October 7, 1905. 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
779 
before watering borders, to be replaced again 
to keep the moisture from ascending among the 
bunches. Amateurs who grow plants under 
their Vines and find the bunches decaying 
should forthwith cut them and place in bottles 
of clean water, making sure the end of the 
lateral reaches the water. The grape rack may 
be stood in a spare room where a little fire 
lieat may be given once or twice a week to 
dispel moisture. Strip off all the foliage before 
bottling, and keep them in the darkest part of 
the room. 
Outdoors. 
Root Frun : ng'.— This is the month to un“ 
dertake this important work, and when care' 
fully performecl seldom fails to bring barren 
trees into a state of fruitfulness. Naturally 
old, worn-out, or badly-cankered trees are not 
included, it being usually young, or trees that 
ought to be at their best requiring this mutila¬ 
tion of the roots. In the case of small, or even 
medium size trees, say from five to seven years 
from the bud or graft, entire lifting and re¬ 
planting is the surest remedy to counteract the 
evil of robust growth, and when carefully and. 
quickly carried out the roots soon take hold of 
the soil again and become established before 
severe frosts can do much harm. Preserve as 
many of the fibrous roots as possible ; cut hard 
back all fibreless ones, and in replanting en¬ 
deavour to keep the remaining ones compara¬ 
tively near the surface, a covering of 4 in. being- 
sufficient for the uppermost ones. If the soil 
is fcuncl on the dry side apply a good watering, 
otherwise delay it for a few weeks, as the roots 
sooner take to their new surroundings when 
the soil is medium as to moisture. Fruit-tree 
borders are usually rich enough, therefore 
avoid adding manure of any kind with the ex¬ 
ception of lime or mortar rubble and wood- 
ashes, all of which are beneficial, especially to 
stone fruits ; or if the soil is considered poor 
add a little loam from the stack with the ordin¬ 
ary taken out. 
To root-prune take out a trench the width of 
a spade, 3 ft. to 4 ft. from the bole of the tree 
and from 18 in. to 24 ft. deep, or to the drain¬ 
age where such is employed ; then work away 
the remaining soil with a garden-fork, throw¬ 
ing this out with a spade, taking due care of 
the root fibres and working well under the ball 
of soil, as it is often here where the mischief is, 
a stray root or two going right down into the 
subsoil. All such roots should be cut away 
near their origin. In returning the soil, simi¬ 
larly treated as above, be sure to make it quite 
firm, especially underneath, and lay out straight 
all roots with a tendency to point upwards 
rather than in the opposite direction ; and as 
to water, be guided by the state of the soil as 
before stated. Make a start with Apricots, 
next with Peaches and Plums, Figs, Pears, and 
Apples remaining until last, but all is best 
done while the foliage adheres to the trees. 
James Mayne. 
Bicton Gardens, Devonshire. 
The Stove and Greenhouse. 
Pits and Frames. —All tender plants still 
remaining in these structures should now be 
removed to the greenhouse, and after cleansing 
the frames and placing a layer of fresh coal- 
ashes upon the bottom, introduce the hardier 
plants now in the open, where they will remain 
throughout the winter. Unheated frames 
should now be covered with mats or other 
material every night; for with our variable 
climate it is next to impossible to foretell what 
the weather will be before morning. Remove 
the covering early in the morning and admit 
air in accordance with the weather prevailing, 
always bearing in mind that abundance of air 
is beneficial to plants grown in frames. Rooted 
cuttings of many of the hardier bedding plants 
may remain in frames for a little longer, pro¬ 
vided the weather remains open ; they will 
then become hardened and better fitted for 
passing through the winter. Plants that are 
to remain in the frames throughout the winter 
must be sparingly watered, and all decayed 
foliage assiduously removed. Watering should 
be performed in the mornings, in order that 
superfluous moisture may pass away before 
closing time. 
Hard-wooded Plants. —These are not now 
grown so extensively as they were a decade or 
two ago, and it is difficult to assign any good 
reason for this apparent neglect of such beau¬ 
tiful flowering plants. To those who contem¬ 
plate taking up the cultivation of such plants 
OUR WEEKLY PRIZE COM¬ 
PETITIONS. 
General Conditions. — Competitors must 
write on one side of the paper only. Regular paid 
contributors to The Gardening World, or other 
gardening journals, are debarred from entering, 
but occasional contributors may compete. The 
name and address of the competitor must appear 
on each article sent for competition. The Editor’s 
decision is final, and he reserves the right to re¬ 
produce, in any way, any article or photograph 
sent for competition. The conditions applying to 
each competition should be carefully read. 
PRIZES. 
