October 29, 1868. ] JOURNAL OP HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



319 



penda more for its effect on the frequency and the BhallownesB 

 of the stirring thun upon its depth." " Nemo's " oonchision 

 is, " When the ground becomcB dry, and we cannot water, by 

 no means break through the surface crust, but simply till np 

 the cracks, and hoe aa lightly us possible, or, perhaps, hand- 

 weeding would be better still." Tliia suggestion of hoeing is 

 not quite in harmony with the previous words, " by no means 

 break the crust." We do not allude to this little discrepancy 

 at all in a carping spirit, quite the reverse, for, like " Nemo," 

 we frequently find faets that militate against favourite theories. 



We may bo wrong, but at present we believe, that amid the 

 drought we kept our flowers in beds alive by a very frequent 

 shallow-moving of the surface with a Dutch hoe, and this not 

 so much to fill cracks, as to prevent cracks being formed. Every 

 snch moving of the surface broke the lines of conduction and 

 radiation, and even evaporation, and caused their work to begin 

 anew. The fresh-moved loose surface acted very much in the 

 same way as the cake of soil or turf placed on the surface of the 

 open border. The more adhesive it was, the sooner it would 

 be heated, and the more heated it was the more would that heat 

 raise the moisture from beneath. It would be different as a 

 conductor from a common caked, hard surface, as there would 

 be air beneath it, unless beaten down very firmly. If the turf 

 was firm, and covered a large space, cracking would soon take 

 place, and nothing could be more injurious to plants, as this 

 season, by means of thin laths, we measured cracks more than 

 4 feet deep, and there the heated, dry air could circulate at will. 

 Wherever dry air can find its way freely, it will dry the soil 

 with which it comes in contact. Hence, deep stirring in sum- 

 mer may often be nnadvisable, and light soils may stand more 

 in need of compression than of stirring them up to much depth. 

 .^e fork is an excellent cultural instrument, but there are soils 

 "that will be the better of the roller. After the compression, it 

 will generally be advisable to stir the surface. 



It may help to elucidate the matter, to bear in mind that 

 heat and cold are merely relative terms, and that what will best 

 admit or keep out the one, will also best admit or keep out the 

 other. As a general rule, the firmer and the more compact a 

 soil is, the more deeply will it be heated by the sun's rays, as 

 the firmer it is the better will be its absorbing and conducting 

 powers. The same rule holds good as to the depth to which 

 frost will go. When our deeply-stirred loose soils become heated 

 and dried in summer, it is less owing to direct absorption and 

 conduction of heat, than to the free entrance of dry, heated 

 air. 



Again, when we ridge-up stiff soils in winter, it is not to 

 enable them to part with their heat more freely by radiation 

 and conduction, but that the keen frosty air may find its way 

 to every cavity, and thus act as the best and the cheapest of all 

 pulverisers. We think we told somewhere of the impression 

 made on us, long ago, by the different results attending two 

 small Potato pits covered with soil, and attended to in every 

 way alike as to quantity of soil, &c., with only one little dif- 

 ference. One man, and a most careful tidy man he was, beat 

 the earth quite firm, leaving a smooth surface. The other man 

 piled the earth rather firmly, but left a rough open surface, 

 showing nothing of the polish and finish given by his neighbour. 

 A very hard frost set in in November. The pita were not 

 opened until the new year. In the rough-surfaced one the Po- 

 tatoes were all sound. In the polished-surfaced one, most of 

 the tubers were sweet, and had to be placed in the coldest 

 water for some time before cooking them. Whilst pondering 

 on the fact of the difference, it was long before we could find a 

 reason for that difference. 



Whilst agreeing, then, with much that "Nemo" has stated, 

 we must still value a loose fresh surface as a regulator of heat 

 and moiature.] 



PEARS FOE NORTH WALL. 



Is your reply to " H. W. B." on this point in answers to 

 correspondents, October 8th, you remark, " No Pear succeeds 

 well on a north wall." I confess I was staggered when I read 

 this reply, and very humbly I must beg to differ from you. 

 My locality is probably the highest village in Somensetahire, 

 and we are colder than in many parts of the county, yet I 

 gather very respectable Pears from my nortli wall — not, of 

 course, what they would be on a south aspect, but still fruit 

 that I should never object to eat. 



When I came here first, I found the following Pears on my 

 north wall : — Beurre Diel, Beurre de Eance, Forelle or Trout, 

 Late Chaumontel, Winter Nells, and Louise Bonne of Jersey. 



