108 ON SEVERAL SPECIES OF FICUS, TNCLUDING THE COMMON FIG. 
make the flesh of them tender." When the fruit swells well, and then drops off, it has 
been found that moistemng the eye with a little olive-oil will assist the swelling up 
and ripening; but the usual method is to pierce the crown of the Fig, when it has 
acquired about two-thirds of its size, with a needle, and insert a drop of olive-oil. 
The best time to gather the ripe fruit is early in the morning. Allow them to lie 
in a warm, dry place, a few hours before they are eaten, when the flavour will become 
delicious. 
M. German, a botanist of Algiers, states that a curious discovery has been made by 
General Lamoriciere, who, seeing a quantity of Fig-peelings thro\vn about the streets of 
Mascora, had them collected and thrown, in a heap, outside of the town ; and on sub- 
sequent examination, he found a sort of sugar produced upon the heap by the heat of the 
sun, causing fermentation. To obtain sugar from them, the fruit are divided into two, 
and are exposed to the rays of the sun, and the efflorescence is removed with a soft brush. 
As a forcing fruit, no plant is easier of management than the Fig ; and, perhaps, no 
crop is more certain. They may be either placed in pots and tubs, or planted out in a 
prepared border. 
The sorts calculated for growing under glass are. Brown Turkey, Figue Blanche, Lee's 
Perpetual, Marseilles, Nerii, Pregussata, Fico Brianzolo, Blue Marseilles, Angelique 
Blanche, and White Ischia. 
When planted out, it is advisable to confine the roots within certain limits, or prevent 
their over-luxuriance by root-pruning. They do very well in a Vinery or Peach House, 
provided plenty of sun-light can be given them ; otherwise, they will not bear a crop of 
fruit : for although many may be formed, they are almost certain to fall prematurely. 
Plants grown in pots or tubs should be supplied with a rich soil, composed of two parts 
rich maiden loam, with plenty of fibre, and one part very rotten dung. Drainage is of 
great importance ; for, although the Fig requires a deal of water when in a growing state, 
yet, unless the drainage be good, the growth of the fruit will be interrupted, and they are 
then almost certain to fall. 
The time of potting is early in the winter ; after the wood is ripened, reduce any of 
the balls that are matted, and replace them in pots or tubs that will allow of a good 
growth. Place them in a warm situation out-of-doors ; shelter the pots or tubs with litter, 
to keep the roots secure from frost ; but, except in seasons of great scarcity, the stems and 
branches are better fully exposed. In January or February, the plants may be taken into 
the forcing-houses or pits where they are intended to be grown. Some cultivators, 
however, prefer plunging the pots in a bed of leaves, tan, or other heating material, 
which will supply about 10° more heat to the roots than the tops, until the fruit begins to 
swell and the growth has fairly started ; they then remove them to the situations they are 
intended to occupy for fruiting. This system of treatment has been supposed to prevent 
the young fruit from prematurely falling ; and, perhaps, there are good arguments in 
favour of the practice — although the best crops of Figs in pots we ever witnessed, were 
annually produced without any such precaution ; the pots being placed at once upon and 
around the flues of a Vinery and Pine-stove, where the tops came near the glass, and 
received a deal of light. 
When the plants have got into full growth, water with liquid manure about every other . 
day ; and if saucers be placed beneath the pots, so much the better. At all times, water 
freely during the season of growth, both at the roots and over the foliage, by syringing: 
for if there is good drainage, no danger need be apprehended that too much can be given, 
as the Fig is nearly an aquatic. Whilst the growth is feeble, however, it must always be 
borne in mind that a much less portion of water is required than when the plant is in full 
vigour. A want of attention to this is one of the main causes (although there are several 
others) why the young Figs fall before they are full-grown or ripened. But with judicious 
management of temperature and watering, two crops may be ripened in the season. 
When the fruit are ripening, it is always well to discontinue syringing, as it is almost 
certain to cause the fruit to burst with repletion ; and they are never of so good a flavour 
when such is the case. When the young shoots are about five inches long, pinch off the 
