August 26, 1336. ] 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
19S 
for garden decoration, but, as you know, the bloom is deficient in the 
recognised properties of a florists’ flower. 
Moss Litter as a Manure (C. E. S.). —After this material has been used 
in stables it is excellent for use on land, and especially where the soil is of a 
heavy nature. It is, however, not perhaps so lasting in its effects as 
manure is from stables where straw is used for bedding. If we were pur¬ 
chasing manure we should prefer the latter ; if it were more convenient for 
us to use the moss litter in stables we should use it, and chance its action 
in the land. 
Manure for Mushroom Beds ( T.N. ).—As soon as the manure is in 
the condition described in “ Mushrooms for the Million ” it should be made 
up into mounds or ridges outdoors or in beds in the bins of Mushroom 
houses, and more should be collected for producing successional crops. The 
fourth edition, with supplement, of the work in question is by far the best 
of the series, and this you should have if you do not possess it. 
Variegated Parsley (J. S.). —The Parsley you have sent is distinctly 
and beautifully variegated, and moreover appears to have grown vigorously. 
Such plants would form an attractive margin in ornamental gardening, and 
some persons might take a fancy to them for table garnishing. We sub¬ 
mitted examples to an expert in the seed trade for his opinion thereon, and 
he has favoured with the following reply :—“ The Variegated Parsley, 
although in itself somewhat of a novelty, the majority of persons would 
not think so, from the fact that the green variety when stale has a tendency 
to tarn yellow, and- we fear thiB feature will prevent its ever becoming 
popular, expecially amongst cooks. Then again, twenty per cent, is not a 
sufficient return, and we should recommend the grower to get it to produce 
a larger per-centage than this; he might then get someone to take it up for 
him.” 
Insects on Chrysanthemum (S'. M .).—We do not feel sure that the 
damage you describe is to be attributed to the insect forwarded. This 
proves to be one of the leaping Hemiptera, allied, though les3 in size, to 
the familiar and unpleasant species, the frog-hopper (Cercopis spumaria), 
the larva of which, in its frothy secretion, gets the name of cuckoo-spit. 
Your insect is called Acocephalus pallidus, and in the larval state it doubt¬ 
less feeds upon the juices of plants, but in the early summer usually, and it 
is not a species that often occurs about gardens. That the kindred and 
larger insect, C. spumaria, often doe3 harm to the stems of garden flowers 
as well as vegetables is a well-known fact; the mischief, however, appears 
to be solely confined to the larva. Further observations seem to be neces¬ 
sary in this instance. It would be interesting to know if the commence¬ 
ment of the injury can be dated exactly, and whether any frothy grubs 
were ever noticed on the Chrysanthemums. 
Flowers for Shady Border ( A New Subscriber). — Annuals are not 
suitable for a shaded border, but there is no reason, unless the soil be very 
poor and dry, that the border should not be attractive, and especially in the 
spring. Winter Aconites grow under trees and cover the ground with 
golden flowers ; Snowdrops also grow and flower well for years under trees, 
as do Wood Hyacinths and Anemones, of which we have thousands. Dig 
the soil carefully over, and plant 3 or 4 inches deep in October. They will 
require no further care. The leaves must not be cut off until quite withered. 
Daffodils also grow very well under trees, and their bulbs should be planted 
5 or 6 inches deep. Lilies of the Valley we have in good soil under trees, 
and they rarely fail to flower freely in May. Primroses and Polyanthuses 
also grow and flower well, and in the summer large clumps of the blue 
German Iris are very beautiful. The common Honesty flowers well 
under trees, as do Foxgloves, stout plants of both being raised in the open 
and transplanted very early in the spring wiere they are desired to flower, 
and Wallflowers succeed in the same way. Hypericum calycinum is an 
excellent plant for growing under trees, producing large yellow flowers in 
summer; and the Lesser Periwinkle (Vinca minor) is equally good for 
flowering in the summer, and carpeting the ground with bright green foliage 
in the winter. 
Red Spider in Vines (F. J.). —The leaves and shoots sent are devoured 
with red spider. Take off all the young laterals with curled leaves and burn 
them, and as you have cut the Grapes give the Vines two or three thorough 
washings, applying the water with force through a syringe or garden engine. 
