise gradually, the latter may rise from 5° to 

 15' more from sun heat, and you may shut the house at from 

 3 to 4 P.M. with the thermometer all that higher than the 

 night temperature, and then after a sunny day is the best time 

 to syringe, as the moist heat thus produced is relished by the 

 trees and disliked by all insects. 



As to air at night, a little, especially at the top of the house, 

 will be useful. We seldom in the early part of the season give 

 much ourselves, because coals are expensive, but if we lived 

 near a coalpit we would never shut up any house quite closely. 

 We combine economy and utility by shutting up where heat is 

 wanted at night, and giving a little air early in the morning. 

 Of our orchard houses we shut up one early in the afternoon, 

 to take advantage of the husbanded sun heat. As we wish the 

 other to come in later we leave all the air on in favourable 

 weather until late, and if the weather is fine and mild, leave it 

 so all night. To simplify the matter, bear in mind that a small 



