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JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



[ April 28, 1863. 



One of the moat fortunate growers of Peaches in pots candidly 

 told me that his suceeBS entirely depended on his allowing his 

 trees every year to root into the ground, which roots he partly 

 cut back the following winter, thereby following out a system of 

 annual "root-pruning." But I ask, Is this growing the fruit 

 in pots ? I am willing to believe that Mr. Rivers and Mr. Pear- 

 son each grow some good fruit on trees in pots, and I am glad 

 the latter intends to submit some of his fruit to the test of a 

 public show. The complimentary approval of individuals who 

 may be kindly treated by an hospitable host ought not to be 

 taken at more than its worth ; it is always much more pleasing 

 to speak favourably than otherwise, and few would act the 

 ungracious part of finding fault with what was kindly placed 

 before them. But even assuming it to be proved (which, by-the- 

 by, has not been yet done) that a fruit grown in a pot is as 

 good as one grown against an open wall, it is only like proving 

 that a silver spade is as good as a steel one ; for the costliness 

 of the one mode of growing fruit as compared with the other is 

 about on a par with the relative price of the two tools. The 

 advocates of the silver spade may call Mr. Weaver and myself 

 prejudiced, antiquated, and so forth, because we cannot Bee the 

 merits of the silver tool, but that does not prove that the silver 

 tool is best. This simile I will, however, further explain, so as 

 to place the relative trouble of attending to plants in pots, as 

 compared with those planted out, in a true light. 



On the terraces at Linton we have been in the habit of placing 

 groups of plants for display during the summer season. These 

 plants are all in pots, and consist mostly of Scarlet and other 

 Geraniums, Lobelias, Fuchsias, and 6uch like, to the number of 

 about a thousand, and they are all in pots. Now, though we 

 have a great many thousands of the same kinds of plants planted 

 out in the beds, the attention those in pots on the terrace require 

 during the Bummer months, in watering and so forth, very far 

 exceeds all that is given to the others ; for although I did not 

 record how often the plants in pots were watered, it could not 

 be lesB than eighty or one hundred times from the early part of 

 May to the end of October. Now, plants of the same kind 

 planted in beds had water only once — viz., at the time of planting. 



This is one example of the difference in trouble between 

 plants in pots, and those in the ground, and it may very appro- 

 priately be applied to fruit-growing. The simile will bear itBelf 

 out pretty well, but those who dislike such a comparison I will 

 meet on their own ground, and give another example. 



This time we will take Pears, which I see Mr. Pearson does 

 not patronise, but Mr. Rivers does. Well, last summer I went 

 to see some trees in pots that belonged to a gentleman who is 

 ardently fond of gardening, and which had been received some 

 time before from a famed establishment for Buch things. On 

 Plums, Peaches, and Pears, there was, however,' very little fruit; 

 but one Pear tree, a Marie Louise, had three fruit upon it, and 

 the gentleman seemed in high glee at his success. Some time 

 afterwards he sent me word that they had all three ripened. 

 This was about the time that I had some of the same kind ripe 

 also, and I sent him half a dozen specimens to compare them 

 with his own, and he candidly sent me word that mine were the 

 better flavoured. Now, the three fruit the gentleman produced 

 on his potted tree cost him long and close attention in watering 

 and the like, and this was the most successful tree in about 

 forty, taking all kinds together, while those I sent him were 

 taken indiscriminately from a batch of thirty or forty buBhels of 

 the same kind which had been grown on open standard trees in 

 a grass orchard, and the gathering of the fruit when it was ready 

 was all the attention the trees had received the whole year. 

 Now, this case might have many parallels, but I merely place it 

 before the general reader as bearing on Pear-growing. I may, 

 however, mention another circumstance connected with this 

 Pear, whioh may not be generally known. The trees on which 

 those in question were grown, were ordinary standard trees, 

 middle-aged, and which only received a pruning or thinning of 

 the branches once in five or six years, and in some seasons they 

 have been more prolific than last year. Now, we have the same 

 kind of fruit on a wall with an east aspect, and the Pears be- 

 come much larger, but bear no comparison with the fruit from 

 the open standard in respect to flavour. The latter have a 

 more russetty appearance, and attain a nice size for table. The 

 above is a good example how necessary plenty of air is to perfect 

 our hardy fruits, as other Pears as well as this one are better on 

 the open standard than on the wall, and I can hardly conceive 

 how any fruit ripening under glass can be as good as the same 

 kind is when ripened in the open air. Observe, I say ripened, 



I do not mean starved into a premature perfection, or rather im- 

 perfection. Strawberries forced are inferior to the same ripened 

 in the open air, and the same may be said of Peaches and Nec- 

 tarines generally, and to improve the flavour of the latter they 

 are invariably treated to the greatest circulation of air the house 

 will admit of. Such, however, is the general way of managing 

 those in Peach-houses. In orchard- houses the treatment is much 

 the same. 



