. 172 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
March 9, 1907. 
crammed full of builder’s rubbish—and 
this must be rectified. An unwise choice of 
varieties is often, too, responsible for 
failure. How frequently do we see such 
Roses as Crimson Rambler planted 
against a hot wall looking the most abject 
picture of misery, and eaten up with red 
spider and mildew! Or again, we may 
often see Gloire de Dijon and Mme. 
Berard flowering right under the eaves 
of a house, with not a bud or leaf visible 
within ten or fifteen feet of their base, 
and looking for all the world as if they 
were perched upon stilts, or budded on 
the top of a Brobdignagian brier. For 
this verv reason both these Roses are not 
nearly so well suited for a wall as Reve 
d’or, which is a rapid grower, does not 
get leggy, and is free from mildew. I 
feel sure that it is a mistake to allow these 
Dijon Tea varieties to run up on a single 
stem. By a little careful manipulation 
at the commencement, it is quite possible 
to prune so as to ensure three or four 
stems per plant. When this is accom¬ 
plished, the next care is to prevent the 
strongest of these from taking ail the sap, 
and thus starving the others. To* suc¬ 
cessfully achieve this is not an impossi¬ 
bility ; it is merely a question of stopping 
each shoot at the right moment, and 
afterwards training it in the direction re¬ 
quired, instead of allowing only one to 
mount straight upwards, and thus cause 
that bareness at the base which is soi un¬ 
sightly. My idea of the best twelve 
Roses for walls is as follows:— 
North. Bennett’s Seedling, Felicite et 
Perpetue Inermis Morletti. 
South. Reve d’or, Sinica Anemone, 
I.amarque. 
East. Climbing Mrs. W. J. Grant, 
Alister Stella Gray, Mme. Alfred Car- 
riere. 
West. Wm. Allen Richardson, Noella 
Nabonnand, Zephirine Drouhin. 
I give this list now because it may be 
useful to readers who are just moving to 
a new house, though such late planting 
is admittedly rather a venture, and not to 
be commended as a regular practice un¬ 
less the plants can be obtained in pots. 
The time for general pruning has not yet 
come, though with the advent of lambs, 
Daffodils, and east winds, the rosarian 
mind naturally adverts to it. One of the 
most important parts of pruning, how¬ 
ever, may be done this month, viz., the 
completion of what the frost has left un¬ 
finished. I have already noticed on a few 
of my climbing Roses black blotches or 
rings" on some of last season’s, and even 
much older wood. These are frostbites 
—surely one of the most irritating things 
a rosarian has to deal with. Perhaps a 
whole ten or fifteen feet-long shoot will 
appear in perfect condition, save for the 
fact that there is a brown spot, perhaps 
' half-way up. Closer examination reveals 
the fact that the pith under this mark is 
' quite discoloured; this, of course, means 
that the shoot must be cut away a bud 
. or two below the frozen part. If this is 
not done the shoot mav appear as if it 
would recover for a time, but will even- 
. tually collapse because no sap can pass 
through the part that is frost-bitten. In 
the “ G. W.” for March 3rd last year I 
unfolded my method of manuring, and 
gave the recipe for that invaluable manure 
known as Tonks’. There is no need for 
me to repeat the particulars there given. 
In conjunction with this manure, I use 
well-rotted pig, cow, or horse manure; 
the first is the strongest, the second being 
most suited to light soils, and the last to 
heavy soils. 
Budded stocks may now be examined, 
and those stocks on which the buds are 
dead should be cut back—the dwarfs tc 
the ground, while the standards should 
A Fig tree cannot have too much sun¬ 
shine. The hottest corner in the garden 
may be profitably devoted to the growing 
of Figs. Though it is necessary to allow 
plenty of border space to other kinds of 
I 
1. Propagating cuttings in pots. A, 
sand at base of cuttings. 
fruit trees in order to keep the specimens 
healthy and in good fruiting condition, a 
very small space of ground is sufficient for 
the roots of the Fig tree. 
In order to be successful in the growing 
of Figs you must note the following 
points :— 
(a) Confinement of the roots to a limited 
space. 
(b) Procuring as many fibrous roots as 
possible; the more like a door mat they 
are the more satisfactory will the top 
growth be. 
/ 
2. When a sucker is pla?ited tie down 
the end, as shown in sketch, to a stake 
to induce new shoots to grow as shown 
at the dotted lines. 
have the branches removed so that they 
may make fresh growth, and thus be re- 
budded this coming summer. Those 
buds that have survived the winter will 
require an ever watchful eye to preserve 
them from the depredations of the Rost- 
grub. 
Arthur R. Goodwin? 
Worcestershire. 
(c) Securing very short - jointed 
branches, and avoiding having long, un¬ 
ripe shoots. 
(d) Doing as little winter pruning as 
possible; but 
(e) Duly attending to summer pinching 
of the growing shoots. 
Through making a brief study of the 
above points the amateur will be able to 
decide upon positions for planting, and 
to make the attempt to grow Fig trees in 
pots, as they' may be most successfully cul¬ 
tivated in pots and tubs. 
In the midland and northern counties 
the latter mode of growing the trees is tc 
be very highly recommended, as then full 
maturity of wood can be obtained, and 
ripe fruit even during the most adverse 
seasons where a glass structure is avail 
able, as the trees only need be kept undei 
such cover for a brief, but critical, period 
j. The roots at B, B, must be bared 
so that the suckers A, A, may be properl) 
removed. 
Propagation. —There are two method 
whereby young trees may be raised 
namely, by striking cuttings, and by layei 
ing young branches. 
Striking Cuttings.— Towards the en 
of January select some ripe shoots aboc 
six or seven inches longj cut them off ju‘ 
below, or through, a joint; insert them i 
pots filled with sandv soil, apd we 
drained. Use pots five inches in di; 
meter, and put four cuttings around th 
sides of the pot (see Fig. 1). Plunge th 
latter to the rim in cocoanut fibre in 
slight bottom heat either on a hotbed c 
in a propagating box placed on hot-wate 
pipes. Do not touch or in any way' loose 
the cuttings in the soil, and keep the latte 
nice and moist, but not in a sodden coi 
dition. 
By r the aid of a bottom heat of about f 
degrees roots will form in two month 
time. Then graduallv inure the youn 
plants to a cooler temperature, repot thei 
Fruit Growing 
for Amateurs. 
5.— FIGS. 
