271 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER AND COUNTRY GENTLEMAN, August 9, 1859. 
the night, to be again augmented in the course of the following 
1 day ; 
No principle in horticulture can be moro sound than the rule of 
increasing our temperature during the day and lessening it at 
flight j and much of the success of modern forcing is traceable to 
such treatment. I remember in my boyhood liow different was 
the practice of the good old Mawes and Abei’crombies of those 
days. 
The really skilful gardener must always bear in mind that in 
cultivating plants he lias two objects in view. The one to give 
them the greatest amount of vigour, and to ensure the fullest 
and most succulent development of their parts, as in the whole 
of the plants used as vegetables for the table, the goodness 
depends upon their rapid growth: and the other to arrest the 
over-luxuriance, and in its lieu to gain fruit-bearing qualities. 
The exercise of this power demands experience ; and it must ever 
be remembered that luxuriance and fruit-bearing are quito 
antagonistic qualities, and that most processes which arrest the 
one promote the other. 
Cutting the roots of trees, called also “root pruning,” is one of 
the chief means taken to induce a fruit-bearing state. Although 
much practised in England now, it has not been many years in 
vogue. The original merit of it is due to the Dutch gardeners, 
who were great adepts in transplanting and fruiting Peach trees 
by its aid. Of their skill I have seen many admirable examples 
in the vicinity of Haarlem. 
To my very clever and intelligent friend, Mr. Rivers, of Saw- 
bridgeworth, is due the chief merit of introducing this plan into 
our English gardens; he, with an acumen peculiar to himself, 
foresaw the advantages of it, and practised it largely, giving the 
' public the benefit of his great experience. Since it has been 
more generally understood and practised, most persons agree 
that under good hands it is one of the best checks for over¬ 
luxuriance with which we are acquainted. 
Another plan of arresting luxuriance is that of stopping the 
shoots, and for this we are much indebted to the same indefati¬ 
gable cultivator. It must always be admitted that preventives are 
better than remedies; and if simply stopping or rubbing off a 
shoot will prevent a malformation in growth, it is better to do it at 
once than eventually to be obliged to have recourse to the cutting- 
off of a large branch. I have for some years practised a modification 
of this stopping with my Pear trees. About the end of July, or 
the beginning of August, I go over the summer shoots, and 
puncture them by bending with the hand, leaving them hanging ; 
the consequence of this is, that I get many blossom-buds formed 
on the base of the spur, which, if the shoot had been cut off, 
would have been only long, vigorous branches. 
The command which God has given to man over His works is 
marvellous. He has arranged them all with the most perfect 
method, order, and regularity ; and it is for us to study, and by 
His aid to understand them, so that we may turn them to our 
own advantage and to His honour. Callous and unsusceptible 
• indeed must be that mind which cannot feel interested in ob- 
■ serving the beauty of His designs, and the harmony with which 
they are arranged for the production of perfection. 
There is yet another mode by which we can influence the pro¬ 
ductive qualities of plants of an arborescent or suffruticose kind : 
I mean that of grafting. For instance : the Pear, if grafted on 
the Quince, grows with less vigour, and is more fruitful than 
it is when grafted upon the Pear stock, but the Quince will not 
do well upon all soils. I found it not to succeed upon a dry, 
gravelly soil, but to require a strong, unctuous loam. I mentioned 
this to Mr. Rivers, who told me, that in order to ensure its success, 
it would be necessary to top-dress the surface round the plant; 
but finding the Pear stock fully answer my purpose, I have not 
tried this. 
One of the greatest difficulties we have to contend with arises 
from our too-generally deep and moist borders, which, aided by 
wet and sunless autumns, excite growth at a period when rest 
should be secured, and leave it unripened and immature. From 
such growth fruit must not be looked for. Here the shallow 
platforms and impervious bottoms of Mr. Errington come to our 
aid, giving us a permanent and safe deliverance from these evils. 
His theory provides practical remedies, and nothing in the gar¬ 
dening world can be sounder or more patent. 
But after we have done all that is possible in inducing a state 
of fruitfulness, we still have a bad climate to contend with ; and 
the labours of a whole year depend upon the capriciousness of a 
single night. Poor encouragement this! it will be said. But 
the skill of the gardener can do no more than induce a fruit¬ 
bearing habit. There must be an appliance for protection from 
frost. 
