8(2 



JOUBNAL OP HOKTICULTURB AND COTTAGE GABDEKEB. 



taqrs,iew. 



over pits, as what was prown under them may be protected by 

 sometljiDg more simple than glass, and the plass and box be re- 

 moved for another purpose. The glass that is used for Carrots, 

 Turnips, &c., may be diBpensed with in a few days, and, there- 

 fore, though fixed roofs arc by far the cheapest, we could not get 

 on well in limited space and with limited conveniences with- 

 out moveable fmmes and sashes. We would be afraid to say how 

 often some of our two-liRlit boxes have been moved and made to 

 serve different purposes in a twelvemonth. A good deal of the 

 seme system is pursued with glass that covers a brick pit, the 

 sashes being placed over earth and turf jiits, with merely a rail 

 on each side on the ground to prevent the sashes resting on the 

 earth. Sowed more Onions and the main crop of IJect, Salsafy, 

 and Scorzonera. The Onions succeeded the Celery, which was 

 taken np and packed in an out-of-the-way comer in a heap of 

 lurnace ashes, whore it has kept very good. We think it keeps 

 all the longer when lifted with good bulls in March. A late bed 

 tliat was never earthed-up. thus treated, and well banked with 

 ashes, will come in well for soups before the earliest of this 

 season's sowing comes in. Though bolted a little, if white, it 

 will do for that purpose much better than what is young and 

 green. Karly Celery, however, may be had very early if there 

 is room and labour power. More "than half of the difficulties 

 of the gardener in half the places in the country arise from so 

 much being expected, and from such httle means and resources. 



FRUIT CrAJJDES. 



With the exception of syriuging a single tree with quassia 

 water, and taking out and thoroughly washing a small tree in a 

 pot, our work in the orchard-house has been merely keeping a 

 look-out for insects, caterpillars, JL-c, a few turned-np leaves 

 appearing on a forward Plum tree. For want of anything 

 more handy we put as much soot as could be held between the 

 thumb and three fingers on each tree pot in the orchard-house, 

 and watered it in with a rose watering-pot. As soon as we have 

 time and opportunity we will water one-third of the ground 

 with drainings from the dunghill, getting over all the ground 

 at three times, at something like a week's interval. 



Expecting these lean-to orchard-houses to be continued, we 

 made a small border in front of one of them (the earliest), and 

 planted Vines S feet apart, so as to let in hght to the back 

 wall. These, cut back well, are breaking very strongly, and 

 showing many bunches at every eye. A walk goes in front of 

 the hoiiK', and our intention was to have made the under part 

 of the walk some day into an extended border, and convert that 

 orchard-house into a late vinery, as our other houses are rather 

 flat-roofed. W^tli the steeper roof of the orchard-house late 

 Grapes could be kept well into April, and these could be suc- 

 ceeded by early ones in a pit. Of course we are aware that ul- 

 timately these Vines will have to be sacrificed, or the plants as 

 Standards and dwarfs on a trellis in front of the house will 

 have to be done away with, excppt in the openings between the 

 Vines. However, it is easier talring out than putting in. Any 

 simple mode of heating would keep such a house of Grapes safe 

 in winter, and such kept Grapes will ever be more economical 

 than early forced ones. 



Peacli-li'visr — fitrniihrrrifs. — Tied-iu a number of shoots, and 

 will require an evening or a morning to do so effectually, and ex- 

 pose the fruit more thoroughly to the sun and air. Thi.s house 

 mnst also be more or less thinned of Strawberry-]iots. For 

 early work we set the flowers here to a great extent, and move 

 them elsewhere to swell and ripen. Most places in permanent 

 cropping are becoming too shaded for this purpose, and there- 

 fore we shall fill some hghts in a pit thinly, taking them from the 

 orchard-house whore they are showing bloom, but where they 

 would be too dark to set well and have good flavour. The 

 flavour question renders it now unsuitable to gather fruit from 

 under the shade of Vines. We obtained some fruit from the 

 back of a Cucumber-pit, fully exposed on a shelf to the sun ; 

 but we have removed the shelf, as the moisture was too much 

 fw the flavour; and if the air was all shut oft in a cold night 

 some of the ripest were apt to damp in places before the berry 

 was fully ripe all over. It always goes against the grain to bo 

 under the necessity of gathering a basket of forced Strawberries 

 shortly after the pots have been watered, as they neither carry 

 so well nor eat so well. At the back of pits, such as those 

 filled with Beans, there was no fear of damping, but being close 

 to the wall on a shelf there was such danger of hardening and 

 burning the fruit in the late bright weather, that we ran a 

 brush coloured with soot water along the wall above the plants, 

 to lessen the reflection of the light and heat. There will be 

 less likelihood of this in a pit filled with Strawberries, and the 



sun has now gained such an altitude, that there will be plenty 

 of direct light to set, swell, and flavour the fruit. 



