464 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
June  2. 
COB-NUTS  AND  FILBERTS. 
{Concluded  from  page  422.) 
Pruning. 
It  is  uot  a  difficult  matter  to  prime  a  bush  that  lias  been  properly 
trained  on  the  lines  described,  but  to  commence  pruning  one  of  the 
overgrown  shapeless  specimens  such  as  are  frequently  met  with  is 
another  matter,  and  therefore,  perhaps  wisely,  they  are  generally  left 
alone.  Again,  Nuts  are  frequently  left  unpruned  because  the  grower 
is  not  quite  sure  which  is  the  Iruiting  wood,  and  for  this  reason  the 
pruning  may  be  left  till  the  end  of  March  or  early  in  April,  when 
both  catkins  and  female  flowers  will  be  open.  Nuts  produce  fruit  on 
the  upper  part  of  young  shoots  on  spurs,  and  on  the  twiggy  growth 
that  is  emitted  from  the  main  stems.  The  leaders  of  the  main 
branches  mav  be  shortened  on  the  orthodox  method  to  about  two- 
thirds  their  length  each  season,  until  they  have  reached  the  required 
height,  after  which  they  may  be  treated  as  spurs.  Strong  side  shoots 
can  be  shortened  to  two  or  three  buds,  and  will  form  spurs,  and, 
while  avoiding  congestion,  short  twiggy  growth  that  never  fails  to 
produce  fruit  blossoms  should  be  encouraged,  and  in  pruning  care 
must  always  be  taken  to  leave  sufficient  catkins  or  dowers  for 
fertilisation.  Kentish  growers  always  prune  close  to  the  main  stems, 
so  that  after  the  process  the  bushes  have  quite  a  skeleton  appearance. 
Soil  and  Cultivation. 
Some  of  the  best  Nut  plantations  in  Kent  are  on  hillsides  and 
sloping  banks  where  the  soil  is  not  necessarily  of  a  particularly  fertile 
character,  but  friable  and  naturally  well  drained.  Nuts  appear  to 
have  a  partiality  for  a  rooting  medium  of  somewhat  brashy  nature, 
and  in  many  places  where  a  shallow  soil  rests  on  the  famous  Kentish 
ragstone  Cob-Nuts  are  abundantly  produced.  Low  situations  should 
be  avoided,  as  bloom  is  liable  to  be  destroyed  by  late  spring  frosts, 
and  land  holding  water  should  be  drained  before  planting,  otherwise 
growth  will  be  too  rank.  I'hough  Nuts  are  grown  in  some  districts 
on  a  chalk  subsoil,  it  is  generally  where  “rag”  prevails  that  the 
most  plantations  are  found.  Ground  should  be  broken  up  and  worked 
prior  to  planting,  and  well  established  specimens  give  a  quicker  and 
better  return  than  do  recently  rooted  layers  or  suckers  taken  from  the 
old  bushes. 
Nuts  are  grown' either  as  an  entire  crop  or  with  standard  and  bush 
fruit.  Under  the  former  system  the  bushes  are  disposed  from  10  to 
12  feet  apart  where  the  soil  is  good  and  the  situation  favourable. 
When  planted  between  standard  Apples  and  Plums  the  Nut  bushes 
must  necessarily  be  kept  low,  the  advantage  of  this  system  being  that 
the  former  act  as  a  protection,  and  on  this  account  it  is  favoured. 
Black  Currants  and  other  bush  fruit  are  also  grown  between  Nuts, 
and  in  this  case  the  latter  are  given  a  wider  distance  between  the  rows. 
By  this  method  the  ground  may  be  utilised  to  advantage  while  the 
Nuts  are  becoming  established  and  come  into  bearing.  Surface 
cultivation  of  the  soil  in  plantations  during  the  summer  is  good,  and 
in  the  autumn  a' ter  the  leaves  have  fallen  the  bushes  are  examined, 
all  sucker  growth  removed,  and  an  application  of  farmyard  manure 
forked  in  among  them,  together  with  the  fallen  leaves.  Rag  waste  is 
used  in  some  Kentish  plantations  at  the  rate  of  about  1  ton  to  the 
acre  ;  also  quick-acting  fertilisers  are  applied  as  surface  dressings 
in  the  spring. 
