April 3. 
COUNTRY GENTLEMAN’S COMPANION. 
11 
hardened at the base, placed in sand, under a bell-glass, 
kept in a close, warm frame for two or three weeks, and 
then plunged in peat, strike readily. Pot them off as 
soon as roots are formed. Keep them close till fresh 
roots are formed, then place them in a warm stove, and 
afterwards treat them as described above for the 
established plants. T. Appleby. 
CULTURE OF THE TOMATO. 
Long before this article reaches the reader, the plants, 
on whose culture I purpose cominmenting, will have been 
sown, potted off, and advanced some considerable length; ] 
for, be it observed, the Tomato requires to bo prepared 
early, and the plants grown on some time in pots 
before they are trusted out-of-doors in May ; but as the 
process is simple, it is hardly necessary to enter into 
details; only, as it relates to other things as well, it may 
be of service to the enquirer to state a few particulars 
regarding this somewhat singular production. 
This fruit, which has been amongst us more than two 
centuries, seems to have been in as much repute an 
hundred years ago as now, though, probably, not grown 
so extensively as at present; nevertheless, there is no 
reason to believe that the constitutional features of the 
plant are the same as when it was first introduced, and, 
very probably, the varieties now in general cultivation 
may be somewhat more tender than their predecessors, 
as most improvements in the quality of fruits, vegetables, 
or flowers, are effected by some sacrifice or other in the 
hardihood or robustness of the plants acted upon. 
Being an annual plaut, seeds of it must bo saved 
from year to year, I generally save a few good fruit 
that may have been damaged, and put them into 
a flower-pot with sand; they keep very well, and the 
seed, being rubbed out, ought to be sown in pots early 
in March, or even in February, if there is not a place 
where they can be hastened forward. Let the pots he 
placed in a hotbed, and the seed soon vegetates and 
grows freely. The seedlings will speedily require potting ; 
off, two or jthree plants together iuto h pot, and set into 
the frame again, where they may be allowed to remain j 
until the small pots into which they were potted be¬ 
come full of roots, when they may be removed iuto 
larger ones; but they must then, or soon after, be placed ! 
in a cooler medium, in order that they be gradually i 
hardened off, so as finally to be capable of enduring j 
the sheltered places in the garden in the open air by the j 
first of May. Not that it is prudent, in all cases, to plant 
them out so soon, but as they may have to be planted 
out before long, they ought to be inured to the open 
air a few days before that operation is performed, giving 
them some shelter at nights; for though the plant will 
luxuriate and grow rapidly in almost any soil, yet the 
slightest frost takes effect on it. Before planting out, 
the plaut should have made a considerable advance of 
growth in the pot, and if it be, to a certain extent, pot- 
bound, it will be no worse. In fact, I like them to have 
the flower-blossoms set and partially opened before the 
plant is turned out; for though the plant will usually 
take a rampant growth again, it is more likely to cease 
doing so, and commence bearing fruit, by being cramped 
in its earliest growth. 
We now come to the station suitable for this singular 
production; and although it is reported to be quite at 
home everywhere, and, no doubt, will grow in most 
situations in ordinary summers, still it is only in favoured 
places that it will produce and ripen fruit; consequently, 
it is only the best places that are suitable for it. The 
shelter and advantage of a wall seems absolutely neces¬ 
sary to make sure of its ripening its fruit; but it will, 
occasionally, ripen very well on the open ground, when 
planted at the distance qf three or four feet apart, with 
each plaut tied up to a stake, and the shoots carefully 
thinned out; but this depends much on the season and 
other circumstances; and, after all, cannot be reccom- 
rnended in any situations north of the Trent, and hut few 
north of the Thames. One thing, much depends on local 
circumstances, and still more on the season. The former 
will sometimes make a difference of a hundred miles or 
more; the latter, three or four times that amqpnt; but 
taking everything into consideration, the amateur may 
safely plant his Tomatoes on such unoccupied portions 
of his south wall as he can do without injury to the 
trees, or other more legitimate objects there ; they may 
also be planted on east and west walls with a tolerable 
certainty of success, or the south side of a close paling- 
fence will do very well; as the plants are not expected 
to get higher than four or five feet, and often bear 
much lower, the object is to get them low, and keep 
them from attaining too gross and rampant a growth ; 
for that purpose, the ground should not be too rich, 
neither should it be too moist. 
If there is reason to suppose the plants are rambling 
too much in the latter part of summer, it is good 
practice to cut the roots all round each plant, at the 
distance of eighteen inches or so from it, about the 
beginning of September, or before. This mutilation of 
roots checks the tending to produce wood, and the plant 
ripens its fruit better, and the whole goes on as desired. 
Now and then difficulties arise;—a dull, cold season 
renders it no easy matter to obtain good, ripe fruit in 
the northern counties; but much may be done by 
severe pruning and exposure of the fruit to sunshine ; 
still, it is not prudent to rob the plant of all its leaves, 
a certain portion is necessary to support its existence, 
as well as to ripen its produce; and towards the latter 
part of the season, some protection at night may be 
necessary, as the least frost is fatal to the plant. 
It is hardly necessary to say much regarding the soil in 
which this plant may he grown; suffice it to say, that 
where the natural soil is extremely stubborn in texture, 
a barrow-load of stone brash, or limy rubbish, will be of 
great service in opening the staple of the soil, and 
improving the growth of the plant; but this is seldom 
necessary, as the soil of most wall-borders is good 
enough for the purpose. 
A correspondent, who wishes to grow a few in pots, 
under glass, may undoubtedly succeed in doing so ; but, 
usually, few people would think them deserving of pot- 
culture, unless in situations where their out-door culture 
was precarious; and even when grown under glass, 
their growth of long-jointed, useless shoots, far out-run 
their fruitfulness. I have seen some in a vinery 
produce fewer good fruit than the same plants did 
out-of-doors. The richness of the medium in which 
they wero planted, doubtless accounted for their barren¬ 
ness in one respect, and a fine season compensated for 
those outside. So that, on the wdiole, I would not advise 
their being planted under glass, unless it were some 
low, upright structure adapted to them. J. Robson. 
PUNICA GRANATUM. 
(The Pomegranate.) 
This plant, which is so beautiful under the sunny skies 
of the Continent, barely does more than vegetate under the 
cloudy skies of England. On the roof of a house in Paris, 
with which I am acquainted, every summer stands a Pome¬ 
granate, grown in the usual square Caisse of French gar¬ 
deners, which is always covered with its beautiful scarlet 
blossom. I asked the owner of it the treatment he gave it, 
and he said he gave it always the hottest exposure to the 
lull blaze of the sun, and plenty of water, so that it should 
always have the earth in a humid stale. At the approach of 
