268 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[ April 7, 1881. 
top of the house in one season, and they are left the full 
length to fruit the following year. The lowest shoots on 
the old rods should be treated in this way, then the whole 
length of them is new. It is surprising what fine crops of fruit 
some young canes will produce. We have a cane now of 
Foster’s Seedling which w r as taken up late last season for a 
little distance, and it is now showing a number of bunches as 
large and fine as the old rods. As these young canes do not 
throw out many side growths the first season, and are mostly 
confined to a single stem, their presence does not shade those 
on each side of them much. 
The best Grape-growers admit a little air into their vineries 
night and day from now on to the end of the season. This 
keeps the atmosphere pure and is of much benefit to the Vines. 
In cold dull days ventilation should be very slight. Closing 
the ventilators early throughout the season will tend to secure 
quick maturity. Not a week should be allowed to pass with¬ 
out examining every growing Vine, removing all superfluous 
growths, and training the others in their proper places. Well- 
drained borders may have liberal waterings once a fortnight 
in proportion to the vigour of the growth and the state of 
the weather. A slight dusting of guano and potash thrown 
over the surface of the border before watering is beneficial. 
Mulchings of manure over heavy badly-drained borders do 
more harm than good, as such soil generally becomes sour and 
the roots perish. 
Few are now in the habit of syringing their Vines so heavily 
as they did at one time ; syringing, however, is good for Vines 
infested with any kind of insects, but except for this it has 
nothing to recommend it.—A Kitchen Gardener. 
PRUNING MABECHAL NIEL ROSE—FLOWERS 
EXHAUSTIVE. 
In reply to “ J. S , Yorkshire ,” (page 213), I may say that this 
Rose has not been easy to obtain from the trade upon its own 
roots for some years past. From some large Rose-growing firms 
it could only be obtained on the Manetti, and from others on the 
Briar or upon the Celine stock, and during the past few years the 
Briar has been used by the majority. “ J. S.” evidently entertains 
some doubts as to the condition of the Mardchal Niel Rose at 
Hooton Hall. I saw it in August last, when it was in exuberant 
health, as an excellent Rose-grower can testify who saw it at the 
same time. I still maintain, as before stated, that the cutting- 
back system is one of the wisest and most j udicious that can be 
pursued. That the Mardchal will grow strongly at first is admitted 
by all, and make shoots at least 20 feet in length. These after 
flowering produce a number of side growths, while the main shoot 3 
are allowed to extend if wanted to cover a large space. Therefore 
the larger the space the greater the number of side growths, all 
of which produce flowers freely; and the more flowers produced 
the weaker the growth becomes, and the tendency increases to 
produce weak side growths, which flower freely, but after a 
number of years growth becomes checked. The plant then 
becomes constantly weaker, and eventually dies. When a large 
specimen shows this tendency under the strain of producing 
thousands of bloom, is it not wise to cut it hard back and add 
fresh vigour to the plant? or would “J. S.” allow it to further 
exhaust itself and die, and then replace it with a young plant? 
From experience I am led to believe that one of the” peculiarities 
of the Marechal after growing on the extension system for a few 
years, is that it requires cutting hard back. This I believe will 
prolong the life of the plant considerably. I do not for a moment 
doubt that the Hooton Hall Rose if not cut back would continue 
to yield thousands of blooms for some time to come ; but with¬ 
out it differs in the future from all others I have seen, it will 
commence in time to grow much weaker, and produce flowers 
inferior in colour and size, and doubtless in the end might die. 
This, then, leads me to ask, Why would it be a barbarous action to 
cut back the plant to the two shoots half way up the stem if 
a longer lease of its life can be obtained with certainty, and 
finer flowers than if left unpruned? “ J. S.” points to his much- 
pruned standards, but what would they have been if left unpruned ? 
Perhaps dead, or at the least making weak wood, producing puny 
flowers, not to be compared with the flowers now produced when 
hard pruned. 
If “ J. S.” will strike a number of Rose cuttings, or graft them 
and allow them from the first to carry the flowers they show, 
will the plants make as much progress as if the flowers were 
picked off? If not, 1 say a crop of flowers exhausts the plant. 
