342 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER, 
October  10, 1895, 
roofed  house  or  pit,  in  which  a  night  temperature  ranging  between 
45°  and  50°  is  maintained,  air,  of  course,  being  given  on  all 
favourable  occasions. 
With  this  treatment  steady  progress  will  be  made  all  through 
the  winter.  By  the  beginning  of  March  the  soil  should  be 
permeated  with  roots.  The  plants  should  then  be  transferred  to 
pots  9  inches  in  diameter,  using  a  compost  similar  to  that  already 
described,  with  the  addition  of  a  6-inch  potful  of  bonemeal  to  a 
bushel  of  soil.  Extra  care  should  be  taken  to  ram  the  soil  very 
firmly,  as  it  is  highly  important  to  secure  short-jointed  growth. 
At  this  potting  the  shoots  ought  to  be  tied  out  as  widely  apart  as 
their  length  will  admit,  and  the  points  removed  when  they  have 
commenced  to  grow  freely.  One  other  stopping  will  be  sufficient 
during  the  first  season,  but  the  shoots  must  be  tied  out  and 
distributed  evenly  as  they  advance  in  length. 
To  accomplish  this  it  is  a  good  plan  to  fasten  a  wire  under  the 
rim  of  the  pot,  and  gradually  bring  the  outer  shoots  down  to  it. 
In  this  way  a  well-shaped  plant  is  easily  secured.  In  forming 
large  specimens  there  is  too  great  a  tendency  to  produce  wide  flat 
examples,  instead  of  plants  whose  height  in  the  centre  is  pro¬ 
portionate  to  their  width  at  the  base.  For  instance,  a  specimen 
4  or  4^  feet  through,  and  2  or  2^  feet  high,  with  good  foliage 
and  large  trusses,  is  better  than  one  6  feet  across  and  a  foot  or 
so  in  height,  with  perhaps  only  small  leaves  and  trusses.  To 
avoid  this  error  of  flatness  it  is  therefore  necessary  (when  the 
stage  above  indicated  is  reached)  to  see  that  several  strong  shoots 
are  thinly  disposed  near  the  centre  of  the  plant.  During  all 
their  stages  of  growth  the  plants  must  be  kept  in  light  houses, 
where  they  receive  abundance  of  sunshine  at  all  times,  till  the 
flowers  begin  to  open,  then  a  light  shade  for  a  few  hours  during 
bright  days  is  beneficial.  It  is  a  good  plan  to  arrange  them  on 
inverted  pots,  so  that  they  stand  well  above  other  plants  in  the 
same  house. 
During  the  summer  months,  as  soon  as  the  pots  are  filled  with 
roots,  chemical  manure  ought  to  be  given  once  a  fortnight  and 
weak  liquid  manure  two  or  three  times  weekly.  If  these  directions 
are  carefully  attended  to  specimens  2^  feet  over  may  be  obtained 
by  the  middle  of  August.  All  flower  buds  must  of  course  be 
removed  in  the  early  stages  of  growth,  till  about  six  weeks  before 
the  show,  and  those  visible  then  be  left  to  develop.  When  the 
flowers  begin  to  open,  if  the  points  are  removed  from  each  shoot, 
the  size  of  the  trusses  will  be  increased. 
After  flowering  place  in  the  open  air  and  keep  rather  dry  for  a 
time,  then  shorten  each  shoot  back  to  a  point  where  young  ones 
have  already  been  formed .  A  week  after  this  turn  out  of  the  pots, 
reduce  the  ball,  and  repot  in  7-inch  pots.  Give  the  same  course  of 
winter  treatment,  and  shift  on  as  required.  The  plants  should  be 
ready  for  the  first  shift  early  in  January,  and  the  final  one  by  the 
end  of  March,  at  this  stage  using  pots  11  or  12  inches  in  diameter. 
In  these  good  specimens  upwards  of  4  feet  across  ought  to  be 
obtained  the  same  season. 
The  following  varieties  are  well  adapted  for  specimens:  — 
Scarlet  or  crimson  shades  (single)  :  Charles  Mason,  Cannell’s 
Favourite,  and  Lord  Salisbury  ;  purple,  Mrs.  W.  Wright  ;  pink, 
Constance,  Mrs.  French ;  salmon,  Beauty  of  Kent,  Kate  Farmer  ; 
white,  Swanley  White.  Doubles :  F.  V.  Raspail  (Improved), 
H.  M.  Stanley,  Goldfinder,  Lord  Derby,  Magenta  King,  James 
Vick,  Swanley  Double  White. 