Some time ago, the vexed question of protection was mooted 
in a contemporary, The opinions of many good gardeners were 
given, and the sum of the whole evidence appeared very con¬ 
flicting. If I were to express my own opinion upon this very 
interesting subject, I should say—protect 3 but do it well, and 
have your materials so fitted that they can easily be removed. 
My friend, Mr. Ingram, of Frogmore, has done this with un¬ 
varying success, as all the world knows. I believe that protection 
where too close does more harm than good, drawing and blanch¬ 
ing the blossoms, and making them fall off. No doubt many of 
the failures of crops where protected are owing to this. I had a 
magnificent crop of Apricots last spring, which were all de¬ 
stroyed by the disastrous frosts ; not having sufficient protection 
after they had reached the size of Walnuts. Can any one wonder, 
then, that I advocate most strongly the adoption of it as a 
principle ? 
In the few brief remarks which I have made it will be seen 
that, although the laws of God work with the greatest precision, 
yet He has left many points for us to exert ourselves in thinking 
of and turning to account; and let those young men whose eyes 
may scan this page reflect how important is observation, and en¬ 
deavour to cultivate this faculty by all means hi their power; by 
so doing they wnll discover the harmony of design, seethe beauty 
of His plans, and 
“ Look through Nature up to Nature’s God.” 
—II. Bailey, Nuneham. 
BRITISH POMOLOGTCAL SOCIETY. 
On the 4th instant was the Anniversary Meeting, at which 
there was a good attendance. It was held, as usual, at St. 
James’s Hall, Regent Street. R. Hogg, Esq., Vice-President, in 
the chair. 
The Secretary read the financial report, from which it was 
satisfactory to leam that there is a balance in favour of the 
Society. A revision of the rules of the Society then took place ; 
and the most important alteration which was made, was, that in 
future all private gentlemen and nurserymen who may from this 
time be elected members of the Society shall pay an annual 
subscription of £1 instead of 10 ?., but that professional gardeners 
continue as before at the subscription of 10-s. A rule was also 
made that members who shall be hi arrear for two years in their 
subscription, and if on the lapse of one month after application 
from the Treasurer the amount due still remain unpaid, the 
person so failing shall be removed from the list of members. 
In revising the list of office bearers, it was decided that in 
future there shall be six Vice-Presidents, and a Council to con¬ 
sist of twenty-five members instead of twelve. In consequence 
of Mr. Davidson having resigned the office of Secretary, it was 
determined to advertise for a gentleman to succeed him, and the 
election to take place at a meeting of Council to be held on the 
18th of September. 
Mr. Newton, gardener to the Lord Chief Baron Pollock, was 
elected a member of the Society. 
Mr. Ivery, of Dorking, produced a noble bunch of his Buckland • 
Sweetwater Grape, weighing certainly not less than 2 lbs., broadly 
shouldered, and remarkably well set. The berries were roundish, 
inclining to oval, and were just beginning to assume their amber 
tinge. They were very richly flavoured and vinous. Altogether 
this variety has stamped itself as one of particular excellence, 
and as a valuable addition to the collection of White Grapes 
which ripen perfectly in an ordinary vinery. 
This was the Meeting appointed for awarding premiums of 
three guineas, two guineas, and one guinea, for the best collections 
of Grapes. Mr. Newton, gardener to — Graham, Esq., of 
Enfield Chase, brought a very fine collection, consisting of 
twenty varieties, which excited a great deal of interest. Among 
the Muscats were Muscat of Alexandria, Money's Bschollata , 
and a seedling between Syrian and Muscat of Alexandria. The 
bunch of Money's Bschollata was long and loose, much more so 
than that of Muscat of Alexandria, and the berries were well 
developed, thin-skinned, and with a fine Muscat flavour. The 
seedling very closely resembles this in appearance, but was 
thicker skinned, and firmer in the flesh, and it was not so highly 
ripened. Mr. Newton was requested to exhibit the seedling again 
later in the season. There was a fine bunch of Gros Gromier 
dw Canlal, large and tapering, with flame-coloured berries, but 
