294 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[ Septeml>er 27, 1888. 
shrubs that when in flower are scarcely rivalled by any other occupants. 
A beautiful addition has within recent years been made to this interest¬ 
ing genus in the species S. pseudo-Camellia, a native of Japan, 
whence it was introduced by Messrs. J. Yeitch & Sons of Chelsea. 
Plants have been established at Coombe Wood, where they have 
proved quite hardy, like the American forms, and the flowering 
specimens shown a few weeks ago at the Eoyal Horticultural 
Society’s meeting at Westminster received the recognition of the 
Floral Committee in the shape of a first-class certificate. From 
these examples the woodcut (fig. 33) was prepared, showing the flower 
and foliage forms. 
All are deciduous shrubs which succeed in ordinary good garden 
soil, not appearing very particular as to situation, though a moderate^ 
sunny position suits them the best. 
GRAPES SCALDING. 
I should like to see a few more gardeners’ opinion on this question. 
If other varieties of Grapes will scald equally as much as Lady Downe’s if 
subjected to the same conditions, why is it that Lady Downe’s will 
scald and the others not when grown in the same house ? I consider 
that scalding is peculiar to Lady Downe’s, but that it can be prevented 
by those in charge, and that the conditions which will scald Lady 
Downe’s will not scald the Black Hamburgh or any other variety. 
Surely my views are not singular, and I am under the impression that 
99 per cent, of gardeners will endorse my opinion. Mr. Simpson takes 
exception to my statement in not having a “ fixed temperature.” Now 
I maintain that it is having this fixed temperature that is the root of 
the evil. Often on a warm “ muggy ” morning the temperature of a 
vinery is higher without heat in the pipes than on a cooler morning 
with much heat in the pipes. My advice to all young men who wish 
to prevent scalding with Lady Downe’s Grapes is to keep a comfortable 
warmth in the pipes during the night, with a circulation of air, and 
this increased as soon as it is seen that the sun would soon raise the 
temperature. The temperature about the Vines near the roof is always 
much higher when the sun is shining than in the body of the house 
where the thermometer is usually kept, and when fixed temperatures 
are adhered to the foliage is “ stewing ’’Jwhen the thermometer down 
below does not register the desired point. 
In answer to Mr. Bardney’s remarks on page 260, I will refer him to 
his original article at page 162, so as to keep him to the point in question. 
In that article he says that “ it is no more difficult to scald the berries 
of Black Hamburgh and Madresfield Court than those of Lady Downe’s,” 
a statement which I say Mr. Bardney cannot substantiate, and how any 
gardener with any practical experience in Grape-growing can make such 
a statement I am at a loss to understand. As Mr. Riding says “ it 
would require gross carelessness to accomplish such a feat,” whatever the 
structures are like. I had the management of five vineries for three 
years, with not one top or bottom light moveable, air being admitted by 
small ventilators in the back wall, and in these vineries I never saw a 
scalded berry of Black Hamburgh, Muscat of Alexandria, or West’s 
St. Peter’s, but on this latter Vine a Lady Downe’s was grafted, but it 
used to scald, but very slightly. The ventilator over this Vine used to 
be kept open, but the heating was defective. A !1 chink ” of air in a 
corner of a vinery I should be sorry to leave as the only precaution 
and a safeguard from scalding. The ordinary precautions I use in 
Grape-growing is common sense practice, which any gardener would 
use if he required good Grapes to place on his employer’s table. We are 
more quickly on the alert with the ventilation in the Lady Downe’s 
house than with the others, but these we do not neglect whatever the 
time of year or season may be, which is merely to keep the Vines in 
health and vigour. 
Mr. Bardney also takes exception to my statement about moisture 
condensing on the berries. What causes moisture to condense on the 
berries ? Why an overheated atmosphere, caused by the sun shining 
suddenly on the house without sufficient ventilation, as well as insuffi¬ 
cient heat in the pipes to prevent the berries becoming cold. Allow the 
above to happen, and you will soon have Lady Downe’s scalded. A 
fair warmth in the pipes at night with sufficient ventilation will prevent 
this. Full bunches of Lady Downe’s are more profitable than pieces. 
I am quite aware that some people practise syringing Vines morning 
and evening, but what market growers worthy of the name do so"? 
What value do they get for the Grapes ? Do they syringe Lady Downe’s 
in the morning at stoning time ? If so, it must be done very early, with 
heat in the pipes, and ventilation. The latter part of Mr. Bardney’s 
article requires no comment from me, if he keeps to his text.— 
A. Young. 
I presume by Mr. Riding’s remarks on page 261, on the subject of 
Grapes scalding, that he considers it almost impossible to grow Lady 
Downe’s Grape without the berries being more or less scalded. If so 
I think that must be fancy on his part. But I must beg to remind 
Mr. Riding that Lady Downe’s and Black Hamburghs growing in the 
same house could not be fairly compared, as the two varieties would 
not be at the same stage of growth at the same time ; the period at 
which the former would be liable to scald would be passed by the latter. 
If the two varieties could be grown exactly under the conditions 
necessary to ward oil the evil, I fail to see any difference in their 
liability to scald. 
With regard to Black Hamburghs grown with little fire heat, I con¬ 
sider they are just as liable to scald as Lady Downe’s, if the necessary 
precautions are not taken. Black Hamburghs not requiring so much 
heat, are generally more freely ventilated, hence the secret of their more 
generally escaping the evil. The case Mr. Riding advances, where the 
Grapes are grown with scarcely any fuel, does not, in my opinion, prove 
conclusively that there is not a comparison between the two varieties. 
