4o(5 



JOURNAL OP HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



t December S, 1874. 



fronds, all ia perfect health and beauty. Adiantnm farleyense 

 is the queen of Ferns without doubt, and the specimen referred 

 to excited the admiration of all who saw it. It was evident 

 it had been at home in the hands of Mr. Cromwell, as he must 

 have thoroughly understood the nature of all its wants. I am 

 sure some of your readers would be glad, like myself, of a few 

 remarks on Mr. Cromwell's successful method of management. 

 — W. F. E. 



LARGE CEDAR OF LEBANON. 

 In reply to «n inquiry in your Journal of November 26th, 

 signed by Mr. O. Abbey, I recollect some twelve or fourteen 

 years ago, when on a visit to some relations in London, to 

 have been present at a large garden party at the residence of 

 a Mr. Cave, who was at that time the Sheriff for the County of 

 Middlesex. I do not recollect the name of the place, but it 

 was within a drive of ten or twelve miles from London. I was 

 particularly struck by the extraordinary size of a very well- 

 grown Cedar of Lebanon, which stood in the grounds near the 

 mansion. I paced it from the branches' extremity to the trunk, 

 which I judged to be about 17 or 18 yards. It would, there- 

 fore, have a diameter of, say, about 35 yards, and would con- 

 sequently have a circumference of more than 100 yards. I was 

 informed that the tree had been planted there by LinuieuB, 

 which would give its age at more than 150 years, as I suppose. 

 This may or may not be an older tree than the Cedar to which 

 your correspondent refers ; at any rate, it is the most rcag- 

 Di6cent tree of its kind that I have ever seen. — R. Haywahd, 

 Tlie Elms, West CJiinnock. 



APRICOTS UNDER GLASS. 



It is somewhat surprising that we ('.o not more frequently 

 find Apricots so protected. The onlv instances I have ever 

 met with wtre a few pot trees in the orchard house of the 

 amateur gardener; and judging from the experiment, there 

 did not appear any encouragement for extension. Some few 

 years ago we coveicd 100 feet of our Apricot wall with glass, 

 and the predictions showered in from every quarter that we 

 would find our attempt to be a failure, simply because of mere 

 anticipation — a huge piece of nonsense. But we have suc- 

 ceeded year by year, having produced double the quantity in 

 one season than during any preceding ten seasons, and fruit, 

 too, of a much superior quality. The varieties we cultivate 

 are not numerous, and comprise the following kinds under 

 glass— the Moorpark, Hemckerk, Kaisha, Large Red, or what 

 is sometimes called Gros Rouge, and the Royal. The latter 

 does not set its fruit so frealy as the former. Although some- 

 what shy in this respect, both in quality and size it nearly 

 equals the Moorpark, and is of a hardier constitution. The very 

 superior quality of the Apricot renders it at all times a wel- 

 come addition to the dessert ; and more, it can be made into an 

 excellent conserve whenever tho excess is greater than the 

 demand, while the same cannot be said of the Peach, which is 

 more indebted to the sugar than to any inherent good quality 

 it may possess. 



The Apricot is certainly more difficult to manage than the 

 Peach, as it ie very impatient of too much heat at all timer, 

 and particularly when in flower; and iu cases when venti- 

 lation is scarcely sufficient to keep down the temperature 

 duiing bright sunshine, I find it very advantageous to cover 

 the roof for a few hours with scrim cloth, or with common 



Efcltiug. 



When tho fructifying organs are subjected to an excess of 

 heat their constitution ia 'weakened, and they are unable to 

 excrcipe their functions at the proper time, and in conse- 

 quence the crop is a failure. 



Before and after the flowers are opened I endeavour to keep 

 the heat below 60°, with an abundance of air, but avoid cold 

 draaghte so far as it can be done. I have never attempted 

 artificial impregnation, as being unnecessary under proper 

 treatment. 



Like all other kinds of drupaceous fruit, tho Apricot is 

 longer-lived in a hard limestone soil, and where this ingredient 

 is not natural it ought to be supplied in large quantities. 

 Lime in this instance has a very important office to perf -rm 

 iu the formation of the stone, just as it does in the formation 

 of bone, and as it is secreted by many invertebrated animals 

 to form their shells. There can be no doubt, I think, that the 

 dropping of drupaceous fruit during the stoning period is due 

 iu a great measure to a deficiency of this mineral. These 

 minor causes may and do exercise au influence at this time, 



yet they are only a secondary power.— Alexander Cramb, 



Tortworth Court (in tlie Gardener). 



NOTES ON VILLA and SUBURBAN GARDENING. 



