Jnne 17, 1875. ] 



JOUBNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



477 



winter it mnst not be grown too large, but a medium-sized plant 

 is the best for all purposes. When once planted-out the plants 

 must never suffer from the want of water, and they will be 

 crisp and of good flavour. Some advocate shading the plants, 

 but I do not do that if I can manage to take up my plants with 

 plenty of soil to the roots, and plant them before they are become 

 overgrown for the purpose. There is a proper time for this 

 work, and an effort should be made to have it done at the time. 



In a showery time like the present the opportuuity should not 

 be lost to sow a good breadth of Orange Jelly Turnip, or any 

 other favourite sort. The plants come up quickly, and grow 

 away from the reach of the ilea, which in dry weather will eat 

 the little plants up. With me early Turnips have done well. 

 I am pulling the Early Stone and White Uutch, both of which 

 I cousider have escaped the ilea by the free use of wood ashes 

 and soot, and they have been excited in growth in consequence. 

 They have also been supplied with an abundance of water. 



Plant Leeks at once, either in trenches or on a border of rich 

 Boil ; the former plan is the way for them to grow firm and 

 quick. Thin-out the crops of Beetroot if it has not been done, 

 and fill up vacancies by pricking-out some of the plants not 

 wanted otherwise. Those who grow Endive may now make a 

 small sowing of Digswell Prize or Green Curled, and later on, in 

 addition, the Broad-leaved Batavian and Moss Curled; the latter 

 sort is very tender and useful, and so compact as to almost 

 blanch of itself, but it is not so hardy as the other sorts, and will 

 not stand the winter well. 



Sow also two or three different sorts of Lettuces, to be planted- 

 out thickly for use in July, August, and September, and another 

 sowing io the first week in July ; the sorts may be All the Year 

 Round, White Cos, and Lawe's Black-seeded Bath Cos; the 

 latter sort is a thorough good autumn Lettuce — hearting like a 

 Cabbage. 



Among the general work to be done is to keep the hoe plying 

 between all growing crops, and stake early all those plants that 

 stand in need of support. Leave off cutting Asparagus, and 

 keep the beds clean during the summer. Attend to the training 

 of Tomatoes on walls, and water them well. Give a mulching 

 or top-dressing to them and all other plarats situated in hot 

 places, and water very plentifully everything that stands iu need 

 of it. Vegetable Marrows and outdoor Cucumbers keep pegged- 

 down and trained ; stop some of the principal shoots to incline 

 them to throw out bearing shoots. Radishes must now be sown 

 in moist shady places, or they will be hard and stringy, — 

 Thomas Eecobd. 



DOINGS OF THE LAST AND WORK FOR THE 

 PRESENT WEEK. 



HARDY FRUIT GARDKN. 



As soon as possible we shall attend to the bush and pyramid 

 trees. The shoots must now be stopped, and when necessary 

 thinned out. No fruit trees will give satisfaction if they are not 

 attended to in summer. Bush, pyramid, and cordon-trained 

 trees are not out of place in any garden, but they are specially 

 adapted for amateurs who are the owners of small gardens, and 

 who like to do much of the light work themselves. In rich 

 light soils the trees have a tendency to produce much unfruitful 

 wood, and the frequent stoppings sometimes instead of causing 

 fruitful growths, merely produce a thicket of young wood; of 

 course this is when the trees are young. The certain remedy 

 is root-pruning in autumn, but even iu summer much may be 

 done by a judicious thinning-out of the growth. No good fruit 

 will be produced if the trees are a thicket of wood, for sun and a 

 free circulation of air is essential to produce both quality and 

 flavour. A few words of explanation is perhaps necessary for 

 those who are as yet but beginners in the art of summer 

 pinching. 



The largest proportion of young wood is produced at the ends 

 of the branches. A shoot of last year's growth which has been 

 cut back will start one strong growth from the end, and also a 

 number of side growths. These last must be pinched or cut 

 back to a leaf or two, and the leading growth to six or seven 

 leaves. If it is desirable to increase the size of the tree the 

 young growths must be allowed to develope themselves more ; 

 even side growths are necessary, and must not only be allowed 

 to remain where they are required, but also be stopped at the 

 right bud. If the growth is required outside the tree, stop at an 

 outside bud, and vice versa if the tree is not sufficientlj' fur- 

 nished internally. 



Cordons are very easily trained : the leading shoot must be 

 trained along the wire without stopping it, and all side growths 

 cut back to a leaf or two. A few varieties of fruit trees pro- 

 duce long straggling growths partially bare of buds. Where 

 this is the case the leading growths may be stopped once or 

 twice during the growing season, each lime when the young 

 Bhoot has made six «r seven leaves. It will be a good oppor- 

 tunity when summer pinching the trees to remove all fruit 

 attacked by the Apple borer. A small hole may be observed in 

 the Bide of the frait, or after careful inspection concealed in 



the covering of the eye. The best way is to bum the fruit at 

 once. 



