may 'SI, IStS.] 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
441 
inclined to dispute the proposition let him declare the grounds of his 
dissension, and somebody or other will probably endeavour to ascertain 
whether they are well founded or not. I venture to say those Belgian 
cultivators who work the land so well do not grow weeds. But if they 
are expert diggers they are a generation or two behind in ploughing. The 
implements are rude and animal power weak. The ploughs are dumpy 
and short-breasted, with one shaft nearly straight up and a cross piece 
sticking out of one side of it near the top, which the ploughman or 
woman takes hold erf with one hand and drives the gaunt bullock 
<or lean pony with the other; and as for harrowing, it is sometimes 
done by two men, while in one instance I saw a combination team— 
* woman, boy, and dog yoked to an implement and trailing it over the 
Tand. 
A laborious life these Belgian peasants lead, and what their homes 
must be is not a pleasant thought to dwell on. Domestic comforts must 
be few according to our notions, but perhaps not to theirs. Let us hope 
tthe people are happy. In the London market gardens some of the hard¬ 
working Irish labourers think it a bad arrangement having to live in 
>houses that want so much “ claning,” and have to pay Is. or 6s. a 
week for doing it, instead of having shanties on the land and little or no 
“ riui ” to pay, and little or no scrubbing to do. Of course there is not 
iR tinge of reproach in this, but it simply shows the force of habit; and 
as a balancing of national prejudices or preferences a Scotch and an 
English case may be cited. A Scottish nobleman had bedrooms built 
■ over some of his one-storey cottages. A few months after they were 
finished he took some friends to see how comfortable he had made his 
people, but was surprised and annoyed by finding the new rooms filled 
•with Potatoes, wood, and general lumber. Protest was useless, as the 
occupants were firm in the conviction that they could not go upstairs to 
sleep. Not long ago an English gardener entered on a charge. He 
describes the place as a very good one, but his family are not comfort¬ 
able because the cottage is so constructed that they have to go down¬ 
stairs to bed. Thus do ideals of happiness differ, and it is easy to waste 
symp.athy over persons because they are not as you wish them to be, 
while at the same time they may be as honest, as happy as yourself. 
We will hope this is so with the plodding Belgian peasantry. We leave 
them for the present, and arrive at Ghent, and jump into a cab. 
“ Hotel de la Poste I” brings a responsive, “ Jah, Mynheer 1” and we 
lattle away over the stones, for there is no mistaking their presence in 
the streets of the Flemish city. A footsore carpet trotter described them 
as the hardest stones in the world, and all placed wrong side upwards 
—A JUEOE. 
LATE-BEARING MUSHROOM BEDS. 
I SEND some Mushrooms for your inspection, gathered from 
a hed which was made up in a cool shed and spawned early this 
year. We have been gathering fair quantities of Mushrooms for 
several weeks, and the bed is yet in good bearing. The bed is 
8 feet long, 3 feet wide, and 1 foot deep, and 4 feet from the floor 
of the shed. The manure heated violently at first and then went 
quite cold after the spawn had been inserted. The hed was 
spawned when the temperature was about 75° and on the decline, but 
in two or three days after the heat had fallen very low. We were 
unable to prepare the manure in a proper manner owing to the 
frosty weather prevailing during the time it was in the open shed. 
It appeared to be in good condition when the bed was made up, 
but soon after the frost went, and the weather became mill, which 
caused the material to heat so violently. In future we shall not make 
up a bed during a frost if we can avoid doing so. If the manure 
bad remained in the open shed and been turned over once or twice 
after the frost had gone, I think the heat in the bed would have been 
more steady and lasting, and not so much time lost. Instead of 
pulling the bed in pieces after the heat had declined we placed 
some long litter on it, and added a few barrowfuls of manure, 
which caused a gentle heat in the bed which lasted for several 
weeks, when all the material went cold again. My object was to 
get the spawn to run. The temporary manure was then removed 
and the bed covered with dry litter. About a month ago Mush¬ 
rooms made their appearance, and the spawn shows no signs of 
exhaustion yet.— G. Gaener, Amherwood Gardens, Hants. 
[ The Mushrooms are very fresh and firm, also beautifully 
clean through each being wrapped in a piece of slightly damp tissue 
paper. Not a few are cut too old, and are the reverse of tempting 
after a long journey through want of care in packing.] 
THE CULTURE OF THE PEACH AND 
NECTARINE UNDER GLASS. 
X A. paper read by Mr. Alkins* gardener to J. Kaye, Esq.. J.P.| Claytoiii West Yorks# 
before the Wakefleld Paxton Society.] 