Varieties, 
Cobs  and  Filberts  are  to  the  uninitiated  one  and  the  same  thing,  but 
the  difference  is  that  the  Cob  Nut  is  round,  and  not  covered  by  the 
husk,  while  the  Filbert  is  oblong  and  entirely  covered.  Probably  the 
best  all-round  Nut  in  cultivation  is  Lambert  Filbert.  This  variety  is 
largely  grown  in  Kent  under  the  name  of  Kentish  Cob,  and  is  sold  as 
such.  The  mistake  in  nomenclature  has  doubtless  arisen  through 
custom,  as  the  Nut  is  a  Filbert  with  a  fine  oblong  kernel,  and  the  tree  is 
hardy  and  a  prolific  bearer.  The  purple  Filbert  makes  a  handsome 
ornamental  tree  with  its  dark  purple  foliage,  and  as  such  it  is  grown 
in  pleasure  grounds,  for  which  it  is  better  adapted  than  in  plantations. 
There  are  also  red  and  white  Fdberts,  so  called  from  the  colour  of  the 
kernels.  Among  Cob  Nuts  Cosford  is  a  vigorous  grower,  producing  a 
large  white  kernel.  IMerveille  de  Bollwyller  is  a  true  Cob  with  short 
husk  and  large  shell.  Pearson’s  Prolific  makes  a  dwarf  bush,  and  is 
suitable  for  planting  under  standard  trees.  The  habit  is  sturdy  and 
compact,  the  shells  being  well  filled  with  sweet  kernels. 
Generalities. 
In  order  to  keep  Nuts  in  good  condition  as  long  as  possible  they 
must  in  the  first  place  be  left  on  the  bushes  till  thoroughly  ripe. 
After  picking  they  should  be  laid  thinly  on  dry  shelves  where  the  air 
can  circulate  freely  through  them.  If  not  wanted  for  immediate  use 
the  husks,  when  dead  and  dry,  may  be  removed,  the  Nuts  placed  in 
iars  and  fastened  down  perfectly  air-tight.  Nuts  so  treated  and  stood 
in  a  dry  cool  place  will  keep  for  a  considerable  time.  Squirrels,  rats. 
and  mice  are  all  partial  to  Nuts,  the  former  in  woodland  district.^, 
■w'here  they  abound,  doing  so  much  damage  among  the  bushes  that 
stringent  measures  have  to  be  taken.  Amongst  the  insect  pests  the  Nut 
weevil,  Balaninus  (Curculio)  nucum,  is  the  most  deadly.  In  May  the 
female  deposits  an  egg  in  the  young  fruit,  and  the  larva  when  hatched 
feeds  on  the  kernel  and  then  eats  its  way  out,  falls  to  the  ground,  and 
passes  into  a  chrysalis  state.  By  way  ot  remedy  the  bushes  may  be 
shaken  in  May,  spreading  sheets  beneath  to  catch  the  beetles.  If 
treated  the  same  way  in  August  all  affected  Nuts  will  fall,  and  they 
should  at  once  be  deposited  in  the  fire.  Soot  and  lime  worked  into 
the  soil  in  the  spring  are  disagreeable  to  the  pests  and  beneficial  to  the 
Nuts. — A  Worker. 
NOTES  ON  MELONS  IN  FRAMES. 
{Concluded  from  page  403.) 
Stopping,  Training,  and  Setting. 
When  the  plant  puts  forth  one  rough  leaf  and  then  another,  rub 
off  the  knob-like  joint  without  injuring  either  of  the  leaves,  to  induce 
the  production  of  two  strong  shoots  in  place  of  the  one.  Let  these 
make  six  leaves,  then  again  rub  off  the  leads,  and  there  will  be  a 
number  of  shoots,  which  only  need  a  little  training  to  let  the  sun 
get  at  them  all  as  evenly  as  possible,  to  cover  the  bed  with  regularity. 
The  stopping  will  give  rise  to  several  lateral  branches  with  staminate 
and  pistillate  blossoms  showing  all  over  the  plant.  That  is  just  what 
is  wanted  to  get  a  good  set — namely,  several  fruit  blossoms  fit  for  ferti¬ 
lising  at  one  time.  The  shoots  that  reach  first  to  wdthin  6  inches  of  the 
sides  of  the  frame  must  have  their  ends  pinched  off,  and  when  the  fruit 
is  set  and  swelling  the  sujierfluous  growths  are  thinned  out  or  stopped, 
so  that  they  do  not  interfere  with  light  to  the  principal  leaves.  Even 
before  setting  any  refractory  growths  are  either  stopped  or  cut  away 
to  secure  an  equality  for  all  of  .space,  and  thus  give  every  shoot  a 
chance. 