A Prize of Ten Shillings will be given for 
tbe best paragraph or short article on any 
gardening subject, such as hints of practical 
interest to gardeners, notes on the propagation or 
cultivation of flowers, fruits or vegetables, 
eradication of pests, etc. The paragraph or 
article must not exceed a column, but value 
rather than length will be considered in making 
the award. Mark envelopes “ Competition,” and 
post not later than the Monday following date of 
issue. Entries received later than Tuesday 
first post will be left over until the following 
week. 
Two Prizes of Two Shillings and Six¬ 
pence each will be given for the best supple¬ 
mentary replies to questions asked in “ The G.W. 
Enquire Within ” col umn . These replies should 
be brief. 
A Prize of Five Shillings will be given for 
the best novel device for saving labour, protecting 
plants, or a garden utensil, which reaches us 
during any week. A rough sketch must accom¬ 
pany the brief description. 
RESULTS OF LAST WEEK’S COM¬ 
PETITIONS. 
The prize in the Readers’ Competition was 
awarded to “ H. W. ” for his article on “ Bulbs 
for Spring Gardening,” p. 7(54. 
A prize was also awarded to “A. G. Salter’ 
for a device, “ A'String Holder,” p. 773. 
as Fpaeris, Erica, Boronia, Azalea (Indian), and 
others, now is a good time to purchase plants 
from the nurseries. Well-grown bushy plants 
in 48’s or 32’s can now be bought at a reason¬ 
able figure, and they will be invaluable for 
making a good display in the coming want el¬ 
and spring, -when the flowers are scarce. It 
should be known that these plants resent fire- 
heat, and only sufficient should be applied at 
any time to keep out actual frost The tem¬ 
perature of the structure in which they are 
grown may fall to 42 degrees, and should never 
exceed 55 during the time they are under gla>s. 
The main point is to water judiciously; that 
is, when the plants need water give sufficient 
to permeate the whole bed of soil, but never 
allow these fine-rooted plants to become really 
dry. K. M. 
Hardy Herbaceous Border. 
The Formation of New Borders.— Where 
it is proposed to make new borders of hardy 
plants, and the site has been chosen, it is a good 
plan, especially if' one intends to plant in the 
autumn or early winter, to prepare the ground 
a good time beforehand so that it becomes 
thoroughly settled down before one commences 
planting. It is always advisable to have the 
border of good width, and the best results in a 
long or short distance are always obtained by 
having it quite 10 ft. or 12 ft. across, but no 
hard and fast rule can be laid down, as one has 
to be governed by circumstances. 
The preparation of the soil is a most impor¬ 
tant item, and it is well to remember that by 
doing this thoroughly in the first place much 
labour is afterwards saved in several ways. 
Many of the best herbaceous plants are deep 
rooters, especially so in dry weather, and when 
by penetrating the soil which has been worked 
they are able to find moisture and fresh feeding 
material, the work of watering is much di¬ 
minished, and replanting is not necessary nearly 
so often. AY here it is possible, the soiljshould 
be trenched from 21 ft. to 3 ft., with the bottom 
well broken up, and a layer of well-rotted 
manure should be placed between each spit. 
When turning over soil which has not been pre¬ 
viously used in many cases, wireworm will be in 
evidence, and a good dusting of soot, lime and 
wood ashes will do much to eradicate this, and 
also prove valuable to the plants. 
If one intends planting in the autumn, this 
work should be forwarded without delay, but 
on all heavy soils it is a much better plan to 
trench the ground later in the winter and to 
plant in early spring, as many subjects are 
liable to succumb to the cold and wet when 
they have not had time to become settled and 
somewhat established. It is also advisable to 
make a plan of the border beforehand, setting 
out the groups or single plants as the case may 
be, and there is then no difficulty when the 
planting time arrives as to where each subject 
is to be located. A. E. T. 
Hardy Trees and Shrubs. 
Two Good Roses. —Among hybrid Tea Roses 
there are several which produce a good display 
of bloom in the autumn, but one which stands 
out cons] licuously with us is General Schabli- 
kine, and this season it is manifestly superior 
to all others. Although by no means a new 
Rose, it is not nearly so frequently seen in 
quantity as its merits entitle it to be ; and when 
used for bedding, in which capacity one sees it 
to the best advantage, a remarkably fine dis¬ 
play of bloom results, especially during the 
latter part of September and October, when 
good Roses are, perhaps, more appreciated 
than at any season of the year. The flowers 
are a rich coppery red, and the bud of excellent 
shape, and for cutting- purposes hardly any 
Rose is superior. This season mildew has been 
much in evidence, but it is a singular fact that 
not the'slightest trace of it is to be found on 
General Schablikine, a great point in its 
favour. 
Another excellent and quite distinct autumn¬ 
flowering Rose is the China variety Queen 
