September 6, ISM. ] 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTUKE AND COTTAGE GAKDENEE. 



189 



There is a point of view from which we should sometimes 

 survey our orchard-houses. It is the shelter they give us, in 

 addition to the fruit, which is so valuable. Avoiding as much 

 as possible the midday sun, in the early morning and late 

 evening, on a calm summer moonlight night, or on a wet 

 and windy day in autumn — where is there a healthier or 

 more agreeable lounge ? New and rare fruits develope them- 

 selves under our eyes, we watch their various forms and 

 different colours with always a new pleasure, and when at 

 last we gather them, and sit in solemn judgment on their 

 merits, there are few purer amusements in this world, and 

 not many obtainable at so easy a rate. An amateur in ten 

 years sees and knows actually more about the habits of 

 these first-rate fruits than his ancestors did about ordinary 

 specimens in a century. He has them all present, side by 

 side, growing under precisely the same conditions, and so can 

 readily compare them. The cultivation in pots enables 

 him to multiply them, and to fruit them sooner. 



The back wall of our house, 125 feet long, is planted with 

 trees trained en cordon, an excellent plan, and which must 

 eventually supersede large fan-trained trees under glass. 

 These trees are planted at intervals of 3 feet, and trained 

 as diagonal cordons at an angle of 45°. The shoots are 

 pinched in much as those on the potted trees are — that is, 

 closely spurred, and they produce well. But their best 

 recommendation is that by this means the wall is clothed 

 much sooner, the trees are kept more in hand, become 

 sooner fruitful, and a greater variety of sorts is obtainable. 

 We begin one end of our wall with an early July Peach, and 

 end it with a November Peach. For about four months that 

 wall absolutely shines with splendid Nectarines and Peaches 

 of rare and delicate habit. For that period I am able daily 

 to place a dish on the table such as few could match. Some 

 fine new orchard-houses in both islands are organised on this 

 system. In one, in particular, which is worked by the only 

 gardener in Guernsey who knows anything about orchard- 

 houses, in this, the first year of bearing, about 320 splendid 

 fruit were grown. In Jersey a noble house now building, in 

 the form of a T, which I have had the pleasure of organising, 

 is also on this system, and I have no doubt will be equal to 

 most good houses even in England. 



The difficulty in every case has been to find gardeners 

 willing and able to manage these new structures. "When 

 beautifully finished, and stocked with trees in a bearing 

 state, incredible errors continually occur. This is the true 

 cause of failure. From what I have seen I am l-eady to 

 believe any amount of mistake ; but the system itself is 

 sound and practicable. No doubt we have much to learn 

 still, but we shall learn it. One thing I myself have found 

 out, which some years ago seemed out of the question, and 

 that is, that orchard-houses must not be narrow. When trees 

 become of a certain size they are difficult to manage. All 

 previous arrangements are upset, and expensive changes 

 occur. Therefore, let us build our houses "of a good width at 

 the first. The amount of fruit that is wasted from inability 

 to gather it without knocking down the produce of sur- 

 rounding trees is very great. To prune a few summer 

 shoots costs at such times a dozen Peaches. As all that 

 falls is valueless, even for home consumption, this evil re- 

 quires a strong remedy. Again: narrow houses are subject 

 to sudden draughts, which shake down many a fine fruit; 

 these houses are also more liable to attacks of red spider. 

 The trees which are in untidy corners are the first attacked ; 

 then if, as during the last month, tanks fail, and fierce 

 gleams of sun fall on leaves near the glass, that which is at 

 all attacked by the red spider is sure to dry up and wither. 

 The tree has then to make new leaves, and cannot do much 

 with these for next year's crop. 



We have gradually left off syringing, as, without more 

 care than can be expected of a servant, the force of the 

 water loosens the fruit more or less. Watering at the roots 

 is still of great value, though not so much so as during the 

 time the fruit was swelling. Apricot trees after fruiting 

 require far less water ; indeed, their leaves never droop now. 

 The second crop of Figs remains small, too small for success. 

 Irregularity of watering is the cause, as "K. F." says, and 

 he is always right. 



