40 
THE FLORIST AND POMOLOGIST. 
[ March, 
The vines are grown as low bushes, the crop ripen¬ 
ing in succession from the first shoots, and the 
laterals, which also bear. This fruit, after being 
gathered, was formerly spread out on a specially 
smoothed plot of ground to dry, in which process the 
berries dropped from the stalks—which sufficiently 
accounts for the small stones and grit fonnerly so 
often found amongst Currants, and for the neces¬ 
sity for washing them. Now, as we learn from Mr. 
Maw, of Bi’oseley, the better cultivators use flat 
wooden trays for drying the fruit, so that it is kept 
quite clean. Currants have long been used in this 
country, Sir Walter Raleigh, in the reign of Queen 
Elizabeth, having a monopoly in their impoi'tation. 
The Coi'inth Grape, although generally seedless, 
sometimes produces full-sized large benues with 
seeds—revei’tingto the Gi’ape, as it were. Cultiva¬ 
tion seems to tend to this, as in many distiucts, 
notably at Leghorn, its cultivation had to be aban¬ 
doned, on account of that tendency. 
Cultural Notes. —This Gi’ape is only grown as a 
cui’iosity in this country; will succeed in a Black 
Hamburgh-house, grown in a large pot or box. At 
Chiswick, it has fruited fi’equently. 
Season. —Early. 
Merits. —Quality, sccond-i'ate. Very interesting 
to cultivate as a curiosity, in contrast with the ordi¬ 
nary varieties. 
Black Frontignan (48).—A round black 
Muscat Grape.— Synonyms: Muscat noir ordi¬ 
naire, Muscat noir. 
Vine. — Growth modei’atelv strong and vigoi’ous, 
veiy free, always ripening freely; very fruitful. 
Fruit. — Bunches compact, long and cylindrical in 
shape, frequently with one lai’ger shoulder, closely 
set. Berries below medium size, round. Skin thin, 
of a dull, bluish-black colour, with a thick bloom. 
Flesh firm, might be termed thick, of a reddish 
tinge, with a strong, rich, muscat flavour. 
History, pc. —This is one of the very oldest of our 
Grapes to be found now in cultivation in old houses, 
or as an orchard-house or open-air grape. It seems 
to be confused with the Black Constantia, another 
old grape, now seldom heard of. I have never been 
able to discover the distinction between them, if 
there is any. 
Cultural Notes. —Grown now generally as a pot- 
plant, under which conditions it fruits very freely ; 
also on the open wall, whei-e I have seen it exceed¬ 
ingly fine, and of good quality. 
Season. —Early. 
Merits. —Quality as to flavour, first-class. 
—A. F. Barron. 
THE FANCY POLYANTHUS. 
HE large mottled, or what is called the 
Fancy Polyanthus, is destined to take 
a leading place in all spring gardens. 
No plant that I know of can compare with it 
for hardiness and quantity of flower, nor for 
beauty and gaiety. The culture is so easy, 
that it is within the reach of the most humble 
cottager. Those who missed the first and best 
chance of sowing the seed should now sow in 
pans, and place them in a gentle heat. The 
plants will be ready to prick out in the open 
ground by the middle of May, w r here they 
should be liberally treated with water in dry 
weather. 
The best time, however, to sow the seed 
is as soon as it is ripe, in a well-prepared 
bed in the open ground, where it will ger¬ 
minate readily, and the plants will get 
large enough to stand the winter without 
injury. If they are planted out in April, 
or early in May, in rich garden soil, they 
make plants by the end of summer capable 
of throwing up from twenty to thirty flower- 
stems each ; and if planted out in the bed about 
six inches apart, the beds become a perfect mass 
of flowers and are very attractive. Strong 
plants flower more or less all the winter. 
Some beds here that were covered up with 
snow for a few weeks, turned out very fine for 
a few days after the snow had melted away, 
until they were cut up with a scorching frosty 
wind. They are the first plants to brighten up 
in fine weather. We have over 3,000 of them 
in the spring garden. Large beds are always 
attractive if the plants are good. A few of the 
very best thrum-eyed flowers should be saved 
for seed, and the others thrown away and a 
fresh batch of seedlings got ready, as the seed¬ 
lings throw up a greater quantity of flowers and 
are much larger. The colours may be sown 
separately, as they come pretty true. The 
most effective beds are those planted with the 
mottled, white, and yellow varieties separately. 
—William Culverwell, Thorpe Par row. 
FORGET-ME-NOT. 
OTWITHSTANDING all the modern 
improvements effected in nomenclature 
and classification, there are old homely 
names too dear to our youth to be forgotten, 
on account of their associations, and none more 
so than that of the darling blue ‘^Forget-me- 
not,” the scientific name of which is J\fyosotis. 
The Forget-me-not, notwithstanding its 
diminutive size, stands high in sentiment. 
Planted on the grave of a departed friend, it 
tells its tale of mourning with its living motto. 
Moreover, it embodies in its still life a “thing 
of beauty and a joy for ever,” and w r e learn to 
mitigate our sorrow in the blessed hope of 
what is yet to come. Though dark and dim 
as through a glass are God and truth beheld, 
yet it is only through this darkness that we 
behold “ the worlds of light we could not see 
by day.” There are lessons to be learnt from 