The “ necessary precautions ” may have been taken in the one case 
but not in the other at the proper time. The range he refers to being 
treated exactly alike accounts for the evil, for I should not think of 
treating late Grapes exactly the same as early varieties. 
Mr. Riding considers “ that it would require gross carelessness to 
accomplish the feat” of scalding Black Hamburghs, but I consider 
Mr. Bardney’s question to Mr. Young is applicable to Mr. Riding. If 
it is bad management or gross carelessness in the one case, what is it 
in the other ? Perhaps Mr. Young and Mr. Riding would give us their 
opinion as to why they consider that Lady Downe’s Grape is constitu¬ 
tionally or otherwise more liable to scald than any other Grape. I take- 
great interest in Grape-growing, and would gladly welcome any addition 
to my store of knowledge, and doubtless it would be accepted by many 
more of our readers, as it is by friendly discussion that knowledge is 
diffused. 
Mr. Riding appears to have been troubled with the scalding of Lady 
Downe’s for the past nine years more or less ; but if next season he wilt 
pay more strict attention to the fixed temperatures, that I here give for 
the scalding period (65°at night, air being admitted at the top of the house 
before the temperature reaches 75° by sun heat, and plenty of air to 
prevent it rising above 85° until the air of the house is thoroughly dry), 
and faithfully report the result in the Journal next season, I shall be 
greatly deceived if he is not satisfied with the result. A few degrees- 
either way of course matters little, and if it is an old fad it may be 
none the worse for being old.—W. Simpson, Knowsley. 
I SHOULD like to express my opinion with respect to Grapes 
scalding. Never have I seen Black Hamburghs scald, and if, as 
Mr. Bardney says, he has had the misfortune to have some so affected, 
lam of the same opinion as your other correspondents—namely, that 
there is a mistake in the management. It is evident that the air-giving 
was not attended to early enough in the morning, or the scalding would 
never have happened, and particularly with Black Hamburghs. 
I will admit that Lady Downe’s, under the best of management, will 
scald sometimes, and especially in such a season as the one we have- 
experienced. Nevertheless, I am in a position to say that we have 
escaped without any serious loss, and I attribute our success entirely to> 
the ventilation—viz., about 2 inches at the top of the house, and the 
same at the bottom, with a little fire heat, and as the temperature rises 
we admit more air. As a proof of thfe above, we have at the present 
time as good a house of Lady Downe’s as anyone would wish to see, 
both in colour and size of berries. I quite agree with Mr. Young with 
respect to fixed temperatures; not on any account would I adopt such a- 
practice, it is against Nature altogether.—R. Kirby, Angley Parle 
Gardens. 
The Fruit Trade of California. —The British consul at San 
Francisco, in the course of a report on the agriculture of California, 
refers to the enormous fruit trade of that State. It produces every kind 
of fruit that grows in a semi-tropical or temperate climate—among the- 
former are the Orange, Lemon, Citron, Shaddock, and other citrous 
fruits, the Olive, Pomegranate, Fig, Banana, Apricot, Nectarine, Wal¬ 
nuts, and Almonds, Grapes, producing wine and raisins ; belonging to 
the temperate zone are Apples, Pears, Plums, Cherries, Peaches, Cur¬ 
rants, Gooseberries, Blackberries. Raspberries, and Strawberries. The 
green fruit trade of the State has increased enormously ; in 1887 the 
trade in green fruit with the Eastern States amounted to about 
35,000,000 lb. weight. The output of the various cannaries in 1885 
amounted to about 30,000,000 lb., including 659,950 cases of fruit,. 
203,500 of vegetables, and 22,500 of jellies and jams. The estimate for 
1887 is 792,500 cases of fruit, with an average of about 45 lb. of fruit to 
the case. Of these, 220,000 cases were Peaches, 175,500 Apricots, 150,000 
Pears, 60,000 Cherries, 40,000 Plums, 35,000 Grapes, 25,000 Blackberries, 
and 15,000 each Strawberries and Gooseberries. The export of dried 
and evaporated fruits and vegetables is also enormous. Thus the export 
of Grapes treated in this way in 1887 was 16,000,000 lb., Apricots 
3,000,000 lb., honey 1,340,000 lb., French Prunes 1,750,000 lb., Walnuts 
1,500,000 lb., Peaches 1,750,000 lb., Grapes 600,000 lb., Apples (evapo¬ 
rated) 550,000 lb., Peaches (evaporated) 1,250,000 lb., Almonds 500,000 
lb., Plums 500,000 lb., and smaller quantities of many other fruits. The 
growing of Grapes for raisins has proved a most profitable crop, with a 
ready market for all that can be made. Californians believe that their 
raisin crop will eventually drive the foreign product from the markets 
of the United States, and from the statistics of the trade the consul is 
inclined to believe that they will. The wine production in 1887 was 
13,000,000 gallons ; 150,000 acres of the State are planted with Vines,, 
and not less than 90 per cent, of these are foreign varieties. “ That the 
improvement in the quality of wine produced is very marked there 
can be no doubt, and the former California wine, with its disagreeable, 
harsh, foxy taste, is fast becoming a thing of the past. This in due to 
the importation of the best varieties of foreign Vines, and a more care- 
