DcoepbSr 28,,.1805. ] JOUBNAL OF HORXICULTUEE AND COTTAGE GAEDENEK 



519 



adopted on tha Continent, and will gradually' make its way here, 

 not, however, that English gardeners need this teaching. I 

 boliovii I may aay that ,Mr. Pearson thinks highly o£ tliis form, 

 and I know that Mr. liivers does. 



The easiest method of forming a diagonal cordon is as fol- 

 lows : — A. well-drained trench, 2 or :i feet wide, find abont 

 1 foot deep, is made along the wall uf the house. HeaUhy and 

 vigorous yoiui? I'eaeh and Nectarine trees are then laid against 

 the back wall, at, intervals of 12 inches if for tlie doulilo and 

 triple cordons, in case the wall he low, and at l.'i inchts if fur 

 the hirger-develoiied form, d.i'scrihed above as single cordons. 

 The trees should have heallhy buds and shoots all along their 

 length, no vacant spaces from accident or otherwise. The fu'st 

 year they may be upright, or at the angle of 70°, according to 

 their vigour. The second year, if prospennis, they may bo 

 lowei'ed to 1.", there to remain. In the first winter of planting 

 about one-quarter of the tree niny be cut off, always tu a front 

 bud, as thereby the future growth prescntsless deformity at the 

 point of junction. Wires or trellises placed at angle of 4.5° much 

 facilitate the training, as the object is to liave the stems as 

 straight as possible. If placed otherwise, guiding-rods for the 

 young wood will be necessary, with frequent ties — say at every 

 fi inclies. Tlie trees will largely benelit by no fruit being taken 

 from tliem till they are three years old, and then only one or 

 two specimens. There is no loss of time, as these trees can 

 now be liad feet long at Mr. Rivers's, and by resting them 

 one year they will bear every succeeding season, lasting the 

 usual time of any such trees. After the first winter's heading- 

 down, no further shortening of the trees is needed. Provided 

 the shoots and roots arc then well looked after, the leader or 

 leaders may bo left alone. Accidents may be remedied by graft- 

 ing by herbaceous approach, an easy and a certain way. 



The next foi-m of cordon which I shall notice is tlie lateral 

 cordon. This is best described by Mr. Pavers in speaking of 

 the gronnd vinery, which is also admirably adapted for the close 

 cordon training of Peaches. " There are no cross bars, but 

 merely a frame ; in the top bar is a groove half an inch deep ; 

 in the bottom bar a groove a quarter of an inch deep; in the 

 bars at each end are grooves half an inch deep. The jiieces of 

 strong 21-oz. glass, which should be cut so as to fit, are pushed 

 into the upper groove, and let fall into the lower one. The 

 two end pieces of glass are then pushed inwards, so as to bring 

 the pieces close together. A little putty at the lower bar keeps 

 water out, and a little is also applied to the end pieces, so as 

 to prevent lateral motion. The width of such a span-roofod 

 frame should bo 3 feet at ba.oe ; 20 inches of height to the 

 ridge ; slope in all, 24 inches." In such a structure two I'eacli 

 trees laid horizontally side by side, and raised on rods or wires 

 sufficiently to keep them free, would produce the finest fruit. 

 In lengths of 7 feet, only one at each end being closed, the.^e 

 structures are easy tn manage, and would be very economical. 

 It is easy to see how only close pruning, as described, could be 

 practised in such cases. 



An adaptation of these principles, wherever the front walls 

 of an orchard-house were available, would be to take one-half 

 of the span of this " ground peachery," which wouM give a, 

 light 7 feet long by 2 broad. Some bricks or perforated planks, 

 placed 30, inches from the wall of the house, form a rest for 

 the lower edge of the light, and aff u-d low ventilation, which is 

 also secured by an interval of 2 or 3 inches being left between 

 the upper edge of the light and the wall of the, house. Tiles 

 or slates make the best floor for such miniature lean-to houses. 

 It is easy to place hinges so as to open them, and they should 

 be secured from high winds lifting them Mr. Kivers wrote I o 

 me very recently, " It will be a hard fight between those low 

 lateral cordons and diagonals as to produce." No doubt of it ; 

 and if the back wall of the house and the lov.' frOnt bo thus 

 utilised, it is difiicult to conceive how they could be better em- 

 ployed. The roots should be placed on a well-drained spot, 

 and the shoots of these lateral cordons stopped at three leaves 

 as soon as live are produced, and second growths at two leaves 

 as soon as three or four are developed.— ^T, C. Ba£u\LT. 



■■.Ml .-; :J . .. .| •.; - 



HOW TO USE PRUNING SCISSORS. 



In your Number for the 14th of November, writing on the 

 " Cultivation of the Vine." Mr. Wills says—" .^.void using 

 scissors for pruning the Vine. These have a tendency to 

 brnise the shoot for an inch or more below the cut. cSrc." This 

 certainly differs from my o-.vn experience in the matter. For 

 several years I have used only scissors for pruning Vines, 



Peaches, i-c. — scissors of the usual form, one arm being a 

 curved square biu' of metal, itnder which shuts tho knife-bladd' • 

 of tho other. 



