MONTHLY CALENDAR. 425 



choking up the drainage properties of the soil. Maintain a steady bottom- 

 heat, and pot the suckers of the plants from which the fruit is cut. As the 

 stools are removed to make way for other plants, all succession plants re- 

 quiring repotting should now be shifted. When replunged, leave plenty of 

 room for the foliage to spread out, and place them near the glass, watering 

 with weak manure-water once a week or fortnight, according to their 

 requirements. 



1265. Peach-House. — The ripe fruit should be looked over each morning, to 

 gather such as are likely to ripen in a day or two. The fruit will be higher in 

 flavour than when allowed to ripen on the tree, and will save them from 

 getting bruised in falling, to which heavy fi-uit of the peach is very liable, 

 with the best contrivances to catch them. As the crop is gathered, the 

 young wood should be so exposed as to ripen well : on this depends next 

 year's success, in a great measure. Not a single unnecessary shoot should be 

 retained. The tree should be well washed with the syringe, and all foreign 

 matter removed from the leaves. 



1266. Give all the air possible to ripe fruit, and shade where it is desirable, to 

 prolong the season. Bring on the second house by an increased temperature ; 

 keep damp by the frequent use of the engine, and sj^rinkle the floors, &c. ; at 

 closing-time give the inside border a good soaking with weak manure-water. 

 Keep a moist atmosphere where the fruit is swelling ; water freely ; give plenty 

 of air, especially in the forenoon. 



1267. About the second week turn out cherries in pots into an open quarter 

 of the garden, placing some turfy loam round the balls. This will invigorate 

 them much better than keeping them in pots through the summer. Com- 

 mence as soon as possible pegging down runners of strawberries for next 

 season's stock of forcing plants. 



1268. Melons. — As soon as the fruit is cut (if it is intended that they 

 should bear a second crop), prune back the shoots to where the fresh growth 

 commences. Two or three inches of fresh loam should be spread over the surface 

 of the bed, which should at the same time have a good soaking with manure- 

 water, to assist the plants to make a fresh growth ; an additional stimulus at 

 the same time should be given to the roots by slightly increasing the bottom- 

 heat. Bring forward the succeeding crops, and take every means to keep 

 down the red spider, which, when once established on the foliage, is most 

 difiicult to destroy. 



1269. Melons, while ripening their fruit, are very liable to crack when 

 exposed to moisture, or when water is supplied too freely to their roots. 

 This is more likely to happen with the higher-flavoured ones, from the thinness 

 of their skin. In common frames some difficulty will be found in keeping the 

 uir sufficiently diy. To prevent this in moist weather, air must be left on 



tt night both back and front, to admit of a slight circulation ; and a little 



ixtra heat should be thi-own into the bed, to keep up the temperature, by 



turning over linings. Where, however, melons are grown by the assistance of 



hot water, an atmosphere can be maintained which will fully carry out the 



