October 6, 1881. ] 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
319 
tubular lever d, and if the tines have not penetrated deeply enough, 
put the foot on the treadle and move the fork again as before. A 
spit of earth is to be removed from the back of the fork. The 
fulcrum a b is now to be placed on the earth near the shoulders of 
the fork ; tbe upper bar of the fulcrum is to he thrown hack so as to 
allow the handle of the fork to rest upon the lower bar. Now 
weigh down the lever so as to displace the roots of the tree, then 
lift up the lever, shut the upper bar of the fulcrum, and weigh the 
lever on this upper bar, when the ball of earth, the roots, and the 
tree will be suspended high enough to allow of an iron plate, or 
trolly, being drawn under the ball. It is a good plan to place sand 
or fine mould round the fibres of the roots when planting. 
Two tree-lifters may be used with great advantage when the trees 
are large. Three have been used for balls 7 feet in diameter. The 
spoon expansion, made of Whitworth steel, is affixed on the large 
prong r e for lifting large specimens. 
Further particulars in reference to the invention, which is 
patented, will he supplied by Dr. Newington, Ticehurst, Sussex. 
—J. Weight. 
REVIEW OF BOOK. 
Garden Pests and their Eradication. L. Upcott Gill, 
170, Strand, W.C. 
This little work is more pretentious than another recent work 
upon the subject of injurious insects, since it attempts to embrace 
the species that are hurtful in the flower garden as well as those 
that attack vegetables, fruit, and timber. Owing to this it is to 
some extent meagre, and an alphabetical arrangement is carried 
out that is insufficiently clear, because in some cases the insect 
appears under its familiar name and in others it is placed under 
the plant it mostly frequents. Thus, under the heading of “ Rose 
Grubs and Sawflies” a variety of insects are briefly mentioned ; 
and the familiar ground weevil (Otiorhynchus sulcatus) is entered 
as a “ Pot Maggot,” and other points of the arrangement are 
peculiar. We think that the better plan in such a handbook is to 
take the insects with the names of the plants they frequent as 
headings, adding, perhaps, in a separate arrangement the species 
that are general feeders. The entomological information is on 
the whole correct; and the illustrations, though of a popular 
nature, are sufficiently recognisable with a few exceptions. In 
one or two figures the artist seems to have given the insects an 
attitude somewhat comical, as in the representation of a cranefly 
(Tipula oleracea). It would have been an advantage if the author 
had noted throughout the times of appearance in the larva and 
imago states. A list of remedies in the way of preventive appli¬ 
cations and destroyers has been compiled from various sources and 
is a useful feature in the book : but some of them have claims which 
are not sustained in practice, and others of real service are omitted. 
We thought the idea that wireworms would eat oilcake until they 
burst had been long ago exploded ; and although it is stated that 
sulphuring the pipes in houses and heating them will kill thrips, 
it is not stated that the fumes will often first kill the foliage of the 
Vines and plants. Yet if nothing new in the way of remedies is 
advanced—and it does not appear to be sufficiently explained that 
dilute sulphuric acid is only to be used where nothing grows 
which it is wished to preserve—still no gardener will regret the 
trifle laid out upon this helpful volume. 
THE PROPAGATION OF CONIFERS. 
( Continued from page 263.) 
Grafted plants require much attention after the scions are 
thoroughly united to the stock. They all need examining during 
March, and the upper portion of the stock must be cut off close to 
where the scion was affixed. Small stakes about 9 inches or a 
foot in length should be in readiness, and great care must be 
taken not to injure the young plant when removing the useless 
portion of the stock. As the work proceeds each young plant 
will require a stake, which should be made secure to the stock by 
means of bast matting below the place where worked, with 
another tie round the union to prevent the scion being broken 
off. The growth must be tied upright if it does not assume that 
position. Thi3 is rather a tedious operation, but when completed 
the only attention needed is an abundant supply of water as the 
soil becomes dry. Ventilate when the weather is favourable, 
increasing the ventilation considerably as the spring advances 
until the plants are thoroughly hardened. 
