105 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER AND COUNTRY GENTLEMAN, November 17, 1857. 
be placed at the coolest end of the house, the general average 
temperature ranging from 55° to 65°. The other end may 
be kept moister and warmer, but each tribe of plants must 
be treated according to their requirements, and such par¬ 
ticular information you will find in previous volumes.] 
WHAT CAN BE GROWN IN A VINERY. 
“ The house is forty-five feet long in two compartments, 
one to use as an early and one for the general crop. The 
centre of each is occupied by a pit, under which pass double 
flues and air draughts under an arched vault. The part 
nearest the upper path is again covered in, to grow Mush¬ 
rooms in the darkened sides and force early Asparagus, &c. 
In the pits I wish to grow in pots Peaches, Nectarines, 
Plums, and Apricots ; but all my gardening friends tell me 
that such an attempt will fail, as red spider will thereby be 
introduced, to the certain destruction of the Grapes. Will 
some of your numerous correspondents favour me with their 
experience in this matter, and especially as to what purpose 
I can best employ the pits I have mentioned during the 
winter season ? ”— Hamlet. 
[So far as we understand your description Mushrooms 
will do well in the place you mention if the heat is not too 
dry and is seldom over 60°. From 55° to 58° we consider 
the best for Mushrooms, though we should prefer 50° to Co°. 
(See an article in the last volume by Mr. Fish.) Asparagus 
would also do there if you like it white, or you may cut it a 
few days before it is used, and set it with the base end rest¬ 
ing in water fully in the light to green it. Sea-kale and 
Rhubarb would do admirably in the same place. There is 
nothing to prevent you having Peaches and Nectarines in 
the pit, provided you can give them light enough and you 
do not force the Vines much, as they do not stand so high a 
temperature as the Vines. Plums and Apricots you could 
only succeed with in the cold house, where little artificial 
heat was given. If you use the syringe pretty freely and 
sulphur water at times there will be no particular liability 
to the red spider farther than this—that the greater the 
number and the variety of plants you have in one place the 
greater the liability to insects and other evils. The whole 
matter must also be looked upon as a compromise, as getting 
as much quantity and variety out of one place as possible, 
and this rather than extra quality in any one thing. Thus, 
supposing your pit is supplied with some nice plants in pots 
or tubs of Peaches and Nectarines, you must not have a 
high temperature until the fruit of these is securely set. 
After that what will be good for the Vines will not incommode 
the Peaches much if they have plenty of light and fresh 
air. When they colour and begiu to ripen abundance of air 
must also be given, and, to secure flavour, that abundance 
will very likely check the free swelling of the Grapes. We 
have had very good, sometimes prize fruit of both under 
these conditions, but that is not generally to be depended 
on. For quality it is best to devote one house to one thing. 
You have an advantage in the two divisions, as you can 
move plants from one to the other. The pits in winter 
would do for any kinds of bedding plants and greenhouse 
plants. Before fire heat was applied they would make 
excellent preservatories for Lettuces, Cauliflowers, &c. 
With a little hot dung below them Asparagus roots would 
do well. A Mushroom bed made in the end of September 
would bear most of the winter and spring. Potatoes could 
also be grown in pots and boxes, and moved when the house 
got too hot for them. Very early Potatoes may be thus 
procured.] 
VINE PRUNING. 
“ My Vines are two years planted. Last year they reached 
half way up the roof with a single cane. In November I 
cut them back to the eaves of the house, and this year they 
have come strong, and they have almost ripened three 
canes each up to the wall. In June I stopped the laterals, 
and every three weeks since I have gone over them and 
taken off the young spray. In all this have I done right or 
wrong ? Now that the winter pruning season is at hand 
shall I depend on the first bud at the axil of the large leaf 
for next year’s crop, or shall I leave a spur at each joint 
with a bud above that upon it? Shall I look for fruit at 
every joint, or would you prefer disbudding them? They 
are all very close jointed.”— The Clodhopper. 
[You were perfectly right in cutting back the Vines in the 
first year’s pruning. Unless you intend each Vine to have 
three main shoots, or to grow them on the succession-rod 
system, you were wrong in allowing three shoots for your 
Vine. If you can only give four or five feet in width for each 
Vine it would have been better to have concentred its strength 
into one main shoot, and whatever came below that should 
have been shortened by nipping out the point when eighteen 
inches or so in length. If you carefully read previous 
articles you will find that the longer you allowed the 
laterals to grow, the stronger, other things being equal, 
wo aid the wood be. You did right, however, in stopping 
the laterals, as otherwise you might have strength of wood 
at the expense of not having mature wood, and the buds 
pointed and small instead of large and round. So far as 
we can see you also did right in removing the young spray ; 
but this should have been done by degrees, and not all at 
once in every three weeks or any other specified time. The 
whole of the spray and also the laterals should have been 
removed before you asked your question, that is, by October, 
as the maturing, rather than the growing processes should 
then demand most attention. If you had done this you 
would not have required to ask the question, “ Shall I 
depend on the first buds at the axils of the large leaves for 
next year’s crop, or shall I leave a spur at each joint with a 
bud above that upon it ? ” If, as you say, your wood is 
entirely of this summer’s growth you can leave no spur 
except what would be formed of a mere lateral, and this is 
seldom done unless in certain circumstances, and these 
different from what yours seem to be. We would say, then, 
depend upon the main buds at the base of your large leaves. 
A more important matter remains. Every thoroughly 
ripened bud will throw out a fruitful shoot next year, but 
some very likely may not break at all; and were you to 
leave a great proportion of your ripened wood, and take 
what crop you could get from it, it is very likely that that 
would not ripen kindly, and the Vine would be irreparably 
injured for the future. If, then, you can give your Vine ten 
or twelve feet in width, and mean, therefore, to take three 
main shoots from it, and these afterwards to be spurred, 
and these shoots now individually to be about as thick as 
your finger, we would cut them back to within three feet or 
so of the eaves of the house. If you have only room for one 
main stem, say four feet or so in width, then we would cut 
back the two side-shoots to a length of two or three buds, 
and the middle one to a length of four feet or so ; and for 
the first season, instead of disbudding now, you had better 
disbud, or rather, remove the extra young shoots, after you 
decide upon what should be left as future spurs. Five or 
six bunches would be enough to leave. You might have a 
score, but you will injure your Vine for future years.] 
PLANTING DWARF ROSES.—COCOA-NUT FIBRE 
FOR ENCOURAGING ROOTING. 
“ I intend planting a bed of dwarf Roses. At what distance 
apart should they be planted? I see that Mr. Beaton speaks 
highly of cocoa refuse as promoting the throwing out of 
roots in cuttings, &c. What would he think of putting some 
of it to the roots of trees when planted, say Roses or Apples ? 
I should almost think it would promote the growth of small 
fibrous roots.”—R. P. Turner. 
[Plant the dwarf Roses two feet apart if your bed is very 
rich, or eighteen inches if not so, and as soon as they touch 
transplant them again and again. Dwarf Roses should not 
stand long without removing, and by this close planting at 
first you will soon be reminded of one of the best rules in 
Rose management, and have a good bed of Roses at once in 
the bargain. Mr. Beaton uses the cocoa-nut dust to all roots, 
from his seedling Geraniums to the finest Roses and Conifers, 
together with Elms and any other trees he may have to 
transplant, and for mulching to encourage roots to the 
surface nothing is like it.] 
