1872 . ] 
FRUIT CULTURE.-AUGUST. 
187 
fruit-room until the 20th of November, when the Imperatrices began to shrivel 
like prunes. I may here mention an incident connected with the first notice of 
Mr. Coe’s seedling plum :—He gave a specimen of the fruit to a friend, that he 
might try its merits ; but the Plum being unripe, it was put into his pocket, 
where he afterwards found it shrivelled ; but on the second bite, he said its 
flavour was next to that of the Green Gage. This accords with the belief that 
Coe’s Golden Drop is an offspring of the Gage and Magnum Bonum. However 
this may be, the plum has all the good qualities of the first favourite, and none 
of the bad ones of the other. Cobbett, in his Cottage Gardener , makes a sensible 
remark when he says, 44 The Magnum Bonums are fit for nothing but tarts and 
sweetmeats ; ‘magnum ’ is right enough, but as to 4 bonum,’ the word has seldom 
been so misapplied.” 
I wish to observe that our two best Plums were first brought into cultiva¬ 
tion near Bury St. Edmund’s. It is not my present purpose to go into the pedi¬ 
gree of the old or original tree of the Green Gage at Hengrave—whether it was a 
natural seedling, a French one, or an imported grafted tree ; suffice it to mention 
that it is considered to be the first of its kind in this country. I have grafted 
trees from scions off an old Green Gage-tree at Bury St. Edmund’s, which was 
grafted from the original tree ; but the fruit does not differ from that of others in 
common cultivation, nor of those imported from France.—J. Wighton. 
FRUIT CULTURE.—AUGUST. 
F the instructions already given have been carried out, very little will re¬ 
quire to be done at present, beyond protecting and gathering all fruit as it 
ripens. If from a pressure of work, or any other cause, the Summer pruning 
and regulating of the young wood of fruit-trees have not been completed, 
no time should now be lost, in order that the wood may have all the sun and 
air possible. Stop the strong shoots of Peaches and Nectarines , and remove 
from all fruit-trees all superfluous wood not likely to be wanted another season. 
When the fruit begins to ripen, expose it as much as possible to the sun, by re¬ 
moving any leaves that may shade it. Protect all ripe fruit with hexagon net¬ 
ting, and mat Gooseberries and Currants. Cut away all the Raspberry canes that 
have done bearing. Continue to make fresh plantations of Strawberries , and 
dress old ones intended to remain another year. 
In-Doors. —Give Pine plants that are swelling off their fruit liberal supplies 
of water, and occasionally of liquid manure, but withhold it as the fruit begins to 
ripen. The plants bearing fruit for the autumn and winter supply should, if 
possible, be all got together in one house before the end of the month ; they can 
then be better attended to. They should have a steady bottom-heat of about 
85°, should be carefully attended to in watering, and should have a moist 
atmosphere. The plants intended to 44 show ” in spring, should now be put into 
fruiting-pots, and the shifting of the general stock of successions should be com¬ 
pleted before the end of the month. After shifting, the plants should be kept 
