210 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[ March 12, 1886. 
am more inclined to think to3 dangerously near to saturation. This, in 
fact, is what it amounts to in our case, and our trenched ground is also 
very cold in consequence. Here, at any rate, a deep root-action is the 
cause of the ruin of every large Apple tree in the garden. 
Fibres being formed at a great depth when they came into contact with 
a brick wall, or, as in the case of the Vine roots, with a quantity of rubble 
or drainage, is a proof that aeration as well as of obstruction has much to 
do with a healthy root-action. The Vine roots were found in great 
quantities at the surface and at the base—the latter being well drained 
and therefore aerated ; but what about the middle of the border? If it 
was also full of roots, deep borders and deep cultivation has more to 
recommend it than “ Vitisator ” has yet succeeded in proving. For my 
part, I hope we shall not hear any more in favour of 5 feet deep Vine 
borders, seeing that those half that depth, if properly formed, are quite 
expensive enough, and are also quite deep enough. It would be rather 
odd if after all I am not so much astray as our “ Vitisatiog” friend.— 
W. Iggulden. 
LORD NAPIER NECTARINE. 
This, perhaps the handsomest of the many fine Nectarines raised by 
the late Mr. Rivers, has been somewhat roughly handled by Mr. J. 
Muir and others. I can quite believe that those who condemn it speak 
precisely as they have found it. In my charge we have a tree in our 
earliest Peach house, the fruit of which is ripe in May. Here both in size, 
colour, and flavour Lord Napier is all that can be desired, in short is 
“ guid as it’s bonnie.” In another Peach house, where the fruit is ripe 
in July and August, during the cold, wet, sunless summers of 1881, 
1882, and 1883, Lord Napier was quite bitter and insipid, while Pitmaston 
Orange and Humboldt, growing side by side, were both rich and luscious. 
During the same sunless seasons Elruge and Victoria, in the late house, 
were only fit to send with Peaches to make jam, and for this purpose the 
housekeeper speaks highly of them, as also of Lord Napier. Last summer 
and autumn all the Nectarines grown here were alike good in flavour, 
Lord Napier included.—J. McIndoe. 
TUBEROUS BEGONIAS. 
The time has arrived for again starting Tuberous Begonias into 
growth, and as their culture is not so generally known as it ought to be 
a few plain practical remarks on this particular point might prove of 
service. The season of rest with the Begonia is practically at an 
end, and those tubers that have succumbed to injudicious management 
by either receiving too much water or not being sufficiently moist will be 
easily detected now. Though the Begonia can be wintered under condi¬ 
tions similar to the Gloxinia, the former is injured more by extreme dry¬ 
ness than the latter; not that the Begonia prefers moisture when at rest, 
for such is not the case, as it is natural for them to lose most of their 
roots annually. A large per-centage of annual losses may, however, 
readily be traced to insufficient care when drying them, which, in many 
instances is done far too rapidly; the more gradual the drying process 
the greater the chances of retaining the tubers sound and plump during 
their season of rest. 
Presuming the pots to still occupy the pots in which they flowered last 
summer, the first thing to be done is to clean off the surface soil so as to 
bare the tuber, after which carefully remove the soil so as to form a 
gradual slope from the apex of the tuber to the inside of the pot, leaving 
the tuber thus partially exposed in the centre. This is of great import¬ 
ance until growth has fairly commenced, when the danger is considerably 
lessened, and water must be given somewhat sparingly. For the first 
week or two it should be given round the side of the pot, and on no 
account be allowed to reach the summit of the tuber. Too much import¬ 
ance cannot be attached to this, for at the summit of the tuber, and in 
the position occupied by the main flowering stem of last year, will be 
found a large hollow crown or receptacle ; if the water gains a lodgment 
there and is not detected failure must instantly ensue. The same diffi¬ 
culty is experienced when drying them just as the stems are decaying ; 
the water finds it way down the stems and settles in the top, doing the 
mischief without being discovered. 
In the event of the tubers having been shaken out of soil in the 
autumn and stored away they should be examined at once, and ascertain if 
they are sound and plump. If so shallow boxes will be found serviceable for 
starting them in. In this case either of the following ways or both may 
be adopted— i.e., place them on cocoa-nut fibre or soil, and bury one-half 
their depth, or employing similar material place the tubers upside down, 
and just cover with soil. By adopting the last-named process there is no 
fear of water settling in the hollow crown at the top, and, what is more, 
the summit of the tuber is kept more uniformly moist than where they 
are partially exposed. A more uniform moisture might be maintained 
were the tubers kept dark till they began to start, when they may by 
degrees be gradually inured to full light. This is more readily accom¬ 
plished where there are only a few dozens ; where they are in large 
numbers spacial attention will be requisite, and special quarters also for 
them. These placed in boxes with the crown downwards will need 
looking at in about a fortnight, when the majority will be found to be 
breaking freely. These may then be reversed, for new roots soon will be 
omitted, potting them according to their requirements. Exercise fore¬ 
thought at all times in the management at starting, and especially so in 
watering, for by injudicious watering at this season many hundreds are 
annually lost. A temperature of 50° to 55° at night, with a rise to 65° by 
day, will suit them well, and if accompanied by slight bottom heat so 
much the better, keeping the atmosphere moist.—J. 
