334 
THE HARDEN l NO WORLD 
April IS, 190?. 
tobacco powder in preference to syringing with an insecticide 
for the present, allowing the little embryo fruits, to increase in 
size before resorting to the syringe. 
Apples.— Some varieties are heavily laden with blossom, and 
it would well repay the gardener to reduce the number, espe¬ 
cially on young or weakly trees, as well as newly-planted ones 
from the nursery; in fact, it is the better policy in the case of 
the latter to remove all blossom buds for the first season after 
planting, this giving the trees a. fair chance of recuperating 
themselves in their new quarters. Even to allow such trees 
to expand their blossoms, to say nothing of leaving many fruit 
on, as some do, cannot, but have a. detrimental effect, on the 
Growth of such trees for the whole season. These remarks 
may he taken literally as affecting all fruit trees, stone fruits 
especially, as a much greater strain is. put on these while form¬ 
ing their stone, than on the Apple or Pear. Trees removed from 
one part* of the garden to another, having good balls of soil 
attached to the roots, may be allowed to mature a few fruits, 
hut. even in their case it is safest to err on the lenient side. 
Any late-planted fruit-trees not moving away kindly should he 
syringed morning and evening while the weather remains diy 
overhead, which will materially assist such trees to pick up. 
The Peach.— In the south, growth is well advanced, and 
disbudding, i.e., the removal of superfluous shoots, must soon 
receive attention, beginning at the uppermost part of the tree 
first, doin g this piecemeal, extending the operation over ten 
or fourteen days, or a serious check may be given to the trees, 
as well a® a loss of crop for the year; and here the old adage 
comes in : “ A little knowledge is a. dangerous thing.” The 
directions given in a. previous calendar on disbudding Peaches 
under Hass are applicable here, so need not again: be repeated. 
The man deputed to' cany out this work should be acquainted 
with the variety under notice, the health and vigour of the. tree 
to, he operated on, beginning with established trees, and leaving 
until last any weak or recently-planted specimens. He 
should also have the tobacco puff with him in case aphis are 
about, which if battled with in infancy relieves the gardener 
of a lot of worry later on. 
Apricots. —Should the weather continue seasonable- as at 
the time of writing—-the hexagon or fish netting may be taken 
away towards the end of the coming week ; a calm day should 
be chosen for this work if possible. Trees: having set good 
crops may have a, partial thinning, rubbing off those ill placed 
or where crowded together, deferring the final thinning until 
the stoning period is past. It. may appear early to _write 
about applying water at the roots, but where glass coping or 
other similar protection has been, erected it is possible the 
border—especially, that part nearest the wall—has got a bit 
dry. If, on examination, such should he the case, apply a 
good watering .early .in the day, these latter remarks standing 
good for the Peach wall as well. James Mayne. 
Bicton, Devonshire. 
Letters to the Editor. 
Rainfall in West Lothian. 
To the Editor of The Gardening World. 
Sir,— This is undoubtedly one of the wettest seasons on re¬ 
cord, according to the rain-gauge in the garden here, as 20-66 in. 
of rain have fallen during the past three months. I notice in 
last week’s number that your genial contributor “ Cal " has 
had a visit of yellow rain. Up north it is mud, with a big “ M.” 
The smallest recorded rainfall in January was 0-27 in. on the 
28th, and the heaviest. 1'21, on the 10th. The total for the 
month was 5-92 in. In February the lightest recorded fall 
was 0-24 in. on the 24th of that month, and the 
heaviest was 2-46 in., which fell during 24 hours, on 
the 8th. The total for the month was 6-82 in. During March 
the lowest fall recorded was 0-07 in., on the 27th, and the 
heaviest 1-31 in., on the 21st. The total for March was 7 92 in. 
There was not much March dust about the above. D. W. M. 
Bathgate, Linlithgowshire. 
West Indian News 
To the Editor of The Gardening World. 
Sir,— In reading through The Gardening World I fell 
in with your offer regarding competition, and have much 
pleasure this morning in enclosing herewith some of the news 
items of this quarter during this month (March). 
Experimental Irish Potato Culture.— Experiments with 
Potatos, extending over a long period of years, show the advan¬ 
tage of using sprouted Potatos for seed to be an increased total 
yield, increased earliness, larger starch content, and a more 
vigorous growth of the vines. Planting tubers in rows 2ft. apart 
and 1ft. distant in the row gave better results than greater dis¬ 
tances ; it increased the yield and hastened the maturity of the 
crop. The tubers were better formed and richer in starch. 
Average-sized whole tubers used for seed gave better returns 
than large or small-sized whole tubers. The advisability of 
cutting seed tubers largely hinges on the variety to be planted. 
Precocious Germination in a Melon. —The germination of 
seeds wdiile still attached to the parent plant is not common in 
the plant world. An interesting case of precocious germination 
in Melons is described in the annals of this month. A Melon 
on being cut open was found to contain a large number of seed¬ 
ling Melons which had developed from the seels and grown at 
the expense of the sugary juice of the fruit. Some of them 
weighed twenty times more than the seeds from which they grew. 
Examples such as this are of considerable scientific interest, 
and it is hoped that an account of any such cases met with in 
the West Indies will he contributed to the columns of your 
book. I hope to hear from you at an early date.—Yours most 
cordially, Joseph C. Etienne. 
The Question of Trenching. 
To the Editor of The Gardening World. 
Sir, — I find from my copy of the 4th inst. still a small ember 
on the above subject, but will just let it go out pro tempore, an! 
promise “ C. B.” an account of the results of my treatment of 
this soil later on for his benefit or curiosity. And true enough 
the subject of trenching lias been widely strayed from, and 
“ C. B.” has wandered fairly well. I think if my memory leads 
me aright the editor knows a bit about noms de plume ; if not. 
“T. S.” is in the know. 
“ C. B.’s ” style is hardly “ jonic,” but if lie leaves people alone- 
he will get along just as well, and his feelings will be less liable 
to get hurt, and not bother about writers’ signatures, initials or 
otherwise. 
But the editor has dealt with it so thoroughly in conciseness 
that reallv further comment is unnecessary from either partv. 
T. S. 
Sweet Peas. 
To the Editor of The Gardening World. 
Sir, —Having had the pleasure of seeing Sweet Peas froi: 
Wistow Gardens exhibited at the Aquarium, I can endors 
all Mr. Thatcher advocates for their successful cn] 
fine in his excellent prize article, page 235. Gorgeous, am 
Countess of Powis have, however, given me most troubl 
through scalding by the hot sun, Gorgeous particularly so 
This variety was staged, finely coloured, by Mr. Simpson i 
1901. The practice of clipping the sticks may give a neat an 
tidy appearance, but Sweet Peas are great ramblers with goo 
cultivation and a favourable season, and are often liable i 
outgrow the sticks. By leaving these their full length the Pet 
will climb to a great height, and take hold of every availab 
twig. 
Respecting the saving of seed of new and choice varieties, i 
an extreme case like that mentioned by your versatile corr 
spondent “ Cal,” page 237, I should advise cuttings to be take) 
The short wiry growths that spring from the side shoots 
autumn should be made into cuttings 4 in. long, placing ha 
a dozen in a 5-in. pot, using a sandy mixture, and placing tl 
cuttings under a handliglit in a cool house, and in six weel! 
a good percentage will have made roots. 1 have now plan- 
showing hud raised from cuttings in November. I merely t-vii 
them as an experiment, and have pleasure in giving “ Cal 
and other enthusiasts the benefit of my experience 
T. H. Bolton. 
Baron Hill Gardens. 
