456 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[ June 4j 1891. 
be continued weekly if the border is limited to a small area, or fort¬ 
nightly intervals, until the plants are somewhat advanced in colouring, 
when it must be stopped ; yet the border must not be allowed to become 
so dry as to affect the foliage injuriously. Admit a little air constantly 
at the apex, and ventilate freely in the early part of the day, closing 
early with sun heat and a genial condition of the atmosphere. Fire 
heat will only be necessary to secure 60° to 65° at night, and 70° to 75° 
by day, keeping through the day at 80° to 85°, and closing sufficiently 
early to run up to 90° or 95°. This will insure the berries swelling to 
a good size, and w’ith a free circulation of air a good finish may be 
secured. 
Grapes Stoning. —During this process the Vines should have a 
Tegular temperature of about 65° at night, and 70° to 75° by day from 
artificial heat, if the G-rapes are wanted by a given time, but if not 65° 
only need be maintained on dull, cold, wet days, but admit air in good 
time, always a little at 70° or before after a spell of dull weather, so 
that any moisture will be dissipated before the sun acts powerfully 
upon the foliage. Allow a moderate lateral extension, but avoid over¬ 
cropping, and supply liquid manure or water, washing in a top-dressing 
of artificial manure, or passing through a light mulch of short stable 
manure. Avoid, however, feeding luxuriant Vines too liberally, 
especially with ammoniacal manures, giving in their case steamed 
bone meal. This will enable the Vines to maintain steady progress 
and finish their crops, whilst storing food for the coming season’s 
bearing. 
Grapes Scalding. —Muscats and Lady Downe’s in the later stage of 
stoning are liable to scald, therefore must be watched in hot bright 
weather, and air admitted more freely for a fortnight or three weeks 
until colouring commences, when all danger will be over. Black Ham- 
burghs are sometimes scorched when the berries are exposed to the 
direct rays of the sun, which can mostly be avoided by a good spread of 
foliage, and remedied by a bountiful supply of air by day and a little 
ventilation constantly at the upper part of the house, with a genial 
warmth in the hot-water pipes. 
Early Muscat Houses. —The fruit ripening will need a dry condition 
-of the atmosphere as compared with Black Hamburghs, but avoid great 
aridity, or the foliage will fall a prey to red spider. Mirscats must 
have time to ripen and acquire that amber colour so much prized. Do 
not allow any deficiency of moisture in the borders, for Muscats are 
gross feeders, but give either tepid liquid manure or tepid water 
through a rich surface mulching. The supply of water to the roots 
will ill some measure compensate for the drier condition of the atmo¬ 
sphere. Provide a circulation air constantly, preventing the moisture 
condensing on the berries by sufficient warmth in the pipes to insure a 
changing atmosphere. Lateral extension is the best safeguard against 
shanking at this stage along with a steady temperature. Avoid sudden 
fluctuations and depressions. Keep the night temperature at 65° to 70°, 
80° to 85° by day with a little sun, and 90° to 95° with it in full force. 
Ventilate early, and regulate by the sun’s increase, and so with its 
decline, reduce early, securing as long a day of ripening from sun heat 
as possible. The old leaves of Muscats are liable to be scorched under 
powerful sun after a period of dull cold weather. In very bright 
weather draw a single thickness of tanned net over the roof lights, 
which, without impeding too much light, will prevent the condensation 
of moisture. 
Late Houses. —Late varieties of Grapes in flower must have a circula¬ 
tion of dry warm air, and a temperature of 70° to 75° at night, rising to 
85° or 90° from sun heat, or without this the thick-skinned varieties do 
not set well. Thin the berries freely as soon as they are set, but this 
in the case of shy setting varieties must be confined to the removal of 
the smallest and imperfect berries in the first instance, deferring the 
general thinning until the properly fertilised berries can be determined 
by their free swelling. There must not be any deficiency of moisture 
at the roots, therefore afford liquid manure copiously after the Grapes 
are thinned and swelling, or a top-dressing may be given of some 
approved artificial manure, distributing it evenly on the surface, and 
wasing it in with tepid water. 
Melons. —Plants in flower must have a little air constantly with 
a free circulation on fine days, fertilising the flowers as they become 
fully expanded, and when a sufficient number of fruits about equal size 
are set upon a plant remove all the others and all flowers ; three or four 
fruits are as many as a healthy plant can bring to a good size, over¬ 
cropping being fatal to quality, and very often the fruit does not reach 
maturity, but ripens prematurely. Plants swelling their fruits should 
have liberal supplies of tepid liqirid mamire and additions made 
to the ridges or hillocks of fresh soil as the roots protrude, and it should 
be warm. 
Young plants in pits and frames with the shoots trained over the 
surface must be thinned to four, two being taken to the front and two 
to the back, keeping the laterals rubbed off to quite 6 inches from the 
stem, and pinching the main shoots when 12 to 15 inches from the sides 
of the pits or frames. The laterals will shorv fruit at the first or second 
joint, and the flowers being fully expanded fertilise them about noon on 
a fine day, leaving a little air on constantly to prevent the condensation 
of moisture, a moist close atmosphere being fatal to a good set. Pinch 
out the points of the shoots one joint above the fruit, and after three or 
four fruits are set and swelling on a plant remove all others. Keep the 
laterals closely pinched, and thin them if likely to crowd the principal 
foliage. Afford weak liquid manure, but keep it from the foliage, and 
sprinkle the plants in the afternoon of fine days, closing about 3.30 p.m. 
to 4 P.M,, or so early as to raise the temperature to 90° or 95°, and 
ventilate early in the day, or from 7.30 A.M. to 8 a.m., keeping through 
the day at 80° to 85° or 90°, and reduce the ventilation gradually. Keep 
a sharp look out for aphides, and fumigate on two or three consecutive 
evenings moderately, an overdose doing great injury. Shade the following 
days slightly if the weather be bright, and always have the foliage dry 
when fumigating. If canker appear rub quicklime into the affected 
parts until they are dry, and repeat as occasion requires, being careful 
to keep water away from the collar. Bed spider will not appear if the 
plants are kept moderately moist. 