A mere squirting will be of no use whatever. The water should be driven 
with all the forcj possible, short of injuring the foliage, against the under 
aides of every leaf, using four gallons to every Vine, or to that portion of 
one that may be trained up a rafter. Give two or three such washings in the 
course of a week, ventilating very freely afterwards. If you use soot watm 
as clear as sherry wine all the better. It can be made by immersing soot 
tied up in a coarse bag in a tub of water, and two days afterwards throwing 
in some lumps of lime, then taking off the scum that forma on the surface 
of the water. The soot waVr should be mixed till of the colour of pale ale. 
The leaves are very thin, just such as invite the attacks of the enemy. This 
is the result mainly of overcropping and keeping the air of the house too 
hot and dry at some time. It is hopeless expecting good Grapes from such 
infested Vines, as the insects fatten on the nutriment that should support 
the fruit and foliage. Do not wait till you have soot water ready, but apply 
clear water at once and unstintingly, and do not be afraid of getting a wet¬ 
ting yourself in drenching the Vines. 
The Windsor Pear (A Landowner). —The Pear you have sent, and 
abont which you desire information, is the Windsor, and the following 
extract from Dr. Hogg’s “ Fruit Manual ” gives the history of the variety 
as far as it can be traced. This Pear is now b ung sold in London, and one 
grower tells us he has received 7s. per bushel for the crop from his standard 
trees :—“Windsor (Bell Tongue ; Beliissime; Figue ; Figue Musquea ; Green 
Windsor; Grosse Jargonelle ; Konge; Madame ; Madame de France; Summer 
Bell; Supreme).—Fruit large and handsome ; pyriform, rounded at the eye. 
Skin smooth, green at first, and changing to yellow mixed with green, and 
with a faint tinge of orange and obscure streaks of red on the exposed side. 
Eye open, with stout, erect segments, not at all depressed. Stalk H inch 
long, inserted without depression, and with several fleshy folds at the base. 
Flesh white, tender, buttery, and melting, with a fine, brisk, vinous flavour, 
and nice perfume. A fine old Pear for orchard culture ; ripe in August. 
It should be gathered before it becomes yellow. The tree is one of the 
strongest growers of any variety in cultivation; particularly in its early 
growth, the shoots are very thick and succulent, but short. It forms an 
upright, tall, and handsome tree when grown in an alluvial soil, or in a deep 
sand} r loam, with a cool subsoil; but if the soil is stiff, cold, and humid, it 
very soon cankers. It is a good bearer, and when grown in a soil favourable 
to it we have seen it produce an abundance of very large, handsome, and 
excellent fruit. It has the property in many seasons of producing some¬ 
times a profusion of bloom at midsummer, and a second crop of fruit, which, 
however, is never of any value, from which circumstance it has been called 
Poire Figue, Figue Musqude, and Deux fois 1’an. The only account of this 
ancient variety I have seen is by an English writer, who says, 1 It was 
raised from seed of the Cuisse Madame, by a person of the name of William¬ 
son, a relation of Williamson, whom Grimwood succeeded in the Kensington 
Nursery.’ Grimwood succeeded to the Kensington Nursery about the middle 
or latter half of the last century, but the Windsor Pear is mentioned by 
Parkinson, in his ‘ Paradisus,’ in 1629, a century before the Kensington 
Nursery was in existence, and was even then * well knowne to most persons ; ’ 
he says it ‘ is an excellent good Peare, will beare fruit sometimes twice in a 
yeare, and (as it is said) three times in some places.’ There can be no doubt 
that the Windsor Pear is of foreign origin, and that it is the Beliissime and 
Supreme of the early French pomologists, but it must not be confounded 
with the Beliissime d’Etd of these later writers, and of Duhamel, who has 
made a sad mess of many synonymes, and on whose authority in these par¬ 
ticulars there is no reliance to be placed. It seems at a very early period 
to have been distributed over Europe. It is mentioned by J. Baptista 
Porta, iu 1592, as being cultivated about Naples, under the name of Pero 
due volte l’anno ; and even in our own country we find it flourishing 
earlier than this; for Sir Hugh Plat, in giving the authority of ‘ Master 
Hill,’ who lived about 1563, ‘Why trees transplanted doe alter,’ says, ‘Trees 
that bears early, or often in the year, as Pear trees upon Windsor Hill, 
which bears thr e times in a year; these, though they be removed to as 
rich or richer soil, yet they do seldom bear so early, or so often, except the 
soil be of the same hot nature, and have the like advantages of situation, 
and other circumstances with those of Windsor. And, therefore, commonly 
the second fruit of that Pear tree being removed, doth seldome ripen in 
other places.’ This is the first notice we have of the Windsor Pear in 
England; audit is, doubtless, from the circumstance of those growing on 
Windsor Hill that the variety received its name. Early in the season, and 
before the earliest varieties of our gardens are nearly ripe, there are consider¬ 
able quantities of the Windsor exposed for sale in the Covent Garden 
Market, which are imported from Portugal, and which are said to be shipped 
at Oporto. We never could ascertain the name under which they were 
imported, but have not the slightest doubt about the identity of the variety.” 
