270 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER AND COUNTRY GENTLEMAN, July 31, 1860. 
clients ? There are two points which must occupy the foreground 
of this part of our subject:—the first, drainage; the second, 
surface matters. If any really good gardener were to change 
situations, and take to a strange establishment where there were 
vineries of this Itind, and the employer would not consent to 
destroy them, what in all probability would he do ? He would 
doubtless first ascertain the character of the locality ns to the 
soil, &c. He would inquire of those worth inquiring of as to 
prevailing impressions of the character of the soil and subsoil, and 
would make deep trial-holes to observe the amount of porosity 
with other matters : on such he would have to found his plans. 
Then, it is not unlikely that he might have to contend with what 
had been considered “ a border,” made at much expense, but 
which had performed its business much after the manner of a 
garden-pot without a hole in the bottom. Thorough drainage, of 
course, must take the lead; but then, after we have taken the 
water away, we have the old and often putty-feeling mass of worn 
soil, humus, and locked-up sediment to deal with. 
We thus come to a case of rather frequent occurrence—the 
endeavouring to hire or create a new series of surface fibres. In 
such cases I would here advise unloading the surface of the border 
of all dormant and exhausted soil; preserving, of course, wliat 
surface-roots there might he before applying the new dressing. 
The use of fermenting material is certainly of much service in the 
first application, for it will hurry on the desired end. Such, with 
a steady temperature of about 70°, should remain over the roots 
until the end of May ; and for a fortnight before removal should 
be allowed to sink to 60°, in order gradually to reconcile the Vines 
to such removal. About six inches of a compost should be 
applied previous to the application of the fermenting material; 
and the best thing I have found for this purpose is a mixture of 
dung and tree leaves which had been half spent as linings. This 
will slightly ferment again, and the Vines will ascend treely into 
such medium. Some fine lime rubbish might be mixed with the 
compost, and care should be taken when the fermenting material 
is removed not to disturb the compost. 
Now, be it remembered there is nothing new or uncommon in 
this proceeding. Our best cultivators seem to increase in their 
estimation of surface dressings for all tender fruit trees. I have 
several cases here of the complete renovation of old favourites 
too good to destroy. I have a Morello Cherry wall, which a j 
dozen years ago was under condemnation. I, however, thought 
that I would try to make them young again; and have since | 
almost annually surfaced the roots with three inches of the dung 
and leaves. This material in decomposition becomes but one 
inch, and now the surface material is not more than six inches, 
and is filled with fibres. 'The trees are quite renewed, and bear 
famously; and the old stems, which used to look hide-bound, 
look sleek as young trees. R. Ebeington. 
THINNING TREES IN AN ORCHARD-HOUSE. 
TIFFANY-HOUSE—LATE-PLANTED VINES. 
This spring I stocked a span-roofed orchard-house sixty feet 
by fourteen feet with many more trees than I find at all con¬ 
venient, except twenty-five feet length devoted to Vines and a 
few Figs. I have the trees arranged in three rows on either 
side the central path, two feet from stem to stem. They are all 
pyramids or single-stemmed trees, and are all planted in the 
border. I find that in moving among them to syringe and pinch 
I sometimes knock off shoots, and have therefore resolved to 
have only two rows in the autumn, when I lift them. I shall 
thus have some thirty-four trees to dispose of, all Plums and 
Cherries; and I have besides some sixty Pear pyramids and 
bushes in the open ground planted this spring, which I fear 
will not ripen their fruit well in this climate (Settle, Yorkshire) 
without some artificial means. Now, under these circumstances 
it has occurred to me that a lean-to tiffany orchard-house might 
answer the purpose effectually, and at very little expense. I 
took the idea from drawings and comments in your number 
COO for March 27tli. Do you think this would answer? It 
seems to me a better and cheaper plan than surrounding the 
trees each with a nightcap of its own. We are 500 feet above 
the sea level, and, therefore, our summer temperature is not as 
high as one could wish. I have a south wall nine feet high 
with a good twelve-feet border thirty yards long, and sloping up 
to the west. Tiie situation is extremely well sheltered from 
every wind. The sun is on the -wall from eight o’clock to four. 