There is not a month but what brings with it some work of 

 importance to be done in the garden, some more and some 

 less, according to the seasou ; but there is; a maxim which 

 should always be observed as far as possible, aud that is to do 

 everything in its proper season, beciiuse the system not only 

 regulates the operations of gardening, and starts them well in 

 due time, but emergencies often arise which call for immediate 

 attention, and this system allows time to do it. December does 

 not come in without its calls upon all those who have a garden ; 

 for, beyond the operations of protecting everything from tbe 

 evil effects of severe frost, and of digging and trenching the 

 ground, there is work whicb should be done before the ground 

 is turued-up, and that is the pruuing, dressing, aud nailing of 

 all trees; and after tbe leaf ia off and this work done the vacant 

 ground may be turned-up for the winter, and all will then look 

 clean and tidy. In pruning allow me to say that it is best to 

 select the hardier sorts of fruits to be done first, I mean such as 

 Apples and Pears, as well as Raspberries, Gooseberries, and 

 Currants. In many suburban gardens the pruning is performed 

 very badly in more ways than one : for instance, when the wood 

 is cut back tbe spurs are left much too long, aud the cut is not 

 clean, but is long and pointed, showing that it is performed by 

 an unskilful hand. Now the same may be said of both Apple 

 and Pear trees; that in healthy vigorous-growing trees the 

 young wood ought to be shortened back to within a quarter of 

 an inch of where it broke into growth, aud therv are generally 

 three or more dormant eyes situated quite at the base of the 

 shoot, which are ready to break into growth at tbe required 

 time, and maintain the vigour of the tree ; therefore the cut 

 should be clean and the spur short, which answers all pur- 

 poses aud looks workmanlike. Again, another great fault is 

 that when it ia defired to extend the size of a tree, such as an 

 espalier or wall tree, the young wood is often left in all at one 

 length, regardless of its size and strength. This is not tbe way 

 to have a tree well balanced in growth and bearing wood, but as 

 a rule the weaker growth should be shortened fully two-thirds 

 more than the strong wood ; thia affords the chance of the weak 

 wood breaking into stronger growth than it did tbe year before, 

 just because there are a less number of eyes to be called into 

 action, aud the strong growth will most likely break weaker 

 because there are more eyes to supporf, so it will be seen that 

 the system if practised year after year will do much towards 

 regulating the growth of the tree and the flow of tbe sap. With 

 regard to Raapberriea the pruning is a small matter and very 

 simple, for if the bearing wood of the past summer has been 

 cat out, which it always should bo after the fruit is gathered, in 

 order to allow more freedom of growth and to add strength to 

 tbe young wood for next year's use, then all there is to do now 

 is to shorteu the shoots according to their strength aud ripeness, 

 and take care not to leave too many shoots to a stock. 



Gooseberries are pruned under two methods. Either the tree ia 

 allowed to carry so many shoots, which are spurred all the way 

 up, and the extreme shoots shortened considerably ; or the free 

 is trained so as to produce a quantity of young wood, which in 

 tho pruning time is thinned out considerably on the spur system, 

 and the remainder left all its length in a regular manner all over 

 the tree. I incline to, and in fact always practise, the latter 

 plan, believing that if I do not get a greater quantity of fruit, 

 it ia at all events much finer. 



Tbere ia one objection which some urge in connection with 

 the Lancashire sorts of Gooseberries, many of which are very 

 large — that by growing them on the young wood there is a great 

 difficulty in rearing a tree to any ordinary size, owing to the 

 fruit gradually breakiue down towards the ground the young 

 wood, which has to be cut off year after year. There is some 

 truth in this, though it may be got over by staking up the trees 

 with habits so inclined. 



The Red Currant is a better-forced tree, and must be pruned 

 on tbe spur system, leaving the shoots here and there where 

 wanted at a third or half their length; but the Black Currant 

 never does better in small gardens than when the old wood is 

 thinned out to the very bottom, leaving new strong growth to 

 take its place. The fruit is generally plentiful, fine, and good. 

 As for Peach aud Nectarine trees, I consider it to be the better 

 plan to leave the pruning of them till about February, they 

 being tender fruits ; the wood is also many limea late in ripen- 

 ing, and the severe weather of winter takes great effect upou it, 

 but in the spring damaged parts can easily be discovered aud cut 

 out. In pruning, the wood should be thinned out considerably ; 

 cut close to the old stem, leaving no spurs aa in other trees, which 

 only die if left. The shoots that are left should be shortened 

 the same as for other trees, but always to a wood bud if possible, 

 because any fruit that is produced beyond the young shoot 

 seldom comes to maturity. Some of these sorts of trees have a 

 remarkable absence of wood buds upon them. When such ia 