The time of planting varies considerably both with the grafted 
plants and those raised from cuttings which have been wintered 
outside. As a general rule the spring is a busy time in all 
nurseries, and much work has to be done about the time these 
should be planted out. After the season for sending out Conifers 
those remaining unsold are lifted and replanted, so that no ground 
will be wasted. In some instances they are all removed, in others 
a portion from one end only are lifted to fill up the blank spaces. 
In well-managed nurseries the latter is only done when the re¬ 
maining plants had been transplanted the previous year. After 
the shifting is done there is generally plenty of vacant ground. 
In most instances this is the time when the young stock is planted 
out. The ground is well dug, and the plants are placed 9 inches 
apart in rows a foot asunder. The plants are turned out of the 
pots without disturbing the roots. A little soil is placed to each 
and pressed firmly round the ball with the foot, then a little 
manure is placed along the row and finally finished off with soil. 
The manure is not dug into the ground as is generally practised 
in private establishments, but it is placed close to the roots of 
the plants, so that when they commence rooting they quickly 
reach it. These plants are only removed when they require 
more room (which is in two years) and when sold. 
Many Abies, Pines, and Piceas, as well as Cedrus and Araucaria 
imbricata, are raised from seed annually. The common kinds are 
sown outside in beds during the spring months at the same time 
as the Larch seed is sown. Before sowing the seed the whole is 
soaked in a large tank or other suitable place. The choice kinds 
are sown in pans or in a frame prepared for them, where they can 
remain until large enough for potting or planting out. The 
choicest kinds are often potted, by which means they can be 
planted out afterwards when convenient. This is not the case 
when planting from the seed bed, as the operation must be per¬ 
formed in the season. Some few Abies, such as A. Englemanni 
glauca and other beautiful varieties, are increased by grafting, 
employing some of the common kinds as a stock ; but there 
appears to be more difficulty in successfully grafting Abies or 
Pines than the majority of Conifers, as they do not take readily 
to the stock.— Wm. Bardney. 
10 W0RK. F °fi THE WEEK..' 
.Jr 
HARDY FRUIT GARDEN. 
Late Plums have not ripened well owing to the continued rains. 
Many fruits have cracked, and some are falling from the trees, the 
footstalks having shanked. Those valuable kinds, Coe’s Golden 
Drop and Ickworth Impdratrice, will be in condition some time yet, 
and they will hang for a considerable time on the trees if the weather 
prove favourable and means are taken to exclude wasps and flies, 
but any fruits quite ripe will also keep good if gathered and placed 
singly upon shelves in a light airy fruit-room. Continue gathering 
Apples and Pears as they become ripe, placing the choicest singly 
upon shelves in the fruit-room, which ought to be thoroughly cleaned. 
The room must also be kept dry and cool. Filberts and other Nuts 
should be gathered and spread out thinly in an airy room, but should 
not be divested of the husks. 
Where root-pruning is deemed necessary to check over-luxuriance 
of growth, and to induce the formation of fruit-spurs or shorter- 
jointed fruitful wood, it should be attended to as soon as the growth 
is complete and the wood somewhat hardened, and may safely be 
performed between now and the early part of November. When the 
growth is very gross and the wood comparatively soft, root-pruning 
must not be performed until the leaves are falling ; as, if done too early, 
the sappy growths will, if the autumn be bright and dry, shrivel 
and die back. This particularly applies to Peaches and Nectarines, 
and to trees generally that have made young shoots of some length 
in the current season. It is difficult to give any precise directions 
for root-pruning, much depending on the vigour and size as well as 
age of the trees ; but as a general rule a trench should be formed at 
a distance from the stem equal to about one-third the height of the 
trees. If the roots are thick only those should be cut or some of 
them, leaving the small roots intact. From the trench towards the 
stem the loose surface soil should be removed, and the soil removed 
from amongst the roots without injuring or disturbing them too 
much, and they may, especially if deep, be lifted, laying them in in 
fresh compost, and making the soil firm around them. A mulching 
