September 24, 1885. ] 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
281 
fruit trees, some of them only of last year’s grafting, and many of these 
were bearing most profusely. The grounds are well protected from winds ; 
and although at the time of our visit a fresh breeze was blowing its in¬ 
fluence was not felt in the nurseries. There are, of course, some extensive 
vineries, and the Vines, which comprise some of the best known varieties, 
are just now in full bearing, and amongst the pendent bunches we noticed 
several which must have weighed 4 lbs, or 5 lbs. each. As we passed 
through those portions of the estate devoted to the rearing of ornamental 
shrubs we could not help thinking that the Special Parks Committee of 
the Hull Corporation, who are about shortly to plant the new Western 
Park, would do well to visit these nurseries, for there they would meet 
with trees and shrubs of all kinds, which would go far to making the new 
park one of the most attractive places near the borough, and not only 
attractive, but to a great extent instructive. 
Amongst the ornamental trees and shrubs which we saw may be 
mentioned Acer Negundo variegata, Cornus siberica, Magnolia Soulangeana, 
and many examples of Cupressus Lawsoniana, Biota aurea, &c., also Picea 
Nordmaniana, Picea nobilis, &c. There are also many specimens of the 
Wellingtonia gigantea, such as have been from time to time planted by 
Royal hands at Brantinghamthorpe. Amongst the ornamental shrubs, 
too, there was one which certainly ought to be more frequently seen in 
our gardens and parks. We refer to the Golden Elder, which has, as its 
name implies, a considerable proportion of yellow in its leaves, whilst it 
produces an abundant white bloom, and set against a dark background is 
most effective. The flowering shrubs include the Rhus Cotinus, Spiraeas in 
endless variety, Ligustrum lucidum, Lilacs in great variety, Viburnum 
opulus, &c. 
Amongst the fruit trees there are Grapes, Peaches, Apples, and Pears 
of the choicest and most prolific varieties, but perhaps the greatest feature 
of this department is the Raspberries. These are a variety first introduced 
by Mr. Dixon, and so successful has he been with them that his name is 
known in connection with them wherever such plants will grow. The 
name he has given to them is the Baumforth Seedling, and for some years 
now Mr. Dixon has largely exported the canes to America and the conti¬ 
nent, and wherever they have been sent they have given the most complete 
satisfaction. The fruit is larger than any other Raspberry known, it is also 
unusually firm, and of the very richest flavour. Upwards of 2 tons of 
fruit have, during the season just closed, been gathered at the Burton 
Constable Nurseries. There is an immense variety of Conifers, those most 
effective plants which are now more fully appreciated for their delicate 
beauty and rich tints than at any previous time. The standard trees for 
park and avenue planting include the Acer Schwedlerii, Acer pensylva- 
nicum rubrum, g’obosum, &c., Limes, Elms, and Planes, Sycamore, 
Birch, Beech, &c. There is also a very large collection of forest trees for 
cover planting, which are in the best possible condition for autumn plant¬ 
ing, whilst the standard and half-standard Roses are amongst the best and 
healthiest we have seen. Any kind of fruit trees may be here obtained, 
whether standard or trained, and it was a most interesting sight to see the 
simple, but effective, measures adopted for the training of Apple, Pear, 
and Peach trees, so that on their removal from the nursery they have the 
right form for planting against walls or fences. The Burton Constable 
Nurseries are not the most extensive of Mr. Dixon’s grounds, as he has 
added at least twenty-five acres to his business at Coniston, and it is at 
this place more particularly that he raises those seeds which have made 
his name famous all over the world. He has still another department, 
and that a most attractive one, at Sculcoates, where stove and greenhouse 
plants are grown in glass houses that cover one acre of land. From this 
notice it will be seen that Mr. Dixon’s business is a most extensive one, 
and certainly a visit to his several establishments cannot fail to be both 
interesting and instructive, especially to those who have known the busi¬ 
ness from its small beginning. It is one that has always been watched 
over by the master’s eye, and managed with that rare skill and tact which 
has had its reward in the development of what is now the most extensive 
nursery and seed-growing business in this part of the country .—{Hull 
News.') 
The Late Drought. —Mr. Robert D. Long has made valuable 
suggestions concerning the storage of rain water in good time for next 
year. We have been consulted by many whose gardens, lawns, and 
parks were in a pitiable condition, in the hope that provisions could be 
made to impound the excess in rainy seasons. In every district roof or 
surface water or springs can be sh red in abundance duriog the winter by 
constructing underground tanks. Pipes with pumps or hydrants and hose 
are easily fixed and kept in good working order, and may frequently be 
available for service in the event of an outburst of fire.— MeeevWeatheb 
and Sons, 63, Long Acre, W.C. 
HARDY FRUIT GARDEN. 