Having carried the above remarks to a greater length than I 

 intended, I have only space to reply to your correspondent, 

 " R., of 8.," who says, " that the flavour of fruit is entirely 

 under the control of the gardener." I will, however, ask him 

 the simplest of all questions, one possibly beneath his contempt. 

 How are Gooseberries to be grown near London so as to be of 

 as good flavour as those produced in Lancashire ? I am not 

 too old to learn, and would like to know much more about the 

 flavour of fruit than I now do, and certainly would consider 

 myself a very clever man if I had it under my own control. I 

 would waive all opposition to orchard-houses, and give " R., 

 of S." the credit of being an oracle, if he would only put me in 

 possession of this secret. With regard to the article of " Dr/CK- 

 Wiua," it is needless to say much, since the drift of his argu- 

 ment is on the side of "D.," Mr. Weaver, and myself, for he 

 acknowledges failing with four out of the six kinds of fruits he 

 attempted to grow ; but as he candidly acknowledges knowing 

 only the orchard-house cultivation, and thinks himself successful 

 by managing two out of the six fruits he commenced with, it 

 would be ungracious to deny him the amount of credit he 

 deserves. At the same time-I would just say, that before he 

 again decides on the merits of contending objects, he ought to do 

 something more than merely make himself acquainted with one 

 of them only. The readers of The Journai ob Hoeticue- 

 tube most likely have heard plenty of this orchard-house dis- 

 pute, and certainly any article on this subject loses much of its 

 value if the writer does not give his own name and address. 

 — J. Robson. 





ORCHARD-HOUSE TREES. 



" I do not like thee, potted tree, 

 The reason why I cannot see — 

 But I don't like thee, potted tree. 

 I like thee dearly. Prejudice, 

 Thy narrow path is very nice— 

 I love thee dearly, Prejudice ! " 



As Mr. Keane dabbles a little in poetry, I am tempted to give 

 him the above paraphrase from Wordsworth, which I have no 

 doubt he will think apposite and interesting. 



But to go to the matter of fact of orchard-houses. I could not 

 help feeling some little surprise on reading Mr. Keane's last 

 article on the subject, for I cannot Bee why he should have taken 

 the trouble to write several paragraphs without giving us a par- 

 ticle of information. He has, it is true, given us three quotations, 

 one poetical, one doggrel, and one prose — all most remarkable 

 for their bearing on the subject ; but why does Mr. Keane, who 

 is one of your constant contributors, and whom we, your readers, 

 think bound to give us sound information, why should he em- 

 ploy that unsatisfactory phrase, " we are told ? " He may just 

 as well insert iu his weekly calendar, "We are told that at 

 Brentford Melons are grown in mud in the open air." Would 

 not your readers say, Why not go and see ? and so I say, Why 

 not go and see ? Sawbridgeworth is but one hour's ride, and 

 there he may see Apricots, Plums, Pears, Cherries, Peaches, and 

 Nectarines, all growing in a climate apparently well adapted to 

 them. 



" We are told " may do very well for a reporter to a news- 

 paper, but no writer on gardening should employ it, unless it 

 relates to something extraordinary — such as, for instance, " We 

 are told that in the moon Melons are grown in boiling water, 

 and are always remarkable for their tender flesh." Well, we 

 should let that pass, because we now know that a journey to the 

 moon, if we may depend on Mr. Glaisher's experience, would be 

 a cooler to a lover of tender-fleshed Melons. 



With regard to perseverance being based on well-organised 

 plans, referred to by Mr. Keane, the culture of trees in pots is 

 moBt firmly based ; for who that has travelled with their eyes, 

 and, above all, th,eir minds open — not walking in the narrow, 

 "nice" path of English prejudice — could avoid deducing from 

 Orange- tree oulture in tubs, the trees kept in vigorous health by 

 annual top-dressings for hundreds of years; for the Orange 

 tree at Versailles is four hundred years old, and many otheri 



