N-OT^mhcr 15, '894. 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER, 
459 
size and crop. Early Violet and St. John’s may be grown for affording 
dishes of very early fruit, but Brown Turkey is the best for general 
purposes, White Marseilles being a fine Fig, and somewhat earlier than 
Brown Turkey. 
Early Forced Planted-out Fig Trees. —These should now be un¬ 
loosed from the trellis and pruned. Those with the roots restrieted to 
small borders, which are the most satisfactory in results, will require 
the shoots thinned where too crowded, cutting away the growths that 
have reached the extremity of the trellis and are not longer capable of 
producing fruit. Cut back to the point where the succeeding shoots 
start from on the main branches, and remove old bare limbs wherever 
practicable in favour of young and promising growths. Remove any 
elongated spurs, reserving such as are short-jointed and promise for 
fruit. The house should then be thoroughly cleansed, washing the 
woodwork with hot wa'er and the walls afterwards with quicklime and 
sulphur, using hot water for slaking and mixing. Wash the trees with 
warm, soapy water, and afterwards dress with an insecticide, then 
secure the trees to the trellis, allowing room for the growth of the 
branches. Fork the border over very lightly, not injuring the roots in 
any way ; remove the loose material, supply an inch or two thickness of 
good calcareous loam, or if there be a deficiency of such matter add 
one-sixth of old mortar rubbish to good loam, then, or before growth 
takes place, add an inch thickness of short manure, and this will tend 
to keep the roots active near the surface and supply considerable 
nutrient matter. Ventilate the house freely at all times, except during 
severe weather, when a few degrees of frost will not injure the trees 
provided the wood is thoroughly ripe and the soil only moderately 
moist. 
Succession Fig Houses. —Prune and cleanse the trees without delay 
as soon as the leaves are all down, as this gives no vantage to insects, 
but to a great extent prevents red spider hibernating, and scale now 
removed stands a chance of the eggs not being produced or of not 
hatching. Complete any root-pruning and lifting, this being the only 
sure means of inducing fruitfulness in exuberant trees, combined with 
restricting the rooting area and a firm soil composed of calcareous 
material. Trees so treated are more manageable than with an unlimited 
root space, especially of rich and loose components. Any unfruitful 
trees should be severely root-pruned, cutting away a corresponding 
portion of strong, bare, unbranched limbs, leaving sufficient young and 
promising for covering the trellis, and restrict the roots to moderate- 
sized borders of firm calcareous materials, and feed from the surfaces, 
encouraging active feeders there by judicious light mulchings of sweet, 
rather lumpy partially decayed manure, which should be added to from 
time to time during active growth, so as to keep an even mulch of about 
an inch in thickness. Sprinklings of chemical manures, especially 
superphosphates, powdered saltpetre, and ground gypsum will sustain 
the trees in health, and the development and perfection of almost any 
amount of crop. 
Pines. —Young plants need liberal ventilation at this time of year 
■to prevent a soft attenuated growth, therefore afford fresh air whenever 
the weather be favourable, and avoid damping, as keeping the houses 
saturated is more injurious than beneficial. Water will be little 
required, yet the plants should be examined about every ten days, 
affording a supply to such as need it and those only, yet extreme 
dryness is injurious, for any limpness is had at the expense of the 
tissues, the cells being more or less impaired for growing activity on a 
recurrence of favourable conditions for development. 
Lose no opportunity in the fruiting department of closing the house 
at 85°, keeping the night temperature at 70°, or a few degrees less in 
severe weather. Remove all superfluous suckers, retaining one only, or 
at most two if stock be required, on each plant, selecting the most 
promising for retaining. Suckers that appear on successional plants 
before the fruit is visible should be removed; exceptions are when stock is 
required, and then the fruit is more or less sacrificed in its favour. 
Such stock, however, is not desirable, for the plants are liable to have 
the same proclivities as the parent ones. 
At this time of year it is usual to make new beds of fermenting 
material for the young plants. Tan is the best, but it is difficult to 
procure in some places—more so now than formerly when less chemicals 
were used. In most country places Oak or Beech leaves can be had for 
the collecting, and this being done whilst they are fairly dry, they form 
an excellent substitute. Those intended for use later on cannot be too 
dry, placing them in stacks, forming a span roof and thatching roughly 
with any coarse material, as bracken, reeds, coarse hay or straw. In 
forming beds of leaves they must be put together as firmly as possible, 
treading well after placing in a layer of leaves evenly shook out and so 
on. Thrown in any way the material settles very unevenly, and gives 
far more trouble afterwards than that needed to do the work properly 
nt first. 
Strawberries In Pots. —All plants for early forcing should be in 
frames with a view to protect them from heavy rains and render them 
available for being draughted to the forcing house whenever required. 
Those for midseason and late forcing are as well plunged in ashes in a 
sheltered situation as anywhere else ; indeed, better than in piles against 
walls or houses with constantly open ventilators, which, from the 
currents of air, dries the life out of them and favours attacks of aphides 
and red spider. When plunged outdoors the plants are cool, moist, and 
airy—primary conditions for Strawberry plants, and a light Covering of 
bracken or straw in severe weather will save the tenderest varieties from 
injury. Plants of La Grosae Suciee and Vicomtesse Hericart de 
Thury should be held in readiness for starting early in next month. 