Now, the fact I wish to point oiit is this, if yon are careful 

 when pruning always to place tho curved bar on the part of 

 the Hlir)ot that is to come off, you may then close the scissorB 

 and cut without the least chance of a bruise on the part le<t, 

 anrl with a less chance of eplilting than when you use a knife. 

 —.1. S. S. 



I'l.owxiiS OF 'lilE T'A'^t' •-■f^'\!^ON, 



,: PtXAllUONli; 1 



'• Vmhh do you consider the best lieraui'irns of laft year?" 

 By Geraniums the questioner meant greenhouse ones. Well, 

 it really requires some time to reflect as to which were those 

 of last ye.ar. One year we see them as seedlings exhibited; 

 and when we are the second year examining them in our own 

 houses another batch <vf candidates for public favmir is pre- 

 senting itself to ouv criticism. It is the s.ame in lloecfl, Ver- 

 benas, n!id other florists" (lowers, and, indeed, in Orchids,' 

 stove plants. Ferns, &c. There is a continuous progress going 

 on : and although 



I " To paint thn Lily, 



,[ Tfl th;'ow,ii.i)cj'tnttieo)i the Viulet,"' 



may liave been in the eyes of our great poet " a wasteful and 

 I ridiculous excess," yet it is what we are now continually doing. 

 ! The man who tells me that lie thinks the little wild Viola 

 i tricolor more beautiful than the lovely varieties that the skill 

 and patience of the liybridiser have added to our gardens is, I 

 have no doubt, sincere : but for all that I hold ditTerently. 

 And although there be an impatience on the part of some at 

 making inroads into the domains of the botanist, so that eveo 

 good Mr. Batenian said the other day tliat he was always glad 

 ! wlicn any of "Mr. Dotniny's Orchid marriages proved unhappy, 

 yet we arc all, I think, gainers by their success. Some persons 

 liave said that further advance in some sections (this amongst 

 others), is impossible. This I hold to be a f.alkacy; .'Jid I 

 I would also again suggest what I have frequently stated before 

 I — that when we have made such advances as we have done 

 j further jirogress must necessarily bo slow, and a little improve- 

 I ment each year all that we can reasonably hope for. 1 some- 

 times look Ijnck and see what has been done, and remember 

 how I have thought nothing could go beyond flowers which are 

 now passed away from remembrance; and so the other day, 

 when talking witli Mr. Hovle of Beading, and expressing donbts 

 as to his progress, lie immediately referred me to one of his 

 new flowers, Charles Turner, which, as having a white throat, 

 is a decided advance on all scarlet flowefs. I now prooeedi to 

 notice tho flowers of last season.' ij "' '"'< ''i:^!'.r! ■ .•■•-.')Tt 

 I HOYUE. 



I. -Tntm Haijlr. — This flower merits all thehononrs tliat-were 

 I heaped upon it, and the favourable manner in which it h^ 

 I been spoken of. It is a large flower, of line form, white throat'; 



lower petals orange red, richly painted ; upper petals very dark 

 maroon, evenly bordered with a bright carmine marg:in. ,/ 

 I 2. M(tn/ Hni/lr. — A lovely and refined flower, lai ge;" ind ijf 

 ; excellent habit, orange rose with a white throat; blotch siaall^ 

 with bright or.i,nge surrounding it. 



3. K.rkihiljr. — Lower petals rose, with wliite centre ;, npper 

 petals maroon, shaded. Good habit. ' ' . \''' ''!,'.. 



4. M^m. IJ'Drliinaii. — ^Orauge rose lowei: petal's, -white ^feentre^ 

 maroott upper petals, shaded with red and orange. ,; ' "' ' ' 



5.' Pri'tty Mari/. — .\. beautifully coloured flower. Orin^toSe . 

 lower petals: rich orange upper petals,, painted; -wi^h ''sman 

 maroon blotch. " !■;.' ifl-.i ■■ •. ; :• :■ 



(i. Pi(hJico!ri.— -Tieep 'oiang^' rose pktats, rich, maioon tpJ. 



Stout, good flowfir. '' ' "' '' '^ 



_ 7. Sitmiif .V/'mor/c.s'.— Orirnge rose' lower petaTsi white throa't; 



rich maroon blotch, with a margin of bright 'driaige. A Vetfy 



pleasing and bright-looking flower. ' ", ' ' ' '"' 



s. The HiiiTi' Admiral :^^\ri<;, large, and bold-looking flowe^. 



Mottled rose and ' filae ' lb\\-6r petals ; rich maroon top, bright 



margin. ' ' ' ' 



. :^'--*= FOSTEK. , ,^ , ^ .mo.Jr,! to 



9. British Snifnrl — Lower pefajs' "deiji' 'rosy viril'et:' dark 

 top petals, shaded on the margin with lake, ; 



10. Cnmtnni^e. — White centre ; lake lower petals. 



II. Fhtrlit. — K striking bold flo\yer, scarlet rose, with whjtis 

 throat. Free-flowering. ' •dr? •■■ i . •■< ■ , 



12. CJira. — Beep rose lower petals, ir'ar: on spot on top petals, 

 orange margin, white throat. 



