404 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER, 
May  13,  189?. 
Rale  1  I  do  not  quite  agree  with.  When  thinning  a  bunch 
which  hag  not  set  well  at  the  bottom  it  is  a  good  plan  to  hold  it  by 
the  point,  as  of  course  it  must  be  removed  when  the  bunch  has 
been  thinned.  The  same  remark  applies  in  cases  where  the  terminal 
berry  is  so  long  that  it  requires  removal  to  obtain  a  compact  point, 
a*  few  things  look  worse  than  to  see  the  bottom  berry  hanging 
loosely  when  the  Grapes  are  ripe.  Those  who  wish  to  become 
expert  Grape  thinners  should  hold  small  and  medium-sized  bunches 
by  the  footstalk,  just  above  the  shoulder.  With  a  little  practice 
they  will  soon  find  it  is  not  necessary  to  touch  it  with  the  hand  in 
any  other  part.  I  have  thinned  thousands  of  bunches  while  holding 
them  in  that  way,  and  although  I  do  not  wish  to  pose  as  an  egotist 
I  flatter  myself  I  can  thin  Grapes  as  neatly  and  quickly  as  most 
experts.  There  are  few  gardening  operations  I  like  better,  and 
many  times  I  have  spent  fifteen  hours  a  day  at  the  actual  thinning. 
In  dealing  with  large  bunches  it  is  necessary  to  use  a  Rtick 
about  8  inches  in  length,  one  end  of  it  forked,  as  this  is  sometimes 
useful  to  hold  up  shoulders  or  steady  the  bunch,  at  others  the 
straight  end  will  be  found  the  more  convenient. 
Rule  2  is  definite  and  gcod — no  one,  I  think,  would  take  excep¬ 
tion  to  it ;  3  and  4  give  important  information,  conveyed  in  such 
plain  English  that  it  would  be  difficult  for  anyone  to  mistake  their 
meaning  or  err  on  the  points  treated  of  if  the  teaching  is  followed. 
Rule  5  is,  of  course,  only  intended  as  a  general  instruction  suit¬ 
able  for  the  majority  of  varieties.  Such  sorts  as  Gros  Colman  and 
Gros  Maroc,  when  well  grown,  should  be  left  1^  inch  apart  halfway 
up  the  bunch,  a  little  closer  at  the  points  ;  and  in  the  case  of  the  last 
named  variety  about  an  inch  apart  on  the  shoulders,  as  the  footstalks 
lengthen  considerably  there.  It  is  seldom  that  Buckland  Sweet¬ 
water  requires  any  other  thinning  than  that  of  removing  the 
small  berries,  as  the  footstalks  lengthen  so  greatly  that  it  is  often 
difficult  to  get  a  well  filled  bunch.  Foster’s  Seedling,  on  the  other 
hand,  produces  berries  on  short  footstalks  so  freely  that  much 
careful  thinning  is  needed  ;  but  they  should  seldom  be  thinned  to 
more  than  three-quarters  of  an  inch  apart,  as  the  berries  are  oval 
in  shape  and  not  of  the  largest  size.  Madresfield  Court  often 
produces  very  large  berries,  and  though  the  footstalks  are  short 
they  ought  not  to  be  left  more  than  an  inch  apart  on  account  of 
their  shape  ;  all  berries  in  the  centre  of  the  bunch  ought,  how¬ 
ever,  to  be  removed.  Black  Hamburghs  differ  greatly  in  form  of 
bunch.  In  some  the  footstalks  are  long,  and  the  whole  bunch  is 
inclined  to  be  loose  ;  but  little  thinning  is  then  required  upon  the 
shoulders,  for  although  the  berries  drop  when  they  begin  to  swell, 
as  they  increase  in  size  they  force  each  other  upward,  and  in  time 
quite  fill  out  the  shoulder*.  Other  forms  of  Hamburgh*  are  more 
compact  in  bunch,  and  therefore  need  thinning  more  freely,  espe¬ 
cially  at  the  lower  part. 
Muscats  ought  not  to  be  thinned  till  the  berrie*  commence 
swelling  freely,  those  that  fail  to  enlarge  can  then  be  removed, 
and  where  gaps  occur  the  berries  around  ought  to  be  left  closer 
together,  leaving  them  at  an  average  distance  of  three-quarters 
of  an  inch  apart.  A  few  weeks  later,  if  looked  over  again,  the 
berries  not  required  can  be  removed.  Rules  6,  7,  8,  9,  and  10 
contain  instructions  which  every  Grape  thinner  should  learn  by 
heart  and  act  upon. 
In  market-growing  establishments  the  shoulders  are  invariably 
removed  in  order  .to  secure  compact  examples,  which  travel  well. 
No  instructions  on  this  point  were  therefore  included  in  the  printed 
form  already  dealt  with,  nor  upon  the  management  of  large  bunches 
for  exhibition  purposes.  These  are  matters  I  will  now  deal  with, 
as  they  require  special  treatment.  Gros  Guillaume  I  should  say 
produces  on  an  average  larger  bunches  than  any  other  Grape. 
These  are  often  very  handsome  in  shape,  though  frequently  the 
largest  clusters  are  somewhat  loose  and  by  no  means  shapely,  but 
it  is  surpriiing  how  they  may  be  gradually  moulded  into  form  by 
dexterous  manipulation. 
Before  attempting  to  thin  bunches  of  this  description  I  always 
tie  them  out  thoroughly,  commencing  at  the  top  of  the  bunch. 
