March 24, 1863. ] 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



229 



Errington strongly urged it in many of his papers in the early 

 Numbers of The Cottage Gaedenee ; but he advocated a sort 

 of table trellis. Arched trellises enclosing a walk exist in more 

 places than one, and answer very well. The writer once had a 

 sort of half-arched trellis overhanging the sunny side of a walk. 

 This was also very successful ; in fact, so obedient are most 

 of the hardy fruits, that they can be made to assume almost any 

 shape. Some ot those already tried are as much to bo admired 

 for their novelty as their utility. However, I have no doubt 

 that the roots of a Pear tree will do less injury to those of the 

 Peach than the gross-feeding Cauliflower and similar vegetables ; 

 besides which, with only trees on the border, the necessity for 

 digging deep does not exist ; in fact, it is questionable whether 

 it is necessary to dig at all or not. I once knew a gentleman 

 — until very recently the oldest member of the Horticultural 

 Society — who wns so impressed with the propriety of letting the 

 roots of such trees alone, that he had the Peach-tree border turfed 

 over, and, I believe, it answered very well. Much, however, 

 depends on the character of the soil and subsoil for the well- 

 being of fruit trees, and there may be cases where a slight 

 crop of vegetables, not deep-rooling, may do no harm. Healthy 

 vigorous trees root much deeper than is generally supposed. 

 Some men digging a well not far from whence I am writing are 

 finding healthy useful roots at the depth of upwards of 2S feet! 

 the soil being a sandy shale. The adjoining trees are Sycamore, 

 Poplars, Fir, Birch, &c. The surface soil being good, these 

 roots have not descended tiiis depth for lack of substance 

 near the top, but by their healthy appearance they have done 

 so in consequence of relishing the nourishment met with there. 

 When, therefjre, the subsoil of a wall-border is one that suits the 

 Peach and other trees planted thereon, a slight crop of vegetables 

 does not do so much harm ; but where the subsoil is of a con- 

 trary character, and the trees must thrive on the surface natu- 

 rally or not at all, then by al; means leave them the unlimited 

 use of the latter, withou any compromise whatever ; and the 

 condition of the trees, with other tokens, will alone enable the 

 manager to determine how far this state of things bears on his 

 case, and to act accordingly. — J. R.] 



CINERARIA LEAVES INJURED. 

 I notice an answer to one of your correspondents respecting 

 his Cineraria leaves being injured. For his information (should 

 this catch his eye), I beg to say that about the first week in 

 January the frost was too sharp for me, and got into the green- 

 house. In the morning, on going to look round, I observed the 

 Fuchsia shoots looked very stiff. I gently tapped the pots of 

 one or two of them, and the greater part of the shoots tumbled 

 off; but the Cinerarias did not appear then to have suffered 

 much. However, I noticed in the course of a fortnight that 

 some of the plants did not grow at all, and others very little ; 

 ■while some did not seem affected in the least, and in a few more 

 days the outer edges of the leaves appeared to be gradually 

 mouldering and crumbling away, giving the plants, though nicely 

 showing bloom, a very shabby appearance. Some of them are 

 now all right again, hut others have never recovered. I attribute 

 this to their having been wetter than the others : consequently 

 they felt the frost more than they would have done had they 

 been dry. — An Amateub. 



THINNING BLOSSOM-BUDS OF ERUPT TREES. 



I have Peaches, Apricots, Nectarines, Plums, Cherries, Pears, 

 &c, in a well-ventilated lean-to (south aspect) orchard-house in 

 pots plunged in the borders. They are particularly full of 

 bloom-buds, which, owing to the mildness of the late weather, 

 began early in February to swell, and so water was given very 

 moderately and gradually, and they were fast opening before 

 the late change to cold. Some Pears of choice kinds are the 

 only trees not repotted here last autumn. They came from 

 London without balls of earth, and with the roots quite exposed ; 

 they were potted immediately, late in December, and are now 

 crowded with bloom just showing the pink tinge. 



It is quite impossible any of the above can bear one-tenth the 

 blooms shown, and I wish to have your opinion as to the ad- 

 visability of now removing them. My gardener says he would 

 not touch one, but thin them after the setting. I recollect Mr. 

 Rivers recommending thinniug-out with sharp scissors fully one- 

 half of Cherry-buds before they opened. If this be good prac- 



tice, why not deal so with other kinds, especially in the case of 

 the Pears I have mentioned, as it is very questionable how far 

 the roots are established? My notion is that the merely mode- 

 rate strength of a tree might be rendered of no avail in having 

 to expend itself on such a vas' qumtity of bloom, though it 

 would be equal to a very reduced quantity. Can any harm be 

 done to the trees by my suggestion ? — Manchestee. 



