1875. ] 
THE CULTUKE OF WALL-FRUITS.—CHAPTER IY. 
169 
GENISTA VIRGATA. 
WITH AN ILLUSTRATION. 
the opportunity of figuring this rare and comparatively little-known 
(]|p shrub, we are indebted to Mr. Anthony Waterer. It would be an ever- 
f green, were it not that its persistent leaves are grey from the presence of a 
covering of whitish hairs, and when in blossom in the month of May, it is 
literally enveloped in its pretty yellow blossoms. At Knap Hill it is found to 
be quite hardy, and few things are more desirable for the decoration of sheltered 
shrubberies, in situations where it will thrive. It is a compact-growing shrub, 
producing strong shoots (the upper part of one of which is represented in our 
figure) from which issue slender twiggy branches, clothed with oblong-lanceolate 
leaves, clothed with silky hairs, while the flowers are in racemes, of moderate 
size and of a clear pale yellow colour, the standard being marked with a spot of 
golden-yellow near the base. 
The species is a native of Madeira, and appears to have been introduced to 
the Milford Nursery in 1825. It was planted out there in 1833, and withstood 
the severe winter of 1836-7. The plant was formerly cultivated at Chiswick, 
where Dr. Lindley states that it formed a loose spreading bush, of about 4 ft. in 
height, and was found capable of enduring the ordinary winters of the climate of 
London, if placed in a dry situation and planted in a loamy soil. It flowers 
freely in May and June. Nothing can be more bright and cheerful than the 
aspect of this graceful shrub when in full blossom.—T. Moore. 
THE CULTURE OF WALL-FRUITS. 
Chapter IV.— The Peach and Nectarine. 
yz-i'E come now to the consideration of the practical application of the 
principles set forth in the preceding chapters, and I think it will con¬ 
duce to the more useful and comprehensive rendering of the application 
of those principles, if we take the different sorts of fruits separately, 
because although they possess certain characteristic qualities in common, yet the 
treatment best suited to each differs materially in its mode of application, 
although precisely the same results may be aimed at. 
Having this end in view, I place the Peach and Nectarine first on the list, 
as they appear to me to be worthy of a prominent place, not only for the general 
excellence of their produce, but because to my mind they are, of all fruits under 
an artificial system of cultivation, the most amenable to discipline. Hence they 
may be regarded as the most desirable to be brought forward for the purpose of 
opening out a subject, which it will be my endeavour to simplify, and make as 
plain as possible for the guidance both of the amateur cultivator and the 
thinking young gardener. I say ‘ thinking,’ because such knowledge does not 
come to a man by instinct, but by deep thought and careful research. Many 
hard-headed and practical men do occasionally hit upon a method of treatment 
3rd series,—viii, q 
