336 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
April 23, 1904. 
with a small a,mount of Sulphur in, it ; a night temperature of 
65 deg. will be suitable' until colouring becomes general, when 
5 deg. less will suffice. 
Succession. -Keep the thinning of the bunches well in hand, 
but not be too eager with Muscats until it can be noted whether 
there are likely to be many seedless berries, and varieties of 
these reaching their flowering stage should, if procurable, have 
some foreign pollen introduced by getting it on a pane of glass 
and touching the bunches lightly with it, using a camel-hair 
brush for the purpose, and allow the bunches all the light! 
possible. Maintain a night, temperature of 68 to 70 deg. for 
Muscats, 65 deg. sufficing for other varieties while in flower, 
and do not be in too' great a hurry to bring down the laterals 
until the bunches have set, but keep them clear of the glass 
roof, assisting fertilisation about mid-day with the brush, a 
light tapping of the rods sufficing for free-setting varieties. 
Disbud the latest Vines and pinch the shoot at the second leaf 
above the bunch, and in bringing down the laterals the greatest 
care is: necessary with Alicante® and one or two others, as they 
are .easily pulled out at the base.. Inside borders should have 
a good watering before the Vines come into flower, first scatter¬ 
ing. on a little artificial fertiliser; and now the sun is more 
powerful, early ventilation is necessary with houses facing 
south or south-east. 
Peach Houses.—Early-forced trees will be at a critical stage 
just at present until the fruit is stoned, 55 deg. being the 
safest night temperature until the fruit" takes to its second 
swelling, when, an extra 5 deg. may be given, running to 85 
deg. with sun-heat towards closing time, but allowing a. chink 
of ventilation at the apex of the house during the night. 1 con¬ 
sider advantageous to Peach forcing. Continue to tie in the 
shoots, for next, years bearing, avoiding anything approaching 
crowding of the: same, and pinch the point of any bearing shoot 
not required for further extension; give the trees another look 
ever and their final thinning of the fruit, if not already done, 
and syringe the trees twice daily until the fruit begins to ripen. 
Manurial waterings should be given up to the time they reach 
that stage every three or four weeks, exposing the fruit to 
every gleam of. sunshine possible by tying aside the leaves and 
placing flat pieces of lath at the base of any requiring to be 
brought to the light. Succession structures need frequent 
attention] in regulating the shoots and thinning of the crops 1 , 
and the latest trees "should have their final disbudding and 
surplus fruit rubbed.off where heavy crops are set, dispensing 
with.those facing the worse position, as a matter of course, 
and see the trees do not suffer for want, of water at the root. 
Unheated houses have set their fruit well and promise good 
crops ; 50 to" 55 deg. at night is better than 60 deg. until 
wanner nights are with us, and fumigate on a couple of even¬ 
ings should aphis appear, on the scene. , 
Pigs.—Up to. the point of ripening this fruit revels in 
abundance of heat and moisture from this date, making quite 
sure that the roots, whether in pots or borders, are well 
attended to as regards water, a, night temperature of 60 to 
65 deg. being suitable. Endeavour to keep the shoots evenly 
regulated, pinching the leading shoots of later trees at the fifth 
or sixth leaf, reducing the resultant growths to one as soon as 
they can be laid hold of. Birds: are fond of these; fish or 
wire netting over the ventilators will keep them out. Should 
ants prove a nuisance, pour boiling water or a drop of paraffin 
down their nests, which will quickly dislodge them. 
Bictom, Devonshire. James Matne. 
Trifles. 
It, has well been said that in gardening, as well as in many 
other things', it is the details that count,. In, other words, it 
is the attention, or lack of attention, to what is too often 
looked on as “ trifles ” that spells the difference between suc¬ 
cess and failure. I know a good many otherwise clever gar¬ 
deners who have the greatest difficulty in raising such plants 
as Begonias,, Gloxinias, Strepto carpus, and others with very 
tine seeds. The reason is a, trifle, but a most vital trifle. In 
all probability the seed-pans are well and carefully prepared, 
the seed properly sown, and then the mistake is made of 
watering overhead with a, rosed pot. Now, I am convinced 
that success is almost certain if the pots or pans were plunged 
to the rim for live minutes in tepid water every time water is 
required. 
