THE PINE-APPLE. 31 



bright sun than Queens or other varieties ; and to 

 grow it to perfection it should never be allowed to 

 become much browned. In the case of this fine 

 variety I have in bright warm seasons fixed a single 

 ply of hexagon netting over the pits, and allowed it 

 to remain for a couple of the hottest months. This 

 simply breaks the power of the sun a little. In order 

 to prevent this wiry, browned condition during sum- 

 mer, care should be taken that the plants are never 

 once allowed to go too long without being watered, 

 and a uniformly moderate moist state of the soil must 

 be maintained. 



Should any of the plants throw up young suckers 

 from the axils of the lower leaves, they should be 

 removed at once. The best way of doing this is to 

 have a long-handled pair of broad-mouthed pincers, 

 with which the suckers can be easily twisted out as 

 soon as they are observed. Where much syringing 

 overhead is practised, suckers frequently show them- 

 selves in abundance, in the case of Queens particularly. 

 This is one of the many evils which result from the 

 too liberal use of the syringe. It often occurs during 

 the season of rapid growth that some of the centre 

 leaves adhere closely to each other for a longer time 

 than is good for them : they should be separated 

 either with the hand, or with a slight touch of a stick 

 where the hand cannot reach them. 



As the stock of which I am now treating consists 

 principally of plants that are selected to start into 

 fruit for the early supply of next season, the plants 

 should always have their pots well filled with roots, 

 and be of a stocky well-matured growth, by the end 

 of August, otherwise there is little certainty of their 

 being got to start in time to be ripe in May and June. 



