January 24, 1889. ] 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
71 
two grey Horses, and a complete set of harness was offered ; and for 
it another individual offered twelve acres of land ; but we are not 
told that its owner parted with it. Even in England, as late as the 
year 1854, the late Mr. Groom of Clapham Rise quoted Tulips in 
his catalogue at high prices. Duchess of Cambridge, Princess 
Mary of Cambridge, and Miss Eliza Seymour were 100 guineas 
each, others were quoted at 50, 21, and 10 guineas, but Groom died 
the year following, and his bulbs were all sold as they stood in the 
ground by Messrs. Protheroe & Morris at very low prices. The 
bedding-out mania set in, and other florists’ flowers declined in 
favour as well as the Tulip. 
So much for the historical part of the subject, which might be 
extended considerably. The next point may be classification. 
The Tulip is divided for garden purposes into feathered and flamed 
bizarres, "feathered and flamed bybloemens, feathered and flamed 
roses. A bizarre has flowers with a yellow ground and a maroon, 
red, or chestnut coloured flame or feather. The difference between 
a flamed and feathered flower is this. The feathered petals have a 
series of short stripes round the margin only ; they are closely set, 
longest at the -top of the petal, and decreasing in length towards 
the base. The margin of a flamed petal is tie sime, but in the 
centre is a broad longitudinal stripe termed the beim, from which 
flashes rays of colour. A byblocmen has a wLiti ground, with 
purple and black-purple flame or feather. Roses comprise some 
delicately tinted and lovely varieties, the ground colour is of the 
purest white feathered and flamed with rose and in some instances 
scarlet. 
A breeder is an unbroken or unrectified flower, as it is usually 
found in the seedling state, A choice Tulip is first chosen, named, 
and judged in its breeder form, in which as a seedling it nearly 
always blooms. That first name stands as long as the variety lasts, 
and all the breaks from it, feathered or flamed, as the case may be, 
take that name. Thus Talisman flamed or Talisman feathered are 
breaks from that variety, and thus we come to have three distinct 
types of Talisman—viz., the original “ breeder ” form and the 
feathered or flamed state. No other name except Talisman should 
be used as a name for any break of that variety ; but this good old 
rule is often broken, hence there are several synonyms for one 
variety. For instance, a beautiful rose breeder was named Mabel, 
and bulbs of it in the breeder state were distributed amongst the 
growers. They knew it was Mabel, and ought to have kept to that 
name ; but someone obtained a break and called it “Pretty Jane.” 
Another feathered it from the breeder state and named it 
“Charmer.” Somebody else got another break and named it 
“ Mrs. Lomax.’’ The same variety is grown in the north as Mabel 
; feathered rose, so that anyone ordering feathered roses Mabel, 
Pretty Jane, Charmer, or Mrs. Lomax would have one variety 
only—viz., Mabel feathered rose. If any yet remain in the unrec¬ 
tified state they are Mabel breeder, which is a rose self with a 
white base to the cup. The above remarks will make the word 
“strain ” sufficiently clear. Not one break is alike ; therefore, say 
Dr. Hogg has a feathered break of Mabel, we would call it Dr. 
Hogg’s strain, or Mr. Barlow’s strain, &c., and the most perfectly 
feathered break would be the most sought for ; but the main 
point is this, Mabel always, Mabel flamed, feathered, or breeder. 
A few remarks on culture and arrangement in the beds will 
follow.—J. Douglas. 
(To be continued.1 
CULTIVATION OF THE PEACH ON WALLS IN THE 
OPEN AIR. 
The Peach is not so extensively cultivated in the open air in this 
country as it was before the introduction of cheap glass houses some 
forty or fifty years ago. Since then the style and structure of horti¬ 
cultural buildings have greatly improved, as well as the methods of 
heating and ventilating them. At the time I speak of the interior of 
the houses was dark and dull. They had broad heavy wooden rafters’ 
narrow sashes, with thick sashbars, and very small panes of glass, and 
the system adopted for giving ventilation was by lowering the top 
sashes singly by a cord, weight, and pulley. The front sashes were 
opened by the hand singly also, a slow process compared with our 
simultaneous ventilating gear of the present day. Artificial heat was 
supplied by a furnace to each house, with flues running round it, and 
when there were several houses the stoking entailed a great deal of 
labour at all times, but more so in hard - frosty weather. In passing, I 
might say, I remember living at a place once where there were no less 
than twenty-five fires to attend to, and during severe weather the person 
on duty had to be up for the most of the night stoking and attending 
to them. I mention these facts merely to show that cheap glass, and 
better appliances for working it, have, I think, been the chief means of 
doing away with the cultivation of the Peach in this country on our 
open walls. Formerly Peaches were grown and trained on open walls 
in almost every garden of any pretension both in England, Ireland, and 
Scotland, and their culture was as well known to our forefathers as it is 
now, and they had not the early varieties that we possess, which makes 
Peach growing in the open much easier at present, when ripe fruit can 
be had in July and August instead of in late autumn. 
