August 20, 1891. ] 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
1G5 
with a mass of fibrous roots. Plant the trees for early forcing by the 
end of September, and lifting early forced trees should be commenced as 
soon as the leaves give indications of falling. It will not matter about a 
few sappy laterals, their softness will tend to the production of roots. 
Soil should be in readiness, so that work of this kind can be performed 
with the utmost promptness and despatch. Clean drainage, too, in 
different sizes must be provided and placed convenient. The soil may 
consist of any good loam, preferably rather strong and calcareous, 
nothing being better than the top 3 or I inches of an old pasture over- 
lying limestone or chalk, and if intermingled with flints all the more 
desirable. Such will grow Peaches to perfection without any admixture. 
Any deficiency of calcareous matter may be overcome by an addition 
' chalk to sandy soil, and of lime rubbish to heavy soil. If light 
add a sixth of clayey marl dried, pounded, or finely divided ; if too 
heavy add road scrapings. New borders must have efficient drainage, 
the bottom of the border being concreted if the strata beneath be 
unfavourable, or better laid with bricks on flat run with cement, the 
border being enclosed with walls so as to confine the roots, but the 
border must have 3-inch drains with proper fall and outlet, the bottom 
of the border, whether concrete or cement, falling to the drains. A 
border one-third the width of the trellis will be sufficient in the 
first instance, and need not at any time exceed the width of the 
trellis. Place rubble over the drains 1 foot thick, the roughest at the 
bottom and finest at the top, having 3 inches thickness of rather fine 
material as an upper layer, and if this consist of old mortar rubbish free 
of pieces of wood the drainage will keep sound indefinitely ; 24 inches 
clepth of soil is ample. The compost should be put together when rather 
dry amd somewhat firm ; in fact, it cannot be made too firm when the 
soil is light. The best varieties for very early forcing are Alexander, 
Early Albert, and Early Rivers. The finest of all Peaches for forcing is 
Stirling Castle ; Hale’s Early, Crimson Galande, and Royal George are 
superb. Of Nectarines Lord Napier and Dryden. 
Late Houses .— With the fruit taking its last swelling liberal supplies 
of water are required until the ripening is well advanced, when mode¬ 
rate supplies will be sufficient ; enough, however, must be given to 
maintain the foliage in a healthy state. Trees that are making gross 
wood, and have a tendency to late growth, can be marked for lifting, an 
infallible remedy for indifferent setting and uncertainty of stoning. 
Any young trees that do not ripen the wood well should be curtailed 
at the roots by taking out a trench so as to detach the roots about one- 
tbird the distance from the stem the trees cover on the trellis, doing 
it about the end of September or as early in October as the fruit is 
gathered. 
Melons. —The Latest Plants. —Preserve the leading shoot until it 
reaches two-thirds across the trellis, then pinch out its point, rubbing 
off the laterals up to the trellis, and then every alternate one on opposite 
sides of the primary. Maintain a temperature of 65° to 70° at night, 
70 to 75° by_day, 80° to 85° with sun heat, closing early so as to run 
up to 90° or 95°. Stopping the laterals should not be practised unless 
the plants are weak, and they do not show fruit at the second or third 
]oint. Weakly plants should have the first shows of fruit removed, 
relying on sub-laterals. Early ventilation with plenty of light are the 
essentials of a thoroughly solidified growth. 
Plants in Pits ancl Frames .— The last plants in these are swelling 
their fruits freely. Earth the roots if necessary, but late plants on dung- 
heated beds do not require much soil. Close early, affording the needful 
supplies of water at that time, keeping laterals well in hand, not allowing 
them to interfere in any way with the principal leaves. If the weather 
be dull afford good linings and admit a little air, as nothing is so fatal 
to quality in the fruit as a close atmosphere. Practise sprinkling only 
on fine afternoons. If black aphides attack the plants fumigate them 
on two or three consecutive evenings moderately. Examine frequently 
for canker, and promptly apply quicklime to the affected parts. 
Gradually withhold water at the roots and moisture in the atmosphere 
from plants ripening fruit, and if a little extra heat is afforded by means 
of linings so as to admit of a free circulation of air the quality of the 
fruit will be enhanced considerably. 
Cucumbers. —Encourage the plants for autumn fruiting to make a 
strong sturdy growth by adding fresh soil from time to time, affording 
plenty but not overmuch water at the roots, with a moist genial con¬ 
dition of the atmosphere by syringing at closing time, and damping 
available surfaces occasionally. Sufficient fire heat must be employed 
to prevent the temperature falling below 65° at night, and to maintain it 
■at 70° to 75° by day. Old plants should have exhausted growths cutout, 
and others where likely to be crowded thinned, so as to admit light and 
air, securing solidified growth and a succession of bearing wood. The 
syriDge should be regularly employed about 3 p.m, and if mildew 
appear dust with flowers of sulphur in the evening whilst the foliage is 
damp, maintaining a somewhat freely ventilated atmosphere. In bad 
•cases ammoniacal carbonate of copper solution may be used, 1| oz. 
