February 9, 1882.] JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
107 
inside, are from 2 feet 9 inches to 3 feet deep, and as 
tlieir total length is 72 yards, and their breadth 10 yards, 
they contain about 700 cubic yards of soi'. To this 
was added 2 tons of crushed 1-inch bones, and in one 
compartment where the soil was thought to be rather 
heavy a few loads of charred rubbish were added. The 
turf was ploughed up by an ordinary plough to the 
depth of 2£ or 3 inches, and was at once packed as 
closely as possible in the house, all crevices being care¬ 
fully filled with the loose soil which broke off the turves 
during removal, special attention being given to the 
sides of the walls, where there is very apt to be a 
crevice such as might take away much of the water 
given to the plants. During the process of building up 
the turves a few of the bones were sprinkled on, and in 
the compartment where charred refuse was used, that 
was sprinkled on in the same way. There was con¬ 
siderable warmth in the borders during the first season 
caused by fermentation, and a fine crop of Mushrooms 
was produced naturally. These borders were not with¬ 
out their faults, as I shall show further on. 
RAISING THE PLANTS. 
These were raised from eyes in the usual way. They 
were placed singly in small pots early in January, 1870 ; 
kept for a week or two in a cool house, then transferred 
to a temperature of about 55° at night, where they were 
plunged more for the sake of preventing the soil in the 
small pots becoming too dry than for the sake of bottom 
heat, which is a questionable luxury. As soon as they 
had produced a few roots they were shifted into 8-incli 
pots without removal from the house in which they 
were growing, the soil being previously warmed. 
Plunging was now dispensed with, and the young plants 
were kept on a moist bottom in a light position. They 
were not stopped (as I had had experience with that 
plan, and had come to the conclusion that it was a 
faulty one), but were grown on as much as possible 
without a check of any kind, and were supported with 
small stakes before they were high enough to fall over. 
The benefit arising from stopping young Vines when 
they are about 9 inches high is only an imaginary one. 
It is quite true they thicken just at that time faster 
than those which are allowed to extend upwards un¬ 
checked, but if in a fortnight or three weeks’ time you 
were to take the unstopped Vines out of their pots, 
wash the soil off their roots, and balance them against 
those which had been stopped, you would find the un¬ 
stopped Vines were the heaviest; and not only is this 
the case, but they reach their allotted length the soonest, 
ripen the soonest, and swell the most regularly. 
The portion below where a young Vine lias been 
stopped frequently hardens before the upper part, and 
refuses to swell freely towards the end of the season. 
I am speaking of young Vines grown in full light and 
treated liberally, not of such as are grown crowded 
together and under the shade of other plants, as is fre¬ 
quently the case. When a length of 8 or 10 feet is 
reached they should be stopped, and unless they are 
very vigorous and there is a danger of some of the 
principal buds bursting which it is desirable to keep 
till another year, they should be kept to this length 
whether they are intended for fruiting in pots or for 
planting out. The laterals also should be kept to one 
leaf. 
PLANTING. 
Midsummer, 1870, found two of the compartments 
ready to receive their tenants. I had the choice be¬ 
tween those plants which were raised the year before, 
had been cut down and had now made a vigorous 
second growth, and the smaller Vines which had been 
raised the same season. I preferred the latter, and 
have reason to think from subsequent experiences that 
my choice was the right one. These young plants, now 
little more than five months old, were placed in the 
house a day or two before planting so that they might 
become used to the larger body of air; the positions for 
planting them in were marked, and the soil for about 
18 inches wide and a foot deep was chopped up with a 
spade; a little older soil, such as would crumble in the 
hand, was mixed with it, and the plants were transferred 
from their pots with all possible care so as not to break 
or injure a root. The crocks at the bottom of the pot 
were not removed from the ball, but it was turned out 
and planted entire, and the soil of the border was 
pressed as hard against it as it was possible to do 
without injuring the roots. A piece of paper was hung 
over the plants for a day or two during sunshine, and 
they soon continued growing as if nothing had happened. 
I have no doubt it may appear to some that I am 
giving unnecessary minute details of this very simple 
operation, but I may here state that I never do see 
anyone take sufficient care when transferring a plant 
grown in heat from one pot to another, or from a pot 
to the border. If it is not done so that the plant can¬ 
not feel it, if a leaf droops or growth progresses more 
slowly after the operation, you may depend that due 
care lias not been taken in some respect, that time has 
been thrown away, and an effect the reverse of bene¬ 
ficial produced on what the operator may consider the 
object of his greatest care. Attention to this very little 
matter is one of the principal secrets of such success as 
I have attained. I have tried to inculcate this lesson 
into young heads, but despair of doing so. Could they 
feel as I do, a shiver run through them when cold soil, 
cold water, or cold air is known to come in contact 
with plants luxuriating in a high temperature, perhaps 
it would make them more thoughtful. This degree of 
sensitiveness may appear incredible to some, but I 
certainly do feel it, and I also feel a very unpleasant 
sensation when I see either the roots of a plant, choice 
fruit, or choice flower treated roughly. 
The Muscats were planted in the middle compart¬ 
ment at about 7 feet apart, 18 inches distant from the 
side walls, and with the exception of one Golden 
Champion they had this compartment to themselves. 
The compartment at the south end had a more miscel¬ 
laneous collection, but they were all, as I supposed at 
the time, late Grapes. These were planted about 4^- feet 
apart, and consisted of one Trebbiano, one Mrs. Pince, 
one Strawberry or Fox Grape, tAvo Madresfield Court, 
two Muscat of Alexandria, one Gros Guillaume, ten 
Lady DoAvne’s, and eighteen Black Alicante. There 
now remains of this collection tAvo Alicante, two Lady 
Downe’s, and one Mrs. Pince, while in the Muscat 
house Golden Champion has long ago disappeared, and 
there only remains four Muscat of Alexandria. These 
young Vines, as I have said, were planted along each 
side of the house at 18 inches from the wall. The 
older Vines which had been grown the year before were 
planted along each side of the centre of the house and 
formed an archway o\ T er the path, where they remained 
a couple of years to produce a little fruit while the 
