November 29, 1877. ] 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



427 



denly and severely. Spinaeb, autumn-sown Cauliflowers, and 

 Lettuces are also growing fully too quickly. A check with the 

 spade — partially lifting the roots of such crops, is often useful 

 in arresting their luxuriance, and thus rendering them some- 

 what better able to resist the first onslaught of winter. Weeds 

 grow as fast as vegetable crops, and it is a moot point whether 

 they or sings are just now the more troublesome. Lime, soot, 

 and guano are real gardeners' friends — the molluscs detest 

 the mixture, and the crops enjoy it. 



DOINGS OP THE LAST AND WOBK FOR 

 THE PRESENT WEEK. 



HABDY FRUIT GARDEN. 



To the ordinary observer there is much sameness in the ap- 

 pearance of the fruit garden during winter ; to the uneducated 

 eye the buds, branches, and outlines of the trees present the 

 same monotonous effect ; not so to the ardent fruit cultivator. 

 As he walks round his trees he can note the changing buds 

 swelling during mild weather, those that are plump and roundish 

 showing the quantity of blossoms that may be expected on the 

 trees. Then there are certain small details of the work that 

 require to be seen to. A stout sharp knife is useful to cut out 

 superfluous wood. The eggs of Bombyx neustria (lackey moth) 

 may be found glued to the small branches in clusters. The 

 caterpillars of the goat moth may also be traced by their borings, 

 like wet sawdust dropping out of a puncture in the trees. A 

 good plan to destroy them is to crush them by the insertion of 

 a pliable wire. We have seen both Elm and Apple trees de- 

 stroyed by this pest to the fiuit cultivator. They will bore 

 into the hardest wood, and if not destroyed in time they work 

 in a zigzag direction to the centre of the tree, and a wire will 

 not follow them into such distant retreats. 



During the present mild weather we are busy looking over all 

 the fruit trees and pruning them. After this is done the ground 

 underneath will be mulched with manure. Gooseberry and 

 Currant trees will also be pruned as soon as possible. Many 

 readers of the Journal who have such trees and bushes are 

 probably ignorarit of the methods to be employed iu pruning, or 

 the way it should be performed. It is very difficult to describe 

 this, but the main idea of the cultivator is to thin out the wood 

 •freely in the centre of the Gooseberry and Currant bushes, so 

 that the sun may be able to act beneficially on the leaves and 

 fruit. Red and White Currant bushes do well when the young 

 wood iB out closely back to the main stem, except the leading 

 shoot, which may be left about 6 inches long, more or less as it 

 is intended to increase the size of the bushes. A large propor- 

 tion of the young wood may also be cut from the Gooseberry 

 bushes. Those growths that may be allowed to remain have 

 merely the points taken off them, but they must be well thinned 

 out, else the produce will be inferior. It cannot be too widely 

 known that good fruit cannot be obtained from trees where the 

 wood is thickly placed. 



Many persons cannot get out of the custom of inserting Straw- 

 berry runners thickly in beds and planting them out after they 

 have formed a considerable quantity of roots. Those who have 

 done so may now plant out while the weather continues mild. 

 The plants will continue to grow except during frosty weather. 



Plantations of Raspberries may also be made now. A damp 

 shady part of the garden answers well for them, but to have 

 plenty of good fruit the ground must be deeply trenched, work- 

 ing: in plenty of rich manure. After the plants have been put 

 out mulch round the roots with dryish frame manure. All 

 newly-planted trees should be mulched. Instructions have been 

 previously given as to the best methods of training the wood. 

 Old plantations should be heavily manured. The manure is 

 best wheeled on to the ground in frosty weather. It will not do 

 4: dig the ground until it is thawed. 



PEACH HOUSES. 



It is now time to start the earliest house, and if previous in- 

 structions have been followed out all the woodwork and glass 

 will have been washed cleaD, and the walls limewashed. The 

 branches also should be washed with soapy water, especially if 

 thrips, red spider, or scale should be in the house. The young 

 wood should be carefully washed so that the fruit bods may 

 not be injured during the operation; the old wood that is not 

 furnished with buds Bhould be dressed with the mixture recom- 

 mei ded for Vines. All the wood must also be in its properplace 

 before forcing commences, and it must be tied to the trellises 

 in such a manner that the bearing wood is distributed evenly all 

 over the space devoted to it. The borders should be well watered 

 to Btart with, but the temperature must not be too high at first; 

 if the weather is cold with frosts at night, 40° to 45° ought not to 

 be exceeded. Should the weather be mild a minimum of 55° 

 may be maintained without any artificial heat. The trees may 

 be gently dewed overhead on the mornings of fine days, but it 

 is undesirable to have the atmosphere of the house loaded with 

 moiBture. 



CUCUMBERS. 



