December 26, 1878. ] 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER, 
483 
Melons afford a good addition to the dessert. Fruit that 
ripened late in the season will often keep for a lengthened 
time in a temperature of about 50°, but are preferably cut 
just before ripening with a portion of wood, anc placed in a 
vinery where the Grapes are ripe or in a rather dry fruit 
room, Little Heath is one of the best for this purpose, and 
the Persian class also keep well. The best of all for Christmas 
is the Cabul, a large oyal fruit of a bright yellow colour when 
fully ripe; and Khiva is admirable for the same purpose. 
Garnished with sprays in wreath form of Passiflora trifasciata, 
dotted with the fruit of Passiflora czrulea, Melons, whatever 
may be the flavour, are very effective in appearance. 
Pears come to the fore at this time; their russet hues con- 
trast admirably with the shining Grapes and glossy Oranges, 
though some of them are not wanting incolour. Beurré Clair- 
geau, which unfortunately may not always be kept until this 
time, is very beautilul; Forelle (spotted like a trout) and 
Durondeau (with its splendid colour) unfortunately ripen 
earlier than this, but they may be kept in earthenware jars 
in an ice house or cold cellar. Setting those aside we have 
Huyshe’s Prince of Wales, Beurré Sterckmans, Beurré d’Anjou, 
Easter Beurré, Winter Nelis, Glou .Morgeau, Beurré d’Arem- 
berg, Joséphine de Malines, Passe Colmar, and Knight’s 
Monarch, which are available at this time. St. Germain and 
Chaumontel have an imposing appearance, but require a warm 
soil and to be grown against a wall, or the quality is inferior. 
Pears may be effectively dressed with small Laurel leaves, pre- 
ferably sprays with fruit, giving prominence to Portugal over 
common Laurel. The rich berries of Pyracantha, Cotoneaster, 
Briar heps, Japan Quince (Cydonia japonica), and Siberian 
Crab heighten the effect of Pears wonderfully. 
Apples come out in strong force. Hyery housewife keeps 
back her best for distribution at Christmas. Api or Lady 
Apple, though small, is very beautiful; Cox’s Orange Pippin 
is scarcely less so; Court Pendu Plat, Margil, Pearson’s Plate, 
Golden Reinette, Golden Pippin, Wyken Pippin, Scarlet 
Nonpareil, Ashmead’s Kernel, and Golden Harvey are all small 
fruit. but beautiful for the most part in appearance, and are 
all of high quality. Ribstone Pippin is an advance in size over 
the preceding, Claygate Pearmain, Lord Burghley, Cockle’s Pip- 
pin, Golden Russet, and Ross Nonpareil represent half a dozen 
of the middle-sized Apples of great excellence ; and large 
Apples are represented by Northern Spy, which requires a wall 
to grow it perfectly, Dutch Mignonne, Reinette du Canada, 
Blenheim Pippin, Lewis’s Incomparable, and Lady Henniker. 
Some like a soft Apple. Beauty of Kent will suit that taste, 
and please everybody by its very handsome appearance. All 
the small Apples may be set with sprays of Cotoneaster in 
fruit and haws set in Laurel greenery, the large fruit having a 
foil of Laurel dotted with Fairy Apple in clusters. Heps, and 
especially berried sprays of Pyracantla, are appropriate for 
setting up Apples. 
Nuts must be included (Filbert, Cob, and Walnut), which 
may be draped with sprays of Garrya elliptica with its catkins 
or sprays of Evergreen Oak. The Filberts will, of course, be 
in the husk, but the Walnuts should be clean, and if dried the 
Nuts should be placed in water for twenty-four hours, when 
the skins will then peel off well, nearly equal to those kept in 
moist sand. 
Medtars complete the list of fruit available for Christmas 
dessert in most establishments, and they may be dressed with 
evergreen Thorn sprays, berried of course. More rare are the 
following :— 
Banana (the fruit of Musa Cayendishi) isa grand addition 
to the dessert, and is not an infrequent one in large establish- 
ments; but it is difficult to time the fruiting so as to come in 
just when wanted. Yet suckers in good heat under liberal 
treatment produce fruit within the year, and the fruit will 
keep for six to eight weeks after being ripe, cutting off the 
spadix with a portion of the stem just where the upper tier of 
fruit is ripening, keeping it in a dry airy room after the 
manner of late Grapes. 
Guava is another fruit not generally cultivated, probably 
from the fact that the plants in a young state do not bear 
freely, but when a little aged they bear well, producing fruit 
in long succession often during the winter months. The 
purple fruit is well set off by garnishing with foliage and 
fruit of the Strawberry I'ree (Arbutus Unedo), which do good 
service also for Bananas. 
