PHLOX. 



364 



PINCHING. 



beauty of each variety lies in its leaves 

 and not in the bloom, which is small in 

 every case, and by no means showy or 

 attractive. 



Phlox (nat. ord. Polemona'cese). 



This magnificent genus of plants, both 

 annual and perennial, is unrivalled for rich- 

 ness and brilliancy of the coicurs of the 

 flowers, and profusion and duration of 



PHLOX DRUMMONDII. 



blooming. The Phlox Drummondii 

 varieties half-hardy annuals make 

 splendid bedding and pot plants ; the P. 

 decussata or maculata, perennial varieties, 

 produce a fine effect in mixed borders ; no 

 garden should be without them. They 

 succeed best in light rich soil, and are 

 propagated by seeds in the case of annuals, 

 and by cuttings and division of the roots 

 for perennials. 



Picotees' (nat. ord. Caryophyla'cese). 



These are a kind of carnation, distin- 

 guished by a narrow dark-coloured edging 

 to the petals, or by the petals, being 

 covered with very small coloured dots. 

 The cultivation is in every respect the 

 same as the carnation. 



Pinching: its Purpose and 

 Utility. 



The work of pruning (see Pruning) is 

 done chiefly with the view of regulating 

 the shape and growth of a fruit-tree and 



the formation of wood : the promotion, 

 however, of the growth of fruit branches 

 is effected by another kind of operation, 

 to which the name of pinching has been 

 applied, as it is done with the forefinger 

 and thumb, the thumb nail being the agent 

 or instrument by which the tender shoot 

 is shortened or nipped back. The end ot 

 the shoot is taken between the thumb and 

 finger, and a portion of it removed by 

 pressing the nail into and through its stem, 

 which is supported as by a cushion by the 

 finger. 



In a standard, pyramid, or espalier tree, 

 the fruit branchlets will grow along each 

 branch from its junction with the stem to 

 its terminal point, and are disposed all 

 round the branch, radiating from it at 

 different points; but in trees that are 

 trained against a wall the fruit spurs will 

 grow from the branches in an upward, 

 downward, or outward direction ; there 

 will be none developed on the side that is 

 turned to the wall. Fruit branches are 

 generally in bearing the third year after 

 their first development. They should be 



kept, says Du Breuil, " as short as possible, 

 that the fruits maybe close to the principal 

 branches ; they will then receive the most 

 direct action of the sap, and become larger 



