162 FRUIT. 



varieties are Brown Turkey, Castle Kennedy, and Negro 

 Largo. Where a house is devoted to the Fig, its culture 

 is a very simple matter ; but as a fig-house is only found, as 

 a rule, in extensive gardens, a few hints on its cultivation 

 among other plants may he of service. It thrives and fruits 

 well on the back-wall of a vinery when not too much shaded, 

 if the roots are confined to a limited space among rough loam, 

 lime rubbish, brickbats, and some half-inch bones. For the 

 first crop of figs ripe in May and June, a vinery started in 

 January is necessary, the fruit being borne on the previous 

 year's growth. If the crop is too thick, it should be thinned, 

 leaving the best fruit at six inches apart on the shoots. As 

 soon as they begin to swell, tepid liquid manure should be 

 freely given, and the syringe applied morning and evening 

 until the fruit begins to ripen, when the moisture should be 

 reduced, and only sufiicient water given as will keep the plants 

 healthy. Figs in pots, after being well rested, should be in- 

 troduced to the second vinery early in March. Thej' should 

 be potted in the same material, and, if well supplied with 

 liquid manure when the crop is swelling, good exhibition fruit 

 should be ripe from June till August. A supply from then 

 till October will be furnished by trees in the cool peach-house, 

 grown under the same conditions as those on the back wall of 

 the vinery. The second crop from trees in the vinery should 

 also be available to meet the demand for autumn shows. 

 The Fig is a very gross feeder, and it is by the judicious 

 application of liquid and solid manuies that the finest fruit 

 is grown. The fruit when ripe should be cut close to the stem 

 with a sharp knife, to prevent injury in gathering, then placed 

 in tissue-paper and packed carefully for transit. Six large 

 fruits are sufficient to make a dish. The points of merit 

 are: (1.) Size; (2.) colour; (3.) flavour; the skin should be 

 dry, and not too much burst open. 



THE GOOSEBEEKY. 



The Gooseberry belongs to the genus Ribes, and is a native 

 of Britain and the temperate parts of Europe. It attains the 