Granadilla (Passiflora quadrangularis).—IF'ruit may some- 
times be had by fertilising the flowers about August, but they | his foot goes. 
do not set well at that season. P. edulis is more accommoda- 
ting, setting much more freely ; but the fruit is not nearly so 
large. We have occasionally had fruit of Tacsonia mollissima, 
which is whitish yellow and about the size of an egg, ripening 
unfortunately in October or November, though occasionally 
later, and keeping up to this time. They take the eye, the 
less said about the palate the better. Set up in the leaves of 
some palmate Passiflora, and if the small yellow fruit of P. 
ceerulea be dotted around, or the Cherry-like Cape Gooseberry, 
the effect is good. Tacsonia Van-Volxemi often is plentifully 
furnished with fruit at Christmas, but they are not so inviting 
in appearance as the others, and are simply abominable eating 
unless ripened in a temperature intermediate between a green- 
house and stove ; in fact, these and some others require more 
heat when ripening than during growth, and then their quality 
is a little better. 
Ugni, the fruit of Eugenia Ugni, is desirable if only for its 
aromatic flavour. It ripens well in a greenhouse, and treated 
like the Myrtle, flowers and fruits freely. Set in its own spray, 
berried of course, the effect is admirable, Snowberry berries 
enlivening them wonderfully. 
Pomegranates do not fruit freely in this country as usually 
grown—viz., against walls, but in an orchard house fruit is 
occasionally had, and in a heated one with certainty ; or with 
the treatment of cool Grapes fruit would be had as we have 
seen, but only in one instance—viz., at Well Head, Halifax. 
They appear best put up with Myrtle sprays with their purple 
seed vessels. 
Shaddockhs have a splendid appearance, requiring the same 
treatment as Oranges, though, like Lemons, they are not so 
heat-requiring to secure them, but are all the finer for it. 
Their own spray is a good set-off, heightened in effect by 
berried sprays of Skimmia japonica. 
Strawberries are a good addition. Early-forced plants 
planted out or, if kept in pots, potted and plunged in an open 
situation, abundantly supplied with water and housed in late 
September or early October, affording light airy situations in 
a house with a temperature of 50° by artificial means, will 
afford fruit late by a little careful management at this season, 
the latest-forced plants keeping up the succession, and Sir 
Harry and Vicomtesse Hericart de Thury swell well late in the 
season. Alpines sown in spring will afford fruit in winter, 
and form admirable margins to a dish of larger fruit, setting 
the Alpine in their own leaves with the fruit in trusses. 
Christmas desserts often comprise Litchees, Pomeloes, Prickly 
Pears, &c., but these can only be obtained from good fruiterers, 
I may fittingly close this paper by a brief allusion to plants 
suitable at this season for table decoration. Holly and Mistle- 
toe are out of the race for such purpose—theirs is of another 
character which it is not my purpose to treat. Berried plants 
are, however, suitable for table decoration at this season. 
Ardisia crenulata with its bright red berries, and the white 
variety, A. crenulata alba, are superb. Rivina humilis, with 
its clusters of red or purplish berries, is very effective. Calli- 
carpa purpurea, with its purple berries, is a neglected but 
very useful plant. Standard Otaheite Orange and Sola num 
Capsicastrum in good fruited examples are yery fine. Some 
of the Capsicums, as Prince and Princess of Wales, are 
highly effective. There are many plants that might be pressed 
into the service mostly of a hardy character. Such, however, 
do not fruit freely enough in small plants. Iwill close my 
notes by pointing to a centre for the table of Variegated Pine 
(Ananassa sativa variegata), which in fruit is one of the most 
striking of all table plants—G. ABBEY. 
THE GARDENER’S FOOT. 
“WELL, Edward,” said J, talking to an old friend as we 
walked around the garden together, ‘you have a nice place 
here, and things grow well. No slugs and snails, eh! like I 
have ; not many birds either to do much damage. Now tell 
me,” said I laughingly, “what does most mischief in your 
garden.’ ‘ You will never guess,” said he, and a gloomy look 
came over his otherwise cheerful face. ‘ Don’t know,” said 
I, “give it up.” ‘ Well,” said my dear old friend, “I can 
trap the slugs and snails, scare the birds, kill the green fly, 
prevent mildew, burn off the lichens from my trees with lime 
and soot, but I lose many plants for all that.” ‘“ How?” said 
I. “Well,” said he, “By the gardener’s foot! Yes, the 
gardener’s foot is one of my worst enemies. He walks on my 
flower beds just as he would a gravel walk, heedless of where 
In the early spring smash go my plants just 
peeping through the soil. Twigs and sprays are broken off 
