12 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER AND COUNTRY GENTLEMAN’S COMPANION.— October 7,1856. 
I 
i probable that other causes have also abundantly contributed 
to such a state of things. It may, however, be admitted, 
I according to the meteorological observations made at the 
' Observaloire and elsewhere, that much more rain falls here 
! now than used to fall in old times; but is it quite certain 
' that the observations then were equally trustworthy and ex- 
; tensive? M. Delvau complains that the winters are long and 
| disagreeable now. Spring exists only for memory, aud, as 
i for summer, it changes to autumn as soon as possible. All 
| this, he maintains, according to the opinions of learned 
; men, is owing to the destruction of the forests. He tliere- 
fore proposes to reconstruct what has been destroyed, and 
I restore to Paris its crown of wood and forest. “ It will take 
' a long time, but it can be done if we only begin at the be- 
| ginning." 
I “ Man,” continues M. Delvau, “ requires poetry and health 
| to contrast with his physical and moral destitution. He lives 
1 better in the open air than in badly-ventilated houses. He 
1 lives longer in llxe country than in towns. Terrestrial mag- 
1 netism acts more directly and more profitably on the peasant 
i than on the citizen, because the latter walks on stone pave- 
I ment, which is an isolator, whereas the peasant walks with 
hare feet on the humus, the earth, his mother and his nurse.” 
j But here M. Delvau seems to forget that modern Parisians 
walk on asphalts as much as on stone pavements, which are 
threatened with entire abolition. 
In order to give the Parisians the health they would have 
if living twenty miles from the capital M. Delvau proposes 
to plant more trees about the houses, and lay out more 
gardens in the populous districts. He concludes the subject 
in the following strain :— 
“ Our public promenades, our quays, our boulevards, our 
squares, are, for the most part, planted with Elms and 
Limes, which are not sufficiently robust, and do not keep 
their leaves long enough. They are gloomy, sickly, and 
stunted—more like skeletons than trees. We do not know 
what trees would be best for replacing them, though we have 
seen the Plane tree succeed wherever it has been planted. 
Poulownia ivipcrialis thrives equally well, and the llohinia 
accommodates itself to any circumstance or position. The 
red Maple has been naturalised; and we confess, for our 
own part, we would not object to see some of the Normandy 
Apple-trees added to the list. Are trees which bear a pro¬ 
fusion of fragrant flowers in spring, and abundance of ripe 
fruit in autumn, not better than those which only foster 
nests of cockchafers?” 
Although it is not probable that M. Demur's latter pro¬ 
position will be entertained, it is quite true that the trees of 
Paris are not so large and luxuriant as they might be, but 
it is not owing altogether to the sorts which, with time and 
careful treatment, are certain to acquire much greater pro¬ 
portions. It would be easy to give a list of other varieties 
that might lie added with advantage, and, perhaps, the 
small leaved sorts of Ehn, as well as Acacias, are too nu¬ 
merous. But improvement is the order of the day here, 
and, perhaps, the trees may obtain a little notice in their 
turn. 
Another three days’ Show is to be held at Fontainbleau, 
on the occasion of the general fete there. I shall, perhaps, 
be able to send you a short notice of it. 
We have had fine autumn weather for some weeks, but 
the 24th was marked by high winds and rain, which con¬ 
tinued without intermission for about eighteen hours. If 
the rain has been general the Vine crops may have been 
i more or less damaged. Up to the present time there have 
been no serious complaints, and the markets have been 
abundantly supplied with dessert Grapes, well swelled and 
ripened, at sixpence or eightpence a pound.—1’. F. Keir. 
CULTURE OF 1IOYA BELLA AND THE 
CANNON HALL MUSCAT GRAPE. 
j Seeing a few remarks in The Cottage Gardener, by 
| Air. Appleby, on the Hoya bella and Cannon Hall Grape 
, grown by me at the garden of J. 0. AT arch, Esq., Beech 
j Grove, Leeds, I offer a few remarks on the above. 
