November 12, 1874. ] 



JOUENAL OF HOETICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



429 



many villa gardens. Mr. Thomas Eivers, the veteran cultivator 

 of the Sawbridgeworth Nurseries, has done good service by 

 publishing his "Miniature Fruit Garden," where the pinching 

 anti summer-pruning of the trees are fully explained ; but one 

 mistake is very easily and also very frequently made, and that 

 is to allov? the branches to become too much crowded. When 

 this is the case the wood does not become thoroughly matured, 

 and the proportion of fruit buds will be few in comparison to 

 those trees where the young growths have been suificiently 

 thinned-out. We have a good deal of extra work, and cannot 

 as yet get at the trees, otherwise we would have gone over them 

 all about this time, and thinned-out not only the young wood, 

 but also the larger branches and all unsightly spurs. Free- 

 bearing trees and those that are well furnished with blossom- 

 buds have a dressing of rotted manure placed over the roots at 

 this time of the year ; the nutriment from this is washed down 

 to them. It also acts as a stimulant to them as well as a mulch 

 in summer. It is better not to mulch any trees that have made 

 much unfruitful wood ; the extra stimulant will cause the trees 

 to grow more freely than is desirable to produce fruitful wood. 



There is also much difference of opinion as to the desirability 

 of digging the borders or not. Some persons contend that a 

 spade or fork should never touch the soil, others that the borders 

 should be dug annually. Now both parties may be right, and 

 the only difference is in the character of the soil. In light 

 Bandy soils it is better not to break up the surface, but on stiff, 

 clays this may be done with advantage. If it is not done it is 

 hardly possible to get a Dutch hoe to penetrate the surface, and 

 the ground cracks in all directions. There are two advantages 

 from digging the surface of the ground amongst fruit trees; 

 one is that the garden looks neater in winter, and in spring the 

 ground can be easier hoed. 



Running the hoe through the Strawberry beds, and cutting-off 

 the runners and decaying leaves. This is also the time to dig 

 between the rows where the same beds are allowed to remain 

 many years in succession on the same ground. Sometimes all 

 trace of the rows is lost in the interminable mass of runners ; 

 when this is the case a line is stretched from one end of the bed 

 to the other, and rows are cut out of the mass with a sharp 

 spade or a grass edging iron. In good Strawberry soils a fair 

 crop of inferior fruit may be obtained from plants treated in 

 this way, but nothing as compared to that from the annual or 

 biennial renewal of the plants. When the plants are established 

 for many years on the same ground, attention should be given 

 to keep them clear of runners during the growiug season, to 

 allow only the crowns that are intended to bear fruit to ripen 

 perfectly. 



FKUIT HOUSES. 



Pine Souses. — The weather has been very favourable to the 

 ripening of fruit — a high temperature out of doors with a 

 moderate amount of sunshine. The same favourable weather 

 has also been suitable to the ripening of early suckers, which 

 will throw up fruit in March. The treatment of the latter as to 

 atmospheric conditions and temperature is very different from 

 that accorded to fruiting plants. For the first secure a warm dry 

 atmosphere, about G5^ at night, with a free circulation of air as 

 often as the state of the weather out of doors will admit of it ; for 

 the other the atmosphere should contain a moderate degree of 

 moisture — not a steaming atmosphere, but such as would be 

 obtained by damping the walls and pathe of the house twice 

 daily, not from allowing water to come in contact with the hot- 

 water pipes to cause a steam. What are wanted are not very 

 large plants with long dark green leaves, but stout stocky plants 

 with the pots well filled with roots, and which have not been 

 over-stimulated by rich soils or liquid manures. When Pine 

 plants are grown to a very large size, even if they have all 

 the appearance of robust health, it is seldom that fruit is pro- 

 duced in proportion to this gigantic growth. A warm steaming 

 atmosphere with little air will produce a healthy-looking but 

 not a really healthy growth. The last plants in the fruiting 

 house have been taken out of the bed and placed in a late vinery, 

 as all the fruit were changing. A batch of plants fruiting, and 

 which will yet throw up, has been removed to the house. The 

 old plunging material has been removed and a fresh lot put-in 

 in place of it ; the reason being, that the old though not quite 

 exhausted tan becomes full of woodlice and crickets. Clearing 

 the whole out frees the house of these and other peats. 



Dessert Oranges in Cucumber and Piue houses are ripening 

 off better fruit than usual. The trees had a very sickly appear- 

 ance after the fruit was set ; probably the compost in which they 

 were potted was not of that substantial character in which 

 the Orange tree delights to grow. The following dressing was 

 applied to the surface of the pots — viz., equal parts of guano, 

 charcoal powder, and loam. The result was wonderful. In less 

 than two weeks the pale green leaves became of the deepest 

 healthy green; fresh healthy growths took the place of those of 

 a stunied unhealthy character. A temperature of Co° at night 

 is very suitable to the ripening fruit. 



Cucumber House. — This is a very trying time for the occupants 

 of this structure. The plants in our fruiting house died off in a 



very unaccountable manner before the younger ones were ready 

 to put out. As soon as possible all the old soil was removed, 

 a fresh compost of turfy loam with a little rotted manure added 

 to it was put into the bed, and the young plants turned out. 

