18 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER, 
January 3,18SC. 
that point. Ventilate very freely in mild weather, and avoid hasty 
treatment in the early stages of growth. Make sure that no deficiency 
of moisture exists in the soil, and see that trees in pots are not neglected 
for water. Sprinkle the trees and house occasionally in the morning 
and afternoon in bright weather, but avoid keeping the trees dripping 
with moisture, and ventilate a little, constantly, as a close atmosphere 
weakens the blossoms even when they are enveloped in the scales of the 
buds. Cherries can hardly be brought on too slowly in the early stages 
of forcing. Trees started now and having been forced before will give 
ripe Cherries at the end of April or early in May, but those forced for 
the first time will not ripen their crops so early by a fortnight or three 
weeks. Early Rivers, Black Tartarian, and Governor Wood are 
excellent varieties. 
Strawberries In Pots.—The plants started in December should 
be closely scrutinised for aphides, and if there be the least trace extirpate 
the pests by repeated fumigation. A keen eye should also be kept on 
the growths for the first speck of mildew, when promptly apply flowers 
of sulphur thereto, and brush the hot-water pipes over lightly with a 
cream formed of it and skim milk. The fumes from sulphur are potent 
in the destruction of mildew, and the plants and fruit are not disfigured. 
A temperature of 50® to 55° at night, and 60° to 65° by day, will bring 
the plants forward as quickly as is safe, allowing an advance of 10° to 15° 
from sun heat. Lose no opportunity of admitting air, as the trusses 
are the boldest and the flowers the strongest when the foliage has 
abundance of light and air, A close atmosphere induces soft tissues, 
weakly organs of fructification, and deformed, ill-shapen fruit. 
Place a number of plants on shelves in Peach houses or vineries 
started about this time. Rectify the drainage of the pots, remove moss 
or other matter from the surface of the soil, and wash the pots clean. 
Surface dress with an approved fertiliser mixed with a little loam, or 
use three parts superphosphate, two parts powdered saltpetre, and one 
part ground gypsum, mixed. Apply about a teaspoonful to each pot, after 
top-dressing with rich soil, and wash in. Noble and Auguste Nicaise 
are excellent for introducing now to fruit in April, but both President 
and Sir Joseph Paxton excel them in quality. To maintain a succession 
of plants La Grosse Sucrbe and Vicomtesse Hericart de Thury must 
be introduced at the same time. 
Melons.—Seeds should be sown at once for the first crop. They 
are best placed singly in 3-inch pots about two-thirds filled with 
soil, covering about half an inch, plunging the pots in a bottom heat 
of 80°, placing a square of glass on each pot to bring up the seeds 
quickly, and removing it directly the cotyledons lift the soil. Good 
fibrous loam and leaf soil in equal parts gently pressed down form a 
suitable compost for the young rootlets, the pots being efficiently but 
not excessively drained. Keep the plants near the glass, not allowing 
them to become drawn. Ripe fruit from a sowing made at this time 
may be expected early in May or sooner if the weather be unusually 
favourable. Scarlet Gem (scarlet-flesh), and Pineapple (green-flesh), 
are excellent in quality, but the fruits are small, Blenheim Orange, 
Sion House, Bastnor Castle, and Longleat Perfection are also excellent. 
There is no end of varieties, every grower having some special 
favourite. 
Cucumbers.—To secure plants for growing in frames or pits heated 
by fermenting materials seeds should be sown now for February 
plantings, the materials for which ought now to be in process of 
sweetening for making up the beds; Where no convenience exists for 
raising plants a bed of leaves and stale manure should be made up 
forthwith, the seed to be sown as soon as the bed affords a bottom 
heat of 90° and top heat of 70° to 75°. A sowing made at this time 
will afford fruit In April onwards, the plants being put in the 
fruiting beds early in February and well attended to with linings and 
coverings. 
Cucmihers in Houses .—Seed sown now, as advised for Melons, will 
afford plants fit to place in their fruiting quarters in about a month, 
and such plants will afford fruits from the beginning of April or earlier, 
and maintain a liberal supply during the late spring and early summer 
months. 
Young plants just coming into bearing must be cautiously cropped, 
assisting them to swell their first fruits by removing staminate blossoms 
and superfluous fruits. Trim plants in bearing twice a week, 
removing all weakly and exhausted growths, retaining as many of the 
young growths as can have space for expanding their foliage, but 
overcrowding tends to certain disaster. Stop the shoots one or 
two joints beyond the fruit, but young plants should be allowed 
more freedom, always avoiding overcrowding. Maintain the night 
temperature at 65° to 70°, 70° to 75° by day, with a rise of 10° or more 
from sun heat, admitting a little air at 80° if the external air be warm 
and soft, but if cold and sharp it is better to allow the temperature to 
advance a little higher than admit cold air to reduce it, even when the 
sun is powerful. If canker appear rub quicklime into the affected parts 
and repeat as necessary. A little sulphur, brought to the consistency of 
cream with skim milk, and brushed on the hot-water pipes will keep 
down red spider, white fly, and mildew. It must not be overdone, just 
a light coating being sufficient. Maintain a genial moisture by 
damping the floor in the morning and afternoon. Supply liquid manure 
about once a week or at every alternate watering, alwajs slightly 
warmer than the bed. j j 
Tomatoes.—Where plants have to be raised from seed to produce 
the earliest supplies of fruit, the seed should be sown now rather 
thinly in light soil, and placed in a house where there is a temperature 
of 60° to 65°, with an advance of 10° to 15° from sun heat. The seed 
pot should be placed near the glass, so that the seedlings may come up 
strong and be kept sturdy. When large enough to handle place singly in 
3-inch pots, and from these transfer to 5-inch, when they become well 
rooted, keeping them well down in the pots. From these they can be 
transferred to the bed, which should insure a depth of about 15 inches, 
and under that rubble for drainage. A ridge about a foot wide at the 
top, and the whole length of the house, will be sufficient for planting in, 
the plants being set about 18 inches apart, and trained on the single 
cordon system to wires about 1 foot from the glass. Fruit will show right 
along from the first truss, therefore do not stop the lead until the last 
truss is produced according to the extent of space, and keep off all side 
shoots. Good loam with a fifth of well-decayed manure will grow them 
well, but some lime rubble, a little wood ashes and charcoal are advan¬ 
tageous, A 2 feet width of border is ample, the plants being earthed as 
the roots protrude, making the soil firm. Surface dressings and liquid 
manure can be given when the crops are swelling. 