When  the  flowers  appear  a  little  ventilation  keeps  the  air  in 
motion,  and  moisture  does  not  condense  on  the  flowers  to  the  ruin  of 
the  pollen  and  pistils.  A  slight  warmth  from  lining  the  sides  of  the 
frame  with  grass  mowings  then  does  good,  as  it  allows  air  to  be  given, 
especially  in  dull  weather.  If  only  a  fruit  blos.som  appears  at  first  on  a 
jdant,  nip  it  off,  but  two  being  expanded  in  one  day,  fertilise  about  noon, 
repeating  this  daily  till  enough  fruit  has  set,  which  is  easily  seen  by 
their  commencing  to  swell.  Whenever  fertilising  a  flower  pinch  out 
the  point  of  the  lateral  a  joint  beyond.  From  four  to  six  are 
sufficient  on  a  ]ilant,  for  it  is  overcropping  and  overfeeding  that  take 
quality  out  of  Melons.  Steady  supplies  of  nourishment,  extracted 
slowly  from  a  hard  soil,  make  Melons  as  hard  as  cricket  balls,  and  as 
luscious  as  honey  inside.  Set  each  fruit  on  a  slate  so  that  water  will 
run  off  it.  Clear  away  all  flowers  and  fruits  that  are  not  required. 
Watering. 
Up  to  the  flowering  period  only  give  sufficient  water  to  keep  the 
plan's  in  steady  growth,  and  this  is  the  most  difficult  point  in  the  whole 
matter.  If  too  much  be  given,  the  plants  will  produce  so  many  leaves 
that  the  la'erals  carrying  fruit  will  be  smothered;  if  too  little,  the 
plants  may  become  stunted,  and  red  spider  seize  on  them.  The  soil 
must  neither  be  dust  dry  nor  sodden,  but  just  between  the  two,  no 
water  being  given  whilst  it  is  in  that  state.  But  when  it  is  getting  dry, 
and  the  foliage  is  becoming  a  little  limp  under  powerful  sun,  afford  a 
fair  supply.  I  water  mine  in  fine  weather  twice  a  w'eek,  and  in  dull 
once,  or  not  even  that.  Slight  flagging  is  not  always  a  sign  of  water 
being  required,  for  excessive  evaporation  will  cause  it  whilst  the  soil  is 
quite  moist,  and  a  slight  shading  is  better  under  such  circumstances 
than  a  deluge  of  water.  When  flowering  and  setting  withhold  water, 
and  while  the  fruit  is  swelling  neither  drown  the  plants  nor  let  them 
perish  through  drought.  On  fine  afternoons  a  light  sprinkling,  always 
keeping  water  from  the  stems  of  the  plants,  helps  wonderfully,  and 
prevents  red  spider.  Before  the  process  of  ripening  begins  the  soil 
should  have  a  good  store  of  moisture,  in  order  that  none  will  be 
required  from  that  time  until  the  fruit  is  cut,  during  which  interval 
the  surface  of  the  soil  should  be  kept  perfectly  dry. 
Ripening. 
When  the  fruit  has  netted  and  the  rind  is  hard  it  seems  to  concen¬ 
trate  its  energies  on  the  perfecting  of  the  seeds,  growing  very  little 
unless  kept  in  a  warm  close  atmosphere  and  lavishly  fed  at  the  roots. 
This  is  the  period  to  get  quality.’  It  will  not  come  at  the  finish 
unless  stamina  be  there  to  support  the  effort ;  therefore  do  not  over¬ 
feed,  but  keep  steady,  and  when  the  fruit  begins  to  change  colour— a 
keen  eye  knowing  long  before  the  aroma  pervades  the  air — add 
a  lining  (it  is  really  astonishing  wffiat  virtue  there  is  in  grass 
mowings),  and  also  a  little  air  day  and  night.  If  the  fruit  has  been 
grown  in  partial  shade  do  not  expose  it  suddenly  to  the  fierce  rays  of 
the  sun,  but  let  it  ripen  where  grown,  as  the  bine  will  pour  its  stores 
