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JOURNAL OF HOBTICULTUBE AND COTTAGE GABDENEK. 



t November 24, 1870. 



the plant has been a year or more in the ground (in the spring of 

 the second year) pruning is absolutely necessary. Cut all weak, 

 ill-placed, and crowded shoots, and shorten back such as are indif- 

 ferently ripened to the first solid eye, taking care not to lower the 

 height of the plant more than is necessary in carrying out these 

 principles. The well-placed and well-ripened shoots should be 

 pruned sparingly or moderately, in no case severely. After 

 pruning, tie the branches round the stake with willow-twigs or 

 tar-twine. 



The operations of manuring, pruning, and tying, are to be 

 repeated from year to year. About the third year the stake may 

 he replaced by a small birch pole, with the snags left protruding 

 some 6 inches from the sides, which hare a pretty rustic appear- 

 ance, and serve to protect the branches from the action of the 

 wind. Thus is the pillar Eose formed, and few objects in the 

 garden present a more gorgeous appearance. 



When the pillar is five or six years old, now and then an 

 original and main stem will show signs of debility. Such should 

 be cut away close to the ground, and replaced by the young 

 shoots which occasionally spring up at or near to the ground line. 

 By this practice the plant is rejuvenised and retained in perfect 

 keeping over an indefinite period. — William Paul, Paul's Nur- 

 series, Waltham Cross, N. 



USING FRUIT HOUSES AS PLANT HOUSES 

 IN WINTER. 



Notwithstanding the importance of the rule, " Have a place 

 for everything, and keep everything in its place," there are 

 few gardens, even the most extensive, where such a rule is 

 not continually, and as a matter of course, broken. All sorts 

 of summer and autumn fruiting houses are too much crammed 

 with bedding and greenhouse plants in the winter months. Our 

 earliest Peach house has now all its shelves filled, also every 

 available space from wall to wall, except about 1 foot in width 

 left as a pathway. We consider it better that before this 

 thorough cramming with small plants, th? Peach trees should 

 have had a touch of frost, as they bad this season, bnt fre- 

 quently the trees have never felt frost, which is chiefly useful 

 as helping to destroy insects, though we have little faith in 

 even a severe frost doing much injury to the eggs of the insects 

 which generally annoy us. We have some hope that the eggs 

 of tropical insects may suffer, though, as lately stated, we have 

 known instances where exposure to a keen frost did not destroy 

 the mealy bug of our stoves. We may say the same of vineries ; 

 as soon as the fruit is cut and the houses cleaned, they are 

 generally filled up with plants to be brought on for other 

 plaoes. These places being heated, very little heat applied 

 keeps the plants safe, and saves a vast amount of labour if the 

 plants must otherwise be kept in cold pits and frames during 

 the winter, and a considerable amount of fuel if such plants 

 must be kept in small houses or pits heated artificially. It is 

 true, very large and lofty houses are rather difficult and costly 

 to heat, but our common-sized vineries and Peach houses are 

 much more easily managed as regards uniformity of artificial 

 heat than smaller structures, and that from the greater amount 

 of light, and the greater body of enclosed air being not so quickly 

 heated nor so quickly cooled, and the plants thrive better. In 

 a house with a lean-to roof — say at an angle of not more than 

 45°, even small plants will do far better in winter than in a 

 rather flat-roofed pit. They will do well in a lean-to with 

 rather a flat roof but with upright sashes in front; and they 

 will do best of all in a span-roofed house with upright glass at 

 the sides, provided just enough of heat can be given without 

 making any part of the heating medium too warm. 