THE FLOWER GARDEN. 
Early Bedding Out. —The summer-like weather experienced during 
the early part of May tempted many to commence bedding out com¬ 
paratively tender plants much earlier than usual, but these would have 
been far better off out of the ground till the first week in June. Cold 
saturating rains, hail, snow, and frosts have proved very harmful to large 
numbers of plants—in some cases even where they were only being 
hardened off. Calceolarias and Violas have come out of the ordeal well, 
but the Pelargoniums, Verbenas, Ageratums, and Fuchsias have been so 
much injured that they will have to be put out much thicker than usual, 
those beds already planted requiring to be freshened up with more 
plants. Not till the beds have been warmed considerably ought the 
more delicate and the crippled plants to be put out, and in the mean¬ 
time the latter should have been protected from the prevailing cold 
rains and light frosts. Iresines, Coleuses, Alternantheras, and in some cold 
districts Heliotropes, ought to be kept out of the ground till the middle 
of June, apd the two former especially answer well potted off singly 
after the pots are liberated by Pelargoniums, and kept under glass till 
well rooted. Thus treated, they transplant to their final quarters with¬ 
out sustaining a check. Sub-tropical plants generally not to be planted 
before the middle of June, and these, in addition to having sheltered 
positions, should also for a time be protected from strong winds and 
cold. 
A Scarcity of Plants. —There were so many losses during the late 
winter, and in some cases again this spring, that many gardeners and 
amateurs will most probably find they have not nearly enough plants to 
fill their beds. To make matters worse, annuals sown in the open 
borders have either come up badly or the plants have disappeared during 
the late wet and cold weather. The only way out of the difficulty is to 
either buy what more plants are required or else to make a fresh 
departure in the way of turning out larger pot plants and transplanting 
others. Fuchsias, either planted out or kept plunged in pots, make 
grand bedding plants, and these dotted among a groundwork of dwarf 
growing or trailing plants of any kind—notably Ivy-leaf Pelargoniums— 
soon fill a large bed, the effect also being pleasing. A few trained 
plants of Ivy-leaf Pelargoniums, one of the best of which will be found 
in Madame Crousse, among Violas, Verbenas, Calceolarias, and such like, 
are also very effeetive from the beginning to the end of the season. 
Marguerites with a clear stem that have flowered in pots up to the 
present time would if cut back and planted among Petunias soon present 
a very gay appearance, or young plants may be similarly arranged. 
Variegated Maize included the newer Zea gracillima, are effective 
interspersed among any bright flowering or dwarf fine-foliaged plants. 
A mixture of these with the rich blue Salvia patens, with a bright edging 
of some kind, forms one of the most effective beds imaginable, and the 
herbaceous Lobelias form grand centres of beds, being also very showy 
in mixtures, especially if contrasting with Cineraria maritima, Cen- 
taureas, or other silvery foliaged plants. Mixtures of Fuchsias, Plum¬ 
bago capensis, variegated and flowering Abutilons, Acacia lophantha. 
Gladioli, Marguerites, tuberous and fibrous rooted Begonias, Salvias, 
Zinnias, and Heliotropes, quickly fill large beds, and are particularly to 
be recommended for semicircular and other borders with a background 
of high shrubs. Anything is better than half empty beds, and there 
are plenty of greenhouse or conservatory plants that would look 
and thrive better planted out than in a half-starved state where they 
now are. 
Other changes might be made in the arrangements, a better use 
being made of several kinds of annuals and a few other kinds of plants. 
Gaillardias, if given an open position and good room, are very showy in 
beds, also affording abundance of cut flowers. The best for the purpose 
are G. picta and Lorenziana. Fill the centre of a circular bed with 
•them, and edge with Coleus and Lobelia. Ten-week Stocks, Princess 
Alice excepted, do not last long enough to be given a place in prominent 
beds, but strong plants of the Mid-Lothian and earliest flowering 
autumn Stocks are very suitable for beds and ribbon borders. Given a 
fairly good soil they will flower grandly from July till very sharp frosts 
intervene. Zinnias in masses are very attractive, quite gorgeous in fact, 
and no one need hesitate about giving them a place in a prominent bed, 
or say, by way of a substitute for tall growing Zonal Pelargoniums. 
Nothing can well be more .showy than Asters, and these can be had in 
separate colours and relied upon to come true to name. The Empress 
(Veitch), crimson, white and light blue, are particularly well adapted 
for bedding out, and present level masses of colour not easily equalled 
by any other kind of bedding plants. The taller growing varieties peg 
down well, and devclope quite a carpet of colour. Naturally they are 
over some time before frosts destroy the tender plants generally, but 
this difficulty is easily got over, and a variety given in the garden by 
having a number of stocky plants of Chrysanthemums Madame Des- 
grange, C. Wermig, and Felicity, ready to take the place of the Asters. 
These Chrysanthemums transplant readily and flower w'ell in the open 
beds. Several of the dwarf summer or earliest autumn flowering 
