221 



HORTICULTURE. 



Vruit t. 2057), if not a native plant, is at least completely 

 naturalized in this country. It often appears in woods, 

 and not unfrequently on the walls of ruinous buildings; 

 but to these places the seeds may no doubt have been 

 carried by birds. The culture of this fruit has for a 

 number of years been particularly attended to in the 

 north-west of England ; and the size and beauty of the 

 Lancashire gooseberries have procured them the first 

 character. In the south of Europe, we believe, the fruit 

 is generally small and neglected ; and when foreigners 

 witness our Lancashire berries, they are ready to con- 

 sider them as forming quite a different kind of fruit. 

 In France, the gooseberry is called groteille maqitc- 

 rau, from its being used as a seasoning to mackerel. 



159 The varieties of the fruit are very numerous, 

 perhaps not fewer than two hundred. They are dis- 

 tinguished by names not less sonorous, nor less fanci- 

 ful and unmeaning, than those bestowed by the Dutch 

 on their tulips and hyacinths ; such as, Glory of Eng- 

 land, Glory of Eccles, Bank of England, Nelson's Vic- 

 tory, &c. Many new ones are constantly coming into 

 notice, and others are falling into neglect. They are 

 classed according as their colours are red, green, yel- 

 Jow, or white. The names of a very few of each of 

 these, which are at present most in esteem, shall be 

 mentioned. 



Red. 



Old Ironmonger, 

 Early Black, 



Smooth Red, 

 Hairy Red, 



Damson, or dark red, Red Champagne, 

 Large Rough Red, Nutmeg, 

 Red Walnut, 

 Warrington, 



Captain, 

 Wilmot's early red. 



Green Gascoigne, 

 Green Walnut, 

 White Smith, 



Great Amber, 

 Globe Amber, 

 Great Mogul, 

 Hairy Globe, 

 Golden Drop, 

 Honeycomb, 



Large Crystal, 

 White-veined, 

 Royal George, 



Green. 



Green Globe, 

 Green-gage. 



Yellow. 

 Sulphur, 

 Conqueror, 

 Yellow Champagne, 

 Golden-knap, 

 Royal Sovereign, 

 Tawny. 



White. 



White Dutch, 

 White Walnut 



It must be admitted, that although the large goose- 

 berries make a fine appearance on the table, they are 

 often deficient in flavour, when compared with some of 

 smaller size. Many of them have very thick strong 

 skins, and are not eatable unless thoroughly ripened. 

 Some of the large sort, however, are of very good qua- 

 lity, such as the red champagne and the green walnut. 

 Among these, also Wilmot's early red deserves further 

 notice. It was raised by Mr Wilmot at Islesworth in 

 1804, and has been cultivated by him very extensively 

 on account of its valuable properties, being early ripe, 

 of excellent flavour, and extremely productive. It 

 usually ripens from the middle to the end of June. 

 For culinary use in the month of May it is larger and 

 better than most others, the skin not being tough, but 

 the whole berry melting to a fine consistence. The 

 gooseberry, it may scarcely be necessary to notice, is 



used not only for tarts, pies, and sauces or gooseberry Fruit 

 creams, before being ripe ; but, when at maturity, it Garden, 

 forms a rich addition to the dessert for several months. JT""^C~~"' 



Gathered unripe, gooseberries can be preserved in hot- 

 ties against winter : the bottles are filled with berries, 

 close corked, and well sealed ; they are then placed in 

 a cool cellar till wanted. By plunging the bottles after 

 being corked into boiling water for a few minutes, 

 (heating them gradually to prevent cracking,) the berries 

 are said to keep better. 



160. Gooseberry-bushes, like currants, are propa 

 gated chiefly by cuttings, preferring for this purpose 

 clean and strong shoots of the former year, about a 

 foot in length. They may be planted any time early 

 in the spring. They are trained for two or three years, 

 and should have a stem six or eight inches high. Strong 

 suckers of straight growth are sometimes used, but 

 they are considered as apt to produce suckers again. 



In many places little attention is paid either to the 

 soil in which the gooseberry-tree is planted, or to its 

 pruning and management ; yet the fruit is greatly im- 

 proved by attention to these circumstances. The best 

 practical gardeners now prune the bushes so as to form 

 them somewhat like a hollow sphere ; no main stem is 

 encouraged, as was formerly done ; but the centre is 

 cut out, and eight or ten side branches preserved, ac- 

 cording to the size of the plant. All water-shoots of 

 the former season are removed ; but any young shoots 

 wanted for branches, are left at full length. In this 

 mode of pruning or training, the stem may be short, 

 perhaps half a foot, instead of a whole foot. The 

 bushes may also be planted nearer to each other than 

 such as are allowed to rise many feet in height. They 

 should not however be less than five or six feet asun- 

 der in every direction, the free admission of light and 

 air being quite necessary. If the bushes be attended 

 to in the month of June, and all central water-shoots 

 and suckers be displaced, the additional light and air 

 thus admitted, will be found very beneficial to the 

 fruit, while the labour of winter pruning will be at 

 the same time diminished. In many gardens goose- 

 berry-bushes are still placed in single rows along the 

 sides of borders ; but this is not so good a plan as ha- 

 ving a separate quarter for them. They may be plant- 

 ed in November, or any time before February ; and 

 the plantation should be renewed every seven or eight 

 years. 



161. The plan above described for prolonging the 

 season of currants, by matting up the bushes when the 

 fruit is ripe, it is still more important to adopt in regard 

 to gooseberries, as this fruit forms a more desirable in- 

 gredient of the dessert. If some of the late yellow 

 sorts be matted in September, they remain good till 

 November. A few plants of the finer kinds are some- 

 times trained against a south or east wall ; here the 

 fruit not only comes earlier, but attains greater size 

 than usual. They also do very well on a low espalier- 

 rail. In some places, gooseberry- trees on the sides of 

 the borders, are trained to a single tall stem, which is 

 tied to a stake: this, though six or eight feet high, 

 occasions scarcely any shade on the border, and it does 

 not occupy much room, nor exclude air ; while at the 

 same time the stem becomes closely hung with berries, 

 and makes a pleasant appearance in that state. Some 

 sorts of gooseberry-bushes, and those producing the 

 largest fruit, have a natural tendency to bend their 

 branches downwards. In this case the branches must 

 be supported with small forked sticks, in order to 

 admit air, and to save the fruit from touching the 

 ground. 