This would, it seems to me, be an excellent place for erecting 
a tiffany lean-to, if it would answer the purpose. 
Another plan suggests itself—namely, to pot the superfluous 
trees and put them out of the house in June. This would be 
very laborious, and would still leave my out-door Pear trees 
without protection. 
I have determined to adopt Mr. Rivers's hints on the treat¬ 
ment of Vines given in the seventh edition of “ The Orchard 
House." I have planted them permanently thirty-inches apart 
in two rows, and mean to train them to tail rods reaching the 
rafters on the spur system. On planting them in March 1 cut 
them down to eight buds, hut many of them have only sent out 
one shoot, most two, and some three. This has much puzzled 
me. However, I have pinched hack the weaker shoots to six 
inches, or less, and allowed the strongest shoots to go on un¬ 
molested (no matter from what part of the old stem). Still 
the longest shoot is not above eighteen inches long, the joints 
very short, one inch, or one inch and a half. My object is to 
let the longest shoot furnish the rod from which the spurs are 
to produce fruit ultimately. 1 suppose I must expect no fruit 
next year; at any rate from these Vines with hut one shoot. 
| Should I now cut away the old wood above the young shoot? 
I The sorts are twenty-five Black llamburghs and ten Royal Mus¬ 
cadines. I account for their doing so badly by their not having 
been planted till the end of March, and having long, straggling 
I roots.— An Ignobamus. 
[The plan you suggest for thinning the borders of your 
orchard-house of the trees, which are certainly too close to- 
! gether, is a good one; and you cannot do better with those you 
| remove than plant them out in such a position where they can 
be covered with a tiffany-house. We have seen several of these 
! tiffany-houses and like them ; they enclose a great deal of heat, 
and do not prevent, evaporation. The cost of them is a mere 
trifle, and the experiment is well worth a trial. Your Vines are 
doing as well as you could expect, after being planted so late. 
Keep the soil well stirred about them, and mulch the surface 
with rotten dung. Let the leading shoot grow on to the full 
extent it will go, and cut down all the old wood above the point 
from which it proceeds. Pinch all lateral shoots produced 
below it. If there is much old wood below the leading shoot 
you may have a bunch of Grapes next year,] 
EUDDING RHODODENDRONS-CROSS ’ 
BREEDING HEATHS. 
Will you allow me in this “ horrid weather ” to indulge in a 
few growls just by way of relief ? As to grumbling about the 
weather, I do not see anything gained by that; first, because 
we cannot alter it; and next, because after all we are but poor 
judges as to what weather would he best, all things considered. 
Eor instance : Wliat kind of pasture, or meadow, would our 
croakers about rain have given us if they had the command of 
the weather-office? Where would have been our prospect of an 
abundant harvest which we see now in the strong, though not 
over-luxuriant, grass corn ? Ah! but reply these croakers, “ We 
shall never be able to save it.” Well, the worst wish I wish 
them is, that they may be disappointed, though such untrusting 
curmudgeons deserve no better than they expect. 
“ Some murmur when their sky is clear, 
And wholly bright to view. 
If one small speck of dark appear 
In their great heaven of blue.” 
My grumbling, however, is of a different kind. I am grumbling 
about The Cottage Gaedenek, though, very probably, you 
may consider “ my censure praise.” Nevertheless, you have 
been teaching us all sorts of tilings to propagate by seed, by 
cuttings, and by grafting ; hut all the time coaxing us into seed- 
shops and nurseries, and describing all your beauties in such 
vivid colours, that we, poor inhabitants of ultima thule, have 
been led to try to be as good as our neighbours, and arc tempted 
to stay at home in the country in summer ; the season which all 
fashionables know is only to be enjoyed “in town.” Well, again, 
you have brought me to work with my own hands; and having a 
large collection of Rhododendrons, all with fine names and fine 
flowers, I was led by your contributor, Mr. Appleby, to try 
grafting, but not having any plants in pots since last autumn 
as directed, I could not follow that plan strictly; so I resolved 
to try my hand to procure some duplicates, even under adverse 
circumstances, and to work I set, having now become a working 
man, to make the grafting-wax as directed. My sealing-wax was 
the best red, and everything else, I think, all right. Alas! alas 1 