The critical period for these is now approaching, but if the 

 appliances at command are adequate for the occasion, and if the 

 plants have been managed as previously directed, there will be 

 no difficulty in satisfying any reasonable demands. Our own 

 plants are in excellent health, and are now beginning to bear 

 fruit; the growths are not too cIobo to each other, so that the 

 leaves are exposed to all the light possible. The night tem- 

 perature ranges about 65°, less or more according to weather, 

 but we do not like the temperature to fall below 60°. Every 

 day, except during keen frost winds, the lights at the top of the 

 house have been moved down an inch or two to cause a cir- 

 culation of air. This may be done about 10 a.m., and the house 

 be closed at 2 p.m. It is not desirable to have a very moist at- 

 mosphere, but this muBt be regulated to some extent by the 

 heat that it is necessary to maintain in the hot-water pipes. 

 Thrips have appeared on the leaves, but successive fumigations 

 with tobacco smoke destroy them. 



FIGS IN POTS. 



We have not done well with these during the past Beason, 

 the reason being that the plants were under ViDes and standing ' 

 at a considerable distance from the glass. We have alw&ya 

 succeeded best with Figs when the pots could have a gentle 

 bottom heat and be grown in span or hip-roofed structures, the 

 plants close to the glass, and nothing to shade them from the 

 Bun. We have jast turned the plants out of their pots, and re- 

 potted them in rich heavy loam with a fifth part of decayed 

 manure ; as was to be expected from plants that had made 

 weak growth there was little root-action. We will try and get 

 the plants into a house where they oau grow and fruit freely 

 next season. It is evidently not worih the trouble to try to 

 grow them under Vines, better throw the plaut3 away than 

 have them languish out a miserable existence. 



GREENHOUSE AND CONSERVATORY. 



One of the most useful plan's for late autumn or winter flower- 

 ing is the Statice profasa. We have plants of it now covered 

 with flower spikes, some with them fully expanded and others 

 in various stages of development. A large plant in flower now 

 will improve until midsummer. The white corolla in the centre 

 of the flower will drop off, but the blue portion of the flower will 

 remain in the state that Everlasting Flowers are when gathered. 

 It is subject to mildew, but dusting the leaves with sulphur 

 destroys this parasite. The flowers mentioned by " Visitor" in 

 the notes of Mr. C. Turner's nurseries, Slough, should be in every 

 collection— viz., Browallia elata and Salvia splendens. They are 

 quite as easily grown as zonal Pelargoniums. The plants may 

 be placed out of doors during summer and autumn, removing 

 them into the greenhouse in September or as soon as there is 

 danger of injury from frost. Indian Azaleas are now at rest, 

 and the old leaves are dropping off. These should be removed 

 out of the way ; perhaps it is best to burn them, as this beauti- 

 ful flower is too often infested with thrips, a lively little insect 

 that cannot easily be destroyed when it has been allowed to 

 increase rapidly. There is no better plan than to continue to 

 fumigate with tobacco smoke until they are destroyed. We 

 have taken in the earliest pots of Tulips, Hyacinths, and Poly, 

 anthus Narcissus. The pots are well filled with roots, and they 

 have been placed on a shelf near the glass, where they have 

 just a little artificial heat, but plenty of fresh air is admitted 

 when the weather is fine. 



Cyclamens which have been until now in a cold pit have been 

 removed to a warmer place near the glass. The flowers, which 

 are showing in hundreds, will thereby be hastened, and we shall 

 be glad of them in a few weeks. This is now a generally culti- 

 vated and most useful plant, and the great variety in colour and 

 quality of the flowers have been much increased during the last 

 few years. It is neceBEary to be careful in watering the plants at 

 this season. The water Bhould be poured in very gently near 

 the rim of the pot. If it is dashed into the centre of the plant 

 probably many of the flower stalkB will decay. 



Tree or Perpetual-flowering Carnations are now very useful 

 for arranging amongst Azaleas or other hardwooded plants. 

 When arranged in such a way that the Carnation flowers slightly 

 overtop the plants named they have a charming effect. These 

 are everybody's flowers, they are so easily grown. Out-of-doors 

 culture suits them best until it is too cold, when they are brought 

 indoors, and by that time the flower buds are formed, and the 

 dry air of the greenhouse causes the blooms to open freely. A 

 variety nearly white named Empress of Germany is a beautiful 

 flower. The choicest Orchids cannot be placed before it. 

 What a contrast to it, too, is Scarlet Defiance; the brilliance 

 of this flower is quite dazzling. Then there is tne freest-flower- 

 ing variety we have with flesh-coloured flowers — Miss Joll'ffe. 

 L» Belle is a very good pure white flower, and we have in King 

 of the Belgians an excellent pink-coloured sort; the edges are 

 beautifully fringed, which in the estimation of some adds to its 

 beauty. Ihe flowers will open with additional freedom if the 

 plants are placd in a house with a dryish atmosphere and a 

 temperature of 50° or 55°. — J. Douglas. 



