472 HorticnUuraL Memoranda. 



HORTICULTURAL MEMORANDA 



FOR DECEMBER. 



FRUIT DEPARTMENT. 



Grape Vines will now have so far ripened their wood, that pruning may 

 be commenced by the middle of the month. If the object is to prune on 

 the spur system, long canes should be left, and commencing at the bottom 

 of the shoot, the first bud should be left and the second and third be cut 

 clean out with a knife, leaving the fourth. This done on one side of the 

 shoot, proceed in the same way on the other ; next season the buds left 

 will form spur? from which tlie fruit will afterwards be produced. If on 

 the long rod system one-half of the shoots should be cut clean in and the 

 other half left at moderate length, according to the capacity of the vine 

 to produce a greater or less crop. Foreign grapes in the ground should be 

 protected by covering : and native kinds may now be pruned. 



Strawberry Beds should be covered as directed last month, if not already 

 done. 



Raspberry Vines should also be covered witli earth, leaves, or strawy 

 manure. 



Scions may yet be cut, for grafting early in the spring : preserve in earth 

 in the cellar. 



FLOWER DEPARTMENT. 



Camellias will now commence swelling their buds, and will be more and 

 more objects of interest at this season. If the plants were put into the 

 house without top-dressing, it should be done now : wash the pots clean, 

 and if the leaves are dirty and the time can be spared, they should be care- 

 fully washed with a sponge. After this if their shoots are tied up to a 

 neat stake, they will have a far handsomer appearance than if allowed to 

 grow without care. Seeds should now be sown, and cuttings may yet be 

 put in. 



Pelargoniufns should now be shifted into the next size pots. 



AinaryUises should be potted this month. Use a rich loam. 



Cinerarias will again require shifting into No. 3 pots. 



Oxalises not planted last month, should now be put into the earth. 



Chrysanthemv ms now done flowering should have their tops cut oft", and 

 the plants placed in a cold frame. 



Hyacinths should all be potted, if any were omitted last month. 



Heliotropes in small pots should now be shifted into the next size. 



Calla JEthiopica may now be repotted, and be supplied with an abund- 

 ance of water. 



Roses potted, if in August or September, should now be shifted into the 

 next size pots. 



Azaleas and Cactuses should be sparingly watered this month. 



Carnations, Auriculas, and similar half-hardy plants, should be ])laced 

 in coW frames for the winter. 



10 Week Stocks may be repotted this month. 



Sparaxis, Iiias, &c., potted in October and placed in frames, should now 

 be brought into the greenhouse to bloom. 



Verbenas should have a light, airy place, and receive rather sparing sup- 

 plies of water until January. 