There can be no doubt that many of us cram our glass 

 houses far too much, and never allow a house to be empty 

 summer nor winter. On the other hand, many who possess a 

 nice little vinery or Peach house are so frightened to use it 

 in anything the, that they keep it almost empty in winter, 

 and give themselves endless trouble in keeping bedding and 

 window plants, and even greenhouse plants, in cold pits, frames, 

 empty rooms, &c, when all would have done so much better in 

 the empty fruit houses during the most trying months of the 

 year. They tell us they have too good reasons for their extra 

 carefulness ; for instance, one time their vinery was overspread 

 with insects brought from the plants; at another time the 

 plants themselves became too forward and weak before they 

 could be moved ; and at another time the heat given in winter 

 caused the Vines and Peaches to break too soon and very irre- 

 gularly, and thus they suffered during the season for the sake 



of the plants even badly kept in winter. We can believe all 

 this, and even much more. We know that a little over-firing 

 and a little neglect in ventilating will bring on all theBe and 

 kindred evils, even though such houses should be quite empty 

 all the winter months. It is very easy to overdo or underdo 

 anything, and thus the blame is often laid upon a system 

 when the fault ought to be laid on the mode of working that 

 system. For instance, a small fire will keep bedding plants 

 safe in a large house ; a large fire, as for Vines in February, 

 will injure them. For those who want to make the most of 

 their single vinery or Peach house in winter we would give the 

 following rules : — 



First, Use no plants that will not keep healthy and grow 

 slowly in an artificial temperature of from 3S° to 45°, with a 

 rise of from 5° to 15° from sunshine. 



Secondly, As a general principle do not thus fill a house 

 until the crop is gathered, the wood ripened, the leaves fallen, 

 and the house cleaned. 



Thirdly, Do not keep such plants in a fruiting house long 

 after you have raised the temperature for the benefit of the 

 fruit trees — say a Peach house much above 45°, and a vinery 

 above 50°. By, or before that time, the hardiest may be re- 

 moved. Such plants as Geraniums may remain longer, if yort 

 can place tbem afterwards where they will experience no check. 



Thus in a single vinery to which you give little heat until 

 the buds swell and break of their own accord, you might keep 

 your bedding plants from October to the end of March or the 

 middle of April, and then place them under calico and mats 

 out of doors. Camellias and Epacrises would bloom all the 

 winter, Chinese Primnlas, ire, and the Camellias would like 

 the heat given to the Vines early in summer. 



The last rule will apply to the welfare of the fruit trees, and! 

 they will not be unduly or irregularly exoited into growth if 

 the artificial heat in a Peach house be not raised above 40°, an3 

 in a vinery to more than 45°. Many plants may be kept safe 

 and bloom at and under these temperatures, for with air early 

 given, mere sun heat of from 10° to 15° more in a bright day will 

 not unduly excite the trees. Whoever tries the matter care- 

 fully will find that such houses are more easily kept at a 

 regular low healthy temperature than small pits even when 

 heated. The very smallness renders more attention necessary, 

 otherwise it is easy to have them freezing at one time and 

 burnipg hot at another. 



One great advantage of using fruiting houses for protecting 

 purposes in the most severe months of winter is, that one can 

 examine, pick over, surface-stir the plants, &c, in the worst or 

 weather, when you could do nothing to plants wintered in pits. 

 This advantage is so obviou3 that we advise all amateurs, when 

 they resolve on having a pit all above or partly under the 

 ground level, to have it wide enough to allow of a small path- 

 way, so that all this necessary work can be done in rain, sun, 

 or frost. 



Some time ago we saw a small nnheated orchard house 

 standing empty, with good trees against the back wall, and six 

 lights of frames ontside, covered with lots of mats and litter in 

 frosty weather. These frames, if made to take to pieces at the 

 corners, would have stood in the little house — and what a 

 saving there would have been in covering ! whilst all the at- 

 tendance and examination might have been given in the dry and 

 comfortable house. A mat in severe weather would probably 

 keep all secure, and more genial air could be given under such 

 circumstances. A small iron stove in such a house would have 

 kept all comfortable. For mild heat in small single houses 

 nothing approaches the stove as respects economy of fuel. — B.F, 



NIGHT SOIL AS MANURE. 

 I employed, two years ago, as manure in my garden, night 

 soil from an earth closet, and experienced exactly the same 

 result from it as that complained of by Mr. Howard. The Cab- 

 bages, Cauliflowers, Carrots, Onions, Peas, and Beans treated 

 with this manure were almost all destroyed by small white 

 maggots at their roots. The earth as employed in the earth 

 closets does not actually arrest or absorb the nitrogenous matter 

 in the night soil, but only dividos it very minutely ; conse- 

 quently when exposed to the effect of the sun and a moderate 

 amount of moisture insect life is fostered, and the insects for 

 their sustenance attack the roots of plants. To obviate this 

 effect nothing is required bnt a more effectual means than dry 

 earth to arrest the nitrogenous matter in the night soil. This 

 I thought charcoal would aforl. Having ready access to peat 

 charcoal, I availed myself of it to treat the nigh' soil with it 



