1882.] 
a HE CARNATION BLOOM OF 1882. 
165 
for many years been a special feature. Mr. 
Woodbridge commences forcing the first week 
in November, the grapes being ripe about the 
end of March or beginning of April. He 
commences with a temperature of 60°, raising 
it 8° or 4° as the buds break, gradually in¬ 
creasing it to 70° or 72° by the time they are 
in flower, then lowering it to 68° until they 
have done stoning, &c., w r hen it is again raised 
to 70° until the grapes begin to colour. Mr. 
Woodbridge allows a rise of 5° by fire-heat 
on dull days, and 10° more by sun-heat, 
giving more air as the temperature rises. 
The pots used are 11 inches in diameter. 
After the Vines are placed in heat, water 
must be very sparingly applied for some time, 
until the roots commence to grow; otherwise 
the soil will become sour, and the roots will 
decay, so that it is better to allow them to be 
a little dry than the reverse. As the plants 
come into full leaf, a copious supply of water 
will be required. Whilst the fruit is colouring 
the most extreme care is necessary—especially 
if the crop be a heavy one—to maintain the 
plants in a thoroughly healthy state. Careless 
watering—allowing the plants to flag one day 
and to be soddened the next—will destroy the 
best of crops ; indeed, more failures are at¬ 
tributable to careless watering than to any 
other cause. Liquid manure should be fre¬ 
quently given to the healthy plants. 
Repotting is, as a rule, seldom required; 
but if a Vine should chance to get into a sickly 
condition, it is better to repot. The best time 
to do this is about the period of the setting of 
the grapes, the roots being then in an active 
condition, so that they soon take to the new 
soil. If repotted earlier, w T e have found them 
to show badly, and thereby fail to produce a 
crop. Top-dressings of manure and soil, or 
of soil mixed with horn or bone shavings, &c., 
should be freely applied. 
Some difficulty is often experienced in 
getting the early forced Vines to break regu¬ 
larly. When this is so, the canes should be 
bent so that the backward eyes may be the 
most elevated, which will help them to develop 
into young shoots. 
As to their cropping capabilities. A strong 
Black Hamburgh Vine in a 12-inch pot may 
be allowed to bear 8 lb. or 10 lb. weight of 
grapes—from 6 to 8 fair-sized bunches. A 
Boyal Muscadine Vine should bear from 10 
to 12 bunches ; but all this is dependent 
upon the strength and health of the plant. 
It is better to undercrop than overcrop Pot 
Vines, for the fruit on the overcropped plants 
is sour and useless. 
Modes of Training Rot Vines, dc. 
The ordinary utilitarian method is to train 
them to a trellis, the plants being placed about 
2 feet apart, so that when the side shoots with 
the fruit, &c., are trained out the wdiole trellis 
may be covered. Another mode is to twist 
the canes coil fashion round two or three 
strong stakes placed in the pot, thus giving the 
plants when fully grown the appearance of 
columnar bushes. Another mode is to train the 
shoots so as to form a sort of umbrella head, 
with the bunches hanging round. These 
latter are all more or less graceful and orna¬ 
mental, and the Grape Vine is a truly orna¬ 
mental plant.—A F. Barron. 
THE CARNATION BLOOM OF 1882. 
F there be any amongst those who may 
note this heading inclined to ask what 
new thing can be said of the flowers of 
one season as compared with those 
which have preceded it, I may answer that 
every season and each day brings its variety ; 
sometimes indeed, unchangeable as are the 
laws of Nature, very startling divergences. 
No length of experience can absolve the 
observer from the necessity of constant 
watchfulness, and as persistent action, in aid 
of or to do battle with some of the forces or 
phenomena of Nature. And there is in this 
very variety occasion of interesting record if 
well set down. 
The past season has fully enforced this 
lesson. On the whole, and writing now 7 , 
September 21st, at the very close of the 
blooming season, far beyond the date of an 
ordinary season, I gather from the communi¬ 
cations of many friends and my own ex¬ 
perience that the bloom has been, beyond the 
average, beautiful in character, but intei- 
mittent in a strange degree, and full of 
surprises. In this respect indeed the flow'eis 
followed, strictly I assume in natural law, the 
season itself. March and June changed 
places, and the cold we should have had in 
