THE COTTAGE GARDENER AND COUNTRY GENTLEMAN, January 11, 1859. 
225 
it, or the more common way of having the bulb half buried 
only, will not, or at least should not, be applied to Atkinsoni, 
or to Cown, or to any individual plant of that most charm¬ 
ing section, because the habit of that race goes after Coum, 
as I have just said; and Coum must be covered entirely, 
because that is its habit, which a bulb of it tells, when 
in growth, as plainly as an infant will tell its mother 
when it wants nourishment. The way Coum and all 
the Atkinsoni breed tell how they ought to be potted, 
is this: if the crown of the bulb is above the surface, 
the leaves fall over round the sides, and make an effort 
to bury part of the footstalks in the mould, so as to give 
them a firmer hold of it, as it were. That is quite con¬ 
trary to the habit of the father of that race, Persicum : no 
matter how you pot him, the leaves and flowers rise at 
once from the crown, as rigid and upright as the leaves of 
Mr. Skirving’s best Swedes, the next nearest bulb to liken 
to Cyclamen. Coum has the same habit with its own 
flowers: the stems, or stalks, of the flowers bend down to 
get more hold of the soil long before the flower-bud comes 
in sight; and to give sight, or daylight, to such flower- 
buds, by raising the crown of the bulb above the surface of 
the mould, in the bed, or pot, would be exactly blinding 
them, although the thing may seem curious, without giving 
it a thought. But it is no more natural for Cyclamen Coum, 
and for all other Cyclamens which take after it, to make its 
flower-buds in daylight, or to make the first stretch of the 
footstalks of the leaves in daylight, than it is for a 
puppy to see the moon the night he is whelped ; and to pot 
these “roots” above ground is just as groundless, and 
about as serviceable, as the attempts of young hopeful to 
open the eyes of the puppy next day, to look at his war- 
horse. Therefore, all who have grown the older Cyclamens, 
and those with them, who begin growing the new-improved 
race, the clan of Atkinson, must bear in mind that the 
bulbs should be kept out of sight, by heaping half an 
inch of mould over their topknots. Both parties will 
also remember, and not forget, that I want to learn how 
Cyclamen vernum ought to be potted; and that I would 
rather learn the truth from vernum itself, than from any 
of my own kith or clan; and that if vernum is still among 
us, that I sigh for the renewal of our former acquaintance. 
The rest of the world may as well know at once, that there 
are but six true and distinct species of Cyclamens, one of 
which, vernum, “blows” from Lord Mayor’s Day to the 
turn of the new year. Three of them— Coum, Persicum, 
and kedercefolium —flower in the spring ; and two— Euro- 
paum and Neapolitanum —bloom in the autumn. All 
other names—as repandum and the like—are mere fictions, 
or given to some seedling variations from the half dozen. 
D. Beaton. 
NOTES ON THE CULTURE OE A EEW OF 
OUE BEST TABLE APPLES. 
In these days of high culture, and additional kinds, we 
scarcely miss the oft-lamented Golden Pippins; indeed, 
many of the present generation never saw or tasted one, 
and amongst such are many gardeners. We will, how¬ 
ever, leave the Golden Pippin to the poets, or the writers 
of the marvels of by-gone days, and rather deal with such 
as take a high place in the dessert in our times, and 
which are known at present to succeed. I am not going 
to run over catalogues, hut rather content myself with 
pointing out the peculiarities of some with which I have j 
been practically familiar for years. I must refer to 
quality, bearing properties, and habit of growth. The 
latter is not unimportant, for most of our pruning is 
controlled in some degree by such, and by modes of 
culture. 
I may first observe, with reference to culture, that I 
shall merely point to peculiarities as far as my experience 
goes. 
Ribston Pippin. —This is too generally known to need 
description. But its qualities differ much in different 
situations; and this is, I believe, a very general com¬ 
plaint. I have frequently conversed with practical men 
about it, but I have seldom heard an attempt at a'solu¬ 
tion. The thing, however, has long been tolerably mani¬ 
fest to me. I believe that a very high state of culture 
does not suit the Ribston, as to flavour and texture: such 
produces a large and handsome fruit, but generally 
somewhat mealy. Some years since, I was fairly as¬ 
tonished at tasting Ribstons, at a neighbouring farmer’s, 
far superior to my own, which were splendid fellows; 
whereas the farmer’s were coarse-looking, russety, and 
moderate-sized fruit ; but they were most excellent. 
Now, my trees were pruned very thin—the sun pene¬ 
trated every portion of them. The farmer’s tree was a 
thick-stemmed old standard, of some fifty years, and so 
choked with wood in the interior, that the blossoms there 
scarcely ever set. Ribstons, in my opinion, require a 
cool soil. The farmer’s tree stood in a field which re¬ 
quired draining. 
Lamb Abbey Pearmain.—I much fear this Apple is 
not so generally known as it ought to be; as it possesses 
rich flavour, immense bearing properties, and is a very long 
keeper. This kind has never missed a full crop, with 
me, for twenty-four years, and the only misfortune is, 
that it is too free a setter: the fruit is, in consequence, 
apt to be under-sized. It should be planted in the most 
liberal soil—loamy and rich, for it will bear manure. 
The next thing is hard pruning : all, or nearly all, of the 
interior spray should be cut out, and the fruit thrown 
chiefly on the exterior of the tree. It should be winter 
pruned annually, and might occasionally receive a surface 
dressing. 
Margie. — Many persons prefer this Apple to the 
Ribston, and, indeed, it is a keen competitor. It is 
somewhat liable to canker : this must be borne with, for 
the sake of its qualities. Some years since, I had a full- 
grown tree, or rather bush, of this kind, that cankered so 
badly, and the fruit so specked, that I made up my mind 
to destroy it. On taking it up, however, I found that it 
had some nice surface roots, the deeper roots having 
descended into some coarse, dry sand. I prepared a plat¬ 
form, and replanted the tree, using a compost of very 
stiff loam, well manured, and it is astonishing what a fine 
tree it has become—we look to it annually for some of the 
best of our Apples. The Margil enjoys rich surface 
dressings; and as for pruning, very little is needed by it, 
as it produces so little wood, and is, I think, better for a 
partial shade about the fruit. 
King of Pippins. —This is an enormous bearer—indeed, 
generally too profuse. Consequently, it requires all in¬ 
terior spray to be pruned away, or spurred back ; for if any 
fruits set in the interior of such trees as this, they detract 
sadly from the size, colour, and character of those about 
the extremities. Like most of our great bearers, it will 
not continue many years to produce crops, on light and 
poor soils, without a manifest deterioration in the 
produce. 
Hicks’ Fancy. — I do not consider it eligible here to 
give the various synonymes, or aliases, of what fruit I 
refer to : it would occupy too much space. Hicks’ Fancy 
is a somewhat capricious Apple, oftener good than bad. 
1 When in first-rate condition, it is scarcely excelled by 
any. When inferior, the crop is perfectly worthless. 
This is a puzzling circumstance, and, I think, not much 
dependant on seasons. One thing maybe observed, that, 
unless the fruits colour a rich bronzy russet before 
gathering, they are rarely good. When they are bad, 
they are small and colourless. The shoots should, there¬ 
fore, be kept very thin; and, as the Apples are liable to 
set too thick, they should be thinned out betimes, and 
surface dressed. 
Obd Apple. —This is a tender kind, and no wonder, 
having been raised from seeds of the celebrated Newtown 
Pippin. It requires a very peculiar mode of treatment, 
and should, by all means, be induced to root near the 
