May 29. 
COUNTRY GENTLEMAN’S COMPANION. 
139 
to recommend our readers to go and judge for them¬ 
selves, and we cannot doubt but they will come away 
as much gratified as we did. 
FRUIT-FORCING DURING THIS UNGENIAL 
SPRING. 
Before I begin to look into our forcing-houses, let 
me for a moment advert to the singular weather we 
have endured. From what I can learn, the frosts of 
May have been common to all England, and it is not 
improbable that the sphere of their operations has been 
much wider. We counted nine degrees of frost at 
Oulton Park, on Saturday morning, the 5th of May ; but 
on the 4th, the ice was much thicker, being a quarter-of- 
an-inch. 
This is, certainly, a strange state of temperature for a 
May report; but it has not been a mere matter of ice 
alone : we had almost nightly frosts through three parts 
of April and into May, and, moreover, no lack of snow 
and hail-storms. Of course, these atmospheric condi¬ 
tions havo materially influenced hothouse management; 
more firing, more covering, has been the result; and, 
setting aside the matter of fuel for a moment, the cover¬ 
ing-up affair has become a serious consideration. Every 
one knows that in consequence of the disastrous war we 
are engaged in, Russian mats have become much dearer, 
and, as a concomitant of high cost, less substantial. A 
much greater consumption of fuel has of necessity 
taken place this spring, and the necessity for strong 
night fires, as a more defensive procedure, has not been 
particularly favourable to our forcers. 
It is not unlikely that we shall hear much talk of the 
Red Spider shortly, as so much fire-heat is known to be 
favourable to its habits. I would advise a very liberal 
use of sulphur, especially in Vineries, both on account 
of the Spider and the dreaded Vine mildew, which is 
almost sure to make its appearance. I am, however, 
happy to say that it has not yet shown itself here, 
although we have had its visitations, less or more, for 
two successive years. It generally makes its appearance 
towards the end of the first swelling, and proceeds at a 
most rapid pace if not arrested. There is no doubt that 
sulphur is efficient as to its destruction; but the worst 
of it is it makes such a mess amongst the berries when 
applied to the bunches, and is sadly destructive of that 
fine bloom for which good grapes are so much admired. 
I would advise all Vine managers to paint over all 
available surfaces instantly, in order to obviate, if pos¬ 
sible, the necessity for applying it to the branches 
themselves. We have before observed that there is no 
danger in applying sulphur to the surface of flues, pipes, 
&c., which can never become too hot for the hand to 
grasp without any unpleasant sensation. Our flues, 
pipes, &c., are all covered in this way, and have been all 
the spring; indeed, we have repeated the application 
over the same surface. In addition, the walls of the 
houses have been lime-washed, and the dressing made 
to carry as much sulphur as possible. We, therefore, 
hope so to escape its ravages as not to be compelled to 
smother the trees with sulphur; but, nevertheless, if we 
perceive any decided commencement, we shall instantly 
dust tire trees, as through the omission of this, the first 
season, we suffered seriously from it. 
The Cucumber disease has commenced again in this 
neighbourhood. In the earliest frame here, one hill was 
struck the instant it began to bear, and the plant be¬ 
came a wreck in a few days. We have tried sulphur, 
and some other things, for this destructive disease, but 
hitherto we have failed to arrest its ravages ; and from 
all we can learn, it bids fair to become as general as the 
Potato disease, unless some means are discovered to I 
arrest its progress. It attacks tire Melon plants also; 
and a few years since we had a huge plant of the Vege¬ 
table Marrow, which extended twenty feet, adjoining 
some infected Cucumbers. This plant, from the very 
height of luxuriance, became in one fortnight a mass of 
corruption. The mode of attack, and all connected with 
it, bore the most complete identity with the Cucumber 
disease, and I have little doubt the Tomato disease is 
the same. If we be right in this conjecture, we see little 
chance of getting quit of it; but if these minute fungi 
were peculiar to one plant alone, the discontinuance of 
its culture for one year might offer a good chance of its 
extermination; “ removing the midden would get rid of 
the Mushrooms.” 
I still cling to the hope that sulphur persisted in, 
perhaps in much stronger doses than we have hitherto 
been accustomed to, may be found either to cure or to 
palliate this evil; and I advise inexperienced gardeners 
to resume the good old plan of putting slates daubed 
with a sulphur paint over the surface of their Melon 
and Cucumber beds. This I am at present carrying 
out; for we must not stand like fatalists with folded arms; 
this will not suit the lively atmosphere of Britain. 
It appears to me that, barring the pernicious in¬ 
fluence of the Vine mildew, this is likely to be a pro¬ 
ductive season as to fruit-forcing. It is equally manifest, 
as with our out-door fruits, that the previous summer 
has exercised most beneficial influences on the heads of 
our fruit-trees, even those in-doors; for it is not a mere 
question of beat. We, doubtless, had much more than 
an average amount of solar light in the aggregate during 
last summer, and I shall be surprised if this does not 
show its generous influences in the quality as well as 
size of our fruits. 
This must have been a terrific spring to those who 
have to winter their Pines in dung-pits. Surely these 
proceedings will shortly become mere matter of history. 
The expense involved in the waste of manure, the 
labour, and, not least, the anxiety, to say little of the 
half-failures in consequence, are enough surely to cause 
any one either to give up Pine culture, or to adopt a 
better plan. 
I shall hope to hear a good report of our Orchard- 
houses ; for, surely, what with the heat and light of the 
previous summer, the decided rest of the past winter, 
and the material retardation fruits have received, those 
in pots, tubs, &c., must be in an excellent position as to 
prospects. The recurrence of such terrific weather as 
we have had again right into May, will go far towards 
making fresh converts to the Orchard-house system. As 
for glass walls, we now hear little about them. Our 
worthy Editor was not far wrong when he termed them 
“ expensive toys.” I do hope to hear of a great increase 
in the plain, simple, and, of course, economical Orchard- 
houses ; tolerably low, compact, and mostly running north 
and south; or, in other words, giving a morning and 
an afternoon side. R. Errington. 
EXHIBITION OF THE HORTICULTURAL 
SOCIETY AT GORE HOUSE.— 16th May. 
It was lucky that the Society were able to hold their 
May Exhibition at Gore House—almost in London—for 
the day, and the day before the show, were cold and 
threatening for rain, so that it would be hazardous for 
ladies to venture down as far as Chiswick. Gore 
House is only a stone’s throw, on the other side of the 
way, from where the first Crystal Palace stood in Hyde 
Park. If the Horticultural Society could exchange 
their garden at Chiswick for that at Gore House, they 
might compete, successfully, with that at the Regent’s 
Park, and be a comfort to the show people; but their 