Peaches and Nectarines on walls ought now to receive a final 

 thinning. There is abundance of fruit this year, and it is a, 

 great mistake to overcrop. The shoots must also be trained 

 into the positions they are to occupy, and a sufficient number 

 be retained to fill up all vacant spaces. We do not usually stop 

 the young growths on wall trees, but if a strong shoot could be 

 trained where there is room for two or three, stopping this 

 would cause the requisite number to start, but very weak 

 growths might not start at all. If any branches have died off 

 it is highly necessary to fill up the vacant space by undoing the 

 adjoining branches from the wall and training them iuits place. 



It is aljsolutely necessary to protect Cherries and Strawberries 

 from the attacks of birds; iudeed, it is scarcely possible to 

 secure any Cherries for the owners' use without nets. The best 

 plan which, though attended with considerable expense at first, 

 IS to form an enclosure round the trees ; they require to be 

 planted together when this is done, the sides of the enclosure as 

 high as the trees may be of wire netting quarter-inch mesh, 

 and over the top ordinary netting may be used. Small fruitful 

 trees may be protected with netting thrown over them. Wall 

 trees are easily protected. The netting is nailed along the top and 

 bottom of the wall, and kept from the trees by sticks a foot long 

 with forks at the end ; these stand out from the wall, and the 

 forked end holds back the netting. 



OBCHAED HOUSE. 



The fruit has now been thinned out, and all the trees are 

 carrying good crops of fruit. We were very much annoyed with 

 aphis, and the trees just at the time the fruit was setting suffered 

 from it, but fumigation has been resorted to, and the trees are 

 now clean. They have also been surface-dressed. When com- 

 mencing the culture of fruit trees iu pots we were very careful 

 to use the mixture recommeuded by Mr. Rivers — viz., malt or 

 kiln dust, road scrapings and manure, but the kiln refuse has 

 not been readily obtained, and a mixture of stable manure and 

 loam has taken its place ; the manure and loam in equal propor- 

 tions are thrown together in a heap, which soon heats violently^ 

 and after being turned over daily for ten days or more until the 

 heat declines it is ready fur use. This mixture is spread thinly 

 over the surface of the pots, a fresh dressing being applied every 

 ten days until the fruit shows signs of having finished stoning. 

 The copious supplies of water wash the rich dressing down to> 

 the roots, and a mass of young rootlets work up into the dress- 

 ing. We syringe twice a-day — early in the morning, and when 

 the house is shut up iu the afternoon. 



VINERIES. 



The early houses are being rapidly cleared of the fruit, and 

 this makes an opportunity to syringe the leaves to free them 

 from red spider. In previous seasons sulphur was applied to 

 the pipes, and this insidious pest at least kept in check. In two 

 early houses the sulphur was not used, but in the third, which 

 was attacked almost as soon as the fruit was set, the spider in- 

 creased so rapidly that it was feared the crop would not ripen 

 before the leaves were destroyed. The enemy had first taken up 

 a strong position in a Royal Ascot Vine, always the first to be 

 attacked, and from this vantage ground it had spread from end 

 to end of the house ; now here was an excellent opportunity to 

 show whether the sulphur would destroy the pest or not. 



The pipes were heated as hot as was thought to be consistent 

 with safety, and all of them were coated with the flowers of 

 sulphur dissolved in soapy water to the thickness of thin paint. 

 Next morning the leaves were examined, and the spider to all 

 appearance had not suffered. At night another coating was 

 applied, and the pipes made still hotter ; on the foUowiug morn- 

 ing some of the spider had suffered, but many were alive. Again 

 the dose was repeated, and the pipes heated until a thin haze 

 could be discerned in the atmosphere ; this was the signal to 

 damp down the fires, as just a trifle more might be too much for 

 the Vines. We examined the leaves next morning very confi- 

 dent as to the result, not with the naked eye but through a 

 magnifier, and there they were hanging to the under sides of the 

 leaves in hundreds, not one alive ! and at the same time not a 

 leaf nor berry injured (the berries had finished stoning). What 

 say Mr. Pearson and other good Grape-growers, who say that 

 sulphur will not kill red spider, to this experiment ? It is only- 

 right to say that this is a very hazardous practice, and thau 

 sulphur often causes rust on the fruit. 



If there are any shanked berries they ought to be carefully cut 

 out with the scissors, as they are an eyesore. Try to keep dust 

 from the berries, even if it is necessary to frequently water the 

 ground outside the house. If any sweeping is required inside 

 the house a little water should bespriokted about to prevent the 

 dust. If all the fruit has been cut — (and this is where the market 

 gardener has an advantage over the private grower, as the one 

 cuts all his fruit as soon as it is ripe, and the other must allow 

 it to hang for two mouths or more) — the leaves should be well 

 washed with the garden engine and the border watered. 



Late houses require cousiderable attention as to airing, water- 

 ing, and keeping up the required amount of moisture in the 



