HOCKINGS' GARDEN MANUAL. 



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Manure : The pear requires manure rich in potash 

 and phosphates ; these can best be suppled in bone dust 

 and wood ashes. Sulphate of iron is also said to be a 

 valuable special manure. 



THE PINE-APPLE— (Ananassa). 



The pine-apple is said by some of its admirers to 

 combine the flavors of several of the choicest European 

 fruits. When grown to perfection, and eaten fresh 

 from the garden, it is one of the most delicious of 

 fruits. 



There are numerous varieties of the pine-apple, each 

 possessing some marked distinction : many of them 

 valuable either for size, beauty of form, or season of 

 ripening. Among these may be enumerated the Black 

 Jamaica, the Green Providence, the Brown Sugarloaf, 

 the Enville, the Black Antigua, the Ripley, and the 

 Smooth-leaved Cayenne ; but for general cultivation 

 none of these are equal to the old Queen (which is 

 commonly planted about Brisbane) for productiveness, 

 hardiness, or flavor. 



The pine-apple is propagated by seeds, crowns, and 

 suckers. The seeds are sometimes found in the pips, 

 and may be sown to raise new varieties. This is 

 seldom attempted ; but as some of the very best sorts 

 have been obtained from seed, there is every encourage- 

 ment for those who have the time and opportunity to 

 try further experiments. With regard to crowns, some 

 gardeners assert that plants so propagated produce 

 large, handsome fruit, with broader and flatter pips ; 

 but that they take one season longer to come into bearing 

 in open field culture than when grown from suckers, 

 which is the almost universal practice. 



Soil : Any soil will suit the pine apple which is 

 warm, rich, deep, and well drained. A rich, sandy 

 loam, a gravelly or schistose ridge, would each produce 

 the fruit in perfection if the above conditions were 



