312 VILLA GARDENING PAr.T H' 



it is expedient to raise the plants at home, though, as a rule, there 

 are not facilities iu private gardens for growing the fruiting canes so 

 successfully as can be done by those who make a specialty of this 

 branch of commercial gardening. Where fruiting canes are planted 

 the border should be made in autiunn, and the fruiting vines j^lanted 

 in January without disturbing the roots. There are several ways 

 of raising young vines familiar to gardeners, but single eyes planted 

 iu sods of turf or in single pots is the simplest and best. The 

 cuttings to furnish the eyes should be chosen from well-ripened 

 wood of good substance when the vines are pruned in autumn, and 

 be laid in moist soil, in a cold situation, till January. In cutting 

 out the eyes, a portion of wood on each side of the eye should be 

 left — half an inch will be sufficient. If planted in sods^ the latter 

 should be about 4 or 5 inches square. A little soil should be 

 scooped out of the middle, the eye inserted, pressed down, and 

 covered with light rich soil. The sods may be placed close together 

 in a warm frame, or in a place where a night temperature of 60° 

 can be obtained. I have succeeded witli them very well on a wide 

 board placed over the hot-water pipes in a light position. The 

 board had an edging of latli round it. The eyes may also be planted 

 in 48-sized pots, one eye in the centre of each pot, and be covered 

 about half-an-inch deep with light rich soil, the pots to be plunged 

 iu a gentle bottom-heat, or they will do very well if only half 

 plunged. It is always advisable to put in double the number of 

 eyes we require of plants, as this gives a power of selection which 

 it is very desirable to possess, for some of the plants arc sure to be 

 less vigorous than others. If the eyes are started in January, 

 grown on in a tomperatiu-e of 60°, and their wants carefully attended 

 to, they may l)e planted in the border about the end of April or 

 beginning of May. When first turned out, and for some time 

 afterwards, the border should be watered with warm water round 

 about the jalants. Very good results have been obtained from 

 young plants raised from eyes the same season, but no check must 

 be given by planting in a cold bordei-, or by allowing them to be 

 pinched in small pots before planting. If young vines, grown from 

 eyes the same season, are planted before the roots have had time to 

 coil round the pots, the balls need not be broken up. But in plant- 

 ing older plants as permanent vines, the roots should be uncoiled 

 and laid out straight, and in that case, to prevent too severe a check 

 being given, the plants should have been brought on steadily in a 

 low temperature, and be planted when the eyes have broken nicely ; 

 and when they are beginning to feel the action of their roots, all 

 the buds, except three near the bottom, should be rubbed oft', and 

 from these three the best should be selected to form the main stem. 