Again, a number of plants are grown, say of Gloire de Dijon, to 
bloom in 10-inch pots, and a number of them flower well, the 
others not bearing nearly so many. The latter will make better 
growth the following year than the former and start earlier. 
Why is this? 
Further, I have a number of young plants of the same variety 
from cuttings inserted last June, to grow under glass to be early 
ripened for early flowering in 1882. All were rested alike and 
started the same. Some were allowed to flower, from the others 
the flowers were removed as they appeared. The latter have 
started vigorously into growth, the others scarcely started at all. 
If the production of flowers in this case has not impeded growth, 
I must ask “J. S.” what has ? If no benefit is to be gained by 
removing the flowers, why are the nurserymen so anxious to 
remove all flowers from the quantities of Teas they annually raise 
until the plants are of a suitable size for sending out, also from the 
Hybrid Perpetuals that are lifted and potted in autumn to be sold 
the following year ? If no better growth is to be obtained they 
would not spend the time and labour in removing the flowers.— 
Wm. Bardney. 
VEGETABLES FOR WINTER USE—WHICH ARE 
THE MOST SERVICEABLE? 
I must preface the notes I send by stating that my remarks are 
not made to those who have a large staff of gardeners, but to many 
of your readers who, like myself, have a limited space and limited 
means. 
First of all I think everybody will acknowledge that no crop for 
household use will give a larger return for the ground upon which it 
stands than Brussels Sprouts. I have tried the plants raised from 
seed sown in autumn, sown in early spring under a handlight, 
in March on a hotbed, and in the open later on, and believe from 
my experiments that sowing on a gentle warm (not hot) bed in 
March produced the most vigorous and productive plants. 
Next to Brussels Sprouts in utility comes curled Borecole. I 
cannot say which is the best. That depends on the nature of the 
soil; but do not omit to grow the variegated Kale or Borecole. 
They are very hardy, very tender when cooked, and very beautiful 
when used as garnishing for dishes, being very useful for that pur¬ 
pose when other plants cannot be had. After Borecole and Kale 
come Savoys. In a general way they will stand a hard frost, and 
in fact they are more in season after a frost than before, but this 
winter has been too severe for even their hardy nature. Their 
weakest part appears to be just above the ground, for there the 
frost appears to have struck them. 
I pass over Cabbages and Coleworts to Broccoli, these much- 
desired and required luxuries, for luxuries they are to most of us 
who have to raise them for our own use without artificial means— 
I mean without a hotbed, or frame, or handlight. Who can tell 
me of any variety which can be sown on the open soil, and will 
“ come off ” within a reasonable time for a succeeding crop ? Let 
him tell your readers when to sow it, when to plant it out, and 
when will it be “ due ” to cut, for of all crops I have ever grown 
none have been so uncertain, so fickle in their early days, so liable 
to injury by frost and damp ; and then if they live to “ come to a 
head” some damp off, and many others sprout before the heads are 
fit for the kitchen, and there is no crop which occupies so large a 
space and for so long a period as Broccoli. Very few have stood 
the test of last winter about here, which is called a mild climate. 
All appear to have succumbed except one small batch of Wilcoves. 
Close by it a lot of Walcherens were killed, but the Wilcoves sur¬ 
vived, and are looking well, owing, I think, to having been planted 
on poor land not over-manured. 
Whatever may be at present the condition of your winter greens 
do not pull them up unless you are compelled to use the ground 
for other purposes, because from this time to June all your winter 
greens—Brussels Sprouts, Borecole, See., will produce most deli¬ 
cate and delicious bloom shoots ; cut them before the buds have 
developed into a bloom, persuade the cook to treat them as 
Asparagus, tie and boil them in a bundle as such, serve on toast 
wiih melted butter, aud you may go on cutting the young shoots 
day by day quite as fast as you can use them, and they will be 
called for as fast as you can grow them.—G-. 0. S. 
[We think our correspondent has confused Cauliflowers with 
Broccolis. The Walcheren cannot be properly compared with the 
hardy varieties of which the Wilcove is a type. The Walcheren 
is more of a Cauliflower than a Broccoli.—E d.] 
Rose Reine Marie Henriette. —This new Tea-scented Rose, 
raised by M. Levet and sent out in 1879, is a decided acquisition 
to a class of Roses that are general favourites. Two flowers of it 
