312 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[ April 17, 1884, 
leaving nothing to chance, and if there be a deficiency of pollen employ 
Hamburgh pollen, and reduce the strain on the Vines by removing any 
surplus ill-shaped bunches, a temperature of 70° not being too high on 
mild nights, but on cold nights 5° less -will be safe and even beneficial. 
It is advisable to admit a little air constantly whilst the Vines are in 
bloom. 
Succession Bouses .—Let all stopping, tying, and regulating the young 
shoots be done after the sun has been shining some time on the house, as 
they are then limp and less liable to snap. Thinning is best performed in 
the morning or evening, and in no case ought the berries to be handled. 
Maintain a good moisture by damping available surfaces in the morning 
and in the afternoon at closing time, sprinkling the paths before nightfall 
with weak liquid manure. Allow the laterals to extend as far as space 
admits, but avoid crowding either the principal or lateral growths. 
Late Houses .—Make the most of solar heat for pushing on Vines of Lady 
Downe’s and other late-keeping sorts, as all the thick-skinned varieties cannot 
be over-ripened if they are to be kept in good condition for months after they 
are cut from the Vines. Admit air early on fine mornings, the neglect 
of which is the most prolific source of Vine and other foliage being 
scorched, allowing the temperature to rise to 80°, having a good amount of 
moisture in the house for the benefit of the tender foliage, and close suffi¬ 
ciently early to cause the temperature to rise to 90° from sun heat on bright 
afternoons, allowing it to fall to GO 0 at night, which will be quite sufficient 
until the Grapes come into flower, when a temperature of 65° at night and 
70° to 75° by day by artificial means must be secured to them to increase 
the size of the bunches, and provide conditions favourable to setting. 
Leave nothing in the setting of late Grapes to chance, but resort to 
artificial impregnation. A camel’s-hair brush drawn over the bunches 
when the pollen is ripe will set matters right even with most shy setters, 
as it will remove the glutinous drops or substance that adheres to the 
stigmas, which undisturbed, prevents the berries from setting, and removed 
enables the berries to be set quite as well as the freest setters. 
Melons .—The earliest plants are ripening their fruit, and must not b e 
damped, as that would cause the fruit to crack. A moderate moisture, how¬ 
ever, in the atmosphere will be necessary for the foliage. If it be 
considered advisable to take a second crop from the same plants, and 
although a rather dry, somewhat high and airy atmosphere is favourable to 
ripening and flavour, it must not be overlooked that the healthier the plants 
are at the time the fruit ripens the more highly finished it will be. When 
the plants are in a clean healthy condition they will show and set a second 
crop of fruit after the first has attained to its maximum size, and these 
will be swelling, and must not be allowed to suffer by want of moisture at 
the roots of the plants, which will not injure the ripening fruit in the least, 
as the young swelling fruit will appropriate the nutriment and prevent the 
liability of the ripening fruit to crack when there is no swelling fruit to 
take the food. When the ripe fruit has been cut loosen the surface of the 
bed with a handtork, not damaging the roots, and add a little fresh soil, 
treading or pressing it down, and give a good watering with tepid water, 
and afterwards with liquid manure. Thin, stop, and regulate the growths, 
avoiding overcrowding as the greatest of evils, and remove bad leaves and 
exhausted growths. Damp the paths, &c., before night with liquid manure 
as a stimulant and preventive of red spider, and syringe where the fruit is 
swelling in the morning and early afternoon, closing in good time. 
Ventilate early in the day, keep the house through the day at 80° to 85° 
or 90°, and allow the temperature to fall to between 65° and 70° through the 
night by morning. 
Plants in succession houses, pits, and frames will require attention 
almost daily in stopping, tying, and thinning the shoots. Impregnate the 
blossom about the middle of the day, when the pollen is dry, performing 
the operation at the same time in order to secure a regular set, so that 
the fruit may swell together and be distributed over the principal shoots 
as evenly as practicable, stopping each lateral one joint beyond the fruit. 
Earth up the roots as soon as the fruits are fairly swelling, and supply 
liquid manure after the roots become active in the fresh soil, maintaining 
a good moisture by syringing on fine afternoons and closing early. 
Remove all blossoms, and keep laterals closely pinched to one joint. 
Shade only to prevent flagging, and ventilate early to prevent scorching. 
Houses that have been used for winter Cucumbers or early Vines in 
pots may be utilised for Melons. Wash the woodwork with soap and 
water, the glass with water, and the walls with quicklime. Remove 
every particle of soil from the beds ; make up fresh ones of sweetened 
dung and leaves if bottom heat be furnished by that means, or if rubble is 
placed around and over hot-water pipes see that it is free, so as to insure 
perfect drainage, and secure with a layer of turves grass side downwards. 
Form ridges or hillocks of good turfy strong loam with an admixture of a 
tenth of old mortar rubbish, and if deficient of grit add a similar pro¬ 
portion of road scrapings. A tenth of charcoal broken rather small 
will be advantageous if the soil is full of vegetable matter— i.e., decaying 
fibre. . Press the soil firm, and when warmed through plant out, making 
the soil firm around each. Sow for succession, and prepare plants for 
putting out in pits and frames after Potatoes. 
Cucumbers .—In order to maintain a regular supply of fruit, stopping, 
thinning, and regulating the growths must be regularly attended to, not 
allowing it to become overcrowded, but by the removal of superfluous and 
exhausted growths keep up a succession of bearing wood, avoiding over¬ 
cropping, and maintain a good surface root-action by surface dressing 
occasionally with light loam and a fourth of well-decayed manure added. 