[In the mere expanding of the blossoms there is little strength 

 of the plant exhausted. We would, therefore, compromise the 

 matter, and wait until the blossoms are so far opened as to show 

 which have the strongest stalks, and the most prominent in- 

 cipient young fruit j then, rejecting the smaller ones, thin 

 more than half away. When these have set and have begun to 

 swell kindly, then thin them out again, leaving about a dozen or 

 so on each plant, or more, according to the strength. If you 

 were sure of all the blossoms being fertile you might thin earlier ; 

 but even in the case of Cherries, many of the bljssoms can never 

 set, from imperfect organisation.] 



PORTRAITS OF PLANTS, FLOWERS, AND 

 FRUITS. 



Pycnostachys ueticieolta (Nettle-leaved Pycnostachys). — 

 Nat ord., Labiate. Linn., Didynamia Gymnosperniia. INative 

 of Mount Zamba in tropical Africa. It has been found there 

 at an elevation of 3000 feet, and will probably flourish in our 

 greenhouses. Its flowers are dark blue, and appeared at Kew 

 in January. — (Bot. Mag., t. 5365.) 



Impatiens bicolob (Two-coloured Balsam). — Nat. ord., Bal- 

 samacea?. Linn., Pentandria Monogynia. Native of the island 

 of Fernando at an altitude of 4000 feet. Flowers appeared in 

 December at Kew ; they have a white mouth and purple lip. — 

 (Ibid., t. 5366.) 



Monoch-Ituh Humeolmianuj!: (Humboldt's Monoehfefum). 

 — Nat. ord., Melastomaceae. Linn., Octandria Monogynia. Na- 

 tive of Caracas. Flowers in the stove in November and rather 

 later. Flowers reddish-purple. — (Ibid., t. 5367.) 



Welwitschia iiieabilis (Wonderful Welwitschia). — Nat. 

 ord., Gnetaeese. Linn., Polygamia Monadelphia. Native of 

 Damara and Cape Negro in western tropical Africa. This mar- 

 vellous plant, it is said, sometimes measures 6 feet across the apex 

 of the trunk, with ribbon leaves 2 and even 3 fathoms long. Mi. 

 Anderson, the eminent African traveller, says :- — " It is only 

 found in one single locality — that is, as regards Damara Land, 

 which locality is exceedingly circumscribed. It grows, more- 

 over, in sandy places, and luxuriates when it can find a few 

 stones where to fix its extraordinary tap root, penetrating often 

 several feet deep, so that it is indeed a work of labour and 

 patience to extract one single plant. I have been thus occupied 

 more than an hour, and even then I have couie away with only 

 a portion of the root. The leaves attain a length of several 

 feet, a small portion at the point only being withered ; in other 

 respects they are evergreen ; they are straight-grained, and you 

 can tear them from top to bottom without deviating a single 

 line from a straight course. Rain rarely or never falls where 

 this plant exists. I have crossed and recrossed Damara Land 

 throughout its entire length and breadth, but only found the 

 plant growing on that desperately arid fiat, stretching far and 

 wide, about Waalvisch Bay, or between the twenty-second and 

 twenty-third degrees of south latitude. It is most common 

 about the lower course of the river Swakop." — (Ibid., it. 5368, 

 5369.) 



Rose Comtesse Ouvabofe. — This variety of the Tea-scented 

 group was raised by M. Margottin. Colour, a soft creamy rose. 

 — (Floral Magazine, pi. 137.) 



Picotee Jessie ; Catenation Samuel Moeeton. — The first, 

 raised by Mr. Turner, Slough, is a medium-edged purple. The 

 Carnation was raised by Mr. Addis, but is in Mr. Turner's list. 

 It is well and regularly marked. — (Ibid., pi. 138.) 



Veebenas Floka, Rosalie, and Pbeple Empekoe. — Flora, 

 crimson scarlet with white centre ; Rosalie, reddish-purple, but 

 crimson towards the centre, which is white ; Purple Fmperor 

 is plum-coloured with white centre. They will all be let out by 

 Messrs. Low & Son, of Clapton. — (Ibid., pi. 139.) 



Thunbee&'s Teictetis (Trieyrtis Mrta). — Sent by Mr. For- 

 tune from Japan to Mr. Standish, who believes it; will prove a 

 hardy border plant. Flowers pearly white, thickly spotted with 

 reddish-purple. — (Ibid., pi. 140.) 