: The growth of our orchard-house trees has been chequered 

 this year. The early shoots had a hard battle for life with 

 successive attacks of green fly, and the later ones are ripe, 



but feeble. August shoots are more vigorous, but no de- 

 pendence can be placed on these for fruit even here. It is 

 probable that these if left would carry us as far as the 

 blossoming process, or even the stoning, but no further ; so, 

 if not of a fit colour, these are to be shortened-in in October. 

 The long drought and heat, however, has been generally 

 favourable to all fruit trees. — T. Collings B-Kehaut, Rich- 

 mond Souse, G-uernsey.' 



OECHIDS AJSTD GEAPES. 



We some time ago, in speaking of Mr. Warner's cool 

 Orchid-growing, remarked that this was conducted in an 

 ordinary vinery, under Vines which are trained up the 

 rafters; and we remarked at the time that upon such a 

 system not only could the Orchids be grown with perfect 

 success, but an excellent crop of Grapes could be obtained, 

 which would go far in reducing the expense of the fuel 

 required to keep out the frost during winter. 



As an evidence of the truth of this, we received from 

 Mr. Warner the other day a bunch of Black Hamburgh. 

 Grapes, which in size and colour was in fine condition. It 

 was a fine tapering bunch, well shouldered, and weighing 

 1 lb. 5 ozs. The berries were large, the bunch having been 

 judiciously thinned at the right time. The colour was quite 

 black, and the flavour excellent. With such an example 

 before us none need despair of growing Orchids and Grapes 

 in the same house. In a note which accompanied it Mr. 

 Warner says : — 



" I send you a bunch of Grapes from one of the houses 

 you saw when at Broomfield. Brazil Orchids, Guatemala 

 Orchids, and Indian Orchids, such as Dendrobium nobile, 

 have been grown and bloomed well in this house. 



"You will know from the colour of the Grapes that 

 abundance of air must have been given. The roots of the 

 Vines are confined in a brick pit inside the house on a clay 

 subsoil. If a good well-drained border could be given them 

 the bunches and size of the berries would be much larger." 



" WATEE, WATEE EVEEY WHEEE ! " 

 What a blessing to live in a well-watered country ! Hert- 

 fordshire for the greater part is a county remarkable for its 

 pretty undulations, the valleys teeming with springs and 

 small perennial streams. The district to the east of Hert- 

 ford to Sawbridgeworth, the extreme eastern point of the 

 county which there joins Essex, is highly favoured by 

 springs in the little valleys, often on the surface, and always 

 at a small depth beneath it. 



The years 1825, 6, and I think 7, as far as I recollect, ap- 

 proximated to this season and the last. Water became 

 scarce, and I had a new well 8 feet in diameter dug in a 

 sandpit. On reaching a depth of 24 feet a beautiful spring 

 was found, which rapidly rose so as to stand 8 feet deep of 

 water. It has continued to this day to furnish abundance, 

 and has never failed, although from ten to fifteen thousand 

 gallons of water have been pumped daily since the begin- 

 ning of May, with a pump worked by a pony, into a large 

 elevated tank which supplies several others at a lower 

 elevation. 



Last season I somehow instinctively anticipated a dry 

 summer this year, and fearing that one well might fail — in 

 fact, I was alarmed on thinking of the consequences of 

 water failing — I selected a site at the foot of a hill some five 

 or six hundred yards from the other well, and had another 

 dug of the same diameter. On reaching the depth of 15 feet 

 the water rushed up through the sand and stood 10 feet in 

 depth. My original well has once or twice required one or 

 two hours' rest in the middle of the day, but the water has 

 soon flowed in rapidly, and now stands at 5 feet ; in my new 

 well it stands at 7 feet. They both seem inexhaustible. I 

 have been tempted to write a few lines about the water from 

 these wells because I observe Mr. Robson gives directions 

 respecting the use of well water. Our water is full of 

 carbonate of lime, so much so, that the stems of orchard- 

 house trees syringed with it become at the end of the sum- 

 mer quite white. It is, therefore, what is called hard to a 

 certain extent ; still there must be some quality in it favour- 

 able to vegetation, for when exposed to the sun for thirty 



