1876. ] 
REMAEKS ON ORCHARD-HOUSE CULTURE. 
43 
trees, else they also would be under cover. The Peaches and Nectarines are 
brought in, as the trees are more tender. The trees must be looked over about 
once in a week, and all requiring water should have a good supply. No more 
than this is required until the blossoms begin to expand, when about eleven 
o’clock every morning the branches must be shaken sufiSciently to distribute the 
pollen; at this time admit air freely, and leave the ventilators open a little at 
night, if the weather is mild. If, at this stage of growth, the weather is dull and 
cold, the heating-apparatus should be used, if there is one. When the fruit has set, it 
will probably be necessary to thin-out more than three-parts of it at first, reserving 
about twice as many as will be required for a crop; it is not good management to 
leave the fruit on longer than it is necessary to do so, for even in the very early 
stages of its existence, the small fruit must exhaust the resources of the tree, 
'being formed almost as soon as the leaves. 
When the trees are healthy and under good management, the fruit may all 
be thinned-out long before the stoning-period. The stoning-period lasts about 
six weeks, and when the stones are being formed the fruit does not swell. 
Immediately on the completion of the stoning process the fruit swells rapidly. 
The house should then be kept close and moist, shutting quite close as early in 
the afternoon as possible, so that the temperature may rise to 85° ; the night 
temperature may be 65° or 70°. As the ripening period approaches, the temperature 
must be lowered, more air admitted, and less moisture given. Previous to this, 
the trees should have been syringed twice a day, but as the fruit ripens syringing 
must also be discontinued. 
When the fruit has been gathered, the trees that require it are repotted. Those 
that were potted the year previous will not be done this season, but they will be 
surface-dressed. A tree turned out of a 15-in. pot is very frequently repotted in 
one of the same size. When this is done, the roots must be very much cut back, 
but the trees (although the leaves may flag a little for the first day or two) do 
not suffer. The house is kept a little closer at the time of potting and surface¬ 
dressing. The trees are turned out of doors a few weeks after repotting, but they 
have generally made fresh roots, and are fairly established. As soon as the trees 
are turned out, the house is filled with Chrysanthemums and other seasonable 
fiowering plants, which make a splendid display for more than two months. 
Besides the other fruit-trees, there are shelves all round the house for Strawberry- 
plants in pots, which are also very highly esteemed, as they give us a supply of 
good fruit before that out-of-doors is ripe. 
I would like to name a few of the best sorts of fruit-trees for Orchard-house 
culture. The varieties are now very numerous, but a few of the best sorts only 
should be grown, if the intention is to keep up a supply of good fruit. If variety 
is desired, a score or more of distinct Peaches, and very nearly as many 
Nectarines, might be named. I consider the following six Peaches to be the best 
for Orchard-house culture:—Early York, Boyal George, Grosse Mignonne, Belle- 
garde, Barrington, and Exquisite ; the two last are rather shy setters, but with a 
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