480 



THE CENTURY BOOK OF GARDENING. 



and under glass. Its culture in the open has declined 

 in some measure of recent years owing to the great 

 uncertainty of obtaining crops, whilst the plants are less 

 under control when disease attacks them. The Tomato 

 and Potato were introduced from South America almost 

 together, the latter preceding the former by a year, viz., 

 1595, but their alter histories are very different. 

 ( Inly w ithin recent years has the Tomato become a 

 general food in Britain, although dwellers in Southern 

 European countries more quickly discovered its manifold 

 virtues. 



Open -iiir Culture:. — Amateur gardeners with quite 

 small gardens, if a sunny position is available, can grow 

 Tomatoes well, but sun is essential. The time to sow 

 seeds, when fruit is desired the following summer, is 

 about the middle of March. There is no need to sow 

 earlier, as too early sowing means weakly seedlings. Sow 

 tlie seed vet \ thinly and use ordinary light soil for the pur- 

 pose. Place the [jots on a hot-bed, and when the seedlings 

 are sufficiently large to handle well, pot them on into 5in. 

 size, never allowing growth to get weakly through over- 

 crowding. The great point is to get good-sized sturdy 

 pi. mis. with, if possible, a truss of fruit already swelling 

 when planting-time comes. This is only accomplished 

 by giving timely shifts, never allowing the plants to want 

 for water and not keeping them too close, otherwise 

 weakly growth is the result, which will soon suffer when 

 fully exposed. Il is not safe to plant out until the end of 

 May, selecting a warm west wall where the soil is well 

 drained. Rich ground is not necessary, as this induces 

 rank growth. f ood can easily be given as the plants 

 need it. It is important to pinch out lateral growths, 

 but only stop the leading stents. This should be done 

 w hen four or live good trusses of bloom have set. The 

 object of forwarding the plants as much as possible in 

 pots before planting out is to ensure early cropping, 

 otherwise summer suns depart before the fruit has a 

 tinge of colour. Early in September, or before there is 

 anv risk of frost visitation, pick off the fruits, whether 

 green 01 otherwise, and lay them in a sunny window or 

 greenhouse to ripen. There are, of course, many 

 varieties, but the amateur should not be bewildered with 

 names. Hackwood Park is a splendid kind for the 

 open air, and the fruit is shapely. The Old Red also 



TYPE OF RIBBED TOMATO. 



succeeds well under the same conditions, but the fruit is 

 not so well formed. 



Forcing. — There are many gardens in which Tomatoes 

 may be forced, as sufficientarlificial heat for the purpose is 

 at command. The seed should be sown in November or 

 December in a brisk heat of 7odeg. , using soil similar to 

 that recommended above. Sow the seeds thinly, and pot 

 off the seedlings singly before the plants become drawn. 

 Pot culture is the best plan to adopt to get early fruits. In 

 future pottings use loamy soil mixed with rubble, such as 

 old mortar, but no animal manure, which simply fosters 



a rank growth. When the fruits are swelling food is 

 necessary, and then is the time to apply top-dressings of 

 such artificial manures as Peruvian guano. The flowers 

 must be set with a soft brush, i.e, artificially fertilised. 

 Give air, even if a small amount, when the weather is 

 favourable. For the final potting I2in. pots will be large 

 enough. The best varieties for forcing are Sutton's Ai and 

 Chemin Rouge. In the culture of winter Tomatoes take 

 full advantage of the light and always keep the plants near 

 the glass to promote sturdy growth, removing superfluous 

 shoots. 



Greenhouse Culture. — Excellent crops of Tomatoes 

 may be obtained in any glass structure during the summer 

 and early autumn. The plants are more under control, 

 and furnish grateful shade for the usual occupants. Pots 

 may be used, loin, size being sufficiently large. Any 

 other receptacles, such as shallow boxes, about I ft. wide 

 and bin. deep, are as serviceable. They may be placed 

 on the ordinary lattice staging. Train the stems to stout 

 slicks in an upright direction or on wires immediately 

 under the glass. Sow the seed in March, and ensure 

 sturdy growth by sowing thinly and potting the seedlings 

 off into small pots whilst quite young. Give them a 

 position near the glass, and subsequentlv shift into 5in. 

 pots. Use poor soil, such as old potting earth which has 

 done duty for Chrysanthemums and other plants. Do 

 not use animal manures with it. This promotes a gross 

 growth. When planting in the larger pots or in boxes 

 ram the soil down firmly. Merely cover the ball of roots 

 at fust, and add by periodical top-dressing until the crop 

 is perfected. Plant out not less than 15m. apart, and 

 train the Tomatoes to a single stem by pinching off side 

 shoots. The large or primary leaves should be left intact 

 until 1 he fruits commence to ripen. F~ire heat is not 

 necessary after May, and air must be given in abundance, 

 in line weather doors as well as ventilators being left 

 open. Remember always that the Tomato is a child of 

 the sun, and therefore the glass must not be shaded in 

 any way. A good "set" of fruits may be obtained by 

 tapping the stems with a stick every day. After the 

 earliesl fruits are seen dryness at the root is hurtful, and 

 il left in this condition satisfactory crops are not obtained. 

 It is essential, in lact, to water with stimulants throughout 

 the summer, commencing when the first bunch of fruit is 

 seen to be swelling. Top-dress also the soil, adding a 

 small proportion of bone dust. Soot is also an excellent 

 top-dressing material, so also such well-known fertilisers as 

 Clay's, Thomson's, and so forth. Peruvian guano mixed 

 with water is of much value. 



The best varieties are Challenger, Chemin Rouge, 

 Sutton's A 1, and for a yellow-skinned kind select 

 Blenheim Orange. Perfection, a smooth red Tomato, 

 wins the majority of prizes at exhibitions, or a selection 

 from it. 



Diseases. — The most common disease Tomatoes suffer 

 from is spot in the leaf (Cladisporium fulvum), but it 

 rarely spoils the crop. It generally arises from a close, 

 moist atmosphere being maintained, and by using the 

 same soil more than one year for Tomatoes. When plants 

 are attacked give a little fire heat and more air. The 

 white fly (Aleyrodes vaporariarum) is sometimes trouble- 

 some, and, unfortunately, difficult to get rid of. The 

 only means of eradicating the pest is to frequently fumi- 

 gate the whole house. Wireworm is very destructive. 

 It eats through the stem of the plant when young and 

 d ■stroys it. Always carefully examine the soil when 

 b:ing mixed, as wireworm is usually imported in the 

 fibrous loam used for potting. Sometimes plants are 

 affected with black stripes in the stem —a very bad 

 disease. It spreads to the leaves and fruits, so dis- 

 figuring the latter as to render them useless. When a 

 plant is attacked by this disease, root it out at once, 

 removing also the soil. It happily does not generally 

 appear until summer has far advanced, whilst as a rule 

 only overgrown plants are attacked. 

 Turnips, Garden. — There are numerous varieties of 

 white Turnips, but of those specially fitted for garden 

 culture the range of selection is limited, yet is most 