 With Tender and True and the original stock of Blue Gown a 

 supply has boon kept up every month in the year; but wishing 

 to have the stock true, a succession of plants has been kept up 

 from cuttings for a number of years. And even though the fruit 

 is so long, and not so freely produced as that of the Sion House 

 breed, we have not yet been driven to a plan practised by some 

 gardeners, and that is to cut a specimen in half for one day, re- 

 serving the other portion for a future occasion. However, it is 

 as well to know that this plan answers occasionally when 

 Cucumbers are not plentiful. 



PLANT STOVE AND ORCnUl HOUSES. 



We have not found it necessary, in order to maintain a suit- 

 able temperature, to use much artificial heat. The shading has 

 also been removed from all the houses except the cool Orchid 

 house, and no syringing overhead is practised ; keeping a look- 

 out for mealy bug, and destroying it on its first appearance. 

 The different varieties of Calanthe are in full beauty at present 

 — long handsome spikes of pure white, white with yellow and 

 red-eyed, also the many different shades of colour from pale 

 rose to deep red in the beautiful hybrid C. Veitchii. And how 

 easily they are grown ! Orchid peat and sphagnum moss are 

 not at hand everywhere, and the greater proportion of Orchids 

 cannot be grown without them. Not so the Calanthes. Turfy 

 loam from any upland pasture, an eighth part of rotted manure, 

 and a little silver sand added will grow them to perfection. 

 Pot three bulbs in a G-inch pot, draining them well, and taking 

 care that the drainage is not choked by the particles of loose 

 earth which adhere to the turf ; a little sphagnum, or the rougher 

 portion of the loam from which the loose earth has been 

 shaken placed over it, will prevent this. We do not overwater 

 the plants now, and when the flowers fade no more water will 

 be given until the bulbs start into growth in February. Poin- 

 settia pulcherrima is forming its floral bracts, and, the pota 

 being packed quite full of active roots, a little weak manure 

 water helps them greatly. Bougainvillea glabra has been re- 

 moved from the stove to a greenhouse temperature. This plant 

 requires scarcely any water during the winter months. The 

 earliest plants of Dendrobium nobile are in full flower. The 

 latest-flowering have just completed their growth, and have been 

 removed from the stove to a cool house. — J. Douglas. 



TRADE CATALOGUES RECEIVED. 



Kelway & Son, Langport, Somerset. — Catalogue of Gladioli. 



J. Cocker A' Sons, Sunnypark and Froghall Nurseries, Aber- 

 deen. — List of Neiv Pansies. 



R. Cragg, Car Colston, Bingham, Notts. — List of New Bases 

 and Hardy Spring Bedding Plants. 



3. B. A. Deleuil, Traverse du Fada, Marseilles. — Catalogue of 

 Amaryllis, Begonia, Echevcria, Yucca, d-c. 



Little & Baliantyne, Carlisle. — Descriptive List of Fruits. 



F. & A. Dickson & Sons, 106, Eastgate Street, Chester. — Cata- 

 logue of Forest and Ornamental Trees, Evergreens, <(c. 



Frcres Simon-Louis, Plantieres-lcs-Metz. — Prix Courant et 

 Nomenclature Generate des Varictis en multiplication, 1874-75, 

 des Arbres, Arbustes, et Arbrisseaux Fruiliers, d'Ornement, de 

 Plein Air, et des Bosiers. 



C. Huber & Co., Hyeres (Var). — Catalogue General pour 

 I'Automne, 1874, et le Printemps, 1875. Cultures speeiales pour 

 la production de Graines de Fleurs, d'Arbres et d'Arbustes 

 d'Ornement, de. 



Smith & Simons, 3e and 38, Howard, St. Enoch Square, Glas- 

 gow. — Catalogue of Boses and Gladioli. 



TO CORRESPONDENTS. 



*»* All correspondence should be directed either to "The 

 Editors," or to " The Publisher." Letters addressed to 

 Mr. Johnson or Dr. Hogg often remain unopened unavoid- 

 ably. We request that no one will write privately to any 

 of our correspondents, as doing so subjects them to un- 

 justifiable trouble and expense. 



Correspondents should not mix up on the same sheet questions 

 relating to Gardening and those on Poultry and Bee sub- 

 jects, and should never send more than two or three 

 questions at once. All articles intended for insertion 

 should be written on one side of the paper only. We 

 cannot reply to questions through the post. 



Enamel Bedding (F. H.). — As you only name three kinds of plants for 

 your beds that are 2 feet 6 inches wide, we conclude it is unnecessary to 

 caution you against attempting: too mucli in such narrow beds. The propor- 

 tion which the plants should bear to each other depends entirely upon their 

 position. For an outer row of Golden Feather Pyrethrum, along each side 

 there should be two of .\Itemanthera next it, with a broad band of Lobelia 

 entirely filling the centre ; or one row of Lobelia against the Pyrethrum, with 

 all the centre of AJternanthera. 