Preparations for Planting. —A dripping autumn is good for planting, 
and the frequent heavy downpour of rain which has been so general 
recently has doubtless induced planters to set about the work earlier in the 
autumn than usual, in order that as many trees as possible may be settled 
in the soil before winter. Fruit trees are not planted so early as shrubs, 
but we must now make ready for the work by marking the stations and 
doing all that is necessary to have the soil in readiness for the trees, so that 
the planting maybe done with dispatch and in the best way when we do 
set about it. The station for each fruit tree should consist of 72 cubic 
feet of fertile soil, either resting upon a natural bed of gravel or chalk, or 
upon an artificial bed of concrete G inches deep, or in other words, it 
must be 6 feet square and 2 feet deep. This station will afford the roots 
an ample supply of food for three years, and then if the soil around it is 
poor and thin, it must be deepened and enriched, and if necessary con¬ 
crete put beneath it ; the necessity for the concrete arising from a cold 
wet subsoil, into which the roots must not penetrate, or barrenness and 
canker may follow. Let us take, for example, an orchard of pyramids. 
The stations will be 10 feet apart, so that there will be 4 feet of soil 
between the stations for treatment in the third autumn after the planting. 
It is obvious that when concrete is put beneath a station provision must 
be made for water drainage, and this is done by laying a row of ordinary 
2-inch land drain pipes across the middle of the station upon the concrete, 
pressing the pipes slightly into the concrete before it hardens, continuing 
the drain from station to station, or else to the nearest soil drain. Excel¬ 
lent concrete is made by mixing one part of fresh slacked lime with six 
parts of broken stones, enough water being used to impart the con¬ 
sistency of mortar to it. After it is spread evenly over the bottom of the 
station, it must be left to harden sufficiently to bear the soil being put in 
upon it. The station soil should consist entirely of sound fertile loam. 
We are generally supposed to obtain this in the top spit of an old meadow. 
But do we ? No doubt the herbage and roots of the grass afford excellent 
nutriment for the roots of the fruit tree for a time, but there must also be 
an ample store of fertility in the soil itself, and we must make sure that 
it is there, or the growth of the trees will prove weakly and much of 
our labour be wasted. Let us also see if the soil contains enough gravel or 
small stones to insure the quick passage of rain water ; if not, we can make 
all safe by a plentiful mixture of coal ashes with the soil. Remember, 
we cannot be too careful in the preparation of fruit tree stations, for here 
work well done is literally twice done, and all subsequent lifting of the 
trees, root-pruning, and ramming bard substances beneath the trees is 
avoided. Dwarf bu.-h trees may be the same distance apart as pyramids. 
Standards should be 30 feet apart, wall trees fan-trained or palmette 
veiriers 25 to 30 feet, according to the height of the wall, espaliers about 
30 feet. For cordons there must be a trench 3 feet wide and 2 feet 
deep of prepared soil, the cordons being planted 18 inches apart. 
For bush plants, including Gooseberries, Currants, Raspberries, and 
Blackberries, soil of a good staple, if drained, trenched, and well manured, 
will answer well, but there are exceptionally poor thin soils where trenches 
18 inches deep and 3 feet wide must be made and filled with good soil for 
each row. We have had to do this, and we found that a liberal mixture 
of old stable manure and coal ashes with poor soil insured a free strong 
growth, which was subsequently maintained by an annual surface dressing 
of stabling or farmyard manure. Black Currants answer best in a deep 
rich soil, and where this exists naturally no crop is so profitable as this, 
for in rich soil the bushes become 6 feet high and as much in diameter, 
only take care to have them without stems, 60 that they may form large 
crowns or stools, from which young growth springs every year to take the 
place of any decaying branches. In our next note we purpose giving 
select lists of the best sorts of fruit for small and large gardens. 
FRUIT FORCING. 
Peaches and Nectarines. —Lifting and, Replanting .—The Peach 
season is over, except, of course, the very late varieties, the time having 
arrived for laying the foundation of another year’s success, whilst the soil 
retains sufficient heat to insure the formation of new roots before the 
trees go to rest. In order to succeed in the production annually of full 
crops of first-class fruit, trained trees have a tendency to exhaust the soil, 
as they present a large area of foliage to the sun, therefore require 
copious feeding either by means of heavy mulchings or liberal supplies 
of liquid manure, and as these frequent applications destroy the fibre of 
the soil, rendering it sour, too much care and attention cannot be devoted 
to the renovation of the borders. The most suitable soil for a Peach 
border is sound turfy loam from an old pasture where the soil overlies 
limestone, lime rubble, and charred garden refuse, in the proportion of a 
tenth of the lime rubble and a twentieth of the charred refuse, thoroughly 
incorporated and protected from heavy rains, as it will not do to put the 
material together in a wet state. Provide ample drains with proper fall 
and outlet, and the drainage should be 9 to 12 inches deep of clean broken 
stone, brickbats, or other material, and so arranged that 2 feet depth of 
soil will raise the border to the proper level. Cover the drainage with a 
layer of sods closely packed with the grass side downwards. Place 
the soil upon the sods, and beat it well down to prevent settling, also to 
cause resistance to the roots, increasing their ramifications and insure a 
short-jointed sturdy growth. Observe great care in lifting the trees, par¬ 
ticularly where they have been left undisturbed for a number of years, as 
their roots will be thick and the fibres few ; but the greatest care must 
be taken of the fibrous roots, which are of the most value to the next 
year’s crop—indeed, if these suffer the next year’s crop will suffer in pro¬ 
portion. If there be any danger of this, partial lifting only must be re¬ 
sorted to ; indeed it does not always happen that old trees require complete 
lifting, as being well managed when young, all roots having a downward 
tendency will have been cut off or trained in a horizontal direction, and 
when this the case it will not be necessary to do more than form a 
