4?2 
JOURNAL  OP  PORTlCtJLTtlRP  AND  COT? AGP  GARDPNPR. 
June  3,  l8t)?. 
thousands  quit©  in  the  open.  Not  necessarily  in  the  hottest 
and  best  sites,  or,  say,  borders  in  front  of  walls  facing  south,  bat 
equally  as  well  in  a  sunny  quarter,  sloping  to  the  south  for  choice. 
My  ground  in  Somerset  slopes  nowhere  in  particular,  but  the 
soil  is  moderately  warm  and  free  working.  The  Bexley  Heath 
ground  appeared  to  be  composed  largely  of  pebbles,  and  thanks  to 
these  stones  the  plants  do  not  suffer  from  drought  so  quickly  as 
mine  do. 
Preparation  of  the  ground  merits  a  separate  paragraph,  not 
because  there  is  any  important  secret  to  be  disclosed,  but  merely 
because  it  is  simplicity  itself  compared  with  orthodox  instructions 
as  set  forth  by  old  masters.  What  I  advocate  is  that  Tomatoes 
require  much  the  same  treatment,  as  far  as  preparation  of  the 
ground  is  concerned,  as  Potatoes.  One,  two,  or  three  shovelfuls  of 
fresh  fibrous  loam  with  a  sprinkling  of  bonemeal  added  may  answer 
well  when  only  a  dozen  or  two  plants  are  grown,  but  is  out  of  the 
question  in  the  majority  of  cases.  Dig  in  half-decayed  mixed 
farmyard  or  good  horse  stable  manure  freely  and  deeply,  doing  this 
if  the  soil  is  of  a  clayey  nature  early  enough  in  the  year  for  it  to 
become  well  pulverised  before  May,  and  that  ought  to  be  sufficient 
preparation.  If  the  manure  is  the  usual  old,  quite  decayed  hotbed 
stuff  common  to  so  many  gardens,  then  I  would  add  a  dressing  of 
Thomson’s,  Albert’s,  Clay’s,  or  other  maker’s  manures  at  planting 
time,  stirring,  not  digging  this  in. 
Why  I  suggest  that  the  ground  be  got  into  a  free  working 
condition  before  May  is  because  this  affords  a  good  opportunity  for 
double  or  intercropping.  My  plan  ia  to  plant  early  Potatoes  in 
long  rows,  3  feet  apart,  and  midway  between  these  the  Tomato 
plants  are  put  out  in  due  course.  We  are  later  than  usual  in 
planting  the  Potatoes — luckily  so  as  it  happens.  If  planted  during 
the  first  three  weeks  in  April  they  would  most  probably  have 
“  come  up  ”  by  May  11th,  in  which  case  all  not  covered  would  have 
been  blackened  by  a  severe  frost.  Late  planted  as  they  are  they 
will  not  interfere  with  the  work  of  planting  or  future  progress  of 
the  Tomatoes,  and  both  crops  will  be  all  the  better  for  the  ample 
room  allowed  them. 
What  and  when  to  plant  have  next  to  be  discussed.  The  rage 
for  handsome,  smooth,  round  fruit  has  seriously  militated  against 
the  success  of  many  growers  of  Tomatoes  in  the  open.  We  all 
like  them ;  but  the  more  shrewd  market  grower  prefers  a  certainty, 
even  if  accompanied  by  comparatively  low  prices,  to  an  uncertainty 
with  a  gain  of  one  penny  per  pound  for  what  produce  may  be  sold. 
I  cannot  name  a  single  smooth  round  sort  that  does  not  crack  badly 
in  showery  weather.  They  are  as  tad  as  Gooseberries  and  Cherries 
in  this  respect,  and  cracked  fruits  are  not  wanted. 
There  are  several  corrugated  varieties  available  that  are  not  so 
coarsely  ribbed  as  the  old  Large  Red,  and  of  these  the  best  are 
Early  Ruby,  Laxton’s  Prolific,  Earliest  of  All,  and  Laxton’s  Open 
Air.  The  old  Keye’s  Prolific  is  also  reliable,  and  heavy 
cropping.  I  have  had  Ruby  fruiting  in  masses  from  the  ground 
to  a  height  of  30  inches,  and  at  Mr.  Hammond’s  fruit  farm  near 
Brentwood,  Essex,  I  saw  last  season  racemes  of  fruit  on  Laxton’s 
Prolific  fully  18  inches  long.  This  season  I  am  only  growing  Ruby 
and  Laxton’s  Prolific  extensively,  and  in  neither  case  will  many 
really  coarse  fruit  be  seen  on  the  plants.  It  is  true  the  first  large 
flowers  on  Ruby  would,  if  left  alone,  be  followed  by  large 
unshapely  fruit ;  but  these  are  invariably  pinched  off  early,  the 
rest  of  the  crop  benefiting  accordingly.  There  may  be  a  little 
cracking  of  fruit  going  on  whenever  the  weather  is  showery,  but 
it  will  be  trifling  compared  with  what  would  have  happened  had 
smooth  round  fruited  varieties  been  grown. 
