384 



JOUENAIi OF HOimCULTDKE AND COTTAGE GAJKDENEB. 



I Novemljer 7, 18C5. 



the merits of one of those little giidgeous which swim in shoals 

 and disport themselves in that bright gravelly spot under the 

 water near our right. Tench and carp will add to our day's 

 sport, for these fish also are found in the Stour. Earth, which 

 from time to time had accumulated in one spot, formed green 

 islands in the water, being covered by Reeds and Sedges, the 

 favomite resort of the reed-bunting and water-hen, with its 

 tiny brood; and there we occasionally took our lunch, and, 

 sheltered for a whUe from the overpowering heat of the mid- 

 day sun, ballads and glees we sang, as only such light hearts 

 could sing, making the occupants of a passing barge stare as 

 they heard sounds proceeding from a place usually unawakened, 

 save by the incessant chattering of the bunting. Amongst the 

 Keeds grew abundantly our favourite Forget-me-not ; wreaths 

 we gathered of it for the evening's social gatherings, when our 

 morning costume should be discarded for one more befitting 

 the votaries of Terpsichore. 



" In n\l places, then, and nil sensons. 



Flowers expand their light and soul-like wings, 

 Teaching us by most persuasive reasons. 

 How akin they are to human things 1" 

 — Alice. 



A VINEYARD UNDER GLASS. 



Another doctor ventures to give you a description of his 

 Grape culture without fire heat, and he does so the more wil- 

 lingly in gratitude to Mr. Kivers for his suggestion of a " vine- 

 yard under glass." 



As yet, I have not seen an account in any journal how this 

 mode of treating the Vine has answered. 13ut as my friends 

 and patients (many a grateful smile have I had for a fine bunch 

 of Hamburghs), declare my bouse is a great success, I will give 

 a short description of it, in the hope that many of my brethren, 

 worn in body and mind, will follow my example, and find in it 

 the same solace and relaxation that I have. 



My vinerj' is a span-roofed orchard-house. 30 feet by 14. It 

 was erected in the spring of 1861), and is made entirely of wood, 

 iron, and glass, at a cost of £35. At one end I planted about 

 six Vines in the border, 30 inches apart (3 feet is a better dis- 

 tance), and trained them as bushes to iron rods, 6 and 7 feet in 

 length. At the other end I attempted to grow Peaches, Nec- 

 tarines, and all the other stone fruits in pots ; but year by year 

 the Vines have encroached on their neighbovu's, and the house 

 is now entirely filled by them. This is due to the Vine bearing a 

 little neglect, and not being so liable to the attacks of insects. 

 My failure in the cultivation of other orchard-house fruits is, I 

 freely confess, due to myself. I have seen such superb fruit 

 in the houses at Sawbridgeworth, and in those of Mr. Brchaut, 

 in Guernsey, that I now know what can be done by the assidu- 

 ous care and attention of a man who can command his own 

 time. 



In this one house I grow thirty-nine Vines (twenty-six varie- 

 ties), aU bushes but two, a Golden Hamburgh and a West's St. 

 Peter's, which run along above the path, and 2 feet below the 

 ridge-board. The path is central, and the bushes are planted 

 in two rows in the borders. In the autumn I prune each shoot 

 to two eyes, not leaving more than two stumps to each joint. 

 I can assiu'e " J. H. H." that cutting to no eye does not answer. 

 I have tried it ; wood only is formed. In the West Indies, to 

 secure two crops in one year, I am informed that all the spiu's 

 that have borne the first crop are cut off directly the Grapes 

 are gathered, and that the dormant eyes of the naked stem 

 break and bear well. The climate of England does not ripen 

 the wood sufficiently to allow our Vines to bear such treatment. 



The Vines that have reached maturity and have borne well 

 this year are the Sweetwater, Muscat St. Laurent, Mill Hill 

 Hamburgh, Black Hamburgh, Golden Hamburgh, Grizzly 

 Fronlignan, West's St. Peter's, and Muscat of Alexandria. 

 The Black Hamburghs have been superb in size of berry, 

 colour, and bloom, even to within 20 inches of the groimd, 

 and the largest btmch weighed 22 ormces. West Somerset 

 must be a more favourable locality for the Grape than Hunting- 

 donshire, for I cannot join your able correspondent, " J. H. H.," 

 in his complaint, and condemn my Hamburghs for deficiency 

 of cilour. 



My borders are made of light friable soil from the garden, and 

 they get in the autumn a liberal top-dressing of fowl manure. 

 The subsoil is gravel. 



It is rather with a troubled conscience that I write this paper. 