Water with tepid liquid manure when needed, which will vary with the 
circumstances under which the plants are grown. Those in pots or boxes 
will need it daily, and those in beds over hot-water pipes will need it 
much more frequently than those in beds over fermenting materials, the 
former requiring it every other day, whilst the latter will not require 
watering oftener than once or twice a week. Syringe twice a day during 
bright weather, damping available surfaces only in dull. Admit air 
freely in mild weather, but do so carefully in cold weather, and keep 
the air charged with ammonia vapour by sprinkling the floor, in the 
evening. See that dung-heated beds are not allowed to become cold 
from inattention to the linings, and as yet continue night coverings. 
PLANT HOUSES. 
Allamandas .—The earliest plants are growing rapidly and require 
more water at their roots. If trained under the roof keep their shoots tied 
to the wires, but those upon trellises should not be tied closely until they 
are showing flowers freely. Grow these plants at this season of the year 
in full sunshine, or their growths will be very long before they show flower. 
Keep a sharp look-out for yellow thrips, which is destructive to the points 
of the shoots, a moist atmosphere and liberal syringing are the best pre¬ 
ventives. If they become established fumigate or dip the shoots in 
tobacco water. Those plants intended for flowering late in the winter and 
have been at rest may be pruned, potted, and started gently. 
Stephanotis jioribuncla .—Plants started early in the season will now 
be growing vigorously, and should not be kept in too close an atmosphere. 
They should be in a light position and fully exposed to the sun, and need 
a somewhat drier atmosphere than many stove plants if they are to flower 
profusely. The shoots as they extend, whether trained upon trellises or 
otherwise, should be trained close under the roof of the house in which 
they are growing. Thin cord is the best to train the shoots to, as it can 
be cut and the plant taken down more quickly than if trained to wires. 
Shorter growths are produced, but the plants flower best when grown in 
an intermediate temperature. 
Gardenias .—Blooms are now unfolding in abundance if they have 
been forwarded in brisk heat. If the supply is too numerous move those 
in the most backward condition to a lower temperature, which will 
prolong their season. Plants that have been brought forward gradually 
since their buds were set will be found invaluable when the early batches 
are past. Those that have flowered may be pruned hard back and started 
in brisk heat unless young stock was propagated in autumn. When blooms 
are required early do not prune them, except to remove straggling shoots, 
but grow and ripen them in a cool house early and then start them in 
brisk heat. Attend to stopping the shoots of young plants in 5 and 6-inch 
pots, and repot those rooted some time ago. These if attended to and 
liberally treated will make grand plants for flowering about this time next 
year. 
Grevillea robusta .—The seed sown as advised has germinated, and the 
seedlings are ready for placing in 2-inch pots. If the plants are wanted 
quickly push them forward in brisk heat; if not, allow them to become 
established after pruning, and then grow them for a time in an inter¬ 
mediate temperature, and finally under cool treatment. A strong plant 
or two should be grown from year to year for supplying foliage for 
cutting, which is equally as beautiful as Fern fronds and lasts much 
longer. Another batch of seed should be sown, which, if not soaked 
previous to sowing, will take fully three weeks before it germinates. The 
teed should be well covered with soil of a light nature. Employ for a 
compost good loam, with a seventh of manure and sand. 
Cinerarias .—The earliest seedlings will be ready for pricking-out 
from the seed pan into others about 1 inch apart. Gradually remove 
them from the heat in which they have been raised to cooler quarters, 
for if drawn up weakly in heat they seldom make specimens of the most 
satisfactory condition. Sow a little more seed in an intermediate tem¬ 
perature ; the dwarf and compact strains are more useful for decoration 
than taller forms. 
Primulas .—Prick out the plants singly as soon as they are large 
enough in shallow pans about the same distance apart as Cinerarias, 
and from these pans they will be large enough for small pots. Fill 
the pans with a compost of half loam broken fine, leaf mould, and a 
little sand. Keep them on a shelf close to the glass in a temperature 
of 60°, and shade from strong sun. Another pinch of seed may be sown. 
Keep plants of good varieties intended to seed upon a shelf where the 
atmosphere is moderately dry and the temperature 50°. Tf the flowers 
are fertilised on a fine bright day with the aid of a small camel’s-hair 
brush the plants will seed freely, which is not generally the case if left 
to chance. 
Balsams .—These are useful for conservatory decoration, and can either 
be grown into large specimens quickly or flowered in a small state, 
whichever is most convenient to the cultivator. The seedlings should 
be potted as soon as they are large enough into 3-inc.h pots as deeply 
in the soil as possible ; in fact, the two seed leaves only should be above 
the surface. After potting water and place them upon a shelf close to 
the glass in a temperature of 60°. As soon as they are established they 
must have air daily, or they will draw up weakly. Some strains need 
pinching to make them branch freely, while others branch naturally. 
Repot directly they require it if large plants are desired, for they should 
never suffer from insufficient root room until they are in the pots they 
are intended to flower in. Some useful decorative plants can be grown 
in 6-inch pots, but they must be liberally fed when their pots are full 
of roots. They succeed best if plunged in a hotbed where the top 
heat is not too high. A little seed for succession may be sown every 
month. Use for a compost good loam, leaf mould, manure, and sand. 
Coleuses .—These are useful for the conservatory and decoration 
during the summer. They should now be propagated and grown for the 
purpose. If large plants arc required pinch their points out as soon as 