The  main  shoulders  have  each  in  turn  a  piece  of  raffia  fastened 
around  the  stem,  taking  care  that  the  tie  is  loose  enough  to  allow 
for  the  swelling  of  the  stem  ;  the  shoulder  is  then  drawn  up  to  an 
horizontal  position,  and  the  other  end  of  the  grass  fastened  to  the 
trellis  on  which  the  Vines  are  trained  ;  a  bow  tie  should  be  made, 
as  throughout  the  growing  season  it  is  sometimes  necessary  to  raise 
or  lower  the  shoulders  slightly.  When  the  main  shoulders  have 
been  treated  in  this  way  some  of  the  larger  branchlets  which  spring 
from  them  require  ties  too,  so  that  the  whole  of  the  berries  are 
evenly  placed  over  the  top  of  the  bunch,  right  up  to  main  stem.  If 
the  shoulders  have  long  footstalks,  and  are  consequently  without 
berries  for  a  couple  of  inche*  from  their  bases,  they  may  be  by 
exercising  care  and  judgment  crossed  or  coiled  around  the  stem  of 
the  bunch,  so  that  when  the  berries  are  of  full  size  they  will  form 
a  compact  mats  ;  in  this  way  loose  bunches  may  be  converted  into 
solid  ones.  I  should  have  previously  stated  that  large  shoulders 
often  need  three  supports,  one  near  the  point  and  the  others  equi¬ 
distant  from  it,  when  the  top  of  the  bunch  is  completed.  The 
smaller  clusters  beneath  should  be  tied  up  to  fill  blanks  and  secure 
the  desired  shape.  This  done,  little  thinning  is  needed  beyond 
taking  out  a  berry  here  and  there,  also  the  very  small  ones. 
Trebbiano  requires  the  same  treatment,  with  the  exception  that 
more  thinning  is  usually  needed  than  in  the  case  of  Gro*  Guillaume. 
Muscats  and  Foster’s  Seedling  do  not  often  require  tying-out,  but 
in  some  instance*  a  distinct  advantage  is  gained  by  doing  so.  When 
Black  Hamburgh  and  Muscat  Hamburgh  produce  large  bunches 
it  is  generally  necessary  to  resort  to  tying  ;  on  the  other  hand 
Black  Alicante,  Gros  Colman,  Lady  Downe’s,  and  other  varieties 
with  similarly  stiff  stems  do  Dot  require  artificial  support?. 
It  should  always  be  borne  in  mind  that  tying-out  is  done  with 
the  object  of  producing  large  bunches  ;  if  these  are  not  required, 
severe  thinning  must  be  practised  to  put  them  into  shape. 
Medium-sized  bunches  often  have  one  good  side  shoulder.  In 
most  cases  I  remove  these,  but  in  some  they  are  left,  as  they  give 
the  bunches  the  little  extra  weight  needed  to  bring  them  up  to 
exhibition  size,  and  when  well  staged  such  bunches  look  well  on 
the  show  boards. 
Grape-thinning  may  to  some  seem  tedious  work,  but  I  know 
full  well  there  are  thousands  who  find  it  a  fascinating  art ;  the 
latter  will  have  fixe.d  in  their  mind’s  eye  the  shape  they  wish 
each  bunch  to  eventually  assume,  and  by  working  on  the  lines 
above  indicated  will,  I  think,  generally  be  able  to  closely  approach, 
if  not  attain  their  ideal. — Pomona. 
WILDERNESS  GARDENING. 
Woods,  copses,  glades,  and  hedgerow  banks  have  charms  at  all 
times  to  the  lover  of  Nature.  In  the  spring  months  the  beauty  of 
the  “palms”  (male  catkins  of  the  Goat  Willow,  Salix  caprea), 
common  Primrose,  Sweet  or  even  Dog  Violet,  Wood  Anemone, 
Sweet  Woodruff,  strong  smelling  Bluebell  or  Wood  Hyacinth 
with,  in  places,  Daffodil,  Forget-me-not,  and  Lily  of  the  Valley, 
excite  admiration  when  seen  in  Nature’s  profusion.  Thus  the 
wildlings  of  the  hedgebank,  copse,  and  wood  may  often  be  found 
in  urban  and  suburban  gardens,  for  it  is  not  enough  to  cull  flowers 
by  the  hand  and  armful,  but  roots  must  needs  be  borne  off  by 
basket  and  bagful  as  souvenirs  of  rural  wanderings  at  holiday 
times.  This,  deplorable  as  it  is  in  many  cases,  has  led  to  spring 
flower  gardening,  for  when  the  massing  system  came  into  force  the 
common  floweis  of  our  gardens  were  almost  wholly  neglected,  and 
but  for  their  being  cherished  in  old-fashioned  and  cottage  gardens 
would  have  been  lost. 
The  herbaceous  border  is  but  an  outcome  of  collecting  from 
various  sources  and  many  lands.  The  massing  of  flowers  is  the 
method  of  Nature,  which  affords  a  succession  of  beauty  in  different 
form  and  place  throughout  the  sea»on.  Honeysuckles,  wild  Roses, 
and  Clematis  are  no  less  charming  than  the  earlier  and  more  lowly 
spring  flowers,  and  what  more  delightful  than  banks  and  mountains 
of  “May?”  while  the  Spikv  Mullein  and  Foxglove,  with  purple  and 
white  masses  of  Willow  Herb  (Epilobium)  yield  to  few  pampered 
exotics  in  stateliness  and  charm  during  the  summer. 
In  the  autumn  what  excels  in  relish  the  self-picked  Blackberry 
and  the  Hazel  Nut  ?  Where,  in  winter,  have  we  such  greenery  as 
