S90 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[ M»y 19, 1887. 
there was a slight exception, and this in the form of an 
experiment in the other direction, and it proves the truth 
of the whole case as to the potency of the long pruning. 
A few of the rods were closely spurred, and this is the 
result—the closer the pruning the worse the crop. The 
difference is striking and conclusive. Had the whole of 
the laterals been spurred in the orthodox way the hunches 
on this old Vine would not have been half so fine, nor the 
value of the crop this year nearly so great as it will be 
under the unorthodox method that was wisely adopted. 
A Vine of the Duke of Buccleuch also shows the ad¬ 
vantage of long pruning, for the laterals from closely 
pruned spurs are barren, those from more prominent buds 
some distanci from the base of last year's ripened growths 
bearing fine bundles. There is no exception to this in 
the Vine under notice, and I have seen exactly similar 
results with several other Vines of the same noble Grape 
—small bunches, or no bunches, from close pruning ; fine 
bunches and plenty of them from longer yet matured 
portions of the canes. 
Let it be clearly and distinctly understood that no 
change from the orthodox system of close-spur pruning 
is advocated when satisfactory crops of Grapes are pro¬ 
duced, as they are on thousands of Vines; but when 
Vines break “ like straws” on the one hand, producing 
very small leaves, particularly near the base of the 
summer growths; or push long-jointed rampant growths 
on the other, and neither the weak nor the strong beat 
from close pruning, then obviously nothing can be lost 
by a change of method, while there is the probability, 
amounting in some cases to a certainty, of a distinct gain 
in the form of useful crops of Grapes. By all means 
improve the roots of unfruitful Vines whenever that is 
possible, and when active fibres are induced to form 
freely and abundantly in good firm soil near the surface 
of the border the character of the foliage and wood wall 
soon be changed, and the short-spur system of pruning 
may then be safely reverted to without risk, and possibly 
with advantage. But there are numbers of old Vines 
in the country, the roots of which are practically beyond 
control, that would yield more and better Grapes if only 
half or less than half the number of growths usually per¬ 
mitted were allowed to extend without their leaves crush¬ 
ing or crowding in the summer, and then shortening those 
growths to the best suitably placed buds on firm port ons 
of the canes in the winter. There is no doubt whatever 
about that, as anyone may prove who gives the plan a 
fair trial. Danger lies in overcrowding, and more than 
one person has erred in not disbudding with sufficient 
freedom after long pruning, and in not having removed 
superfluous growths in summer soon enough, and before 
evil w r as done by their retention. Avoid those mistakes, 
and the crops of many Vines may be doubled next year. 
In looking upwards in a vinery the glass of the roof 
should be seen between the laterals, and the shadows of 
these cast clearly and well defined on the ground or 
floor of the house. Then with good management as 
regirds cleanliness and ventilation, wood and foliage as 
good as the Vines can produce will mature and eventually 
bear fruit if the Vines are not positively worn out, as not 
a few are prematurely by growing them on the thicket 
system in the summer followed by the orthodox close 
pruning in the winter.— Experientia docet. 
GIGANTIC NON-ARBORESCENT FERNS. 
The reference to Angiopteris evecta made by “ Bradwen ” in 
Journal of Horticulture of May 5th, page 358, is of a most welcome 
character, as that interesting Fern, andj indeed, all those belonging 
to the same and the allied genus Marattia, are becoming extinct in 
private collections. Yet, as' the quoted writer justly remarks in 
speaking of the plant at Blacklow House, Roby, Liverpool, it is a 
majestic Fern, with fronds from 12 feet to 16 feet long, and pro¬ 
duced so abundantly that from time to time the knife is put into 
requisition to remove some of the least needed to the appearance of 
the specimen. “ Bradwen ” with much reason adds : “ That plant is 
generally found in an out-of-the-way corner of an old-established 
garden, as it is rarely seen in modern ones.” It is a somewhat 
unpalatable statement, which, however, must be accepted as truth, 
that, notwithstanding their majestic and uncommon beauty, the 
Angiopteris and Marattias are now seldom found in any other places 
than old-fashioned private establishments and botanical gardens ; 
and we are at a loss to understand why they should be so neglected, 
as their culture is extremely simple and their decorative qualities 
exceptionally good. When these plants have been once purchased 
there is hardly any danger of their being lost to their possessor, 
provided they are not kept in too warm and too dry a house, and 
that at all times of the year they receive an abundance of water at 
the roots—really essential points in the cultivation of all the plants 
belonging to that class of semi-aquatic Ferns, which for the decora¬ 
tion of large winter gardens have no equal. 
