FRUIT UNDER GLASS, 155 
Say decidedly they are not a success for good peach-growing. 
In the South of Ireland the trees in such a case come into flower 
in February or early March. Now we sometimes have had a 
heavy snowstorm in the middle of March when the trees are in 
full flower, and there being no fire-heat and a cold, leaden, dull 
sky, the result is no crop. At another time a favourable setting 
may give a crop, but a wet, sunless autumn admits of no good 
ripening. I put two pipes into one of these cases and all was 
changed. Good sets, well ripened fruit and wood, and much 
larger fruit. 
The peach-cases at Dalkeith under my charge at present were 
put up thirty-five years ago, and much was expected from them, 
but [ am sorry to say they have not been a success even when 
good crops are secured, for the fruit lacks size and flavour from 
want of heat. Probably one of the best late cases and houses of 
this kind is at Drumlanrig. The south boundary wall of the 
garden there fell down, and instead of building a new wall, a 
span-roof case or orchard-house with some heating in it was put 
up instead as a boundary. It was too large to devote entirely 
to peaches, but these, with the finer kinds of plums and the best 
varieties of pears, do splendidly in it. The heating of peach- 
cases costs only the initial cost of putting in the pipes; the heating 
required for a short time when the trees are in flower, and for a 
short time in autumn to ripen the wood, is easily applied without 
any extra tax on the ordinary heating apparatus. 
There is a large variety of peaches now, and if one had only 
one long house with little heating and no means of forcing, one 
might, by a good selection of earliest, mid-season, and latest 
varieties, secure a supply of ripe fruit from the end of June until 
October. ne 
Hale’s Early is one of our best for early forcing. Stirling 
Castle is another old favourite for forcing. Royal George forces 
well too. Violette Hative is a very good certain cropper. Belle- 
garde is another good cropper. Grosse Mignonne and Noblesse 
are the two finest flavoured peaches. Walburton Admirable and 
Sea Eagle are the two best late peaches. 
The following varieties of nectarines are good :—Precoce de 
Croncels, Lord Napier, Elruge, Humboldt Downton, Victoria, 
Pine Apple. 
