Oocembor 17, 1808. 1 



JODHNAL OP HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



467 



the hot dung, as, if the heat or steam from the lining be at all 

 rank, it may pass up under the protecting material, and through 

 the laps of the glass into the frame. The protection should be 

 placed over the lights soon after the sun leaves the frame, 

 or on an average about an hour before dark, and should remain 

 on until an hour after daylight. In some cases putting on 

 dry litter or straw will be suilkient to keep up the temperature 

 of the seed bed. It will be requisite in the case of high winds, 

 which are apt to pass into those small beds and cool them 

 more in proportion than wider hotbeds, that litter should be 

 placed against the side from which the wind is blowing, and, 

 if necessary, all round, placing it also against the sides of the 

 frame to within a few inches of the lights. 



The stopping of the plants should be attended to when they 

 have made two joints or rough loaves ; then take out their 

 points before the third leaf is formed. This will cause the 

 plants to branch or push shoots from the bases of the leaves, 

 and when these are a few inches long, or have made two leaves, 

 they will be fit for planting-out in the fruiting bed. — G. Abbey. 



VERTICAL CORDON PLUM AND PEAR TREES. 



In No. 397, page 340, of this Journal, " T. R," aa well as 

 giving useful hints on cordon trees, has also given an excellent 

 list of Apples suitable for that mode of culture. Will he add 

 to that information by giving a similar list of Pears and Plums 

 for vertical cordons, for open borders (some for walls' are given 

 in page 388), and at the same time'state if the trees are to be 

 headed back the same as for espaliers and pyramids ; the trees 

 all maidens ? — J. M. 



[The culture of vertical cordon Plums is rather new here, 

 my bearing trees not being more than six years old. They 

 bear well, and offer a good prospect of success, possibly owing 

 to the calcareous nature of all descriptions of soils in this dis- 

 trict. There is no calcareous formation, but all our clays, 

 sands, and loams are full of comminuted chalk, the effect of 

 denudation. The chalk hills to the north-west were doubtless 

 in times long past mountains, the crests of which are now 

 mixed with our soils. This mixture, I apprehend, is the cause 

 of our fruit trees so rapidly coming into a bearing state. I 

 mention this to prevent disappointment, as in some rich deep 

 soils it may not be possible to control the growth of vertical 

 cordon Plum trees by summer-pinching as practised here. 



The trees may be planted 4 feet apart, more or leas according 

 to circumstances — i. c, the size of the garden. Maiden trees 

 may be planted, and the single shoot they should have must 

 not be shortened. Care, however, should be taken to pinch-in, 

 the first season after planting, all the shoots on the upper part 

 of the tree to one leaf, or two at most ; this will tend to make 

 the lower bnds break more freely. 



The kinds of Plums most amenable to this interesting method 

 of cultivation are the following, but more will be found when 

 more attention is paid to the habits of Plum trees : — Prince 

 Englebert, Belgian Purple, Early Orleans, Early Favourite 

 (Rivers), Cluster Damson, Jefferson, Heine Claude de Bavay, 

 Peach, Belle de Septembre, New Large BuUace, Yellow Magnum 

 Bonum, and Belvoir Plum. 



The following kinds of Pears, if on Quince stocks, may be 

 formed into cordons — viz., Baronne de Mello, Beurrfi Bachelier, 

 Beurrc Hardy, Colmar d'Ete, Dana's Hovey, Doyennfi dn Co- 

 rnice, Fondante d'Automne, Louise Bonne, Madame Treyve, 

 Passe Crasanne, St. Michel Archange, Summer Benrre d'Arem- 

 berg. 



Fruit trees in an English garden require strict attention, 

 like all other objects of fancy, and must be watched aooord- 

 irgly ; so that if a tree shows symptoms of over-luxuriance not 

 to be repressed by summer-pinching, two spades should be 

 introduced, as directed in page 340, in treating of cordon 

 Apples, the tree heaved, so as to break off a portion of its roots, 

 and the earth trodden down round it. If this fail root-prun- 

 ing should be had recourse to ; and if over-luxuriance is still 

 in the ascendant, the tree may be lifted — taken up with its 

 roots intact — and replanted. Some trees may require only a 

 gentle heaving, others a slight root-pruning on one side, and 

 others the more rigid treatment of lifting. In no case should 

 the fruit-oulturist be an R R. — a rash remover, like my excellent 

 and acute friend " C. C. E." Does the poultry-fancier suffer 

 his pets to ramble about for months without care and attention ? 

 Does the shorthorn-breeder suffer his beautiful heifers to be 

 turned on to a common with thecostermonper's donkey, which 

 is always seeking and not finding? I think not. We must 



therefore imitate our poultry and Bhorthorn prizc-eeekers 

 and pay strict attention to our garden fruit trees, " root anil 

 branch." 