Growing in Pots ,—Instead of planting out, the Tomatoes can be 
placed in 10 or 12-inch pots from the 5-inch, placing low enough for 
top-dressing with fresh soil. The plants will come into bearing quickly, 
and can be fed to any extent after the first trusses are secured. 
Cutting Plants .—The cuttings for supplying the plants are inserted 
in September, and kept near the glass in not larger than 5-inch pots, 
in a temperature of 55° to 60° with a rise from sun heat. If the plants 
get too tall a little damp moss placed around the stem just below the 
leaves will soon be filled with roots, below which the stem may be 
severed and the dwarfed plants placed in 5-inch pots. In a temperature 
of 60° to 65° with 10° to 15° advance from sun heat, they are soon 
ready to transfer to the final pots, with fruit showing, so that they 
afford ripe fruit several weeks earlier than those raised from seed. 
A night temperature of 55° to 60°, 60° to 65° by day, and 70° to 75° 
from sun heat, and ventilation from 65° will keep the plants sturdy 
and progressive. When in flower ventilate rather freely, and rap the 
base of the truss to distribute the pollen. About one-third of the leaf 
may be pinched off to afford light, practising it early, and with liberal 
supplies of liquid manure the fruit will attain a good size. 
THE KITCHEN GARDEN. 
Mushrooms.—It is at midwinter when Mushrooms are in the 
greatest request in many private places. As yet beds in unheated 
structures as well as those outside have not ceased to be productive; 
but a period of intense cold would quickly stop further growth for a 
time, and it is then when a little fire heat does good service. Too often 
it is turned on more freely than desirable. From 50° to 55° answers 
well, and any considerable increase on those figures is detrimental 
to the quality and quantity of the Mushrooms produced. Where fire 
heat is employed the beds should be frequently examined with a view 
to giving a thorough moistening with warm water directly they approach 
dryness. Once allowed to become very dry it is scarcely possible to 
remoisten the manure, and the Mushrooms will soon cease to appear 
accordingly. On the other hand saturation must be avoided, as this 
destroys the spawn. 
Open-air Mushroom Beds.—These ought to be uncovered as 
little as possible during cold weather. If they are producing mark 
where last uncovered and gather from the next width, re-covering with 
litter as quickly as possible. Heavy rains have penetrated through 
quite heavy coverings of litter, and unless the latter is changed for 
drier material frosts will reach the interior of the beds; not that this 
will destroy the spawn, but it will stop productiveness for some time to 
come. Besides, unless the litter is changed the beds will become too 
cold and saturated for the spawn to survive. 
Tomatoes.—The autumn and early winter has been favourable to 
the preservation and growth of late-raised plants. Instead of keeping 
these in a semi-starved state in small pots they ought now to be either 
given a shift into larger, or they may be placed direct where they are to 
fruit. The earliest crops can, as a rule, be had by pot culture, the 
exceptions being when ridges of soil can be placed on a staging along 
the front of a forcing house, training the plants up the roof in either 
case. Ten-inch pots are large enough for a single fruiting plant at this 
early date, and these should only be three parts filled with soil, this 
allowing good room for top-dressings later on. A rather rich compost 
should be used for potting. A mixture of two parts of roughly broken- 
up fibrous loam to one part of horse droppings with a sprinkling of fish¬ 
bone manure added is not too rich, but for ridges less manure is 
needed. The soil ought to be warmed and made firm about the roots. 
“ Leggy ” plants should not be buried deeply, the better plan being to 
lay them down, so as to bring the heads where they are wanted and 
cover the naked stems with soil. In the course of a few days the buried 
stems will emit roots freely, and be a source of strength rather than 
weakness. The temperature of the house may range from 55° to 
60®, but avoid creating a moist atmosphere or disease will soon be 
observable. 
Raising Tomato Plants. — If seed is sown now or early in 
January it ought to be possible to have ripe fruit from the plants in 
April or early in May. For these early crops the slightly corrugated 
varieties such as Frogmore Selected, Early Ruby, and Webb’s Sensation 
are to be preferred, as these are the freest setters, and the two first 
named ripen well in advance of most other varieties. Challenger, Ham 
Green, and Duke of York are all suitable for afiEordicg a good succession 
of handsome fruit. Sow the seed thinly in 6-inch pots, u^ing fine sandy 
soil, as the roots are least injured when shaken clear of this at potting 
