March 21, 1903. 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
245 
takes its rest immediately after, rooting as in the case of the 
autumn-flowering C. labiata. It is not advisable to repot 
plants of this species until after the plants have flowered and 
new roots are being emitted. Thrips are the only insect pest 
that is likely to cause trouble ; but where regular fumigation is 
practised there is little anxiety anticipated from attacks by 
these pests. H. J. 
Hardy Fruit. 
Raspberries.—Topping of the canes will have been carried 
out ere this, though if frost should have killed unripened points, 
now the canes are in active growth, such shoots can easily be 
seen and cut back to' a lateral growth or close to the ground, if 
found necessary; but, happily, the winter has not proved 
severe, or I fear Raspberry canes in particular would have been 
the first to suffer in consequence of the comparatively cold, 
sunless summer of last year. Autumn-bearing varieties should 
have been cut to the ground last month. If not already done, 
apply a good mulch of well-decayed farmyard manure, if 
possible, on either side of the row, extending to about 2 ft. 
No digging with the spade must be practised between the canes, 
but in a month or six weeks’ time the top-dressing may be 
lightly forked in if it is found the ground has got very hard and 
impermeable, thus hindering the passage of water, but taking 
care of the many surface feeders found in Raspberry planta¬ 
tions. Like remarks apply to the Blackberry and Wineberry, 
two useful fruits for either dessert or the kitchen, both requiring 
plenty of space, as they are strong growers. 
Gooseberries, —In some gardens the birds prove such a 
nuisance in knocking out the buds of this fruit during early 
spring that the pruning is deferred as late as possible, so that 
the pruner may be able to see which are the best shoots to 
retain. Where this has been the case, and the primings cleared 
away and the bushes free of caterpillars last season, the ground 
should have a good dressing of well-decayed manure, lightly 
forked in, especially close up to the roots and stems of the 
bushes. If the caterpillar proved troublesome it is a good 
plan to' take away a couple of inches or so. of the surface soil, 
replacing with fresh loam or soil from another part of the 
garden, mixing in a moderate quantity of slaked lime, and 
manuring only between the rows. Currants also. repay for am 
annual top-dressing of manure and served in like manner, and 
should the Black Currant, show any signs of the mite the 
affected buds should be picked off at once and burnt. 
Pears and Plums. —Early varieties, to bloom in exposed 
positions, need some sort of protection, which is easily accom¬ 
plished with trees against walls. or fences, but not so convenient 
with trees in the open. Spruce-boughs or tiffany ward off a 
lot of hoar frost or hail, and means can generally be devised 
1 for erecting such material in the way of poles or branched Pea- 
sticks and winding tiffany around the same, or fish netting, so 
that it is kept clear of the blossom, even with bush or pyramid 
| trees. Those on walls or espaliers in the open quarters can 
have the Spruce-boughs tied on, though over-crowding must 
he guarded against, or more harm than good is done • neither 
must such protection remain on a- day longer than is really 
necessary for the setting of the flowers) unless a, severe spell 
of cold unseasonable ■weather continues, which, we hope, will 
not come, now the third week in March is here. If it does, with 
the fruit blossom in such a forward state, it. is to be feared what 
now promises to be a good fruit year will fall far short of 
expectations. 
Strawberries. —Where plants were mulched in autumn with 
short manure, the properties of which have been washed into- 
the soil by now, may either be lightly forked in or removed, 
and the ground flat-hoed. We adopt the former method, though 
I know it is contrary to the’ gen-ral rule. Still, we are quite 
satisfied with the result; our plants always, crop well unless 
the season is adverse when in bloom. This loosening of the 
surface soil allows the rain to' gO' well down among the roots, 
and, to a great extent, assists the plants to withstand a. greater 
amount of drought, should such set in while the fruits are swell¬ 
ing, especially if the plantation is strawed down as soon as the 
flower-spikes are about 3 in. high, as is done in our case. The 
ground among Strawberries gets a lot of trampling on while the 
fruits are being gathered, and should it be a showery time just 
then the ground is liable to crack as soon as hot, dry weather 
sets in. Any withered foliage may be cut off with the knife 
before putting the quarters in order for the spring. 
Bicton, Devonshire. J. Mayne. 
Hardy Trees and Shrubs. 
Japanese Acers. —Among the many trees and shrubs that 
Japan has favoured us with, there are few, if any, more beautiful 
than the Maples, especially of the palmatum or polymorphum 
group, and where choice collections are cultivated, these form 
some of the most interesting subjects for the embellishment of 
the shrubberies, not on account of their flowering qualities, 
which are practically inconspicuous in all the species and 
varieties, but for the many-varied colourings of the foliage, 
these being probably unsurpassed by any other deciduous 
shrubs in spring and autumn. They also, make charming beds, 
either small or large. Fortunately, these are not at all par¬ 
ticular as to 1 the soil in which to' grow them, providing it is of 
a good depth and well drained; but no. doubt a. light, sandy 
loam, with plenty of decayed vegetable matter, such as good 
leaf-soil, suits them best. Unlike the commoner kinds of 
Maples, these are very slow growing, and except a few varieties, 
will develop into anything but large specimens; consequently 
they are admirably adapted for small shrubberies and gardensi 
The end of the present month is a capital time for planting, 
and these are generally supplied from the nurseries in pots, in 
which they are established after being imported. Though 
these Maples can be purchased from their own country at a 
very small cost, which is interesting, and sometimes reach 
these shores in fairly good condition, they require much care 
and attention to bring them back to a healthy state. It is, 
no doubt, the best plan to procure established and acclimatised 
plants from a reliable nursery. These will require but little 
attention after once planted. By way of pruning, etc., a 
judicious' thinning out of the shoots to render the bushes 
shapely is all that will be required, and an annual top-dressing 
of a. good turfy compost should be given them. The Japanese 
are very fond of working several varieties on one stock, but, to 
my mind, this is a childish and stupid practice, as all the 
varieties look far better when treated as separate plants. 
Having had an opportunity of observing nearly all the best- 
known varieties, I append a list of those which I consider to be 
amongst the most distinct and beautiful in their order of merit. 
A. palmatum sanguineum.—The leaves of this are bright 
red in spring, and it retains this colour throughout the summer. 
It is also a faster grower than many others of this group. 
A. p. septemlobum elegans.—As its name implies, the leaves 
are divided into seven parts and light green in colour. It 
forms a veiy elegant and shapely bush. The variety of this 
named purpureum has dark purple foliage, and is a most con¬ 
spicuous object when associated with other shrubs. 
A. p. atropurpureum.-—The foliage is not so finely divided as 
with the former variety, but in other respects it is similar. 
A. p. roseo-marginatum has light green leaves with a delicaf 
rose-colouring on the margins of each division. 
A. p. reticulatum is a slender-growing variety, and one of the 
most distinct, the leaves being .a very light green, with dart 
green veins, 
A. p. omatum, with deep red foliage, which is veiy finely cut 
is most beautiful. 
A. p. palmatifidum is more finely divided than any othe 
variety, and a delightful pale green colour. 
A. p. linearilobum has the foliage dark green and cmite 
distinct in formation, and has a veiy fine variety, with dark 
purple leaves named atropurpureum; A. p. aureum is. valuable 
on account of its golden foliage. Acer japonicum, A. j. 
laciniatum, and A. crataegifolium are extremely valuable for 