 I may be riding my hobby too hard. Will yon, therefore, be so 

 kind as to append your opinion of the samples that I send you, 



which are not to be taken as specimens of best bunches, they 

 having been gathered some time since'? — M. E., IlVsi Siitnerset. 



P.S. — A word more to those of my medical brethren who have 

 but a few feet of garden wall. Try Mr. Brehaut's system of 

 diagonal cordon training of fruit trees. I have seen that it is 

 good. 



[The Black Hamhiirgh was well gi-own, and as highly coloured 

 and richly flavoured as could be desired. Gulden Hamburgh 

 was dead ripe, and had hung rather too long, the pcint of union 

 between the berries and the stalks having begun to decay ; but 

 the flavour was excellent. Mill Hill Hamhur;ih required to 

 hang longer. It is not so early as the old Black Hamburgh ; 

 the specimen, however, is vei-y good both in the size of the 

 berries and the colour; the flavour wiU be unexceptionable. 

 WcsVs St. Pftcr's is not nearly ripe, and we doubt if it wUl ever 

 acquire such a pitch of excellence in flavour as the others. It 

 requires more heat than you can give it in an orchard-house. 

 The same remark applies to Muscat of Alexandria, which, 

 although good and highly musky, is not nearly ripe. Grizzly 

 Frontiij7>an, we think, cannot be true. We cannot detect any 

 Frontignan flavour in it, and we are rather inclined to think 

 that this is Chasselas Rouge do Falloux, or one other of the 

 Red Muscadines. It is perfectly ripened, and very good as 

 well as handsome. Altogether the collection is very interesting. 

 Toll are labouring under the same mistake that many make in 

 calling the Royal Muscadine the Sweetwater. What you have 

 under the latter name is the Royal Muscadine, and a vei7 good 

 bunch it is.] 



MANAGEMENT OP INIOWING-MACHINES. 



Since writing my former letter about mowing-machines, I 

 have again tried the effect of emery on the cutters of mine, 

 and found it answer perfectly. The reason of its failure before, 

 I find, was attributable to the smith I employed not applying 

 it in a proper way, and screwing the cutters too tightly against 

 the ledger-plate. I will, therefore, relate the modes of pro- 

 ceeding for the benefit of those who may require it. 



I took off the small rollers, freed the iron ones from the 

 pinion, set the knives so as just to touch the plate, placed the 

 machine upon a table, and allowed it to recline on its handles. 

 I then fixed a handle to the end of the axle, poured a quantity 

 of fine emery into the hollow of the concave-plate at the back 

 of the cutters, and turned them the reverse way. They carried 

 the emery with them as they rotated, and it was continually 

 swept up and again pom-ed regularly along the before-mentioned 

 hollow. In a short time I foimd they woiUd cut a hair through 

 if placed against any part of the plate. I beg to thank your corre- 

 spondents for their several replies, and think with " W. C.," 

 that finely-sifted sand would be a good substitute for emery. — 

 Vekax. 



R.yiv'FALL IN OCTOBER. 



The past mouth having been as extraordinary tor the amount 

 of its rainfall as the previous months were for drought, I ex- 

 pect that we shaU hear of floods more or less disastrous. In 

 Kent September was remarkably dry, the average heat of the 

 first twenty days and nights together exceeding that of any 

 similar period of consecutive days since July, 1857. The 

 latter part of the month was also warm, and the dry hot 

 weather continued up to the 9th of October, having com- 

 menced on the 2.5th of August. During that time only eight- 

 hundredths of an inch of rain fell, and that was apparently 

 what remained of a thunder-shower, which had spent itself 

 elsewhere. Previous to the 25th of August we had some very 

 heavy rain, which prevented vegetation suft'ering so much as it 

 would otherwise have done ; but in the first week of October 

 the pastm-es nnd lawns were brown, and bm-nt up with the 

 heat. A copious rain on the 9th, 10th, 11th, and 12th, amount- 

 ing to 1.39 inch, was of great service ; the next four days were 

 fine and dry, but on the 17th rain fell in more than ordinary 

 abundance. From then to the 31st G.75 inches of rain fell ; 

 almost half an inch a-day. This is a gi'eater rainfall than I 

 have any record of for the last twelve years. The total rain- 

 fall in the month was 8.14 inches ; that in the wettest month 

 during the above period of twelve years (November, 18C1), was 

 6.10 inches. The ground being dry at the commencement will 

 no doubt account for so little of the rain making its way into 

 our rivers ; nevertheless I hear of some districts under water, 

 and as 1.23 inch of r.ain fell on the 31st, when the ground had 

 been tolerably well soaked beforehand, I expect to hear of much 



