9« 



JOUBNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GAKDENEB. 



( Aogaat C, 1 



BBme extent aa tlier ^rere on one or two banobes on ^f^hiob the 

 Bnn shone nnprotectcJ by any screen daring two bours eacb 

 day. Tbe only way to avert the evil is to l;eep tbe bouBO as cool 

 as possible during the day, let nil tbe Tenlilators and doors be 

 tbronn open until the «un i^ oil tbe boupe in tbe afternoon, 

 and if the vinery is sufliciently provided with ventilators very 

 little damage will be done. Ko other Qrape, new or old, that 

 I am acijnainted with has ever RuSered with mo in tbe same 

 manner. Mrs. Pince's Black Muscat is not injured in the 

 least. I have this variety grafted on Lady Downe's, and tbe 

 thickness and luxuriant growth of the cane is remarkable ; on 

 its own roots it does not seem a strong-growing variety. 



I hope these few remarks may be of use to your cor- 

 leepoudent " Oakwood," and others who may bo in a like 

 case.— James Douglas. 



PAPERS READ AT, THE HORTICULTURAL 



CONGRESS AT MANCHESTER. 

 The Council of the Royal Horticultural Society have 

 placed in our hands for publication the papers that were 

 read at the meetings of the Societj' held at Manchester on 

 the 2l6t and -J-'nd of July. The meetings at which these 

 papers were read wore what were announced as the " Horti- 

 cultural Congress," but which partook of nothing of the 

 character of a congress, and therefore failed, as we antici- 

 pated, to carry out the idea of what was foreshadowed in 

 the programme and announcements. 



The intention of holding these meetings, and it was a 

 laudable one. was to take advnntage of the presence of the 

 large body of horticulturists who would he attracted to 

 Manchester by the Show of the Royal Horticultural So- 

 ciety, and to elicit from thoni their practical experience on 

 subjects which were brought before them by gentlemen \ 

 competent to do so, in the form of essays. But instead of 

 deliberation, discussion, and resolution, which are the 

 essentials of a congress, there was nothing but the bare 

 reading of tbe papers, wliich wc arc now about to publish 

 in our pages. 



The idea of a congress was a good one, and if it had , 

 been carried out its meetings would not only have been ! 

 fraught with much interest to those who were present, but : 

 many disputed questions might have been stttled had those 

 who entered the lists to discuss them have possessed the | 

 knowledge and ability to deal eslianstively witli the sub- 

 jects. But the idea was not carried out, and those who at- 

 tended to hear the ]>flpers read were eitlier unable, or what 

 is more probable, unwilling to discuss at such a time and 

 in so public a manner (juestions which they knew they 

 could deal with in far more comfort and to much greater 

 advantage in the public prints. 



It is a consideration, therefore, whether it is worth 

 while to repeat these meetings on tlie occasion of the 

 future provincial Shows of the Royal Horticultural Society, 

 the result being so incomparably short of the means used 

 to attain it. There is first of all the room or tent in 

 ■which to hold tbe meetings, and the attendant expenses. 

 There is the tax on those few members of Council who go 

 down to these Shows, and whose offices are for the time 

 anything but smecurcs, to be present to countenance the 

 ])roceedings. There is the tax also on the authors of the 

 I>apers, who are at the exi)ense of travelling far distances 

 to read them, and then, witliout any consideration, to sur- 

 render possession of them — a tax of which we have had 

 more than one complaint. And there is tbe tax on the 

 public — not a very numerous body certainly in the jn-esent 

 instance, wlio, ignorant tliat they would have an ojipor- 

 tunity of reading the papers in comfort for themselves in 

 our pages, listened to them with commendable patience in 

 a small stuffy tent under the rays of a broiling July sun. 

 Unless the perfect idea of a congress can be carried out, 

 we do not see what good can arise from a few gentlemen 

 meeting together merely to read a few papers on topics 

 which are ordinaiy subjects of treatment in the weekly hor- 

 ticultural journals. As a congress the aflair was a failure, 

 and if these meetings are to be repeated, let them have 



a fitting designation : bnt let them not in future be digni- 

 fied by tlie name of that which they in practice fail to 

 realise. 



\VnAT SOIL IS BEST SUITED FOR THE PRODUCTION 

 OF UKAJKS? 

 A Qi'ESTioN' coDtinaally naked by amatenre and otben in, " What 

 kind of Boil skonld I ost in mukiiig my Vine border?" — " ChooM," 

 iiayn tbe eterootyped roplr, " tnrfy loam from a postnro field.' So 

 far the aQiiirer is correct ; bnt tbe geological formation is never named, 

 whotbcr calcAreoas, silicione, or igncons, awnmiug that quality in this 

 particular requires uo consideration. 