Grapes Cracking (William H. Barker ).—The Grapes sent exhibit a 
somewhat uncommon but by no means rare appearance, being cracked next 
the footstalk only. It is most prevalent in Vines that have thin foliage— 
i.e., thin in texture, the berries also having as yours have a thin skin. Vines 
with thick leathery foliage are less liable to scorch, and the berrieB have 
thicker and tougher skins. We once had a mixed house in which the 
Muscats and Frontignans showed a disposition to crack at the shank end of 
the berries ; as they were young Vines it was attributed to over-luxuriance, 
and the Vines were kept dry at the roots after they commenced ripening. 
This only answered so long as the weather kept bright and air could be 
freely admitted, but on a period of dull weather succeeding the bright, and 
the house being kept closer, though there was warmth in the pipes and 
sufficient air to cause a circulation, the Grapes cracked exactly as in the 
examples you have forwarded to us, but the black Grapes remained sound. 
We remembered having Muscats, Frontignans, Hamburghs, &c., in one 
house before, and the berries of the two former did not crack. The dif¬ 
ference in the houses was simply this. In the house in which the Muscats 
and Frontignans did not crack at the shank end of the berries, or anywhere, 
the Vine roots were entirely outside, whilst in that where the Muscats and 
Frontignans cracked the roots had the run of an outside as well of the 
inside border they were planted in. The outside border was composed of 
loam of a warpy or alluvial nature, being taken from land adjoining a tidal 
river, subject in rainy weather to overflow its banks and flood the low 
land. The top soil of this land with its turf was used for the Vine border, 
with the addition of one cartload in six of old mortar rubbish, and a few 
whole bones bruised were mixed with it. In the border where the Muscats 
and Frontignans cracked the loam was of a light nature, a little but not a 
tenth of lime rubbish being added, and a goodly admixture of half-inch 
bones. In effecting a cure we took a lesson from the outside border, and 
watered the inside border freely and regularly until the Grapes were well 
advanced in ripening ; in fact, the Hamburghs and Frontignans were quite 
ripe when the last watering was given, the Muscats being about half ripe or 
colouring nicely. The early part of a likely fine day was chosen for the 
watering, and a mulching of dry material placed on the inside border. The 
Grapes did not crack, but were finer in berry, and the water at the roots did 
not injure the ripe Frontignans. To the border we had in the autumn pre¬ 
viously given a bushel of freshly slaked lime per rod (30J square yards), and 
mixed it with the surface soil as deeply as could be done without disturbing 
the roots, and it was repeated in March on the surface and only just pointed 
in. We were careful by attention to ventilation to have the leaves as stout 
in texture as possible. Tfie result was a much finer crop of Grapes that did 
not crack, and the Hamburghs and Frontignans hung much longer without 
shrivelling, so that it was a clear gain all round. We mention this case in 
hope of its suggesting something that may help you in your difficulty, and 
be useful to others who have mixed houses of Grapes. Very many Grapes 
are ruined through an insufficiency of water to inside borders and the fear of 
continuing it too long. In your case we think the watering has been left off 
too soon, and that the cracking is due partly to the deposition of moisture 
on the berries, through want of a little warmth in the pipes, permitting of 
early and free ventilation, with air increased early in the day. We suspect 
also that the border is deficient in lime and phosphates. The skin of the 
black Grapes sent is much too thin to be considered satisfactory, and all the 
berries sent are smaller than they ought to be. Inside Vine borders should 
never get so dry as to crack, as in such a case you cannot have an abundance 
of roots working freely near the surface, and in the absence of these you 
cannot expect fine Grapes. The border should be moist but covered with 
dry mulching to prevent evaporation when the Grapes are ripening, 
especially if they show a tendency to split near the stalk. 
