Review of Loudonh Gardener^s Magazine. 427 



REVIEWS. 



Art. I. The Gar(hner''s .Magazine and Register of Rural and 

 Domestic Lnproi'cinents. Conducted by J. C. Loudon, F. L.S., 

 H. S., &c. In Monthly Numbers. 8vo., Is. 6d. each. No. 

 LXIV, for July. 



In our last, we stated that the July number contained a 

 communication on the coiling system of grapes, by Mr. R. 

 Fish, which should be extensively read. The following ex- 

 tracts we have made, and we commend them to all who have 

 any faith in the system. We have never, ourselves, had 

 any confidence in it, and it is with pleasure that we are able 

 to furnish our readers with remarks that so fully coincide 

 with our views. 



After stating the necessity of giving every new sjstem a fair trial be- 

 fore condeiiuiing it, Mr. P^ish observes: — "I shall, with your permission, 

 sometimes give you an account of my failures, in order that you and 

 your readers may inform me whether my want of success is to be attrib- 

 uted to my ignorance of the jjrinciples of management, or to the circum- 

 stances in which I am placed ; or to the delusive vanity of individuals, 

 who, in order to bring themselves into prominent notice, have, without 

 sulRcient proof, published, as most benelicial systems, those which, from 

 their very nature, cannot be attended with utility or success: and I do 

 this, hoping that if others should be induced to follow my example, the 

 usefulness of the Magazine will be increased, and the interests of garden- 

 ing, as an art and science, will be promoted. 



" Having made these preliminary observations, I shall now proceed to 

 offer some remarks upon a new system of cultivating the vine, the in- 

 vention of Mr. Mearns ; namely, that of coiling rootless shoots round 

 the inside of a pot, in order to produce fruit from them the same season. 

 Allowing that, after much trouble, a few bunches may be obtained by 

 such a process, especially when tried late in the spring, my j)resent im- 

 pression is, that it never will be attended with that utility which will 

 warrant its general adoption, even if it were practicable ; and that, how- 

 ever interesting it may be, as establishing a j)hytological doctrine, the 

 discovery can lay no pretensions to the honor cnthusiasticiiily claimed 

 for it, of being a general benefit. I must confess that, reasoning uj)on 

 first principles, my hopes of its success never were high ; but as this sea- 

 son I had some shoots of old and young wood, from three to six feet long, 

 I was anxious to give the system a trial ; and accordingly, putting up a 

 bed of dung and old leaves, I plunged the pots partially into it in the be- 

 ginning of December, increasing the temperature by plunging deeper, &.C., 

 until from 60-', at the end of the third week, the bottom heat ranged from 

 85^ to 95^: the atmospheric temperature of the ])it ranging from 45"" to 

 60^. I was. well aware that the success would wholly dej)en(l upon 

 getting the wood in the pot stinnilated into action previously to the 

 dcvelopement of the buds, so that when that took place, there might 

 be roots formed to sup|)ort them ; and had succeeded so far, that, by the 

 time the buds were expanding, the plants, which I examined, exhibited a 

 dense mass of spongioles protruding from the wood, in contact with the 

 sides of the pot. In the second week in Jauuary, I removed those on 