I once saw a rather amusing accident befall a rather conse¬ 
quential neighbour in connection with this question. In shov¬ 
ing me round his house® this man was inclined to “ blow his 
own horn,” and on this particular occasion was “ holding 
forth” about a grand “ braird ” of Gloxinias lie had. On coming 
to them he lifted the pan to show them off, and, discovering 
that they were rather dry, seized a watering-pan to give them 
a shower through a fine rose. Unfortunately, the brass rose 
had been unscrewed, and the result was that the whole of the 
seedlings were washed from the soil and ruined. This was a 
trifle, but mark the result,. 
At this season, when so many seeds are being committed to 
the soil, too many neglect to roll Peas, Beans, and the seeds of 
the Brassica family in red lead. It, takes a trifle' longer, per¬ 
haps, to do the work, but the result of using this precaution 
is that neither mice nor birds will touch a single seed if thus 
protected, and it is a much more satisfactory plan than netting 
These trifles could be commented on at practically any length, 
but, I will mention only one other—viz., the care of tools. & It 
has, of course, been often referred to in these columns, but 
this particular trifle is of so much importance that I cannot 
refrain from saying a word or two about it. Some gardeners 
I know expect their assistants to clean and put past the- tools 
in their own time. This is very bad policy. Far better 
‘allow a few minutes every evening, and insist on tools bein® 
properly cleaned and carried to their places under cover. Not 
only will tools last much longer, but more and better work 
will be accomplished, and the young men will take some pride 
in having them in first-rate order. Thus do trifles attended 
to cause success. Q Blair. 
Preston, Linlithgow. 
Potatos. 
Potato's were first brought into England by Sir Walter 
Raleigh, but it was several years after before they were used 
a,s a vegetable. Of root crops the Potato is altogether the 
most important, not only because it, is an indispensable article 
of food upon every dinner-table from the labourer’s cottage 
t° th© King s palace, but also' it is a profitable crop when judg¬ 
ment and skill are exercised in its cultivation. Potatos 
gener ally do' best in light soils; those that are grown in heavy, 
clayey soils are generally scabby, worm-eaten, and very soapy 
m taste. The early varieties are the Ash Leaf, Sharpe’s 
me tor, and Duke of York. The late varieties are Magnum 
Bonum, Schoolmaster, Up-to-Date, etc. It is a. good thing 
to try different sorts of Potatos and increase those which 
succeed the best in any particular soil, for a change to Potatos 
often does better than if you were to manure the ground. 
As a disease very often comes into the Potato crop, it is 
best to plant the Potatos 9 in. apart and the drills about, 2ft. 
apart, so as to let plenty of light and air in, as this helps 
to prevent the disease from spreading. Early Potato® only 
occupy the land half the season. Late sorts occupy the whole 
season, but yield larger crops. The seed Potatos are assorted 
and stored away on shelves, trays; and frames in a frost- 
pi ooi milding, with as much light as comes through an ordi¬ 
nary window. If they are without light they have long, weakly 
shoots, and this helps to weaken the Potato, but if with light 
they will have strong shoots by time of planting. The eating 
I otatos are stored away in a, dark room or cellar, or else piled 
up. in a heap and strewn over with straw, and on top about 
m. thick of soil. It is best, to sort them over after being 
stored away about four or five weeks; as if there are any 
rotten ones among them they help to affect- the. others. The 
Potato crop is cultivated in different ways. Sometimes they 
are drilled out and planted, or put in with a, setting stick. 
n \\ eight of a, seed Potato' is about, 3 o*z. At the pre'sent, time 
the ! otato is grown nearly all over the world. 
Edwin Forsey. 
