FIO 



[ 350 ] 



FIM 



fer a chalky loam. When planted against 

 walls out of doors, care must be taken 

 not to make the soil rich, for invincible 

 grossness would be the consequence. A 

 plain " maiden " soil is quite good enough 

 lor general purposes. 



Culture in Growing Period. Out-door 

 culture consists in an early disbudding 

 of all superfluous shoots ; this is per- 

 formed when the young shoots are about 

 three inches long, reserving all those 

 which are short-jointed and compact- 

 looking. Care must be taken to reserve 

 shoots for blank places. This disbudding 

 is generally performed at twice or thrice 

 during the season ; for waste and watery- 

 looking spray will continue to spring up 

 until August, especially in moist sum- 

 mers, and when the plants are gross. 

 Such disbudding should be carried out 

 until almost every leaf of the future year's 

 bearing-wood obtains a free exposure to 

 sunshine, say by the middle of August. 

 About the end of this month it is ac- 

 counted good practice to pinch the ends 

 of all growing shoots, or rather to squeeze 

 them with the thumb and finger. Nothing 

 more is needed as summer culture, except 

 a timely training of all reserved shoots, 

 in order to obtain all the sunlight possible. 



Culture in Rest Period. This merely 

 consists in protection from frost, and in 

 pruning. Towards the beginning of De- 

 cember, some protection ought to be 

 given, as mats, straw, fern fronds, or 

 spruce boughs. Before closing them, or, 

 indeed, at the end of October, every fig 

 which has become as large as a horse- 

 bean, should be pulled away, for such rob 

 the trees, and are sure to perish. The 

 trees must be uncovered again in the end 

 of February, if matted, otherwise such 

 materials as fern or straw may remain on 

 a little longer ; the spruce, until pruning 

 time. The latter operation should not be 

 performed until the young buds are be- 

 ginning to swell, when wood of a proper 

 character may be distinguished readily 

 from that which is useless. All the latter 

 must be cut away, unless required for 

 blank spaces ; but if summer disbudding 

 has been properly performed, there will 

 be little for the pruner to do. After this, 

 they must be duly trained. 



Forcing. Some build houses for the 

 fig, but most prefer growing- them in tubs 

 cr large pots. The general principles of 

 forcing them so closely resemble tuose 

 1'or the vine, that it will be needless to go 



into details. As to general temperature, 

 although they will bear much heat, yet 

 most cultivators agree that one interme- 

 diate between the peach-house and the 

 forcing vinery is the most congenial. It 

 requires, however, a little more excite- 

 ment to bring the fig into leaf than the 

 peach. Under good house culture it will 

 produce two satisfactory crops in one 

 year. A first crop may be obtained as 

 early as May, and after a couple of 

 mouths or so, the second will commence 

 ripening; the latter being those on the 

 wood of the current season. The first 

 crop, or the embryo fruit of the previous 

 year, is very apt to fall prematurely, 

 and much care is necessary. Eegular wa- 

 terings the moment they are dry, and an 

 avoidance of atmospheric extremes, are 

 the best preventives. Most good culti- 

 vators make a point of pinching the ends 

 of the young shoots when about six or 

 eight eyes or buds in length ; this soon 

 causes the fruit to form in the axils of 

 the leaves. Frequent syringings should 

 be practised in the growing season ; 

 and when at rest they should never be 

 subjected to a lower temperature than 

 40. Under all circumstances, the fig 

 delights in a soil somewhat moist: a neg- 

 lect of watering when necessary, even for 

 a day, may cause them to cast their fruit. 



Fruit. Its use is almost entirely 

 confined to the ripe state, as dessert ; 

 as for keeping, if such is attempted, it 

 must be on the retarding system, by par- 

 tial shade, and a lowering of temperature 

 just before ripening. 



Insects. The lied Spider and the 

 Broivn Scale alone cause any alarm to 

 Fig cultivators. The spider must be 

 combated by the syringe, by an occa- 

 sional dusting of sulphur, and by dress- 

 ing the shoots all over, before commenc- 

 ing forcing, with soap water and sulphur; 

 three ounces of soft soap to a gallon of 

 warm water, well beat up, adding four 

 handsful of sulphur, will make a mixture, 

 which, brushed into every crevice, will 

 extirpate both scale and spider. Sulphur, 

 however, should be used on the pipes 

 during the growing season. 



FIG MARIGOLD. Mesembrya'nthemum. 



FIGURE- OF-S MOTH. Episema. 



FILBERT. See CO'RYLUS. 



FIMBRIA'RIA. (From fimbria, fringe ; 

 a second name for Schwa' nnia, a fine 

 shrub with fringed leaves ; hence the 

 synonyme. Nat. ord.. Malpighiads [Mai- 