Now, with the exception of the last-named Pear, none of these 

 trees ever produced a ripe fruit. All, therefore, except the 

 last, the Chaumontel, and the Beurrd Diel, I had cut back and 

 grafted with Williams's Seedling (Bon Chri-tien), Jargonelle, and 

 Marie Louise. The BeuriC Diel and Clianmontel do only for 

 baking and stewing, but the olher four Pears are all tit to eat ; 

 indeed, this year they have been first-rate, and if " H. W. B." 

 must have Pears on the north wall, let him try these, and I do 

 not think he will be disappointed. — Y. B. A. Z. 



[We were quite aware that Peara " fit to eat" may be grown 

 on a north wall, hut wo do not consider that succeeding well. 

 —Eds.] 



THE GARDEN AT THE MOTE, NEAR 

 MAIDSTONE. 



In the midst of a park of more than ordinary beauty stands 

 The Mote, the principal seat of the Earl of liomney. The 

 mansion is one of tliose Grecian structures of which so many 

 examples were erected about the beginning of the present cen- 

 tury, and which are more remurkablo for comfort and conveni- 

 ence than for ornamentation. The fite is a slight elevation in 

 a sort of valley formed by the river Len, which flows through 

 the park, and in its course forms a large sheet of ornamental 

 water in shape somewhat resembling the letter Y ; but it is so 

 judiciously managed that the whole of it cannot be seen from 

 any one point of view. Tiie park is several miles in circum- 

 ference, and is well diversified, hill and dais alternating, with 

 now and then the naked rock peeping out in places, while in 

 others it is covered with the richest sward. The whole is 

 plentifully studded with trees of great beauty, not indiscrimi- 

 nately scattered, but arranged to produce the best effect — in 

 one place hiding the boundary where the object beyond is o£ 

 no importance, but opening out in other directions where dis- 

 tant scenery can be advantageously brought in. 



The great extent of the park, and its many features of inter- 

 est, including a church in one place, a monument to comme- 

 morate a visit by George III. in another, its undulating cha- 

 racter, and the lake, give it importance apart from outward 

 attractions. And yet these are of no mean order. On the 

 north-western side it is only separated by a public road from 

 Vinters, also a highly ornamental park, while the southern 

 extremity stretches almost into tbe town of Itfaidstone, of which 

 the churches and other lofty buildings may be seen from many 

 parts of the park. For the richness of ita verdure and the 

 variety of its scenery this park is exceeded by few. 



The mansion is likewise sufficiently removed from the seats 

 of industry and highways, so that one strolling amongst the 

 groves at The Mote might easily imagine himself many miles 

 from any town. There are no smoke-stained boughs nor dirty 

 foliage to remind him that other habitations are near. On the 

 contrary, everything seems to assume that healthy vigorous 

 condition which is characteristic of a pure atmosphere and an 

 excellent soil. That The Mote is thus favoured will be manifest 

 by the following description of some of the subjects in the 

 garden, as well as by the fine specimens of trees in the park, 

 such as Cedars, Y'ews, and Tliorns, together with plenty of 

 indigenous trees of all kinds and recent introductions from 

 abroad. The last-named are not too profusely interspersed, as 

 it is queationable whether they will ever attain the beauty of 

 form and large proportions which our native trees present. 

 Attention has likewise been directed towards providing for the 

 requirements of a future day, young trees being planted in 

 suitable positions, and the whole attended to in that careful 

 manner which is the beat guarantee of success. 



I have already stated that the mansion occupies a slightly 

 elevated site abont the centre of the park. The view to the 

 south-west, down the valley of the Len and over the town of 

 Maidstone, extends for several miles, not the least effective 

 part being the park itself, with its broad expanse of water occu- 

 pying the lowest ground, and the eminences mostly crowned 

 with groups of trees in the healthiest possible condition. A 

 large mass of trees, many of them of very large size, forms a 

 background to the mansion, eueloeing, as is often the case, the 

 offices and bade approaches, but in this instance also encom- 

 passing the kitchen garden and dressed grounds. The latter 

 contain many beautiful green walks, bordered with shrubs, and 

 overhung by magnificent Oaks and other trees. A large piece 

 of woodland is also rendered very picturesque and interesting 

 by this mode of intersecting it in various directions by beautiful 

 green glades ; and the visitor eveiy now and then comes upon 