precipitate carbonate of copper being dissolved in a pint of liquid 
ammonia, and a fluid ounce of the solution added to each gallon of 
water, the plants being well sprayed with the solution, or if syringed it 
must be through a fine rose and disposed as much as possible in a fine 
mi9t. The preparation of sulphate of copper with lime, known as 
*' antiblight,” is equally effectual, and being in powder is handily applied 
with bellows, the “ Malbec ” being specially suited for applying powders 
to the under side of the leaves of infested plants. Black aphides are 
sometimes troublesome at this time of year. Those and all aphides 
succumb to repeated fumigations with tobacco paper, taking care to 
have the foliage dry, to deliver the smoke cool, and not give an over¬ 
dose. We find it best to fumigate in the evening and repeat the dose 
early the following morning. If seed is wanted any knobby ended ones 
should be left. They come freely enough on old plants, if not im¬ 
pregnation will have the desired effect. 
Houses that are to afford a supply of fruit at Christmas should be 
cleared, removing every particle of old soil, and thoroughly cleansing, 
repairing, or painting the house before it is wanted. Pot the plants as 
they require it, keeping well up to the light, and place a small stick to 
each, grow the plants without stopping, rubbing off side shoots as they 
appear to the height of the trellis. Plants in frames that have been in 
bearing some time will be restored to vigour by a good thinning out of 
the old growths and the addition of a little fresh loam, giving a moderate 
watering, and a sprinkling overhead on bright afternoons, closing at 
about 3 p.m. With linings and protection of mats over the lights 
Cucumbers will be produced for a lengthened period. 
PLANT HOUSES. 
Crotons. —Where small plants are required in large numbers for de¬ 
coration during the autumn and winter in from 2 to 4-inch pots very 
few plants surpass Crotons, either for beauty or lasting properties. To 
have them in good condition they must be highly coloured or their 
effectiveness is lost. Well coloured side branches should be taken off at 
once and rooted in the pots in which they are to be used. Cuttings of a 
suitable nature should be plentiful on plants from which the heads were 
taken and rooted some time ago. We invariably find the smallest 
cuttings with three or four well developed leaves very useful in thumb 
pots. It is useless to insert cuttings that are not fairly well coloured, 
for they will not improve after the end of September. As soon as these 
small plants are rooted gradually expose them to full light and sunshine 
close to the glass, and if the weather prove bright for a few weeks the 
colour of their foliage will be highly developed. The Crotons intended 
for autumn and winter decoration should by now be placed in their 
largest pots—in fact, only the best rooted should remain to be potted, 
and these must be attended to at once. All our plants are well estab¬ 
lished, and will soon have grown as large as they are desired, while the 
beautiful markings of a few of the young leaves near the top only need 
developing. Where the plants have been grown close to the glass they 
should be examined for fear red spider has attacked the young leaves. 
This pest, if in existence, will quickly spoil the appearance of the plants. 
The quickest and easiest means of destroying the pest is to dip the plants 
in a solution of softsoap and water, 1 oz. of the former to a gallon of 
the latter, to which should be added a handful of sulphur. This may be 
left on the plants two or three days, and then thoroughly washed off 
with clean water, and the syringe used twice or three times daily. 
Panicum variegatum .— A good stock of this useful decorative plant 
should now be prepared by inserting cuttings thickly in 2 and 3-inch 
pots. After insertion a good watering should be given and the pots 
stood in the propagating frame' and shaded until they are rooted. 
Grow the plants afterwards under moist, shady, warm conditions until 
they are well furnished, when slightly cooler treatment may be given 
them. 
Tradeseantias. —Large numbers of the variegated forms should be 
prepared by inserting about five cuttings in each 2-inch pot. These will 
root freely enough on a high shelf or any other position in heat if shaded 
for a few days from the sun. A few boxes may also be filled so that 
the plants can be lifted out for various purposes when vases and baskets 
have to be made up with a variety of small plants. 
Fittonias.— These are highly ornamental in appearance when dotted 
amongst small Ferns and other suitable plants near the edge of large 
baskets or vases that have to be regularly furnished. The plants 
required first should be rooted singly in 2-inch pots, and quantities of 
others in boxes and pans for lifting out when required during the 
winter. If they can be used in small pots two or three weeks is 
ample to establish them, and they can be potted from the boxes in batches 
as required. 
Pertolonias. —This is a good time to root a number of these as well 
as Sonerilas. Young plants pass the winter with greater certainty than 
those that have been growing luxuriantly the whole of the summer. 
The established plants need not be destroyed for this purpose, for 
cuttings near the base of the former will be found, and young growing 
shoots from amongst the latter should be selected without destroying 
the appearance of those now doing duty in the stove. These cuttings 
should be inserted in light sandy soil and kept close, moist, and shaded 
until thoroughly established ; in fact they will winter better in the 
propagating house than the stove, where more airy conditions will 
presently be maintained. 
m 
HE BEE-KEEPER? 
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SEASONABLE HINTS. 
Taking Honey. 
In all districts the light-coloured honey harvest is practically 
at an end, and no time should be lost in taking the same from the 
supers, whether we are working for comb honey in sections or for 
extracted honey. If we delay our sample will be spoilt by having 
the darker honey mixed with it, and any additional weight we might 