In  dealing  with  the  Ivy-leaved  section  the  above  remarks  in 
regard  to  soil,  situation,  and  temperature  will  be  equally  applicable, 
but  training  and  potting  must  be  conducted  on  a  different  method. 
On  account  of  their  trailing  habit  and  quick  growth  these  plants 
adapt  themselves  to  almost  any  style  of  training,  bat  the  great 
point  to  aim  at  is  to  adopt  a  method  which  lends  itself  to  a  certain 
amount  of  looseness  in  training,  so  that  when  in  flower  the 
characteristic  informality  natural  to  all  trailing  plants  may  be 
displayed.  Pillar-shaped  plants  afford  the  best  means  of  securing 
these  conditions.  This  was  amply  demonstrated  by  the  grand 
specimens  shown  at  York  a  few  years  ago.  Some  of  the  plants 
were  6  feet  high  and  3  feet  through,  profusely  flowered  all  over, 
and  yet  trained  in  a  somewhat  loose  and  natural  manner. 
The  system  of  gradually  shifting  into  larger  pots  cannot 
conveniently  be  practised  with  this  section  of  Pelargoniums, 
because  it  is  necessary  to  form  a  trellis  before  a  great  amount  of 
growth  has  been  made.  I  generally  like  to  place  the  plants  in 
their  flowering  pots  in  August,  so  that  the  roots  begin  to  push 
freely  into  the  soil  before  winter,  and  then  have  the  spring  and 
early  summer  months  to  cover  the  trellis  with  growth.  As 
“  Subscriber’s  ”  inquiry  comes  too  late  to  adopt  this  plan,  the 
following  one  will  answer  well,  though,  of  course,  time  is  lost. 
Most  gardeners  have  a  good  stock  of  plants  on  hand  which  they 
have  flowered  in  the  early  summer  months,  and  then  placed  in  the 
open  air.  These  at  the  present  time  have  strong  shoots,  1  or  2  feet 
in  length,  and  are  now  in  6  or  7-inch  pots.  Such  will  answer 
admirably  for  growing  quickly  into  specimens,  as  a  little  freedom 
in  growth  is  no  great  drawback,  seeing  that  the  shoots  can  be 
twisted  in  all  directions. 
Plants  of  this  description  ought  at  once  be  shifted  into  pots  two 
sizes  larger.  Sticks  should  then  be  placed  round  the  sides  of  the 
pot  and  one  in  the  centre,  each  shoot  being  trained  upright  to  a 
stick.  This  will  ensure  full  exposure  and  a  steady  yet  progressive 
growth.  Place  these  in  their  flowering  pots  early  in  the  spring, 
when  the  soil  is  well  permeated  with  roots.  The  pots  may  be  10, 
12,  or  14-inch,  according  to  the  size  of  the  specimens  required  ; 
12-inch  will,  however,  be  large  enough  to  produce  examples  5  feet 
in  height  and  2j  feet  through.  After  potting,  the  next  point 
to  set  about  is  the  construction  of  the  trellis.  This  can  be  made 
on  exactly  the  same  principle  as  pyramidal-shaped  ones  so  much 
in  vogue  for  Azaleas,  but  with  this  important  alteration — the 
outline  must  vary  but  little  in  diameter  for  two-thirds  of  its  height, 
so  as  to  do  away  with  the  objectionable  pointed  circle.  This  is  by 
no  means  difficult  to  accomplish.  Commence  by  driving  a  stout 
stake  into  the  soil  quite  in  the  centre  of  the  pot,  next  fasten  a 
strong  wire  ring  under  the  rim,  then  place  a  couple  of  laths  half 
an  inch  in  thickness  across  the  pot,  so  that  they  form  a  right  angle 
close  to  the  central  stake,  fasten  these  securely  with  wire  to  the 
ring  underneath  the  rim. 