Procure a plant of IToya Bidwil/i or of H.curnosa; in¬ 
arch or graft a shoot of 11 . bella on either of the above 
sorts. Since Mr. Appleby called on me I find that it unites 
as freely on Carnosa as on BidwilU; but I should recom¬ 
mend one joint of the stock to be left above the place where 
the scion is put on, and if done, by inarching the same. If 
that precaution is not taken the end of the stock shrivels 
up before they unite. The union is completed in about five 
or six weeks. I worked one on the Bidwilli three years 
since this autumn. Last June it had above seventy heads 
of bloom open at one time. Its habit is like a well-grown 
Fuchsia, and the flowers seem equally as well. It is now 
three feet high. 
The Cannon Hall Grape sets its fruit well with me. 
I have had some bunches this season set equally as well 
as the Black Hamburgh, and they took a great deal 
more thinning. What they want is a very strong, dry heat 
for eight or ten days when they are in bloom. I will give 
you an instance what a temperature they will endure. 
About five years ago I found a bunch of the Cannon Hall 
Grape within a few inches of the hot-water pipes set as 
thick as a Frontignan, and the other bunches were set as 
badly as could be. 
The house is planted with Cannon Hall and Muscat of 
Alexandria Grapes, the Cannon Hall next the end where 
the pipes enter the house. 
The year following observing that bunch, a day or two 
before they came into bloom, I lowered the Vines within 
twenty inches of the pipes, and let them remain eight or 
ten days. My master, who is a great connoisseur in Grapes, 
went into the house, aud saw the Vines hung so near the 
pipes, and could not understand the meaning of it. I heard 
him say to some one near him, “ Have you seen the gardener 
this morning ?” So I came up, and lie said, “ John, what 
is the meaning of your Vines being so near the pipes? 1 
think you are going to roast them.” I explained the 
reason; the Vines were left as I had placed them, and the 
result was a good crop of well-set bunches, except on the top 
part of the Vine, which part I could not get near the pipes. 
We.have had a flue built under the Vine, and towards the 
front it is within nine inches of the Vine ; in fact, the fruit 
rests on the flue. Since it was built 1 have had no reason to 
lower the Vine. 
To insure success, give a heat of 85° by day and 75° at 
night during the time the Vines are in bloom ; have no 
moisture, and shade them sooner than give much air. After 
they are set the treatment is the same as for other Muscats. 
—John Acomb. 
QUERIES AND ANSWERS. 
GARDENING. 
REPLIES TO BEGINNERS. 
In order to save room, I will ondeavour to condense a 
number of replies into these notes, hoping they may meet the 
case of some others besides the actual inquirers; and, to 
save time, 1 will just take them at random without any at¬ 
tempt at arrangement. 
Fuchsia se n uatifoli a planted otjt. —“ I cannot get them 
to bloom till late in October, and then they have to be put 
under shelter for fear of frost, so that, in fact, they are of 
no use whatever for a garden under the window of a draw¬ 
ing room.” 
[Exactly so. If you had read what was said of this plant 
lately, when the planting it out in summer was recom 
mended, you would not at all have been disappointed. It is 
just as natural for this Fuchsia to bloom generally in winter 
as for most of the tribe to bloom in summer. Lose no 
time in lifting it carefully and repotting it in good loam, 
with a little leaf-mould; water it well, set it in a shady 
place, and syringe several times during the day, to prevent 
the leaves perspiring too much, and then place your plants 
in the greenhouse. Before your usual time of planting out 
in May and June prune your plant pretty well in, break the 
hall a little in planting, and put fresh soil round it, and, if 
attended to with watering in hot weather, you will have fine 
plants again to raise in September and pot for another 
winter.] 
Reflexed Fuchsias. —“Young plants of these are one foot 
high, and now in flower. Should they be kept dry in winter, 
like older Fuchsias, or regularly watered ? ’’ 
