September 15. 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
405 
them. On these places, and with an east, west, or south 
aspect, it is planted and trained with' a fair prospect of 
success; perhaps, the only fault, in many instances, 
being the too lavish expenditure of rich materials in 
the planting, and the too sparing use of the knife in the 
pruning. This we herewith beg to call particular attention 
to, because we conceive it to be the error against which 
most cultivators stumble; not, perhaps, with a just 
knowledge of the cause which governs their doing so, 
yet, nevertheless, such is the case. 
It would be idle to affirm, that cutting off large por¬ 
tions from a luxuriant annual plant, like the Tomato, 
did not, in some measure, injure it, in so far as its 
health and constitutional energy are concerned. This, 
however, is true no further than the elongation of the 
1 vine and production of foliage is concerned; and, as 
nature has intended it to furnish the means of reproducing 
itself, it follows, that means taken to give unwonted 
vigour to the plant must be at variance with the general 
purpose of fruitfulness, by diverting the channels which 
ought to support the one, into the wildness which the 
other gives rise to ; this, naturally, points out that some 
“ check” must be given. One mode is by curtailing the 
top, as above; and the other, is doing the same to the 
root: with these two agents at work, and the use of 
1 what other advantages the place possesses, this fruit is 
often ripened in a way that gives little to wish for. 
Observe, in the pruning or curtailing of the roots, care 
must be taken to do that simultaneously with the top. 
In general, a spade thrust down, so as to cut through 
all the roots that ramify more than a foot from the I 
collar of the plant is often deemed sufficient; but it ; 
would not be bad practice to plant them on ground less 
rich than the usual class of wall-borders are in England; 
supposing that stones, brickbats, sand, and other rubbish, 
were substituted for dung, and other enriching matters, 
and the above surrounded by an impenetrable clay- 
band, to keep the roots, which, I have no doubt, would j 
relish the stones, &c., from going further from home in 
search of more unctuous food; whichever way it was, 
certainly there would be less tendency to produce rank, 
useless wood, than is now the case in such deep garden 
soils; and the best fruit that we have ever seen has 
been in gardens where the soil approaches somewhat to 
that described, as a less rampant growth would assuredly i 
become more prolific, as far as fruit is concerned; and 
there is little reason to fear that the plant would suffer 
from lack of moisture. 
As, however, it is too late to prepare stations for plants 
of the present year, let those which do exist have all 
the loose and useless shoots cut away, and, if needs be, 
a part of the smaller fruit thinned off likewise, and the 
larger ones fully exposed to the sun ; and, to check that 
undue supply of the good things with which the border 
] is composed of, let a spade be thrust in all around the 
plant, severing its roots to the compass of a good 
largo pot. This will check the production of laterals 
! and spray; and it is likely the sunshine, which we may 
yet have, will suffice to give that rich colour, without 
which this fruit is not much regarded. The flavour which 
a bright sun can ouly give must not be looked for; but, 
j in a season like the present one, wherein we have here, 
i in a manner, removed some four or five degrees north- 
i ward, we must adopt the means made use of there to 
perfect tender produce, and be content with its meagre¬ 
ness as well; at the same time, when facilities do exist 
of giving some protection to the plant in cold nights, let 
that be at once done; warding off heavy dews will be 
also beneficial; but to be continually under glass is 
seldom so good as out-doors, the propensity of the 
plant being then the production of vine, rather than 
fruit; hence the evil; but in autumn, glass lights are very 
beneficial, for it is then that we derive the warmth and 
shelter after the growing season is in a measure gone. 
Although Tomatoes are grown on trellises, and some¬ 
times tied to single stakes, like Raspberries, &c., and 
often ripen in tolerable perfection in such places, yet 
they are generally favoured with other circumstances 
which the private grower cannot command. 
J. Robson. 
CULTIVATION OF RYE. 
Rye is an inferior kind of grain, and much grown in 
many of the Continental states, as a staple produce, | 
upon certain districts of poor land, where it forms the 
chief crop of corn cultivated for sale. 
It also enters largely into consumption as a food of 
the poorer sort of people in Russia, and other parts of j 
the Continent; being converted, either wholly or 
partly, into a very coarse kind of bread ; but it is very ‘ 
dark in colour, and unpalatable, being also very defi¬ 
cient in nutrition, as compared with wheaten bread. 
In this country it is grown chiefly for feeding sheep 
in early spring, or for the soiling of cattle; the grain is, 
however, often used for mealing purposes, being ground 
with Barley, in the proportion of two parts Barley and 
one part Rye; this mixture is used only when the re¬ 
lative price of the grain renders it advisable. The 
poorer soils of England, and those only which are too 
barren, or too much out of condition to produce the 
better kinds of grain, are usually cropped with this 
grain for the purpose of sale; yet, in some instances, 
land capable of yielding a good return of other grain is 
sown with Rye, by reason of its coming so early to tbe 
harvest that a heavy crop may be taken from the land, 
and the stubble ploughed down, and succeeded by a 
crop of Turnips, for which purpose it answers well; the 
Rye crop being removed from the laud from ten days to 
a fortnight earlier than the Wheat crop, gives good time 
and opportunity for the obtaining a full crop of White 
Turnips. 
Upon the best soils it is more usual to grow Rye for 
early feeding of sheep, to be followed by a crop’ of 
Swedish Turnips, and the land is certainly remarkably 
This plan should, however, be only adopted upon land 
dry, clean, and free from couch grass, in order that the 
Turnips may be sown after one ploughing. 
When Rye is cut for soiling cattle and horses, for 
which purpose it comes very early, and before other 
green crops, the writer has found it answer to sow 
about as much as may be required to feed the cattle 
for a period of ten days previous to the Trifolium being 
ready to cut for the same purpose 
To insure a succession of these green crops, it is best 
to select a field intended for Turnips the next season, 
and to sow a part with Rye, part with Trifolium, and 
part with Tares, and about as much as will furnish a 
supply of each kind of food in their season, having re¬ 
gard to the quantity of stock to be fed. 
A few years since, the St. John’s Day Bye, so called 
because the proper period of sowing was about that day, 
was much written up; but, although the produce is 
somewhat earlier, and much more valuable as green 