Peaches and TJectarlnes. — Late Houses. —Lifting and root- 
pruning trees should be taken in hand when the leaves are falling, having 
no regard to sappy lateral growths, as these will hold their leaves a con¬ 
siderable time longer than the matured wood, and though they may 
suffer from the check consequent on lifting, it is immaterial, as they will 
be cut away at the winter pruning, even accelerating root activity by 
the greenness of their parts while they remain. During the operation 
the house must be kept rather close, the trees lightly syringed if the 
weather be bright, and the roots as little exposed as possible. When 
the operation is completed and the trees quite leafless, except the 
laterals, ventilate freely in all weathers. If the trees do not require lifting, 
and the wood is not quite ripe, it will be advisable to keep the house 
rather close by day when there is sun heat, and to throw it open at night, 
which will soon harden the wood, especially if the growth be thin so as 
to allow of light and air having free access. If the wood be at all 
crowded it should be thinned. There must not be any deficiency of 
moisture at the roots, as they will not develop the buds properly, falling 
when they should be expanding in the spring. 
Winter Cucumbers.— Add a little warm soil to the sides of the 
hillocks or ridges as the roots show, continuing this with late plantings 
at short intervals, which is better than supplying a quantity of soil at 
once. Complete the earthing of the autumn plants, and then feed at 
the surface with short sweetened stable manure, which will encourage 
surface roots, and stimulate steady growth by the matter supplied. 
The ammonia evolved, it not too strong, greatly benefits the foliage. 
On fine days it is better to turn off the top heat than have recourse to 
excessive ventilation, as sun heat has a wonderful effect on the foliage, 
and the more chlorophyll got into that the better the plants will prosper 
in sunless weather. Besides heat radiated at a high temperature is not 
good for the foliage, therefore blinds to draw down at night will lessen 
the need of fire heat, and save fuel. They must be used to interfere 
with as little light as possible. 
HARDY FRUIT GARDEN. 
Preparing Fruit Tree Borders. —Specially prepared borders 
either in the open in suitable places or against walls afford good 
positions for the choicer kinds of fruit, and walls with any aspect can 
be utilised for some kind of fruit or other. South, south-eastern, and 
south-western aspects should be reserved for Peaches, Nectarines, and 
Apricots where these succeed outdoors. Where they do not the space 
may be occupied with the most select varieties of Apples, Pears, Plums, 
and Cherries. Eastern and western positions also do for Plums and 
Pears ; northern aspects for Morello Cherries, late Gooseberries, and 
Currants. Pigs and Grapes must have a full south aspect. The best 
forms of trees for walls are espalier, cordon, and fan-shaped. Compara¬ 
tively narrow strips of ground in favourable situations in the open may 
be occupied with espalier trees, as well as cordons, trained to fences of 
wire, also bush and pyramid-shaped trees. In numerous cases the 
borders selected need but little preparation beyond deeply digging or 
trenching the required width, working the soil thoroughly 2 feet deep. 
Draining. —In very unfavourable subsoils, however, draining is 
required. Each border therefore should have a tile drain in connection 
with it, so constructed as to have a proper fall and outlet to a main 
land drain. The base of the border ought to have a concrete foundation 
3 or 4 inches thick, the base inclining to the drain. With borders in 
the open the base must be slightly convex in shape, and a drain on each 
side. In subsoils cold, damp, and heavy, though not actually water¬ 
logged, a less elaborate system may be adopted, this consisting of placing 
a foot depth of rubble at the bottom of borders, over that well-prepared 
soil, which should be raised 6 to 9 inches above the surrounding level. 
Width of Borders. —The quality of the soil must regulate the width 
as well as the size the trees will ultimately attain to. On free stocks 
more room is needed, the largest trees trained on the highest walls not 
being accommodated in less than 9 or 10 feet width of border. For cordon 
trained trees 6 feet wide borders must be the limit for the longest, 3 feet 
usually being enough for those of lesser length, as well as for wall- 
trained Gooseberries and Rad and White Currants. 
Depth of Borders.— substantial materials, consisting mainly of 
loam firmly put together to the depth of 2 feet, or fertile garden soil 
sparingly manured now, but enriched previously and worked well to the 
above depth, provide a root run which is ample in all cases. If the 
upper soil be shallow and the subsoil inferior a portion of the latter may 
be removed, replacing with good vegetable soil from an adjoining 
quarter. This may be further improved by the addition of turf, wood 
ashes, and old mortar rubbish intermixed if the planting of stone fruit 
trees is contemplated and the soil is deficient in calcareous matter. 
Distances for Planting:. —Espalier or horizontally trained Apples 
and Pears on free stocks should be planted 20 to 24 feet asunder against 
12 feet high walls, 6 feet less in distance on lower walls or espalier 
fences, on the dwarf stocks 12 feet apart; Peaches, Nectarines, and 
Apricots, Plums, and Cherries 15 to 20 feet asunder, the form of trees 
being dwarf-trained or fan-shaped. Upright and diagonal cordons may 
be planted 18 inches to 2 feet apart, pyramidal Pears on the Pear stock 
10 feet, on the Quince 6 feet, pyramidal Apples on the Paradise 
stock 6 feet asunder. With regular root-pruning to prevent the trees 
making strong growth of an unfruitful character Apples and Pears on 
dwarfing stocks may be planted as close together as 4 feet, and on free 
stocks with root restriction 6 feet asunder. 
Planting: Fruit Trees In Grass. —Where it is intended to plant 
fruit trees in grass the turf should first be pared off within a circle 0 £ 
9 feet diameter. The top spit soil will mostly be good ; throw it on on 
