196 
THE gardening world. 
March 11, 1905. 
Fruit Under Glass. 
Orchard House. — The mildness of the season lias neces¬ 
sitated the removal of the trees under glass rather earlier than 
usual, and care must be taken that they are not unduly 
hastened with either sun or fire-heat, but afforded a free cir¬ 
culation of air whenever the weather is favourable. If there 
is much difference in the temperature of the house, the Peach 
and Nectarine' may be given the warmer end, and as the trees 
come into flower give each one a gentle tap about midday to 
distribute the pollen, keeping the structure rather on the dry 
side until a set has been secured, but on no account let trees 
in pots get any way on the dry side; and permanent, planted- 
out trees if they are watered before coming in flower will be 
all right until the fruit, is set. Fumigate the structure before 
the: flowers open if it is thought aphides are about, and again 
as soon as all the trees have passed out of flower, or if only an 
isolated specimen, it may be syringed with quassia or tobacco 
water early in the afternoon. Guard against cold northerly 
winds, which do much mischief in early spring, and where 
fire-heat can be applied, a little should be put on when frost 
threatens. 
Pot Figs.-- -When the fruits are in the flowering stage—and 
this can be noted by the former remaining stationary for a 
short time—do not hurry them at all, or many will drop ; a 
night temperature of 60 deg. is safer than 5 deg. above, espe¬ 
cially on cold nights, advancing to 75 or even 80 deg. with the 
sun, well syringing' the trees at closing time to- ward off red 
spider, the greatest enemy to the foliage, and pay strict atten¬ 
tion to watering; using diluted manure-water frequently and 
damping the floors with the same after bright days has a. most 
beneficial effect in keeping the foliage clean. Succession, 
which are usually planted-out trees, will require frequent 
attention in disbudding, as the Fig is prone to push many 
more shoots than can be found space for; also the pinching 
of any that show signs of growing ahead and robbing the 
weaker, and this also lias a tendency to cause the fruit to drop. 
Trees that show extra well for fruit should have part removed 
in good time, or the crop may be small, I he latest, as veil 
as unheated houses, should be closed if a second crop is to be 
taken, keeping the trees syringed twice daily, closing the latter 
soon after 3 p.m. 
Melons — These have made much progress the past fort¬ 
night, and require attention every few days in securing the 
bine to the trellis, rubbing off all lateral growth below that, 
and pinching at the first leaf a few of the lowermost one®, 
when it will be found that the secondary growths usually show 
a female blossom about the same time as do. those further up 
the trellis. Now the days are getting longer and the sun more 
powerful, the syringe may be used more frequently, but avoid 
much moisture running down towards the base, as well as 
watering too close, as this is usually the forerunner to canker. 
Do not stop the leader until within 9 in. of its limit, but nip 
out the* point of all laterals the first leaf beyond the female 
blossom, which must be pollinated about midday when ex¬ 
panded, keeping the syringe away durrng that time, and main¬ 
taining a night temperature of 68 to 70 deg., with the usual 
advance of 10 to 15 deg. from the sun. Water carefully and 
admit air cautiously during this and the coming month, plan - 
ing out successions before they become potbound, and sow 
every few weeks according to space at command. 
Pines. —Early started Queens will be pushing up their fruit 
bv this, and as the flowers expand, keep a dry atmosphere 
overhead, but moisten the plunging material, paths, etc., two 
or three times a day, oftener on bright days than when the- 
weather is dull. Pines are another fruit that require careful 
watering, especially in the earlier stage of the fruit develop¬ 
ment, and again when nearing ripeness; too sodden a soil at 
either one of those dates may spoil what would otherwise have 
been fine fruit. Succession plants lately repotted must claim 
the same attention, examining each one twice a. week, and 
only applying water when on the diy side, and this undiluted 
for the present; those in fruit require manurial aid at each 
watering, either weak guano or farmyard drainings, and 
applied at the same temperature as the pots are plunged in. 
The night temperature for these may be 70 deg., and raised to 
85 deg. on bright days, while for. growing plants 10 deg. less 
will be more suitable all the way round. Keep the evaporating 
troughs charged with manure or soot-water, which favours 
clean, healthy growth. James Mayxe. 
Bicton Gardens, Devonshire. 
The Stove and Greenhouse. 
Euphorbias. — A commencement should be made in pro¬ 
pagating these, and assuming that the plants which have re¬ 
cently flowered were cut down and stored in a warm, diy 
place to rest, they will now be in a fit state for restarting into 
growth for the production of cuttings. There are two distinct 
methods of working up the required number of plants, viz., by 
cutting the stems into 2-in. or 3-in lengths and inserting them 
with the topmost eye left just above the surface of the soil, or 
by placing the old plants in heat, and when the new growths 
attain 2 in., take them off with a. heel and insert round the 
sides of small pots filled with peaty, sandy soil. In either 
case, a strong bottom heat will be necessary to strike them. I 
prefer the latter mode, as roots are emitted quicker, and if 
the young plants are potted and grown on freely, they become 
well established long before those' propagated by old stems of 
hard wood. 
Streptocarpus. -— When well grown these are of inestimable 
value for making a gorgeous display in the conservatory 
during the summer and autumn months, and as the flowers 
last well when cut. and placed in water in rooms, they should 
find a place in all gardens that have convenience for growing 
them. Seed may now be sown, and as soon as the seedlings 
are. large enough to handle, prick them off into thumb pots 
and errow on in a light position in the stove until June or 
July, when a pit will suit them best until they commence to 
blossom. Older plants should be potted up and grown on in 
like manner. No syringing overhead should be practised, but 
they delight in a- humid atmosphere during the growing 
season. Vast improvements have been made in the form and 
colour of their flowers during' the past, decade, the 1 colouis now 
ranging from pure- white to the deepest rose. I he compost I 
invariably use for them consists of two-fifths fibrous loam, one 
of peat, one of leaf-soil, and one of well decomposed farmyard 
manure, adding plenty of .sand and a sprinkling of bone-meal 
and nodules of charcoal. 
Ferns.— All stove and greenhouse Ferns should now be ie- 
potted or top-dressed as considered necessary. Large speci¬ 
mens that have not been repotted for a- year or two should now 
be turned out, and, after reducing the old ball of soil, repotted, 
using a lumpy, friable compost. Small plants may have the 
-jld ball of soil pricked over carefully with a pointed stick, and 
be shifted on into larger pots. I do not favour the repotting 
of all Ferns annually; many of them will give better results 
by merely top-dressing, provided always that the drainage is 
perfect. " In some instances it is necessary to increase the 
stock of a particular species or variety by division, but it 
should be done carefully, or a. severe check will result, ferns 
rrrown in baskets should also'be shifted if they have become 
impoverished through being in the basket too long It should | 
be borne in mind that there is not. such a large body ot sou 
in these that a pot contains; moreover, the plants become 
exhausted more quickly than do those grown m pots, owm P 
to the air penetrating through them more 1 freely. 
Epacrises.—These plants do not receive that share of atten¬ 
tion that their merits deserve, for I know of no more useful 