The Angiopteris and the Marattias are closely related and require 
similar treatment. They are all strong-growing plants, producing 
very broad or spreading fronds from 6 to 18 feet high. In the An¬ 
giopteris the base of their stalk is clubbed, and varies from 6 to 
10 inches in circumference, according to the size of the fronds, 
whereas in the Marattias their base is surrounded by appendages of 
a very fleshy nature, which frequently assume the character of 
abnormal or imperfectly developed fronds. Only two species of 
Angiopteris are at present known in cultivation; these are A. evecta 
from Ceylon and the Pacific Islands, and A. pruinata from Java, 
both of which require a stove, or at least a good intermediate house. 
The fronds of A. evecta, which is the species most frequently met 
with in gardens, are bipinnate, with bright shining green pinnules 
from 3 inches to 5 inches long. In general appearance A. pruinata 
greatly resembles that species, but its pinnules are somewhat broader, 
and their distinguishing feature is the fine bluish white colour of 
their under side, which differs from any other kind known. 
With the exception of Marattia elegans, which is a native of 
New Zealand, where the scales found at the base of the fronds are 
used as a vegetable and subjected to various ways of cooking, and 
which does equally well in a cool or in a warm house, all the other 
known species require a house in which the temperature does not 
fall below 50°. M. alata, a native of the West Indies, is a highly 
ornamental Fern, which makes a handsomely decorative plant for 
the conservatory. Its fronds, which are bi or tripinnate, vary from 
3 to 6 feet in length, and have their stalk winged throughout their 
entire length. There are also the Marattia laxa from Mexico, 
Kaulfussia ascencionis or purpurascens, the dwarfest kind known, 
whose bipinnate fronds rise from between two fleshy appendages 
to the height of about 4 feet, and are furnished with broad pinnules, 
wavy on their margins, and of a very dark green colour. But the 
handsomest of all Marattias is undoubtedly that which has been 
dedicated to Sir Daniel Cooper, M. Cooperi, from New Caledonia, 
and which is still very scarce, although it has been introduced for 
over twenty years. The fronds of that truly magnificent species 
are very large, massive, and quadripinnate, being thus more finely 
divided than those of any other known species. These are borne 
on very rough, thorny, stiff stalks, and rise from between two 
equally horny-looking appendages, which possess a most peculiar 
appearance. The pinnae, instead of being entire, as in most known 
species, are deeply dentate on Iheir margins, and while young of a 
light green tint, taking after a time a metallic hue, which they 
retain until later on, when they assume the dark green colour 
particular to Marattias. 
When Marattias and Angiopteris are grown in pots, these should 
be partially stood in water, or watered very freely, as being swamp- 
loving plants they require their roots, which are more fleshy, and 
entirely distinct from those of any other Ferns, to be continually 
moist. If planted out in the conservatory they could not have a 
better situation than one near water, into which, in the course of 
time, their roots will plunge, to the benefit of the plants, as is the 
caseat Liverpool, where “ Bradwen” states that the specimen has been 
planted ever since 1863. The compost most suitable for these 
Ferns, like most plants provided with succulent roots, should be of 
an open nature—two parts of rough peat to one part of chopped 
sphagnum moss, with an addition of sharp silver sand, will be all 
that is required for them in a young state, although as the subjects 
gain in strength, something more substantial is needed for their 
nourishment, and a third part of the compost may then with 
advantage consist of fibrous loam roughly broken, into which the 
roots find easy access. The greatest enemies of these handsome 
plants are the scale and the thrips, which, however, seldom attack 