I have known and advocated root-prnning for forty years ; 

 but I was not the originator of the system, for, like all inven- 

 tions of consequence, it cast its shadow before in the shape of 

 hints and notes from the correspondents of our horticultural 

 periodicals. It is only recently that it has been formed into a 

 system which, even at present, is but imperfectly understood, 

 but which is making progress, so that a day will arrive when 

 our gardeners will scarcely believe that "once upon a time" 

 the roots of our garden fruit trees rambled nncontrolled b; the 

 pruner. — T. Rivers.] 



MANLEY HAI.L, STRETFORD, MANCHESTER. 



THE KESIDENCE OF SAM MENDEL, ESQ. 



(Continued frovi page 338.) 



On leaving the Erica house I entered the hon ee that was 

 originally the Pine stove, but it is now converted into a hoQse 

 for specimen stove plants, and is, perhaps, one of the finest for 

 this purpose to be found in the kingdom. It is 69 by 28 feet, 

 has a pit in the centre 15 feet 8 inches wide, and a 3feet-4-inch 

 walk all round ; between the walk and the sides of the house is 

 a stage 2 feet 6 inches wide, made of solid slabs of iron covered 

 with Debyshire spar, and supported by stout iron pillars. This 

 IS at once the neatest and most substantial stage I have ever 

 seen. The pit is formed of brick walls having a coping of 

 dressed stone, and is filled up to within 6 inches of the top 

 of the coping with tan, on which are placed some magnificent 

 specimens of stove plants. Directly facing the door at the east 

 end is a splendid Croton variegatum 7 feet high and 5 feet 

 through, and most beautifully coloured — a perfect pillar of 

 gold. There were also a Croton angustifolium, of larger 

 dimensions than the plant just noticed, a grand Medinilla 

 magnifica, and specimens of the following plants, most of 

 which are considerably larger than those of which the dimen- 

 sions are given above — viz, Croton pictum, Rhynchosia albo- 

 nitens, Cissns discolor, Drac-ena ferrea, Cossignea borbonioa, 

 Pandanus elegantissimus, in the most perfect health and vigour, 

 Eondeletia speciosa, showing hundreds of trusses of orange 

 and red flowers, and Eurya latifolia variegata, with handsome 

 CamelUa-like foliage. This plant, Mr. Fetch tells me, is quite 

 hardy ; if this be so, it will most certainly become one of the 

 most popular bedding plants of the day, for no foliage can be 

 more beautifully variegated, and as a decorative plant for the 

 conservatory or greenhouse it has few equals. There were, 

 besides, beautiful plants of Gesneras in great variety, Dra- 

 cx'ua Cooperi and Btricta, with very large leaves brilliantly 

 coloured, and Ananassa Porteana, the beautiful new Pine 

 Apple sent out in 186B; likewise some of the new Colenses, 

 forming handsome pyramids. The best were C. Bausei, 

 C. Berkleyi and C. Saundersi ; to these Mr. Fetch must add 

 C. Marshalli and C. Telfordi aurea, the latter the handsomest of 

 the whole. They are fine for conservatory decoration in the 

 summer, and their colours may be kept very bright throughout 

 the winter months if the plants are placed in the warmest and 

 lightest part of the conservatory. In addition to the plants 

 already mentioned, there were finely coloured specimens of 

 Dracffna marginata, the best of the Dracfcnas, and Begonia 

 Pearcei, one of the handsomest of winter-flowering plants 

 with beautiful foliage, and which will be a lasting souvenir of 

 poor Pearce. 



This house is about 13 feet from floor to roof, and has 

 a division in the centre. In the second compartment of 

 the house there are fine specimens of many stove plants, 

 and among them a plant of AUismanda nobilis, 7 or 8 feet 

 high. Of what the appearance of this grand plant will 

 be when it is covered with its immense large bright yeUow 

 flowers, those only who have seen it can form any idea. There 

 were also fine plants of AUamanda Sehottii and Hendersoni, 

 Gardenia florida, Dipladenia amabilis, and the grand old 

 Combretum purpureum, a plant not half so extensively onl- 

 tivated as it ought to be. Here also were several varieties of 

 the Cotton plant in various stages ; some were just bursting 

 their pods, and showing what is the source of the great wealth 

 of Manchester. Some large plants of Ixoras were in a fine 

 state of health, and were shortly to be placed in a new stove 

 which has been specially erected for them. 



I next entered a fine new span-roofed house, in three divi- 

 sions, of the same length as the last, and 19 feet G inches wide. 