A  strong  iron  ring  2^  feet  in  diameter  must  then  be  fastened  to 
these  cross  pieces  of  wood,  taking  care  that  it  forms  an  equi¬ 
distant  circle  round  the  rim  of  the  pot.  Two  other  rings  will  be 
required,  one  2  feet  from  the  bottom  one  and  the  other  1  foot  from 
the  top  of  the  stake  ;  each  of  these  should  be  6  inches  less  in 
diameter  than  the  one  below  it.  Vertical  wires  6  inches  apart  at 
the  base  should  then  be  strained  and  fastened  to  each  of  the  rings 
and  also  to  a  screw  placed  in  the  top  of  the  central  stake.  A 
column  or  outline  will  thus  be  obtained  well  adapted  for  displaying 
the  beauty  of  these  free  growing  plants. 
The  shoots  should  next  be  untied  from  the  stakes  and  twisted 
about  in  various  directions  and  fastened  to  the  wires.  This  tying- 
in  must,  of  course,  be  continued  at  intervals  as  the  growth  extends, 
the  last  tying  taking  place  when  the  flowers  begin  to  open.  This 
should  be  done  in  such  a  way  as  to  leave  the  points  of  the  shoots 
from  3  to  6  inches  in  length  hanging  loosely  ;  then  with  the  little 
they  grow  while  the  flowers  are  expanding  nothing  approaching 
tight  lacing  will  be  observed.  I  ought  to  have  previously  men¬ 
tioned  that  after  potting,  the  plants  may  with  advantage  be  placed 
in  a  temperature  ranging  from  55°  to  60°  by  night.  A  sharp  look 
out  must,  however,  be  kept  for  green  fly,  and  an  occasional  syring¬ 
ing  be  given  in  bright  weather.  After  a  month’s  sojourn  in  this 
warmer  temperature  return  them  again  to  an  ordinary  greenhouse 
one. 
Good  varieties  for  the  purpose  are  Comte  Horace  de  Choiseul, 
salmon  pink  ;  Madame  Crousse,  delicate  rose  ;  Mrs.  Charles  Turner, 
rose  ;  Ryecroft  Surprise,  salmon  pink  ;  Flambeau,  scarlet ;  Jeanne 
d’Arc,  blush  white ;  Percy  Surman,  magenta ;  and  Madame 
Mongeat. — Exhibitor  . 
FRUIT  AND  HEALTH. 
The  past  summer  and  the  present  autumn  will  long  be  re¬ 
membered  for  their  great  heat  and  drought,  and  the  abundance  of 
Apples  and  Plums.  In  accordance  with  the  ancient  notions  of 
bygone  days,  sickness,  cholera,  and  other  ills  would  be  sure  to 
follow,  but  this  does  not  appear  to  be  the  case.  During  this 
abundant  fruit  season,  with  so  high  a  temperature  and  such  little 
rain,  is  it  not  rather  remarkable  that  we  have  been  unusually 
healthy  as  a  nation  ?  I  think  so.  The  question  arises.  Is  there  a 
cause  or  reason  to  account  for  this  highly  satisfactory  state  of 
things  ?  I  think  there  is. 
Plums  at  ^d.  per  lb.,  and  Apples  at  3  lbs.  for  Id.  in  nearly  all 
large  towns  and  cities,  at  once  make  it  plain  that  an  enormous 
quantity  must  have  been  partaken  of  everywhere  with  excellent 
results.  The  question  is.  Have  we  not  gained  greatly  by  all  this 
fruit  eating  ?  If  any  of  your  correspondents  could  throw  any  light 
on  the  very  important  advantages  of  eating  fruit  to  make  us  more 
safe  from  epidemics  it  would  be  solving  a  great  question  indeed 
for  our  future  sustenance  and  guidance.  I  myself  have  eaten 
considerably  more  than  usual,  and  thus  required  less  to  drink  ;  nor 
have  I  in  the  least  felt  a  desire  for  the  usual  fluids,  I  believe  in 
consequence,  during  the  hottest  weather,  and  never  felt  better.  In 
my  opinion  this  general  partaking  of  fruit  has  caused  people  to  be 
much  more  satisfied,  the  young  in  particular  ;  they  have  been  far 
less  acutely  thirsty. 
Is  it  not  more  likely  freely  partaking  of  popular  kinds  of 
drinks  often  disagrees  with  many  ?  These  drinks  apparently  con¬ 
tain  ingredients  which  rather  sharpen  the  parched  feeling  more  and 
more,  and  many  innocently  over-indulge.  But  when  the  thirsty 