Some people account for the absence of Peach culture in the open 
now by saying the seasons formerly were much warmer and better 
altogether, suggesting that our climate has undergone considerable 
change since then. I think, however, the real cause will be found, as I 
have said, in cheap glass and a certain crop, with much less trouble 
than growing them on the open wall where the crop is uncertain 
even in the best of seasons. To grow the Peach successfully outside 
in this country the trees require a south aspect and a wall to train 
them on. If it is faced with bricks so nfuch the better, as they 
absorb heat quicker and retain it longer than stones. Besides, the 
bricks are better for nailing and training the trees unless it is wired, 
when it makes little difference whether it is stone or brick so far 
as training is concerned. The walls, if possible, should have a broad 
temporary coping of wood to throw off the cold rain and frost during 
the time the trees are in flower, and when the leaves are young and 
tender. Besides this they should be covered with netting until the 
fruit have set and all danger from frost gone, after which the coping 
and netting may be removed so that the trees may get the full benefit 
of the warm summer showers tp wash and clean them of insect pests. 
Making Borders. —If the natural soil is not suitable, and a new 
border has to be made, the soil should be dug out to the depth of not 
more than 18 inches, which is quite sufficient depth to grow Peaches 
in the open. If the site is wet it should be drained properly before 
the border is filled in again. The soil for the new border should be 
a good heavy fibrous loam, if this can be had, chopped up in pieces 
from 4 to 5 inches in size, and about a third of the whole of old 
mortar added to it, and the mortar and soil thoroughly mixed together 
as the work of filling in proceeds, no dung, crushed bones, or any 
kind of artificial manure should be mixed with it. They only encourage 
the trees to make strong useless wood, which will not ripen well, and 
this should be avoided as much as possible in the cultivation of all 
kinds of trees where good trees and good [crops of fruit are expected. 
It is a mistake to make deep borders for the Peach, not to speak of the 
great expense incurred in making them. The nearer to the surface the 
roots can be kept the better ; they will thus get the benefit of the sun’s 
warmth during the growing season, and they will ripen the wood and 
the fruit better than if the trees were planted in deep borders where the 
roots get away from the influence of the surface heat and air. In hot 
dry seasons, it is true, they will require more watering than trees 
planted in deep borders, but the results altogether will be more satis¬ 
factory with trees in shallow borders where the heat from the sun can 
penetrate freely to the roots. 
Selecting Young Trees.—A great deal depends on a good start 
in growing fruit trees of any kind. They should be healthy, have good 
roots, and the scion and the stock should be thoroughly united. I 
prefer Peach trees with a clean stem from 18 to 20 inches before branch¬ 
ing to those lower. I think they grow freer and fruit better, and are 
easier kept filled up with young wood at the bottom of the wall; and 
1 also prefer trees with not more than three or four branches at the 
time of planting to those that have been trained for years in the 
nursery having double that quantity. 
Planting.— Before planting examine the roots, and cut ofi the 
ends of any that have been injured in lifting, and shorten some of the 
strongest to induce them to make small fibrous/roots near the surface. 
Keep the plants 5 or 6 inches away from the bottom of the wall to 
allow for the stem swelling, and for the branches lying nicely into the 
wall. If they are planted nearer the trees have a tendency to grow 
away from the wall, which makes it more difficult to train them ever 
afterwards. Do not plant them deep, spread the roots out in all direc¬ 
tions, and cover them gently with fine soil at first, using rougher as the 
work of filling in the hole proceeds. When it is filled to the surface 
take the tree by the stem and lift it up and down gently two or three 
times to settle the earth about the roots, after which tread it firmly all 
round, make it level on the surface, and then mulch it with good manure 
The branches should be tacked to the wall temporarily to allow 
the soil to settle down before the trees are permanently nailed for the 
season. 
Training. —The fan shape system is generally adapted in this coun¬ 
try, and I think it is the best for distributing the flow of sap regularly 
all over the tree, and, as far as appearance goes, the trees look better 