1 admit tbat there i.^ bomc dillicalty to poonre Boil in a free state, 

 as Ibo different formations vcrj- often pass into each other. For in- 

 stance, we have tbe calcarcons sandi^tono soil when tbe former pre- 

 dominates over the latter, and again the eilicioas limestone nhen the 

 bnely divided particles preponderate. 



However lii,'lith' some cnltivators may estimate the propriety of 

 providing certain dcbcriptions of soil for "tbt- growth of certain claaaoB 

 of plants, onr everyday experiuuce JemoDFtrateH tbat tbo different 

 constitnentf) have separate duties to perform in tlie vegetable economy, 

 whether tbo action is chemical or mechanical ; and farther, wc cannot 

 controvert the fact liiat the dnration of life in plaiit.s. and the qnality 

 of the fruit, arc true expressions of the soil on which they grow. 

 Analogy is certfiinly not an accurate system of rf»iwoning, bnt in the 

 jjreseut case may ho of some assistance. \Vithin tho area of the 

 boulder clay it has been found that the best race of men is produced, 

 also tbo best cattle, and that the death rate in lower. If we accept 

 this statement we need not hesitate to admit tbo validity of the pie- 

 ceding couclusions. 



In relation to, and in support of these prelimiuaries. I now pass on 

 to deal with what may be to some a more practical part of the sub- 

 ject, — one which has for years past given me considoiable anxiety, and 

 produced sometimes strong feelings of self-reproach. The case to 

 which I wish to draw attention refers to tho unsatisfactory state of the 

 Grape crops at Tortworth. 



Let me notice first that the soil of which our Vino borders arc made 

 holds a large proportion of magnesiau lime : one vinery is planted ex - 

 clusivoly with tho NViiite Mu-scat of Alexandria, and although eighteen 

 years old, its strength has not greatly diminished. There has never 

 been cause to complain of sterility, the show of fruit has been invari- 

 ably good, even as many as four large bunches are generally produced 

 from a single eye. The berrici always set freely, and during the first 

 stage grew to a large sir.e. leading to tbe supposition that when fully 

 ripe their quality would meet tbe approbation of tbe most fastidious. 

 The very reverse of this was the case ; when they had finished stoning 

 there was no further increase of flesh, a decrease was more frequently 

 preceptible ; the skin began to shrivel and turn leathery ; there was 

 ahso u deficiency of saccharine matter, and of that peculiar aroma the 

 exclusive property of tbe Muscat. 



How to account for so decided and so violent a departure from the 

 ordinary course eluded every attempt, and my conclusions never rose 

 above mere speculation. Had this occurrence happened occasionally, 

 there would have been sufficient room to suppose that my practice had 

 been one unvarying course of mismanagement; but there was no 

 cause for any suspicion of the kind, as the same conditions were closely 

 adhered to which had heretofore been attended with some amount of 

 success. The border of an adjoining house was made of soil in every 

 way similar, and was planted with Vines of tbo Black Hamburgh, 

 Foster's White Seedling. Bucklnnd Sweetwater, and Golden Ham- 

 burgh. We have here a slight improvement in tlie produce of tbe first 

 two varieties, bnt even then the best bunches were hardly second-rate. 

 Tbe latter were always to some extent unproductive, and what did 

 make their appearance were straggly in tho bunch, and deficient in 

 berries. 



Interposition very frequently alters tbe whole course of events, and 

 brings about a change which tbe agent had not anticipated, and it so 

 happened with me. We found it necessary about fourteen years ago 

 to renew au old \'ine border. I had no choice of soil ; so whatever 

 benefits were then produced did not depend on any foreknowledge of 

 mine; they were purely the result of unforeseen rircnmstancee. I 

 can best describe the quality of the soil by Boying that it belonged to 

 the old red sandstone formation, contained not a particle of lime, and 

 was composed of silcx, alumina, and organic matter derived from 

 decayed herbage. At the time tbe border was made no manure was 

 added, nor has any been sine© applied, except a small portion mixed 

 with turfy loam of the same description as an occasional surface- 

 dressing. The varieties were the same as in the preceding house, 

 which gave me au opportunity of estimating correctly the Grape-pro- 

 ducing properties of the two kinds of soil. I bad not the sligbtcfit idea 

 as to what would occur. I did not anticipate that results would differ 

 materially from what I had already experienced. Bnt when the Vines 

 began to bear, the improved qnality of the fruit certainly took me by 

 surprise, — more particularly as regards tbe Golden Hamburgh, being 

 perhaps a little more diSicult to manage than any of tbo other varie- 

 ties. Many of tho bunches exceeded 4 lbs. in weight, and tho berries 

 1 inches in circumference. 



I do not offer these statements on the supposition that they repre- 

 sent more than what is to be seen daily ; they arc merely given to 