Large  plants  in  6-inch  or  larger  pots  in  flower,  or  with  fruit 
already  set  upon  them,  are  things  of  the  past  in  my  case,  and  will 
never  again  be  recommended  for  planting  out  by  me.  At  the 
present  time  we  are  discarding  strong  plants  in  3-inch  pots,  or  such 
as  might  be  given  a  shift  into  larger  sizes  at  once,  in  favour  of 
others  only  just  recently  placed  singly  in  2^-inch  pots.  By  the 
end  of  May  these  will  be  about  5  inches  high,  strong,  and  well 
rooted.  At  this  stage  and  size  they  can  be  rapidly  planted 
out,  and  are  in  just  the  right  condition  for  becoming  quickly 
established  in  the  surrounding  soil.  This  applies  to  any  planted 
against  walls  as  well  as  in  the  open.  When  turned  out  of  larger 
pots  much  more  water  is  required  at  the  outset,  and  if  this 
is  not  applied  what  becomes  of  the  first  bunch  of  flowers  ?  My 
small  plants  are  growing  strongly  before  the  first  flowers  show, 
with  the  result  that  these  do  not  drop  off  prematurely,  but  are  fol¬ 
lowed  by  fruit.  If  the  weather  is  favourable  our  planting  will  be 
done  during  the  last  week  in  May,  but  should  the  nights  keep  cold 
and  frosts  be  imminent,  the  planting  will  be  deferred  another 
week.  The  Bexley  Heath  grower  is  sometimes  a  fortnight  earlier 
in  commencing  planting,  and  once  completed  his  five  acres  early  in 
May.  It  is  to  be  hoped  he  has  not  been  quite  so  venturesome  this 
season . 
When  grown  quite  in  the  open  Tomato  plants  must  be  kept 
fastened  to  either  stout  stakes  or  bamboos  secured  to  a  single  wire. 
I  find  the  latter  plan  the  cheaper,  and  it  answers  admirably. 
Light  3  feet  bamboos  will  be  thrust  into  the  ground  at  a  distance 
of  15  inches  apart  in  the  rows,  and  fastened  near  the  top  to  a  light 
wire  strained  to  stout  stakes  at  distances  of  about  20  feet  apart. 
This  will  be  done  in  advance  of  planting.  If  only  a  few  were 
grown  inverted  flower  pots  or  other  form  of  protection  could  be 
used  if  necessary,  but  our  plants  will  have  to  rough  it.  According 
as  they  grow  all  are  secured  to  the  bamboos.  Not  a  side  shoot  is 
allowed  to  develop,  or  at  any  rate  not  if  it  can  be  helped,  and  if 
need  be  the  plants  are  topped  when  nearing  the  wire. 
We  sometimes  see  it  stated  that  Tomatoes  in  the  open  ought 
not  to  be  watered.  I  tried  dispensing  with  the  hose  and  watering- 
pot,  and  also  with  the  usual  mulching  of  manure,  but  it  would  not 
work.  Last  season  only  the  well  mulched,  heavily  watered  rows 
produced  remunerative  crops.  Those  treated  to  lime  from  chalk, 
those  not  mulcned,  and  those  that  did  not  receive  enough  water 
collapsed  wholesale,  apparently  from  the  drooping  disease.  This 
season  they  will  be  grown  as  strongly  as  possible. — W.  Iggulden. 
HARDY  FLOWER  NOTES. 
Spenser  tells  us  that  “  May  is  the  fairest  maid  on  ground,”  and 
it  is  difficult  when  in  the  full  enjoyment  of  the  sweet  flowers  of 
early  summer  to  question  his  words.  True,  up  to  the  time  of 
writing,  this  year  the  fair  maid  has  been  in  hoyden  humour  and 
careless  of  her  floral  garlands.  Her  breath  has  not  been  sweet  and 
balmy  or  her  movements  gentle  and  graceful.  She  has  been 
rough  in  her  ways,  and  has  tossed  about  the  tender  flowers  as 
worthless  things  fit  only  to  be  spurned  and  despised.  Yet  with 
all  how  delightful  the  time  !  Tree  and  bush,  hedgerow  and 
meadow  of  the  brightest  and  freshest  green,  save  where  the  flowering 
trees  and  shrubs  have  essayed — and  not  in  vain — to  outshine  the 
others  clothed  only  in  their  exquisite  verdure.  Orchards  are  feasts 
for  the  eye,  as  hereafter  they  will  yield  to  the  palate  its  share  of 
the  bounties  of  the  year.  In  gardens  where  the  fruit  trees  are 
to  be  found  beside  the  flowers  there  is  friendly  rivalry  as  to  which 
will  please  the  more.  We  know  of  many  such  gardens  full  of 
interest  from  month  to  month. 
In  some  a  Clematis  or  other  slender  climbing  plant  yearly 
finds  its  needed  aupport  among  the  branches  of  the  trees,  and  adds 
beauty  to  the  garden  Perhaps  there  may  be  a  few  Apples  or 
Pears  less,  but  those  which  do  grow  give  a  finish  to  the  picture  in 
autumn,  when  Sunflowers  glow  in  the  border  and  Hollyhocks  rear 
their  spires  among.  One  cannot  say  so  much  of  every  garden,  but 
in  some  old  places  what  Herrick  calls 
“The  blushing  Apple,  bashful  Pear, 
And  shame-faced  Plum  ” 
never  look  out  of  place  beside  the  flowers,  even  when  the  exquisite 
bloom  of  a  Clematis  looks  out  coquettishly  from  among  the 
fruit. 
These  thoughts  arise  as  one  looks  upon  a  fine  plant  of  Trillium, 
grandiflorum  which  has  for  some  days  been  delighting  us  in  its 
moist,  half-shady  nook  of  the  rock  garden.  Beautiful  as  it  is,  large 
as  are  its  flowers,  it  is  less  beautiful  and  its  flowers  are  smaller 
than  those  of  the  parent  plant,  which,  in  another  garden,  flourishes 
beneath  the  branches  of  an  Apple  tree.  Those  who  see  a  small 