As we fear we shall scarcely have enough of Strawberry-pots, 

 most likely we will take up a lot of youug plants, planted on a 

 border on purpose, now throwing np their trusses. I'art of theae 

 we shall Lift witli bolls, and plant in a bed with heat below 

 them, and part we shall pot singly in six-inch pots, and plmige 

 the pots in a mild hotbed out of doors, with the tops of the 

 Strawberries exposed to encourage roots reaching the sides of 

 the pots before the plants are in bloom. We may calculate on 

 its being fully live weeks before we gather fruit out of doors, and 

 thoush the last-planted-out plants look well, wo notice that some 

 that have been two and three years in the ground are patchy 

 from the excessive wet of the winter and the frosts in spring. 

 We may here also add, as respects forced Strowberries, that 

 though they like a variety of mannre waterings after the trusses 

 show, we prefor cleur water after the berry begins to colour. 



Fiii-hiiusc or Pit.- — Wo went over the most of this in a shady 

 day, e.xposing the fruit tD the light to a certain extent, as a 

 little shade from the leaves prevents burning and scorching, 

 removing lots of extra shoots, and stopping the points of those 

 intended for the second crop. When much of this has to be 

 done, let us advise beginners to put on some of their cast-aside 

 clothes, and partly, at least, to cover their faces and hands. 

 Much of this work had to be done by getting beneath the rough- 

 ish wildish bushes with face, brow, and hands pretty well ex- 

 posed to the droppings of the milky juice, and notwithstanding 

 our care, and a state of skin which rarely festers from cut or 

 tear, the viscid juice managed to raise some ugly blisters on our 

 brow and hands. Of course, when trees are trained to a wall or 

 trellis, there is less likelihood of the jiiirc hurting the operator. 

 For ease in managing and fertility in cHij'ping we prefer under 

 glass the somewhat rough natural style of growth, with the 

 tying of a shoot now and then, so that it may not rob its neigh- 

 bours of light. We mention about the juice the more particu- 

 larly because a lady gardener last season had her hand spotted 

 and blistered. The bad effects pcnernlly soon pass away, but 

 the juice leaves ugly stains on black cloth and black sili, and 

 indeed on cloth of all kinds. 



Vincriis. — We have had a good deal of work in these of late, 

 thinning Grapes morning and evening, regulating the second 

 vinery, and commencing thinning bunches, and regulating and 

 thinning shoots in the late vinery. In the second vinery went 

 over several times in the sunny days the bimches in bloom, 

 slightly shaking, brushing, or drawing a clean dry hand over 

 them, beginning at the top and passing along the bunch. We 

 have found nothing to equal the dry hand in a sunny day, and 

 a temperature of from 70° to 80° and onwards. Where pollen 

 is at all scarce, a piece of white paper may be held in one hand 

 below the bunch, and thus the pollen of one kind plentiful in 

 fertiUsing-dust, will help to set another kind whore the pollen 

 is deficient. By such simple means we have rarely failed in 

 setting Dutch Sweetwater, Black Morjcco, Black Damascus, 

 and the different kinds of Muscats when wo grew them. A 

 man may thus go over the bimches of a large house in a short 

 time. On large bunches of Muscats this may have to be done 

 several times, as the shoulders will sometimes be in bloom 

 before the points. 



In the late vinery, we managed in the dull day of Tuesday 

 to raise Vines nearer the glass, and to stop most of the fruiting- 

 shoots. It is of little use stopping too soon when growth is 

 desired, and the Vines have more room than ours. These 

 Vines had been suspended about 2 feet or more from the glass, 

 have now been raised to from 15 to 13 inches from it, have 

 broken every eye almost, and never had a syringing, and possibly 

 will never have water on the leaves and fruit until the Vines 

 are washed after the fruit has been cut. Our water is so far 

 from pure that we lessen syringing. We have just cleared 

 this house of Pelargoniums, and not too soon, as they were 

 becoming a little drawn, and we must keep the conservatory a 

 little closer in consequence to suit them for a few days. 



OIINAMENTAI. DErAETllEXT. 



On this we can say nothing further this week, than that wo 

 have been very busy with bedding plants, giving them a little 

 protection, in fresh arranging plant-houses, conservatory, &o., 

 removing lots of Cinerarias and Primulas, taking Camellias, 

 Epacris, itc, done blooming, to the vinery ; and in placing 

 .Azaleas where they will be best seen and a little shaded, 

 Pelargoniums where they will have more light, and Fuchsias 

 where they can have more light still. Many tilings will be 

 freshened np a bit, and be brought back again when in full 