NEW VEGETABLES. 
“ Are our vegetables improving ?” is asked by “A Kitchen Gardener” 
in the Journal of February 19th. They ought, if we are to judge by the 
enormous increase of varieties which Smith, Brown, Jones, or Robinson, 
or some other eminent or not eminent seedsman, is constantly putting out 
as his so-and-so, at a good figure for himself if not for the purchaser. 
I freely admit that some of the newer vegetables of the last twenty years 
maintain their ground, but there are st'll some very fine old sorts of Peas 
hard to beat, such as Ne Plus Ultra, Fairbeard’s Champion of England, 
some of good old Dr. Maclean’s varieties, notably Wonderful, Prince 
of Wales, Dr. Maclean, Advancer, and others. Such sorts are everybody’s 
Peas, as they are cheap and within the reach of the poorest, and hold 
their ground after a long term of servitude. What I should greatly like 
to see done is a trial of everybody’s new varieties before they are sent 
out, under the auspices of some of our good old wholesale seedsmen, who 
know as much about vegetables as most folks, and I think we should then 
be freed from some disappointment attending new high-priced vegetables, 
many of which do not long hold a front place in kitchen gardens gene¬ 
rally.—D. W. 
DECOKATIVE PALMS. 
These useful and accommodating plants now occupy a very impor¬ 
tant position in all gardens where plant-decoration is well carried out. 
The ease with which they can be grown, and the length of time they 
will keep fresh when used for room-decoration if properly attended 
to, has rendered them especial favourites with amateurs as well as 
professional gardeners. The demand for well-grown Palms of 
various sizes is enormous at the London nurseries as the season com¬ 
mences. Each family arriving in town requires a stock of Palms and 
other plants for furnishing windows and dinner tables, and there is 
now such a number of these plants to select from, of graceful form, 
compact habit, or bold outline. 
Some diversity of opinion exists among different cultivators as to 
whether peat or loam should form the chief part of the compost used 
to grow them in. My own experience is that they are not so par¬ 
ticular in this respect as many would have us believe, provided the 
plants are firmly potted in well-drained pots, and receive frequent 
applications of manure as soon as the roots are plentiful. The rela¬ 
tive quantities of loam and peat to be used should be determined by 
the quality. In some places good turfy loam can be obtained in which 
almost anything can be grown, with but little addition required, 
while in other parts the only loam that can be procured is of such a 
nature that few plants take to it readily. In such cases it is better to 
use a greater proportion of peat, but in the majority of instances 
equal parts of loam and peat with the addition of a little charcoal 
and sharp sand will be found to suit all the strong-growing kinds, but 
many of the weaker-growing ones will thrive better in two parts peat 
to one of loam. Nearly all the fine young Palms that each year arrive in 
this country from the Continent are potted entirely in leaf soil ; but 
after their arrival the greater portion of them are potted in soil of 
the above description, because leaf soil is not of a lasting nature and 
is apt to become sour. 
In order to secure that rich deep green tint which is seen in the 
leaves of well-grown Palms, and which adds so much to their 
attractiveness, they must be constantly supplied with liquid manure 
or with some artificial stimulant spread over the surface of the soil. 
Clay’s Fertiliser and Peruvian guano in equal quantities mixed toge¬ 
ther and applied once a month at the rate of a teaspoonful to a 7-inch 
pot, and half that quantity to a 5-inch pot, is one of the very best 
stimulants. Soot water should also be used occasionally, and it is an 
excellent practice to have a bag containing a little soot kept con¬ 
stantly in the tank from which the water is taken to syringe the 
plants. This is a great assistant in keeping all plants healthy and 
free from insects. During the summer months when the weather is 
bright the plants should be syringed twice daily, but in the dull winter 
months they will only require it occasionally when there happens to 
be a little sunshine, or when exceptionally^ hard firing has to be 
resorted to, unless the plants are standing in a very dry position near 
the hot-water pipes ; then it will be necessary to syringe them twice 
daily to keep them free from insects, and at all times the house must 
be kept thoroughly well damped three or four times a day, taking 
care that the walls are well moistened around the pipes. There are 
no plants that pay for being kept clean better than Palms, not only 
in regard to their appearance, but also in the effect it has on their 
growth. Keep them well sponged as soon as any sediment is noticed 
on the leaves, and they will grow much more rapidly, other condi¬ 
tions being equal, than those not so treated. All the stove species 
will thrive in a temperature ranging between 55° and 70° in winter, 
and 65 Q to 80° in summer. 
I subjoin a list of those I know to be most useful, and amongst 
