BOOK I. PINERY .-, FRUITING DEPARTMENT. 529 



2821. Griffin never waters pUles over the leaves in any stage, nor gives much at root in damp weather. 

 In other respects his practice, agrees with that of Abercrombie and Nicoi 



2822. Baldwin waters the ulants in the fruiting-house cautiously till towards February ; but as the spring 

 advances, gives a larger supply. He adds, Never water your plants in the common broad-cast method, 

 over their heads and leaves." (Cult, of Anan. p. 21.) 



2823. Treatment tftheplants in fruit. " Sticks," Speechly says, " should be provided to 

 support the fruit before it is grown too large ; and in laying them, care should be taken 

 to leave bandage room sufficient, making allowance for the swelling of the fruit. When 

 the suckers are grown to about a foot in length they should be taken off, and from that 

 time the fruit will swell very fast." (2V. on Pine, p. 51.) Large fruiting plants," he 

 adds, " will sometimes show their fruit in the months of August and September, but 

 these are generally thought of no value, and consequently thrown away. To prevent 

 this, I frequently take such plants out of the hot-house as soon as their fruits begin to 

 appear. I then set them in a shed or out-house for five or six weeks; at the ex- 

 piration of which time I pot them as in the month of March, after shaking off their balls. 

 After this I plunge them into the tan ; and in the month of March following put them 

 into larger-sized pots, with their balls and roots entire. By this means I have sometimes 

 cut tolerably good fruit from such plants in the months of May and June following. 

 Such forward plants generally produce very fine suckers. Whenever the pine-plants are 

 removed after they are grown large, it will be of service, before they are taken out of 

 the tan-bed, to mark the side of the pots which stands next the sun ; for it is observable, 

 that the centres of the plants generally tend that way : so that the plants, when replaced, 

 may stand as they did before they were removed. I do not mean that it is at all neces- 

 sary for the plants to be put into the very identical places in which they stood before, 

 but, in point of position, it will be proper, and the plants will be benefited by being so 

 placed. This may as easily be done as placing them in a random manner, which is the 

 common method." 



2824. Abercrombie directs, " to keep the plants growing gently, and to have the pots, in general, com- 

 pletely filled with the roots by the time at which you intend to excite them into blossom. From the midde 

 of February to the 1st of March is a good time to have the main crop in flower j as the prospective season is 

 the finest. About a month before you expect to see fruit, dress the plants by taking away two inches in 

 depth from the top of the mould. Twist off some of the lower leaves. Fill up with fresh compost, round 

 the stem, to the remaining leaves. The bark-bed should be revived at the same time, so as to make it 

 lively; but no new tan should be added, till the time for the fullest heat arrives." 



825. M'Phatt says, " It frequently happens that pine-apple plants designed to bear fruit, do not show 

 their fruit early enough in the spring or fore-part of summer, to ripen their fruit before winter, when there 

 is not sunshine enough to give the fruit any flavor. This may happen because the plants have not come to 

 a proper growth, or their roots may have been injured by too violent a bottom heat, or by being over- 

 watered, or they may have been shifted too late, or been put into pots too large for their roots to have filled 

 them before the end of the growing season. To make pine-plants show their fruit at an early time in the 

 spring, some authors have recommended the cutting off some of the roots at the autumn shifting; but 

 long experience has convinced me, that cutting off the roots, or destroying them by any means, instead of 

 making them show fruit, is an effectual mean to prevent them from showing fruit till they have again made 

 long roots. The fruit of the pine-apple is formed probably not less than seven or eight weeks before it 

 appears among the leaves ; and if a plant be divested partially or totally of its roots, its growth is stopped 

 till it has made roots of considerable length, when it will grow quickly. And, if before the roots were de- 

 stroyed, the fruit had been formed in the hidden secret centre of the plant, the fruit will grow and show 

 itself when the leaves of the plant, excepting those on the stem of the fruit, will make no appearance of 

 growing. This, perhaps, may be the reason which induces some persons to think that cutting off' the roots 

 of the plant causeth it to fruit sooner than it would do were the roots suffered to remain. If pine-apple 

 plants, intended for fruiting the following year, be shifted late in the autumn into pots, which their roots 

 do not fill well before the month of January, they probably will not show fruit till late in the spring or 

 summer months." He top-dresses the pots, and trims plants in February, and uses every means to heat 

 water, &c. to keep them in a growing state during that month and March. If more than two or three 

 suckers begin to grow out of the stem, they should be destroyed, unless they are so near the earth as to 

 make roots into it, which will strengthen them without robbing the fruit. " In June, the fruit, when it 

 gets large, should be supported with sticks to prevent it from falling, and to make the crowns grow up- 

 right on the fruit. Were the fruit permitted to lean to one side, the crown in growing would force itself 

 upright, and when the fruit was ripe, the crown would stand crooked on it. If any of the fruit that 

 showed early are ripe, set the plants out of the fruiting-house, and replace them by any that may have 

 shown fruit among the succession plants." If in August you have any plants among your succession 

 pines which have shown fruit, as your fruiting plants are now ripe, set out the pots, and take those in 

 fruit from among your succession plants, to replace them. In November it may be well to have a few 

 plants start into fruit, which may come in at an early and very acceptable season. Some may yet be 

 green or not fully ripe, and should get no more water than what is necessary to keep them from flagging. 

 (G. Rent.} 



2826. Nicol, in February, top-dresses and trims such of the plants as have not then shown fruit. " Some 

 kinds of pine-apples put out suckers on the fruit-stalk, at the base of the fruit, which should be rubbed off 

 with the thumb as they appear, because they rob it of nourishment to a certain extent. If the object be to 

 have large fruit, all suckers of the root, and all but two or three of the best of those rising from between the 

 leaves, should be destroyed. Those of the root may easily be twisted off, and the others may be destroyed, 

 or be prevented from growing further, by breaking out their heart-leaves, which is no difficult matter 

 while they are young, being then brittle. But if the increase of the stock be the object, all suckers of the 

 stem should be encouraged, and even some of the best of those from the root." (Kal.) 



2827. Time required to fruit the pine. All the authors quoted, excepting Baldwin, 

 and almost all cultivators of the pine-plant, require from two and a half to four years 

 from the planting of the crown or sucker to perfecting its fruit. The general period is 

 from two and a half to three years ; a fruit of the queen pine being gathered in August, 

 1819, and its crown planted a few days afterwards, will, in the July, August, or Sep- 

 tember, 1822, produce fruit, A strong sucker from the same plant taken off, as is fre- 



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