228 THE FRUIT GROWER'S GUIDE 



space is deep, place in rubble to bring it up to the right height, leaving only sufficient 

 depth for soil. 



Soil Turfy, yellow friable loam, torn or chopped up roughly, three parts ; leaf 

 mould or old decayed cow manure, one part ; crystal or drift sand, half a part ; charcoal in 

 pieces from the size of a pea to a hazel-nut, half a part, well mixed, form a suitable 

 compost for granadillas. It should be rather dry when used, and pressed down firmly. 

 Some growers add one part of sandy peat to the mixture ; this is advantageous when the 

 loam is rich, as rich soils cause exuberance of growth at the expense of fruitfulness. 



Management. The shoots must be carried up to within 1 foot of the roof, then 

 trained over the trellis so that every leaf has full exposure to light. This is a vital 

 point in training, for when the young shoots become interlaced they are weak and 

 fruitless. P. edulis produces many branches; these must be thinned out, but no 

 stopping is necessary, at least till a full crop of fruit is set, when judicious stopping aids 

 the swelling and perfecting. P. quadrangularis (and the other stove species) does not 

 crowd itself with spray to anything like the same extent as P. edulis, yet its growths 

 require thinning, for overcrowding is fatal to productiveness. 



Watering must be liberal when the growth is free and the fruit swelling ; but over- 

 watering is a great mistake, resulting in sappy growths. Sufficient water should be 

 given when the soil is somewhat dry, to pass down to the drainage, not watering again 

 before the soil is again rather dry, yet always before the foliage is distressed from lack of 

 moisture. Liquid manure assists in swelling the fruit, and surface dressings of turfy 

 loam aid plants in restricted borders. The growing season extends from February to 

 October. At the latter time withholding water facilitates the ripening of the wood and 

 induces rest. The plants becoming partly deciduous, require to be kept somewhat dry at 

 the roots during the winter, yet not to the extent of causing the wood to shrink, a little 

 moisture in the soil preventing that. 



P. edulis winters safely in a minimum temperature of 45, but P. quadrangularis 

 requires a minimum heat of 55 ; yet these lower temperatures are contingent on a dry 

 condition of the atmosphere and soil, with thoroughly ripened wood. P. edulis succeeds 

 admirably in the temperature of a vinery; P. quadrangularis requires stove heat. 

 Pruning is best performed just when the plants are commencing growth. The shoots 

 can then be thinned out and shortened, spurs cut-in to one or two buds, old wood removed 

 and young laid in, always pruning to firm, thoroughly -ripened wood, for none other is 

 healthy and fruitful. 