It is my intention in this paper to touch as briefly as possible 
upon the main points on the cultivation of these fruits under glass. 
There is no doubt whatever that good Peaches can be grown on 
qpen walls, but not without considerable expense, and when we 
have done all for them we can they are uncertain, and will not 
compare with fruit from trees under glass. It would bo unwise to 
waste time in giving every detail of a suitable structure for tbe 
culture of this fruit. Suffice it to say that preference should be 
given to large houses, as they are easier to manage. In fact it 
becomes necessary where early forcing is carried on, being less 
liable to extremes of temperature than small houses or narrow cases. 
Extremes of heat at any season are dangerous and must be strictly 
avoided. 
The successful cultivation of these fruits greatly depends upon 
a good border. A suitable soil, for the Peach, like most other 
fruits, is one of a strong holding character. The borders must be 
kept firm at all times, especially near the roots of the trees. This 
will induce the trees to form a large mass of fibrous roots, and it is 
very desirable to keep these roots near the warm surface. The 
soil in the border should vary in depth from 2 to 3 feet, according 
to the bottom on which it rests. Gravelly or dry bottoms require 
the deepest borders. In the majority of cases one-third of suitable 
soil may be added to the natural soil of the site, and the whole 
trenched to the required depth, at the same time adding any other 
ingredients to enrich or keep it open, as may be thought necessary. 
Two things must be avoided, the one of using rank manures 
to enrich the sod—for these induce growth in young trees not 
easily ripened—and the other of making it too open. Should 
there be any fear of the border becoming saturated at the bottom 
with stagnant water, drainage must be provided to carry it away, 
but in most cases no further preparation in the shape of drainage 
is required than that which constitutes the remaining part of the 
garden. But as often suggested, laying cross and main drains, and 
from 6 to 9 inches of other materials, and form the border of 
light soil, is the first step to disappointment and failure. More 
trees suffer through want of water than from the other extreme, 
especially where confined to inside borders. Apart from that, 
one of the greatest objections to owners of private establish¬ 
ments, especially near large towns, is the costly outlay in forming 
borders. 
Another important item is the selection of trees. Fadures and 
disapointments frequently arise from the hard treatment trees have 
received during their nursery career, premature decay of some of 
the main branches being brought about by the severe cutting back 
annually to keep them within saleable size ; and after all, the 
majority of specimens have ad their strength in the centre, and are 
more adapted for horizontal training than the free and open fan, 
the most suitable to this class of fruit. Trees of this description 
are dear at a gift, and should be avoided. Last season I lost the 
limb of a Grosse Mignonne tree that had been planted about 
seven years, through the above treatment; this is very discouraging, 
and results in a disfigured tree in the future. I do not wish to 
underrate the work done by our nurserymen, in fact we are 
much indebted to some of them of late years, but seeing that we 
are expected to give an ample return from our fruit houses, and 
are held responsible for any failures that may occur in future, it is 
well to be on our guard. 
I would strongly advise all who have to keep houses stocked 
with fruitful trees to have young trees in training, so that blanks 
can be fiRed up quickly. We cannot spare wall space for these, 
but the system followed by one of my late masters, who was an 
able and successful fruit grower, was to plant a line of trees on a 
border with a good aspect, and form a temporary treUis for each tree, 
with three strong stakes, one in the centre and one on each side, the 
side stakes to meet the centre one at the top, and driven in the ground 
at an angle of about 45°. If trees are intended for front trellises and 
upright for walls, a few maiden trees untrained that have made a 
season’s growth from the bud or graft should be purchased and 
planted early in November and cut down the following February 
to within a foot of the ground, encouraging two shoots right an I 
left to grow unchecked the first season, all the main branches 
in future to be taken from these shoots. Nothing is easier t > 
train than the Peach if taken in hand at the commencement. Jly 
object with a young tree from this stage is to cover the space 
allotted to it as quickly as possible, and with a little forethought 
and care in disbudding and pinching, and laying in suitable wo aI, 
but little pruning is necessary until after the trees have clothed the 
trellis, looking well to the lower branches ; then an evenly balance 1 
and well formed tree wiU be the result that wdl in future furnish 
the bottom of the trellis equal to the top. 
Since I have had the management on my own responsibility 
I carry out the old system of summer-pruning established tree^. 
This consists in removing all useless and exhausted wood as soon as 
the crop is gathered. I am aware this system is not generally 
adopted, but why, I do not know. In my estimation it is one of 
the main points connected with the culture of this fruit, especially 
in these late and sunless districts. This naturally strengthens an 1 
encourages the proper ripening of the wood left. At the same 
time we shorten some of the branches to a healthy and younger 
